John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt
"John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt" is a traditional children's song of obscure origin. The same verse is sung more and more softly in repetition. Its lyrics are close variations of:
John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt,
His name is my name, too.
Whenever we go out,
The people always shout,
"There goes John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt!"
Da da da da da da da da [or other falderol][1]
The mock German name celebrated in the song suggests that English-speaking children find long northern-European names to be inherently funny words. The surname "Schmidt" and the surname suffix "-heimer" are of Germanic origin. Schmidt is one of the most common surnames in German heritage.
Contents |
Origin[edit]
While the origins of the song are obscure, some evidence places its roots with vaudeville and theatre acts of the late 19th century and early 20th century popular in immigrant communities. Some vaudeville acts during the era, such as the work of Joe Weber and Lew Fields, often gave voice to shared frustrations of German-American immigrants and heavily leaned on malapropisms and difficulties with the English language as a vehicle for its humor.[2] Further, "John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt" shares many characteristics with "My Name is Jan Jansen", a song that can trace its origin to Swedish vaudeville in the late 19th century.
The song can be sung in an infinite loop, like "The Song That Never Ends", "My Name is Jan Jansen", "Michael Finnegan", or "High Hopes".
Versions of this song also appear in other languages, such as the Spanish rendition; "Juan Pedro Pablo de la Mar".[citation needed]
Notable appearances[edit]
- In the film In the Army Now (1994), four characters sing the song when they are deployed while in the army, and in a cutaway, are screamed to "shut up" by the rest of the Army.
- In the film To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995), Robin Williams plays a character named John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt. Noxeema Jackson (played by Wesley Snipes) remarks, "Oh, his name is my name, too!"
- In the film RocketMan (1997) it is sung by Harland Williams.
- In the film Disney's The Kid (2000) it is sung by Rusty Duritz (played by Spencer Breslin).
- In the film Recess: School's Out (2001), the song is led by Mikey Blumberg (Robert Goulet)
- In the film I Am Sam (2001), Sam Dawson (Sean Penn) sings "John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt" with his daughter Lucy Dawson (Dakota Fanning).
- Featured as "Shane Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt" in The Pacifier (2004), sung by Lulu Plummer (Morgan York) and her Firefly Scouts.
- It has appeared in many television shows, including:
- Happy Days season 5 episode 8, "Fonzie and Leather Tuscadero", Tuesday November 8, 1977.
- The Andy Griffith Show season 4 episode 126 "Back To Nature", May 11, 1964.
- Mystery Science Theater 3000 season 4 episode 21 "Monster A-Go-Go".
- The Secret Life of the American Teenager season 1 episode 23.
- sung by Sandra Bullock in Muppets Tonight season 1 episode 7, June 23, 1996.
- Animaniacs season 1 episode 54 "Brerva", February 15, 1994.
- Everybody Loves Raymond season 3 episode 6 Halloween Candy, October 26, 1998.
- Psych season 5 episode 1 "Romeo and Juliet and Juliet", July 14, 2010.
- Best Ed season 1, episode "Nightmare on Sweet Street": a ghostly figure named "The Breadsless Northsman" is scared away by using this song. Ed sings a line in a happy tune, while Buddy cries the next line.
- In "The Duck Who Cried Wolf" on PB&J Otter, it is performed as "John Jacob Jingle Otter Breath."
- Seattle band Estocar ends the recording of the song Please Advise with three loops of the song.
- The song has also been featured in several episodes of the popular children's series Barney & Friends.
References[edit]
- ^ Lynch, Dan (1991-06-23). "Bug Juice Days". Albany Times Union. p. B4. Retrieved 2009-08-11.
- ^ Wasson, Andrew. "John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt is not a Person". Dairy River.
