A friend reminded me today of what turns out to have been only a regional phenomenon, Mr. Yuk, a green frowny-face sticker from the 1970s that parents were supposed to mark household poisons with. Mr. Yuk had a dour, dirgeful theme song which was often played as a PSA during cartoons (you can hear the whole, long thing on his website), and he didn’t believe in sugar coating things for children:
Mr. Yuk is mean. Mr. Yuk is green.
Home is full of lots of things that children shouldn’t touch.
Home is full of bad things that can hurt you very much.
Now there’s a man whose face is green that you ought to get to know.
He’ll warn you when danger’s coming, fast or slow.
Mr. Yuk is mean. Mr. Yuk is green.
When you see him stop and think.
Do not smell. Do not drink.
Do not touch. Do not eat.
Or you will be sick.
Almost as fun is the Mr. Yuk brochure which includes a room-by-room of household poisons to emblazon with Mr. Yuk stickers, including “alcoholic beverages” in the kitchen, “perfume” in the bedroom, “houseplants” in the living room, and “wild mushrooms” in the backyard.
“When you see him, you’ll know quick, things marked “Yuk” make you sick….sick, sick, sick…..sick, sick, sick!”