The VERY Messed Up Origins of The Muffin Man

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▼ Timestamps ▼
» 0:00 - Do you know the Muffin Man?
» 1:05 - The Rhyme
» 5:34 - The Meaning of the Muffin Man

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▼ Credits ▼
» Edited by: Mary Tuck
» Written & Directed by: Jon Solo

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» If I used your art in any portion of this video please send a message to my business email with proof that you're the original artist so I can give you credit!

#muffinman #messeduporigins #shrek

[JonSolo]

Thank you all for watching and for sharing your experiences with the Muffin Man! I love seeing how much this silly song resonates with people from all around the world. 😄 Don't forget to comment your FAVORITE theory about his origins down below! 👇

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[littleshedevl]

Every time someone asks “do you know the muffin man?” I need to shout “THE MUFFIN MAN?!” to hope the person will shout back “THE MUFFIN MAN!”

[becca]

I’m so happy you covered this! Shrek literally was a cultural reset in terms of the muffin man I had no idea about the origins of the muffin man

[raven]

“Well she's married to The Muffin Man.”

[thatguy]

Was not expecting a Muffin Man video today. Always learn something new every time Jon drops a video

[darriendastar]

Drury Lane was never a *really* rough part of London. That honour went to the other side of Covent Garden where you found St Giles' rookery. Drury Lane was an older part of London. The lane itself dated from before Tudor times and was 'famed' for a pub that's now called The White Hart (Henry VIII is recorded as taking one of his doxies there).

When the Earl of Bedford, John Russell, was developing Covent Garden to be an upscale gated community for the wannabe posh, Drury Lane was regarded as something of a charming and 'respectable' thoroughfare in the 17th century. By the 18th century, the area had become decidedly lower-rent as fruit sellers moved into Covent Garden and more taverns, brothels and theatres sprung up on Drury Lane and the surrounding streets (think of it as 18th-century Netflix and Chill).

But it was by no means a slum - it'd probably be closer to New York's Time Square before it was cleaned up.

Prostitution was a major industry in the area - there used to be printed guides informing gentlemen (and ladies) as to where the best brothels were, which courtesans were rated highest by patrons, what their specialities were, how much they cost in addition to listing the actresses who dabbled in prostitution and the prostitutes who dabbled in acting. (It also listed the whores who'd indulge in lesbian acts - aka 'the game of flats'.)

Because of this, I'd suspect the likeliest occupation of the Muffin Man was either a pimp or a local guide to the best of bawdiness the neighbourhood had to offer.

[ttvmikimoto]

I had a stepdad from 5-10 years old. When I was little if I missbehaved he told me he would call the 'kiddie police" and they would take me away. I met up with him years later as an adult and got to tell him my entire childhood, I understood it as "the kitty police". I envisioned two cats walking upright in cop uniforms that would come and take me away 😂😂😂, never realized until I was an adult he was saying "kiddie" not 'kitty".

[gerardtrigo]

75 years old and this is the first I ever heard of the Muffin Man. I learned something new today. When I first saw the heading I thought of the Pillsbury Dough boy.

[kathleenhaley]

I live in England and I never heard the muffin man be referred to as a pimp I was always under the impression it was a warning to children about a pedophile during that time

[pamelamays]

I'd like to think that the Muffin Man was merely the neighborhood baker.

[BrownieBiteB]

Would love to see you do one on the boy who cried wolf if you havent already. Love the dedication and depth of research you always do for us so us mortals dont have to lmao.

[pjb]

Having lived on the periphery of the film industry and known that most actors have second jobs and having been aware of Drury Lane theater, it occurred to me that this man could have been an actor bunking in the theater and baking when not acting. The 'muffin man' song would make a perfect advertising jingle and most actors are also musical.

[AdamIshak]

The Muffin Man in Shrek and Shrek 2 had such little roles but brought all the joy.

“Do you still know the muffin man?” “Yeah he lived on Drury Lane, why?” … “AAAH GINGGYYY!!”

Also I continue to forget this man is a fellow Chicagoan/Illinois human.

[SallyLovejoy]

The City I lived in as a child actually had a street called Drury Lane. When I was about 4 years old, I went with my Mum who needed a dress altering. When she told me the seamstress lived in Drury Lane, I asked her if we could also buy muffins from the Muffin Man! I couldn't understand why she was laughing.

[ryanvandermeijs]

I’m Dutch and I had this friend during high school, we had an assignment where we needed to submit a picture of ourselves and he submitted a picture of him with a plate of mussels. So since then we’ve been calling him the musselman.

[fieryblaze]

I really should know better than to drink anything when watching your videos. You always say something that makes my drink come out of my nose from laughing so hard. I love your show!

[SwampNymph]

I’m convinced that nursery rhymes are creative ways ppl shared historical happenings in the past.

[Jaybird]

I think you would enjoy the Nursery Crime series by Jasper Fforde. The Big Over Easy, has Jack Spratt and Mary Mary investigating the murder of Humpty Dumpty, and the sequel, The Forth Bear, has them investigating the death of Goldilocks, with a cameo from the Gingerbreadman!

[madelinerock]

Okay, I’ll tell you. Do you know the muffin man?

The muffin man???

tHe MUfFiN MaN!!!

[JenFoxworth]

my son was randomly singing the song in a gas station last week, and him and the cashier got into it, my son claiming he would eat the muffin man, instead of his muffins, and he wasn't safe, no matter what lane he was on. It was.... something, all right. XD