Prince Albert in a can

[Seraphim]

I've always been mystified by this joke:

Prank Caller: "Do you have Prince Albert in a can?"
Callee: "Yes."
Prank Caller: "Well, you better let him out!"

I don't get it. What the hell is the caller referring to? Where did this expression come from? And why is it funny?

[Lsura]

The call would be made to a tobacco shop, hopefully one that sold Prince Albert tobacco.

[gotpasswords]

It's just a silly prank like

"Is your refrigerator running?" ... "Better go catch it!"

[Eve]

And, for the slang-challenged among you, "can" is a euphemism for "toilet."

("Does your nose run and your feet smell?" "You're built upside-down!")

[Eleusis]

Originally Posted by Eve

And, for the slang-challenged among you, "can" is a euphemism for "toilet."

"Do you have Prince Albert in a toilet?"

Well that doesn't make a lick of sense!

[David Simmons]

Originally Posted by Eleusis

"Do you have Prince Albert in a toilet?"

Well that doesn't make a lick of sense!

It is a children's gag. You're not supposed to think it funny.

The whole sequence is. Call to a tobacco retailer -

"Do you have Prince Albert in the can?

Yes.

Well, let him out!"

Hang up amid much giggling.

[Eleusis]

No, the joke in the OP is funny. And lsura's answer was correct.

I'm questioning Eve. The joke has nothing to do with cans in the sense I use to drop the kids off at the pool.

[Eleusis]

Well, now I get what she's saying, but as a kid I never associated the joke with keeping the actual prince in the toilet. I thought of it as keeping the actual prince in an actual can.

Meh.

[wolf_meister]

Agreed Eleusis.
The point of the joke is that you are conveying the idea to the tobacco store owner (or drug store owner) that Prince Albert is actually stuck in that can of tobacco and he is suffocating and so the owner had better let him out. And when my friends and I made those crazy phone calls, we never thought the point of the joke was that Prince Albert was stuck in a toilet.

It may have been 15 years ago (maybe more), when I read a full-page article in the newspaper that Prince Albert would no longer be sold in a can. (Shocking isn't it?) And how did the article begin?
"Do you have Prince Albert in a can?" to which a kindly tobacco store owner would grudgingly answer "Yes we do", etc.

And how come Prince Albert is no longer being sold in a can? It would be hilarious to think that the endless amount of phone pranks finally proved to be too much for the tobacco company and its vendors. No, the answer is more utilitarian than that. Prince Albert is now being sold only in a pouch because 1) It is cheaper than using a metal can and
2) The pouch actually keeps the tobacco fresher.

Well, it was a story that had to be told.

[Walloon]

The word "can" for "toilet" is the opposite of a euphemism; it's a dysphemism.

[spingears]

"Prince Albert" was and maybe still is a shredded tobacco used for rolling-your-own cigarretes. It came in a distinctive, mostly red, can with a litho of the real Prince Albert on the front. The can was of about 5/8" thick, 3" wide and 5" or 6" high with a flip top lid. About the right size to carry in a hip pocket.

Now the question: "Do you have Prince Albert in a/the can?" and the retort to a "Yes" answer makes the joke. "Let him out."

[Eve]

The toilet was always the point of the joke, at least to me: "Do you have the future King of England locked in the toilet?"

[Kalhoun]

The "can" can be both the "toilet" and the "bathroom", in which case, Prince Albert in the can could refer to him being locked in the bathroom, which is funny. It makes WAY more sense than a human being locked in a tiny tin.

[phreesh]

Originally Posted by Eve

The toilet was always the point of the joke, at least to me: "Do you have the future King of England locked in the toilet?"

No. I have never heard it stated as Prince Albert in the can. As a question in regards to tobaco, it makes no sense to ask if it is in the can. The question is if the vender sells it in a can. The meaning of the question can then be turned into a (ver) slightly humorous twist by suggesting that the actual Prince is in said can.

[Rex Fenestrarum]

"King of England"??? Prince Albert would never have been the King of England... That's why he was only a "prince" while married to Queen Victoria... The same way that the current Prince Phillip could never be King of England even though he's married to QEII...

Am I right folks??

[One And Only Wanderers]

you're right as far as im aware. A King outranks a Queen (don't jump down my throat anyone, I didn't make up the rules of pageantry) thus if the reigning Monarch is a Queen, her consort would be a Prince (specifically a Prince-Consort), however if the reigning monarch is a King, his consort becomes a Queen.

[Malacandra]

Brit checking in:

Quite right, a Prince Consort is never in line to the throne. Nor is a Queen Consort. On the death of King George VI the throne passed to his elder daughter, now Queen Elizabeth II, although his wife was alive, well, and had nearly fifty years to live. She was called Queen ("Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother") for the rest of her life but wasn't remotely in the line of succession. and any right she did have would have been via her parentage and not through her own marriage.

The batting order at the moment is:

Charles
Charles's sons in order of age (William and Harry)
Andrew
Andrew's daughters in order of age (Beatrice and Eugenie)
Edward
Edward's daughter
Anne
Anne's son Peter
Anne's daughter Zara.

As soon as William or Harry becomes a father, Andrew and everyone below moves down a seat.

Philip is somewhere down the list, as IIRC he is a descendent of Queen Victoria, but before he could get the crown there would have to be an avalanche of suspicious deaths that would make all of the Diana conspiracy theories look like starters.


Of course, if someone rings up and says "Have you got Prince Albert in a pouch?" he can still use the same punchline if the tobacconist cooperates.

Eve was nearly right, in that George VI was known as "Bertie" before he was crowned, just as his brother Edward VIII was known as "David". Charlie will probably stick with his real name to be crowned by, though.

[Eve]

OK, I was wrong, no one named Albert is, every was or ever will be in line for the throne of England. Are you over it and can we get back to the important issue of whether any royal named Albert was locked in a tiny can or in the bathroom?!

[rngadam]

BTW, Simpons 15x04 (The Regina Monologues) has Marge and Homer walking by an person-high "Prince Albert in a Can" around 10:00 while shopping at "Harrods Department store".

[dorkusmalorkusmafia]

I came in thinking that there may have been some urban mythic horror about finding a "vienna sausage" or "hotdog" with a ring through it. It would have been more interesting. I guess it would have made more sense with a vienna sausage since those usually come in cans but the poor guy who lost his prince albert and the attaching parts would not have been very well hung.

[Chastain86]

I weep for today's youth. With Called ID becoming more and more prevalent, prank calling is becoming a thing of the past.

Gone forever are the days of calling the bowling alley and asking the attendant if he has 8-pound balls ("Holy crap, how big are your pants?") or calling the KFC and asking the guy if he has chicken wings. ("Must be hard to buy shirts then!")

[gcarroll]

Owning a computer store I once got the following call:
“Do you have Prince Albert in a can?”
“No. This is a computer store.”
“Well, you better… uh… what?”
“I said, ‘No, this is a computer store.’ We don’t sell tobacco.”
“Oh.”
(long pause)
“Do you know anyone who does sell tobacco? Do you have their phone number?”

[paperbackwriter]

I'm just amazed that this classic prank call has hung on for as long as it has, especially in America. All of the important referents are nearly unknown to the prank-call target demographic. How many know who Prince Albert was, or have seen a can of loose tobacco, or even know where to find a tobacco shop?

[BurnMeUp]

I was wondering if this was the same Prince Albert whom the penile peircing is named for.

[yabob]

Originally Posted by Chastain86

I weep for today's youth. With Called ID becoming more and more prevalent, prank calling is becoming a thing of the past.

Gone forever are the days of calling the bowling alley and asking the attendant if he has 8-pound balls ("Holy crap, how big are your pants?") or calling the KFC and asking the guy if he has chicken wings. ("Must be hard to buy shirts then!")

They will probably learn to use the extra digits which block the ID, and a retail establishment cannot afford to ignore non-ID calls. They'll cope.

What strikes me is that I don't think I've heard one of these things that wouldn't have worked 30 years ago. Surely new types of businesses and merchandise has created new possibilities. Not to mention the survival of some of them long past the passing of the relevent referents, as observed by paperbackwriter.

Actually I just wanted an excuse to add the call to the butcher "Do you have pig's feet?" - "Well, wear shoes and nobody will notice".

[spingears]

Originally Posted by BurnMeUp

I was wondering if this was the same Prince Albert whom the penile peircing is named for.

Yes. The original Victorian Prince Albert, frock coat and all were pictured on the 'can.' I think I still have one stashed away somewhere.

Note the double meanings of Prince Albert/tobacco, can/toilet.



It is the double meaning selected by the inquirer and contrary meaning assumed by the smoke shop owner that make the joke.

Smoke shops are alive and thirving in TN USA. Some even carry strange upstart brands such as "Grim Reaper."

[gluteus maximus]

Originally Posted by paperbackwriter

I'm just amazed that this classic prank call has hung on for as long as it has, especially in America. All of the important referents are nearly unknown to the prank-call target demographic. How many know who Prince Albert was, or have seen a can of loose tobacco, or even know where to find a tobacco shop?

(while stoned)
- Do you have Cap'n Crunch in a box?

*Yes, we do, sir! Would you like that with or without Crunchberries?
- (He said 'yeah'! NOW what?) Uh, so, uh... well, do you have Sara Lee in a box?

*I believe the Sara Lee delivery is being stocked right now, sir! Are you interested in pies, cakes, or cookies?

- (Yeah, yeah! They have that too!) Uh, OK. Cool. Uh, do you have Dad's Root Beer in cans? (What? Oh, shit!) Well, YOU BETTER LET HIM OUT!



Oh, and BurnMeUp...


Yes.

[Bruce_Daddy]

"Your cow is in my garden."

"I don't have a cow."

"I don't have a garden."

Hilarity ensues.

Oh the days of being 7 and Caller ID yet to be invented.

[mobo85]

Originally Posted by spingears

Smoke shops are alive and thirving in TN USA. Some even carry strange upstart brands such as "Grim Reaper."

Do you have Grim Reaper in a can?

[Algernon]

Just in case anyone is keeping track...

I never heard anyone consider that Prince Albert might be in the toilet. With all due respect, that makes no sense to me whatsoever.

The question "Do you have Prince Albert in a can" is a legitimate question to a tobacco shop. That's what makes the punch line so funny. Well. At least to bunch of bored third graders. (Not that I'm admitting I ever made that call. )

[klockwerk]

I can understand how this "joke" could be confused over. In fact, I never got the joke up until now either.

Up here where I live (Saskatchewan, Canada), there is a city named Prince Albert, and concequently, I have never heard of or even seen any "Prince Albert" brand cigarettes (even on my many visits to the U.S.).

For years I tried to comprehend what was so funny about the city of Prince Albert being shoved into a can and laughed over

[klockwerk]

Originally Posted by klockwerk

...even seen any "Prince Albert" brand cigarettes (even on my many...

Prince Albert brand tobacco, that is. Oops.

[AnsaMan]

My favorite is going to the Meat Department where I work
and asking the lady behind the counter:

"Do you have crab legs?"

"Yeah."

"Well you ought to see a doctor for that."

[Guinastasia]

Originally Posted by Chastain86

I weep for today's youth. With Called ID becoming more and more prevalent, prank calling is becoming a thing of the past.

Gone forever are the days of calling the bowling alley and asking the attendant if he has 8-pound balls ("Holy crap, how big are your pants?") or calling the KFC and asking the guy if he has chicken wings. ("Must be hard to buy shirts then!")

Well, you could use a payphone, I guess.

HEhehe, my favorite was always:

Hello, is do you have John there?

No, I'm sorry, you have the wrong number.

Then where do you go to pee!?

Much yuks.

Prince Albert tobacco-I thought the Prince Albert in question here would be his son, Prince Albert who became Edward VII. Certainly, that's the guy on the package-it's definitely a picture of Edward VII and not Albert Sr.

[GrizzRich]

I never associated 'can' with 'toilet'.

As I heard it, the prank line was "You'd better let him out before he suffocates".
That is, unless one has an airtight loo. Then I suppose either mental image is proper.

[Eve]

"Oh, waiter, do you serve tarts?"

"We serve anybody. Siddown, lady."

[Colibri]

Originally Posted by phreesh

No. I have never heard it stated as Prince Albert in the can. As a question in regards to tobaco, it makes no sense to ask if it is in the can. The question is if the vender sells it in a can. The meaning of the question can then be turned into a (ver) slightly humorous twist by suggesting that the actual Prince is in said can.

Actually, as should be obvious by now, the joke is told two different ways. Neither makes a lot of sense, but of course this is a joke that is mainly amusing to 10-year-olds.

If you say "Do you have Prince Albert in a can," you have in mind the Prince being inside the can of tobacco.

If you say "Do you have Prince Albert in the can," (and this is the way I have mostly heard it) you are counting on the tobacconist to ignore the fact that you said "the" instead of "a," and you have in mind the Prince being locked in the toilet.

[ltfire]

Originally Posted by Bruce_Daddy

"Your cow is in my garden."

"I don't have a cow."

"I don't have a garden."

Hilarity ensues.

Oh the days of being 7 and Caller ID yet to be invented.

...or...

"What's leather made from?"

"Hide"

"Why should I hide?"

"No, no..HIDE..HIDE..the cows outside!"

"Well, I'm not afraid of cows..let him come in!"

(Sounds like Burns and Allen, maybe?)

[samclem]

...so, I called my mom. You know-the one who remembers Sears catalogues in the outhouse. She confirms that people did this in the 1930's.

Next, a column by Walter Winchell in 1945 says:

The telephone, whether in New York or in Joplin, MO., is one of the child's first joys. When he's old enough to be the very devil, he plays the tricks everyone's guilty of. You call up a cigar store and ask if they've Prince Albert in a can. When the answer is yes, the gimmick is "Better let him out before he smothers!"...Then there's the one where you call up a store on a busy corner and ask if they're on the car line. "yes" brings forth, "Then you'd better get the heck off, 'cause the trolley's coming!" ...The best, however--and you try it on your boss--is to ask the person on the other end if this is number 1-9-4-5. When they say no, you laugh yourself hoarse. "It sure is 1945!" you yelp. "Brother, you're in the wrong year!" Yockitty, yockitty yock!'

[rodent]

Originally Posted by Chastain86

... or calling the KFC and asking the guy if he has chicken wings. ("Must be hard to buy shirts then!")

When I worked at KFC (I don't really want to admit this) the common prank call was, "How big are your breasts?"

[Shirley Ujest]

Is there a Little Fairy In Your House?

[Sternvogel]

"Is Steve Wall there?"

"No."

"Is Dave Wall there?"

"No."

"What about Amy Wall?"

"There are no Walls here!"

"What's holding up your house, then? Toothpicks?"

[Kalhoun]

Originally Posted by rodent

When I worked at KFC (I don't really want to admit this) the common prank call was, "How big are your breasts?"

How 'bout the one where the buxom woman goes to the doctor. He gets out his stethescope and puts it on her chest and says, "Big Breaths". She says, "Thank you, Doctor!"

[that.sound.again]

Reminds me of this episode of Angry Kid. Any of you pranksters ever get a response like that?

[Gary T]

In "a" can or in "the" can is not significant. It wouldn't be at all unusual for some folks to say "Yeah, we've got it in the can or we've got it in the pouch."

Can = toilet does not apply in this case. If that were the case, the punchline would be different. People don't need to be let out of toilets.

[postcards]

Originally Posted by Rex Fenestrarum

...The same way that the current Prince Phillip could never be King of England even though he's married to QEII...

Am I right folks??

Prince Phillip is married to a ship?

[APB]

Originally Posted by BurnMeUp

I was wondering if this was the same Prince Albert whom the penile peircing is named for.

If we're talking about the Prince Consort - and Guinastasia rightly points out that the picture on the cans is actually Edward VII - then the answer is 'only indirectly', as the penile peircings seem to have been named after 'Prince Albert' watch chains, which, in turn, had been named after Queen Victoria's husband.

[Colibri]

Originally Posted by Gary T

In "a" can or in "the" can is not significant. It wouldn't be at all unusual for some folks to say "Yeah, we've got it in the can or we've got it in the pouch."

Can = toilet does not apply in this case. If that were the case, the punchline would be different. People don't need to be let out of toilets.

As I said, the joke doesn't make a lot of sense either way. Of course Prince Albert couldn't actually be in the can of tobacco either. Clearly many people think that the joke refers to the toilet. That's the way I've always heard it.

[AskNott]

Bart Simpson: Is my mom there? Her name's Amanda. Last name, Huggenkiss.

Moe, at Moe's Bar: Amanda Huggenkiss! I'm lookin' for Amanda Huggenkiss!! (Customers ROFL) Why, you little...
________________

Bridget: (inspired by Nott's made-up joke name, calling Miller's Bar on a cell phone from the bar) Is Anita Nothershot there?

Bartender Melissa: Anita Nothershot? Anita Nothershot!!

Customers: Over here! Anita Nothershot right here! I 'Nita Nothershot!

Melissa, spotting her sister on the phone: I'll get you for that, Bridget!

[cards]

[quote=Malacandra]Brit checking in:



The batting order at the moment is:

Charles
Charles's sons in order of age (William and Harry)
Andrew
Andrew's daughters in order of age (Beatrice and Eugenie)
Edward
Edward's daughter
Anne
Anne's son Peter
Anne's daughter Zara.

As soon as William or Harry becomes a father, Andrew and everyone below moves down a seat.

Philip is somewhere down the list, as IIRC he is a descendent of Queen Victoria, but before he could get the crown there would have to be an avalanche of suspicious deaths that would make all of the Diana conspiracy theories look like starters.

How long before you get to King Ralph?