# Hello my baby, hello my \*blank\*, hello my ragtime gal **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** cartoons-animation\ **Created:** [September 12, 2021, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543 "2021-09-12T13:49:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2021, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/41 "2021-09-12T20:25:20Z")
To me it sounds like “baby” in the video. I’m glad I’m not the only one whose ears get those two confused! (“Baby” makes more sense in both songs because it’s not gender-specific.) ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2021, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/42 "2021-09-12T22:47:55Z")
I heard it as ‘honey’, but my memory is backwards, in that I remember it as, “Hello my honey, hello by baby, hello my ragtime gal.” Honey comes first. Looks like I was wrong about that. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/43 "2021-09-13T01:12:00Z")
The cartoon is too ingrained in my memory for me to get it wrong. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/44 "2021-09-13T03:40:10Z")
It’s wight up there with, “Kill da Wabbit, kill da Wabbit!” ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/45 "2021-09-13T03:48:46Z")
I knew it was honey. With so many people thinking it is “darling,” it makes me wonder if there was a version with that lyric. I don’t really see why “honey” would be misremembered as “darlin’.” Alternatively, perhaps the word "darlin’ " is used later in the song ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/46 "2021-09-13T04:12:27Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > I don’t know who this Frog character is, I know it best from _Spaceballs_ . Where it’s definitely “Honey”. That’s also where I know it from, but my brain still says darling. It feels much easier. I think it might be that, like gdave said, it fits better linguistically with the way I use darling and honey. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/47 "2021-09-13T04:46:43Z")
Sugar came to mind first and then I doubted myself and thought, “Maybe honey?” Darling didn’t cross my mind. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/48 "2021-09-13T04:50:17Z")
this song and “is you is or is you aint my baby?” from tom and jerry are the only two songs i have ever looked up to see if they were real songs … ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/49 "2021-09-13T04:59:46Z")
As **gdave** says, for me it’s _darlin’_. No G. And it’s definitely Michigan J. Frog that I remember singing. ---
**Author:** ![Karen\_Lingel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karen_lingel/32/18649_2.png) [@Karen\_Lingel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Karen_Lingel)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/50 "2021-09-13T05:04:32Z")
My mom always sang it “Hello my honey, hello my darling…”. No baby anywhere. I don’t know how to answer the poll… ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/51 "2021-09-13T12:54:56Z")
Having seen the aforementioned cartoon and its various parodies hundreds of times, of course it’s “honey.” Curiously, I don’t believe I’ve ever actually heard any other version of the song. Having just now looked it up on YouTube, doesn’t sound right. The frog version is the “genuine” one to me. 😁 ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/52 "2021-09-13T15:32:44Z")
I’m pretty sure Tom Hanks sings “hello my baby, hello my darling“ during the altermate, happy ending to Big. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/53 "2021-09-13T15:55:22Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > Having seen the aforementioned cartoon and its various parodies hundreds of times, of course it’s “honey.” > > Curiously, I don’t believe I’ve ever actually heard any other version of the song. Having just now looked it up on YouTube, doesn’t sound right. The frog version is the “genuine” one to me. Same here. And I _must_ sing it in his voice. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/54 "2021-09-13T16:00:39Z")
Another Mandela Effect is people remembering hearing the frog’s name in _One Froggy Evening_ (he didn’t have one). The name “Michigan J. Frog” wasn’t created until someone pressed Chuck Jones for one 20+ years later. In fact, the first time he was named (in linking sequences on _The Bugs Bunny Show_) in the early 1960s, his name was “Enrico”. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/55 "2021-09-13T16:04:56Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](#): > > Same here. And I _must_ sing it in his voice Bill Roberts [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/KMSrcAvV_8w/maxresdefault.jpg "Bill Roberts and his orchestra - That's Where You Come In") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMSrcAvV_8w) ---
**Author:** ![erysichthon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d07c76/32.png) [@erysichthon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erysichthon)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/56 "2021-09-13T16:30:09Z")
I got “honey,” but I had to think about it for a moment. I didn’t even consider “darling”—that sounds wrong to me. ---
**Author:** ![gnarator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gnarator/32/8266_2.png) [@gnarator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnarator)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/57 "2021-09-13T16:40:32Z")
Are old Warner Brothers Cartoons still on TV? They used to be on in the morning and in the afternoon when I was a kid. Ah, the old channel 11. I saw _One Froggy Evening_, the _Citizen Kane_ of cartoons, multiple times as a child. My daughter has no idea who Michigan J. Frog is. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/58 "2021-09-13T16:50:40Z")
HBO Max has sucked up most of the streaming rights to those cartoons. ---
**Author:** ![Kron](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kron/32/12444_2.png) [@Kron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kron)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2021, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/59 "2021-09-13T16:55:52Z")
Honey, and while I’d like to credit Michigan J. Frog, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that the baby xenomorph in _Spaceballs_ is always the first thing I think of when I hear that tune. ETA: and on reading the thread, I see that at least a couple of you are also paragons of good taste. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2021, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543/60 "2021-09-14T00:40:40Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > The name “Michigan J. Frog” wasn’t created until someone pressed Chuck Jones for one 20+ years later. Similar to Gossamer, one of Bugs’ enemies. [![](https://dyn1.heritagestatic.com/lf?set=path%5B2%2F3%2F0%2F5%2F4%2F23054481%5D%2Csizedata%5B850x600%5D&call=url%5Bfile%3Aproduct.chain%5D) ](https://dyn1.heritagestatic.com/lf?set=path%5B2%2F3%2F0%2F5%2F4%2F23054481%5D%2Csizedata%5B850x600%5D&call=url%5Bfile%3Aproduct.chain%5D) Not named in most appearances, he was called Rudolph in “Water Water Every Hare” and finally, Gossamer in “Duck Dodgers and the Return of the 24½th Century” decades later in 1980. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hello-my-baby-hello-my-blank-hello-my-ragtime-gal/950543.md?page=4)