# Kilroy Was Here: Alternate Urban Legend Version

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kilroy-was-here-alternate-urban-legend-version/201484>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [September 14, 2003, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kilroy-was-here-alternate-urban-legend-version/201484 "2003-09-14T01:30:49Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![triolamj](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e19b73/32.png) [@triolamj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/triolamj)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2003, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kilroy-was-here-alternate-urban-legend-version/201484/1 "2003-09-14T01:30:49Z")

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Dear Cecil,

About 20 years ago or more I read another version of the Kilroy origin, and I’ve seen a similar but shorter version in print years later.  
The general outline of the story is this:

A steel fabricating company owned by a man named Kilroy wins a contract to supply war materiel during WWII including steel building components. A rumor gets started that Kilroy’s company is shorting the government and profiteering. Kilroy, a more patriotic guy than most, tells his foremen to start stencilling the company name on everything that goes out of the factory, everything. GIs landing in North Africa see all this materiel lying around with Kilroy’s name all over it and wonder who the hell Kilroy is. When they get to the front, they decide to have a little fun and start putting Kilroy’s name wherever they go, eventually adding the ‘was here’ part and the drawing.

```
 Hey, who was the original Murphy in Murphy's Law?

 Slainte! Max

```

Original Article:  
[http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mkilroy.html](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mkilroy.html)

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**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2003, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kilroy-was-here-alternate-urban-legend-version/201484/2 "2003-09-14T02:54:47Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by triolamj \*  
> **Hey, who was the original Murphy in Murphy’s Law?**

There’s some conjecture about who Murphy was. He may have been [Capt. Edward A. Murphy, USAF](http://www.murphys-laws.com/murphy/murphy-true.html) but astronaut-turned-senator John Glenn says [Murphy was a cartoon character in Navy training films](http://www.word-detective.com/back-c2.html#murphyslaw).

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**Author:** ![MalFrog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@MalFrog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MalFrog)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2003, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kilroy-was-here-alternate-urban-legend-version/201484/3 "2003-09-15T13:56:22Z")

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Murphy’s law was not actually written by Murphy but by someone else with the same name.

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**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\
**Post date:** [September 16, 2003, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kilroy-was-here-alternate-urban-legend-version/201484/4 "2003-09-16T00:28:27Z")

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Murphy’s Law was almost certainly coined by Capt. Ed Murphy.[http://www.wordorigins.org/wordorm.htm#Murphy’s](http://www.wordorigins.org/wordorm.htm#Murphy's)

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**Author:** ![Sir\_Prize](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d2c977/32.png) [@Sir\_Prize](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Prize)\
**Post date:** [September 23, 2003, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kilroy-was-here-alternate-urban-legend-version/201484/5 "2003-09-23T03:18:13Z")

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The law was based on something that Murphy said but he did not coin the law itself.

[Why Everything You Know About Murphy’s Law is Wrong](http://www.improb.com/airchives/paperair/volume9/v9i5/murphy/murphy0.html)