Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad

Subject: Mr. Sheen
From: shiny
Date: 14 Aug 03 - 02:34 AM

Does anyone have the words to the song which advertised Mr. Sheen furniture polish for many years in Australia?(possibly elsewhere)
It started 'Oh Mr Sheen, Oh Mr. Sheen, everything in my house is sparking clean...'
Ta
shiny

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen
From: georgeward
Date: 14 Aug 03 - 02:46 AM

I wonder if it was a "borrowing" from the old Vaudeville duo of Gallagher and Sheen. My grandmother had an old 78 rpm of the two doing a song in which Sheen began each verse with "Oh, Mr. Gallagher, Oh, Mr. Gallagher..." and Gallagher began his reply, Oh, Mr. Sheen, Oh, Mr. Sheen...". I can't recall an entire verse, but the scansion would fit.
Alas, the 78 is long, long gone.
                                  -George

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen
From: clueless don
Date: 14 Aug 03 - 09:27 AM

I think the old vaudeville routine was "Mr. Gallagher and Mr. *Shehan*". I have a tape of two performers (not named Gallagher and Shehan) doing the bit. I've never heard the Australian advertisement for furniture polish, but I think it is a good bet that it was an homage (or is that *a* homage?) to the old routine, as georgeward suggests.

Subject: Lyr Add: MISTER GALLAGHER AND MISTER SHEAN
From: Joe_F
Date: 14 Aug 03 - 11:52 AM

Shean, actually (poetic license for Schoenberg):

There are two funny men
The Best I've ever seen.
One is Mr. Gallagher, the other's Mr. Shean.
When these two cronies meet,
It surely is a treat,
For the things they say and the things they do,
And the funny way they greet!

1)       Oh, Mr. Gallagher! Oh, Mister Gallagher!
Hello, what's on your mind this morning, Mr. Shean?
Everybody's making fun of the way our country's run,
All the papers say we'll soon live European.

Why, Mr. Shean, why, Mr. Shean,
On the day they took away our old canteen,
Cost of living went so high,
That it's cheaper now to die.
Oh, I thank you Mr. Gallagher!
You are welcome Mr. Shean!

2)       Oh, Mr. Gallagher, Oh, Mr. Gallagher,
If you're a friend of mine you'll lend me a couple of bucks!
I'm so broke and badly bent, That I haven't got a cent,
I'm so clean you'd think that I'd been washed in Lux!

Oh, Mr. Shean, Oh, Mr. Shean!
Do you mean to say you haven't got a bean?
Mark my word as I'm alive,
I intended touching you for five!

Oh I thank you Mr. Gallagher!
You are welcome , Mr. Shean!

3)       Oh Mr. Gallagher! Oh, Mr. Gallagher!
Once I think I saw you save a lady's life!
In a rowboat out to sea,
You were a hero then to me,
And I thought perhaps you made of her your wife!

Oh, Mr. Shean! Oh, Mr. Shean!
As she sunk I dove down like a submarine!
Dragged her out onto the shore,
Now she's mine for evermore!

Who, the lady Mr. Gallagher?
No! The rowboat, Mr. Shean!

4)       Oh, Mr. Gallagher! Oh, Mr. Gallagher!
What's the name of the game they play upon the links?
Where the player hits the ball,
And you can't find it at all?
And the caddie walks around and thinks and thinks?

Oh, Mr. Shean! Oh, Mr. Shean!
You don't even know a hazard from a green!
It's become a popular game,
And you don't even know it's name!

Sure 'tis croquet, Mr. Gallagher?
No! Lawn tennis, Mr. Shean!

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen
From: georgeward
Date: 14 Aug 03 - 02:41 PM

Joe F, that's exactly the one I was thinking of! What a treat to find it again after all these years. My four-year-old sense of humor particularly enjoyed the third verse ("As she sunk I dove down like a submarine!"). I think all of the tune has come back to mind, except for the intro.

Now, can anyone connect it to furniture polish ?

And is anyone besides myself bemused by the fact that a classic-for-the-time multi-ethnic Vaudeville duo (Gallagher/Schoenberg = Irish/Jewish), who pushed the latter's name to the edge of a multilingual pun ( racist, on the English side), became part of a pitch for furniture wax ?

"Schoenberg" changes to "Shean," which is close enough both to the Yiddish "Scheon (trans.: "beautiful" or "lovely,"I think) and to the anti-semitic English pejorative "Sheenie".

I don't know whether the "Sheen/Schoen" association would occur to someone who really thinks in Yiddish. Knowing the American anglo-irish adults I grew up with in the nineteen forties and fifties, I'm pretty
sure the Shean/sheenie association was there. And I suspect it was intentional on the part of the duo, adding the spice of naughtiness to the name.I can't conceive that they weren't aware of it.

But then, in all innocence (?), "Shean" becomes "Sheen" (shiny furniture), becomes "Mr. Sheen", a brand name - chosen partly on the basis of the popularity of the original duo ?

What a world!

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen
From: Nigel Parsons
Date: 14 Aug 03 - 03:05 PM

The line quoted:
'Oh Mr Sheen, Oh Mr. Sheen, everything in my house is sparking clean...'
almost seem to fit with George Formby's "oh Mr Wu, Oh Mr Wu, I think I've got those chinese laundry blues"

Nigel

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen
From: Joe_F
Date: 14 Aug 03 - 05:38 PM

I don't know if Mr Schoenberg changed his name to Shean in everyday life (that sort of thing was common among immigrant Jews) or just on stage for the sake of fitting into the image of a pair of stage Irishmen.

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen
From: dick greenhaus
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 01:43 PM

considering the Yiddish accent he used, I sincerely doubt that Mr. Scoenberg was trying to be a stage Irisman--I suspect that Sheen was short tor the then-popular derogation "Sheeny"

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 07:07 PM

A few months ago I finally sent my old tin of Mr Sheen to the Council chemical clean-up. Silly, me, I probably could have sold it on the vintage market!

I remember the ad, but no more than you do, Shiny. I couldn't find it on Music Australia. Australia's Music: Online, in Time but I did find a site for radio jingles 1960s-90s.

The jingle shrine [electronic resource] : show-casing Australian radio jingles

Problem is that this site is defunct, it's only available as a one-of copy on PANDORA, the National Library website archive & I don't know it there is public access to PANDORA.

back to the drawing board.

sandra

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: JennieG
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 07:16 PM

At a school where I worked in the 80s (that's 1980s not 1880s) the principal was short, balding and slightly tubby.....his nickname was Mr Sheen, as the animated Mr Sheen of the furniture ads was also short, balding and slightly tubby. There was quite a strong resemblance.

Cheers
JennieG

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: Bob Bolton
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 07:43 PM

G'day ..

I seem to remember at least one verse as:

Oh Mr Sheen! Oh Mr Sheen!
You're the quickest housework trick I've ever see.
All the hard work you abolish ... as the furniture I polish ...
Wax and polish as you dust, with Mr Sheen!

(Very roughly ...)

Regards,

Bob

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 07:48 PM

sounds familiar, Bob & Google images gives pic of Mr Sheen, Jennie

sandra

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: catspaw49
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 09:39 PM

Missed this thread the first time around, but if George (I owe you a PM) is still reading this, I have some info that might be fun too.

Al Schoenberg had a sister Minnie who married and had six sons. The first died in infancy. The five other sons were named Leonard, Arthur, Julius, Milton, and Herbert. Her husband was from the Alsace-Lorraine region of France and his name was Sam "Frenchy" Marx and we know their sons better as Chico, Harpo, Groucho, Gummo, and Zeppo.......I'm a huge Marx fan.

Uncle Al was often on the scene as the Boys grew up and with Minnie as their manager they eventually became the Marx Brothers. Quite a bit of their earlier vaudeville work was partly written by Uncle Al and he had a profound effect on young Julius. In any case........

I see that when this thread first ran, there wasn't much happening on YouTube but anymore almost anything is worth a look.............so I took one.........a look that is. I'll give you one link and you can then check out the others in the sidebar on YouTube! I had fun........I bet you will too!

Absolutely Mr. Gallagher, Positively Mr. Shean


Spaw

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: catspaw49
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 09:42 PM

And btw, Uncle Al and Mr. Gallagher were constantly fighting and bickering, almost legendary in fact for their sniping at each other, Neil Simon used them as the basis for "The Sunshine Boys."

Spaw

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: georgeward
Date: 26 Dec 09 - 03:20 AM

God bless Catspaw and YouTube too!! And I was completely unaware of the Marx Bros.
connection.

"Merry Christmas Mr.Gallagher!"
"Happy New year Mr. Shean"

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: Ross Campbell
Date: 26 Dec 09 - 11:39 PM

Mr Sheen on Wikipedia

Great link, Spaw - here's another

It's a video, Mr Gallagher - & with audio, Mr Shean!

Ross

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: Joe_F
Date: 27 Dec 09 - 08:20 PM

Pleasant to *hear* them at last. When I first *read* about them, I thought Mr Shean was Jewish, but then I thought, naw, how naive, he must be Irish like Fulton J. Sheen! I should have stayed naive. My God! Maybe I have!

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: GUEST,kimmi
Date: 13 Jul 10 - 05:33 AM

You can find the words to the original and the remake on YouTube!

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: John J
Date: 13 Jul 10 - 02:06 PM

'Mr Sheene, shines on every surface' refers to the late Barry Sheene, the legendary motorcycle racer.

JJ

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: GUEST,LittleRaggie
Date: 07 Aug 11 - 07:33 PM

Here it is for all of you who have forgotten it.

Oh Mr Sheen, oh Mr Sheen
Todays the day to make your household gleam
From the table to the chair
And woodwork everywhere
Wax an polish as you dust with Mr Sheen
Oh what a sparkle
Oh what a sheen
Protects the fridge
And saves your new machine
Fingermarks around the door
Venetian blinds what's more
Wax and polish as you dust with Mr Sheen
Wax and polish as you dust with Mr Sheen
And there's the phone
And all the chrome
Even laminex comes sparkling clean
For an instant mirror sheen
To everything you clean
Wax and polish as you dust with Mr Sheen
Wax and polish as you dust with Mr Sheen

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: Smokey.
Date: 07 Aug 11 - 11:13 PM

Don't ever use it on guitars or anything else made of wood worth having, varnished or otherwise.

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: GUEST,Kazzie
Date: 09 Oct 19 - 11:46 PM

And another verse:

Oh Mrs Sparkle
Yes Mr Sheen?
I have seen a place where I have never been
Oh you mean this piece I found
Well the men (or friend) just brought it round
And I was just about to spray and wipe it clean
Wax and polish as you dust with Mr Sheen
Wax and polish as you dust with Mr Sheen

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 10 Oct 19 - 05:24 AM

Oh it happened in Vienna, not so very long ago
When not enough folks were getting sick
That a starving young physician tried to better his position
By discovering what made his patients tick

Oh Doctor Freud, Oh Doctor Freud
How we wish you had been differently employed
For this set of circumstances surely enhances the finances
Of the followers of Doctor Sigmund Freud

He forgot about sclerosis but invented the psychosis
Plus a hundred ways that sex could be enjoyed
He adopted as his credo, down repression, up libido
That was the start of Doctor Sigmund Freud

Oh Doctor Freud, Oh Doctor Freud
How we wish you had been differently employed
For this set of circumstances surely enhances the finances
Of the followers of Doctor Sigmund Freud

He analyzed the dreams of the teens and libertines
He substituted monologues for pills
He drew crowds just like Will Sandler, when along came Jung and Adler
They said 'By God, there’s gold in them there hills'

They encountered no resistance as they served as Freud's assistants
And with ego and with id they deftly toyed
Instead of toting bedpans, they wore analytic deadpans
Those ambitious doctors Adler, Jung, and Freud

Now the big three have departed, but not so this thing they started
It’s been carried on by many a goodly band
And to trauma, shock, and war shock, someone went and added Rorschach
The thing has got completely out of hand

Oh Doctor Freud, Oh Doctor Freud
How we wish you had been differently employed
For this set of circumstances surely enhances the finances
Of the followers of Doctor Sigmund Freud

Subject: RE: Mr. Sheen - furniture polish ad
From: Hagman
Date: 11 Oct 19 - 01:29 AM

Conveniently, the ad is now available for viewing here...