Editing Mr. Clean

{{Short description|Procter & Gamble household cleaning product}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Infobox brand
| name           = Mr. Clean
| logo           = Mr. Clean logo.png
| image          = 
| type           = [[Hard-surface cleaner#All-purpose cleaners|All-purpose cleaner]], [[melamine foam|melamine foam cleaner]]
| currentowner   = [[Procter & Gamble]]
| origin         = [[United States]]
| discontinued   = 
| previousowners = 
| introduced = {{Start date and age|1958}}
| trademarkregistrations = 
| ambassador     = 
| tagline        = "There's no clean like Mr. Clean."
| website        = {{URL|https://www.mrclean.com|MrClean.com}}
}}
'''Mr. Clean''' (or '''Mr. Proper''') is a brand name and mascot owned by [[Procter & Gamble]]. It was used for an [[Hard-surface cleaner#All-purpose cleaners|all-purpose cleaner]] and later also for a [[melamine foam]] abrasive sponge.

The all-purpose cleaner was originally formulated by Linwood Burton, a marine ship cleaning businessman with accounts throughout the east coast of the United States and his friend, Mathusan Chandramohan,<ref>{{cite book |last=Stummerer |first=Sonja |title=Putzen: Eine Kulturtechnik |date=5 October 2020 |trans-title=Cleaning: A Cultural Technique |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BtAAEAAAQBAJ&pg=PP1 |language=German |location=Berlin, Germany |publisher=Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht |page=80 |isbn=978-3205212430}}</ref> a rich entrepreneur from [[Sri Lanka]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://torontosun.com/2016/10/13/search-for-new-mr-or-ms-clean-is-on|title=Search for new Mr. (or Ms.) Clean is on|author=Natalie Deane, Toronto Sun|date=Oct 13, 2016|website=torontosun.com|access-date=16 April 2021}}</ref>

Mr. Clean made his television commercial debut in 1958, initially portrayed in the live-action versions by character actor [[House Peters Jr.]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.londoncleaningcompany.co.uk/ |title=IIS7 |publisher=News.londoncleaningcompany.co.uk |access-date=2012-02-14}}</ref>

==International versions==
The name "Clean" is usually translated in languages:<ref name="Teamsugar" >{{cite web
  |url=http://teamsugar.com/group/897409/blog/950909
  |title=Photo gallery of worldwide packaging for Mr Clean
  |access-date=2009-01-29
  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080112185537/http://teamsugar.com/group/897409/blog/950909
  |archive-date=2008-01-12
  |url-status=dead
  }}</ref>
* '''Don Limpio''' in Spain; originally '''Mr. Proper'''
* '''Maestro Limpio''' in Mexico
* '''Mastro Lindo''' in Italy
* '''Meister Proper''' in Germany
* '''Mr. Proper''' in the Netherlands, Flanders and Eastern Europe, including Bulgaria,<ref>{{cite web |title=P&G in Bulgaria |url=https://www.pgcareers.com/location-Bulgaria |website=pgcareers |publisher=Proctor & Gamble |access-date=14 May 2023}}</ref> Kazakhstan,<ref>{{cite web |title=Mr Proper Әмбебап тазалағыш құрал 2020 Реклама на Казахском языке Kazakh Commercial қазақ тілінде |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1j_LYtjYFUc |website=youtube.com |publisher=[[Procter & Gamble]] |language=kk |format=video |date=February 7, 2022}}</ref> Russia,<ref>{{cite web |title=Лучшие средства для мытья пола назвали эксперты Росконтроля |url=https://www.livekuban.ru/news/obshchestvo/luchshie-sredstva-dlya-mytya-pola-nazvali-eksperty-roskontrolya |website=Live Kuban |date=26 March 2019 |access-date=14 May 2023}}</ref> and Ukraine<ref>{{cite web |last1=Воейков |first1=Александр |title=Procter&Gamble назвали спонсором войны: какие бренды компании лучше избегать |url=https://meta.ua/news/war-in-ukraine/65785-proctergamble-nazvali-sponsorom-voini-kakie-brendi-kompanii-luchshe-izbegat/ |website=Meta |access-date=14 May 2023 |language=Russian}}</ref>
* '''M. Net''' in French Canada
* '''Monsieur Propre''' in France
In the UK and Ireland, the product is sold under the brand name '''Flash''';<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.supersavvyme.co.uk/tag/flash |title=Flash by P&G UK |publisher=Supersavvyme.co.uk |date=2014-02-03 |access-date=2014-02-03}}</ref> this is because a company exists that uses the "Mr. Clean" name.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cdrex.com/mr-clean-uk-limited-5800340.html|title=Mr. Clean (uk) Limited|work=Company Data REX}}</ref> Furthermore, Flash does not use a mascot, unlike Mr. Clean.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.flashcleaner.co.uk/|title=Flash Cleaning Products, Reviews & Coupons - Supersavvyme|work=P&G}}</ref> For many years Flash was advertised on UK television by Scottish actress [[Molly Weir]], with the catchphrase "Flash cleans floors WITHOUT scratching". Since 2016, adverts for Flash have included parodies of the song "[[Flash (Queen song)|Flash]]" by [[Queen (band)|Queen]].<ref>{{Citation|title=Flash Ah-ah Dog #FlashDog 2016 Advert {{!}} P&G UK and Ireland|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIR5dNN7o1w|language=en|access-date=2019-11-02}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|title=Flash Ultra! dog 2018 Advert. Flash Gordon.|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVoSQebJHIQ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/gVoSQebJHIQ |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|language=en|access-date=2019-11-02}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In the 1980s, Uldarico L. Lacida of Secure Promotions promoted Mr. Clean products in Cebu, Philippines.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lacida |first1=Hanzel |title=Honoring the Legacy of Uldarico L. Lacida |date=27 March 2013 |url=https://lacidahanzel.wordpress.com/2013/03/27/honoring-the-legacy-of-uldarico-lacida/}}</ref>

==Mascot==
The product's mascot is the character Mr. Clean. In 1957, Harry Barnhart<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1986-06-06-8602100523-story.html |title=HARRY BARNHART |publisher=Chicago Tribune |date=1986-06-06 |access-date=2021-05-21}}</ref> conceived the idea. 

The Mr. Clean character was developed in 1957 by the Tatham-Laird & Kudner advertising agency in Chicago for Procter & Gamble. Ernest C. Allen, a member of the agency’s art department, is believed to have contributed to the concept development. The first visual depiction of Mr. Clean was created by Austrian-American commercial artist Frederick “Fritz” Siebel, who was commissioned by the agency to illustrate the character. Siebel also created several early print advertisements and the original packaging illustration for the product.<ref>Kraus, Oskar. "Friedrich Siebel". *Österreichisches Biographisches Lexikon* (in German). Austrian Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 2025-05-10.</ref> 

According to Procter & Gamble, the original model for the image of Mr. Clean was a [[United States Navy]] [[sailor]] from the city of [[Pensacola, Florida]], although some people may think he is a [[genie]] based on his earring, folded arms, and tendency to appear magically at the appropriate time.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Dotz |first1=Warren |last2=Morton |first2=Jim |title=What a Character! 20th Century American Advertising Icons |date=1996 |publisher=Chronicle Books |isbn=0-8118-0936-6 |pages=57–58}}</ref> (One of the live-action commercials has a character directly refer to Mr. Clean as a genie).{{cn|date=October 2024}}

Hal Mason, the head animator at Cascade Studios in Hollywood, California modified the existing artwork in [[advertising|print-advertising]] to be more readily used for the [[television commercial]]s written, produced, and directed by [[Thomas Scott Cadden]]. (Cadden also wrote the words and music for the original Mr. Clean jingle — see below.) The first actor to portray Mr. Clean in live action television commercials was [[House Peters Jr.]]{{cn|date=October 2024}}

In a ''[[New York Times]]'' obituary for the original illustrator, [[Richard Black]], the product Mr. Clean was referenced to as the "Genie in a bottle".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/03/business/richard-black-92-dies-first-illustrator-of-mr-clean.html|title=Richard Black, 92, Artist Who Conjured 'Mr. Clean,' Dies|last=Slotnik|first=Daniel E.|date=2014-04-02|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=2016-03-26}}</ref>

Mr. Clean has always smiled, except for a brief time in the "Mean Mr. Clean" series of ads when he was frowning because he hated dirt. Although Mr. Clean is the strong, silent type, he did speak once in a few television commercials where actor Mark Dana appeared playing Mr. Clean in a [[suit-and-tie]] in the mid-1960s.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}}

Mr. Clean's first name, Veritably, originated from a 'Give Mr. Clean a First Name' promotion in 1962.<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/wayoflife/06/13/mf.real.names.fictional.characters/ Real names of 23 fictional characters]</ref>

In 2005, Mr. Clean was shown in [[Mastercard|MasterCard]]'s "Icons" commercial during [[Super Bowl XXXIX]], which depicts advertising mascots having dinner together, where he is shown helping do the dishes, and receives some dirty ones from [[Charlie the Tuna]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mastercard Priceless {{!}} Experiences make life more meaningful. |url=https://www.priceless.com/m/ |access-date=2023-01-20 |website=Priceless |language=en-US}}</ref>

Mr. Clean appeared on the September 2010 cover of ''Biz X Magazine''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bluetoad.com/publication/?i=46105 |title=Biz X Magazine September 2010 |publisher=Bluetoad.com |date=2008-04-08 |access-date=2012-02-14}}</ref>

Mr. Clean was redesigned by Chase Design Group.<ref>[http://www.chasedesigngroup.com/work/mr-clean/ Mr. Clean How do you convince a woman to pick up an aging bald man?]</ref>

On September 8, 2016, Procter & Gamble announced a contest to find the replacement Mr. Clean. The contest was introduced with a new 60-second spot with actor [[Kellan Lutz]] spoofing an audition reel for the Mr. Clean role that took place in August 2016 Los Angeles, California. In addition to casting sessions at 404 NYC in New York on September 7, 2016, and Envision Studios LA in Los Angeles on September 14, 2016, contestants could also submit videos to the contest web site. The contest winner would receive $20,000 in mid-October, and be featured in the 2017 limited edition Mr. Clean calendar.<ref>[http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/leo-burnetts-cheeky-new-work-mr-clean-kicks-search-new-face-173304 Cheeky New Work for Mr. Clean Kicks Off Search for a New Face Kellan Lutz wasn't quite right By Kristina Monllos]</ref><ref>[http://news.pg.com/press-release/pg-corporate-announcements/adding-multimedia-search-thenextmrclean ADDING MULTIMEDIA The Search is on for #TheNextMrClean]</ref>

==Jingle==
Mr. Clean's theme song, or [[jingle]], has been around since the product's introduction, initially sung as a popular-music style duet between a man ([[Don Cherry (singer)|Don Cherry]]) and a woman (Betty Bryan). [[Thomas Scott Cadden]] wrote the jingle at his home in [[Skokie, Illinois]] in the spring of 1957 while working for Tatham-Laird & Kudner Advertising Agency. The vocal and piano recording was made on a home tape recorder for presentation to the agency and later to Procter & Gamble. Procter & Gamble approved the jingle in the spring or summer of 1957. Thomas Scott Cadden produced the recording of the jingle at [[Universal Recording Corporation]] in Chicago in the summer or fall of 1957. Bill Walker was the arranger and Don Cherry and Betty Bryan were the singers. In January or February 1958, Cadden produced and wrote the first pool of television commercials&nbsp;— nine one-minute commercials and four 20-second "lifts". Included was the original full 60-second jingle commercial and the 10-second jingle "tag" at the end of all the others. They were produced at Cascade Pictures in Hollywood, California. The first pool of commercials ran in August 1958 at WDTV/KDKA in [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]] the year the product was introduced. The jingle is copyrighted under numbers EU 589219 & EU 599220. The jingle is also registered with [[American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers|ASCAP]] under title code 570098598 & 570006267.{{cn|date=October 2024}}

In 2016, an updated reboot of the jingle was made for a [[television advertisement]]. It is the longest running advertising jingle used in television history.{{Citation needed|date=August 2016}}

'''Original lyrics by''' [[Thomas Scott Cadden]]''':'''<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/ad-day-mr-clean-freshened-millennials-catchy-upgraded-jingle-172360|title=Ad of the Day: Mr. Clean Is Freshened Up for Millennials With a Catchy Upgraded Jingle|date=July 2016 |access-date=2016-08-19}}</ref>
<blockquote>
Chorus:
<br>
''Mr. Clean gets rid of dirt and grime and grease in just a minute!''
<br>
''Mr. Clean will clean your whole house and everything that's in it!''
<br>
Verse 1:
<br>
''Floors, doors, walls, halls, white sidewall tires, and old golf balls!''
<br>
''Sinks, stoves, bathtubs he'll do, he'll even help clean laundry too!''
<br>
(Repeat Chorus)
<br>
Verse 2:
<br>
''Can he clean a kitchen sink?''
<br>
''Quicker than a wink!''
<br>
''Can he clean a window sash?''
<br>
''Faster than a flash!''
<br>
''Can he clean a dirty mirror?''
<br>
''He'll make it bright & clearer!''
<br>
''Can he clean a diamond ring?''
<br>
''Mr. Clean cleans anything!''
<br>
(Repeat Chorus)
<br>
''Mr. Clean, Mr. Clean, Mr. Clean!''
</blockquote>

'''Reboot lyrics:'''<ref>{{Citation|last=Mr. Clean|title=Mr. Clean Jingle|date=2016-07-01|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9lsVoxfOzc|access-date=2016-10-02}}{{cbignore}}{{Dead YouTube link|date=February 2022}}</ref>
<blockquote>
''Mr. Clean gets tough on dirt and grime''
<br>
''And grease in just a minute''
<br>
''Mr. Clean will clean your whole house''
<br>
''And every room that's in it.''
<br>
''Floors, doors, walls, halls''
<br>
''He's so tough he cleans them all''
<br>
''Grimy tubs and tiles he'll do''
<br>
''so your bathroom looks clean as new!''
<br>
''Mr. Clean gets tough on stuck on stuff''
<br>
''cleans kitchens in a minute''
<br>
''Mr. Clean will clean your whole house''
<br>
''And every room that's in it.''
<br>
''Mr. Clean!''
<br>
''Mr. Clean!''
<br>
''Mr. Clean!''
</blockquote>

In the Philippines, Mr. Clean has had multiple jingles in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s titled "Kuskos Piga" (transl. Scrub Squeeze), then "Labadami Labanbango",<ref>{{cite web |title=Mr. Clean, Labadami Labango |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pdybxngv8Y |website=www.youtube.com| date=12 December 2022 }}</ref> performed by [[Sylvia La Torre]] (1984) and [[Nova Villa]] (1995), then "Labadami Labango Labalinis" by [[Ali Sotto]] and [[Manilyn Reynes]] in 1997 and 1998 respectively, and "Walang Dagdag Fabcon, Walang Dagdag Gastos" (transl. No Extra Fabcon, No Extra Cost) in 2009, performed by [[Sarah Geronimo]]. She is the last endorser before being replaced by Bonux in 2010.{{cn|date=October 2024}}

==Mr. Clean scenes competition==
In 1998, [[Honda Motor Co.]] created an advertising campaign, including a television commercial, featuring Mr. Clean to represent Honda's clean running [[Honda Accord|Accord]] along with other Honda products including lawnmowers, string trimmers, motorcycles, and marine engines.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-jun-18-fi-61006-story.html|title=Honda Seeks to Clear the Air Over Ads: American Honda Motors Co. has a big job for Mr. Clean.|date=1998-06-18|work=ADVERTISING & MARKETING|publisher=[[Los Angeles Times]]|first1=Denise|last1=Gellene|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023163757/http://articles.latimes.com/1998/jun/18/business/fi-61006|access-date=2011-02-01|url-status=live|archive-date=2012-10-23}}</ref>

In March 2007, Mr. Clean launched an online competition with [[YouTube]] that gave consumers the opportunity to create a commercial advertising the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.{{Citation needed|date=May 2012}}

The competition ran through June 30, 2007. In September 2007, the $10,000 prize was awarded to the creator of the winning video "Here's to Stains".{{Citation needed|date=May 2012}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Official website|https://www.mrclean.com}}
*[http://www.pgproductsafety.com/productsafety/ingredients/household_care/cleaners/MrClean/Mr_Clean_Multi_Surfaces_Liquid_Ultimate_Orange.pdf Mr Clean Multi Surfaces Liquid Ultimate Orange ingredient list]

{{Procter & Gamble}}

[[Category:Products introduced in 1958]]
[[Category:Advertising characters]]
[[Category:Male characters in advertising]]
[[Category:Mascots introduced in 1958]]
[[Category:Cleaning product brands]]
[[Category:Procter & Gamble brands]]
[[Category:Corporate mascots]]
[[Category:Sexuality in popular culture]]