Cornholio
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Cornholio, also known as The Great Cornholio, is the hyperactive alter ego of Beavis in MTV's animated series Beavis and Butt-Head.
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[edit] Transformation
Cornholio emerges whenever Beavis consumes large quantities of sugar and/or caffeine or other stimulants and enters a hyperactive phase, with symptoms including convulsing, nonsensical jabbering and gazing cross-eyed at his fist. The final transformation is usually triggered by mention of vaguely Hispanic-sounding words: he pulls his shirt over his head (producing a makeshift hood covering his hair) and begins marching around randomly, his hands at either sides of his face with palms forward, making loud proclamations in a quasi-Spanish accent. This could be interpreted as a reference to Psycho, in which Norman Bates becomes "Norma" after consuming large quantities of alcohol and passing out.
Cornholio apparently hails from Latin America (once stating that he is from Nicaragua), claiming his home to be Lake Titicaca (the word already providing amusement to Beavis), which is actually in South America. He states his mission in life is to find "TP" (toilet paper) for his "bunghole" (anus), as his "people" are "without bungholes". This apparent contradiction is typical of the nonsense he frequently spouts: at other times he claims he himself is a bunghole, he has no bunghole, he is a gringo (which is actually true, as he has blonde hair), or calls upon "the Almighty Bunghole" (either himself or his god). He has also expressed an interest in oleo, presumably because it rhymes with his name; he combines it with "bunghole" to create his most famous cry, "bungholeo-o-o-o-o!".
Cornholio is a very different personality to Beavis in one particular aspect: while Beavis is somewhat shy and prone to mumble, Cornholio is extremely forceful and loud. If anyone challenges him, he demands to know "are you threatening me?", and on many occasions he has warned "unbelievers" of the "wrath" of his bunghole. Although generally he means no harm, he respects no boundaries or property rights and roams wherever he wishes on his quest, frequently screaming at those he meets and terrifying them into submission. He is one of the few characters that actually sings (apart from the teacher Mr. Van Driessen), but his singing is off-key, and he sings only about what he talks about: his bunghole.
On more than one occasion, he has asked if anybody wanted to see his bunghole, he once went into a girls' bathroom, demanding anybody in there to "come out with [their] pants down" and in Beavis and Butt-Head Do America he went into Mr. Anderson's camper to "whack off" over a picture of Dallas Grimes.
Beavis seems to retain no memories of events after he returns to "normal", on one occasion seemingly apologizing to Principal McVicker for having caused a problem. This indicates that Beavis suffers from multiple personality disorder. However, sometimes the two personalities collide: as Cornholio, Beavis can sometimes be heard muttering in his normal voice, usually before the phase has finished. Beavis also does impressions of Cornholio.
The name "Cornholio" is a reference to the anus, which is sometimes called the "cornhole"; the traditional meaning of "bunghole" is a hole in a liquor barrel or keg.
[edit] Genesis
Cornholio first apparently surfaced in the episode "Generation in Crisis", in a scene where Beavis amuses Butt-Head by pulling his shirt over his head and saying "I am the Great Cornholio, I come from Lake Titicaca!" in a humorous Spanish accent. In scripting terms this was merely Beavis "goofing around", but the moment proved popular enough to warrant making Cornholio a character in his own right. In the same episode, both Beavis and Butt-Head pull their shirts over their heads and act like idiots; In this case, neither Beavis nor Butt-Head refer to bungholes, T.P. or any other Cornholio obsession, indicating that they do not think they are Cornholio-esque characters at this point but are simply playing. However, fans have affectionately dubbed Butt-head's potential alter-ego "The Great Buttholio". In later episodes, where Cornholio actually appears, Butt-Head probably doesn't realise Beavis has multiple personality disorder, and assumes that Beavis is just playing.
It is widely believed that Cornholio's costume was inspired by members of the band Sausage wearing hooded jumpsuits in the music video for the title track of their album Riddles Are Abound Tonight. The duo reviewed this video shortly afterwards, appropriately enough in the episode "The Great Cornholio".
[edit] Episode appearances
The first genuine appearance of Cornholio was in the episode "The Great Cornholio", which was originally titled "Breakfast Burritos" but was later renamed thanks to the popularity of the Cornholio character. The duo raid the Stevenson household's kitchen and Beavis consumes "27 candy bars and a six-pack of root beer", entering a hyperactive state as a result. At school, Mr. Van Driessen triggers the transformation by using the word "Nicaragua", prompting Cornholio to demand "agua for my bunghole!". He subsequently wanders the school searching for T.P., interrupting other classes and warning of a polio epidemic. He returns to normal in the principal's office, but a large quantity of candy provided by the principal causes him to revert to Cornholio mode once again, insisting "I no need hall pass! I need hõleo for my bunghole!" before aimlessly wandering the hallways yet again, just like before being sent to the principal.
Cornholio returned in "Buttniks", in which the duo visit a beatnik club, and Beavis transforms after drinking large quantities of "crappuccino". However, his insane jabbering and threats are interpreted as deep, spiritual poetry by the club's denizens. In the Halloween special "Bungholio: Lord of the Harvest", Beavis transforms after eating Mr. Anderson's entire bowl of Halloween candy, and begins wandering Highland, terrifying other trick-or-treaters into surrendering their candy to him. He finds toilet paper during the course of his wanderings, though this does not cause him to revert to normal. In "Vaya Con Cornholio", Cornholio surfaces at Burger World after Beavis drinks their entire supply of Volt cola and other soda drinks; he is subsequently arrested by the INS and, after he insists he is from Lake Titicaca in Nicaragua (a geographical impossibility because Lake Titicaca is actually between Peru and Bolivia), they deport him to (they believe) his native Mexico. Once there, Cornholio believes he has arrived at Nicaragua and declares that he will "take this land for my bunghole!"
[edit] Movie appearances
Cornholio appears twice in the feature film Beavis and Butt-head Do America. On a flight to Las Vegas, an old lady gives Beavis some of her No-Drowz caffeine pills, which in conjunction with a stewardess mentioning "chicken piccata", and another tourist asking if the airplane's gumbo has corn in it, causes the transformation. Cornholio's subsequent sudden entry into the cockpit very nearly causes a plane crash. Later in the movie, the same old lady gives Beavis the same caffeine pills (thinking they are Xanax tablets), and while on a tour of the White House he transforms when a guide mentions Pierre L'Enfant. During the course of his wanderings he calls Strategic Air Command and almost triggers World War III, and stares at a painting of Richard Nixon in his famous "V for Victory" pose, demanding to know: "Are you threatening me?". He later sees Mr. Anderson's camper, and after being triggered by a picture of Dallas, he decides to go in and "whack off". An embarrassing moment ensues when Mr. Anderson sees his camper rocking and making strange noises, so he goes in and catches Beavis with his pants down. Whilst outside surrounded by the FBI, Cornholio takes on an almost religious guise spouting such phrases: "You will co-operate with my bunghole. For there is but one bunghole - the Almighty bunghole" and "You must bow down to the Almighty bunghole." He also starts chanting, in a vaguely hinduesque way, "bungholiooooo". In the same scene Cornholio also says "I have no bunghole" showing confusion within his own circumstances. He reverts to normal at the film's climax, surrounded by SWAT teams and soldiers, unaware as to how he arrived on Pennsylvania Avenue.
[edit] Other appearances
In other episodes, Beavis does impressions of Cornholio. This could imply that Beavis has some knowledge of Cornholio. These instances include:
- "Screamers" - Both Beavis and Butt-head pull their shirts over their heads and scream at innocent bystanders.
- "Incognito" - Beavis's "Crevasse" voice sounds similar to Cornholio's.
- "Head Lice" - Beavis says "Do you have any tsetse flies?" in a manner similar to Cornholio's "Do you have any TP?".
- "Shopping List" - When Mr. Anderson tells the pair about his constipation, Butt-head asks him if he would like some more toilet paper. Beavis adds "TP? For your bunghole?"
- "Babysitting" - Beavis jabbers in Cornholio-style quasi-Spanish to entertain children.
Beavis also occasionally speaks with Cornholio's voice during music video reviews. On one occasion he claimed there was a "Spanish dude" living inside his head, who told him to do certain things (implying schizophrenia); he then began jabbering in Cornholio-style quasi-Spanish, before announcing "I gotta go to the bathroom!".
[edit] Trivia
- Filk performer and comedian The great Luke Ski recorded a parody of the song "Macarena" (the Bayside Boys remix version) as performed by Los del Río entitled "The Great Cornholio". In the parody, Butt-head sings the first verse, introducing Beavis and describing his transformation after consuming "six root beers and twenty-seven 3 Musketeers". Beavis then sings the remainder of the verses with occasional back-up from Butt-head, establishing himself as the Great Cornholio and spouting virtually all of the often-used phrases and threats associated with Cornholio. B&B supporting characters Mr. Van Driessen, Mr. Anderson, Coach Buzzcut, and Principal McVicker provide generally disapproving commentary. The great Luke Ski also established parody dance moves to parallel the dance associated with the song "Macarena". The parody dance involves imitation of Cornholio's excited arm movements along with, of course, pulling one's shirt up over one's head.
- In Duke Nukem 3D, one of the cheat codes for invincibility is "DNCORNHOLIO".
- An episode of Celebrity Deathmatch from 2001 featured a fight between Beavis/Cornholio and Butt-Head. Near the end, Beavis transformed into Cornholio after drinking excessive amounts of soda pop at a snack cart outside the ring. Cornholio would end up mutilating Butt-Head with tongs and a fork that replaced his hands, to win the match (although how he pulled his shirt over his head without the use of his hands is a mystery). However, this fight was done without any involvement by Mike Judge. It also marks Cornholio's first appearance outside of 2D animation.
- A portion of Cornholio's catchphrase, "TP for my bunghole", is also found in the lyrics of Eminem's rap song, Just Lose It.
- Belgian grindcore band Leng Tch'e end their first album "Death By A Thousand Cuts" with a song titled "T.P.", which is based on Cornholio.
- The Nemi comic strip has referenced Cornholio once, in a way that made it incomprehensible to the general audience; the main character, when invited to "a game of TP", goes into Cornholio mode.
- In episode four of the YouTube parody series Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series, Weevil Underwood (whose part in the series, along with that of Rex Raptor, is based off of Beavis and Butt-head) "transforms" into Cornholio.
[edit] External links
- Beavis and Butt-head Central, a fan site with downloads
- Transcript of The Great Cornholio episode
- Fan site with an essay on the origins of The Great Cornholio
