Mr. Potato Head on TV
and Movies

Most experts agree that Mr. Potato Head was the first toy to be advertised on TV. Those first
appearances in front of the camera obviously planted the potato bug...uh, I mean the acting bug
in our favorite spud. He has since appeared on TV and in movies many times. Here are just a few.
 
 
 

-Mr. Potato Head often appeared in the Potato Head Kids cartoons that aired Saturday
mornings as part of the 1980's My Little Pony and Friends show. 

Lyrics to the Potato Head Kids Cartoon Open

Potatoes!
Song:
Go Go potatoes every one
Potato Heads Kids, havin' so much fun!

Go Go potatoes, that's our song...
Potato Heads Kids, are rollin' along.

Packed in a go cart, off to the fun house
Chasing a dream...let's go team!
Potatoes! 

-Do you think Toy Story was Mr. Potato Head’s first big screen role? Guess again.
He had a small part  in the 1987 comedy Amazon Women on the Moon. Actor
Griffen Dunne plays a doctor who tries to convince Michelle Pfeiffer that a
Mr. Potato Head is really her newborn Baby!
 

Mr. Potato Head makes a cameo in the Chevy Chase movie Fletch. When Fletch is on the phone
in the Utah hotel, the woman at the front desk is watching the 1983 Super Mr. Potato Head commercial!
(See below for lyrics and link to this commercial) 

The Matthew Broderick movie Wargames had a small Mr. Potato Head reference. One of the computer hackers
kept calling his annoying friend "Mr. Potato Head".
 

In the 1987 season of the TV show Small Wonder, an episode aired with the title "The Electric Potatoheads."

Mr. Potato Head is mentioned in the pilot episode of NBC’s popular TV show Friends.
In one of Rachel’s first lines of the series, she says she couldn’t marry her fiance after
realizing he looks like Mr. Potato Head.
 

In Episode 403 of the science fiction cult classic Mystery Science Theater 3000,
the main character introduced some wacky new versions of Mr. Potato Head
(such as Mr. Beef And Potato Head) in an invention exchange contest.
 

The 1995 release Toy Story featured a wise cracking Mr. Potato Head voiced by Actor Don Rickles.
 

Dozens of Mr. Potato Heads were used as one part of the plot in the NBC show
The Pretender. The episode titled “Potato Head Blues” aired in 1997.
 

A Mr. Potato Head sits on the desk of the main character in NBC’s Third Rock TV show!
 

In  1998, Mr. Potato Head returned to TV as the title character in an all new show!
The Mr. Potato Head Show on the FOX Family Channel followed the adventures of  Mr. Potato
Head and his kitchen friends through the use of live action puppets and computer animation.

The Mr. Potato Head Show video-Pioneer Entertainment, ca. 1998
 

The Mr. Potato Head Show hat. Given to TV show crew members only, ca. 1998
 

In several of the Mr. Potato Head shows on FOX TV, there were alien characters in the storylines. Below is a picture of a prop
that I recently aquired. It's an actual prop alien head and hand used in the taping of the Fox Mr. Potato Head show. Items are foam filled with latex rubber skin. This head was also used once in a TV show on the Sci-Fi Channel and a B-horror comedy.

Alien head and hand prop from the Mr. Potato Head Show
 

The huge success of Toy Story spawned a big budget sequel in 1999. This time Mrs. Potato Head joined her husband!
 

The band EVERCLEAR released a music video in 2000 titled AM Radio. A couple of brief
shots from a 1970’s Mr. Potato Head commercial can be seen during the video!
 

If you watch closely, you can see the 1950's Mr. & Mrs. Potato Head Life magazine ad show
up in the 2001 movie A Beautiful Mind.

In the beginning of the 2003 Will Ferrell Movie ELF, Mr. Potato Head Boxes can be seen prominently
for several minutes in the Santa's workshop scene. Interestingly, even though
it's an American movie, the boxes shown are the trilingual Canadian versions! 

The show Monster House on TLC is known for radical and themed home renovations. The host, Steve Watson, is known for his quirky T-shirts
he wears each week. On the May  3, 2004 episode, Steve wore the "Mr. Potato Head Picks His Nose" T-shirt!

Custom props made by artist John Stuart for a TV commercial

I get many emails about the lyrics for the various Potato Head commercials. Here are the transcripts from the ones I have been able to find thus far.

1950's commercial Boy: Hey it's Hasbro!. Hasbro makes toys. What's new Hasbro? Hasbro: Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head with their own cars and trailers, that's whats new See, Mr. Potato Head has a car and boat trailer and there's a car and shopping trailer for his wife Mrs. Potato Head It's such fun to do, and so easy...like this. Take any fruit or vegetable. Just stick in eyes...then ears...and then the mouth! You can make the funniest looking people in the whole world! Potato Head people look different everytime you make them. Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head with cars and trailers comes in one and two dollar sizes. (See it here)
1970's Potato Head commercial "I made you, you know it's true..." "Mr. Potato Head, I made you..." "Eyes and ears, mouth and nose too..." "Mr. Potato Head, I made you..."
1980's Bucket of Parts commercial "Mr. Potato Head, and his bucket o' parts. Buckets of fun for everyone." You can put him all together and take him all a part It's Mr. Potato Head and his bucket of parts.
1983 Super Mr Potato Head commercial Oh.... look at that funny guy new Super Mr. Potato Head You can make a funny potato head with new  Super Mr. Potato Head Shake hand's Mr. Potato Head get eyes and ears and  funny noses... and hands you can bend in so many poses You can even make a Misses Potato Head with new Super Mr. Potato Head Spoken: I like you you funny guy! Announcer: New Super Mr. Potato Head, from Hasbro Preschool (See it here)
1980's Mr Potato Head Family Commercial Announcer: Annocuncing a new arrival Nurse: Mr. Potato Head... MPH: That's me! Nurse: Congratulations, it's a potato. Song: "It's Mr, Potato Head family. There's Mr. and Mrs. and baby too... Potato Head family I love you. With eyes and ears and hats and nose... you can put them in so many poses and change them as easy as 1,2,3, "It's Mr. Potato Head family! Child speaks: I love you funny baby Announcer: Mr. Potato Head family, new from Hasbro Preschool (See it here)
1980's Mr. Potato Head Funny Face Car Ccommercial Announcer: Who has the funniest car in town? Mr. Potato Head: Who else? Song: Mr. Potato Head Funny Face Car Oh what a funny faced car you are. Spoken: Let's go for a ride! OK! Song: With headlight eyes and a bumper smile, mix up the pieces in any style It's lots of fun wherever you are new Mr. Potato Head Funny Face Car Spoken: I like you Funny Face Car Announcer: Mr. Potato Head and his Funny Face Car new from Hasbro Preschool (See it here)
Potato Heads Kids School House Whiz Kid: Potatoes! PH Kid: Time for school! Song: Go Go potatoes every one Potato Heads Kids school, so much fun! PH Kid speaks: There's Whiz Kid Song continues: Change em rearrange em, any way will do Potato Head Kids School, Good News! Go Go Potatoes! Go Go potatoes every one Potato Heads Kids school, so much fun! Potato Heads Kids school, so much fun! Announcer: Potato Heads Kids school house comes with Whiz Kids. Other kids sold sepereately...from Playskool (See it here)