Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post presents some information and three examples
each of how Frankenstein is portrayed in three "families" of 20th century and 21st
century children's recreational rhymes.
The content of that post is presented for folkloric, socio-cultural, and recreational purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
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Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/01/how-monster-who-is-now-referred-to-as.html for a related pancocojams post "How The Monster Who Is Now Referred To As "Frankenstein" Is Portrayed In That 19th Century Novel With That Title."
Also, click the tags below for more information about and examples of "Frankenstein/granny" children's recreational rhymes.
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THE RACIAL ORIGIN OF THESE RHYMES
Based on this common factor in their text (words), I refer to these recreational; rhymes rhymes as "Yo Baldheaded Granny"/"Yo Greasy Grimy Granny" rhymes. Some of these rhymes have different, but very similar references such as "Yo Greasy Greasy Granny" or "Your Bald Headed Mammy".
I believe these rhymes originated among African Americans. This belief is based on these factors:
1. these rhymes textual characteristics (such as their use of African American Vernacular English such as the word "Yo")
2. these rhymes textual structure
3. these rhymes connection to or association with "the dozens", an insult (dissin) game that has been and still is mostly associated with African Americans
4. the comments from some online contributors of examples of these rhymes who self-identify as African American, or indicate that they learned the example of these rhyme from African Americans or in an African American neighborhood.
As is the case with a lot of African American originated children's recreational rhymes, examples of these rhymes were/are chanted by Americans throughout the United States. .
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HOW FRANKENSTEIN IS PORTRAYED IN THREE "FAMILIES" OF 20TH CENTURY AND 21ST CENTURY CHILDREN'S RECREATIONAL RHYMES
Some "families" (groups) of children's recreational rhymes mention the monster that is known as "Frankenstein" while other examples of those rhymes don't mention him at all.
Here's some information about and examples of "Yo Bald Headed Granny", "Yo Greasy Grimy Granny" and some other children's recreational rhymes that mention "Frankenstein".(given in no particular order).:
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Rhyme Family #1-"Yo Bald Headed Granny" rhymes that mention Frankenstein
"Yo Bald Headed Granny" rhymes (that mention Frankenstein or that don't mention Frankenstein) are categorized as children's taunting rhymes ("dissin/insult") rhymes.
The title and the bald headed descriptor of that grandmother reflects the put down, demeaning characteristics of the grandmother that comprise these rhymes. e grandmother is referred to as "Yo [your] bald headed granny". This descriptor reflect the high value that American culture in general and African American culture in particular places on females having a full, healthy, head of hair,and usually long hair.
The description in many of the examples of these rhymes (and many examples of the closely related "Yo Greasy Grimy Granny" family of rhymes) that the grandmother is "99" [years old" reflects the fact that really old age isn't respected in American culture.
The sentence "she thinks she fine" is a standard part of the sub-set of these "Frankenstein"/"granny" rhymes. I believe that this line is vocalized as "She THINKS she's fine" meaning she's deluding herself into believing she's still "fine" ("physically attractive").
Furthermore, the fact that this old granny "goes out with (dates) Frankenstein" is another put down as it implies that no one but a monster would go out their bald headed granny. The name "Frankenstein" rhymes with the word "fine", but the selection of that name adds other layers of insults to these rhymes than the fact that it rhymes with the word "fine" because Americans (and other people throughout the world) consider the name "Frankenstein" to be a monster's name. However, while the name "Frankenstein" is considered that monster's name, in the "Yo Bald Headed Granny" rhymes and in the "Yo Greasy Grimy Granny" rhymes (which I've categorized as family #2 of these recreational rhymes), Frankenstein isn't portrayed as a monster, scary or otherwise. Instead, "Frankenstein" is portrayed as a man. Indeed, in some of these "Yo Bald Headed Granny" rhymes, and particularly in some "Yo Greasy Grimy Granny" rhymes, Frankenstein is informally referred to as "Franky".
In many examples of these two families of children's recreational rhymes Frankenstein is portrayed in these rhymes as someone who goes out with (goes on a date with) another person's old grandmother. In some other examples of these rhymes, Frankenstein is portrayed as "breaking [it] down" (showing off by dancing really well) with granny or by himself.
Even the titles of these "Yo Bald Headed Granny" and "Yo Greasy Grimy Granny" rhymes indicate that they are taunting (dissin' (insulting) rhymes. These rhymes are similar to the "playing the dozens" game and sometimes may be provoked by someone hurling the "Yo mama" taunt to another person or other people. However, it appears to me that "Yo Bald Headed Granny" and "Yo Greasy Grimy Granny" rhymes may have been/may still be chanted without any provocation just as part of children's recreational rhymes experiences..
Here's information about "the dozens from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dozens_(game)
"The Dozens is a game played between two contestants in which the participants insult each other until one of them gives up. Common in African American communities, the Dozens is almost exclusively played in front of an audience, who encourage the participants to reply with increasingly severe insults in order to heighten the tension and consequently make the contest more interesting to watch.
Comments in the game may focus on the opposite player's intelligence, appearance, competency, social status, and financial situation. Disparaging remarks about the other player's family members are common, especially regarding their mother.[1] Commentary is often related to sexual issues, and this version of the game is referred to as the "Dirty Dozens".[2]
According to sociologist Harry Lefever and journalist John Leland, the game is played almost entirely by African-Americans; other ethnic groups often fail to understand how to play the game and can take remarks in the Dozens seriously.[note 1] Its popularity is higher among low-income and urban communities, but it is also found in middle-class and rural settings. Both men and women participate, but the game is more commonly played among men:".
Here are three examples of this family of rhymes that mention "Frankenstein":
Example #1
"Who remembers Brick Wall Waterfall?
I randomly remembered this little chant from elementary school. I feel like everyone had a different version but i remember:
“That’s the way uh huh uh huh I like it uh huh uh huh You got yours, i got mine so peace punch captain crunch Brick wall waterfall. Boys think they know it all But they don’t, girls do. So poof with the attitude No wait, come back. I think you need a tictac Not one, not two, but the whole six pack Your mama your daddy your bald headed granny She 99 she think she fine. Shes goin out with Frankenstein Go granny go granny Go go Go granny"
-Oldpplication2936,2022
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Example #2
"ur momma
ur daddy
ur bald headed granny
shes 99
she thinks shes fine
she breaks it down like frankenstein
u wish
u wish
u just got dissed
wait come back
i think u need a tic tic
i dont need mean
not a sip not a swallow but the whole dang bottle!"
-kno 1, 4/30/3007 cocojams.com [This website is no longer active *]
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"breaks it down" = does his (or her) best dance moves; This is an alternative to what appears to be the more often used line "she goes out with Frankenstein".
"dissed" = insulted (disrespected)
Note that the lines after "u just got dissed" are from the once very widely chanted "Brick wall Waterfall" insult rhyme.
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* "Cocojams.com was my multi-page cultural website that was online from 2001-2014. Most of the examples of children's rhymes and cheers that were featured on that website came from children and teenagers who used that website's easy online feature to post their examples. Some of those examples have been reposted on pancocojams and/or on my other blog
https://cocojams2.blogspot.com/2014/11/childrens-taunting-rhymes-m-z.html
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Example #3
"Yo momma yo dadda yo bald headed grandma she’s 99 she thinks she’s fine she’s going out with Frankenstein. She wish, she wish, she just get a kiss mah mah
My cousin taught me this when I was as young between 4 and 7 probably. That was uh well 20 years go. She made me sing this to my grandma, so she might have tuned it her own way. I think we made up a dance even?"
-FigureJumpy6924, January 2026,
https://www.reddit.com/r/nostalgia/comments/p5fp6c/yo_mama_yo_daddy_yo_bald_granny/
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Rhyme Family #2- "Yo Greasy Grimy Granny" (or similar rhyme titles)that mention Frankenstein
Like the closely related "Yo Bald Headed Granny" rhymes, the "Yo (Your) Greasy Grimy Granny" rhymes are categorized as children's taunting (dissin/insult) rhymes.
In this "family" (group) of children's recreational rhymes the grandmother is referred to as a "greasy, grimy granny". In addition to those put down descriptors, the grandmother has a big butt like Frankenstein (or alternatively that Frankenstein has a big butt like that grandmother).
Most of these rhymes include the line that the butt "goes beep beep beep down Sesame Street". That line reinforces the description of a butt being so round and big that it bounces up and down when the person walks.
Although in these rhymes the reference to a person having a big behind (butt) is considered an insult, in African American culture females having a big butt is usually considered to be a compliment (unless the butt is thought to be too big). Also, the African American children's recreational rhyme "Policeman Policeman" gives a compliment by describing a girl as having an "African booty" (i.e. a big butt allegedly like African women)
These "Yo Greasy Grimy Granny" rhymes also include standard lines about the grandmother having holes in her panties.
Here are three examples of this family of rhymes that mention "Frankenstein":
Example #1
"Yo mama
yo daddy
yo greasy stank granny
she got holes in her panties
she got a big behind
like Frankenstein
your mama got a big oh butt"
-CinciDiva on Feb 13, 2011, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMtZXXIHLwY "Yo Mama -- Yo Daddy -- Yo greasy stank granny! LOL!"
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"Stank" is African American Vernacular English (AAVE) for "really stinks". In AAVE "stank" is a present tense of "sinks" and not a past tense of that word.
**
Example #2
"I am 25 now and learned this when I was in KG, i'm from North Carolina.
yo mamma
yo, mamma,
yo greasy greasy grand mammy,
she got a big behind like frankinstine,
it goes beat beat beat like sesame street."
-Erica, January 3, 2008, cocojams.com
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"KG" almost certainly is an abbreviation for "kindergarten".
"Sesame Street" is the award winning American children's television series.
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Example #3
KISS MY ACRABACK
kiss my acraback
you soda pack
you b-u-t-t butty wack
your moma, your papa, your greasy, greasy grandmomma
got holes in your pants like frankenstein
goin' join the beat on sesame street
goin' join the gang on soul train
goin' to the bunny hop
to you just can't stop, just can't stop no more
stop, blank, aaaaa.
aaaahhh the country south. :lol:
-jenoy,7/24/2007, https://www.nappturality.com/forums/threads/81695-Clapping-Rhymes-hand-Games/page4 Rhymes/hand Games [This website is no longer active.]
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"Soul Train" refers to the long running television series that featured mostly African Americans performing the latest R&B/Hip Hop dances with some guest performers.
This example doesn't refer to granny and Frankenstein having big butts. However, I consider it to be a creative adaptation of sub-set #3 of these rhymes.
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"Rhyme Family" #3-Other examples of rhymes that mention Frankenstein
This extended family (group) of children's recreational rhymes that mention Frankenstein include the rhyme "I Wish I Had A Nickel" or long form examples of "Miss Susie Had A Steamboat" rhymes combined with verses from that "I Wish I Had A Nickel" rhyme..
The "I Wish I Had A Boyfriend" verses that are found in those children's recreational rhymes are adaptations of the "I Wish I Had A Nickel" song that was written in 1949 by W.S. Barnhart and Tommy Sutton and performed in that year by country music singer Hank Williams. Those song lyrics refer to an unnamed boyfriend and not Frankenstein.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Wish_I_Had_a_Nickel
Unlike "Yo Bald Headed Granny" and "Yo Greasy Grimy Granny", the examples in this "family" of children's recreational rhymes aren't taunting (dissin/insult) rhymes.
In the "my mother gave me a nickel" rhymes, "Frankenstein" is mentioned as the boyfriend that the sister gives to the chanter. Without using that word, a verse in those rhymes describes Frankenstein as an autocrat i, e, someone who is romantically associated with a person who he expects to completely obey him, particularly (in those rhymes) to do all the household chores. That rhyme concludes with the chanter kicking "Frankenstein" down the stairs, or out of the door, and then kicking him over various nations throughout the world.
Although children may not consciously recognize this, part of the socialization* that occurs while chanting that particular rhyme is that females and males may learn that it's socially acceptable to leave a difficult romantic relationship at some point when it become untenable. This is an important lesson that reflects a major change in the realities that women lived through for centuries.
*Socialization is "the process whereby the young of society learn the values, ideas and practices and roles of that society
https://www.simplypsychology.org/socialization.html
Here are three examples of this family of rhymes that mention "Frankenstein":.
[The verse that includes the name "Frankenstein" is given in italics for highlighting purposes only.]
Example #1:
MY MOTHER GAVE ME A NICKEL
My mother gave me a nickel
My father gave me a dime
My sister gave me a lover boy
Who loved me all the time
My mother took back her nickel
My father took back her dime
My sister took back her lover boy
And gave me Frankenstein
He made me do the dishes
He made me mop the floor
I got so sick and tired of him
I kicked him out the door."
-Simon J. Bronner (editor), American Children's Folklore, 1988, page 62
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Example #2
Miss Susie Had a Steamboat (Hello Operator) – Nursery Rhyme Miss Susie Had a Steamboat (Hello Operator) with Lyrics and Clapping Instructions [title]
Miss Susie had a steamboat,
The steamboat had a bell.
Miss Susie went to heaven,
The steamboat went to $&#/$&
Hello operator,
Please give me number nine.
And if you disconnect me
I’ll chop of your /&$#%$
Behind the frigerator
There was a piece of glass.
Miss Mary sat upon it.
It went right up her “%”$(=
Ask me no more questions,
Please tell me no more lies.
The boys are in the bathroom,
Zipping down their “$%$&/&
Flies are in the city,
The bees are in the park.
Boys and girls are kissing
In the D-A-R-K
D-A-R-K D-A-R-K dark dark dark
Dark is like a movie,
A movie’s like a show.
A show is like a TV screen,
And that is all I know
I know I know my mother,
I know I know my pa.
I know I know my sister
With the forty acre bra.
Brother’s like a sister,
A sister’s like an aunt.
An aunt is like a relative
Who likes to rave and rant.
I wish I had a nickel
I wish I had a dime
I wish I had a boyfriend
Who kissed me all the time!
My Ma gave me a nickel
My Pa gave me a dime.
My Sister gave me a boyfriend,
Who’d kiss me all the time
My Ma took back the nickel,
My Pa took back the dime.
My Sister took back her boyfriend,
and gave me Frankenstein!
He made me wash the dishes,
He made me wash the floors,
He made me wash his underwear,
So I kicked him out the door
I kicked him over London,
I kicked him over France.
I kicked him to Hawaii,
where he learned to Hula dance!
My mothers like Godzilla,
My fathers like King Kong.
My sister is the stupid one
That taught me this dumb song.
Hello operator,
Please give me number ten.
And if you disconnect me,
I’ll sing this song again!"
-https://rhymesonline.wordpress.com/2016/09/11/miss-susie-had-a-steamboat-hello-operator/
Example #3
MISS SUSIE HAD A STEAMBOAT
"Miss Susie had a steamboat,
the steamboat had a bell ding ding,
the steamboat went to heaven,
Miss susie went to
hello operator,
give me number nine,
and if you disconnect me,
I'll chop off your
behind the refrigerator
there lay a piece of glass
Miss susie sat upong it
and broke her little
ask me no more questions
tell me no more lies
the boys are in the bathroom
zipping up their
flies are in the city
bees are in the park
Miss susie and her boyfriend
are kissing in the
d-a-r-k
d-a-r-k
d-a-r-k
dark dark dark
the dark is like the movies,
the movies like the show
the show is like the tv set
and that is all i know know know
i know i know my ma
i know i know my pa
i know i know my sister
with the sixty dollar, sixty dollar sixty dollar bra bra bra
my mother is godzilla
my father is king kong
my brother is the stupid one
who made up this song
my mother gave me a nickel
my father gave me a dime
my sister gave me a boyfriend
his name was frankenstein
he made me do the dishes
he made me wash the floors
he made me clean his underweard
then i kicked him out the door
i kicked him over london
i kicked him over france
i kicked him over hollywood and he lost his underpants"
-Erin; Octoblog [This website is no longer active.], 4/19/2004
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I remember reciting "greasy granny" in primary school in 1970, so it's been around for a long, long time.
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