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Shout Out / South Park - Seasons 1 to 5

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This page covers Shout Outs found in South Park.

Seasons 1 To 5 | Seasons 6 To 10 | Seasons 11 To 20


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Season One:

     Cartman Gets An Anal Probe 
  • The 'School Days' song was a hit in 1907 and 1908, first recorded by Byron G. Harlan.
  • Stan's humongous smile and floating hearts when he sees Wendy is very reminiscent of Charlie Brown's when he sees the little red-haired girl.
  • "Cows on a people train" references an obscure Dr. Seuss book entitled In a People House, which he wrote under the pseudonym "Theo LeSeig".
  • The song "I Love to Singa" (that Cartman sings while under alien control) is from the 1936 Tex Avery cartoon of the same name. One of the characters is a 'tasteless' crooning owl named Owl Jolson, one of four hatchlings born to the parent owls.
  • Kyle tells Ike, "Do your impersonation of David Caruso's career" referring to his career after NYPD Blue - it took a dive and didn't recover until CSI: Miami, more than a decade later. Ike takes a dive head first into the snow.
  • In the unaired pilot, one of the scenes that didn't make it in the final cut has a song reminiscent of Vince Guaraldi's "Skating" playing over it.
    • Also in the pilot, Pip says "God bless us, everyone" at the end, with a dazed Cartman declaring to kick his ass as soon as he gets up.

     Weight-Gain 4000 
  • Mr. Hat's spinning head echoes that from The Exorcist.
  • Kathie Lee's song is the one she sang for Carnival Cruise lines. The song is originally from Sweet Charity.
  • Garrison and Mr. Hat arguing is a likely parody of the film Magic, where a ventriloquist has multiple personality disorder, and argues with his puppet.
  • When Cartman says "Beefcake - beefCAAKE!" it sounds like Danny Torrence from The Shining when he yells "Redrum-redRUUM!"
  • Mr. Garrison's "Are you talking to me?" line is from Taxi Driver.
  • As Mr. Garrison walks down the street with his new purchase, everyone calls out "Nice gun". This is similar to a scene in Doc Hollywood, in which the title character walks down the street with a new pig given to him as payment for a doctor's visit. Everyone comments, "(that sure is a) Nice pig, Doc" etc.
  • "It is…too late for me, young Wendy." was paraphrased from Darth Vader in Return of the Jedi.
  • An oft-repeated line in Scooby-Doo was, "And I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for those meddling kids!" This line was echoed by Garrison/Mr. Hat when he's being arrested.
  • The manuscript for Walden by Henry David Thoreau is passed off by Cartman as his own essay simply by crossing out Thoreau's name and writing his own.
  • Cartman appears on Geraldo.

    Volcano 
  • Cartman's mention of Step by Step could be considered a shout-out.
    • Well, considering one of the stars of that show was Patrick Duffy, whom Scuzzlebutt had for a leg...
  • The episode as a whole is said to be a rip on the eruption disaster movies that were coming out around that time; specifically Volcano and Dante's Peak.
  • Cartman's mention of Danforth could easily be a shout-out to Rambo: First Blood. John Rambo serves with a soldier named Danforth.
  • The Lava and You film is a clear parody of 1950s nuclear safety films, which suggested "duck and cover" as an effective tactic when under nuclear attack.
  • Scuzzlebutt sounds exactly like Ludo from Labyrinth when he says, "Friend."

     Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride 
  • "Would you like some toasted cheese sandwiches?" is an homage to one of the Psycho movies; Norman Bates tells Mary Loomis that she smells like the toasted cheese sandwiches his mother used to bring him.
  • When Stan and Sparky are leaving Big Gay Al's, Al says "When you get back to town, tell them about us, will you? Tell them there are gay animals here who need homes, desperately." This is the same thing the Winged Lion says about the Misfit Toys to Rudolph and the Dentist Elf, in the Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer stop-motion Christmas special, before they leave the Island and return to Santa.
  • Big Gay Al's departure is a spoof of Dr. Lao's disappearance at the end of 7 Faces of Dr. Lao.

     An Elephant Makes Love To A Pig 
  • Shelley's particular style of headgear likely comes from the Brazil character of the same name.
  • Mephisto and his assistant Kevin are homages to Dr. Moreau and his assistant Majal from the 1996 film The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996).
  • Pip, who's full name is Philip Pirrup, is from the novel Great Expectations. He quotes the novel and will later star in an episode based on it.
  • The part where Terrence yells, "Daddy, Nooooooooo!" when his dad shoots the genetic clone of Stan comes from The Omen (1976). It's the next to last scene in the church when Robert Thorn is going to stab Damien.
  • The end line, "That'll do, pig." is a reference to Babe.

    Death 
  • The music played by Grandpa Marsh to show Stan his pain is a clear (or actually, kinda muffled) parody of Enya's Orinoco Flow.
  • There are specific mentions of Full House and She's the Sheriff.

    Pinkeye 
  • The whole episode is very Return of the Living Dead, especially doctors describing the symptoms.
  • Stan's costume is Raggedy Andy. He thought Wendy would come to school as Raggedy Ann so they could enter the contest together.
  • Everyone else in class, including Wendy, is Chewbacca from Star Wars, except Garrison who is Marilyn Monroe, and Cartman who is Adolf Hitler.
  • Cartman calls Stan Howdy Doody, Holly Hobbie and Pippi Longstocking while making fun of his costume.
  • The doctor's intonation is very like Jimmy Stewart.
  • Puffy the Bear, who looks exactly like Smokey Bear.
  • Chef trying to explain to the doctor that everyone is turning to zombies could be a reference to the novel, I Am Legend.
  • Chef performs a dead-on parody of Thriller.
    • Literally...
  • Stan faced with having to kill his zombie girlfriend could be a nod to Evil Dead 2.
  • The last shot, with the little bunch of flowers and the arm coming out of the grave was a likely homage to the end of Carrie (1976).

     Starvin' Marvin 
  • Cartman and Wendy quote a passage from A Christmas Carol line for line.
  • The canned food drive based on The Cash Grab.
  • The end battle spoofs Braveheart.
  • Kyle mentions both MacGyver and Full House. (Sally Struthers was actually on All in the Family, a show cited at times to be the original inspiration for Cartman's character.)

     Mr. Hankey the Christmas Poo 
  • Stan's speech is directly from A Charlie Brown Christmas, as is the opening of the scene of catching snowflakes; "Try and catch snowflakes on your tongue. It's fun!"
  • With his stylized eyes, white gloves, and high voice, Mr. Hankey is reminiscent of Mickey Mouse.
  • Mackey calls Kyle a "sick little monkey," an oft-used line on The Ren & Stimpy Show.
  • Kyle carrying Mr. Hankey in a box and his initial inactivity in the presence of others causing Kyle to be put in an asylum is similar to plot devices around Michigan J. Frog from "One Froggy Evening".

    Damien 
  • The whole episode has myriad references to The Omen, not the least of which is the title character.
  • The Megaman toys are based on Power Rangers. They were actually going to be Power Ranger toys in an early script draft, but the Comedy Central legal team asked that the name be changed to avoid copyright issues.
  • Stan quotes Star Trek: First Contact; Commander Riker, from the future, has an exchange with Zephram Cochrane in which he says, "Somebody once said, 'Don't try to be a great man, just be a man.'" When Cochrane asked who said that, Riker responds, "You did. Ten years from now."

     Tom's Rhinoplasty 

     Mecha-Streisand 
  • Barbra Streisand's "condo" is modeled after the house (a real one) that Woody Allen goes to in the futuristic film Sleeper.
  • Streisand's father is said to be an insurance salesman, and her mother a jackal. In The Omen (1976), Damien's mother was a jackal.
  • The Japanese princesses in the shell are the ones whom Mothra has to rescue in Tokyo in his first film.
  • Streisand becomes Meka Baabura Sutoraisendo, a reference to Mecha Godzilla
    • Leonard Maltin becomes Aatora Renaado Marutin, referencing Ultraman.
    • Sidney Poitier becomes Mega Pōtia, his design based on Gamera
    • Robert Smith becomes Robaato Sumiisu, his design based on Mothra.
    • Kyle says to Robert Smith that Disintegration is the best album ever!''
      • And they all have their own song, just as the Japanese monsters do.
  • Stan says, "My mom always said there were no monsters, but there are, aren't there, Chef?" - a paraphrase of Newt's comment to Ripley in Aliens.

     Cartman's Mom Is A Dirty Slut 
  • The 'Throbbing Star' song is a parody of "My Heart Will Go On" from Titanic (1997).
  • Cartman's Afro is based on Kid from hip-hop duo Kid 'n Play. The clock is borrowed from Flava Flav.
  • America's Stupidest Home Videos is an obvious parody of America's Funniest Home Videos.

Season Two:

     Not Without My Anus 
  • Title is a reference to the film (and book) Not Without My Daughter. In the episode, Terrence needs to rescue his daughter.
  • The Canadian love of Kraft Dinner is likely from the Barenaked Ladies song, If I Had a Million Dollars in which the Canadian band says with that kind of money they wouldn't have to eat Kraft Dinner, but they would.
  • Saddam Hussein and Scott paraphrase Darth Vader and Lando in The Empire Strikes Back. (Hussein says, "I changed my mind. Pray that I do not change it any more," to which Scott mutters, "This deal's getting worse all the time." In Empire, Vader says, "I am altering the deal, pray I do not alter it any further." to which Lando mutters the same phrase as Scott, "This deal is getting worse all the time.")

     Cartman's Mom Is Still A Dirty Slut 
  • Chef states he used to watch Quincy, M.E..
  • Kenny's journey to the 'backup generator' and the mention of 'velociraptors' reference Jurassic Park. A shadow of a dinosaur can be seen on the generator, later.
  • Kenny completing the circuit with his hands is similar to current running through Doc in Back to the Future.
  • Cannibalism under extreme conditions was the subject of Alive, which also featured the song Ave Maria.

     Chickenlover 
  • The rainbow motif on the Booktastic Bus is likely a reference to Reading Rainbow.
  • Barbrady and Cartman are both seen filming episodes of COPS.

     Ike's Wee Wee 

     Conjoined Fetus Lady 
  • Cartman makes reference to Moby-Dick, mentioning Captain Ahab and the pursuit of a whale.
  • The picture of conjoined twins is not of conjoined twins, but members of the musical group The Monkees.
  • When Pip throws his final throw against the Chinese team, the way he spins, throws the ball, then slowly stops spinning, is reminiscent of the Death Blossom scene in The Last Starfighter.

     The Mexican Staring Frog of Southern Sri Lanka 
  • Episode title could easily be based on the Mark Twain short story The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.
  • "A question a child might ask, but not a childish question." - Garrison's line comes from a commercial for the History of the Vietnam War book series. In the commercial, a man and his son stand before the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC. The son looks up, and asks "Daddy, what's Vietnam?" A voiceover somberly intones "A question a child might ask - but not a childish question."
  • "…but Pony Boy was beat up pretty bad. He kept saying, 'stay gold.'" - this is from Chapter 9 of The Outsiders, by S. E. Hinton, a short novel about four friends who were in a gang. Only there, it was Ponyboy's friend who was in the hospital, and Ponyboy was visiting him. His friend dies saying these words: "Stay gold, Ponyboy. Stay gold."
  • Jesus and Pals becomes a parody of Jerry Springer, complete with chanting crowd and manufactured fights. One audience member thinks he's on Montel Williams.
  • While the boys are in detention trying to come up with a revenge plan against Jimbo and Ned, Kyle asks if they've seen "that one The Brady Bunch where the guy...". Most likely he's referring to the 5th-season episode "Out of This World" where Greg tricks his brothers into thinking there's a UFO in the sky.

     City On The Edge Of Forever 
  • The little kid who is killed by the monster is a Star Trek Red Shirt. The title of the episode is also from Star Trek.
  • The roofies truck driver bears a resemblance to Elvis Presley, who was a truck driver before he became a singer.
  • The scene of the bus breaking in half and the boy falling out through the rear window is partially derived from The Lost World: Jurassic Park, when the dinosaurs had pushed the trailers almost over the cliff. The lead actors hold on to the interior of the rear trailer as debris falls past them and out the back window and door. A similar effect is shown in Titanic (1997), when passengers let go of railings and fall to their deaths (note that the bus, like the ship, has split in two.)
  • The video made by the parents echoes "We Are the World".
  • One of the flashbacks parodies the infamous Happy Days episode "Hollywood, Part 3" (the one where Fonzie jumps the shark).
    • Actually, it's a reference to "Fearless Fonzarelli, Part 1", which aired almost two years earlier (the shark was probably a failed attempt to remake past success). In that episode, Fonzie lost his 'coolness' and decided he could get it back if he set a new world record by jumping 14 school buses on his motorcycle. Naturally, the episode ended on a cliffhanger (with Fonzie in midair over the buses, no less), leading to a "Last time, on Happy Days" opening. Unlike the Hawaii...saga (it was, like, 4 episodes), the whole thing was Played for Laughs, rather than drama.

     Summer Sucks 
  • Garrison gets a Charlie Brown smile after fantasizing about barbecuing Lamb Chop.
  • Uncle Remus is mentioned in place of Uncle Sam.
  • Garrison goes to see Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist.
  • The boys picking up their instruments and beginning to play (as the snake is destroying South Park) is reminiscent of the musicians on the deck of the Titanic (1997).
  • Everyone being covered with ash at the end might have been a reference to the final scene of Volcano.

     Chef's Salty Chocolate Balls 
  • Cartman makes mention of The Goonies.
  • Mr. Hankey echoes Yoda when he's dying, saying "There is... another... Sky...walker."
  • The flashback segment where Kyle remembers all he and Mr. Hankey did together while a Dark Reprise of Mr. Hankey's theme plays is similar to the one in the 1969 Frosty the Snowman special where Karen remembers all that Frosty did with her and the other kids after Frosty melts away, which similarly had a Dark Reprise of Frosty's theme.
  • The Mr. Hankey and Me film parodies Philadelphia.
  • The segment beginning with the medic who scoops Mr. Hankey up and ending when Mr. Hankey is revived by Chef's chocolate salty balls comes from ET The Extraterrestrial, beginning when Elliott's house is quarantined and ending when Elliott unzips E.T. to find him alive and well.
  • "I have had enough of 'you!'" echoes Capt. Kirk's statement to the Klingon commander Kruge when the Genesis planet is about to blow up in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock.
  • Mr. Hankey working his magic on the town comes from Fantasia's "The Sorcerer's Apprentice."
  • Chef says, "You damn right!" in the same way Isaac Hayes said it while singing the theme from Shaft. Doubles as Actor Allusion.

    Chickenpox 
  • The song Cartman sings, "In the Ghetto", was originally performed by Elvis Presley.
  • Cartman's sleeping bag features Steve Urkel from Family Matters.

     Roger Ebert Should Lay Off The Fatty Foods 
  • Much of this episode is taken from the Star Trek episode, "Dagger of the Mind". Dr. Tristan Adams, Simon van Gelder, Missy, the uniforms, and the neural neutralizer are all present. There's also a shout-out to Ricardo Montalban, who played Khan.
  • The Latin phrase in the planetarium "Me transmitte sursum, Caledoni!" roughly translates as "Bring me up, Scotsman," an allusion to the phrase "Beam me up, Scotty".
  • The Cheesy Poofs talent search is much like those of Oscar Mayer.
  • "Don't pick your nose, hon." - This and Cartman's responses are taken from Monty Python's Life of Brian.
  • The poor little girl with the windswept hair at the Cheesy Poof callback auditions is Cosette, from Les Misérables.

    Clubhouses 
  • The opening music is a variation of the theme music from Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids. This episode also features the show Fat Abbot.
  • Fat Abbott's line "You punk-ass blasphemous dope-fiend bitch!" is taken from New Jack City.

     Cow Days 

     Chef Aid 
  • The way Mr. Twig was boiled comes from the bunny in a boiling pot in Fatal Attraction.
  • "And what happened then? Well in South Park they say, that Johnny's Cochran's heart grew three sizes that day." - a near-direct quote from How the Grinch Stole Christmas!.
  • The Alanis Morrisette video Mr. Garrison watches is a parody of the video for Morrisette's song "Ironic".

     Spookyfish 
  • Clear reference to the Star Trek: The Original Series episode Mirror, Mirror, which featured bearded warlike counterparts of the crew. The portal references the episode Assignment: Earth and the fight between the two Cartmans references Whom Gods Destroy, where a shapeshifter takes on Kirk's appearance and Kirk tells Spock he must kill them both. Throughout the episode, the crappy 'split screen' effect can be seen.
  • Sharon's reactions to Stan's supposed murder spree references The Bad Seed, in which an eight-year-old girl is a killer. Carol McCormick also has reactions from the film when her son dies.
  • Evil Cartman refers to his mom as Mother, as Norman Bates referred to his mom in Psycho.
  • The way Stan deals with his spooky goldfish comes from Poltergeist, when a boy is afraid of a clown doll.
  • The spinning Barbra Streisand transitions are a reference to old 1960s hero shows like Batman and Robin.
  • The Indian Burial Ground pet store references Pet Sematary, in which pets buried there come back evil.
  • Stan's statement, "I never thought it was such a bad little squash, it just needs some tender loving care" is a paraphrase from A Charlie Brown Christmas about the little tree.

     Merry Christmas, Charlie Manson 

    Gnomes 
  • Lean on Me had a poster in it that said 'Eastside pride can never be denied.' A similar poster appears in the classroom at South Park Elementary.
  • The scene depicted in the Gnomes' underpants mining operation comes from the Merrie Melodies short "Yankee Dood It."
  • The Harbucks Rep dresses up like Joe Camel and passes out coffee giving a speech that would be reminiscent of a cigarette ad.

     Prehistoric Ice Man 
  • Cartman's imprecise recap of a movie where a caveman is frozen and these people thaw him out and make him their caveman friend may be referring to the plot of Encino Man.
  • Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, is caricatured here.
  • Cartman's line, "Be vewy vewy quiet. I'm hunting cwocodiles," parodies Elmer Fudd from classic Looney Tunes.

Season Three:

     Rainforest Shmainforest 
  • Miss Stevens strung up between two trees and the giant Yanogapa rising from the brush is an homage to King Kong (1933).
  • In the jungle background near the Yanogapa village, there's four heads on stakes and a video camera; it's a gruesome homage to Cannibal Holocaust.

     Spontaneous Combustion 
  • The two lines spoken right after crucified Cartman is taken out of the church come from Monty Python's The Meaning of Life.
  • "Up your ass with broken glass!" is reminiscent of Welcome Back, Kotter, in which one of the characters would often say, "Up your nose with a rubber hose."
  • Randy's statue is Michelangelo's David.
  • The sequence in which Chef appears to Cartman and tells him the rescue was a dream comes from a scene in The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis, in which Jesus is given a chance on the cross to live the rest of his life. Later, he finds out that it was all a dream and he is still dying on the cross.
  • Stan does the vulcan sign with his hand while quoting Spock's, "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few."
  • The song You and Me, Girl is reminiscent of The Archies. The visuals are reminiscent of both Archie music videos and Scooby-Doo.
  • Officer Barbrady's mannerisms mimic the talking typewriter on wheels from Sesame Street.

     The Succubus 

     Tweek Vs. Craig 
  • The horn music before the first fight is definite Rocky.

    Jakovasaurs 
  • Junjun talks like a Gungan, but Jakov is just loud. The commentary for this episode states that they were trying to make these characters as annoying as possible, and they still weren't as annoying as Jar Jar.

     Sexual Harassment Panda 
  • Gerald's commercials come straight from the Larry H. Parker commercials seen in Southern California: Bebe's spot comes from the commercial in which this man sits proudly on his motorcycle as he says "Larry H. Parker got me 2.1 million." (These sorts of lawyer commercials can actually be seen all over the country)
  • The Island of Misfit Mascots commune is essentially The Island of Misfit Toys.

     Cat Orgy 
  • The obvious reference is to Wild Wild West.
  • Another clear shout-out is to Aliens.
  • The Wild Animal World segment Kitty watches on TV is the same one used in Natural Born Killers, when Harrelson watches TV in a hotel room. (Note: this may or may not be a stock footage coincidence.)
  • "Charade you are!" is from the Pink Floyd song Pigs.
  • "Hurry, kitty, you're my only hope." - likely a reference to Leia's plea to Obi-Wan in Star Wars: A New Hope.

     Two Guys Naked In A Hot Tub 
  • There is, of course, Charlie's Angels. To make the effect complete, whenever the Angels show up, variations on their theme music is heard.
  • The song both the ATF and Mr. Mackey play is a garbled version of Cher's Believe.

    Jewbilee 
  • Elder Schwartz wears a diamond design with a Star of David in it, similar to the Superman emblem.
  • Moses' appearance is derived from that of the Master Control Program in TRON.
  • "It's a trap!" is generally considered to be Admiral Ackbar's catchphrase; it's possible this phrase appearing is a reference to Star Wars.

    Chinpokomon 

     Starvin Marvin In Space 
  • The wormhole is right out of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, as is the warping movement the Marklar ship experiences in the wormhole. The Marklar ship turns out to have a computer with a female voice, just like the various Enterprises and Voyager do, and it is armed with photon torpedoes.
  • Sally Struthers appears here as Jabba the Hutt with her very own Tiberian Junker, and Kenny is frozen in carbonate.
  • The bridge of the Christian Ship resembles that of the Enterprise, but the exterior is more Klingon and Star Fox influenced.
  • The appearance of the Marklars is similar to the Kanamits from The Twilight Zone (1959) episode "To Serve Man".

     Korn's Groovy Pirate Ghost Mystery 
  • The main homage here is to Scooby-Doo, with the Korn guys drawn in the style of Hanna-Barbera, driving the mystery mobile and solving a spooky mystery.
  • There is also a reference to the Wonder Twins, who could change their forms. There are some similarities between Nibblet and the Wonder Twins' pet chimp, Gleek.
  • Kenny's costume is an Enforcement Droid 209 from RoboCop.
  • Cleo Broflovski looks like the corpse of Norman Bates' mother in Psycho.
  • The end credits are interrupted by a scene of Kenny's ED-209 being taken down in a fashion similar to the AT-ATs on Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back.

     Hooked On Monkey Fonics 
  • "You got some kind of John Travolta disease?" references The Boy in the Plastic Bubble. John Travolta played Tod Lubitch, the boy who had a deficient immune system and had to spend his childhood in a hermetically sealed room with clear plastic walls, and thus in a home-school environment.
  • The interaction between Kyle and Rebecca, from "Rebecca, don't you ever… look at the town?" to their kiss, mirrors that between Capt. Kirk and Shahna in The Gamesters of Triskelion. The music comes from a different episode entitled This Side of Paradise.
  • Rebecca Cotswolds is based on Rebecca A. Sealfon, a Brooklyn girl who won the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee Championship. Her major quirk was whispering the letters of a word into her hands before saying them aloud.

     The Red Badge Of Gayness 

     Mr. Hanky's Christmas Classics 
  • The "fight the frizzies" anchorman is a reference to one of the tapes of The Star Wars Holiday Special, which has newscaster Rolland Smith of WCBS-TV Channel 2 in New York saying that very thing after every commercial break.
  • The mailman is derived from Special Delivery Kluger, from Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town, who is modeled on and voiced by Fred Astaire.

     Are You There, God? It's Me, Jesus 

     Worldwide Recorder Concert 
  • Cartman mentions Chicago Hope.
  • Garrison's directions of "Second star to the right, and straight on 'til morning." reference the directions to Neverland from Peter Pan. It also doubles as a reference to Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, as Garrison's delivery of the line (as well as the context) mirrors Kirk's final line from the film.

The Movie

     Bigger, Longer, and Uncut 

Season Four:

     Tooth Fairy Tats 2000 
  • Loogie is clearly patterned after Vito Corleone in The Godfather.
  • The line, "I want those South Park kids dead, I want their families dead, I want their houses burnt to the ground!" is an Al Capone quote from The Untouchables.
  • "Just off Arapahoe road on Emporia street" is the location given in radio commercials for The Shane Company, a diamond store in Denver.
  • The computer in the van makes some Star Wars probe droid sounds when Kyle fades away.
  • The scene where Kyle's fetus floats against the starry sky comes from the last scene in 2001: A Space Odyssey, in which a Star Child with Mission Commander Dave Bowman's features floats through space.

     Cartman's Silly Hate Crime 2000 
  • They use music from Oz for the juvenile hall scenes.
  • Gruffy Bear is likely another reference to Smokey.
  • No. 24601 is the number assigned to Jean Valjean when he arrived at Toulon Prison after being sentenced to five years of hard labor for breaking in and stealing a loaf of bread from a bakery in Les Misérables. (Even though the warden gives this number to Cartman, he wears number 26354 on his orange uniform.)
  • The name of Cartman's cellmate, Romper Stomper, is a likely reference to the Australian film Romper Stomper, about hate crime.
  • The teardrop tattoo, such as Romper has, is a sign that the inmate has killed someone. Johnny Depp wore one under his left eye in Cry-Baby.
  • The televised attempt by Cartman to evade the police in Kenny's Go Go Action Bronco is a parody of O.J. Simpson doing the same in a white Bronco.
  • The two types of kids: those who like Animaniacs and those who don't.
  • The hilarious car chase scene where all the police cars suddenly sped, crashed and flipped over was very similar to the near conclusion of ‘’The Blues Brothers’’.

     Timmy 2000 
  • Phil Collins talks and acts in a manner similar to the Gumbies from Monty Python's Flying Circus.
  • The song that Phil Collins sings at the opening to the Lalapalalapaza festival is a parody of his 1985 single Sussudio.
  • Collins is depicted as perpetually clutching an Oscar. This was in retaliation for Collins' victory in the category for Best Song three weeks prior to this episode's airing. You'll Be in My Heart beat the nominated Blame Canada from South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut.

     Quintuplets 2000 
  • The Cirque du Cheville is a Cirque du Soleil parody.
  • "Poofters" may come from the "Bruce" sketch on Monty Python's Flying Circus. (It's a British term for homosexuals.)
  • The storyline references both the then-current battle over the fate of Elián Gonzáles and the Depression-era Dionne Quintuplets of Canada.
  • Madeline is seen in an airport after Kenny and his mother travel to Romania.

     Cartman Joins NAMBLA  
  • The nightmare Kenny has about his impending sibling is a spoof on It's Alive, about a mutant baby who goes on a rampage.
  • The members of the National Association of Marlon Brando Look-Alikes are (unsurprisingly) nearly all dressed as characters played by Marlon Brando.
  • The "musical rooms" chase through the hallway is reminiscent of those on the Hanna-Barbera cartoons such as Scooby-Doo and also appeared in Looney Tunes. The music in the scene is from a poem, Page d'Écriture written by Jacques Prévert.
  • The sounds of the screaming people on The John Denver Experience are the screams heard on the computer game RollerCoaster Tycoon.

     Cherokee Hair Tampons 
  • When Cartman refuses to donate a kidney to Kyle, he sings "no" to the tune of Comedy Tonight from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.
  • The Native American/Mexicans are Cheech & Chong.
  • The title of Garrison's book In The Valley Of Penises spoofs Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, the X-rated 1969 movie for which Roger Ebert wrote the screenplay. (Trey didn't much care for Ebert's review of South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut, citing Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls as a reason Ebert should have been more positive in his review.)
  • When Cartman wakes up to find his kidney missing, his bed is covered in blood and the Kidney Blocker 2000 ripped off his body. This scene is much like the death of Khartoum in The Godfather.

     Chef Goes Nanners 
  • One KKK member lifts up his robe to reveal a pair of bird feet, similar to that of Big Bird.
  • When Wendy kisses Cartman, his reaction is similar to that of Luke Skywalker in The Empire Strikes Back after being kissed by Leia. Stan's might be similar to Han Solo's, though his shock goes on a bit longer.

     Something You Can Do With Your Finger 
  • The obvious parody here is of boy bands, particularly **NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys, who were highly popular at the time.
    • Randy's band in the flashbacks is a parody of the band New Kids on the Block. The group that defined the boy band genre.
  • The boy playing the piano at the auditions is Schroeder, the Beethoven aficionado from Peanuts.
  • Randy's fit of rage, ending in him smashing the glass doors of the living room cabinet and shouting "No! Nooo!!" is very similar to a scene in Star Trek: First Contact, where Captain Picard does the same, using a phaser rather than his head to smash a display case. In fact, Randy's voice changes from Parker's to a sampling of Patrick Stewart's voice from the film.
  • During Randy's flashback, the manager of his band closely resembles J. Jonah Jameson from Spider-Man.
  • Randy's choir is singing a classic cowboy song entitled "Colorado Trail."

     Do The Handicapped Go To Hell? 

    Probably 

     Fourth Grade 
  • "Charade you are!" is from the Pink Floyd song Pigs (Three Different Ones).
  • Timmy's chair not being able to go under 5 or it will explode is a parody of Speed. The defuse that Kenny attempts with the wheeled board is a reference to the scene in which Jack Traven attempts the same with a service cart towed by a preceding truck. The reference is furthered by the woman who rides on Timmy's lap for a short time, who looks much like Sandra Bullock.
  • Garrison and Choksondik have an exchange that echoes Luke and Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back, when Choksondik proclaims she isn't afraid, and Garrison says, "You will be. You will be." The parallel continues with the large hollow tree used as part of the training, containing only the demons they take in with them.
  • The response to Cartman's taunts of "Suck my balls" with "Present them," references a portion of the book Educating Esmé, in which a mentor tells a student to drop his pants after he continually exclaims "suck my dick."
  • "Spirit, haunt me no longer!" is a reference to A Christmas Carol, when the Ghost of Christmas Past shows Scrooge a Christmas from his childhood.

     Trapper Keeper 
  • "Bill Cosby," VSM471, is a compilation of movie references:
    • He and his plotline are a spoof on Terminator, with clothing similar to that of Kyle Reese in the first film and a soundalike of the theme from the films plays when Cosby reveals his true nature. His continued pronunciation of human as “hu-mon” is a reference to the Ferengi of Star Trek. The white fluid that comes out of his body is like that of the android in Alien.
  • During the retelling of future events, other than references to the Terminator movies, some of the war machines also resemble the ED-209 from the RoboCop movies. (except with a large Dawson's Creek photo as a torso.)
  • The Cartman-shaped bio-mechanical blob monster is a reference to the anime film AKIRA, as is the fashion in which Rosie O’Donnell is killed. The music playing when the Trapper Keeper moves toward the base resembles the music played when Akira awakens to stop Tetsuo.
  • The line "We are Trapper Keeper" is a reference to the Borg of Star Trek.
  • When Kyle is sucked into the mutated Cartman, the room where the Trapper Keeper's CPU is located looks exactly like HAL's CPU racks in 2001: A Space Odyssey. The Trapper Keeper's dialogue with a Kyle is also taken from the film.
  • When Cartman crashes the police cruiser into Cosby, he says "Book 'em, Barbrady," a reference to the line "Book 'em, Danno," off the show Hawaii Five-O.

     Hellen Keller! The Musical 
  • The scenes in which Butters runs down the hallway to the auditorium come straight out of The Right Stuff whenever the Russians launched a new rocket.
  • Timmy picking out his turkey is like Charlie Brown picking the pathetic little tree in A Charlie Brown Christmas. He took it back to everyone else and they said "What the hell is that?" just like the SP gang did.
  • The visions Cartman sees when he closes his eyes are a tribute to A Clockwork Orange when Alex comes home the first night and closes his eyes: 'And oh what lovely pictures I did see.' It is all violent stuff - hangings, explosions, Alex as a Vampire, etc. The Nazi footage is stuff that Alex is forced to watch later in the film.
  • The way Timmy abandons his beloved pet turkey is very similar to a scene in Air Bud. In the movie a young boy takes his golden retriever out away from his house and walks away from the dog with tears in his eyes. (According to the commentary, Gobbles was originally a puppy)
  • The turkey mass slaughter scene "Our turkeys are killed humanely" comes from Soylent Green.
  • Timmy performs a feat right out of In the Line of Fire (and other films) when he dives out of his chair and takes a bullet for Gobbles.

    Pip 

     Fat Camp 
  • The line "healthy and clean" may be a reference to Pink Floyd's The Wall; "Momma's gonna keep baby healthy and clean."
  • James Taylor's Your Smiling Face is parodied.
  • Cartman escaping and being returned to camp until he's done his time seems to come from Cool Hand Luke.
  • Kenny's stunts are similar to those performed on Jackass and by Tom Green.
  • Kenny eating dog crap is a possible reference to the infamous ending of Pink Flamingos.

     The Wacky Molestation Adventure 
  • The song sung by Kyle heard while he writes Castro resembles Blue Christmas, which was the song heard as Santa read a young girl’s letter in The Year Without a Santa Claus. The letter and crayon drawings are also a reference.
  • Kyle dancing in his underwear is straight out of Risky Business.
  • The scene when the kids are standing in the town alone when they first figured out the parents were all gone comes from The Ωmega Man, about the man being the last one on earth.
  • The town taken over by kids was a reference to Children of the Corn (1984), which features human sacrifice and a couple getting stuck in a town full of sinister children who have killed their parents. The woman is taken hostage and the man called "Outlander," by those holding his girlfriend captive.
  • "We already played with our parents. Now we wanna play with you," is a paraphrase of a child in Pet Sematary.
  • The splitting into two tribes could be a reference to Lord of the Flies.
  • Craig is referred to as Spaceman Spiff, a shout-out to Calvin and Hobbes.
  • There are many references to Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome in this episode, especially the story told about "the before time."
  • The reference to 'Carousel' comes from Logan's Run.

     A Very Crappy Christmas 
  • The Lion King song, The Circle of Life is parodied here, complete with scenery.
  • A Charlie Brown Christmas, referenced often in the show, is directly parodied here, with the boys shown watching it.
  • Schroeder, from Peanuts, is seen playing the music for the recording of The Spirit of Christmas.
  • Even a Miracle Needs a Hand comes from the Rankin/Bass animated TV film, 'Twas the Night Before Christmas. Mister Hanky's family mirrors the family of mice, with the eldest child questioning the concept of Christmas.

Season Five:

     It Hits The Fan 
  • The show everyone is talking about is likely referencing Chicago Hope, on which a character said, "Shit happens." (It's worth noting that Chicago Hope was not a "Cop Drama," and the commentary incorrectly attributes the uncensored expletive to NYPD Blue.)
  • Mr. Garrison's song parodies Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
  • The red haired man at Excalibur looked like Eric Idle and the wizard there looked like Tim from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. When the knight died he did that long "ahhhhh", like the inscription on a cave wall in Holy Grail when one of the character dies.
  • The dragon, Geldon, bears a certain resemblance to Maleficent of Disney's Sleeping Beauty (who also appears as a villain in Kingdom Hearts.)

     Cripple Fight 

     Super Best Friends 
  • The Super Best Friends themselves are an homage to the Justice League.
  • The boys going door-to-door is very similar to Mormon missionaries in Parker and Stone's film Orgazmo.
  • The Blaintology headquarters are modeled after the site of the mass cult suicide in Waco, Texas. The bed covers on the bunks are purple, a possible reference to Heaven's Gate, the cult that committed suicide when the Hale-Bopp comet came around.

     Scott Tenorman Must Die 

     Terrance & Phillip: Behind the Blow 
  • The most obvious reference is the parody of VH1's Behind The Music.
  • The heads of the Earth Day Brainwashing organization waving their forearms in an arc are a reference to the Jedi masters in the Star Wars movies, who can override a person's intentions with a wave of the arm and a suggestion.
  • "Who Farted?" is a spoof of the Abbott and Costello sketch "Who's on First?"
  • The Hamlet scene is more or less line-for-line.
  • The Terrance & Phillip Saturday morning cartoon is a parody of Star Trek: The Animated Series.
  • Kenny being chopped up piece by piece references the decimation of the Black Knight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

    Cartmanland 
  • Cartman's Distant Reaction Scream when he found out he just got a million dollars is based on the famous "severed horse head" scene from The Godfather.
  • Cartman's rant about lines, lines, lines is almost shot-for-shot from the animated How the Grinch Stole Christmas! when he rages about noise, noise, noise. The rhythm of his dialogue also mirrors the writing style of Dr. Seuss, with rhyming and a certain amount of nonsense, plus the Dr. Seuss style art with the spotted strawberry, and the Dr. Seuss character playing the bizarre instrument.

     Proper Condom Use 
  • The girls' fortress and the stand-off is a reference to Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, with Butters playing The Humungus and Kenny being killed by a bladed boomerang.
    Butters: (in a deep, raspy voice through the mike) Just walk away. You can put a stop to all this. Just walk away and we will spare your lives. Just walk away.

    Towelie 
  • The idea of high-tech, important towels seems to reference The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. The talking towel concept could be borrowed from Doonesbury comic strips, with characters such as the talking cigarette butt.
  • Cartman says a few lines from Sling Blade ("You shouldn't'a done that, he's just a boy," and "poor little feller") with an accent similar to that in the movie, when referring to Stan's mom's tampon he found in the trash. His line about it being "not for usin', it's just for lookin' through" is from The Outlaw Josey Wales.
  • The way Towelie says, "Wanna get high?" harkens to the Cheech & Chong movie Up in Smoke, in which Chong is teaching a bird to say the same phrase.
  • One of the soldiers suggests that the four boys may have a telepathic link with Towelie, like E.T.
  • When Towelie gets high we hear the music played in Popeye when the titular character eats spinach.
  • The failed Towelie clone that they discover at the military base is a reference to the failed Ripley Clone from Alien: Resurrection.
  • Kenny's death by lava and the new, buffed-up Towelie reference Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Also, Tynacorp looks like Cyberdyne Systems.
  • Kyle reaching for the Game Sphere while hanging above magma is a reference to Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, in which Indie strains to reach the Holy Grail.
  • The Okama GameSphere seems to be a reference to the Nintendo GameCube which was being hyped for release at the time the episode first aired.
  • The soldiers in this episode aren't so much a reference to the HECU soldiers from Half-Life as they are completely based off of them in appearance.
  • Towelie plays "Funkytown" by Lipps Inc. on the military base's keypad.

     Osama Bin Laden Has Farty Pants 
  • Cartman makes a reference to "Sand People," though the characters shown are actually closer to Jawas. Both are from Star Wars.
  • The majority of the homages in this episode came from old Bugs Bunny cartoons:
    • "What's up doc?" and the various Osama/Elmer Fudd take-offs. Both Bugs and Daffy regularly delighted in crossdressing for and kissing their opponents. Cartman's smart-ass Aside Glance to the camera while Bin Laden dined with the camel is something Bugs would do quite often under the direction of Chuck Jones. The signs ("screw-ball", etc) Cartman holds up at one point can be found often in these cartoons, although they never got quite as vulgar. The "Tiny, Isn't It" gag was a standard in director Tex Avery and Bob Clampett's cartoons. In a series of MGM cartoons directed by Tex Avery, a wolf would lose control over a sexy redhead and go off in a series of wild poses called "takes". The takes of Bin Laden when he sees a dolled-up Cartman are direct parodies of this.
    • Some references to specific WWII-vintage Merrie Melodies in this episode:
      • In Herr Meets Hare (1945) Hermann Göring battles Bugs Bunny. At one point Bugs arrives in drag as Brunhilde, riding a horse. Cartman's entrance in drag astride a camel could be a take-off of this. Bugs did the identical gimmick in the "Ride of the Valkyrie" cartoon.
      • One gag was taken from a Bob Clampett cartoon titled Russian Rhapsody, which dealt with Adolf Hitler. In this cartoon, the plane he is piloting is attacked by an army of small Russian gremlins, who proceed to demolish the plane, plummeting Hitler to his grave. His last line in the cartoon is, "Nutzies in de cwaziest people." Bin Laden's last line in this episode is an echo of this.
  • Stan putting his jacket around the base of the flag is much like Linus putting his blanket around the bottom of the Christmas tree in the Peanuts Christmas Special.

     How To Eat With Your Butt 

     The Entity 
  • "Cousin Kyle" is a deadpan parody of Woody Allen.
  • The scene with the two old ladies at the Grand Canyon with the narrator asking them how they got there is a reference to Hoveround wheelchair commercials in which two old ladies got to the Grand Canyon with them.

     Here Comes The Neighborhood 

     Kenny Dies 
  • "I love Kenny McCormick and... I want you to love him too." refers to a similar line from Brian's Song, "I love Brian Piccolo....and I want you all to love him too."
  • Butters' picture is a very subtle reference to the first verse of Meat Loaf's song "Objects In The Rear View Mirror". Compare the music video.

     Butters' Very Own Episode 
  • The scene at the restaurant, where Simpson, the Ramseys, and Condit start chanting, "One of us, one of us, gooble gobble, gooble gobble", is an homage to a famous scene in the horror film, Freaks.
  • The old man that tells Butters about the walk back to South Park is based on old man Jud from Pet Sematary, who explains the history of the path to the Indian burial ground, with notably similar dialogue.
  • As Butters begins to walk down the dark road, the trees take on an appearance reminiscent of The Wizard of Oz, as facial features appear on them. Butters also encounters a Predator on his way back to South Park.
  • The events of the episode parallel the well-publicized case of Susan Smith, who drowned her children and claimed they'd been abducted by a black guy.

     South Park Acclaim Games 
  • The FPS South Park game for the Nintendo 64 has two control settings, respectively named Brown-Eye and To-Rock. (the latter doubles as a dev team in-joke, as the game is built on the same engine as Turok)

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