15 Trivia Tidbits About Randy Marsh
The greatest mustachioed TV character since the days of Magnum P.I., Randy Marsh started his time on South Park as an amusing side character, but as the show evolved, he soon became one of the series’ comedic focal points as well as an agricultural pioneer and among the best musical acts of the 21st century.
So we’re here to share bits of trivia about everyone’s favorite TV dad that once stuck his balls in the microwave, starting with…
He Was Named After Trey Parker’s Geologist Father
Stan and Kyle’s parents are all named after Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s real-life parents, including Randy, who shares his name (and his mustache) with Parker’s dad. The real Randy is similarly a geologist — although we doubt he ever blew up his life to start a weed farm or did blow with Santa Claus.
Randy’s Voice Began as an Impersonation of Parker’s Dad
According to Parker, his Randy voice was originally an “impersonation” of his dad, but now that he’s older and basically becoming his father, performing Randy is “just easier.”
His First Appearance Was in the Episode ‘Volcano’
Randy’s very first appearance on South Park was in the episode “Volcano,” aka the one with Scuzzlebutt the monster with a leg that’s just Patrick Duffy. Randy appears purely in a geological capacity; we don’t even learn that he’s Stan’s dad until a later episode.
He Is a Nobel Prize-Winner
It’s easy to forget that Randy was once awarded the Nobel Prize for Science (by Nick Nolte, no less) in an early episode of the show, thanks to his research into farts and spontaneous combustion — he was later stripped of this prestigious award but got it back in the end.
His Giant Shit Was Inspired by an Acclaimed Documentary
In “More Crap,” Randy fights to achieve the world record for “biggest crap ever,” a storyline that was inspired by Parker and Stone’s discomfort with having won an Emmy award and by the throughline of the acclaimed documentary The King of Kong, which, just to be clear, was about old video games, not giant turds.
He Has Held a Staggering Number of Different Jobs
Despite being a legit scientist, Randy has held more random jobs than Barbie — cannabis farmer, mall cop, boy band singer, Denver Broncos coach, Blockbuster Video manager, and the list goes on…
Sia Performed Lorde’s Singing Voice
You can also add “world famous pop star” to Randy’s resume. For the season in which Randy reveals himself to be Lorde, his vocals for “Push (Feel Good on a Wednesday)” were supplied by another famous singer: Sia.
Lorde Momentarily Covered ‘I Am Lorde’
Lorde was seemingly cool with being Randy’s secret alter-ego, seeing as how she performed his song “I Am Lorde” during a 2014 interview.
He Briefly Appears in ‘Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers’
Along with Ugly Sonic and Peter Pan, Randy is one of several animated cameos in Disney’s Chip’ n Dale: Rescue Rangers movie, which seems especially surprising given South Park’s history of portraying Mickey Mouse as a tyrannical d-bag.
Randy’s Tegridy Farms Exists for Real (Sorta)
Parker and Stone have expressed an interest in making Randy’s Tegridy Farms a reality by launching their own weed business. But apparently, there’s already a company called Tegridy Fams that claims to be “dedicated to producing the highest quality hemp and CBD products in the most natural way possible.”
Randy’s Use of the N-Word Was the Subject of a Real CNN Segment
The episode “With Apologies to Jesse Jackson” opens with Randy yelling out the N-word on Wheel of Fortune, which inspired a real-life segment on CNN. The episode was defended by Kovon and Jill Flowers, the co-founders of the group Abolish the “N” Word, who stated at the time: “This show, in its own comedic way, is helping to educate people about the power of this word and how it feels to have hate language directed at you.”
The Show Once Acknowledged That Randy Had Become a ‘One-Note’ Character
In South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2, Randy makes the meta acknowledgment that his character has changed significantly over the years, going from a respected intellectual to an emotionally turbulent buffoon — and he does it all through song.
His Twitter Account Is Real
As seen in the episode “Safe Space,” Randy’s Twitter handle is @GettinRandy55. This is an actual Twitter account, although “Randy” hasn’t seemingly posted anything since 2015.
‘South Park’s Shop Sells Randy Face Masks
During the pandemic, the official South Park online shop started selling Randy Marsh face masks, complete with his signature stache, which is only fair since…
He Created COVID-19
Yeah, Randy created COVID-19 after having sex with a pangolin (which, to be clear, happened after he had it with a bat) during a trip to China with Mickey Mouse.
You (yes, you) should follow JM on Twitter (if it still exists by the time you’re reading this).
