Kilroy was here

This article is about the graffiti. For other uses, see Kilroy was here (disambiguation).

Kilroy was here
Engraving of Kilroy on the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C.
TypeMeme
WritingLatin script
CreatedWorld War II
CultureUnited States Army culture
The opening scene "Kilroy was here" graffiti at Bikini Atoll, atomic bomb test film in 1946

Kilroy was here is a meme[1] that became popular during World War II, typically seen in graffiti. Its origin is debated, but the phrase and the distinctive accompanying doodle became associated with GIs in the 1940s: a bald-headed man (sometimes depicted as having a few hairs) with a prominent nose peeking over a wall with his fingers clutching the wall.

"Mr Chad" or just "Chad" was the version that became popular in the United Kingdom. The character of Chad may have been derived from a British cartoonist in 1938, possibly pre-dating "Kilroy was here". According to Dave Wilton, "Some time during the war, Chad and Kilroy met, and in the spirit of Allied unity merged, with the British drawing appearing over the American phrase."[2] Other names for the character include Smoe, Clem, Flywheel, Private Snoops, Overby, Eugene the Jeep, Scabooch, and Sapo.

According to Charles Panati, "The outrageousness of the graffiti was not so much what it said, but where it turned up."[3] It is not known if there was an actual person named Kilroy who inspired the graffiti, although there have been claims over the years.

  1. ^
    • "Kilroy was here". Dictionary.com.
    • Edwards, Phil (11 December 2015). "The World War II meme that circled the world". Vox.
    • Keep, Lennlee (8 October 2020). "From Kilroy to Pepe: a Brief History of Memes". Independent Lens. PBS.
    • Strauss, Bob (11 March 2019). "The Story Behind the Phrase "Kilroy Was Here"". ThoughtCo.
    • Stilwell, Blake (6 August 2020). "'Kilroy Was Here' was the WWII-era viral meme". We Are The Mighty.
    • Moyle, Taylor (31 July 2018). "The Story Behind Kilroy, Probably the First Meme to Exist". INSH.
    • Carter, Elliot. "There's a hidden military meme engraved on the World War II Memorial". Atlas Obscura.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference openwriting.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "What's the origin of "Kilroy was here"?". The Straight Dope. 4 August 2000.