| "Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo" | |
|---|---|
| South Park episode | |
 Mr. Hankey emerges from Kyle's toilet. Parker and Stone designed Mr. Hankey to resemble Mickey Mouse as he appeared in the 1928 short film Steamboat Willie. | |
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 9 |
| Directed by | Trey Parker Matt Stone |
| Written by | Trey Parker Matt Stone |
| Production code | 110 |
| Original air date | December 17, 1997 |
"Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo" is the ninth episode of the first season of the American animated television series South Park. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on December 17, 1997. The episode follows Kyle as he feels excluded from the town's Christmas celebrations due to being Jewish, finding solace in Mr. Hankey, a sentient piece of feces. Mr. Hankey does not come alive in the presence of other characters, who consequently think that Kyle is delusional. Meanwhile, the townspeople remove all religious aspects of Christmas to remain politically correct and inoffensive.
The episode was written and directed by co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. The Mr. Hankey character was based on an idea from Parker's childhood; when Parker and Stone conceived the South Park series, they intended for Mr. Hankey to be the lead character. Heavily influenced by A Charlie Brown Christmas, "Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo" was the first South Park Christmas episode; the first musical episode; and the first episode, as well as the only one of the first season, in which Kenny does not die. In addition to Mr. Hankey, the episode introduced Craig Tucker, the school counselor Mr. Mackey, Kyle's father Gerald Broflovski, and the songs "The Lonely Jew on Christmas" and "Kyle's Mom's a Bitch". It served as a satire of political correctness and religious sensitivity.
The episode received generally positive reviews and has been described as one of the classic South Park episodes. It was watched by 4.55 million viewers during its original broadcast, the highest Nielsen rating to that date for South Park and the fourth-highest overall for a basic cable entertainment program of 1997. John Kricfalusi, the creator of The Ren & Stimpy Show, accused Parker and Stone of plagiarizing his idea, which the duo vehemently denied.