I'm My Own Grandpa

[meridian_rose]

For this week's fandom I'm talking about "I'm My Own Grandpa"!

A novelty song writing in 1947 the song, sometimes referred to a "I'm My Own Grandpaw", is as Wikipedia puts it "about a man who, through an unlikely (but legal) combination of marriages, becomes stepfather to his own stepmother—by tacitly dropping the "step-" modifiers, he becomes his own grandfather. (The Wiki article includes reference to a real-life incident that may have inspired the song)

I first heard it through a friend's Dr Demento CD where it was performed by Homer and Jethro. It's had a few covers including one by Wille Nelson

Lonzo and Oscar - I’m My Own Grandpa

Watch on YouTube

Fandom wise in the season 3"Futurama" episode "Roswell That Ends Well" an unintentional journey to 1947 Roswell sees Fry attempting to ensure his grandfather Enos impregnates his grandmother and instead gets him killed. Seduced by Enos's fiancée Mildred, Fry rationalises that if he still exists then Mildred can't be his grandmother. He is wrong but in fact Fry becomes his own grandpa, as Farnsworth cuttingly remarks when Fry objects to the professor's new plan to just steal the technology they need to fix the ship and escape back to their own time.

Watch on YouTube

In fact in s4 "The Why of Fry" it is revealed that because Fry lacks the delta brainwave on account of his being his own grandfather, he is immune to the attack of the Brain spawn and it is up to him and Nibbler to save the day.

And here's a Muppet cover of the song

Watch on YouTube

Comments

[tellshannon815]

Fandomwise I can also point in the direction of Bodies, where someone ends up becoming his own great-great-grandfather through time travel (just had to double check the exact relationship - there's a couple of generations never actually seen on the show), and the family tree on Dark is convoluted enough - two are their own grandmothers.

[meridian_rose]

Oh those both sound relevant and incredibly complicated!

[under_the_silk_tree]

I've never heard of this song. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. lol

[meridian_rose]

Glad to share :D