Mermaid Man, in Honor of Ernest Borgnine Quiz

Answer: "I think you overcooked this a little."

The quote that wasn't Mermaid Man's was his faithful sidekick's. Ernest Borgnine was born on January 24th, 1917. He went to be with The Lord on July 8th, 2012. He was a lot more than just Mermaid Man. He was so much more than that. I'll cover more of that later in this quiz.

Answer: Bucky

"You got it, Bucky!" Ernest Borgnine, in an interview, has stated that a little bunch of Girl Scouts were introduced to him. He asked them, "How many of you have seen my pictures?" They said nothing, zilch. Suddenly he had a brainstorm said, "How many of you know 'SpongeBob'"? They all exclaimed, "Yes!" Then he said he he happens to play Mermaid Man. That was all it took! They came around and took pictures of him.

They couldn't get enough of him! He even did his "EVIL!" routine. His voice cracked when he did it, and for the rest of the episodes that he voiced as that character while alive, he said it that way.

Answer: meatloaf

"I wanna eat my meatloaf! And if you don't get out of here, then by the power invested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife!" Stephen Hillenburg originally didn't care who voiced Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy, but Nickelodeon wanted celebrity voices. Ernest Borgnine and Tim Conway played on "McHale's Navy" from 1962-66, and were a great duo, so they were picked. "McHale's Navy" was set in the Pacific Theater during World War II, and starred the wonderful, prolific actor I dedicated my quiz to as Lt. Commander Quinton McHale.

Answer: "Mermaid Man & Barnacle Boy III"

Patrick is freaked out when he sees Man Ray's frozen body in the Mermalair. He then utters "hummina hummina" Ralph Kramdem-esque-fear-filled stutter. SpongeBob embraces Patrick and starts doing it too when he sees it. When SpongeBob points out that he is not chasing them because he is frozen, Patrick starts going, "F-f-f-fro fro fro fro fro fro!"

Answer: "Born Again Krabs"

"Born Again Krabs" was the first episode that Mermaid Man (but not Barnacle Boy) was so much as mentioned in outside of an episode that had his name in the title. That was quite a while ago. "Have You Seen This Snail" will go down in history as the first episode in which his image appeared (on the paddle ball box) outside of "MM&BB 1-6"; in other words, in an episode that did not have his name in the title.

He appeared, body and soul in "Night Light", and since that time, despite appearing in many episodes since "Mermaid Man & Barnacle Boy VI: The Motion Picture", no episode has episode besides "Mermaid Man Begins" has had his name in the title. "MM&BBVI" somehow ended the trend. And, with the death of Ernest Borgnine, we know with certainty he will never voice Mermaid Man in an "MM&BBVII", despite a few episodes with the character airing posthumously.

Answer: "Ditchin'"

In "Ditchin'", during the book-signing, SpongeBob and Patrick are so star-stuck by their presence that they can hardly speak. Mermaid Man reminds them, "Stay on the path of evil!". Barnacle Boy then attempts to correct him, informing him that it is actually "Stay away from the path of evil!". But Alzheimer's-like Mermaid Man then can't remember what evil is.

During an interview with Ernest Borgnine on the "O'Reilly Factor" about a year before he died, Bill O'Reilly played a clip from this scene.

Answer: A picture of a young Barnacle Boy

Mermaid Man's admonition to SpongeBob and Patrick is that everything in the lair is safe to look at, as long as they don't touch anything. But they do, of course. Did anyone ever for a second suspect they would not?! "Back to the Past" is sad to watch these days, as when SpongeBob and Patrick return from their time travels, we see Mermaid Man's grave.

Answer: Barnacle Boy

The name of the product is "Professor Plankton's Dandruff Control Shampoo". But after applying it to their aged heads, Plankton "just then realizes" the product he just applied wasn't "Professor Plankton's Dandruff Control Shampoo", rather, it was "Professor Plankton's Mind Control Shampoo".

Answer: Strong's Coffee

The (real) origin of Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy began in the 1950's in a Winchell Apartment building. Tim (Barnacle Boy) called for Ernie (Mermaid Man) to hurry because the movie they were watching was about to start. He then inquires where the popcorn is. Ernie informs him it is in the microwave. In the apartment above, a rogue scientist is testing radioactive ants. He knocked over a jar of infected specimens, one of which fell down through a crack in the floor and bit poor Ernie on the scalp. He reacted by screaming and stumbling backwards. He knocks into Tim and they crash through the wall and are in a free-fall. They crash through the ceiling of Vats of Acid "R" Us. They land in a vat of acid which is knocked over by an alien spacecraft which crashes through the wall of the factory. This results on Ernie and Tim body surfing on a wave of acid during a solar eclipse on a leap year. They then careen into a bomb-testing site. Then they are exposed to highly toxic radium gasses. Then, magical storm clouds move in and zap them with a neon-clad bolt of lightning. It then rains radioactive ooze, which through centripetal force forms an electromagnetic turbulence, which causes an earthquake deep in a jungle 2,000 miles away. This event unearths a Magical Crystal with Wings, which flies to our heroe's location, and powered by super-gamma energy currents, pilots them through open skies, until, not paying attention, accidentally flings them over a billboard, and back into their apartment, miraculously unharmed.

Do you think all of THAT had anything to do with how they got their superpowers? If you guess that, you'd be wrong. The slightly overcooked popcorn when they proceed with movie night hits them with a jolt of cosmic super energy, which metamorphosized Ernie into the hero we know today. The same thing happens with Tim, who gets a sudden urge to breathe water in lieu of air.

Answer: True

In the episode, Plankton convinces Man Ray (with great difficulty) to steal the formula. Meanwhile, SpongeBob attempts to get Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy to go to The Krusty Krab and stop them, but with their advanced senility, it is no small task.

But Ernest Borgnine is the man I dedicate this quiz to, so let's talk about him more. He is an Academy Award winning actor. He won his Oscar in 1955 for his portrayal of the lonely butcher Marty. In my opinion, it was the "Ma, I'm a fat ugly man!" soliloquy which won him the Oscar. He also appeared in timeless classics ranging from "From Here to Eternity", "The Wild Bunch", "Bad Day at Black Rock", "The Dirty Dozen", and ever films such as "Escape from NY". You have to hand it to the old guy: He had the largest of filmographies of any actor ever! Not bad for an actor who did not begin acting until his mid-thirties! Even though he began acting in the '50s, he was born in 1917! So he could have begun acting in the 30's had he had handsome leading-man looks. But, alas, he did not. His looks got him type-cast as a tough guy, a heavy, a thug, etc. But his role as Marty really changed this and got him more versatile roles. Therefore, he was more than just Mermaid Man. He was so much more than that. So while the pain of his loss can never fully be assuaged, he will always be with us through his films, his television programs, and, of course, Mermaid Man.