These parody lyrics come from pages of University of Chicago economics skits from the 1960s that had been saved by Zvi Griliches and that can be consulted now in the Zvi Griliches papers collection in the Harvard University Archives. The reason we can date this artifact with confidence is because the following children’s rhyme almost immediately follows “Please Mr. Harry Johnson” featured below.
(To the tune of „Mary had a Little Lamb“)
Harvard School has gone away, gone away, gone away
Harvard School has gone away
To Washington D.C.
MIT has joined them too, joined them too, joined them too
MIT has joined them too
Advising Kennedy
Link to the film version of the original “Dear Officer Krupke” from West Side Story.
Also worth noting: that the students’ friend for learning price theory instead of relying on George Stigler’s book was Richard Leftwich’s The Price System and Resource Allocation (incidentally the same textbook was assigned for the microeconomics semester (Fall semester) of Early Concentration Economics my freshman year at Yale 1969-70).
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(To the tune of “Dear Officer Krupke” from West Side Story)
[ca. 1962]
Please Mr. Harry Johnson
It’s easy to explain
They told me Keynes was silly
And Hansen just a pain
Velocity is the main thing
And interest a passing stress
Leapin’ lizards, that why I’m a mess.
Chorus:
Gee Prof. Johnson
we’re very upset
we never had the love that every child ought to get
we ain’t no delinquents, we’re misunderstood
deep down inside us there is good
there is good
there is good
like inside of each of us there’s good.
Oh Mr. Bailey listen
You’ve got to understand
All my life they’ve taught me
Investment lacks demand
No body ever told me
to buy a foot of land
Crawlin’ catfish, that’s why I’ve been canned.
(Repeat Chorus till last three lines)
Hear oh Mr. Friedman
I want make it clear
Always I’ve considered
Children sweet and dear
No one ever told me
Of production they’re a tool
Gosh almighty that’s why I’m a fool.
(Repeat Chorus minus last three lines)
Oh Mr. Metzler hear me
It’s simple to conceive
The BB schedule threw me
The CC did deceive
With your Keynesian leanings
I really couldn‘t cope
Goodness gracious, that’s why I’m a dope.
(Repeat Chorus…)
Dear Professor David
Please lend to us an ear
All these expectations
The present did make queer
The future was the present
The present—there was none
Really truly, that’s why I’m so dumb
(Repeat Chorus…)
Dear Sweet Professor Stigler
We all have read your book
The fun is in the footnotes
At which we love to look
But we go back to Leftwich
For Economic sense
Heaven help me, that‘s why I‘m so dense.
(Repeat Chorus…)
Now to conclude my story
I’d like to say tonight
Why it’s so very difficult
for us to be alright
Whatever one pronounces
The others say “it’s rot”
Mama mia that’s why I’m a sot.
Dear muddled department – we’re very upset
(rest of chorus…)
Source: Harvard University Archives, Papers of Zvi Griliches, Box 129, Folder “Faculty skits, ca. 1960s”.
Image Source: Random undocumented discovery in the internet.