Mrs. Butterworth's First Name Revealed

by Kat Kinsman, Posted Oct 1st 2009 @ 4:30PM

Photo: Flickr / Roadsidepictures

Her name is Butterworth. Mrs. Butterworth. And after 40 years of mystery, she's ready to reveal her first name to the world.

Slashfood reported in June that Mrs. Butterworth's had launched a contest asking participants what they think the company's iconic spoke-bottle's first name might be, accompanied by a short statement as to why. The co-winners, 15-year-old Shayla Doty, of Logansport, Ind., and Cynthia Harmon, 44, of Champaign, Ill., each independently found their way to "Joy" -- as well as $500 and a year's supply of syrup.

Said Miss Doty, "The father-to-be, Mr. Butterworth, was in favor of the name Yvonne, while the mother-to-be felt she was more deserving of a name that would remind them of what a precious jewel she would be -- Opal. Having not settled on a decision the day their giggling baby girl arrived, the doctor suggested "Jocelyn," meaning "the merry one." A light bulb lit above Daddy Butterworth's head, and he suggested combining the first letter from all three names, J-O-Y."

Ms. Harmon contended that, "Growing up, Mrs. Butterworth was teased by classmates who called her 'Joy Buzzerworth' in reference to a popular practical joke item called a joy buzzer that shocked people when they shook hands. When Mrs. Butterworth's introduced her syrup to the world, she didn't want anybody to think about Joy Buzzers, and just wanted them to love her thick and rich and buttery syrup, and so she decided to leave out her first name."

Still, Slashfood wonders -- did she meet a Mr. Butterworth and tie the knot, or is Missus just a nickname? Share your best guesses in the comments below.

Contest results will be posted at mrsbutterworthssyrup.

Had you ever wondered what Mrs. Butterworth's first name might be?
Nope	11098 (77.3%)
It's always plagued me.	867 (6.0%)
You mean it's not "Mrs."?	2399 (16.7%)

Filed Under: Food News
Tags: contest, contests, mascots, mrs. butterworth, Mrs.Butterworth, syrup

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 4)

10-02-2009 @2:21PM cannotbelievethis said... It has always bothered me, since we knew who Duncan Hines, Betty Crocker, Uncle Ben, and Aunt Jemima were... and Marie Callendar... but JUST Mrs. Butterworth? But then again, I always wondered why Mary Anne and Ginger weren't always knocked up on "Gilligan's Island",too.
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10-02-2009 @2:32PM Remy said... Miss B if you're nasty always worked for me! But she is so rich, buttery and tasty, she works just as well on beefcakes as she does on pancakes! lol
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10-02-2009 @3:21PM X-sailor said... "Butterworth" is also a nozzle used to clean the tanks of a ship with hot water. It can even be a verb: "to butterworth the tanks," just as "Hoover the carpet" means to clean the carpet with a vacuum cleaner. However, I don't think Mrs. Butterworth's first name was Tank-Cleaner. Maybe that was Mr. Butterworth's name. Or maybe he was Capt. Butterworth and owned the nozzle. When you eat pancakes with Mrs. Butterworth syrup, think of the nozzle in the bowels of a ship cleaning gunk from the sides.
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10-02-2009 @3:17PM kristib said... I never wondered because I am Mrs. Butterworth and my first name is Kris. So Joy is way off......I am the real Mrs. Butterworth...:)
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10-02-2009 @3:15PM MIKE said... She looks like a Mary to me. But what the hell is Butterworth ? ABOUT $1.69 a pound.
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10-02-2009 @3:29PM Blackdog said... Man, it's obvious what people on this site are thinking about. I say the lady looks like a Gladys Butterworth. Anyway, whatever. Who care what her first name is (was). The syrup is great.
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10-02-2009 @3:38PM joe w. said... i wish i could do it to mrs. buttersworth

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10-02-2009 @3:45PM CeDarlyn Brown said... IT REALLY DOESN'T HOW SHE LOOKS AS LONG AS SHE KEEPS THAT GOOD FLAVOR

GREAT FLAVOR KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK
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10-02-2009 @4:04PM Jay said... If she's MRS. Butterworth, then this storyline has a flaw. She married a Butterworth, so she couldn't have been teased about Joy Buzzerworth in school.
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10-02-2009 @4:16PM menburl said... She looks like a Shaquita. Shaqiuta Butterworth! I totally "Can't Believe It's Not Butter" Butterworth.
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10-02-2009 @4:22PM Ani said... I was just thinking of Mrs. Betty Butterworth. This has a better ring to it, but again, maybe not.
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10-02-2009 @4:23PM CINDY said... Mrs. Butterworth's has always been my FAVORITE syrup!! Nothing would of changed that, first name or not!! I wish I would've known about the contest though! Even if I would'nt have won, it would have been ALOT of fun trying!!! I LOVE CONTESTS!!
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10-02-2009 @4:25PM judie said... How about Michelle? Looks like her.
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10-02-2009 @4:26PM Miss Sweet said... Miss Butterworth always aspired to being the ultimate syrup mogul. Well on her way to reaching that goal when she met and married Mr. Sweet, the only "name change" she would agree to was the change from Miss to Mrs.
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10-02-2009 @4:32PM aleighcat said... Hmmm.....I kind of like "Beatrice", myself. I'm just amazed how she's kept her youthful look/figure after all of these years........
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10-02-2009 @11:29PM Monkey Poo said... Back when we were in college, Joy and I shacked up during junior year, doing the radical politics thing, getting baked a few times a week, and howling during open-mike night. She rocked a fro in those days, not like the lay-down that you see today. Eventually, her politics got too radical and she turned man-hater, moving in with some fem-nazi who hung out in the political science building but wasn't enrolled in school. The last I heard from her, she was leaving to teach in a village in El Salvador and had returned from the dark side, hanging with some dude named Raul.
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10-02-2009 @4:53PM Torey said... Interestingly, Mrs. Butterworth met a most charming, sophisticated unrelated man who shared her beloved surname. He was so ahead of his time that he allowed her to market her fabulous syrup, while he remained in the background assisting her quietly in whatever she needed to promote and market her syrup. It is amazing that she found such an outstanding gentleman who shared her surname, because you would only think that someone with a more common last name like Smith or Jones could ever hope for this to occur. They were blessed with a large family of sweet "little honeys", who although they are proud of their momma's accomplishment, do not publicize who they are. They were raised to be fine human beings who have earned the respect and admiration of others because of their own personalities. The Butterworths were very careful to not let wealth and fame stand in the way of raising down to earth, well rounded children.
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