The Secrets of
"Cow Days"

by Wild Willie Westwood, with sources from all over the Web

The Running Of The Cows - This is remotely based on the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, Spain, but its more immediate basis is the first Running of the Bulls this past summer in Mesquite, Nevada, on Saturday, July 11, 1998.

For a while, the cows have their own god, and it is a combination of three things. Its pose suggests a Buddha, its composition suggests that of the Sphinx (though the cow is made of wood), and the clock suggests Big Ben.

In Judaism, the red heifer is a sign that the turbulent End Times are here, as well as the hope for a perfect tomorrow.

New voices are getting harder to come by. The Chamber of Farts operator sounds like Dr. Adams, the Toss-A-Ball operator sounds a bit like Mr. Garrison, and Leonardo Di Caprio sounds a bit like Big Gay Al.

The Toss-A-Ball operator tells the boys they need to win seven Barbie Pocket Mirrors or Bon Jovi Toothpicks before they can trade them in for the Terrance and Phillip dolls, but he holds up eight fingers.

At this carnival, you can get color or black-and-white photos.

Frank Hammond returns as one of the rodeo announcers.

Poor Cartman. This episode marks the third time he dresses up as a woman, the second as a prostitute. But his role as a Vietnamese prostitute reveals the origin of the character's name. The lines Cartman uses as Ming Li come from Full Metal Jacket. In Full Metal Jacket the gunnery sergeant is called Hartman, and one of the recruits Hartman calls (Gomer) Pyle instead of his real name. And so,
Hartman = Cartman
Pyle = Kyle
But in the movie, Pyle is the fat recruit.

For the record, Cartman/Ming Li stays on the bull for 21.7 seconds.

The cows committing suicide is a reminder that many cults die off by mass suicide when the law catches up with them. But they also suggest the Lemmings games, in which one or more Lemmings has to help the rest of the group go from entrance to exit without falling off stairs, stair landings, or whatever they're walking on. The fun part is watching all the Lemmings fall off some edge to their deaths.

Is it a golden cow or a wooden cow?

The Phillip dolls should come with blond hair, not black hair!

Fast Forward

When the rancher in the grey hat leads Mitchell to the ridge to see for himself the herd of cows gathered around the Cow Memorial, the clock on the Memorial reads 9 a.m. When Mitchell suggests that the cows might form a cult, the time is 3 p.m. It stays at 3 p.m. while the ranchers go for Jimbo and Ned and continues at 3 p.m. while Jimbo and Ned go get some FBI agents. When the lead agent tells the cows to go back to their respective towns, the time is 9 a.m. again.

Things to look for hanging from the rafters at the Carnival

  1. Snacky Cakes boxes, in the booth next to the Freaks booth as the boys hurl balls at Jennifer Love Hewitt's mouth.
  2. Polly Prissy Pants dolls, in booths all over the carnival, with dresses of different colors, and either red, black, or brown hair.
  3. The Peter Panda dolls, in booths all over the carnival. But these dolls don't come in black-and-white, they come in a rainbow of colors, much like the Care Bears.
  4. For a moment, Polly Prissy Pants dolls hang in front of the Snacky Cakes boxes in the booth next to the Freaks booth.