If you're from Albany, NY, you are probably familiar with the colloquialism "Steamed Hams." For the uninformed, "Steamed Hams" is a slang term Albany denizens use for hamburgers, at least according to Seymour Skinner. In The Simpsons episode "22 Short Films About Springfield," Skinner serves his dinner guest, Superintendent Chalmers, a tray of Krusty Burgers, referring to them as "Steamed Hams." The bit is often touted as one of the funniest moments in Simpsons history, and in late 2017, it served as a muse to meme makers.
The origins of the "Steamed Hams" meme are scattered at best, and some of the best "Steamed Hams" videos were made for the sheer purpose of sh*tposting on message boards. These Simpsons memes have crossed into the realm of the mainstream internet and real life. The Simpsons can be eerily prophetic, but it can also be absurd and entertaining, as these memes prove. Get ready for Principal Skinner and Superintendent Chalmers to become your favorite Springfield citizens.
The "Steamed Hams" skit, written by Bill Oakley, came as part of the Season 7 episode "22 Short Films About Springfield," and was then titled "Chalmers vs. Skinner." In it, Principal Skinner invites Superintendent Chalmers over for a luncheon and shenanigans ensue. Skinner accidentally burns steamed clams he was making, leading him to cover the embarrassing truth with a slew of increasingly ridiculous lies. Skinner claims that Chalmers misheard him - he was actually making "steamed hams," AKA hamburgers Skinner grabbed from Krusty Burger.
This Bizarre Animation May Be The First Fan-Made Video Inspired By The Sketch
This text-to-movie video was posted on March 3rd, 2010, and has over 9,600 views. It was made with xtranormal, a DIY animation software that turned a typed script into an animation.
Meme Makers Edit The Videos With Insane Rules, Like Placing Each Line In Alphabetical Order
"Steamed Hams" really blasted into the meme stratosphere in late 2017. Meme makers remixed the original clip with weird rules or in accordance to another show's editing style. For example, the piece above chops the video up and reorders it alphabetically; each spoken line is isolated to become its own segment. Those segments are then played in alphabetical order to create a cacophonous but oddly entertaining bit.
Some Meme Makers Edit The Scene In The Style Of Other Shows, Like Dragon Ball Z
If you've never heard the loud, ominous, and aggressively '80s tones of Dragon Ball Z, this "Steamed Hams" clip edited to look and sound like an episode of the famed anime might open your eyes. Or perhaps you're very familiar with said tones, and you know EXACTLY how this clip is going to sound before you hit play. Either way, hit play.
'The Skinner Chronicles' Combines 'Steamed Hams' And 'Seinfeld'
This "Steamed Hams" meme bookends the sketch with Skinner doing standup, much like how most Seinfeld episodes started. The meme is complete with canned studio audience laughter and reactions.
One Meme Maker Reworked Clip With No Repeating Words
In this clip, each word is silenced throughout the rest of the scene after its first utterance. As you can imagine, the participants' speech becomes quite clipped by the end.
