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{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2021}}
{{Infobox character
| name = Kenny McCormick
| series = [[South Park]]
| image = [[File:KennyMcCormick.png|150px]]
| first = ''[[The Spirit of Christmas (short films)#1992 film (Jesus vs. Frosty)|Jesus vs. Frosty]]'' (1992) (short)
| creator = [[Trey Parker]]<br />[[Matt Stone]]
| designer = Trey Parker<br />Matt Stone
| voice = Matt Stone (muffled and un-muffled as Mysterion)<br>[[Eric Stough]] (un-muffled)<br>[[Mike Judge]] (un-muffled in [[South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut|1999 film]])
| full_name = Kenneth McCormick
| aliases = {{ubl|Kenny|Mysterion|El Pollo Loco|Lady McCormick|Princess Kenny|Dr. McCormick|Kenny McHeinenberg}}
| gender = Male
| occupation = Student, scientist (future)
| family = {{ubl|[[List of South Park families#Carol McCormick|Stuart McCormick]] (father)|[[List of South Park families#Carol McCormick|Carol McCormick]] (mother)|[[List of South Park families#Kenny McCormick|Kevin McCormick]] (brother)|[[List of South Park families#Kenny McCormick|Karen McCormick]] (sister)}}
| relatives = [[List of South Park families#Grandfather|Grandpa McCormick]]{{Broken anchor|date=2024-10-15|bot=User:Cewbot/log/20201008/configuration|target_link=List of South Park families#Grandfather|reason= }} (paternal grandfather)
| nationality = American
| lbl23 = Residence
| data23 = South Park, [[Colorado]], U.S.
| lbl24 = Died
| data24 = 127 times; [[#Deaths|see list]]
| significant_other = Kelly (ex-girlfriend)<br> Tammy Warner (ex-girlfriend)
}}
'''Kenneth "Kenny" McCormick'''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://southpark.cc.com/fans/faq/355425 |title=Love South Park. – FAQ |publisher=South Park Studios |access-date=November 8, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120515215429/https://www.southparkstudios.com/fans/faq/355425|archive-date=2012-05-15}}</ref> is a fictional character and one of the four main [[protagonists]] in the [[adult animation|adult animated]] sitcom ''[[South Park]]'', alongside [[Stan Marsh]], [[Kyle Broflovski]], and [[Eric Cartman]]. His often muffled and incomprehensible speech—the result of his [[parka]] hood covering his mouth—is provided by co-creator [[Matt Stone]]. After early appearances in ''[[The Spirit of Christmas (short film)|The Spirit of Christmas]]'' shorts in 1992 and 1995, Kenny appeared in ''South Park'' television episodes beginning August 13, 1997, as well as the 1999 feature film ''[[South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut]]'', where his uncovered face and voice were first revealed.
Kenny was a third, later fourth-grade student who commonly has extraordinary experiences not typical of conventional small-town life in his hometown of South Park, [[Colorado]], where he lives with his [[poverty]]-stricken family. Kenny is animated by computer to look as he did in the show's original method of [[cutout animation]].
The character gained popularity thanks to a [[running gag]] during the first five seasons of the series, whereby Kenny would routinely suffer an excruciating death before returning alive and well in the next episode with little or no explanation. Stan would frequently use the catchphrase "Oh my god! They killed Kenny!", followed by Kyle exclaiming "You bastard(s)!". Since the [[South Park season 6|sixth season]] in 2002, the practice of killing Kenny has been seldom used by the show's creators. Various episodes have set up the gag, sometimes presenting alternate explanations for Kenny's unacknowledged reappearances.
==Role in ''South Park''==
Kenny attends South Park Elementary as part of [[Mr. Garrison]]'s fourth-grade class. During the first 58 episodes, Kenny and the other main child characters were in the third grade. Kenny comes from a poor, dysfunctional household, presided over by his alcoholic, unemployed father, [[List of South Park families#Carol McCormick|Stuart McCormick]]. His mother [[List of South Park families#Carol McCormick|Carol McCormick]] has a job washing dishes at [[Olive Garden]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://southpark.cc.com/fans/characters/4|title=Kenny McCormick|access-date=March 30, 2008|publisher=South Park Studios}}{{dead link|date=July 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Kenny has an older brother named [[List of South Park families#Kenny McCormick|Kevin]]. He also has a younger sister who is shown with his family in the [[South Park season 9|season nine]] episode "[[Best Friends Forever (South Park)|Best Friends Forever]]", but does not reappear until the [[South Park season 15|15th season]] episode "[[The Poor Kid]]", where her name is revealed to be [[List of South Park families#Kenny McCormick|Karen]], whom he loves unconditionally. Kenny is friends with [[Stan Marsh]], [[Kyle Broflovski]], [[Eric Cartman]], and [[Butters Stotch|Leopold "Butters" Scotch]]. Kenny is regularly [[Classism|teased for living in poverty]], particularly by Cartman.<ref name=sfrubin>{{cite news|author=Sylvia Rubin|title=TV 's Foul-Mouthed Funnies|work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]]|date=January 26, 1998|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/1998/01/26/DD58819.DTL|access-date=May 3, 2009|archive-date=March 16, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120316012321/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=%2Fchronicle%2Farchive%2F1998%2F01%2F26%2FDD58819.DTL|url-status=live}}</ref>
Kenny's superhero [[alter ego]], '''Mysterion''', first appeared in the [[South Park season 13|season 13]] episode "[[The Coon]]",<ref>{{cite web |last=Fickett |first=Travis |title=South Park: "The Coon" Review |date=March 19, 2009 |url=http://tv.ign.com/articles/964/964509p1.html |website=IGN |access-date=November 8, 2010 |archive-date=August 22, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120822025348/http://tv.ign.com/articles/964/964509p1.html |url-status=live }}</ref> as a rival to Eric Cartman's eponymous supervillain alter ego. He unmasks himself at the end of the episode, but his identity is left intentionally ambiguous to the viewer. He is not revealed to be Kenny until the [[South Park season 14|season 14]] episode "[[Mysterion Rises]]", the character's third appearance as part of a three-part story arc.<ref name=mysterion>{{cite news | title = South Park: "Mysterion Rises" Review. Mysterion is not so mysterious anymore. | date = November 4, 2010 | author = Ramsey Isler | url = http://tv.ign.com/articles/113/1132434p1.html | work = [[IGN]] | publisher = [[News Corporation (1980–2013)|News Corporation]] | access-date = November 8, 2010 | archive-date = November 7, 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101107125401/http://tv.ign.com/articles/113/1132434p1.html | url-status = live }}</ref>
==Deaths==
Prior to [[South Park season 6|season six]], Kenny died in almost every episode.<ref>[https://theamericanretiree.com/unraveling-the-mystery-kenny-mccormicks-astonishing-death-count-in-south-park-explored/ ''The American Retiree'', December 17, 2024]</ref> The nature of the deaths were often gruesome and portrayed in a comically absurd fashion,<ref name=cnnleonard>{{cite news|author=Devin Leonard|title='South Park' creators haven't lost their edge|publisher=CNN|date=October 27, 2006|url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/10/30/8391792/index.htm|access-date=May 3, 2009|archive-date=November 7, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131107220939/https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/10/30/8391792/index.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> and usually followed by Stan Marsh or Kyle Broflovski respectively yelling "Oh, my God! They killed Kenny!" with the other yelling "You bastard(s)!"<ref name="nypost">{{cite news |author=Don Kaplan |date=April 8, 2002 |title=South Park Won't Kill Kenny Anymore |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,49748,00.html |url-status=deviated |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090512074744/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,49748,00.html |archive-date=May 12, 2009 |access-date=May 5, 2009 |work=[[New York Post]]}}</ref> Shortly afterward, rats would commonly appear and begin picking at his corpse.<ref name=nytimes>{{cite news|author=Bill Carter|title=Comedy Central makes the most of an irreverent, and profitable, new cartoon hit|work=The New York Times|date=November 10, 1997|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0DE5D61239F933A25752C1A961958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2|access-date=May 5, 2009|archive-date=February 4, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090204203028/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0DE5D61239F933A25752C1A961958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2|url-status=live}}</ref> In a following episode, Kenny would reappear alive and well, usually without any explanation. Most characters appear oblivious or indifferent to the phenomenon, although occasionally one will acknowledge awareness of it.<ref name=avr>{{cite news|author=Abbie Bernstein |title=South Park – Volume 2 |publisher=AVRev.com |date=October 27, 1998 |url=http://www.avrev.com/dvd-movie-disc-reviews/tv-shows/south-park-volume-2.html |access-date=April 30, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130515045446/http://www.avrev.com/dvd-movie-disc-reviews/tv-shows/south-park-volume-2.html |archive-date=May 15, 2013 }}</ref> In "[[Cherokee Hair Tampons]]", Kenny gets irritated and offended when Stan laments Kyle's critical condition while utterly ignoring Kenny's past demises. Eric Cartman commented on Kenny's deaths in the episode "[[Cartmanland]]" when he is being sued for unsafe rides insisting to attorneys representing his family that "Kenny? He dies all the time!" In "[[Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo]]", as the episode is about to end, the kids point out that "something feels unfinished", and Kenny celebrates as "The End" sign appears; it is the first episode in the series he survives.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Stevens |first1=Jeff |title=The Best Live-Action 'South Park' Commercials |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/best-south-park-fake-commercials_n_6118024 |website=HuffPost |access-date=February 22, 2022 |date=November 7, 2014 |archive-date=February 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220222065346/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/best-south-park-fake-commercials_n_6118024 |url-status=live }}</ref>
Near the end of the production run of the show's [[South Park season 5|fifth season]], creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone contemplated having an episode in which Kenny was killed off permanently. The reasoning behind the idea was to genuinely surprise fans, and to allow an opportunity to provide a major role for [[Butters Stotch]], a breakout character whose popularity was growing with the viewers and creators of the show.<ref name=commentary>{{cite video|people=Trey Parker, Matt Stone|date=2005|title=South Park" – The Complete Fifth Season|medium=DVD|publisher=Comedy Central}} Mini-commentary for episode "Kenny Dies"</ref> In the episode "[[Kenny Dies]]", Kenny dies after developing [[Terminal illness|terminal]] [[muscular dystrophy]],<ref name=buzzle>{{cite news|title=South Park's Kenny R.I.P. |publisher=Buzzle.com |date=April 9, 2002 |url=http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/4-9-2002-16245.asp |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130118150829/http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/4-9-2002-16245.asp |url-status=usurped |archive-date=January 18, 2013 |access-date=May 5, 2009 }}</ref> while Parker and Stone claimed that Kenny would not be returning in subsequent episodes. The duo insisted they grew tired of upholding the tradition of having Kenny die in each episode.<ref name=growsup1>{{cite magazine|author=Jaime J. Weinman |title=South Park grows up |magazine=Maclean's |date=March 12, 2008 |url=http://www.macleans.ca/culture/entertainment/article.jsp?content=20080312_115131_115131&page=1 |access-date=April 30, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090719082617/http://www.macleans.ca/culture/entertainment/article.jsp?content=20080312_115131_115131&page=1 |archive-date=July 19, 2009 }}</ref> Stone stated that thinking of humorous ways to kill the character was initially fun, but became more mundane as the series progressed.<ref name=buzzle/> When they determined that it would be too difficult to develop the character because he was too much of a "prop", Parker and Stone finally decided to kill off Kenny permanently.<ref name=nypost/><ref name=page2>{{cite news|author=Page 2 Staff|title=Matt Stone|publisher=[[ESPN]]|date=March 13, 2002|url=https://www.espn.com/espn/print?id=1350858&type=page2Story|access-date=May 5, 2009|archive-date=November 9, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131109224708/http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/print?id=1350858&type=page2Story|url-status=live}}</ref>
{{blockquote|["Kenny Dies"] was the one episode where [all the characters] cared [he was dying] for once. After that, we said, "Why doesn't he just stay dead?" And it was like, "Okay, let's just do that." It was that easy of a decision. I think a lot of people probably haven't noticed. I couldn't care less. I am so sick of that character.
:— Matt Stone, from a 2002 article in the ''[[Knoxville News-Sentinel]]''<ref name=buzzle/>}}
For much of season six, Kenny remained dead, though he still appears to possess Cartman's body, and both Stone and Parker entertained the idea of eventually bringing the character back.<ref name=page2/> According to Stone, only a small minority of fans were significantly angered by Kenny's absence to threaten a boycott of the cable channel [[Comedy Central]], on which ''South Park'' is aired.<ref name=nypost/> For most of the season, Stan, Kyle, and Cartman fill the void left by Kenny by allowing the characters Butters Stotch and [[List of South Park characters#Tweek Tweak|Tweek Tweak]] into their group, paving the way for those characters to receive more focus on the show; nevertheless, Kenny returned from the year-long absence in the season six finale "[[Red Sleigh Down]]", has remained a main character since, and has been given larger roles in episodes.<ref name=page2/><ref name=ids>{{cite news|author=Alyson Brodsy and Mark Perlman-Price|title=A season without Kenny|work=[[Indiana Daily Student]]|date=October 20, 2005|url=http://www.idsnews.com/news/story.aspx?id=43709|access-date=May 5, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090718213736/http://www.idsnews.com/news/story.aspx?id=43709|archive-date=July 18, 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>Semigram, Aly. [http://popwatch.ew.com/2011/11/17/south-park-penn-state-scandal/ "'South Park' tries to go for laughs with the Penn State scandal"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141214042050/http://popwatch.ew.com/2011/11/17/south-park-penn-state-scandal/ |date=December 14, 2014 }}. ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''. November 17, 2011</ref>
The first explanation given for Kenny's deaths and reappearances was given in the 53rd episode "[[Cartman Joins NAMBLA]]", wherein the McCormicks have a baby exactly like Kenny, including the characteristic orange parka, shortly after the former Kenny dies. Mr. McCormick exclaims, "God, this must be the fiftieth time this has happened", to which Mrs. McCormick quickly replies, "Fifty-second". This explanation is expanded upon in the season 14 episodes "[[Coon 2: Hindsight]]", "[[Mysterion Rises]]" and "[[Coon vs. Coon and Friends]]", in which Kenny, while playing superheroes with his friends, claims his "superpower" is [[immortality]]. He actually dies several times during these episodes—even committing suicide more than once—reawakening alive and unharmed in his bed each time. He is frustrated and angry that no one can remember him dying every time he regenerates and longs to know the source of his power, which he views as a curse. Unbeknownst to him, his parents were previously connected to a [[Cthulhu]]-worshipping death cult. After Kenny shoots himself the second time, Mrs. McCormick awakes with a scream, shrieks "It's happening again!", and minutes later, is shown gently placing a newborn Kenny in his bed. "We should never have gone to that stupid cult meeting," she grouses as she and her husband return to bed.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a36403960/south-park-theory-cartman-kenny-deaths/|title=South Park theory solves show's longest-running mystery|date=May 12, 2021|website=DigitalSpy|access-date=March 10, 2022|archive-date=March 10, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220310014727/https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a36403960/south-park-theory-cartman-kenny-deaths/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2006/10/05/ign-tvs-10-favorite-south-park-episodes|title=IGN TV's 10 Favorite South Park Episodes|first=Dan Iverson & Brian|last=Zoromski|date=4 October 2006|publisher=IGN|access-date=March 10, 2022|archive-date=March 10, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220310012429/https://www.ign.com/articles/2006/10/05/ign-tvs-10-favorite-south-park-episodes|url-status=live}}</ref>
In "[[Put It Down (South Park)|Put It Down]]", he is killed off-screen by a driver on his phone, as his picture is shown among those of kids killed by a driver on phone texting tribute. In "[[Bike Parade]]", [[Jeff Bezos]] tells [[Amazon Alexa|Alexa]] to kill Kenny, and Cartman hauls his coffin while riding his bike in the parade. "[[The Pandemic Special]]" sees Kenny being gunned down by the police when they are equipped with military weaponry to deal with the children breaking free from [[COVID-19 pandemic|COVID-19 quarantine]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Schedeen|first=Jesse|date=December 12, 2018|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2018/12/13/south-park-season-22-episode-10-bike-parade-review|title=South Park Season 22 Finale: 'Bike Paade' Review|publisher=[[IGN]]|accessdate=December 14, 2018|archive-date=December 13, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181213090220/https://www.ign.com/articles/2018/12/13/south-park-season-22-episode-10-bike-parade-review|url-status=live}}</ref>
In ''[[South Park: Post Covid]]'', as a millionaire scientist in the future finding the cause of [[COVID-19]], Kenny dies due to a time travel experiment that got him a variant named COVID Delta+ Rewards.<ref name=indiewire>{{Cite news|title=South Park Jumps to the Future, Kills Off [Spoiler] in Post COVID Special|url=https://tvline.com/2021/11/25/south-park-post-covid-ending-explained-butters-chaos/|last=Swift|first=Andy|date=November 25, 2021|access-date=November 27, 2021|work=TV Line|archive-date=December 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211217071958/https://tvline.com/2021/11/25/south-park-post-covid-ending-explained-butters-chaos/|url-status=live}}</ref> This death is undone in ''[[South Park: Post Covid: The Return of Covid]]'' after Stan, Kyle, and Cartman time travel to the past.<ref name="Hollywood">{{cite web |last1=Parker |first1=Ryan |title='South Park' Dropping 'Post COVID' Part II Movie Next Week |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/south-park-post-covid-part-2-movie-dec-16-1235059355/ |website=[[Hollywood Reporter]] |access-date=December 8, 2021 |date=December 8, 2021 |archive-date=December 8, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211208211855/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/south-park-post-covid-part-2-movie-dec-16-1235059355/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
===Season 1===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
|101 - [[Cartman Gets an Anal Probe]]
|Kenny survives a UFO bombardment and a panicked herd of cows, only to be run over by Officer Barbrady's police car as it chases the cows.
|-
|102 - [[Weight Gain 4000]]
|Mr. Garrison attempts to kill Kathie Lee Gifford with a gun, but the bullet hits Kenny, sending him flying and impaled on a flagpole.
|-
|103 - [[Volcano (South Park episode)|Volcano]]
|A volcanic eruption causes Kenny to be hit by a lava ball. He survives this, but a bullet from Ned's gun is fatal to him.
|-
|104 - [[Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride]]
|His arms and head are pulled off his torso by three Middle Park Cowboy rugby players.
|-
|105 - [[An Elephant Makes Love to a Pig]]
|Kenny is smashed into the microwave by Stan's clone. He burns in this microwave and comes out roasted.
|-
|106 - [[Death (South Park)|Death]]
|Kenny is touched by [[Grim Reaper|Death]].
|-
|107 - [[Pinkeye (South Park)|Pinkeye]]
|Kenny is hit by the space station [[Mir]] in the beginning. He later comes back as a zombie and is sawed in half by Kyle. At the end he also comes out of his grave, but is immediately crushed by a statue and a crashed plane.
|-
|108 - [[Damien (South Park)|Damien]]
|Damien turns Kenny into a [[platypus]], who is later shot dead by Jimbo, after the fight between Jesus and Satan.
|-
|109 - [[Starvin' Marvin]]
|Kenny loses one eye after an attack by mutant turkeys.
|-
|111 - [[Tom's Rhinoplasty]]
|Impaled by an Iraqi sword. The sword was thrown by Miss Ellen, the temporary replacement for Mr. Garrison (who had cosmetic surgery).
|-
|112 - [[Mecha-Streisand]]
|When Kenny starts playing ''[[tetherball]]'' with himself, he gets himself tied to the tetherball pole and asphyxiates.
|-
|113 - [[Cartman's Mom is a Dirty Slut]]
|Kenny is thrown onto the railroad tracks by a go-kart. There, he is run over by a train. Stan's grandfather recorded this and wins the main prize of the competition. When Stan, Kyle and Cartman see this video, Stan and Kyle say: "Oh my god! They videotaped killing Kenny! You bastards!"
|}
===Season 2===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
|202 - [[Cartman's Mom is Still a Dirty Slut]]
|Kenny is electrocuted when he turns on the hospital's backup generator.
|-
|203 - [[Chickenlover]]
|Kenny almost dies in this episode, but he survives everything. However, during the credits, he is crushed by a tree.
|-
|204 - [[Ike's Wee Wee]]
|Kenny trips and falls into an open grave. As he lies there, a gravestone falls on top of him.
|-
|205 - [[Conjoined Fetus Lady]]
|During the South Park vs. China dodgeball game, a Chinese player throws a dodgeball at Kenny. The ball hits him so hard that he flies into the wall behind him and dies.
|-
|206 - [[The Mexican Staring Frog of Southern Sri Lanka]]
|During a fight at the show ''Jesus and Pals'', Kenny is grabbed by two audience members who proceed to tear him in two.
|-
|207 - [[City on the Edge of Forever]]
|A large, black monster pulls Kenny out of a bus and kills him in the street. Also, in a flashback, Kenny is crushed against a wall by [[Henry Winkler]] riding a motorcycle.
|-
|208 - [[Summer Sucks]]
|The big, burning ''Snake'' goes berserk and Kenny is nearly killed by it. Then the safety fence crushes him. In the flashback, ''Baby Kenny's'' head is blown off by a firecracker.
|-
|209 - [[Chef's Chocolate Salty Balls]]
|Kenny is crushed by a group of people leaving the theater. In this episode, Stan and Kyle don't say the famous lines, but two tourists do and the line is slightly modified. (Tourist 1: "Oh my god, I found a penny!" Tourist 2: "You bastard!")
|-
|210 - [[Chickenpox]]
|At the end of the episode he laughs along with everyone, but dies from chicken pox.
|-
|211 - [[Roger Ebert Should Lay off the Fatty Foods]]
|Kenny's head explodes when Kyle and Stan turn up the intensity of the observatory demonstration to the max.
|-
|212 - [[Clubhouses (South Park)|Clubhouses]]
|During a party at Cartman's house, Kenny is crushed by partygoers.
|-
|213 - [[Cow Days]]
|The bull that Cartman is riding goes berserk. Kenny refuses to help, because he thinks he'll die. Later, the bull kills him anyway.
|-
|214 - [[Chef Aid]]
|During [[Ozzy Osbourne]]'s performance, Ozzy bites Kenny's head off.
|-
|215 - [[Spookyfish]]
|Kenny is killed by Stan's goldfish. This happens when Stan and Kyle aren't looking.
|-
|216 - [[Merry Christmas, Charlie Manson!]]
|While surrendering to the police, Kenny is shot up.
|-
|217 - [[Gnomes (South Park)|Gnomes]]
|Kenny is crushed by a derailed [[Minecart|mine cart]] inside of the Underpants Gnomes' secret lair.
|-
|218 - [[Prehistoric Ice Man]]
|Before the exhibition of the prehistoric ice man, Kenny is crushed by a treadmill.
|}
===Season 3===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
|301 - [[Rainforest Shmainforest]]
|Kenny is struck by lightning and dies. However, Kelly (a girl Kenny likes) manages to [[resuscitate|revive]] him.
|-
|302 - [[Spontaneous Combustion]]
|A spontaneous combustion at the beginning of the episode.
|-
|303 - [[The Succubus (South Park)|The Succubus]]
|Kenny dies at the beginning of the episode for unknown reasons while they are waiting for Chef. At sunrise, he suddenly comes back to life. However, he is later rammed to death by Succubus.
|-
|305 - [[Jackovasaurus]]
|Kenny imitates a deer to distract Cartman. However, a bear mistakes him for a real deer and kills him.
|-
|306 - [[Sexual Harassment Panda]]
|Kenny is attracted to a magnet in a large fan and dies.
|-
|309 - [[Jewbilee]]
|Kenny sacrifices himself to save [[Moses]] from a shell.
|-
|310 - [[Korn's Groovy Pirate Ghost Mystery]]
|Kenny is destroyed by a snowspeeder while wearing an [[ED-209]] costume.
|-
|311 - [[Chinpokomon]]
|Kenny has an epileptic seizure while playing a Chinpokomon video game. At the end of the episode, he explodes, with a swarm of rats fleeing from with body.
|-
|313 - [[Hooked on Monkey Phonics]]
|In Cartman's room, Kenny is beaten up by the Phonics Monkey.
|-
|314 - [[The Red Badge of Gayness]]
|Kenny is set on fire by a US Army warning flare. He burns alive.
|-
|315 - [[Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics]]
|During a Christmas carol, Kenny is crushed by a falling chandelier.
|-
|316 - [[Are You There God? It's Me, Jesus]]
|Kenny's insides explode from the increased pressure of a [[tampon]] stuck in his buttocks.
|-
|317 - [[World Wide Recorder Concert]]
|Kenny is killed by a massive bowel movement after hearing "The [[Brown note|Brown Note]]".
|}
===Season 4===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
|401 - [[Cartman's Silly Hate Crime 2000]]
|He is crushed by bricks that are supposed to represent Cartman after he flies off a sled.
|-
|402 - [[The Tooth Fairy Tats 2000]]
|Kenny is thrown into a river wearing cement shoes. However, the river is not deep enough to drown in. But while trying to get out, he falls into a hidden ditch and drowns anyway.
|-
|403 - [[Quintuplets 2000]]
|Kenny is accidentally shot dead by the Romanian police.
|-
|404 - [[Timmy 2000]]
|Cartman hits Kenny to death with a frying pan while he is having hallucinations of Christina Aguilera.
|-
|406 - [[Cartman Joins NAMBLA]]
|Kenny is run over by an ambulance while the ambulance is taking his father away.
|-
|407 - [[Cherokee Hair Tampons]]
|After Stan vents to him about Kyle dying. Because Kenny dies all the time, he curses out Stan and walks home angrily and is instantly crushed by a piano.
|-
|408 - [[Chef Goes Nanners]]
|Kenny explodes after taking an overdose of antacid tablets and starts drinking water. He thought they were peppermints.
|-
|409 - [[Something You Can Do With Your Finger]]
|He is crushed by an elevator just before the performance at the mall.
|-
|412 - [[Fourth Grade]]
|Kenny dies because of Timmy's wheelchair, which he tries to fix.
|-
|413 - [[Trapper Keeper (South Park)|Trapper Keeper]]
|Kenny is crushed between the wall and Cartman's door as Trapper Keeper rams the door open.
|-
|414 - [[Helen Keller! The Musical]]
|Crushed by a falling set light, which was actually meant for Timmy's dysfunctional pet, Gobbles.
|-
|416 - [[The Wacky Molestation Adventure]]
|He is sacrificed in "Carrousel". This is not shown.
|-
|417 - [[A Very Crappy Christmas]]
|Kenny is run over by a car.
|}
===Season 5===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
|501 - [[Scott Tenorman Must Die]]
|Kenny laughs himself to death after watching Cartman's "I'm a little piggy" video.
|-
|502 - [[It Hits the Fan]]
|Kenny pukes his guts out and dies. This is after surviving the plague.
|-
|503 - [[Cripple Fight]]
|He is grabbed by a bird of prey just as the boys are being thanked for their efforts.
|-
|504 - [[Super Best Friends]]
|He drowns in the Reflecting Pool during a cult mass suicide.
|-
|506 - [[Cartmanland]]
|Kenny is hit by a loose pole while riding a roller coaster.
|-
|507 - [[Proper Condom Use]]
|Kenny's face is sliced in half by a boomerang thrown by Bebe.
|-
|508 - [[Towelie]]
|While trying to save the boys' Gamesphere, Kenny falls into a vat of lava.
|-
|509 - [[Osama Bin Laden Has Farty Pants]]
|An explosion caused by American bombs kills Kenny and his new Afghan friend.
|-
|510 - [[How to Eat With Your Butt]]
|Kenny is run over by a motorcycle.
|-
|511 - [[The Entity]]
|An [[airport security]] worker shoots Kenny in the head after finding a [[nail clipper]] on his person.
|-
|512 - [[Here Comes The Neighborhood]]
|Kenny dies off-screen, but his body is seen on a sled pulled by Craig Tucker.
|-
|513 - [[Kenny Dies]]
|Kenny dies for good in this episode from a muscular disease. He is not seen for almost all of [[South Park season 6|Season 6]].
|}
===Season 7===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
|715 - [[It's Christmas in Canada]]
|He gets zapped by Saddam Hussein, who is introduced as The Prime Minister of Canada with laser eyes.
|}
===Season 8===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
|807 - [[The Jeffersons (South Park)|The Jeffersons]]
|[[Michael Jackson|Mr. Jefferson]] throws Kenny (whom he believes is his son Blanket) to the ceiling of Blanket's room.
|}
===Season 9===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
|903 - [[Wing (South Park)|Wing]]
|Kenny is shot dead by the Chinese mafia.
|-
|904 - [[Best Friends Forever (South Park)|Best Friends Forever]]
|When Kenny is playing with his [[PlayStation Portable|PSP]], he is run over by a truck, whose driver is also playing with his PSP.
|}
===Season 10===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
| 1008 - [[Make Love, Not Warcraft]]
|While Kenny himself does not physically die, his ''[[World of Warcraft]]'' character is killed twice. After his first death, Stan and Kyle say the usual lines.
|}
===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
| 1114 - [[The List (South Park)|The List]]
|When [[Bebe Stevens]] fights with [[Wendy Testaburger]] over a gun, Wendy fires a bullet. The bullet doesn't hit either of them, but instead flies through the window of Kenny's house and through his head, while at dinner.
|}
===Season 13===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
| 1301 - [[The Ring (South Park)|The Ring]]
|Kenny dies of [[syphilis]] after receiving [[oral sex]] from his girlfriend.
|-
| 1310 - [[W.T.F. (South Park)|W.T.F.]]
|Kenny picks up a firework, then is shot into the air and the firework explodes.
|-
| 1314 - [[Pee (South Park)|Pee]]
|Kenny drowns in a [[tsunami]] of urine.
|}
===Season 14===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
| 1401 - [[Sexual Healing (South Park)|Sexual Healing]]
|Kenny hangs himself in a Batman costume from his doorknob from [[autoerotic asphyxiation]].
|-
| 1412 and 1413 - [[Mysterion Rises]] and [[Coon vs. Coon & Friends]]
|Kenny dies multiple times as his (talking) [[alter ego]] Mysterion. Dying and living again is his [[gift]]. At the end he says he wants to go to sleep and shoots himself. Then he is reborn and his parents put him back to bed, as they have done more than 80 times.
|}
===Season 15===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
| 1514 - [[The Poor Kid]]
|After being the poorest kid in school again, Kenny is picked up by a large reptilian bird and thrown around and eventually eaten. This time, Stan simply says: "What the fuck?"
|}
===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
| 1606 - [[I Should Have Never Gone Ziplining]]
|Kenny dies of boredom while riding on a boat going 5 miles per hour. Other factors that led up to his boredom include [[ziplining]] and horseback riding with tour groups. This death is seen in a live-action sequence and is the only death to do so.
|}
===Season 17===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
| 1709 - [[Titties and Dragons]]
|Dressed as Princess Kenny, he jumps out of the window at the [[Sony]] headquarters building in [[Japan]] in an attempt to fly. However, he crashes violently onto the pavement with blood splattering, horrifying pedestrians and the Sony employees. Princess Kenny is quickly revived by the power of cuteness and flies away.
|}
===Season 21===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
| 2102 - [[Put It Down (South Park)|Put It Down]]
|Kenny is killed off-screen, as during the song at the end of the episode, a picture of him is among pictures of other students who have been "killed by a President on their phone" (run over).
|}
===Season 22===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
| 2210 - [[Bike Parade]]
|Kenny gets killed by [[Amazon Alexa]] at the orders of [[Jeff Bezos]]. Cartman is seen at the end of the episode hauling his casket during the bike parade.
|}
===Season 24===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
| 2401 - [[The Pandemic Special]]
|Kenny is shot by a [[tank]] while on the run from the South Park Police.
|}
===Other===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! Episode
! How?
|-
|''A Mother's Courage''
|While carving a Jack-o-Lantern, Kenny accidentally chops his arms off and stabs himself with a knife.
|-
|''[[South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut]]''
|After watching the [[Terrance and Phillip]] movie, Kenny sets his fart on fire for a bet. This burns him and he is taken to the hospital. There the doctors replace his heart with a potato. When he wakes up the doctors say he has three seconds left to live. Kenny just shouts "What?" when the potato explodes from his body.
|-
|The Real South Park
|"The Real South Park" was an [[April Fool's joke]] from [[Comedy Central]].
Kenny is run over by a [[tram]] while on a field trip to [[Amsterdam]].
|-
|''[[South Park: The End of Obesity]]''
|[[Tony the Tiger]] throws Kenny against a car's windshield, killing him immediately.
|}
==Character==
===Creation and design===
[[Image:KennyUnhooded.jpg|thumb|left|Kenny's entire face was revealed for the first time in the 1999 film ''[[South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut]]''.]]
When developing the character, the show's creators had observed that most groups of childhood friends in small middle-class towns always included "the one poor kid" and decided to portray Kenny in this light.<ref name=goindown>{{cite video|people=Trey Parker, Matt Stone|title=Goin' Down to South Park|medium=Television documentary|publisher=Comedy Central}}</ref>
In a 2000 interview, Parker said that Kenny was based on a childhood friend of his who was also named Kenny and wore an orange parka that muffled his voice. He was the poorest child in the neighborhood and often skipped school, causing Parker and his friends to jokingly say he died, only for him to return to school later.<ref>{{Citation|title=South Park - The Real-Life Inspiration for Kenny (Paley Center, 2000)| date=September 16, 2010 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xL11JnW7pzY |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/xL11JnW7pzY| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|access-date=2021-06-17}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
An unnamed precursor to Kenny first appeared in the first ''The Spirit of Christmas'' short, dubbed ''Jesus vs. Frosty'', created by Parker and Stone in 1992 while they were students at the [[University of Colorado at Boulder|University of Colorado]]. The character was composed of [[construction paper]] cutouts and animated through the use of [[stop motion]].<ref name=method>{{cite news|author=Matt Cheplic |title='As Crappy As Possible': The Method Behind the Madness of South Park |publisher=[[Penton Media]] |date=May 1, 1998 |url=http://digitalcontentproducer.com/mag/video_crappy_possible_method/ |access-date=April 28, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090329014416/http://digitalcontentproducer.com/mag/video_crappy_possible_method/ |archive-date=March 29, 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref> When tasked three years later by friend Brian Graden to create another short as a video [[Christmas card]] that he could send to friends, Parker and Stone created another similarly-animated ''The Spirit of Christmas'' short, dubbed ''Jesus vs. Santa''.<ref name=VH1>{{cite web|url=http://www.vh1.com/press/bios/brian_graden.jhtml |title=Brian Graden's Bio |publisher=VH1.com |access-date=January 10, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080120161058/http://www.vh1.com/press/bios/brian_graden.jhtml |archive-date=January 20, 2008 }}</ref> In this short, Kenny is given his first name, and first appears as he does in the series.
Kenny next appeared on August 13, 1997, when ''South Park'' debuted on [[Comedy Central]] with the episode "[[Cartman Gets an Anal Probe]]".<ref>Frederic M. Biddle, "'South Park' wickedly makes the grade", ''[[The Boston Globe]]'' (August 13, 1997). [[LexisNexis]] {{subscription required}}. Retrieved April 30, 2009.</ref>
In tradition with the show's [[Cutout animation|animation style]], Kenny is composed of simple geometrical shapes and [[primary color]]s.<ref name=avr/><ref name=method/> He is not offered the same free range of motion associated with hand-drawn characters; his character is mostly shown from only one angle, and his movements are animated in an intentionally jerky fashion.<ref name=avr/><ref name=method/><ref name=growsup2>{{cite news|author=Jaime J. Weinman |title=South Park grows up |publisher=Mac leans.ca |date=March 12, 2008 |url=http://www.macleans.ca/culture/entertainment/article.jsp?content=20080312_115131_115131&page=2 |access-date=April 30, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090802210052/http://www.macleans.ca/culture/entertainment/article.jsp?content=20080312_115131_115131&page=2 |archive-date=August 2, 2009 }}</ref> Ever since the show's second episode, "[[Weight Gain 4000]]" ([[South Park season 1|season one]], 1997), Kenny, like all other characters on the show, has been animated with computer software, though he is portrayed to give the impression that the show still utilizes its original technique.<ref name=method/>
[[File:MysterionUnmasked1.png|thumb|Mysterion unmasked at the end of "[[The Coon]]". Originally intended to have been a generic, unnamed classmate of the main characters, he was revealed to be Kenny in "[[Mysterion Rises]]".<ref name=mysterion/>]]
The effect of Kenny's speech is achieved by Stone mumbling into his own hand as he provides Kenny's lines.<ref name=method/> While he originally voiced Kenny without any computer manipulation, Stone now does so by speaking in his normal vocal range and then adding a childlike inflection. The recorded audio is then edited with [[Pro Tools]], and the pitch is altered to make the voice sound more like that of a 10-year-old.<ref>{{cite web|title=South Park FAQ|url=https://southpark.cc.com/fans/faq/archives.php?month=2&year=2009|date=February 10, 2009|publisher=South Park Studios|access-date=April 30, 2009|archive-date=May 11, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090511145241/http://www.southparkstudios.com/fans/faq/archives.php?month=2&year=2009|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=sps40>{{cite web|title=40 Questions |url=http://treyparker.info/archives_spstudios.htm |date=October 4, 2001 |publisher=South Park Studios |access-date=January 30, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101129004417/http://treyparker.info/archives_spstudios.htm |archive-date=November 29, 2010 }}</ref> As the technique of Kenny's muzzled enunciation frequently implies, many of his lines are indeed profane and sexually explicit, the lengthier of which are mostly improvised by Stone.<ref name=method/>
He first appeared unobscured by his hood in ''[[South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut]]'', where it was revealed that he had messy blonde hair. [[Mike Judge]] provided the voice for Kenny's one line of uninsulated dialogue: "Goodbye, you guys."<ref name="voiceactors">{{cite web |url=https://southpark.cc.com/fans/faq/355463 |title=FAQ: In 'Meet the Jeffersons' and in BLU Kenny's voice can be heard without it being muffled by his hood. But the voice in the movie sounds different from the episode!! Was it done by two different people?? If so why and who did the voice? |publisher=South Park Studios |date=June 24, 2010 |access-date=December 4, 2011 |archive-date=November 29, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101129121524/http://www.southparkstudios.com/fans/faq/355463 |url-status=dead }}</ref> On a few occasions during episodes that have originally aired since the film's release, he has been seen without the parka;<ref group=note>Including "[[The Tooth Fairy Tats 2000]]", "[[Super Best Friends]]", "[[Lil' Crime Stoppers]]", "[[The Jeffersons (South Park episode)|The Jeffersons]]", "[[Good Times with Weapons]]", "[[The Losing Edge]]", "[[South Park Is Gay!]]", "[[Lice Capades]]", "[[Margaritaville (South Park)|Margaritaville]]", "[[W.T.F. (South Park)|W.T.F.]]", "[[Pee (South Park)|Pee]]", "[[You're Getting Old]]", and "[[DikinBaus Hot Dogs]]".</ref> however, unlike in ''Bigger, Longer & Uncut'' his entire face has been only seen four times in the television series without being partially obscured or otherwise altered, this being in "[[The Losing Edge]]", "[[The Jeffersons (South Park episode)|The Jeffersons]]", "[[You're Getting Old]]", and "[[DikinBaus Hot Dogs]]" (except in DikiniBaus Hot Dogs, his face is slightly concealed by a pair of sunglasses shades). He also speaks unmuffled during some of these instances, in which case co-producer [[Eric Stough]] provides Kenny's voice.<ref name="voiceactors" /> During "[[The Coon]]" episodes of seasons 13 and 14, Kenny has his first major speaking role as the character Mysterion.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbr.com/south-park-best-kenny-quotes-ranked/|title=Kenny's 6 Best Quotes From South Park, Ranked|date=March 3, 2022|website=CBR|access-date=March 10, 2022|archive-date=March 10, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220310013549/https://www.cbr.com/south-park-best-kenny-quotes-ranked/|url-status=live}}</ref>
===Personality and traits===
While most child characters on the show are foul-mouthed, Kenny is often even more risqué with his dialogue.<ref name=bbc>{{cite news|title=Cartman top with kids|publisher=BBC|date=August 26, 1999|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/entertainment/430977.stm|access-date=May 5, 2009|archive-date=February 13, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213052216/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/430977.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> Parker and Stone state that they depict Kenny and his friends in this manner in order to display how young boys really talk when they are alone.<ref name=avr/><ref name=abc4>{{cite web|author=Jake Trapper and Dan Morris|title=Secrets of 'South Park'|publisher=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]|date=September 22, 2006|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/Entertainment/Story?id=2479197&page=4|access-date=April 18, 2009|archive-date=March 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319073834/https://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/Entertainment/Story?id=2479197&page=4|url-status=live}}</ref> While Kenny is often cynical and profane, Parker notes that there nonetheless is an "underlying sweetness" aspect to the character,<ref name=loudlewd>{{cite news|author=Frazier Moore|title=Loud and lewd but sweet underneath|work=[[The Age]]|date=December 14, 2006|url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/tv--radio/loud-and-lewd-but-sweet-underneath/2006/12/13/1165685687176.html?page=2|access-date=May 9, 2009|archive-date=May 11, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511220852/http://www.theage.com.au/news/tv--radio/loud-and-lewd-but-sweet-underneath/2006/12/13/1165685687176.html?page=2|url-status=live}}</ref> and ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine described Kenny and his friends as "sometimes cruel but with a core of innocence".<ref name=time/> He is amused by [[toilet humor]] and bodily functions,<ref name=time/> and his favorite television personalities are [[Terrance and Phillip]], a Canadian duo whose comedy routines on their show-within-the-show revolve substantially around fart jokes. Kenny is shown to desire intercourse in the episode "The Ring", when Kenny gets a girlfriend and is overjoyed to find out that she has a reputation as a slut. Kenny is also lecherous,<ref name=sfrubin/> and often portrayed as being eager to do and say disgusting things in an attempt to impress others or earn money.<ref name=goindown/> Conversely, his alter-ego Mysterion is seemingly mature, principled, and serious-minded, the only exception being one instance in "Mysterion Rises" in which he takes delight in irritating Cartman. As Mysterion, he convinces his parents to take better care of themselves and their children, as seen by their reaction when he questions them about the cult of Cthulhu. He also uses his disguise to protect his sister Karen (who refers to Mysterion as her "guardian angel"), as revealed in "[[The Poor Kid]]"; however, in all of his guises, Kenny is depicted as being uncommonly [[Altruism|selfless]], dying for the sake of others and spending all of his time working so he could buy his little sister a doll.<ref>{{cite web |author=Isler, Ramsey |url=http://m.ie.ign.com/articles/1212761 |title=South Park: 'The Poor Kid' Review |work=[[IGN]] |date=November 17, 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120502182657/http://m.ign.com/articles/2011/11/17/south-park-the-poor-kid-review |archivedate=2012-05-02}}</ref><ref>{{cite episode|title=Trey Parker & Matt Stone|series=[[The Daily Show with Jon Stewart]]|airdate=June 15, 2011|network=[[Comedy Central]]|url=http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-june-15-2011/trey-parker---matt-stone|access-date=March 10, 2022|archive-date=January 22, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140122195046/http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-june-15-2011/trey-parker---matt-stone|url-status=live}}</ref>
In the trilogy of episodes "[[Black Friday (South Park)|Black Friday]]", "[[A Song of Ass and Fire]]" and "[[Titties and Dragons]]", in which the boys play-act characters from the TV series ''[[Game of Thrones]]'', Kenny [[Cross-dressing|cross-dresses]] as a fantasy-style princess with a wig and dress similar to the video game character [[Princess Zelda]], and becomes a Japanese-speaking [[Moe (slang)|moe]] [[anime]] character at one point. When Cartman complains, "You're never going to be a real [[princess]]", Princess Kenny responds (via her translator, Stan) angrily to Cartman, calling him a "ball-licking [[lesbian]]".<ref>{{cite web|last=McGee|first=Ryan|title=Black Friday|url=https://www.avclub.com/south-park-black-friday-1798178674|publisher=[[The A.V. Club]]|date=November 13, 2013|access-date=June 21, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite video |people=[[Trey Parker|Parker, Trey]]; [[Matt Stone|Stone, Matt]] |date=2014 |title=South Park season 17 DVD commentary for the episode "A Song of Ass and Fire" |medium=DVD |publisher=[[Comedy Central]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Nicholson|first=Max|title=Let the Red (Robin) Wedding commence|url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/12/05/south-park-titties-and-dragons-review|website=[[IGN]]|date=December 5, 2013|accessdate=December 5, 2013|archive-date=December 6, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131206050653/http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/12/05/south-park-titties-and-dragons-review|url-status=live}}</ref>
This portrayal continues in the video game ''[[South Park: The Stick of Truth]]'' where Cartman notes that playing a "chick" is "just how [Kenny] seems to be rolling right now". Kenny's sister also refers to Kenny as a girl, if you talk to her in the McCormick house. Throughout the game, Kenny posts 'status updates' referring to herself as "the cutest of them all".<ref name=DailyTelegraph>{{cite news |first=Hannah |last=Dwan |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/gaming/reviews/south-park-fractured-whole-review-round-critics-saying/ |title=South Park: The Fractured But Whole review round up – What the critics are saying |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=October 16, 2017 |access-date=November 4, 2017 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20171104122020/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gaming/reviews/south-park-fractured-whole-review-round-critics-saying/ |archive-date=November 4, 2017 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all}}</ref>
==In other media==
Kenny had a major role in ''[[South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut]]'',<ref>{{cite web|url=http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_review/0,,77038,00.html|title=South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut|work=The Guardian|___location=London|date=August 27, 1999|access-date=July 24, 2009|last=Pulver|first=Andrew|archive-date=May 28, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080528053325/http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_review/0,,77038,00.html|url-status=live}}</ref> the full-length film based on the series, and appeared on the [[South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (soundtrack)|film's soundtrack]] singing (albeit muffled) several lines of the song "Mountain Town" from the film.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.discogs.com/Various-Music-From-And-Inspired-By-The-Motion-Picture-South-Park-Bigger-Longer-Uncut/release/1396078|title=Various – Music From And Inspired By The Motion Picture South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut|year=1999|publisher=www.discogs.com|access-date=July 24, 2009|archive-date=February 14, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090214004646/http://www.discogs.com/Various-Music-From-And-Inspired-By-The-Motion-Picture-South-Park-Bigger-Longer-Uncut/release/1396078|url-status=live}}</ref> As a tribute to the [[Dead Parrot sketch]], a short that features Kenny as a "dead friend" being returned by Cartman to a shop run by Kyle aired during a 1999 [[BBC]] television special commemorating the 30th anniversary of ''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?sf=3&set_id=1&click_id=3&art_id=qw939324300430R131|title=News – Pythons cut train crash from funny show|publisher=www.iol.co.za|access-date=August 1, 2009}}</ref> Kenny was also featured in the [[documentary film]] ''[[The Aristocrats (film)|The Aristocrats]]'', listening to Cartman tell his version of the film's titular joke,<ref name=aristocrats>{{cite web|title=HBO Documentary Films: The Aristocrats|url=http://www.hbo.com/docs/programs/aristocrats/synopsis.html|publisher=[[HBO]]|access-date=March 27, 2009|archive-date=April 26, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090426054948/http://www.hbo.com/docs/programs/aristocrats/synopsis.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> and in "The Gauntlet", a short spoofing both ''[[Gladiator (2000 film)|Gladiator]]'' and ''[[Battlefield Earth (film)|Battlefield Earth]]'' that aired during the [[2000 MTV Movie Awards]].<ref name=ortega>{{cite news|last=Ortega|first=Tony|title=Sympathy For The Devil: Tory Bezazian was a veteran Scientologist who loved going after church critics. Until she met the darkest detractor of all.|work=New Times Los Angeles|date=September 27, 2001}}</ref><ref name=mtvshort>{{cite video|people=Trey Parker, Matt Stone|date=2000|title=The Gauntlet|medium=Television special|publisher=MTV, Comedy Central}} Short that aired during the [[2000 MTV Movie Awards]]</ref>
Kenny also appears in six ''South Park''-related video games: In ''[[South Park (video game)|South Park]]'', Kenny is controlled by the player through the [[first-person shooter]] mode who attempts to ward off enemies from terrorizing the town of South Park.<ref>{{cite web|first=Christopher Michael|last=Baker|title=South Park – Overview|url=http://allgame.com/game.php?id=19249|work=[[Allgame]]|access-date=July 16, 2009|archive-date=December 10, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141210201415/http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=19249|url-status=dead}}</ref> In ''[[South Park: Chef's Luv Shack]]'', a user has the option of playing as Kenny when participating in the game's several "minigames" based on other popular arcade games.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=2100 |title=Review: South Park: Chef's Luv Shack |publisher=ComputerAndVideoGames.com |access-date=July 19, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070330000425/http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=2100 |archive-date=March 30, 2007 }}</ref> In the racing game ''[[South Park Rally]]'', a user can race as Kenny against other users playing as other characters, while choosing to place him in any of a variety of vehicles.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uk.dreamcast.ign.com/articles/133/133474p1.html|title=South Park Rally Preview|website=IGN|access-date=July 19, 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713004750/http://uk.dreamcast.ign.com/articles/133/133474p1.html|archive-date=July 13, 2011}}</ref> In ''[[South Park Let's Go Tower Defense Play!]]'', Kenny can be selected as a playable character used to establish a [[tower defense]] against the game's antagonists.<ref name=igntower>{{cite web|url=http://uk.xboxlive.ign.com/articles/103/1031444p1.html|title=South Park Let's Go Tower Defense Play Review|last=Brudvig|first=Erik|date=October 6, 2009|publisher=IGN Entertainment|access-date=October 10, 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091010182058/http://uk.xboxlive.ign.com/articles/103/1031444p1.html|archive-date=October 10, 2009}}</ref> In ''[[South Park: The Stick of Truth]]'', Kenny (as Princess Kenny) can be selected as a companion over the course of much of the game.<ref>{{cite web |last=Martin |first=Liam |date=March 4, 2014 |url=http://www.digitalspy.com/gaming/review/a554938/south-park-the-stick-of-truth-review-360-captures-the-shows-humour/ |title=South Park: The Stick of Truth review (360) Captures the show's humour |website=[[Digital Spy]] |access-date=January 26, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160404014140/http://www.digitalspy.com/gaming/review/a554938/south-park-the-stick-of-truth-review-360-captures-the-shows-humour/ |archive-date=April 4, 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In ''[[South Park: The Fractured but Whole]]'', Kenny is seen as his alter-ego Mysterion.<ref name=DailyTelegraph/>
==Cultural impact==
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:KennyInHospital.jpg|thumb|left|Kenny, in a [[vegetative state]] in the season nine episode "[[Best Friends Forever (South Park)|Best Friends Forever]]", which addressed the [[Terri Schiavo]] controversy.]] -->
Kenny's deaths are well-known in popular culture,<ref name=nypost/> and was one of the things viewers most commonly associated with ''South Park'' during its earlier seasons.<ref name=wired>{{cite web|title=Word, Charged Find a Savior|website=Wired.com|date=April 27, 1998|url=https://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/1998/04/11925|access-date=May 14, 2009|archive-date=June 29, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629044955/http://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/1998/04/11925|url-status=live}}</ref> ''[[IGN]]'' ranked Kenny at #6 on their "The Top 25 South Park Characters" list.<ref>{{cite news|title=The Top 25 South Park Characters|work=[[IGN]]|date=October 21, 2018|url=https://uk.ign.com/articles/2014/03/01/top-25-south-park-characters?page=4|archive-date=March 30, 2023|access-date=October 21, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230330220046/https://www.ign.com/articles/2014/03/01/top-25-south-park-characters?page=4|url-status=live}}</ref> The exclamation of "Oh my God! They killed Kenny!" quickly became a popular [[catchphrase]],<ref name=buzzle/><ref name=time>{{cite magazine|author=Jeffrey Ressner and James Collins|title=Gross And Grosser|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date=March 23, 1998|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,988028,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090821033347/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,988028,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 21, 2009|access-date=April 28, 2009}}</ref> while both Kenny and the phrase have appeared on some of the more popular pieces of ''South Park'' merchandise,<ref name=nypost/> including shirts, bumper stickers, calendars and baseball caps,<ref name=sfrubin/> and inspired the rap song "Kenny's Dead" by [[Master P]], which was featured on ''[[Chef Aid: The South Park Album]]''.<ref name=nypost/>
The running gag of Kenny's deaths in earlier seasons was incorporated into the [[South Park season 9|season 9]] (2005) episode "[[Best Friends Forever (South Park)|Best Friends Forever]]" when Kenny, in a [[vegetative state]], is kept alive by a [[feeding tube]] while a media circus erupted over whether the tube should be removed and allow Kenny to die. The episode received much attention as it served to provide commentary on the [[Terri Schiavo case]],<ref name="nytimessatire">{{cite news|author=Wyatt Mason|title=My Satirical Self|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=September 17, 2006|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/17/magazine/17satire.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&pagewanted=all|access-date=May 5, 2009|archive-date=August 10, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190810190817/https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/17/magazine/17satire.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&pagewanted=all|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=mcfarland2>{{cite news|author=Melanie McFarland|title=Social satire keeps 'South Park' fans coming back for a gasp, and a laugh|work=[[Seattle Post-Intelligencer]]|date=October 2, 2006|url=http://www.seattlepi.com/tv/287050_tv02.html|access-date=May 12, 2009|archive-date=September 15, 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120915113720/http://www.seattlepi.com/tv/287050_tv02.html|url-status=live}}</ref> originally airing just one day before Schiavo died.<ref name=nytimesarts>{{cite news|author=Kate Aurthur|title='South Park' Echoes the Schiavo Case|work=The New York Times|date=April 2, 2005|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9501EFDA113FF931A35757C0A9639C8B63|access-date=May 5, 2009|archive-date=May 11, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511120419/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9501EFDA113FF931A35757C0A9639C8B63|url-status=live}}</ref> The episode earned ''South Park'' its first [[Emmy Award]] for [[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour)|Outstanding Animated Program]].<ref name=nashua>{{cite news|author=Terry Morrow|title='South Park' outlives creators' expectations|publisher=[[Scripps Howard News Service]]|date=October 23, 2005|url=http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051023/ENTERTAINMENT/110230107/-1/news|access-date=May 5, 2009}}{{Dead link|date=August 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
Kenny's deaths have been subject to much critical analysis in the media and literary world. In the book ''[[South Park and Philosophy: Bigger, Longer, and More Penetrating]]'', an essay by [[Southern Illinois University]] philosophy professor [[Randall Auxier]], entitled "Killing Kenny: Our Daily Dose of Death", suggests that the fashion of the recurring gag serves to help the viewer become more comfortable with the inevitability of their own death.<ref name=green>{{cite news|last=Staff|title=Philosophy Speaker Presents "Killing Kenny: Our Daily Dose of Death"|work=GMC Journal|publisher=[[Green Mountain College]]|date=February 5, 2007|url=http://www.greenmtn.edu/gmcjournal/journal020507.asp|access-date=February 8, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080219061104/http://www.greenmtn.edu/gmcjournal/journal020507.asp|archive-date=February 19, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ffwdweekly.com/article/life-style/books/just-killing-kenny-or-ontological-boredom/ |title=Just killing Kenny or ontological boredom? |access-date=March 5, 2009 |last=Marchetto |first=Sean |date=December 6, 2007 |work=Fast Forward Weekly |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081119082531/http://www.ffwdweekly.com/article/life-style/books/just-killing-kenny-or-ontological-boredom |archive-date=November 19, 2008 }}</ref> In the book ''South Park and Philosophy: You Know, I Learned Something Today'', [[University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point]] professor Karin Fry wrote an essay concerning the parallels between Kenny's role in the show and the different concepts of [[existentialism]].<ref name=philo4>{{cite book|editor-last=Arp|editor-first=Robert |author=Fry, Karin |title=South Park and Philosophy: You Know, I Learned Something Today|url=https://archive.org/details/southparkphiloso00arpr_339|url-access=limited|publisher=Blackwell Publishing (The Blackwell Philosophy & Pop Culture Series)|date=December 1, 2006|pages=[https://archive.org/details/southparkphiloso00arpr_339/page/n88 77]–86|isbn=978-1-4051-6160-2}}</ref>
When Sophie Rutschmann of the [[University of Strasbourg]] discovered a mutated gene that causes an adult [[Drosophila melanogaster|fruit fly]] to die within two days after it is infected with certain bacteria, she named the gene "Kenny" in honor of the character.<ref name=fruitfly>{{cite news|author=Thomas H. Maugh II|title=Playing the Name Game|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=August 5, 2002|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-aug-05-sci-genes5-story.html|access-date=May 5, 2009|archive-date=February 21, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220221180551/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-aug-05-sci-genes5-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
==See also==
{{portal|United States|Colorado|Television|Animation|Comedy}}
*[[South Park (Park County, Colorado)]]
*[[South Park City]]
{{clear}}
==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
{{sister project links|South Park|auto=yes}}
* [https://southpark.cc.com/guide/characters/kenny-mccormick Kenny McCormick]{{dead link|date=January 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} on SouthParkStudios.com
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{{Trey Parker and Matt Stone}}
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