Mr. Clean Announces His Retirement After 68 Years on the Job

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Mr. Veritably Clean is putting down the magic eraser. 

The iconic Mr. Clean mascot, known for his bald head, is retiring after almost 70 years of representing the brand.

Mr. Clean is retiring, the company shared in a TikTok video on February 18th. They say after a spotless career, he’s looking forward to new things, but his cleaning products will still be available as usual.

He’s quickly embraced a relaxed, vacation vibe. Mr. Clean, first introduced in 1957, wore a blue Hawaiian shirt to the press conference, but his famous white shirt was prominently displayed nearby. He ended the meeting with a dramatic mic drop, making sure to clean the microphone before leaving.

The staged press conference appeared as a live video online. One viewer commented, “This feels like the end of an era!” Another playfully remarked, “He doesn’t look old enough to retire!”

Alongside the announcement, the company shared insight into the future of its cleaning supplies.

Mr. Clean, whose first name is actually Veritably, is retiring and starting a new chapter in his life. While our cleaning products will still tackle dirt and grime, we wish him all the best and support his decision to move on to new adventures.

Mr. Clean was also sure to give his own statement after the news.

He announced on the company’s social media on February 19th that he was leaving the cleaning business to explore new hobbies, ending his post with a simple, ‘Stay Clean.’

He wrote in the caption that after dealing with every mess imaginable, he’s ready to retire. He feels it’s time to stop working – to ‘hang up his white shirt’.

Since retiring, Mr. Clean has been keeping busy! The company recently showed off photos of him enjoying life – DJing at a club, skiing, running a marathon, cooking, and hiking.

A TikTok caption from February 24th playfully asked, “New hobby, who dis?” It continued, suggesting that retirement doesn’t have to be dull, and used the hashtags #NewBeginnings and #Reset.

He now goes by his first name, Veritably. This name was hinted at in a TikTok post from the company on February 23rd, which playfully stated, “The name’s Veritably – Mr. Very if you’re good.”

As Vertiably Clean moves on to new projects, stay tuned for more fun and surprising details about the animated characters you love.

Many fans were left purrrrrfectly confused after this revelation.

Despite appearing as a cat, Hello Kitty is actually a young girl, according to Jill Cook, an executive at Sanrio, the company that created her. Cook explained to Today in July 2024 that Hello Kitty was born and raised in the London suburbs, has a family including a twin sister named Mimmy (who is also her best friend), and loves to bake and meet new people.

I wasn’t at all surprised when the news broke about Hello Kitty! Honestly, it’s something I’ve known for a while, and I’m glad it’s finally getting out there. Christine R. Yano, a really insightful anthropology professor who wrote the fantastic book Pink Globalization: Hello Kitty’s Trek Across the Pacific, actually confirmed years ago that Hello Kitty isn’t a cat at all. It’s a bit of a revelation for some, but she did the research and laid it all out!

In a 2014 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Hello Kitty’s creator clarified that Hello Kitty isn’t actually a cat. She explained that Hello Kitty is a cartoon character – a little girl and a friend – who walks and sits upright like a human. Interestingly, Hello Kitty does have a pet cat named Charmmy Kitty.

Did you know some fun things about Hello Kitty? Sanrio says she’s the height and weight of five apples, was born on November 1st (which makes her a Scorpio), and hopes to become either a pianist or a poet.

Gawrsh! Did you know this fact?

Bill Farmer, the voice of Goofy for many years, recently shared the reason why Goofy can speak, but Mickey Mouse’s dog, Pluto, cannot.

During an August 2024 episode of the Popcorn Podcast with Leigh Livingstone and Tim Iffland, Goofy’s voice actor explained that Goofy isn’t technically a dog, but belongs to the canine family—similar to how a wolf isn’t a dog, but is still a canine. He described Goofy as a ‘Goofus canis’—or a ‘man-dog,’ a ‘MOG’ for short.

However, Pluto, he added, is a “regular dog”—a blood hound as it turns out.

You’ll want to get to the (bikini) bottom of this discovery.

Stephen Hillenburg, the creator of SpongeBob SquarePants, surprisingly shared that the character Squidward Tentacles is actually an octopus, despite his name suggesting he’s a squid.

As a longtime fan, it’s always fascinating to hear the creators talk about their process! I recently saw a clip from 2005 where Stephen Hillenburg explained why he chose an octopus for Squidward. He said he loved the idea of a big, bulbous head for the character, especially because Squidward fancies himself an intellectual – a big head just seemed fitting! It’s a small detail, but it really adds to his personality, you know?

If you’ve ever questioned why Squidward only has six legs when he’s supposed to be an octopus, the creator, Stephen Hillenburg, explained it was simply easier for the animators to draw him with fewer tentacles.

Break out your handy dandy notebook and jot this one down.

According to co-creator Angela Santomero, Blue wasn’t always Blue! In a 2006 special called Behind the Clues: 10 Years With Blue – recently highlighted by Mental Floss – Santomero revealed that Blue was initially going to be named Mr. Orange, but they later decided ‘Mr. Blue’ sounded better.

However, Nickelodeon revealed they were already developing a show centered around a cat. This led the animation team to abandon their initial concept and completely reimagine Blue as a dog instead.

Now this really isn’t funnie, er, funny.

Interestingly, the main character of the cartoon Doug was nearly called Brian. So, what prompted the name change?

Jim Jinkins, the creator of Doug, explained to HuffPost TV in 2014 that he felt the name “Brian” was too pretentious for the character. He decided to simplify it to “Doug” because he wanted the name to sound ordinary and reflect the character’s average perspective.

This fact is so good it’s scary.

BuzzFeed reports that the little girl in Monsters, Inc.: An Augmented Reality Book is named Mary Gibbs. Interestingly, this is the actual name of the actress who voiced the character of Boo in the movie!

Still not convinced? There’s a moment in the film where Boo is looking at her drawings, and viewers have noticed the name ‘Mary’ written on one of them.

Everyone knows Mickey Mouse’s girlfriend as Minnie Mouse, but the BBC reported in 1942 that her complete name is actually Minerva.

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2026-02-24 20:49