Iowa Woman Behind Raunchy, Viral Jingle Dies at 99

A beloved pillar of a small Iowa town, who enjoyed viral fame in 2023 thanks to her cute, vulgar little jingle of a popular pantry staple, died at the age of 99, mere weeks after celebrating her birthday.

That woman is Helen Louise Ernst of Bloomfield, IA, who achieved notoriety after a video of her featuring Carnation Milk was uploaded to TikTok. Ernst passed away suddenly at Davis County Hospital in Bloomfield on April 7th.

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Helen Ernst's Raunchy Jingle Captivated Many Hearts:

Per KTVO, Helen Ernst is remembered by her family as "a diamond;" someone who was "formed under relentless pressure, shaped by time and resistance," in what is one of the most poignant statements about a loved one I've read in sometime. Her and her second husband, Wendell, created multiple successful businesses during their time together.

In November 2023, at the age of 96, one of Ernst's family members filmed the matriarch in the kitchen while holding a can of Carnation Milk. Ernst had created her own cute-albeit-vulgar jingle for the popular brand of evaporated cooking milk. It went something like this:

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Carnation Milk, the best in the land / Comes in a tin with a red-and-white band / No t**s to pull, no hay to pitch / Just punch two holes in the son of a b***h - Helen Ernst, per her TikTok video

The brief video racked up over 20 million views on TikTok, coupled with nearly two million likes. It was a sensation that found its way on the popular daytime program Inside Edition, and likely found itself resonating with people who fondly remember the strange but irresistibly funny quips and sayings of their elders.

Nestlé, which owns the Carnation brand, reached out to Ernst's family, and graciously sponsored their Thanksgiving dinner that year. They gifted her $5,000, flew her kids in for the holiday season, and even repaved the sidewalk outside her Bloomfield home, for Ernst was an avid walker. Now that's corporate outreach done right.

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KTVO caught up with Ernst's daughter, Shelley, who said that her mother's overnight fame was both "fun" and gave "the family a chance to be together." That's what it's all about.

Services for Helen Ernst have already been held, with a memorial established under the care of Wagler Funeral Home in Bloomfield. Talk about a wonderful ribbon on a story that reached the phones and homes of millions. Read more about Helen Ernst's legacy on KTVO's website.