Conceived in Tory focus group rooms, oily was born several weeks premature when Conservative strategists induced labour. Immediately, Oily became a child star and it wasn’t long before everyone, from Tory staffers to Jack Layton, were wearing oily merchandize and rattling off his catch phrase “Yoo-hoo: Hello! Over here!”. However a cloud (of smog?) hung over Oily’s career as accusations of bad business deals surfaced. Just a week old, Oily’s once promising career appears to be over, despite rumours of a comeback tour with Oily, Joe Camel, and Lenny the Led Paint Chip.

For more on the saga of Oily the Splotch, Stephen Taylor provides some “insider” background, as does the Globe.