“So Long Gay Bowser” myth finally debunked

One of the things about the Nintendo 64 that seems to permeate pop culture decades after its release is the quote from the final battle of each section Super Mario 64 against Bowser:

So long gay Bowser!

Mario

It’s obviously just a joke that’s been repeated time and time again but it really does sound like Mario really says that!

Obviously, Nintendo would never approve of Mario calling Bowser gay, so I thought that Mario was just saying it with his exaggerated Italian accent. You know, kind of how he always says “It’s-a me, Mario!”, but in this case saying “So long-ey, Bowser!”. I think it makes sense, doesn’t it?

Charles Martinet, the voice of Mario for over 20 years, finally weighed in on the issue on Twitter:

So long kinga Bowser!

— Charles Martinet (@CharlesMartinet) April 29, 2019

There you have it from the man himself, the phrase is “So long, kinga Bowser!”

Wile it’s definitely fun to see him comment on something like this, I do have one problem with it… “Kinga” has two syllables, but Mario clearly says one syllable after “long”. This is why all the things that people thought he said were all one syllable. Unless it’s some strange hybrid word like “So lonking-a Bowser!” it doesn’t make sense.

In the end, I guess it will always be “So long gay Bowser” in our hearts.