I'm Known As the ‘Penis and Vagina’ Kid from Kindergarten Cop: An Interview.

The Austrian Oak is rightfully celebrated as an iconic tough guy. Yet, during the peak of his blockbuster fame in the eighties and nineties, he also starred in several genuinely hilarious comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its 35-year mark this holiday season.

The Role and That Line

In the classic film, Schwarzenegger plays a undercover cop who poses as a kindergarten teacher to locate a fugitive. Throughout the movie, the procedural element acts as a basic structure for the star to have charming interactions with kids. Without a doubt the standout features a child named Joseph, who spontaneously stands up and states the actor, “Males have a penis, girls have a vagina.” Arnold responds dryly, “Thank you for that information.”

The young actor was brought to life by youth performer Miko Hughes. In addition to this part featured a notable part on Full House as the schoolyard menace to the famous sisters and the character of the youngster who comes back in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He still works in film today, with multiple films on the horizon. Furthermore, he engages with fans at fan conventions. Not long ago discussed his recollections from the production after all this time.

Memories from the Set

Q: To begin, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

Miko Hughes: I think I was four. I was the youngest of all the kids on set.

That's remarkable, I can't remember being four. Do you retain any flashes from that time?

Yeah, somewhat. They're flashes. They're like mental photographs.

Do you recall how you got the part in Kindergarten Cop?

My family, especially my mother would take me to auditions. Sometimes it was like a cattle call. There'd be 20, 30 kids and we'd all patiently queue, be seen, be in there less than five minutes, deliver a quick line they wanted and then leave. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, as soon as I could read, that was the initial content I was reading.

Do you have a specific memory of meeting Arnold? What was your feeling about him?

He was extremely gentle. He was enjoyable. He was nice, which I suppose isn't too surprising. It'd be weird if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom, that surely wouldn't foster a good work environment. He was great to work with.

“It would be strange if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom.”

I knew he was a huge celebrity because I was told, but I had never really seen his movies. I felt the importance — he was a big deal — but he didn't frighten me. He was merely entertaining and I only wanted to hang out with him when he had time. He was working hard, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would dangle from his limbs. He'd tense up and we'd be holding on. He was exceptionally kind. He purchased for each child in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was a major status symbol. That was the coolest device, that distinctive classic yellow cassette player. I listened to the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for ages on that thing. It finally gave out. I also received a authentic coach's whistle. He had the coach whistle, and the kids all received one too as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being enjoyable?

You know, it's funny, that movie is such a landmark. It was such a big movie, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of collaborating with Schwarzenegger, the legendary director, traveling to Oregon, seeing the set, but my memories are of being a finitely child at lunch. For example, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the toppings only. Then, the original Game Boy was just released. That was the big craze, and I was pretty good at it. I was the smallest kid and some of the older kids would bring me their Game Boys to beat difficult stages on games because I was able to, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all little kid memories.

That Famous Quote

OK, the infamous quote, do you remember anything about it? Did you know what you were saying?

At the time, I wasn't fully aware of what the word shocking meant, but I understood it was edgy and it made adults laugh. I knew it was kind of something I shouldn't normally say, but I was given an exception in this case because it was comedic.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it originated, based on what I was told, was they didn't have specific roles. Certain bits of dialogue were written into the script, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it was more of a collaboration, but they worked on it while filming and, presumably it's either the director or producers came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to deliver this dialogue. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "I need to consider this, I'll decide tomorrow" and took a day or two. She deliberated carefully. She said she was hesitant, but she thought it would likely become one of the most memorable lines from the movie and she was right.