Although the exact origin of the joke form is uncertain, the earliest known usage is from the 1938 Cole Porter musical Leave It to Me! ("In Soviet Russia, messenger tips you.")[REF] Bob Hope used the form at the 1958 Academy Awards [REF].
The joke form is often credited to Ukrainian-American comedian Yakov Smirnoff, although he only rarely used Russian reversals; one exception was a Miller Lite commercial in which he appeared in 1985, wherein he stated: "In America, there's plenty of light beer and you can always find a party.