YAML is often my go-to module when I want formatted data but I'm too lazy to do it myself :). I was hoping for compacter data with YAML than Data::Dump though .But the latter has inline { SCALAR => 1 } where YAML puts it in a separate line.

Do you think this might be useful as a cpan module?

I'd still be curious to see what others might have to say about the subject. I wouldn't be surprised if there is already a data traversing module that, rather than do what you want already, let's you do it in two to three lines.

I'm sure someone has done something like this as well. Just couldn't find it.

I took your code for a spin in the real world using Google Contacts API. Here's the output from a json response converted to a Perl data structure using Mojo::JSON::decode_json:

  HASH => {
    encoding => {},
    feed => {
      HASH => {
        "author" => {
          ARRAY => {
            HASH => {
              email => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
              name  => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
            },
          },
        },
        "category" => { ARRAY => { HASH => { scheme => {}, term => {} 
+} } },
        "entry" => {
          ARRAY => {
            HASH => {
              "app\\$edited" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {}, "xmlns\\$app
+" => {} } },
              "category" => { ARRAY => { HASH => { scheme => {}, term 
+=> {} } } },
              "content" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
              "gContact\\$birthday" => { HASH => { when => {} } },
              "gContact\\$groupMembershipInfo" => { ARRAY => { HASH =>
+ { deleted => {}, href => {} } } },
              "gContact\\$nickname" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
              "gContact\\$relation" => { ARRAY => { HASH => { "\\$t" =
+> {}, "rel" => {} } } },
              "gContact\\$userDefinedField" => { ARRAY => { HASH => { 
+key => {}, value => {} } } },
              "gContact\\$website" => {
                ARRAY => { HASH => { href => {}, label => {}, primary 
+=> {}, rel => {} } },
              },
              "gd\\$email" => {
                ARRAY => {
                  HASH => { address => {}, label => {}, primary => {},
+ rel => {} },
                },
              },
              "gd\\$etag" => {},
              "gd\\$extendedProperty" => { ARRAY => { HASH => { "\\$t"
+ => {}, "name" => {} } } },
              "gd\\$im" => {
                ARRAY => {
                  HASH => { address => {}, label => {}, primary => {},
+ protocol => {}, rel => {} },
                },
              },
              "gd\\$name" => {
                HASH => {
                  "gd\\$additionalName" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } 
+},
                  "gd\\$familyName"     => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {}, "
+yomi" => {} } },
                  "gd\\$fullName"       => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } 
+},
                  "gd\\$givenName"      => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {}, "
+yomi" => {} } },
                  "gd\\$namePrefix"     => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } 
+},
                  "gd\\$nameSuffix"     => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } 
+},
                },
              },
              "gd\\$organization" => {
                ARRAY => {
                  HASH => {
                    "gd\\$orgDepartment" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} }
+ },
                    "gd\\$orgName" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
                    "gd\\$orgTitle" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
                    "primary" => {},
                    "rel" => {},
                  },
                },
              },
              "gd\\$phoneNumber" => {
                ARRAY => {
                  HASH => { "\\$t" => {}, "label" => {}, "primary" => 
+{}, "rel" => {}, "uri" => {} },
                },
              },
              "gd\\$structuredPostalAddress" => {
                ARRAY => {
                  HASH => {
                    "gd\\$city"             => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {
+} } },
                    "gd\\$country"          => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {
+}, "code" => {} } },
                    "gd\\$formattedAddress" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {
+} } },
                    "gd\\$postcode"         => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {
+} } },
                    "gd\\$region"           => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {
+} } },
                    "gd\\$street"           => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {
+} } },
                    "primary"              => {},
                    "rel"                  => {},
                  },
                },
              },
              "id" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
              "link" => {
                ARRAY => {
                  HASH => { "gd\\$etag" => {}, "href" => {}, "rel" => 
+{}, "type" => {} },
                },
              },
              "title" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
              "updated" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
            },
          },
        },
        "gd\\$etag" => {},
        "generator" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {}, "uri" => {}, "version
+" => {} } },
        "id" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
        "link" => { ARRAY => { HASH => { href => {}, rel => {}, type =
+> {} } } },
        "openSearch\\$itemsPerPage" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
        "openSearch\\$startIndex" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
        "openSearch\\$totalResults" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
        "title" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
        "updated" => { HASH => { "\\$t" => {} } },
        "xmlns" => {},
        "xmlns\\$batch" => {},
        "xmlns\\$gContact" => {},
        "xmlns\\$gd" => {},
        "xmlns\\$openSearch" => {},
      },
    },
    version => {},
  },
[download]

I modified the code slightly to get rid of the "SCALAR" output.

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$MCF = "Most Clueless Friar Abbot Bishop Pontiff Deacon Curate Priest";
$nysus = $PM . ' ' . $MCF;
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I modified the code slightly to get rid of the "SCALAR" output.

I should have thought of that xD.

What did you use for the output, I'm guessing it's not Data::Dump? "author" => {} would normally not have the quotes, and I don't understand how you can get something like "\\$t", where the backslash is escaped, so $t gets interpolated which would normally not happen with a either Data::Dumper or Data::Dump.