Things That Had Completely Different Names In The Beginning
Imagine coming home after a long day of work. All you want to do is curl up and listen to some Smile while watching Lenny, Penny, and Kenny. Then, you get a Pictaboo from a friend that says to come over for Super Bowl 100.
I bet you $20 you think I'm crazy for saying that. However, there have been a ton of name changes that will throw you off guard. From Pink Floyd to Sony, there are some interesting details behind the original names of bands, sitcoms, and brands.
Marufuku Company
There's a fascinating history behind the company. In 1889, Fusajiro Yamauchi began manufacturing Japenese playing cards in Kyoto. In 1947, he started a distribution company called Marufuku Co.
Four years later, the company renamed themselves Nintendo Playing Card Co. Ltd. Then, to Nintendo Co., Ltd in 1963.
Jerry And David's Guide To The World Wide Web
Yahoo wouldn't be successful with the original name, and nobody would say the whole thing. It's too long, and it seems a bit unnecessary. JDGWWWW is no match for Yahoo. But, did you know that the website has an acronym behind their name?
It stands for Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle.
Screaming Abdabs
"Screaming abdabs" is an old English saying that means to "induce an attack of extreme anxiety or irritation in someone." When the iconic band was only starting, four young students formed the group after the quote.
Years later, they had names like The Tea Set before settling on Pink Floyd.
Best Buy
Back in 1981, a tornado tore down the Sound of Music's most profitable store, so they decided to have a big sale selling all damaged goods.
To encourage people to make a purchase, they advertised "best buys" on their products. Funny enough, the company renamed themselves to 'Best Buy.'
Spongeboy
Yelling "Spongeboy Squarepants!" at the beginning of each episode is cringy. Stephen Hillenburg came out and said it wasn't supposed to be the name, due to copyright infringement.
The original title was Spongeboy, but it couldn't be used thanks to a mop company having it copyrighted. Eventually, SpongeBob was born, and the rest is history.
Smile
Yeah, Smile sounds terrible, but as it turns out, Freddie Mercury suggested the name. After he was invited to join the band, Mercury came up with the idea to be regal and majestic, just like the Queen.
See, it was nothing but a touching tribute to her majesty.
Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo
There is clearly a ton of history behind this electronics company we all know and love. It wasn't until 1959 when Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo changed its name to Sony. It was inspired by the Latin word for the sound 'sonus'.
It's not a bad name, but it sounds a little difficult to pronounce. Sony is nice and simple.
Pictaboo
Snapchats original name was Pictaboo. The creators of the social media app received a letter from a photography company with the same name. Eventually, it was changed to Snapchat. To make the app popular, one of the original creators suggested to advertise it as a sexting app.
Now the logo makes sense.
Sweet Children
Sweet Children was a band created by Billie Joe Armstrong. The group would switch their name to Green Day after being confused with a California rock outfit Sweet Baby. Also, Sweet Children doesn't sound nearly as epic as Green Day.
It's a name that refers to a day when all you do is smoke.
Stag Party
It's every stag's dream to enter the Playboy Mansion. The now infamous magazine would have been named Stag Party. According to Hugh Hefner, he was influenced by a cartoon book that he had. Before publishing their magazine, Stag sent them a letter that the name was an infringement.
Hefner quickly changed it to Playboy.
Lenny, Penny, and Kenny
You may not know this, but Sheldon's name was initially Kenny. But, the executives decided to rename the character to Sheldon after the pilot. Lenny, Penny, and Kenny came off like a cheesy name that was drawn out of a hat.
But, at least we can thank the universe for small favors.
Blood Fart
On an Ask Reddit, Fred Durst revealed something interesting. The vocalist shared that his band's name was almost Blood Fart. The name Limp Bizkit came during a riff session when deciding to name the group.
Plus, they never took Blood Fart very seriously considering the chance to succeed was slim at the time.
Reginald The Red Nose Reindeer
A Montgomery Ward department store was selling coloring books about a reindeer, written by Robert May. The reindeer's character was based on May, and the author initially named him Reginald and not Rudolph. Yeah, it's weird picturing kids singing about Reginald, the Red Nose Reindeer.
It's just not the same at all.
Backrub
The search engine is known for having a bizarre name. Interestingly enough, it was supposed to be named 'Backrub.' Now, can you imagine back-rubbing something on the internet? Me neither, but that was the company's original name in 1996.
Thank goodness we can Google anything instead of rubbing for information.
Kara's Flowers
Before Maroon 5, they were known as Kara's Flowers. The name was a reference to a groupie was had a major crush on all of the band members. After releasing two albums under the original title, the group would do something different for the third one.
They renamed themselves Maroon 5.
Hermione Puckle
J.K. Rowling has said that even though Hermione comes from Shakespeare's Winters Tale, the character has minimal relation to this character.
The author also said that the name was chosen because it's something a pair of intellectual dentists would pick to show how smart they are.
Confinity
Back in June 2001, this large worldwide company Confinity renamed themselves to Paypal. At first, the name was a merge of the word confidence and infinity. However, it seems as though the people involved weren't confident about the original title.
Today, Paypal continues to be a valuable service for online shoppers.
Touch
Last minute changes played a big part in the story of The Spice Girls. First, another member, The Smart Spice, would get the ax. Also, the group's name was initially Touch.
But, that shouldn't stop a masterpiece like "Wannabe" being jammed out by girls in pigtails at karaoke nights or office parties.
Blue Ribbon Sports
The blue ribbon logo instead of the swoosh on your gym shorts could have happened. Nike was known for its name change back in 1971. The well-known name was based on the Greek goddess of victory.
The famous logo symbolizes the wing of the goddess, and it's known as the swoosh.
Six Of One
You never know what one little decision can do for a television show. Like The Big Bang Theory, Friends had a different name. And, if it weren't for Kauffman and Crane, fans would have been stuck watching Six of One on NBC.
That was the original name of the show.
