Fritinancy

Names in the wild(ish)

Some names I’ve noticed lately, for better or for worse, on my travels in the real and virtual worlds.

I spent a few days in Chicago in late April, where I spotted these Ostrim “sports nutrition meat snacks” on display at a Freshii quick-serve “wellness” restaurant. (Freshii is worth a brief sidebar. The company, which was founded in 2005 and is based in Toronto, has a peppy online presence and a brand-enforcing fondness for double-i’s: A limited-time menu special is called Biiblos – no, I don’t know what that means – and the store payment card is called Monii. “Let’s transfer energii!” chirps the copy.)

 

 

As for Ostrim, as far as I can tell, the product name is a blend of ostrich and trim, probably because the original “meat snacks” were made from ostrich. Today, though – 22 years after the company’s founding in Greensburg, Pennsylvania – Ostrim snacks are equally as likely to contain beef, elk, chicken, or turkey. Moral: Don’t box yourself in with a name that can’t grow with your company.

Also: Consider how your name might be misinterpreted.

Sounds like bone support and weight loss all in one - with surprise ostrich.

— Jessica Stone Levy (@BeautyMarks) April 28, 2018

 

Mister? I Hardly Knew Her!

Has it really been two years since my last roundup of “Mister” brands? Time to fill the gap with a long list of new-to-this-blog “Mister” names.

If you’re joining us late, here’s how the game is played: The name must consist of “Mister” or “Mr.” plus some generic noun (or, occasionally, verb). “Mister Smith”—a business owned by John Smith—wouldn’t make the cut, but “Mister Blacksmith” would, if the company manufactured, say, horseshoes or wrought-iron fences.

Drumroll, please, Mister Percussion!

Mr. Product

I’ve been working on a massive update to my series on “Mister” brand names (coming soon!). Meanwhile, I stumbled across a couple of Misters that deserve special mention of their own.

Meet Mr. Product Volume 1 and Mr. Product Volume 2. Image via Brand New.

End of the Line for Yahoo Hoopla

This morning, after 30 days of teasing suspense, Yahoo revealed its new logo—the first redesign since the company’s founding 18 years ago.

Before-and-after logos via Brand New. The exclamation point is animated on Yahoo.com.

Every day for a month prior to the big reveal, Yahoo displayed a different logo variation on its website. (You can see all the logos here.)

For a professional critique of the logo, read Armin Vit’s post on the design blog Brand New. The headline may tell you all you need to know: “30 Days for This?”

I’m not a designer, and I have no strong opinions about the chosen logo, which seems fine if a little boring. I do, however, want to point out a few related items of interest.

The first is that Yahoo’s CEO, Marissa Mayer, was personally involved not only in the logo selection but in its design. As she confides in a Tumblr post titled “Geeking Out on the Logo”:

I love brands, logos, color, design, and, most of all, Adobe Illustrator.  I think it’s one of the most incredible software packages ever made.  I’m not a pro, but I know enough to be dangerous :)

So, one weekend this summer, I rolled up my sleeves and dove into the trenches with our logo design team: Bob Stohrer, Marc DeBartolomeis, Russ Khaydarov, and our intern Max Ma.  We spent the majority of Saturday and Sunday designing the logo from start to finish, and we had a ton of fun weighing every minute detail. 

That’s right: one weekend, three in-house designers, an intern, and the CEO. No pressure at all, right?

Mayer’s description of the design criteria and process is worth a close read, even if you aren’t a designer. One revelation: the criteria were based on an internal poll of Yahoo employees, 87 percent of whom said they wanted “some type of change in the logo.” I wonder whether a poll of Yahoo users would have yielded similar results. (UPDATE: According to results of a users’ poll reported earlier today in a TechCrunch post, the old logo is beating the new one hands down. Zajonc Effect much?)

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Speaking of geeking out, my second item is Emblemetric’s data analysis of Yahoo’s wordmark: percentage of new logos ending in exclamation points (note the big spike around 1995); percentage of new logos featuring the color purple; and so on. I tipped my hat to Emblemetric’s work in a linkfest post last year, and I continue to enjoy reading the blog. (I like the Emblemetric name, too.)

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And just for fun: UK-based creative partnership Asbury & Asbury, known for its tongue-in-cheek self-initated projects (i.e., no client), developed “30 new tones of voice that may or may not feature in the imminent rebrand.”

A sampling:

 

While you’re over there, check out Asbury & Asbury’s other projects, including the Disappointments Diary and Mr Blog, a documentation of all the “Mr” shops in the UK. And here I thought I was all alone in my “Mister” fixation.

Mister America

In honor of Fathers’ Day, here’s a roundup of manly brands with respectful names. Dad would be so proud.

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Mr. Beams makes security spotlights, ceiling lights, closet lights, and – in the “New Upcoming Products” category – a portable lantern, available Fall 2013.

 

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Mr. Bar-B-Q. Founded in 1972, it’s “the world’s leader in innovative barbecue accessories.” Great news: Mr. Bar-B-Q is “now part of the Blue Rhino team!!!” Yes, three exclamation points.

(Via my brother Michael.)

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Mr. Noodle, a Thai restaurant in Westwood, California.

 

From the About Us page, clearly unencumbered by professional copywriting:

May God bless Thailand and may god bless the United States , for giving the Henry’s a golden opportunity to establish Mr.Noodle to serve one of the most influential community in California .

(Via Michael, again.)

 

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Mr. Tea. No, not that Mr. Tea. 

This Mr. Tea, from Fred and Friends, “is an ideal tea-time companion”:

Just load his little silicone pants, perch him in your cup, relax for a minute as he does the work, and savor your perfect orange pekoe. Molded from food-safe, tasteless, soft silicone rubber, Mr. Tea is packaged in a colorful little giftbox.

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Mr. Handyman, a franchise service in the U.S. and Canada. They give the toll-free number as 1-877-MRHANDYMAN, but shouldn’t it be 1-877-MRHANDY?

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More mister names here, here, here, here, and here. And let’s not forget Mr. Bra.

Mister, Mister, Mister

It’s time once again for a round of mister-y brand names!

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Mr. Tomato Bloody Mary mix (“the mix with an attitude”) is distributed by Crosby Lake Spirits Company.

I haven’t been able to enlarge the mascot sufficiently to tell whether it’s a smirking tomato or a sneering pepper.

Hat tip to Jessica Stone Levy, who blogged recently about another brand from Crosby Lake Spirits: Kinky Liqueur. (“To enter this site you must be of legal drinking age. And irresistibly fabulous.”)

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No cutesy mascot or winking copy for Mr.Beer (spacing sic). No About Us or FAQ, either. Just kits and gear for the home-brewing aficionado, who – if the community forum is an accurate guide – is likely to answer to “mister” himself.

Mr.Beer was acquired last April by 150-year-old Coopers Brewery, Australia’s largest brewery and the world’s largest maker of home-brew beer.

(Via MJF.)

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If you like your upcycled products with a Scandinavian aesthetic and a dash of cuuuute, you’ll love mr Tedi. If you care about writing and editing ... not so much.

Available for $80 each on Etsy.

Charming design. Lovely photography. But those words are spelled “whether” and “lovable” (or “re-lovable”) …

mr Tedi (capitalization and punctuation sic) is made by a company called mrs [sic] Jermyn. The company’s founder, Annika, is from Finland but now lives in Brooklyn; perhaps she wrote her own copy and isn’t 100 percent fluent in English, but that doesn’t explain the failure to hire a proofreader. (Penny wise, Euro foolish.) And it definitely doesn’t excuse the biggest error of all: misspelling your own company’s name:

Here’s my standard rant: Polishing your copy is not optional. Language is every bit as much a part of your brand identity as your name, your logo, your website, and your product design. Carelessly written, unedited copy tells me you’re not serious about your professional image.

How Twinkies Got Its Name

Hostess Brands Inc., the 82-year-old snack-foods company based in Irving, Texas, announced today that it will close its plants and fire all 18,000 of its workers. The company had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January. The corporate website says the company “was forced by a Bakers Union strike” to shut down. The union says the claim is false.

Hostess—founded in Missouri in 1930 as Interstate Bakeries Corporation—had been the largest wholesale baker and distributor of baked goods in the United States. Its many brands included Wonder Bread, Dolly Madison, Ho Hos, Sno Balls, Ding Dongs, and Colombo, but the company’s most famous product name may have been Twinkies, the “golden sponge cake with creamy filling” with a seemingly limitless shelf life.

Why was it called “Twinkies”? Serendipity.

 

Via Chicago Tribune.

According to a Chicago Tribune story, the first Twinkies “bounced out of the ovens at Continental Baking Co.” in River Forest, Illinois, in 1930:

Plant manager James Dewar was looking to create a cheap, two-for-a nickel snack. So he grabbed some shortcake pans and got cookin’. Dewar got the name from a billboard for Twinkle Toe Shoes. He shortened it to Twinkies, and the rest is snack food history.

That history took a grim turn during the 1979 trial of Dan White, the San Francisco supervisor who assassinated Mayor George Moscone and a fellow supervisor, Harvey Milk. White’s defense lawyers argued that their client’s mental capacity had been damaged by his excessive consumption of junk food. No specific food product was ever mentioned in the courtroom, but reporters coined “Twinkie defense” as shorthand for the argument. The term survives “as a derisive term for an improbable legal defense” (Wikipedia).

The sausage-shaped character on the Twinkies package has a name: Twinkie the Kid. A registered trademark since 1971, it was used in commercials and in collectible products, which are probably going to become a little more collectible.

Today’s Chicago Tribune has a slide show of 15 “iconic” Hostess products, including Holsum bread, which at one point used this dandy slogan:

“If you had a million dollars you couldn’t buy better bread.”

According to a Wikipedia entry, “Holsum” was used by many retail bakeries in the early 20th century, when whimsical phonetic brand spellings were all the rage. (See my August 2011 Visual Thesaurus column, “Phood for Thought,” for more examples.) In 1908, the W.E. Long Company of Chicago acquired exclusive rights to the name. Holsum bread is still sold; its mascot, Mr. Slice, was created in 1976.

UPDATE: At Duets Blog, trademark lawyer Dan Kelly considers the post-dissolution fate of Hostess Brand’s many marks.

Names in the Wild: Olvera Street

Olvera Street (Calle Olvera) is the oldest street in Los Angeles, dating back to the city’s founding in 1781. Situated opposite Union Station and named for Los Angeles County’s first judge, Agustín Olvera, the street has been a tourist-friendly “Mexican marketplace” since 1930. It’s artificial (the commercial strip was planned and executed by a wealthy Anglo, Christine Stirling) yet also authentic (several historic buildings still stand). In other words, it’s a living metaphor of Los Angeles.

On a recent trip to L.A. I visited Olvera Street for the first time in many years. I found much unchanged (a few establishments, like La Luz del Día restaurant, have been around since the 1950s), while other things have adapted to changing times.

There were lots of Día de los Muertos items for sale, including these same-sex wedding-cake toppers.

 

A “Who Would Jesus Deport?” T-shirt.

 

Painted-tile bathroom sign in Spanglish.

 

I’m not sure why it’s “Mr.” Churro and not “Señor,” but the name does fit the bilingual flavor of the rest of the sign. And of course I’m always happy to meet a Mr. business name in the wild.

 

This mug was one of many souvenirs bearing the “Latina – Proud, Educated and Powerful!” motto. It appeared to be a girls-only phenomenon.

 

If you haven’t found a parking sign with your child’s name, maybe you’ve been shopping in the wrong place.

 

Travel note: I recommend taking one of the Metro Line (rapid-transit) trains into Union Station and wandering around to admire the spectacular Spanish Colonial Revival architecture and décor. While you’re on Olvera Street, allow some time to view the long-hidden fresco by the great Mexican artist David Alfaro Siqueiros (1896-1974). Originally unveiled in October 1932, the painting was whitewashed shortly afterward to obscure its “radical” subject matter. After more than 40 years of planning and preservation work, it reopened to public viewing earlier this month.

Misters in Our Midst

My love affair with “Mr.” names continues, abetted by my brother Michael, who forwarded the first three examples in today’s post.

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Mr. Food is on TV, but not in my metropolitan area, so I’d never made his acquaintance until recently. His (its? their?) trademarked slogan is “OOH IT’S SO GOOD!!” As in “The Amish people haven’t lost sight of those core family dinner values that result in food filled with that ‘OOH IT’S SO GOOD!!®’”

 

 

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Got leftovers? Stock up on Mr. Lid containers with attached—duh!—lids.

 

“Mr.” name—check. Cute/weird mascot—check. But wait, there’s more: a catchy jingle at the end of the video!

 

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In the unlikely event that you have trouble opening Mr. Lid, get yourself Mr. 7 Hands, “a screwdriver replacement” and so much more.

 

Too bad they didn’t name it “Mr. Screw.”

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Then there’s Mr. Tire, which has 800 stores in 19 states (but none in California). The company is famous for its trompe l’oeil truck photos. Heads up!

(Via Copyranter)

Happy Independence Day to my USian readers! I’ll be back later in the week.

 

Hey, Mister!

For your frittering pleasure: a Flickr set of “weird advertising characters” that’s a nostalgiafest, a kitschapalooza, and a bizarrorama. Step right up and see the seppuku-ing pig, the martini-sipping pink poodle, the shockingly un-PC Frito Bandito, the Doggie Diner doggie, the Chicken of the Sea mermaid, and much, much more.

Including, I’m happy to report, a trove of “mister” names and mascots.

 

Mr. Sketch water color markers. Credit: Waffle Whiffer. (Read my Visual Thesaurus column about other “sketch” trademarks!)

 

Mr. Chicken Plank. No idea what he was selling, but he had a companion called Miss Fish Fillet. Credit: Waffle Whiffer.

 

Mister Provolone, an Italian brand. Do you suppose he’s met Mister Baby? Credit: Zellaby.

 

Mr. Blobby marshmallows, a UK brand from the 1990s. They’re blobbilicious! Credit: Jason Liebig.

 

 

You could get blintzes at Mr. Perky’s! Tray liner, c. 1960s. Credit: Poptartsbox

Mr. Melon watermelon candy. Credit: Wafflewhiffer.

 

Mr. Contac, pill-head. Via Pinterest.

 

There’s also a quite charming but non-downloadable Mr. Pickle photo. And in the non-mister category, I’m awfully fond of Pump ’n’ Munch.

Via AdFreak.