I do not believe you. In fact, I think you're a liar.

[jsgoddess]

No, you do not know someone named "Oranjello" or "Lemonjello."

No, you do not know someone named "Shithead Asshole" pronounced "Shih THAYD ah SHO lee" or otherwise.

No, you do not know people named Female, Vagina, Clitoris, Gonorrhea, Chlamydia, or Syphilis.

I have no idea whatsoever what it is that drives people to make shit up, but for fuck's sake, at least invent a name that hasn't already been covered by Snopes, you idiots.

Oh, you'll swear on a stack of bibles that it's true! Your friend's nurse's daughter is an elementary school teacher and she saw it!

Whatthefuck ever.

[KidScruffy]

No, you do not know someone named "Oranjello" or "Lemonjello."

No, you do not know someone named "Shithead Asshole" pronounced "Shih THAYD ah SHO lee" or otherwise.

No, you do not know people named Female, Vagina, Clitoris, Gonorrhea, Chlamydia, or Syphilis.

I have no idea whatsoever what it is that drives people to make shit up, but for fuck's sake, at least invent a name that hasn't already been covered by Snopes, you idiots.

Oh, you'll swear on a stack of bibles that it's true! Your friend's nurse's daughter is an elementary school teacher and she saw it!

Whatthefuck ever.
Well I don't believe you've ever met someone who's claimed to have met someone named Oranjello. I think you're a liar. But if you're smart, you won't believe me when I say I don't believe you. And you'd be right. I do believe you.

[DigitalC]

Oranjello and lemonjello are from some black female comedians routine, i can't think of her name at the moment but i saw that act years ago on comedy central.

[enomaj]

What if there was a girl named Vagina and you had to meet her dad before you went out?

I swear if you lay one finger on my Vagina I'll...

[Tom Tildrum]

I have actually met someone named Santangelo. I do not know whether it derives from "Saint Anne's Jell-O."

[jsgoddess]

Well I don't believe you've ever met someone who's claimed to have met someone named Oranjello. I think you're a liar. But if you're smart, you won't believe me when I say I don't believe you. And you'd be right. I do believe you.

Sadly, there is at least one member here who has claimed to have known brothers named Lemonjello and Orangejello. Slightly different spelling, but same legendary names.

[Llama Llogophile]

I knew a girl named Vagina.

No joke. She went by a different name, but that was her actual first name.

[jsgoddess]

I knew a girl named Vagina.

No joke. She went by a different name, but that was her actual first name.

I do not believe you.

[BiblioCat]

There used to be a woman on the local news here named 'Ragina.' It wasn't pronounced, 'Ra-geen-uh' like you'd think... it rhymed with 'vagina.' Not quite the same thing, but close.

[Chefguy]

There used to be a woman on the local news here named 'Ragina.' It wasn't pronounced, 'Ra-geen-uh' like you'd think... it rhymed with 'vagina.' Not quite the same thing, but close.

You mean like the city in Canada? Regina is pronounced "reh-JYE-na".

We used to jokingly refer to a high-ranking official in Mali as Prime Minister Asweepeh (asswipe).

[Freudian Slit]

A friend of mine did tell me that her mom (a doctor) met someone who named her kids the Oranjello and Lemonjello names...I told her I read it on snopes but she swore it was the truth. I don't think it was out of racism or that she was lying. She really didn't seem the type.

[BigT]

I've always wondered if the girl named Vagina was really named Virginia, and a combination of odd accents and bad ears created the mix up.

I actually think that a lot of people have really bad memories, and think that things they've heard actually happened to them. It's only when you call them on it, and they actually take time to think, that they realize it was just a story they were told

My mom is like this when it comes to exaggerating things. She exaggerates for effect (where it's perfectly obvious in context), but then exaggerates it even more, forgetting that it was already exaggerated. Then she gets surprised when she notices that it isn't as big as she thought.

[Llama Llogophile]

I do not believe you.

OK, but it's true. This is not a whoosh. I knew the girl well.

[BiblioCat]

You mean like the city in Canada? Regina is pronounced "reh-JYE-na".Could be. I've never heard of the city in Canada.

[Khadaji]

I knew a teacher who claimed to have kids in her class named Orangejello and Lemonjello. I didn't believe her either.

[Mighty_Girl]

Well, I've actually met people named Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin and Lenin.

Does that count?

[Gala Matrix Fire]

Snopes knows what all the people of the world are named?

[Captain_Awesome]

Mark Lemongello was a pitcher for the Houston Astros in the 1970s, though it's true I didn't know him personally. Snopes (http://www.snopes.com/racial/language/names.asp) article.

[astro]

Peter Lemongello - Lounge Singer (http://www.plemongello.com/)

[Digger1914]

I came across a guy named "Extra" before.

Does that count?

[Qadgop the Mercotan]

Disbelieve any of these first names at your peril. I can deliver to you the online court record links which will demonstrate their reality.

OKEYTHANN
HUK
FENTRIESS
LAQUEITON
LERVON
MENDELL
ROBRESE
ACE
TRIRU
ANTWARN
LAROYMEL
SCHEROCKO
MONTREAVOUS
ANTAVIUS
SHYWAN
HORACTIO
CARNELLIUS
DIONICIO
JUBA
TILAN
SYMWONE
JOREL
KENYACIES
TERION
OLU
VERSIE
AUNTRAY
TREVOCEAN
TARRICK
DEZMEN
DENERAL
TREON
DERMITRE
ORLIN
LEVAVIUM
ALGENONE
ODIA
TRAMMELL
ORAN

Oh, and who can forget one of my faves, OG?

[Leaper]

Disbelieve any of these first names at your peril. I can deliver to you the online court record links which will demonstrate their reality.

ACE

Uh, why would I disbelieve that one?

[Hamadryad]

Uh, why would I disbelieve that one?Because I'd figure most people CALLED "Ace" are not actually NAMED "Ace." :)

[Faruiza]

I may have mentioned this before but I saw the yearbook picture, so that's all the documentation I needed at the time to believe the story of the girl named, "Smelda Rottencrotch".
A lady I worked with some years ago swore that she went to school with a girl by that name. I wouldn't believe it, so she brought me her yearbook. It looked like an ordinary yearbook, completely unaltered. I guess it's possible that someone on the yearbook committee snuck a name change in before press time, but dang if she didn't look like a Smelda. I believe, also that the school was in Texas.
Make of that what you will, but I have no faith in people not to be mean or stupid fuckers, even to their own kids.
On an unrelated note...do you ever find that you ask yourself in circumstances like these why on earth you shared?;)

[astro]

Disbelieve any of these first names at your peril. I can deliver to you the online court record links which will demonstrate their reality.

Jorel? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jor-El)

[Ravenman]

So is La-a a real name or not?

(The hyphen isn't silent. It is pronounced Ladasha.)

[Qadgop the Mercotan]

Jorel? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jor-El)No. Lacks the all-important dash.

He didn't look a bit like Brando, either. :D

[neuroman]

My dad once knew someone who named her child "Melanoma."

[Llama Llogophile]

I may have mentioned this before but I saw the yearbook picture, so that's all the documentation I needed at the time to believe the story of the girl named, "Smelda Rottencrotch".[/SIZE];)

Let's not forget her sister Mary Jane, as mentioned in Full Metal Jacket.

[Biggirl]

In my job I can see 10,000 names a day. I collect them. My two favorites are Velvet Milkshake (who, I found out, is a semi-famous college coach. Women's Golf I think) and Gloria Hole.



On edit: I don't claim to know these people, though.

[Fiveroptic]

Oranjello and lemonjello are from some black female comedians routine, i can't think of her name at the moment but i saw that act years ago on comedy central.

I believe this (http://minibytes.mondominishows.com/daddy/main.asp) is what you're thinking of.

Hey, I just googled, don't kill the messenger.

And actually, Shirley Q. Liquor is neither black nor female. And some might opine that he's not a comedian, either.

[Guinastasia]

I always remember Crunchy Frog telling us about his classmate, Velvet Beaver.

One of my teachers in high school's last name was Dickensheets. (She went by Mrs. D.) Her husband's first name? Hans.

She offered extra credit points if you could come up with a joke about her name she hadn't heard before.


I also had a classmate whose last name was Buntrock (pronounced BUTT-rock. And yes, he LOOKED like a Buttrock).

And my grandmother's maiden name was Gerthoffer. She had an aunt whose first name was Gertrude.

[kdeus]

So I used to work with Mike Hunt. Yes, he went by Mike and he had (& has) a great sense of humor about it. His rule (and now, mine) is "Laugh with me, cuz its funny. Laugh at me (behind closed doors, etc), you're a jerk." Mike, my friend, I hope this doesn't violate your rule. You're not the funny one in this story.

Mike and I worked with/ for A Woman. She was in charge of X & Y, except that procedures had changed, and now she was in charge of X, and Mike was in charge of Y.

kdeus: I need some Y for next week.
A Woman: Procedures have changed, I only do X now. If you want Y, you'll have to talk to Mike Hunt.
kdeus: OKFINETHANKSBYE [slam phone down to avoid getting fired for saying "Well, can you at least hold the phone lower?"]

[The Tao's Revenge]

Moral of thread: give your kids a weird name and they eventually get to meet Qadgop the Mercotan .

[Smeghead]

I used to work in a medical lab, and saw hundreds of names a day. I don't claim to have seen any that have been mentioned so far, but there were a few that could arguably top them. Sadly, HIPPA prevents me from sharing.

[Shagnasty]

I knew twins in high school named Peaches and Pumpkin. They were pretty big black guys and talented basketball players especially for a small school. It doesn't matter if you believe that one or not anymore than it matters if you disbelieve that I am posting this from my brown desk using my Dell computer. It is simply true. I never examined their birth certificates but that those are the names they went by.

I have a very unusual name myself (Maverick) and I predate Top Gun by many years thank you very much.

[Guinastasia]

It may not be QUITE as odd, but remember that Lynyrd Skynyrd got their name from their high school gym teacher: Leonard Skinnerd. At least if you have a nasty name like SKIN-NERD, give your kid a name that doesn't rhyme.

[Clothahump]

The very first job I ever had was as a night clerk in the Texas Department of Public Safety Driver License Division, before they automated. In digging around all those manual files, I found a bunch of names that made me laugh out loud.

The ones that stuck in my mind were an individual whose first and middle names were Precious Blue-eyes, and at least 3 people whose legal first name was T9C.

[Biffy the Elephant Shrew]

I can vouch for the existence of a woman with the surname Biggs-Tinker.

[Freudian Slit]

Don't think this thread is quite what the OP had in mind. :D

[Lumpy]

Anyone out there named Ephbaum?

[glee]

I have seen the name 'Vagina' up in lights.
Apparently her surname was 'Monologues'. ;)

[The Surb]

I had a girl on my soccer team named Analy. I was at a bit of a loss until one of the other girls told me that is was pronounced like Ana Lee. I was glad to have the help!

[Claude Remains]

I know a woman who's name is Brighter Brown. Met her very many years ago only once and her name is still on the tip of my mind.

[tacoloco]

My wife went to HS with someone named Keesha Butts

[Man With a Cat]

I have actually met and spoken with a woman named Dat Ho

[astro]

Ima Hogg (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ima_Hogg)

[Frostillicus]

How about Dick Swett?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Swett

[Eva Luna]

When I was a kid, there was a guy named Richard Seaman who subbed in the grade schools. Yes, he went by Dick. And in fact, he still does (see the bottom of p. 140). (http://www.cityofevanston.org/government/council/minutes/2004/02_23_04_cc.pdf)

It was an endless source of amusement to the average fourth-grade class, let me tell you. And it was even more fun when he ran for local office.

[Rubystreak]

Dick Blood (http://cornellbigred.com/coaches.aspx?rc=582&path=softball) called for my boss once, about 10 years ago when I was an office manager. I actually got to say the words, "Jim, I have Dick Blood on the phone." If Jim been feeling whimsical, he could have said, "Well, wipe it off and stop doing that sort of thing at work!"

[alice_in_wonderland]

I met a woman named Mi Suk Whang.

God I wish I was joking. Of all the times for an Asian immigrant to choose a westernized name, that has got to be one.

[El_Kabong]

I guess the guy I know who's last name is Bulcock, had better never call the OP.

[AppallingGael]

I actually think that a lot of people have really bad memories, and think that things they've heard actually happened to them. It's only when you call them on it, and they actually take time to think, that they realize it was just a story they were told

Today, I...(snap!)...no, that wasn't me. [/StephenWright]

[Justin_Bailey]

I have personally issued a library card to a Shithead. Although I believe it was spelled Shithed.

[E-Sabbath]

My dad grew up with Richard Head.

[jabiru]

My dad grew up with Richard Head.

We used to have a State politician whose name was Richard Face.

[Rubystreak]

My dad grew up with Richard Head.

I personally knew a Peter Head. He told me that he was banned from some internet user group for using an obscene handle once, because they didn't believe it was his real name.

[enomaj]

Worked with Ha Bich. Vietnamese woman.

[Oakminster]

In 1996, I handled a paternity suit involving a child named Shithead. I was very careful to pronounce it as Shi-theed during the proceedings.

[dropzone]

Worked with a guy whose surname was Pinkstaff. He was Gay-Pretty, but claimed to be straight. His name did not serve him well in that regard.

[Sleeps With Butterflies]

I think the OP has too much faith in people. I have *no doubt* that most people who claim this stuff are mistaken if not outright lying, but I've seen some pretty damned odd names while working in the hospital.

My mother is a supervisor in the records department of a major auto/property insurer and everyone in their department shares the funny names they find. This has always been a fascination for my mother for some reason, so she really enjoys it. Just the other day she told me about a policy for a Snow White.

[BottledBlondJeanie]

Grew up on the same block as a kid named Mike Hunt. My parents' best friends when I was young were named Sieman. They named their son Peter Sieman. They moved after 10 years, but there are people across the nation who know him since he was a pilot.

Also, my parents claimed to know a "Fonda Dix." I called bullshit and was promptly show the yearbook with her name in it. She was quite a good basketball player.

[Arnold Winkelried]

I met a woman named Mi Suk Whang.

God I wish I was joking. Of all the times for an Asian immigrant to choose a westernized name, that has got to be one.I am sure I have told this story before at the SDMB, but a few years ago my wife had, in her second grade class, a (vietnamese immigrant) boy with the unfortunate name "Phuc Huu Ho". (I saw the class roster—at first I didn't believe her.) At school they called him "Huu".

[Cyros]

I went to school with a Pat Hiscock and have cousins whose first and middle names are Misty Spring and Lease Profit.

[Wallenstein]

There are plenty of Chris Peacocks in the UK.

And I was at school with a chap called Richard Head, his dad taught our philosophy class.

[The Other Waldo Pepper]

Grew up on the same block as a kid named Mike Hunt.

My brother and I went to school with Violet Cox.

[wmfellows]

No, you do not know someone named "Oranjello" or "Lemonjello."

Question, what's the joke here?

The others seem obvious, but there must be some play on words that is escaping me due to lack of familiarity with the dialect or whatnot.

Disbelieve any of these first names at your peril. I can deliver to you the online court record links which will demonstrate their reality.

But several are real names mate:

ACE
Stupid but real.

JUBA

Memory tells me there is a historical figure of this name....

TARRICK

This is just the Arab name, although the spelling is a bit queer, it doesn't seem to me to be in the realm of the truly illiterate (as some of the others are).

ORAN

It does seem a bit odd to name someone after an Algerian city, but....

[JimNightshade]

I went to school with someone having the surname Superamaniam - I think he was from Sri Lanka. Always liked that one. Super a man I am.

[Buford was no angel]

In my job I can see 10,000 names a day. I collect them. My two favorites are Velvet Milkshake (who, I found out, is a semi-famous college coach. Women's Golf I think) and Gloria Hole.



On edit: I don't claim to know these people, though.

I think you mean Velvet Milkman, the women's golf coach at Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky (http://www.goracers.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=6700&ATCLID=218404).

[Sparky812]

This morning I nearly choked on my coffee when I read the name tag of the asian girl woman served me....Dong Mei! No lie, I thought I was on candid camera or maybe in an Austin Powers movie!

I went to school with a guy named John Thomas and could never stop snickering whenever they called his name.:D

[An Gadaí]

Re: ORAN, I don't really know what's so bizarre about it. It's an unusual name but no hilarious sounding or anything. http://www.thinkbabynames.com/meaning/1/Odhran

[Biffy the Elephant Shrew]

No, you do not know someone named "Oranjello" or "Lemonjello."
Question, what's the joke here?

The others seem obvious, but there must be some play on words that is escaping me due to lack of familiarity with the dialect or whatnot.

Your profile doesn't show your location, but I gather you must live in a country where Jell-O is not a popular dessert. Lemon Jell-O and Orange Jell-O.

[Drain Bead]

I had to call a guy named Dick Burns once. It was hard to keep from laughing at his name.

Every Children Services court liason here insists that they have seen Orangejello and Lemonjello, but I ask for proof (it would be in their computer system) and they offer to show me and then never actually do it.

[Airbeck]

My parents were teachers for many years at an early education school (K-3) and here a couple of 100% true ones that they came across:

Placenta - No kidding, this was honest to god a kid's name

Semaj Trebor - Read it backwards ... Robert James

Pink and Pinky - this was a brother and sister. The brother was Pink. Not only that, but he was Pink III. His Dad and Grandfather also had the name Pink, and both decided to pass on the name.

These aren't first hand, mind you, but very credible second hand reports.

[tacoloco]

Has anyone mentioned Dick Swett, a politician from NH?

[Really Not All That Bright]

Didn't Freakanomics report Lemonjello/Orangello thing verbatim?
Question, what's the joke here?

The others seem obvious, but there must be some play on words that is escaping me due to lack of familiarity with the dialect or whatnot.
Jell-O is a brand name for what Brits call jelly- gelatin-based fruit flavoured desserts, in other words. It's become the pejorative here, like Hoover in the UK.

[Mighty_Girl]

It does seem a bit odd to name someone after an Algerian city, but....Very common in some Latin American countries. I have personally met, am related to, or have documentation of the existence of:

Japonesa (japanese)
Francia Australia (France Australia)
German (very common, but pronounced differently than the English version)
Aleman (German)
Argentina
Germania
Marciana (Martian)
Grecia (Greece)

And more I don't remember now.

[fachverwirrt]

Has anyone mentioned Dick Swett, a politician from NH?

Yes. (Post 48).

I've also met a Phuc. He was working at Worlds of Fun in Kansas City, where I was chaperoning a high school choir trip during my student teaching. The kids had fun with that one.

I've said it a few times here, but I knew someone in college named Candy Hooker.

[Gesturing Mildly]

Hahahaha. Sorry OP. I'm sure this isn't where you expected this thread to go.

I'll scan and post a picture of Pepsi Hooker from my yearbook, though.

[An Gadaí]

There are plenty of Dick Burns (Byrne) hereabouts. I once knew a guy who pronounced his name "Anus Lane". I dunno how he actually spelled his first name.

[Duke]

Re: ORAN, I don't really know what's so bizarre about it. It's an unusual name but no hilarious sounding or anything. http://www.thinkbabynames.com/meaning/1/Odhran

There was even a one-hit wonder R&B singer who was named "Oran"--cite (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oran_Jones).

[BlinkingDuck]

So is La-a a real name or not?

(The hyphen isn't silent. It is pronounced Ladasha.)

Hmmmm....The Toyota car salesman who sold me my last car had a first name of La. I wonder if it is related (I think he said he was of Vietnamese (sp?) descent

[emcee2k]

Come to think of it, there is/was a race car driver named Dick Trickle.

Also, it seems like the Oranjello/Lemonjello urban legend has been around long enough, that there might be one or two kids out there with one of those names. Sort of a self-fulfilling prophecy lie.

[Freudian Slit]

Hahahaha. Sorry OP. I'm sure this isn't where you expected this thread to go.

I'll scan and post a picture of Pepsi Hooker from my yearbook, though.

Okay with a name like that, she's got to have at least one stag film under her belt? Right? ...right?!

[Biggirl]

I think you mean Velvet Milkman, the women's golf coach at Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky (http://www.goracers.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=6700&ATCLID=218404).

Ha! I thought I typed Milkman and had to scroll up to what I wrote to believe you!

[Buford was no angel]

Ha! I thought I typed Milkman and had to scroll up to what I wrote to believe you!

No worries. Velvet Milkshake is an even better name. With my job I come across lots of odd names too. My two favorites at the moment are General Miracle and Princess Fudge.

[Torpor Beast]

"Dat Ho is on Facebook." (http://www.facebook.com/people/Dat-Ho/737111723)

:-'

[jsgoddess]

There's a difference between an odd name or combination of names and names that require the giver to be illiterate and (generally in the stories) black.

Haw haw haw! She didn't know the word "Female"! Haw haw haw! She didn't know what "Chlamydia" was and she thought it was purrrrty! Haw haw haw! The people I work with are so stupid they named their kids "Lemonjello and Orangejello"!

[Lanzy]

When your actual name is Lanzy you tend to bond with other odd names. My favorite real name I know is "Irma Screw".

[Velma]

There is a local politician here named Mike Cox. I giggle whenever I see his signs in people's yards. I don't know why he doesn't go by Michael, although I bet people remember his name this way!

[wmfellows]

Didn't Freakanomics report Lemonjello/Orangello thing verbatim?

Jell-O is a brand name for what Brits call jelly- gelatin-based fruit flavoured desserts, in other words. It's become the pejorative here, like Hoover in the UK.

Your profile doesn't show your location, but I gather you must live in a country where Jell-O is not a popular dessert. Lemon Jell-O and Orange Jell-O.

Mmmm, I know what Jello is, I've seen the boxes ages back, but the joke utterly escapes me.

[Malleus, Incus, Stapes!]

Didn't Freakanomics report Lemonjello/Orangello thing verbatim?

Jell-O is a brand name for what Brits call jelly- gelatin-based fruit flavoured desserts, in other words. It's become the pejorative here, like Hoover in the UK.

"Jello" and "Hoover" are used as insults?

[Laudenum]

I know Ivor Ash.

And his sister Olga. Which isn't as funny.

[tdn]

Pink and Pinky - this was a brother and sister. The brother was Pink. Not only that, but he was Pink III. His Dad and Grandfather also had the name Pink, and both decided to pass on the name.

If my name was Pink, I'd quickly adopt the nickname Floyd. In the movie Dazed and Confused there was a character named Randall Floyd whose nickname was Pink.

My first college roommate was Peter Dick. Yes, he'd heard every possible joke about it, and had a preemptive "I'll never name a son of mine Harry."

[Hal Briston]

My wife went to school with (and we have the yearbook to prove it) the Crotchfelt sisters. I believe one of them said "fuck this" and legally changed her name right out of high school.

As to the whole Oranjello/Lemonjello thing, I would have to think that by now someone would've seen it as a short cut to some minor fame and given their kids those names.

[Jodi]

One of the English teachers in my high school was a Miss Stiff, who sophomore year married a Mr. Cox. She chose not to hyphenate.

And I once defended a case against a plaintiff named Harry A. Ness. I dunno; I think I would have gone by "Henry" or maybe dropped the "A."

[Really Not All That Bright]

"Jello" and "Hoover" are used as insults?
Oops. Ubiquitous, not pejorative. Not sure what I was thinking there.

[tdn]

Mmmm, I know what Jello is, I've seen the boxes ages back, but the joke utterly escapes me.

Jello comes in different flavors, such as lemon and orange. The story goes that a woman who just gave birth was given lemon jello in the hospital, saw what it said, and thought that Lemongello (accent on the second syllable) would be a great name for her son. Same story with Orangello. Similar story with Nosmo King.

[Strassia]

I may have mentioned this before but I saw the yearbook picture, so that's all the documentation I needed at the time to believe the story of the girl named, "Smelda Rottencrotch".
A lady I worked with some years ago swore that she went to school with a girl by that name. I wouldn't believe it, so she brought me her yearbook. It looked like an ordinary yearbook, completely unaltered. I guess it's possible that someone on the yearbook committee snuck a name change in before press time, but dang if she didn't look like a Smelda. I believe, also that the school was in Texas.
Make of that what you will, but I have no faith in people not to be mean or stupid fuckers, even to their own kids.
On an unrelated note...do you ever find that you ask yourself in circumstances like these why on earth you shared?;)

While this could be a mean parent (see quote below), there are several fake names in my high school year book. "Sid Vicious" was a self edit, but a couple of subtle, mean jibes made it through editing as well.

Ima Hogg (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ima_Hogg)
I was going to mention that as well.
There's a difference between an odd name or combination of names and names that require the giver to be illiterate and (generally in the stories) black.

Haw haw haw! She didn't know the word "Female"! Haw haw haw! She didn't know what "Chlamydia" was and she thought it was purrrrty! Haw haw haw! The people I work with are so stupid they named their kids "Lemonjello and Orangejello"!

You may not believe it, it may not happen often, but it does happen. I met girl from Micronesia whose mother was named Florence. For some reason, her father wanted all his daughters to have Flo- names. She was the fourth and ended up with Florene (pronounced the same as flourine). I forget what the rest of her sisters names were, but there were five of them in total.

ETA: I did meet a Chief Stains in the Navy. At some point in his career (at least in boot camp) he would have been Seaman Stains.

[Vinyl Turnip]

Disbelieve any of these first names at your peril. I can deliver to you the online court record links which will demonstrate their reality.

ACE
Uh, why would I disbelieve that one?

It's pronounced "Assy."

[hansel]

You mean like the city in Canada? Regina is pronounced "reh-JYE-na".Born and raised in the Queen City, and it never occurred to us while there that it's rhyme was in any way amusing. Then my brother and I moved to Wisconsin, and every time we mentioned where we were from, we got a little snicker, and sometimes a "heh... you know what that rhymes with?" My brother actually started telling people he was from "ree-JEE-na".

[wmfellows]

Jello comes in different flavors, such as lemon and orange. The story goes that a woman who just gave birth was given lemon jello in the hospital, saw what it said, and thought that Lemongello (accent on the second syllable) would be a great name for her son. Same story with Orangello. Similar story with Nosmo King.

Not really terribly funny then, is it. Must be some American thing as I just can't see the amusement value.

[Vinyl Turnip]

Hey, we can't all be Benny Hill.

[Really Not All That Bright]

Au contraire. (http://cgi.ebay.ph/BENNY-HILL-ONCE-OWNED-THIS-CLOWN-COSTUME_W0QQitemZ220466766246QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_DVD_Film_TV_TV_Memorabilia_LE?hash=item3354d7e1a6&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14)

[WOOKINPANUB]

I went to school with a girl whose last name was Cocke. All the teachers would pronounce it "coke", possibly because there was a set of twins with the same spelling who pronounced it that way. And every time they did this girl would emphatically correct them "no, it's COCK".

On a slightly unrelated note, when I was very young and working my first office job I had to relieve the switchboard operator for breaks and someone called for one of the executives. The guy says "the last name is 'Dover ' tells me his phone number and says"oh, and the first name is Ben". It took me repeating it three times to the exec ,who was cracking up, before I got the joke. Apparently his buddy pulled those kinds of gags on all the new girls.

[Washoe]

Jorel? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jor-El)

I actually know a guy named Jor-El. Both of his parents are Ultimate Nerds and actually named the poor kid after Supe’s father.

There was also a thread here two or three years ago about the legality of funny names, and somebody said their wife (I think) had a kid in her class named ‘Bagina.’ Supposedly it was also pronounced to rhyme with ‘vagina’—it wasn’t pronounced ‘BAG-EENA’ or anything like that. IIRC, the issue was that the school wouldn’t let her enroll with that name, and the parents had a hissy fit.

[Shagnasty]

Not really terribly funny then, is it. Must be some American thing as I just can't see the amusement value.

I don't agree with the OP in the purest sense because versions of this do happen but this is a racial joke for the most part. A partially illiterate black woman gives birth to a child and has no name in mind and names the child the first thing she sees or hears. It could be based on the Jello next to the bed or a Urine (Yur_I_nee) container.

[whole bean]

It may not be QUITE as odd, but remember that Lynyrd Skynyrd got their name from their high school gym teacher: Leonard Skinnerd. At least if you have a nasty name like SKIN-NERD, give your kid a name that doesn't rhyme.

I believe the coach's last name was Skinner, not Skinnerd.

[Nzinga, Seated]

Not really terribly funny then, is it. Must be some American thing as I just can't see the amusement value.

It is indeed an American thing.

Picture a time and place where there is a group of people (or, now, their descendents) that were snatched from their own home and culture and brought to another. They were systematically denied the right to speak their language and keep their way of life. They were cut off from their roots. Many years later, these people have a brand new culture and way of life.

They don't know what the refined or traditional names were in there nation or tribe or whatever. There are no Catherines or Marias or Jonathans to feel connected to.

They decide to make their own names to match their brand new culture. Some of them choose French sounding names that sound good to their ear. Some of them choose Arabic sounding names, and then alter the spelling.

Not such a bad thing, in my opinion. But of course, I'm sure it makes some people feel good to turn their noses up at them for their choices in children's names.

Orahnjelo can sound like a frenchy sounding name, and at the same time, like jgoddess said, it is so funny to laugh at the illiterate black woman that doesn't know that Orange Jello isn't pronounced in an affected French accent.

Reall Not All That Bright, I read Freakonomics too, and I knew that 'orange jello' shit was bullshit, (http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-daum7-2009feb07,0,1397076.column) right at the gate.

[tdn]

Not really terribly funny then, is it. Must be some American thing as I just can't see the amusement value.

Well, it's not meant to be stand-up comedy. It's an urban legend.

[SteveG1]

Oranjello and lemonjello are from some black female comedians routine, i can't think of her name at the moment but i saw that act years ago on comedy central.

And I believe Female (pronounced feh-mah-lee) came from the remake of Cat People, but I could be wrong.

[billfish678]

On a slightly unrelated note, when I was very young and working my first office job I had to relieve the switchboard operator for breaks and someone called for one of the executives. The guy says "the last name is 'Dover ' tells me his phone number and says"oh, and the first name is Ben". It took me repeating it three times to the exec ,who was cracking up, before I got the joke. Apparently his buddy pulled those kinds of gags on all the new girls.

I knew a guy name Ben. His last name wasnt Dover. However his girlfriends name was.

He said he would be a modern man and take his girlfriends last name instead of her taking his.

And the kicker was her first name was Ilene.

So as a modern couple they woud be Ilene and Ben Dover.

I swear this a true story.

[Maiira]

My mother works at an elementary school that has kids from many different backgrounds, economic and cultural. Because of this, she sees some pretty interesting names. The ones I remember most, though, were two brothers named Sir and Lord. Their last name was Barnes. Somewhat unfortunate, but it could be worse.

[Malacandra]

I believe the coach's last name was Skinner, not Skinnerd.

Yup (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynyrd_Skynyrd). Fancy Guin, of all people, posting without doing a little elementary fact-checking.

[Ann Hedonia]

Grew up on the same block as a kid named Mike Hunt. My parents' best friends when I was young were named Sieman. They named their son Peter Sieman. They moved after 10 years, but there are people across the nation who know him since he was a pilot.

Also, my parents claimed to know a "Fonda Dix." I called bullshit and was promptly show the yearbook with her name in it. She was quite a good basketball player.

I went to high school with a girl named Wanda Ball.

And my best friend, Jenny Weiner, ALMOST married a guy with the last name Ring.

[Malleus, Incus, Stapes!]

It is indeed an American thing.

Picture a time and place where there is a group of people (or, now, their descendents) that were snatched from their own home and culture and brought to another. They were systematically denied the right to speak their language and keep their way of life. They were cut off from their roots. Many years later, these people have a brand new culture and way of life.

They don't know what the refined or traditional names were in there nation or tribe or whatever. There are no Catherines or Marias or Jonathans to feel connected to.

They decide to make their own names to match their brand new culture. Some of them choose French sounding names that sound good to their ear. Some of them choose Arabic sounding names, and then alter the spelling.

Not such a bad thing, in my opinion. But of course, I'm sure it makes some people feel good to turn their noses up at them for their choices in children's names.

Orahnjelo can sound like a frenchy sounding name, and at the same time, like jgoddess said, it is so funny to laugh at the illiterate black woman that doesn't know that Orange Jello isn't pronounced in an affected French accent.

Reall Not All That Bright, I read Freakonomics too, and I knew that 'orange jello' shit was bullshit, (http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-daum7-2009feb07,0,1397076.column) right at the gate.

Is she black in all the tellings? I've never associated the weird name UL's with race, just stupidity.

[Lamia]

I don't believe the OP's point was that no one in the world actually has a silly name. I could also name people I've known personally who had rather silly names. But some tales of silly names certainly do appear to be urban legends.

I've known several different people in different parts of the country who claimed to either have personally encountered or knew someone who'd encountered boys names "Lemonjello" and "Oranjello". Same for "Female" -- just last week one of my coworkers was claiming that when she'd been doing volunteer work at a hospital there was a barely literate couple that gave their newborn daughter that name because they saw it on her wristband*.

Either these names are actually quite common, so common that practically everyone is only 2-3 degrees of separation from knowing a "Lemonjello", "Oranjello", or "Female", or these stories are often repeated by people who have never really met anyone with those names.

In the interest of research, I just checked the Social Security Death Index (http://ssdi.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/ssdi.cgi) and could find no records for anyone with the first names "Lemonjello" or "Oranjello" or any variant spellings. People with these names would only show up in this particular database if they were dead, but I've also checked Ancestry.com and am getting nothing on either of these as first names. "Lemongello" is a rare but not unheard of last name and may have inspired the legend.

I got two hits in the SSDI for "Female" as a first name. One died the day she was born, so it's likely she didn't actually have a legal first name. Ancestry.com gives me a lot of hits on babies who died without being named and are listed as "Female [Lastname]" or "Infant Female [Lastname]". There may be some girls out there who actually are named "Female", but anyone who's ever seen this name on some kind of official record or list was probably actually looking at an entry for a girl who either had not been named or whose name was unknown.

"Vagina", "Chlamydia", "Syphilis", and "Shithead"/"Shithed" also produced no hits in the SSDI. I actually did turn up a few women named "Vagina" in Ancestry.com (including one Mrs. Vagina Bland), but all died before 1930. No hits on the other names in Ancestry.com.

*In my experience, hospital wristbands use "F" or "M" instead of "FEMALE" or "MALE". I've still got the wristband from a recent ER visit, and it says "F". I doubt that many hospitals would crowd the whole word "FEMALE" onto a tiny baby wristband when all medical personnel would understand what "F" meant.

[Lamia]

"Vagina", "Chlamydia", "Syphilis", and "Shithead"/"Shithed" also produced no hits in the SSDI. I actually did turn up a few women named "Vagina" in Ancestry.com (including one Mrs. Vagina Bland), but all died before 1930. No hits on the other names in Ancestry.com.Didn't have time to edit again, but wanted to add that I don't have a premium Ancestry.com subscription and so could not view these full records and confirm that the name really was "Vagina". I have encountered transcription or OCR mistakes when searching genealogy databases (e.g. my great-grandfather "Forrest" was entered as "Parish"), so it may be that some of these supposed Vaginas were actually named Regina.

[Really Not All That Bright]

They decide to make their own names to match their brand new culture. Some of them choose French sounding names that sound good to their ear. Some of them choose Arabic sounding names, and then alter the spelling.
You missed the most common method, which is pick a regular name and add a syllable. Easiest place to observe the practice is NFL depth charts; see LaDanian, Marshawn, DeAngelo, DeShawn, Leodis, Justise, Chansi, LaMarcus, Le'Ron, Oniel, Lavernues, D'Qwell, Kamerion, Syndric, DeShea, Antuwaan, Gijon, Tiquan, Montavious, Kennard, Rashean, LenDale, Sen'Derrick, Le Kevin, Dantrell, DaJuan... all taken from current NFL rosters (and I stopped at the Chiefs).

[PlainJain]

Mike Lemongello. (http://www.actionbowlers.com/articles/icewater.htm)

In grade schoo,l a good friend's name was Dick Lord (no, not Richard).

[Muffin]

Achne pine skum -- spelled Achneepineskum but pronounced ak nee pin es cum.

[Karweenie]

Let's see...

sat next to Mike Hunt in 8th grade math class
backed into Lacy Cotton's car when I was a sophomore in college
was friends with Leia Hogg, also in college


My mother works with lots of children. One is named Deonate. On paper it looks like it rhymes with "neonate," but it's pronounced "Dee-ON-tay." I once tried to explain this name to my friend Laura, and she kept screaming at me "BUT THERE'S A SECOND A! IT CAN'T BE DEE-ON-TAY!!"

Mild hijack: our local newspaper recently ran a report about Virginia Beach's efforts to combat racism in the classroom. The number one concern cited by African American students? That teachers mispronounce their names, or take longer to learn their names than the names of white students.

[Karweenie]

Shit, I forgot my cousins!

Dirk Wood on one side of the family, Kalel on the other. I don't know why Dirk is named Dirk, but Kalel was named specifically for the Superman connotations.

[Enuma Elish]

When I was in 4th grade, the teacher, Mrs. Pomplun, overheard some students teasing another student about her name. Mrs. Pomplun got quite perturbed at this and told the whole class that her maiden name was 'Shit'. She never showed us documentation, but she was otherwise a good teacher and I don't recall any other potential untruths. I still don't know whether I believe her or not. I want to. I really want to....

[LouisB]

I had a good friend named Richard Cocke. He refused to allow anyone to use the name 'Dick' as a nickname for Richard; he claimed it would be redundant. He simply refused to answer to anything but Richard, or in some cases, Rick or Ricky.

[bengangmo]

I met a woman named Mi Suk Whang.

God I wish I was joking. Of all the times for an Asian immigrant to choose a westernized name, that has got to be one.

I would venture a guess that her name would actually be written as... Whang, Mi Suk were she to talk to anyone chinese

which is at least marginally better

[Eliahna]

An older lady passed through my checkout yesterday. She looked familiar, but I couldn't think why. Then she offered me her credit card to pay for her purchases and I glanced at her name: Cougar (Something)-(Aquatic Mammal). Oh right! That's why I remember this customer.

[WOOKINPANUB]

You missed the most common method, which is pick a regular name and add a syllable. Easiest place to observe the practice is NFL depth charts; see LaDanian, Marshawn, DeAngelo, DeShawn, Leodis, Justise, Chansi, LaMarcus, Le'Ron, Oniel, Lavernues, D'Qwell, Kamerion, Syndric, DeShea, Antuwaan, Gijon, Tiquan, Montavious, Kennard, Rashean, LenDale, Sen'Derrick, Le Kevin, Dantrell, DaJuan... all taken from current NFL rosters (and I stopped at the Chiefs).

Plaxico!

[Really Not All That Bright]

No longer on an NFL roster. ;) Plus, he doesn't really fit the method- I can't think of any name his might have been based on.

[WOOKINPANUB]

No longer on an NFL roster. ;) Plus, he doesn't really fit the method- I can't think of any name his might have been based on.

I was just joking. Also, typing Plaxico! makes me smile. But, since you brought it up, what the heck names do D'Qwell, Tiquan and Montavious come from?Not that I expect you to be the resident name expert but you do seem to be on to something and I can't figure these out.

[Shagnasty]

Shit, I forgot my cousins!

Dirk Wood on one side of the family, Kalel on the other. I don't know why Dirk is named Dirk, but Kalel was named specifically for the Superman connotations.

That's weird. I knew a Dirk Woods (with an 'S' at the end) growing up. I have never heard of another one let alone with an almost identical last name.

[E-Sabbath]

Placido Domingo, spelled badly, I figured. He was popular around then.

[Death of Rats]

I actually worked with a guy who was named Richard Head. Only he pronounced the last name as "heed" and you did not call him "Dick" twice. He was a tad touchy about it.

[Vinyl Turnip]

Orahnjelo can sound like a frenchy sounding name, and at the same time, like jgoddess said, it is so funny to laugh at the illiterate black woman that doesn't know that Orange Jello isn't pronounced in an affected French accent.

Based on my lengthy study of affected fake languages, I would classify "Oranjello" (or more precisely, Oràngelo) as closer to fake Italian.

Phony French offers some nice ultimate-syllable alternatives, though, such as Orangel (or Orangelle, for a baby girl). Reminiscent of Orangina, which of course would rhyme with "vagina."

[yuliya]

We had a foreign exchange student in high school, Long Wang. Really.

[Miller]

I went to school with a Shitel Patel.

[Tom Scud]

From the MPSIMS thread on the Moon, I find astronomy research scientist Jessica Sunshine:

http://www.astro.umd.edu/people/jess.html

(Only awesome as a research scientist's name)

[velvetjones]

Here where I work I'm on the Terms list meaning that when someone leaves the company for any reason, I get the notification email. This week someone named Holly Wood left the company. No, I never met her. Maybe she'll go on to be famous.

[Max Torque]

And I have direct personal knowledge of a couple with two young girls named Eboknea (eb-oh-KNEE-uh) and Ivoreah (eye-vo-REE-uh). Yep, Ebony and Ivory.

[Weston]

I used to go to school with a girl called Charity Case.

[olivesmarch4th]

There is a local politician here named Mike Cox. I giggle whenever I see his signs in people's yards. I don't know why he doesn't go by Michael, although I bet people remember his name this way!

One of my family surnames was changed upon entry into the U.S.: The English Leacock. Apparently it was too embarrassing.

So, it was changed to... Leacox. :rolleyes:

Not really terribly funny then, is it. Must be some American thing as I just can't see the amusement value.

I don't agree with the OP in the purest sense because versions of this do happen but this is a racial joke for the most part. A partially illiterate black woman gives birth to a child and has no name in mind and names the child the first thing she sees or hears. It could be based on the Jello next to the bed or a Urine (Yur_I_nee) container.

Is she black in all the tellings? I've never associated the weird name UL's with race, just stupidity.
I have always interpreted this joke as racial, meant to poke fun at African Americans for daring to name their kids outside of mainstream white culture.

My favoritest real name ever is CHIEW SUM CHOW.

[Tammi Terrell]

The story goes that a woman who just gave birth was given lemon jello in the hospital, saw what it said, and thought that Lemongello (accent on the second syllable) would be a great name for her son. Same story with Orangello.

I suspect that the "-j/gello" twins had ancestors (see bolded text, below).

[From Arthur Palmer Hudson, "Some Curious Negro Names," Southern Folklore Quarterly 2(4): 179-193, December, 1938.]

TWINS

Names of twins illustrate quests for beauty, rhyme, and the expression of humorous resignation to what must often be regarded as a calamity. Max and Climax, Kate and Duplicate, Pete and Repeat are apocryphal commonplaces. So, doubtless, is the pair of names said to have been taken from a county nurse's midwife manual accidentally left behind in a Texas Negro cabin (one location) and given to the babies "because they sounded so pu'ty" -- Go Norea and Syph Phillis. Others, however, given in good faith as authentic are . . . Pneumonia and Neuralgia; Orange and Lemon (North Carolina Negro boys); Furman and Vermon; Gasoline and Kerosene ...

Hudson, then a folklorist at the University of North Carolina, remarked in a footnote on p. 183 that "[t]he only two printed sources of information are an article by Gertrude S. Carraway, in the Greensboro (N.C.) Daily News, January 9, 1938, from which I got about fifty names, and a brief Associated Press dispatch in the Birmingham [Alabama] Age-Herald, October 14, 1938, dated New Orleans, La. My other (personal) sources of information are, as well as I can account for them, the following: [and he goes on to name about fifty (presumably) white people from all over the South, but principally from Chapel Hill, NC].

Similar story with Nosmo King.

Just as a footnote ... not long ago I discovered that the tale of how "Nosmo King" got his name is much older than I had thought: in American newspapers, it dates back at least to 1891.

-- Tammi Terrell

[wmulax93]

I'm with the OP on this. Orangello, Lemongello, Asshole (Ashley), and Shithead just scream "bullshit."

However, I teach in a low-SES school in Phoenix, and have met two Champagnes and two Velvets. All four lived with grandparents when I dealt with them. All four are also African American. I have noticed a trend toward more "classic" names with AA males, though: I have a Shawn, a Carlton, and two Kenneth's at school now. I know, it's only four people, so not much of a trend, but our school is 80% Hispanic and 66% female, so having four AA males at once is a bit of a rarity to begin with!

[Sparky812]

I went to school with a girl whose last name was Cocke. All the teachers would pronounce it "coke", possibly because there was a set of twins with the same spelling who pronounced it that way. And every time they did this girl would emphatically correct them "no, it's COCK".
.

Sorry slight hijack.... back in University I worked as a bartender in the campus pub. One night some international students came in and this extremely attractive asian girl came up to the bar smiling at me and being really friendly. I asked what I could do for her and she replied "I would like to have your large cock, can you please give it to me?" I was blown away, thinking "Man, those asian girls don't beat around the bush!" (I know, bad pun) Then I realized she was pointing at the big COKE sign behind me!:D

[Lamia]

I suspect that the "-j/gello" twins had ancestors (see bolded text, below).Others, however, given in good faith as authentic are . . . Pneumonia and Neuralgia; Orange and Lemon (North Carolina Negro boys)
Although "given in good faith as authentic" is not the same thing as "authentic", I don't have trouble believing that there might once have been twins named Orange and Lemon. It's not unheard of to name children after types of fruit (I've got a cousin named Cherry), and I get 880 hits in the Social Security Death Index for people with the first name "Orange" and 1000 for "Lemon".

There's a reason why there's no urban legend about kids named "Orange" and "Lemon", though. Those names are unusual, but "Hey, there were once these kids named after fruit" isn't much of a story. What humor there is in the legend of Oranjello and Lemonjello comes from the idea that the mother was stupid and pretentious. Either she was barely literate and picked the names off a package or hospital menu without knowing what they meant or how they were pronounced, or she just named her children after the first thing she saw after giving birth and tried to make the names sound fancier later by changing the pronunciation.

[Malleus, Incus, Stapes!]

Just to make this clear: so Shi-thayd is not a common Indian name that is sometimes spelled "Shithead"?

[Amulet]

In my experience, hospital wristbands use "F" or "M" instead of "FEMALE" or "MALE". I've still got the wristband from a recent ER visit, and it says "F". I doubt that many hospitals would crowd the whole word "FEMALE" onto a tiny baby wristband when all medical personnel would understand what "F" meant.

Male/Female are traditionally used as the first names on newborns when they are first admitted right after being born (as in Smith, Female). Most hospitals will keep them with that name until discharge, even after their parents have filled out the birth certificate.

[Nava]

I have actually met someone named Santangelo. I do not know whether it derives from "Saint Anne's Jell-O."

Assuming you're serious, it's Italian and means "Blessed Angel."

[Nava]

Marciana (Martian)

That one is a female form of Marciano, which in turn is a form of Marcial; so, it means martian but in the sense of "protected by the god of war," not in the sense of coming from the planet.

Dionicio, which QtM mentioned, is a typo on Dionisio (Dyonisius) caused by overcompensation. Sometimes people whose variant of Spanish uses seseo (and who therefore would pronounce za, ce, ci, zo, zu as sa, se, si, so, su) smack a z/c where the spelling really does call for an s. I worked with an Hortencia along the same lines (the usual spelling is Hortensia).

[Anaamika]

Russell Peters has a skit on the names:

Sukhdeep (which Americans often pronounce as Suckdeep)

Hardik (Harddick)

Ramandeep (Ram 'em deep)

None of them are pronounced like that in our culture, but unfortunately we don't always plan ahead!

I've always been grateful my name is just difficult and doesn't sound like anything weird in English.

[belladonna]

I knew a lovely biracial girl several years ago whose name was Golden Brown.

Had she had been ugly it would have been quite sad, but as it turned out it fit her quite well.

[Faruiza]

Originally posted by Strassia:
While this could be a mean parent (see quote below), there are several fake names in my high school year book. "Sid Vicious" was a self edit, but a couple of subtle, mean jibes made it through editing as well.
Yep. I'm totally prepared to accept that as a conclusion. It would be sort of uncomfortably unintentionally funny if that name came from stupidity on the parent's part, but I don't know which other explanation is sadder: a. Her parents did it to be mean in some way, or b. At least one person at school hated her so much that they'd saddle her with that name in a pretty enduring way.

[Tammi Terrell]

There's a reason why there's no urban legend about kids named "Orange" and "Lemon", though. Those names are unusual, but "Hey, there were once these kids named after fruit" isn't much of a story. What humor there is in the legend of Oranjello and Lemonjello comes from the idea that the mother was stupid and pretentious.

The point of my post, which I obviously didn't make clear, is that it's possible that urban legends involving children named Orangello and Lemongello and how they acquired their names may have been inspired by older, white perceptions of "bizarre Negro names" (whether or not those names were or are authentic). At least in the '30s (and I'm sure earlier) there were published commentaries along the lines of "what will those black folks think of next for naming their children!" As I pointed out, one such article appeared in a prominent journal devoted to Southern folklore; parts of its text reflect quite racist attitudes, not necessarily of the author, but of anecdotes involving how such names came to be. A good part of that text is devoted to "funny name" urban legends of the day, some of which survive today.

In the end, I've not found anything to suggest that tales involving Orangello and Lemongello existed in the '30s, but I think it's at least possible that the more modern (black) Orangello/Lemongello legends may have grown out of (white) anecdotes involving various (black) Oranges and Lemons of the past.

Does this help?

-- Tammi Terrell

[Lamia]

In the end, I've not found anything to suggest that tales involving Orangello and Lemongello existed in the '30s, but I think it's at least possible that the more modern (black) Orangello/Lemongello legends may have grown out of (white) anecdotes involving various (black) Oranges and Lemons of the past.
It seems unlikely to me that a story about boys named Orange and Lemon would have been passed around much because, as I said before, it isn't especially funny or memorable. A story about a kid named "Latrine" (true or not) is worth repeating, but "Orange" and "Lemon"? There's probably no way to know for sure, but it doesn't strike me as an anecdote that would have been told often enough to evolve into anything else. It seems just as likely to me that the story of "Oranjello" and "Lemonjello" was invented as a companion to the many other stories about ignorant black women naming their kids after things they saw or read in the hospital. It may have helped that "Lemongello" is a real last name.

[MidnightRadio]

Worked with a guy whose surname was Pinkstaff. He was Gay-Pretty, but claimed to be straight. His name did not serve him well in that regard.I have a business card from a Dick Pinkstaff. No joke.

[JFLuvly]

My dad worked with a guy named Oliver Dickey,not sure of the spelling of the surname. One of my first roommates was J.R. Ewing, he also had a brother Bobby and a sister Pam, No shit!
Around here we have an unusual amount of women named Mary Christmas.

[Tibby or Not Tibby]

I knew a fellow named Duk Wing and a girl named Anita Hicky.

[ElvisL1ves]

I used to work with a couple of guys named FK Yu and, no joke, Dick Orifice.

[ivan astikov]

So, Duncan Donuts is not likely to be a "real" name then?

[Tibby or Not Tibby]

I knew a fellow named Duk Wing and a girl named Anita Hicky.

…and, I really wasn’t going to mention this, for fear of losing credibility, but Anita’s middle name is, Vagina…no, really, it is.

[The King of Soup]

The Orangello/Lemonjello story is very old and repeated often. Some Southern sports-oriented novelist (I'm thinking Dan Jenkins) used it in one or more of his books. Comedienne Brett Butler used to throw out the names Sy-phil-lis and Gon-or-rhea as part of a routine at about the same time. I never found any reason to believe either was doing anything but what you expect novelists and comics to do, namely, making stuff up.

[Patty O'Furniture]

Of course the non-native pronunciations of most of these foreign names are going to be intentionally twisted in order to provide maximum entertainment/shock value.

Dat (actual spelling: Đạt) is pronounced more like "duck", and "Ha Bich" is actually Bích Hà. But of course it will forever be "Ha, Bitch!" every single time it is retold as a Thanksgiving story.

These are examples of ignorant americans not knowing how to pronounce a foreign name, and are not what the OP had in mind.

[MeanOldLady]

My friend manages a girl named Soda Pop.

I knew a girl in high school named Laprincess, which I don't suppose is a horribly wacky or unbelievable name, but it irritated the shit out of me.

[Jack Batty]

Here's a name almost completely apropos ... at least I'm sure he'd hope so.

Student Charged with Flashing Women (http://www.whtm.com/news/stories/1009/668711.html#)

Dude's name is Hung.
Hung "Mike", that is.

[Scumpup]

My dad served in the military with Peter Short and Dick Long. Apparently, role call was hilarious every single morning.
I have had many students with unusually spelled and/or pronounced names; confidentiality prevents me from repeating them here. Suffice it to say, that you shouldn't automatically disbelieve every goofy name you hear.

[Nzinga, Seated]

I knew a girl in high school named Laprincess, which I don't suppose is a horribly wacky or unbelievable name, but it irritated the shit out of me.

Irritates me, too.

[Helen's Eidolon]

I was told the 'Chlamydia' version only yesterday. I choose not to believe the person that claims to have seen it first hand, rather than my friend who heard it from him. Although, to be fair, no ethnicity was mentioned.

[needscoffee]

I used to mail out monthly statements to "Dick Pickler" at a local utility firm. I never found out if that was a joke or not, because I was too embarassed to call them up and ask if they had a Dick Pickler working there.

I know a woman whose name is JiJina. She is from some eastern European country.

I will not believe you when you tell me about the girl whose name is Female, pronounced fi-MAH-lee, due to her foreign-born mother not understanding that the birth certificate wasn't filled out in advance with that name.

[needscoffee]

Oops, forget the Female above. I inadvertantly skipped page 3 and didn't realize it was already covered to death.