Holy crap! I just got...

[cjepson]

Originally Posted by WordMan

Once I knew that they were really The Beat, I couldn't help but focus on how close their name was to The Beatles - like, wow, pretty risky for them to take on a name that might be confused with the Fabs. But, The (English) Beat are a truly great band that sound nothing like The Beatles, so I think it is just my issue

There is a story that the Beau Brummels, one of the first American bands to successfully incorporate the British Invasion sound, deliberately chose their name so that people going through the Beatles section in record stores would come upon their albums immediately following. Disappointingly, one of the members has said that this is a myth.

If I ever formed a group I would be tempted to call it the Beatless just for the hell of it.

[WordMan]

Originally Posted by cjepson

There is a story that the Beau Brummels, one of the first American bands to successfully incorporate the British Invasion sound, deliberately chose their name so that people going through the Beatles section in record stores would come upon their albums immediately following. Disappointingly, one of the members has said that this is a myth.

If I ever formed a group I would be tempted to call it the Beatless just for the hell of it.

When Liam Gallagher finally left Oasis/his brother Noel, he formed a band call Beady Eye specifically to get sorted next to The Beatles...

[Mahaloth]

Originally Posted by Robot Arm

It took me a long time to notice the double meaning of Bender's name in Futurama.

So...what is it? I know he's a robot and bender means, I think, gay in British English? Is that part of it? What is the other part?

[Acsenray]

Originally Posted by Mahaloth

So...what is it? I know he's a robot and bender means, I think, gay in British English? Is that part of it? What is the other part?

A "bender" is a drinking binge.

[Robot Arm]

Originally Posted by Acsenray

A "bender" is a drinking binge.

Yes, as in "to go on a bender". It's rather old fashioned, though, and I can't remember the last time I heard it seriously used in that sense. Don't know if it was deliberate on the part of the Futurama creators. One reference says he's named after a character in The Breakfast Club.

[Acsenray]

Originally Posted by Robot Arm

Yes, as in "to go on a bender". It's rather old fashioned, though, and I can't remember the last time I heard it seriously used in that sense. Don't know if it was deliberate on the part of the Futurama creators.

A robot named Bender who is habitually intoxicated? Of course it was deliberate.

[Drunky Smurf]

But alcohol fuels robots. All robots drink all the time we just only see Bender doing it. There was an episode where he quite drinking and he basically turned into what a human would if they became an alcoholic.

[Acsenray]

Originally Posted by Drunky Smurf

But alcohol fuels robots. All robots drink all the time we just only see Bender doing it. There was an episode where he quite drinking and he basically turned into what a human would if they became an alcoholic.

1. That was introduced after the character's first appearance.

2. So what? It doesn't change the joke.

[Quercus alba]

Originally Posted by cjepson

I liked Jay Leno's take on this: "I think the guys in those commercials are hoping for something that begins with F."

Good a time as any to repost this....

[Spectre of Pithecanthropus]

Originally Posted by drastic_quench

Did a guy on a flaming pie tell you?

It must have been either that, or a cricket who wore black framed glasses.

[Spectre of Pithecanthropus]

Originally Posted by Nunzio Tavulari

The Beatles was a play on Buddy Holly's band, The Crickets. To extend the musical pun, beEt was replaced with beAt.

Additionally, Lennon, who always had a penchant for puns and similar wordplay, noted that you could turn "Beatles" around and get "Les Beat", which he thought looked French and cool.

[Ximenean]

Originally Posted by WordMan

When Liam Gallagher finally left Oasis/his brother Noel, he formed a band call Beady Eye specifically to get sorted next to The Beatles...

Let's hope he likes the Beastie Boys too, because they're going to come in between "Beady" and "Beatles".

[pulykamell]

Originally Posted by Robot Arm

Yes, as in "to go on a bender". It's rather old fashioned, though, and I can't remember the last time I heard it seriously used in that sense.

Huh. I've heard "bender" as a drinking binge used quite commonly in my circles. I never thought of it as old-fashioned at all.

[thirdwarning]

Originally Posted by JSexton

Didn't the Simpsons have Bee Jewelers? I'll leave their implied slogan as an exercise for the reader.

Every Buss begins with B?

[Derleth]

Originally Posted by cjepson

Like realizing that an elbow is called that because when you bend your arm it looks like the letter...

No. It's from the archaic unit of measure the ell, which in turn derives from the Old Germanic *alinâ.

[cjepson]

Originally Posted by Derleth

No. It's from the archaic unit of measure the ell, which in turn derives from the Old Germanic *alinâ.

Well, that makes it a double entendre! Even cooler!

[Bill Door]

Originally Posted by pulykamell

Huh. I've heard "bender" as a drinking binge used quite commonly in my circles. I never thought of it as old-fashioned at all.

I always figured a binge to be a short period of intense drinking, while a bender had to be for multiple days. That may be too fine a distinction, but it always had that connotation to me.

[LawMonkey]

I am embarassed to admit how many of these things I never got either. The Beatles, sure. But In-Sink-Erator? Bender? Think Geek's tagline? Not a clue before reading this thread.

An aside: Screw Kay Jewelers right to hell. The only more annoying jewelry tagline is "He went to Jared."

[WordMan]

Originally Posted by Acsenray

Just FYI, there's no need to capitalize the thes in these sentences, even if it's part of the proper name. It's perfectly correct to refer to the Beatles, the Crickets, the English Beat, etc.

That's fine, but I prefer it the way I write it. Feels righter to me.

[SiXSwordS]

And I think the Band Name 'Rare Earth' is a play on 'Common Ground.'

[Sam A. Robrin]

Well, today I wrote a parody of Country Joe and the Fish's "Fixin-to-Die Rag" ("Well, it's 1-2-3, What are we fightin' for? / Don't ask me I don't give a damn. / Next stop is Vietnam ...") and only just consciously noticed that the count-up in the song goes from 1-2-3 to 5-6-7--in order to make "for" at the end of the last line a pun (and possibly get "eight" from "gate" later).

[Yllaria]

Originally Posted by cjepson

I always used to think that the Beat Generation was called that because of the beat of the music they listened to. I was kind of taken aback when I learned it originally meant "beaten down". . . .

OK. I had to look up Beat Generation and as I was reading the wiki article, I find this.

The musical group Steely Dan is named after a steam-powered dildo in Burrough's Naked Lunch.

I so very much did not know that.

[cjepson]

Originally Posted by Sam A. Robrin

Well, today I wrote a parody of Country Joe and the Fish's "Fixin-to-Die Rag" ("Well, it's 1-2-3, What are we fightin' for? / Don't ask me I don't give a damn. / Next stop is Vietnam ...") and only just consciously noticed that the count-up in the song goes from 1-2-3 to 5-6-7--in order to make "for" at the end of the last line a pun (and possibly get "eight" from "gate" later).

Sometime recently I finally realized John Lennon's cleverness in the song "Because"... inserting the phrases "the world turns" and "the wind blows" in verses 1 and 2 respectively.

Because THE WORLD is round it TURNS me on
Because THE WIND is high it BLOWS my mind

[pulykamell]

Originally Posted by Bill Door

I always figured a binge to be a short period of intense drinking, while a bender had to be for multiple days. That may be too fine a distinction, but it always had that connotation to me.

No, you're right, a "bender" usually takes place at least over a weekend, maybe over a week. You don't go on a one-night "bender." (At least not the way I know the word.)

[friedo]

Last night I finally figured out that Flo Rida is a dude from Florida.

[Nzinga, Seated]

Originally Posted by friedo

Last night I finally figured out that Flo Rida is a dude from Florida.

And of course, a rapper calls his rap style his 'flow', and speaks of 'riding' the beat.

So Flo Rida rides the flow.

I hate Flo Rida with a passion. Not the person, I heard the person is cool. I hate his music.

[levdrakon]

How are you guys with drag names?

"Hi, I'm Miss Demeanor!"

[Nzinga, Seated]

Originally Posted by levdrakon

How are you guys with drag names?

"Hi, I'm Miss Demeanor!"

I like Sharon Needles.

[Ethilrist]

I'm a big fan of Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar novels, and have read through the entire series three or four times. I just found a FAQ page with questions for the author and she pointed out

SPOILER:

that Bard Stefan is Tylendel resurrected, and that Herald Myste is actually Mercedes Lackey (who I knew was called "Misty" by her friends).

I honestly didn't catch either of those two in any of the times I read through the series.

[Sam A. Robrin]

Originally Posted by thirdwarning

Every Buss begins with B?

No, but every buzz begins with "bee."

[Satchmo]

Originally Posted by levdrakon

How are you guys with drag names?

"Hi, I'm Miss Demeanor!"

"Call me Ivanna. Ivanna Mann!"

[drewtwo99]

Originally Posted by LawMonkey

I am embarassed to admit how many of these things I never got either. The Beatles, sure. But In-Sink-Erator? Bender? Think Geek's tagline? Not a clue before reading this thread.

An aside: Screw Kay Jewelers right to hell. The only more annoying jewelry tagline is "He went to Jared."

I'm just glad I wasn't the only one who didn't get In-Sink-Erator! Thanks for fessing up. When *I* figured it out not too long ago, I somewhat foolishly proudly announced it to my mom that I understood the pun and she was just kind of like "You just now got that?"

Originally Posted by pulykamell

No, you're right, a "bender" usually takes place at least over a weekend, maybe over a week. You don't go on a one-night "bender." (At least not the way I know the word.)

I too feel that a bender happens over the course of several nights (where you are probably sleeping during the days), and probably involves some brawls, vandalism, or other hooliganism of some sort night after night.

[April R]

Originally Posted by kunilou

When I was in college, my English literature prof insisted on pronouncing the name of the protagonist in Byron's poem as Don Joo-ahn rahter than Dohn Hwahn. He insisted that because Byron was English, and it was a fictional character, that the anglicized version was "correct."

We then asked if Byron had consulted with Tirso deMolina, who had written the first account of the Don Juan legend nearly two centuries before Byron, but it was not a productive conversation.

We have two little boys in karate class with my kids who's parents are from Mexico, and one of them spells his name Jauan, pronounced Joo-ahn. I was a bit confused when I first heard his name, but the kid had a conversation with me about how he spells his name. It was cute.

[Little Nemo]

Originally Posted by SiXSwordS

And I think the Band Name 'Rare Earth' is a play on 'Common Ground.'

More likely it's a reference to the chemical term "rare earth". The rare earth elements are a group of elements that for geological reasons don't form concentrated deposits. So it was difficult to find places where they could be commercially mined.

[Son of a Rich]

I just yesterday got that Bill Haley got the name for his band from "Halley's comet".

[NoClueBoy]

The Beatles aren't from England. They're from Liverpool!

I had no idea Jonathon Swift had anything to do with the Rock & Roll Era...

SPOILER:

[Acsenray]

Originally Posted by NoClueBoy

The Beatles aren't from England. They're from Liverpool!

Is this supposed to be a joke? I don't get it.

[NoClueBoy]

Originally Posted by Acsenray

Is this supposed to be a joke? I don't get it.

Pretend to be an American.

[digs]

Originally Posted by NoClueBoy

The Beatles aren't from England. They're from Liverpool!

I had no idea Jonathon Swift had anything to do with the Rock & Roll Era...

I don't get either of these "jokes"...

...and I get why REO put a fish with a tuning fork in its mouth on that album cover.

[NoClueBoy]

Think harder.

[alphaboi867]

It wasn't until I bought the DVD set and listened to the audio commentary that I realized that Michael J Fox played his own daughter as well his son in Back to the Future II. And that was one of my favorite movies growing up too.

[Acsenray]

I don't have to pretend to be an American. I am one. I still don't get it.

[friedo]

Originally Posted by Nzinga, Seated

I hate Flo Rida with a passion. Not the person, I heard the person is cool. I hate his music.

He's got that really catchy blowjob song though.

[Mona Lisa Simpson]

Confession the first: I didn't get the BEATles until I was in university, playing "Balderdash" coming up with fade definitions for words. I probably would have one the game but I gate a definition of one word as something or other as "infested by beatles". My friend reading it said it: " Infested by Bee-at-uls. Let me guess, was it Ringo?"

I lost the game but ignorance fought!

[digs]

Originally Posted by NoClueBoy

Think harder.

Oh, come on. Multiple people ask what joke you were making, and this is how you respond?

[njtt]

Originally Posted by kunilou

When I was in college, my English literature prof insisted on pronouncing the name of the protagonist in Byron's poem as Don Joo-ahn rahter than Dohn Hwahn. He insisted that because Byron was English, and it was a fictional character, that the anglicized version was "correct."

We then asked if Byron had consulted with Tirso deMolina, who had written the first account of the Don Juan legend nearly two centuries before Byron, but it was not a productive conversation.

Your professor was quite right about the pronunciation. Many of the rhymes and much of the scansion and the humor of the poem does not work unless you pronounce it Don Joo-ann. However, this is not because Byron was English and ignorant. It is all quite deliberate, and part of the joke of the poem. Byron was very cosmopolitan, widely traveled, and quite familiar with Spain.

[foolsguinea]

I got it.

SPOILER:

Liverput? Lillipool? What's the name of the country in Gullible's Travels? Anyway, that's where the Crickets (called the Morningside Crickets in some countries) are from, but folks think they're named after that British game, you know, the one they play at Eaten.

[G0sp3l]

Originally Posted by Nzinga, Seated

And of course, a rapper calls his rap style his 'flow', and speaks of 'riding' the beat.

So Flo Rida rides the flow.

I hate Flo Rida with a passion. Not the person, I heard the person is cool. I hate his music.

I'm hoping you're not including R.O.O.T.S. in that hate...


Futurama - Hermes. Planet Express is a delivery company.

[Gangster Octopus]

Nevermind.

[Little Nemo]

Originally Posted by alphaboi867

It wasn't until I bought the DVD set and listened to the audio commentary that I realized that Michael J Fox played his own daughter as well his son in Back to the Future II. And that was one of my favorite movies growing up too.

Same thing happened to me with Taylor Swift's "You Belong With Me" video. I had seen it several times but never realized until someone else pointed it out that Swift is playing both girls in the video.