# Brand names that changed in everyday usage **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 26, 2024, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123 "2024-02-26T22:02:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/43 "2024-02-27T09:06:09Z")
> [@Banksiaman](#): > > It is also part of MCdonalds Australia’s long-term strategy of differentiating themselves from the global brand, and its over-riding cheap, crappy fast-foodiness vibe. Huh? No matter what you call it, it’s still McDonald’s. It’s all a cheap, crappy fast-foodiness vibe. The McDonald’s I’ve eaten in Australia is no different from what I’ve eaten in Canada and the United States and the UK, except for the beetroot, and even then, you can exclude the beetroot, so a Big Mac in Sydney or Perth or Melbourne is the same as you’d get in Denver USA or Toronto Canada, or London UK. If McDonald’s Australia wants to differentiate itself from the global brand, then it had better see how its franchisees feel. If they’re fine being McDonald’s as it is, great; but if they want to break away from the global brand, then they are no longer McDonald’s. Heck, maybe the next time I’m in Australia, I’ll just stick with Hungry Jack’s. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/44 "2024-02-27T11:24:51Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Are people misunderstanding the actual question? Yes. The whole Exxon/Esso/Standard Oil story is not what the OP asked about, because there the company really did change its name. ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/45 "2024-02-27T13:13:42Z")
Volkswagen sedans were commonly called Beetles long before Volkswagen broke down and changed the name. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/46 "2024-02-27T13:36:07Z")
> [@SuntanLotion](#): > > Wally World? Interesting route to that… IIRC the original Wally World was a screen name for a theme park, which in the original _National Lampoon_ short story was DIsneyland. When they fimed _National Lampoon’s Summer Vacation_ for some reason Disney would not consent to a movie using its name where the disgruntled tourist hunts down and shoots Walt Disney (in the original story). So the movie christened their fake park “Wally World” complete with a moose animal mascot - where everyone wore a hat with antlers on it… It’s not hard to see how that would morph into a cute nickname for WalMart. There’s the story about Eaton’s, a Canadian department store chain created by Timothy Eaton in the late 1800’s and then run into the ground by his descendants. The French language laws in Quebec a few decades ago fobade English signs, and the “apostrophe-S” was an English construct - so they removed the apostrophe and Eatons was now just a name, not a name in English. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/47 "2024-02-27T14:16:40Z")
> [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](#): > > Sometime in (IIRC) the late 90s, people started calling it “Six Flags” instead of “Great Adventure,” likely because its ownership started using the words “Six Flags” more prominently in their ad campaigns.) That’s part of it - but another part is that for at least the first few years the park was open , it wasn’t owned by Six Flags. And people who went to the park during those years didn’t really stop calling it “Great Adventure” - my contemporaries and I were still calling it “Great Adventure” in the late '90s even as our kids (born in the late 80s early 90s) called it “Six Flags” because that was what they saw on TV. Which drove me nuts because then I had to ask “Which Six Flags”? ( we had passes and went to three or four of their parks in any given year) ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/48 "2024-02-27T15:03:43Z")
When I was a kid in the 1960s it was referred to as “Six Flags Over Georgia”. I never heard anybody call it “Great Adventure” and the “Over Georgia” part was nearly always included. There was an even older one in Texas but those were the only two, I believe. Later, they opened one in Indiana or Illinois or thereabouts and it had the awkward title “Six Flags Over Mid-America”. The gimmick was that there really had been six flags that had officially flown there (definitely in Texas: Spain, Mexico, independent Texas, Britain, United States, and the Confederacy; it was more of a stretch to come up with six flags for Georgia — I think they counted France and the Georgia state flag which is kind of cheating) and I have no idea what they did for Mid-America. After that, when they added additional sites, there was no pretense or claim about six flags having flown there. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/49 "2024-02-27T15:07:18Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > I never heard anybody call it “Great Adventure” and the “Over Georgia” part was nearly always included. " Great Adventure" was only the one in New Jersey ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/50 "2024-02-27T15:07:44Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > When I was a kid in the 1960s it was referred to as “Six Flags Over Georgia”. I never heard anybody call it “Great Adventure” and the “Over Georgia” part was nearly always included. You called the park in New Jersey “Six Flags Over Georgia”? 🤨 ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/51 "2024-02-27T15:10:01Z")
The one in New Jersey didn’t exist yet. ETA: and I didn’t click the up-arrow to read the post to which doreen was replying and forgot it was specific to the New Jersey park. I never knew it was originally called Great Adventure although now I realize I’ve heard the phrase. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/52 "2024-02-27T15:12:24Z")
> [@doreen](#): > > > [@AHunter3](#): > > > > I never heard anybody call it “Great Adventure” and the “Over Georgia” part was nearly always included. > > " Great Adventure" was only the one in New Jersey The reason, of course, was that the New Jersey park was called Great Adventure before Six Flags bought them. Their park now called Six Flags New England was called Riverside Park when I was a kid. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/53 "2024-02-27T15:24:35Z")
Yeah. Back in the late 1960s and 1970s there were fixed thrill-ride amusement parks being built all over the country, each started by various individual operators, but all broadly similar in scope and concept. Then somebody created a holding company called “Six Flags” who began buying up many of the smaller operators and rebranding them from “[Whatever]” to “Six Flags over [Whatever]”. Depending on whether your were a kid when your nearest park was named “[Whatever]”, was recently renamed to “Six Flags over [Whatever]”, or had been called “Six Flags over [Whatever]” since before you knew they existed will determine what you think the “correct” name is. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/54 "2024-02-27T15:44:30Z")
> [@Happytree](#): > > The other cheap beer, "Natural Light(Lite?), is referred to as “Natty Light”. I think they did embrace the nickname and print “Natty” on the cans at some point. It’s been a while since I’ve had to buy a beer that cheap, and memories from that era are foggy. You’re right! The regular sized cans still say “Natural Light” but the big cans do indeed say “Natty Daddy” [![](https://pics.walgreens.com/prodimg/632638/450.jpg) ](https://pics.walgreens.com/prodimg/632638/450.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/55 "2024-02-27T15:50:10Z")
> [@Slithy\_Tove](#): > > You’ll just as likely hear “Kroger’s” as the correct “Kroger,” but people here who use the former would never apply it to the specific store known as the [Murder Kroger](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_Kroger) The toll-free number for Kroger is 1-800-KROGERS. Not an official name change but an acknowledgement of the usage and they needed an extra digit. Gee, I haven’t heard anybody refer to the Murder Kroger since way back in Christmas … of '23. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/56 "2024-02-27T17:41:34Z")
I think the problem is that it’s hard to know what brands are currently in the “nickname but not embraced” phase of their existence. Brands changing because of this phenomenon are fairly well known (or because of mergers, political rebranding, etc. which also isn’t what the OP asked. I interpret the OP as being, essentially, what brands have a common nickname. If we identify one today and the name hits marketing tomorrow it no longer fits! ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/57 "2024-02-27T20:26:00Z")
> [@mnemosyne](#): > > I interpret the OP as being, essentially, what brands have a common nickname. Although the clarification in [Post #3](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/3) indicates that he was really looking for cases where the nickname _replaced_ the original name. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/58 "2024-02-27T20:45:10Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > I never heard anybody call it “Great Adventure” and the “Over Georgia” part was nearly always included. Interesting. The one an hour north of Chicago has been called Great America as long as I remember. ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/59 "2024-02-27T20:47:37Z")
Very interesting, and thanks for the insight and back story. I wonder how many other businesses ended up taking the “if you can’t beat them, join them” route, conceding to the practice of official renaming due to the public’s use of in-formalities. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/60 "2024-02-27T20:56:43Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > > [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > > > I’d have to go to other states to see Esso or American stations. > > And in case it wasn’t obvious to everyone, Esso stood for ‘S’ ‘O’, or Standard Oil. Various court orders didn’t allow Standard Oil of NJ to use Esso everywhere. They also had the Enco brand, which also faced some restrictions so they changed to Exxon to get a single brand they could use nationwide. Some stations were also called Humble Oil after Standard Oil bought a controlling interest. As a kid I would still see stations that had an Exxon sign on the pole but Humble written on the building. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/61 "2024-02-27T22:55:25Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > Aspirin can be used by any brand of ASA in the US (but not in Canada) because the trademark was seized during WW II by the alien property office. Esso did not change to Exxon in Canada (I have no idea why) so we still have Esso stations here. I suspect the reason is that all the stations in Canada were Esso stations. They didn’t need to find one name (Exxon) to use for all the Esso, Enco, Humble stations. They were restricted from using the name Esso in some areas in the US. ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2024, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123/62 "2024-02-27T23:24:58Z")
> [@DPRK](#): > > Isn’t it officially “Harrod’s Stores, Limited”? Maybe long ago, but not now. It’s Harrods Ltd, and the shop is called Harrods, with no apostrophe. Wm Morrison Supermarkets Ltd trades as Morrisons (sans apostrophe); J Sainsbury plc trades as Sainsbury’s (with apostrophe). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brand-names-that-changed-in-everyday-usage/998123.md?page=4)