# Ironically-named works **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 9, 2016, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590 "2016-02-09T02:54:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/41 "2016-02-11T19:39:15Z")
> [@Banksiaman](#): > > The Never Ending Story > > Perhaps Lionel Hutz’s only ever successful law suit. That depends. If I were to go to Amazon I’d find one 300 page book and 4 movies. On the other hand, in the story the book magically continually writes itself. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/42 "2016-02-11T20:45:15Z")
> [@Horatio\_Hellpop](#): > > Benny Goodman’s “Sing Sing Sing!” is an instrumental. > > What else? Thinking of the building as a “work”; there probably isn’t a great deal of singing at “Sing Sing”. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/43 "2016-02-11T20:55:33Z")
Is there a dead mocking bird in “To Kill a Mockingbird?” ---
**Author:** ![Svejk\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@Svejk\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Svejk_1)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2016, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/44 "2016-02-11T20:57:11Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > There’s a movie called _The Virgin Machine_ which people think is ironic because they emphasize the wrong word. It’s a meandering documentary about lesbians in the sex industry (mostly for other lesbians, but some just generally), by way of documenting the filmmaker’s first lesbian affair. > > People pronounce it “The **VIRGIN** Machine,” as in, a machine for making virgins, and think is has something to do with turning women off to sex with men, or it’s just ironic, because there isn’t a virgin to be found anywhere in the whole thing. > > The filmmaker is German, even though the film is made in the US, so the film also has a German title, _Die Jungfrauen Maschine_. In English, you should pronounce it “The Virgin **MACHINE** ,” the machine in question being the movie camera, because this is the filmmaker’s first movie. A better translation would probably be “The Virgin Camera.” A translation of intent, but much less provocative, would be “My First Movie.” That’s nice but the German title really undermines your story. If you’re right and virgin should be parsed as an adjective and not a noun, it should be ‘Die jungfräuliche Maschine’. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/45 "2016-02-12T00:17:55Z")
> [@TV\_time](#): > > Is there a dead mocking bird in “To Kill a Mockingbird?” There is. His name is Tom Robinson, and he’s only metaphorically a mockingbird, but it’s his death to which the title refers. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/46 "2016-02-12T03:03:35Z")
John Steinbeck’s _Of Mice and Men_ features many men, but no mice. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/47 "2016-02-12T03:18:19Z")
There’s a whole scene with a dead mouse right at the beginning, which sets up Lenny’s obsession with petting (and killing) soft things. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/48 "2016-02-12T03:31:53Z")
The band “Ben Folds Five” was a group with 3 members. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/49 "2016-02-12T03:33:48Z")
The classic rock song “Listen to the Music” has the band singing over the title, so you can’t actually listen to the music ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/50 "2016-02-12T03:46:24Z")
“I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” - it’s not like Yoko was grossly overweight or anything. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/51 "2016-02-12T04:10:42Z")
A rather obscure one: many years ago (early 90s?) Mandy Patinkin was on … the Tonight Show? … and performed a song he had written. The title of the song was “Beat Out that Rhythm on a Drum.” The song consisted entirely of piano and vocals. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/52 "2016-02-12T05:00:44Z")
_[Happiness](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkVLV7lTbtM)_ ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/53 "2016-02-12T05:16:53Z")
Maroon 5 is not maroon. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/54 "2016-02-12T06:36:28Z")
Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth, Chris Ware’s masterwork. ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/55 "2016-02-12T13:00:23Z")
\*\*That’s Entertainment \*\*by the British group **The Jam.** Paul Weller (singer and songwriter) illustrates the mundane, the petty, the banal, the squalid vissicitudes of London life all happening around him before the ironic chorus of ‘_ **That’s entertainment, that’s entertainment** _.’ A great Jam song although in my opinion inferior to **Going Underground**. However, since it is the only Jam song in the Rolling Stone magazine top 500, possibly the best known in America. TCMF-2L ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2016, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/56 "2016-02-13T14:50:27Z")
Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser. Once Carrie leaves her sister Minnie’s house, the only mention of Minnie is a dream she has when Carrie agrees to live with Charles Drouet without the benefit of marriage. There is NO mention of Carrie’s family throughout the rest of book. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2016, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/57 "2016-02-13T15:33:52Z")
For deliberate, genuine irony: I’m Not in Love by 10cc I Don’t Miss You by Shoes ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2016, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/58 "2016-02-13T15:38:20Z")
[I Don’t Remember Christmas](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DDdOCSUI6U) ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2016, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/59 "2016-02-13T19:06:20Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser. Once Carrie leaves her sister Minnie’s house, the only mention of Minnie is a dream she has when Carrie agrees to live with Charles Drouet without the benefit of marriage. There is NO mention of Carrie’s family throughout the rest of book. Since “The Three Musketeers” is pretty much about what happens after the fourth Musketeer joins you have to wonder why the author called the book that. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2016, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590/60 "2016-02-14T14:24:03Z")
> [@fachverwirrt](#): > > A rather obscure one: many years ago (early 90s?) Mandy Patinkin was on … the Tonight Show? … and performed a song he had written. The title of the song was “Beat Out that Rhythm on a Drum.” The song consisted entirely of piano and vocals. I saw that episode. It was Letterman. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ironically-named-works/745590.md?page=2)