I have never heard this before. I wondered briefly if it was a whoosh, but I looked it up and it seems to be true.
The practice is fairly common.
Drax, Goldfinger, Blofeld, Scaramanga, and Milton Krest were named after Ian Fleming’s friends and acquaintances.
Japanese corporations consider it a compliment to have their headquarters destroyed in Godzilla movies. (But the Emperor’s palace is never touched.)
Recommend (with caveats) you read this book sometime, if you haven’t already:
Someone’s up on their lore.