# So what do you think about the Willis Tower? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 16, 2009, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258 "2009-07-16T20:16:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/1 "2009-07-16T20:16:31Z")
:rolleyes: Next thing you know they’ll be saying Pluto isn’t even a planet anymore… ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/2 "2009-07-16T20:37:41Z")
You say tomato, I say tomahto. Everyone knows it takes diff’rent strokes… ---
**Author:** ![Claire\_Beauchamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ec9cab/32.png) [@Claire\_Beauchamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claire_Beauchamp)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/3 "2009-07-16T20:40:08Z")
whutchutalkinbout? ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/4 "2009-07-16T20:42:37Z")
If they named Pluto “Harry”, the analogy might actually be an analogy. ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/5 "2009-07-16T20:44:47Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > If they named Pluto “Harry”, the analogy might actually be an analogy. The analogy merely was pointing out change. : p One thing being called something all your life and then changing. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/6 "2009-07-16T20:46:18Z")
Since the OP didn’t provide a link: [http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090716/ap\_on\_re\_us/us\_sears\_tower](http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090716/ap_on_re_us/us_sears_tower) ETA–apparently they changed the name of the Sears Tower in Chicago to the Willis Tower. ---
**Author:** ![DaphneBlack](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daphneblack/32/5389_2.png) [@DaphneBlack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaphneBlack)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/7 "2009-07-16T20:48:52Z")
Well as a born-and-raised Chicagoan I plan to go right on ahead calling it the Sears Tower. Who the heck buying ‘naming rights’ to a building anyway? ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/8 "2009-07-16T21:14:44Z")
Alrighty then, the best view in Chicago is now from the _Willis Tower_. Why? It’s the only place in downtown Chicago where you can’t see the Willis Tower. ---
**Author:** ![MOIDALIZE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@MOIDALIZE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MOIDALIZE)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/9 "2009-07-16T21:17:26Z")
It will always be the Sears Tower, and if you don’t like it, you can fight me at Comiskey. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/10 "2009-07-16T21:18:09Z")
Didn’t Willis Tower star in Shaving Private Ryan? ---
**Author:** ![MOIDALIZE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@MOIDALIZE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MOIDALIZE)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/11 "2009-07-16T21:18:51Z")
> [@Sears Tower is now Willis Tower](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sears-tower-is-now-willis-tower/489234/7): > > My cousin was visiting last week from \*\*Yerba Buena, \*\*and we decided to go from my house in \*\*Niles Center \*\*to go downtown to \*\*Marshall Field’s \*\*to get some tickets for a \*\*Reginald Dwight \*\*concert at \*\*Rosemont Horizon. \*\*My mom wanted us to take the train to \*\*North Western Station, \*\*but my dad’s in \*\*Constantinople \*\*this week so we thought it would be easier to just drive his \*\*Datsun \*\*downtown on the \*\*Northwest Expressway. \*\*My cousin wanted to see stuff along the lakefront, so we cut across \*\*Center Street \*\*so he could see the \*\*Playboy Building \*\* on \*\*Lincoln Park Boulevard \*\*and drove past \*\*Municipal Pier. \*\*When we got to \*\*Achsah Bond Drive, \*\*we realized we had gone too far, so we turned on \*\*12th Street \*\*over the **Illinois Central** tracks and finally found a parking space behind an \*\*Illinois Bell \*\*truck on \*\*Sherman Street \*\*. We walked up **Fifth Avenue** and caught a **Ravenswood** train around the **Poly Loop** to Field’s but the concert was sold out. We talked about going to a game at \*\*Comiskey Park, \*\*but decided to just go home, get some \*\*Mrs. Japp’s \*\*and watch it on **WNBQ.** During the game there was a news teaser that Sears Tower was changing it’s name and we were laughing about the stupid idea that anyone would ever call it by a new name. … ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/12 "2009-07-16T21:31:04Z")
That’s stupid. The [Willis Tower](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fox_Plaza_%28Los_Angeles%29) is in L.A.! ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/13 "2009-07-16T21:49:23Z")
If someone said Comiskey Park I’d know it was/used to be in Chicago. I have no idea what it is now, so that at least is a brand that has some resonance. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/14 "2009-07-16T21:59:11Z")
Hmph. At least when Canadian National Railways sold the CN Tower, the new owners kept the initials (even if they said that they stood for something else). On the other hand, the SkyDome was sold and renamed to the Rogers Centre; but then everyone continued calling it simply The Dome. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/15 "2009-07-16T23:04:05Z")
Well the renamed the Standard Oil Building -\> Amoco Oil Building -\> Aon Center And we renamed Marshall Fields -\> Macys And we renamed Comiskey Park -\> US Cellular Field We renamed all of our subway lines so they are named after colors Chicago is still called “Second City,” though it hasn’t been the second largst city in the US since around 1980. We know names are meaningless ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/16 "2009-07-16T23:12:39Z")
Well the renamed the Standard Oil Building -\> Amoco Oil Building -\> Aon Center And we renamed Marshall Fields -\> Macys And we renamed Comiskey Park -\> US Cellular Field We renamed all of our subway lines so they are named after colors Chicago is still called “Second City,” though it hasn’t been the second largst city in the US since around 1980. We know names are meaningless ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2009, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/17 "2009-07-16T23:13:43Z")
Right, and in Houston the former Transco Tower (tallest tower in the US not in a downtown area) is now the Williams Tower, while the Astros Minute Maid Park used to be called something else as well. Nobody quite seems to remember what, though. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2009, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/18 "2009-07-17T00:08:46Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > And we renamed Comiskey Park -\> US Cellular Field I normally hear ‘Sox Park’. ---
**Author:** ![TheMadHun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@TheMadHun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheMadHun)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2009, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/19 "2009-07-17T00:19:39Z")
I always thought that Wrigley field was a stupid stupid name. Named after gum. And when it was being built “Sears Tower” was a similar insult to the city. They all wished someone classy like Tiffany had started in Chicago. In Detroit, I could be proud of the then-tallest Penobscot Building, named for an Indian tribe, like many of the towns and counties. ---
**Author:** ![BrandonR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@BrandonR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrandonR)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2009, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258/20 "2009-07-17T00:23:16Z")
It will always be the Sears Tower, but I am glad they’re showing [Wesley](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wesley_Willis) some support. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-do-you-think-about-the-willis-tower/503258.md?page=2)