Very much the same here. I have a specific memory of asking my mom how to pronounce the “ein” in Berenstein. Oddly, her answer was “ain,” but I wouldn’t have asked if it was “ain.” Weird!
It was Berenstein. Me too, I remember wondering whether that was ‘steen’ or ‘stine’. Then a few years back, when I was having my second kid, I got a copy of ‘The Berenstein Bears’ New Baby’ for my first kid - because I had it when my mother was pregnant with my brother - and wondered why they’d changed the name to Berenstain.
I’ve seen people blame this on the pronunciation in the TV show back when we were kids, but I never saw the show. We didn’t have a TV. The only time I ever came across those bears was in that one book. Which was about the BerenSTEIN bears.
I’m suspicious of people who remember it being Berenstain. They grew up in the other universe and I’m not sure they should be trusted.
I read about that, too. To me, that memory seems a lot less likely than remembering Stein instead of Stain.
I have never thought Nelson Mandela died in prison and doubt I know anyone with that false memory. If anything, there are many people in the world who probably only know post-prison Mandela and don’t remember the time when he was not universally loved.
On the other hand, I bet if I asked people Stain or Stein, 9/10 would probably guess Stein.
I thought thread erections only happened in the Pit?
ETA: Neither set of bears for me. I was neglected in both universes.
I know I pronounced it, from a young age, like English “stain,” not “steen” nor “stein.” That points toward it being “stain” all along, and the apparent correctness of the “stein” spelling being a product of miscopying information from old brain cells to new ones.
That said, I have felt this sort of thing before with another name. And I took it as a point of divergence between parallel timelines. But I was a weird kid, prone to magical thinking, and already trying to get into a different timeline. :shrug:
Obviously, that’s a different universe, one that very few people crossed over from.
So far we have:
- Our universe
- The Berenstein Universe
- The Nelson Mandela died in jail universe
- The alternate ending to Big universe.
Anything else?
Wait, how did I pronounce it before the animated cartoon? Hurm.
Yes.
There are people, and I am one, who are convinced we were taught to spell the word dilemna that way. As in, mn, not “dilemma”.
I am pretty sure at some point, the spelling was changed. Or there is some grade school spelling book out there that 1) had a typo, and 2) was widely used.
Anyone with me? Do you also have a dilemna?
I used to think it was “Absestos”
and “Labrinyth”
But i could never have taken berenstain for berenstein.
It should have been the Berrystained Bears.
But I only glance at the cover so I wouldn’t have known.
It’s still not Frankenstain, though, right?
Taht’s sujt gadren-vatiery deslixya. Deos’tn cnout.
TBG: It’s Frahnkenstien!
My doctor is on my call list, but pretty far down.
Yup!!
Okay, here’s one. I distinctly remember the character of Fonzie on Happy Days dying in the show–because Henry Winkler had died in real life. Now, I wasn’t alive during the first run of the show, but I remember this from re-runs, and I remember asking my dad something about how the show could possibly continue after that. And to my recollection, continue it did, sans Fonz.
I remember all this and at the very same time I clearly remember knowing all about Henry Winkler and his still-alive face appearing in film and TV plenty of times during my own lifetime.
It’s always been Berenstain. The first books Stan and Jan wrote with bears didn’t have the family (anyone remember Bears on Wheels?). The more preachy books with Mama, Papa, Brother, and Sister came later. Trust me on this; I read them and I’m a librarian.
All I think about is that “they’re kind of furry around the torso. They’re a lot like people, only more so.”
Both names can be pronounced that way, though, just like both can be pronounced Bear-N-stain. The one that throws me is Bear-N-steen, which makes absolutely no sense.
(I’ve always said Beren-STINE. I only say Bear-N-stain now as a mnemonic. “There’s a stain in Berenstain.” I’d love to know how the real people pronounce it. Maybe it really is pronounced Bear-N-steen, and that was used in the show?)
In the movie “The Yellow Ribbon” they tell you that army wives wore yellow ribbons when there husbands were out on patrol. Quite a few people recalled this actually happening. Guess what? It was made up for the movie…or was it?
What’s disturbing is that there are a bunch of people off in the Berenstein Universe who swear it’s always been spelled Berenstain.
My practice is to abstain on anything having to do with the Berenstain Bears.