# Tiny errors that drive you insane **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 29, 2016, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557 "2016-02-29T19:58:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 17
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/321 "2016-03-18T03:33:39Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Ohio, meanwhile, is sane. Well, let’s not go crazy. You’ve set your river on fire like 13 times. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/322 "2016-03-18T04:18:27Z")
I just finished reading the popular novel “Beautiful Ruins”. Arrrgh. The author has people working at 20th Century Fox in the early sixties. Fox didn’t come into the picture until 1985. 20th Century Pictures was the name. ---
**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:** [March 18, 2016, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/323 "2016-03-18T04:30:51Z")
> [@j666](#): > > Damn, but that is patronizing. In fairness, so is very nearly every single other post in this thread. ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/324 "2016-03-18T04:44:22Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > I just finished reading the popular novel “Beautiful Ruins”. Arrrgh. The author has people working at 20th Century Fox in the early sixties. Fox didn’t come into the picture until 1985. 20th Century Pictures was the name. Wikipedia disagrees. All that happened in 1985 was dropping a hyphen ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/325 "2016-03-18T04:55:17Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > I just finished reading the popular novel “Beautiful Ruins”. Arrrgh. The author has people working at 20th Century Fox in the early sixties. Fox didn’t come into the picture until 1985. 20th Century Pictures was the name. Ah, not quite… [20th Century and Fox merged in 1935.](http://nypost.com/2010/02/10/is-fox-really-75-this-year-somewhere-the-fantastic-mr-william-fox-begs-to-differ/) What changed in 1985 was changing the phrasing of the name from 20th Century-Fox to 20th Century Fox. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/326 "2016-03-18T11:02:12Z")
You know what annoys me? When a website has a featured thread feature, and they accidentally feature the same thread twice under different taglines. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/327 "2016-03-18T11:51:27Z")
> [@fachverwirrt](#): > > To be fair though (why am I being fair to Massachusetts?), while I don’t know the source of Haverhill or Leominster, Worcester and Gloucester are straight from England–with more or less the same pronunciations–so it’s their fault anyway. I have a suspicion that the English pronounce Harrison Ford as “Herferd”. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/328 "2016-03-19T04:42:54Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > Wikipedia disagrees. All that happened in 1985 was dropping a hyphen I sit corrected. But I’ll still argue that they were not called that by the public until they incorporated Fox into the 20th Century sign. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/329 "2016-03-19T05:03:40Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > I sit corrected. But I’ll still argue that they were not called that by the public until they incorporated Fox into the 20th Century sign. Pretty sure it was earlier- the Doors _Twentieth Century Fox_ was on an album released in 1967. The play on words wouldn’t have worked if the public knew the studio as 20th Century Pictures. And I know I don’t remember ever hearing the studio being referred to as 20th Century Pictures- and I’m old enough to remember pre-1985. In fact, for some reason I have a distinct memory of the credits for \*The Rocky Horror Picture Show \* (which I first saw in 1980) referring to 20th Century-Fox. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/330 "2016-03-19T05:42:22Z")
> [@doreen](#): > > Pretty sure it was earlier- the Doors _Twentieth Century Fox_ was on an album released in 1967. The play on words wouldn’t have worked if the public knew the studio as 20th Century Pictures. And I know I don’t remember ever hearing the studio being referred to as 20th Century Pictures- and I’m old enough to remember pre-1985. In fact, for some reason I have a distinct memory of the credits for \*The Rocky Horror Picture Show \* (which I first saw in 1980) referring to 20th Century-Fox. Yeah, I don’t remember it ever being called 20th Century Pictures, but I guess I’m only 40. The logo showing 20th Century Fox apparently comes from as early as 1935 [as seen in this Youtube video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HlwQfiST_I). ---
**Author:** ![slash2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@slash2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slash2k)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/331 "2016-03-19T06:43:59Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > 1. A character, I forget her name, gets accused of possessing drugs and gets sent “down the hill” to maximum security immediately. Again: um, no. In the real world she’d have been sent to Segregation for a period of time, and be given a trial, before being sent to max. I’m not saying she’d have been given a _fair_ trial, but she’d have been given a trial all the same. This varies depending on the prison system, so not necessarily a clear error. Here in Kansas, e.g., most of the state minimum-security facilities don’t even have Segregation facilities, so yes, somebody accused of a serious infraction will be rolled to maximum security immediately. They’ll be placed in “administrative segregation” first, until the hearing (not a trial, and lacking many of the procedural safeguards of a trial–for example, inmates are not entitled to an attorney at a prison disciplinary hearing). Upon conviction, then placement in “disciplinary segregation” may result. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/332 "2016-03-19T16:46:09Z")
Even though they are spelled the same, the major east/west boulevard in Manhattan is pronounced HOW-ston. The city in Texas is pronounced HEW-ston. ---
**Author:** ![Haldurson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/51bf81/32.png) [@Haldurson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Haldurson)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/333 "2016-03-19T20:22:15Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Even though they are spelled the same, the major east/west boulevard in Manhattan is pronounced HOW-ston. The city in Texas is pronounced HEW-ston. I don’t think I ever pronounced the ‘H’ in the city name – always called it YUE-stin. That’s how most people pronounce it around here (New York). As far as the street name is concerned, yeah, you can always tell if someone was originally from NYC, by whether they pronounce it the same as the city name or by its proper pronunciation. ---
**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:** [March 19, 2016, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/334 "2016-03-19T20:28:29Z")
Why isn’t SoHo NYC pronounced SOW-HOW. It got that name for being South of Houston Street. The MAD magazine parody of Trapper John MD asked Pernell Roberts if he played Trapper in the M_A_S\*H movie. He replied: No, Donald Southerland did. Guess again. It was Elliot Gould. Southerland played Hawkeye. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/335 "2016-03-19T22:35:22Z")
No, I’m fairly certain it was Donald Sutherland who played Hawkeye. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/336 "2016-03-19T22:44:44Z")
Donald Sutherland was Hawkeye. Elliott Gould played Trapper. Tom Skerritt played Duke. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/337 "2016-03-19T22:46:30Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Why isn’t SoHo NYC pronounced SOW-HOW. It got that name for being South of Houston Street. Yes, but it really got its name from Soho in London. And you can’t really expect people to pronounce “Soho” as “Sowhow” unless you spell it “Sowhow”. Or “Souhou.” ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2016, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/338 "2016-03-19T23:15:58Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > Donald Sutherland was Hawkeye. Elliott Gould played Trapper. Tom Skerritt played Duke. Yes. I was just ribbing Annie about her misspelling of “Sutherland”. ---
**Author:** ![AppallingGael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9bd4f/32.png) [@AppallingGael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AppallingGael)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/339 "2016-03-20T03:20:41Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Even though they are spelled the same, the major east/west boulevard in Manhattan is pronounced HOW-ston. The city in Texas is pronounced HEW-ston. And the small Scottish village of Houston, Renfrewshire, is pronounced “HOO-ston”. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2016, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557/340 "2016-03-20T03:46:18Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Yeah, I don’t remember it ever being called 20th Century Pictures, but I guess I’m only 40. The logo showing 20th Century Fox apparently comes from as early as 1935 [as seen in this Youtube video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HlwQfiST_I). They were definitely joking about 20th Century Fox in [1976](http://www.hulu.com/watch/4181). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557.md?page=16) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-errors-that-drive-you-insane/747557.md?page=18)