There was a filler item in my local paper today that red lined my BS meter. Here it is in its entirety.
The way the story was written and the similarity of this to other BS stories of “where things came from” adds nothing to its credibility. (Can you say “Whole Nine Yards?”)
I always understood that duct tape was designed specifically for sealing around air ducts. The “Duck” name, besides being a backwardly formed brand name, was just a misshearing of the word duct by those who didn’t get the reference. The stuff isn’t even waterproof despite waht the article says.
So is there any one out there who can add any actual information to clear this up? I wouldn’t trust the “stories” I would find on the internet for a subject like this.
Well these two sites agree with your story completely. In fact, the language on both sites is so close that someone seems to be plagiarizing from someone. However, I completely trust the second link when it comes to all things Duct Tape (I’ve gotten their books as joke gifts in the past…these guys are serious Duct Tape afficionados).
I don’t have the cite handy, but I read that it was developed during WWII as a medical adhesive tape, and was originally white. There was a particular name for it, which I don’t recall. After the war, as aluminum ductwork became popular for central heating systems, it was made in the silver color and called duct tape. I find this infinitely more believable than this “duck tape” story.
I wonder why my MW Collegiate Dic says the name “duct tape” is from 1970. Doesn’t sound like many people were calliing it “duct tape” right after the war while sealing up a/c or heating ducts.