Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly - S7E11 - Brands Are People, Too: Products Named After Inventors

Episode Date: March 15, 2018

This week, we explore famous products named after their inventors. Some products are so cemented in our minds we forget those names once belonged to people. Shrapnel was invented by Henry Shrapnel, nachos were invented by Nachos Anaya and the leotard was invented by a Jules Leotard.We’ll even look at some inventors who wish their names had been forgotten... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hi, it's Terry O'Reilly. As you may know, we've been producing a lot of bonus episodes while under the influences on hiatus. They're called the Beatleology Interviews, where I talk to people who knew the Beatles, work with them, love them, and the authors who write about them. Well, the Beatleology Interviews have become a hit, so we are spinning it out to be a standalone podcast series. You've already heard conversations with people like actors Mark Hamill, Malcolm McDowell, and Beatles confidant Astrid Kershaw. But coming up, I talk to May Pang, who dated John Lennon in the mid-70s. I talk to double fantasy guitarist Earl Slick, Apple Records creative director John Kosh. I'll be talking to Jan Hayworth,

who designed the Sgt. Pepper album cover. Very cool. And I'll talk to singer Dion, who is one of only five people still alive who were on the Sgt. Pepper cover. And two of those people were Beatles. The stories they tell are amazing. So thank you for making this series such a success. And please, do me a favor, follow the Beatleology interviews on your podcast app. You don't even have to be a huge Beatles fan, you just have to love storytelling.

Subscribe now, and don't miss a single beat. From the Under the Influence digital box set, this episode is from Season 7, 2018. Your teeth look whiter than noon, noon, noon! You're under the influence with Terry O'Reilly. A number of years ago, our company was producing an advertising campaign for Molson. It starred John Cleese. When our

pirate director greeted Cleese, he said, nice to be working with you, Mr. Cleese. Cleese corrected him immediately, saying, it's not Cleese, it's Cleese, as in cheese, please. Cleese was not just grammatically precise when he said that, but

historically precise. His family name actually was Cheese, but his father thought it was embarrassing and changed it to Cleese when he entered the army. John Cleese, named after his grandfather John Cheese, was just days away from graduating from Cambridge and setting off on a law career when he was offered a job as a radio comedy writer by the BBC. That choice would change his life. He eventually teamed up with Five Buddies in 1969

and created a television show with a very memorable name, Monty Python's Flying Circus. The Pythons, of course, would go on to become comedy legends. Back in 2005, John Cleese was touring New Zealand with his comedy show titled John Cleese, His Life, Times and Current Medical Problems. He described it as a one-man show with several people in it. While there, Cleese performed at the Regent Theatre in the city of Palmerston North, New Zealand. When he later recorded a podcast about his New Zealand tour, he had some choice words for Palmerston North.

He said the little motel he stayed at there was terrible, the theatre was in nasty shape, the audience was strange and laughed in all the wrong places, and he couldn't wait to leave the town. With tongue firmly in python cheek, he said, If you wish to kill yourself but lack the courage to, I think a visit to Palmerston North will do the trick. I guess it's fair to say John Cleese didn't like Palmerston North, New Zealand. The people of Palmerston North, New Zealand didn't exactly like John Cleese didn't like Palmerston North, New Zealand. The people of Palmerston North, New Zealand

didn't exactly like John Cleese either when they heard that. After much debate, someone in the town suggested they name the local dump after Cleese. A number of city council members liked the idea. Overnight, a big blue landmark sign quietly appeared at the landfill. It proudly declared the dump Mount Cleese. When interviewed about

the sign the next day, the Palmerston North City Waste Manager was asked if the sign was official. He said no. When asked if it was going to be taken down, he said no. There are a lot of products in this world named after people. But many of them are so entrenched in our language,

so cemented into popular culture, we forget those names were once actual people. Sometimes those products were named after the inventors. Sometimes they are named after someone who inspired the item. And in one of our stories today, the brand was named after a minister who wanted to quash your sexual urges. And a few of those inventors wish their names had been forgotten. You're under the influence. It's always fascinating to discover the history of a product.

It's doubly fascinating to realize that a product you've known your entire life was actually named after a real person. For example, did you know that shrapnel was invented by a man named Henry Shrapnel? It's true. The guillotine, or guillotine, was named after Dr. Joseph Ignace Guillotine. He was actually against the death penalty, but tried to make it as humane as possible with his contraption. He eventually tried to get the government to remove his name from the guillotine, but they refused.

So guillotine ended up changing his name, tellingly, to Mercier. The dunce cap was named after John Duns Scotus. He was a 13th century philosopher whose teachings fell out of favor a few centuries later. From that point on, a follower of Duns was called a dunce and was the subject of ridicule. Even the lowly guppy was named after someone named Guppy, Robert John Lechmere Guppy to be precise, a British naturalist who discovered the species in Trinidad in 1866.

Then there are the brand names that began life as surnames. Ever indulge in a relaxing jacuzzi? For years, it was arguably the biggest brand name in hot tubs. But did you know that jacuzzi is not just a brand name, it's a family surname? Meet Candido Jacuzzi. Candido was the youngest of seven brothers that emigrated from northern Italy to northern California in the early 1900s. In 1942, Candido's 15-month-old son was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. The boy's physician recommended hydrotherapy to ease his symptoms, and treatment began at the hospital.

Candido decided to design a home hydrotherapy apparatus that produced a similar effect to the equipment he'd seen at the hospital. This way, his son could receive regular treatments at home. He created a small, portable pump that he added to their existing bathtub to create a whirlpool effect. It worked wonders. So Candido and his family started a business called Jacuzzi

and christened the pump the J300. They began selling the J300 to hospitals and schools. But soon, Candido realized not only the therapeutic value of his pump, but the commercial value as well, and he wanted to get the word out to the masses. He managed to get the J300 onto a popular NBC game show called Queen for a Day as one of the regular prizes. Would you like to be And just like that, Jacuzzi became a household name. The J300 became a symbol of luxury and a worldwide phenomenon.

In 1968, Candido and his family invented the first ever self-contained whirlpool bath with a built-in pump. Two years later, they invented the first two-person jacuzzi that would eventually become the hot tub. Candido served as president of the jacuzzi company for over 40 years until his retirement in 1971. In the late 70s, the brand became so big the family decided to sell the company. You know a brand is powerful when its name actually becomes a verb, as in, want a jacuzzi? The Jacuzzi, invented by Candido Jacuzzi,

a hot tub name that blew all others out of the water. Ever had a Graham Cracker? It is not named after a Graham Cracker company or a Graham Corporation. It is actually named after Sylvester Graham, a man of few vices. Sylvester Graham was a Presbyterian preacher in the 1800s who had strict rules when it came to healthy living. He encouraged people to exercise, to bathe regularly, which was a radical idea in the 1840s,

and to abstain from all sex except when it came to reproduction. Graham believed that impure thoughts emanated from what we ate. He was convinced a pure diet would lead to a pure life, and, conversely, a bad diet would lead to sinful sexual behavior. Specifically, he said mustard and ketchup would lead to insanity, and consuming a steak dinner with wine would increase the, quote, excitability of the genital organs. Minister Graham put an even finer point on it.

He said eating meat and spicy food would lead to self-abuse, or self-love, if you catch my drift. Graham agreed with Seinfeld on this one. But are you still master of your domain? I am king of the county. You? Lord of the county. You? Lord of the manor. The minister believed that if you were to continue this self-pollution,

your eyes would fall back into their sockets, become red and inflamed, and eventually, you would go blind. His cure? A plain, simple, unstimulating diet. He called it the Graham Diet. It became a movement, and from that, the Graham Cracker was born. Its blandness was its greatest feature.

Made of unbleached flour, bran, and wheat germ, it produced almost no taste when chewed. Eating it would quash all sexual thoughts of any kind, achieving its lofty goal of minimizing pleasure at all costs. Today, the Graham Cracker is made with processed flour, sugar, and honey.

Hear that sound? That's old Sylvester Graham turning over in his grave. But if you ever feel the need to cool your jets, just nibble on a plain Graham cracker. If you're like me, you enjoy a bowl of nachos every once in a while.

Did it ever occur to you that nachos were created by a bowl of nachos every once in a while. Did it ever occur to you that nachos were created by a guy named Nachos? It's true. The dish originated in northern Mexico back in the 1940s. There was an army base near Eagle Pass in Texas, and right across the border was a town called Piedras Negras. One day, the wives of the U.S. soldiers went over to the Mexican town to do some shopping. After a few hours, the ladies got hungry and walked into a restaurant just as it was closing.

The chef had gone home, but the maitre d' didn't want to turn the wives away. So he quickly created a snack for them from whatever he could find in the kitchen. He took tortillas and cut them up into triangles, fried them, grated some cheese, put it all in a broiling oven to brown, then added some sliced pickled jalapeno peppers. The ladies loved the dish and asked the maitre d' what it was called. His name was Ignacio Nachos Anaya, so he said, they're nachos special.

As the word spread about this delicious creation, more and more people came into the restaurant to ask Nachos for his special dish. And over time, the name got shortened to Nachos. The rest is crunchy finger food history Many years after Nacho's death in 1975 his son tried to trademark the dish but too much time had passed since its creation and the recipe was now in the public domain Who knew that nachos were created by nachos.

Have you ever enjoyed a crisp Granny Smith apple? They're one of the most popular varieties sold round the world. But did you know there was a real-life Granny Smith? Maria Sherwood was born in 1799 in Sussex, England. In 1819, she married farm laborer Thomas Smith and changed her name to Maria Smith. Together, they migrated to Ryde, Australia and bought 24 acres of land. Ryde was the ideal fruit-growing climate. There, they harvested fresh produce for the Sydney market. Thomas sold his fruit and Maria sold her homemade pies. One day in 1868, Maria discarded the peels and seeds from

a box of French crab apples she'd purchased at the market. She threw them onto a compost heap near a creek on their farm. Some months later, she noticed a little tree growing from the pile. She tended to it, and eventually it bore, not red apples, but green apples. She took care of the tree until the day she died in 1870 at the age of 71. Six years later, an orchardist named Edward Gillard bought part of the Smith farm. He noticed this unusual tree and its green apples and developed the seedling into an orchard. As it turned out, the trees weren't French crabapple trees.

They appeared to be producing a brand new hybrid variety, a cross between a crab apple and a Cleopatra apple. So Gillard decided to name the fruit the Granny Smith, in honor of the little old lady who first cultivated it. In 1895, the Australian Department of Agriculture named Granny Smiths suitable for export, and the first major cultivation of the apple began. After World War I, Granny Smith's were being exported all over the world. The apple's thick skin and firm center gave it a good shelf life in supermarkets. It's also what made the apple so popular with consumers. Part of the Smith farm is now commemorated as the Granny Smith Memorial Park.

And there, every year, the locals hold the Granny Smith Festival. The Granny Smith Apple, named after Granny Smith. And by the way, the famous label on Beatle records was none other than

a green Granny Smith Apple. And we'll be right back after this message. If you're enjoying this episode, why not dip into our archives, available wherever you download your pods. Go to terryoreilly.ca for a master episode list. Do you wake up every morning, throw on your leotard and head off to work? Me too. But did you know that leotard isn't just a funny word?

Back in the 1800s, it was a famous name. Jules Leotard was born in France in 1842. He did well in school and was on track to become a lawyer when he began to experiment with trapeze bars, ropes, and rings. Jules was instantly hooked. He was originally trained by his father, who taught gymnastics and managed a swimming pool. Jules would practice his trapeze stunts suspended over the pool.

In 1859, Jules invented the Flying Trapeze Act. He became the first person to complete a somersault in mid-air and the first to jump from one trapeze

to the next with no safety net, by the way. In fact, it was Jules who inspired the song The Man on the Flying Trapeze by George Laybourne. He floats through the air with the greatest of ease, this daring young man on the flying trapeze.

But Jules Lyotard's other great legacy was his performance outfit. It was a skin-tight knitted one-piece he invented to allow him total freedom and aerodynamics. Because it was so form-fitting, there was no danger of any fabric catching or flapping as he performed. It was also intended to put Jewel's masculinity on full display. Jewel sported his skin-tight uniform for the rest of his career, and 16 years after his death, the name leotard caught on. Paris ballet schools were the first non-circus performers to adopt the leotard, and over a century later, leotards are still sold and used at dance and gymnastic schools to this day.

And we owe it all to leotard, who flew through the air with the greatest of ease, all thanks to his leotard. Did you know that 57 Bic pens are sold every second? Did you know there was a Mr. Bic? In 1944, a man named Marcel Bic, spelled B-I-C-H, and his business partner bought a factory in Paris, founding a company called Societe PPA. PPA stood for Pens, Pencils, and Accessories. During the war, Bic laid eyes on the first ballpoint pen,

which was created in Argentina. In 1950, he decided to design his own ballpoint, calling it the Bick Crystal. The crystal had leading-edge Swiss technology behind it, shaping the metal down to 0.01 millimeters while still allowing ink to flow freely. The body of the pen was an ergonomic hexagonal shape. The ink neither leaked nor clogged.

In the 1950s, Bick started to advertise his pens. That's when an advertising executive advised Bick to shorten the pen's name from B-I-C-H to B-I-C. It was simpler, easier to remember, and unique. To advertise the revolutionary BIC pen, they created award-winning posters and dramatic television commercials with the slogan, writes first time, every time. In 1961, famed French designer Raymond Savignac designed the classic Bic schoolboy mascot with the ballpoint head, called BicBoy, and placed it next to the orange letters BIC. From that moment on, orange became Bic's official color

and the BicBoy logo remains to this day. Bic pens weren't just successful, they changed the history of penmanship. When the first ballpoint pen hit the market in 1946, it sold for about $10, or the equivalent of $100 today. But Bic had an enormous impact on prices. When the Bic Crystal hit the market in 1959, its unique design sold for 19 cents a pen, making ballpoint pens accessible to the masses. They still sell for about the same amount today. Marcel Bic died at age 79 in 1992. Less than 10 years later, the Museum of Modern Art recognized the Bic crystals' design by adding it to their permanent collection. Today, the Bic company still remains in the Bic family,

and it has created over 280 different products. Not only was Bic created by Bic, but it wrote a chapter in the history books as the best-selling pen in the world with over 100 billion sold. If you're looking for flexible workouts, Peloton's got you covered. Summer runs or playoff season meditations, whatever your vibe, Peloton has thousands of classes built to push you. We know how life goes. New father, new routines, new locations. What matters is that you have something there to adapt with you, whether you need a challenge or rest.

And Peloton has everything you need, whenever you need it. Find your push. Find your power. Peloton. Visit Peloton at onepeloton.ca. There is a product that every hockey fan knows and loves. It is as entrenched as any hockey stick, puck, or goalie pad. It has become such an accepted noun in our collective language that it's hard to believe it was actually created by someone named Frank Zamboni. Back in the 1930s, Frank Zamboni and his brother had an ice block business,

supplying ice to dairies and produce distributors. But as refrigeration technology improved, they slowly went out of business, so they looked for ways to capitalize on their ice expertise. Ice skating was becoming popular, so the Zamboni brothers built an ice skating rink in the city of Paramount, Southern California, and called it the Iceland Skating Rink. It was huge, 20,000 square feet of ice surface, enough for 800 skaters. Hard to believe, but the skating rink was an open-air facility in Southern California.

And with the intense heat of California, the ice quality was less than ideal. So the Zambonis built a roof. But they still had to come up with a way to maintain the ice surface. They experimented with a machine that would shave the ice, remove the shavings, wash and squeegee the ice, and hold snow in an elevated tank that would last long enough to resurface the entire rink. The crazy-looking vehicle was built from Jeep parts

and Army surplus equipment. But eventually, through several iterations, Frank Zamboni figured out how to pull it all together. He wanted to call his business the Paramount Engineering Company, after the city the company was located in. As fate would have it, another company already had that name. So Frank decided to use a name he knew wouldn't be taken. Frank J. Zamboni and Company.

He was granted a patent in 1953, and a Zamboni was first used in an NHL game in Boston on New Year's Day, 1954. And from that moment on, Zambonis became a familiar sight at arenas everywhere. Peanuts creator Charles Schultz was a big hockey fan and said that a Zamboni clearing the ice is one of three things in life that people love to stare at, along with a flowing stream and a crackling fire. As a matter of fact, Arthur Wirtz,

the owner of the Chicago Blackhawks and the Chicago Stadium, was originally hesitant to purchase a Zamboni. He was worried that people would stay in their seats to watch it and not go to the concession stands. Yep, there is something mesmerizing about watching

a Zamboni at work. Hats off to the Zamboni created by Frank Zamboni. There are close to 50,000 products in a typical grocery store today. And if you do the grocery shopping, most of those brands wouldn't be unfamiliar to you. That's how many brand names we are capable of storing, carefully separating one product from the other in an elaborate cranial filing system. Those brand names have become inanimate objects in our minds. So, it's strange to think that many of those familiar names were once people before they were brands. Candido Jacuzzi,

Sylvester Graham, Nachos Anaya, Granny Maria Smith, Jules Leotard, Marcel Bic, and good old Frank Zamboni. Time is the culprit. Over the years, the people fade and the brand names live on in advertising and marketing. Most of us know that a Dyson vacuum cleaner was invented by James Dyson. But if history tells us anything, the James part of that name will disappear in about 25 years. Some inventors are just happy to have a product become famous. Some hope for immortality and a few, like guillotine, wish they could be forgotten. And then there's Mount Cleese, as in cheese, a name born of reciprocal dumping. When you're under the influence.

I'm Terry O'Reilly. Under the Influence was recorded in the Terror Stream. Producer, Debbie O'Reilly. Sound Engineer, Keith Ullman. Theme music by Ari Posner and Ian Lefevre. Co-writer, Sydney O'Reilly. Follow me on Twitter at Terry O'Influence for show updates and bonus material. See you next week. This episode brought to you by...

Bic. Does Bic know pens? Does TV have commercials? By the way, feel free to peruse the Under the Influence shop. We've got some fun t-shirts that will fit you to a tee. Go to terryoreilly.ca slash shop. Every purchase supports the show and we appreciate it.