Friday, April 19, 2013

Names

This weeks LBC topic is NAMES.   I know y'all saw this one coming :)


My name (Chuck)  was a guilty pleasure when it came to the name game.  That was of course before "in your face" became the norm. My actual name - Charles - From the Germanic name Karl, which was derived from a Germanic word which meant "man". However, an alternative theory states that it is derived from the common Germanic element hari meaning "army, warrior". Cool.  Warrior.  Better than shy ex-jock - LOL.

Every name has a story behind it.  I like nicknames and their history - take mine - Bubba.  Now the uninitiated may assume that since I live in Texas - part of the south - that Bubba is a common regional nickname - and somewhat natural.  Not so in my case.  I was born in Colorado and raised in Colorado and Northern California.  I was first called Bubba by my little sister when she had trouble with the word brother.  Bubba stuck with me when my younger (I have not been allowed to call him little since he surpassed me in height) brother came along and to this day that is all they call me.  My 5 nieces from their families call me Uncle Bubba as do some very close friends' kids.  Only one person calls me Charlie (and lives to tell about it) and one old friend calls me Chas.

My other nickname is my Web name - shackman. That one is a natural as I have worked for decades at RadioShack.

I'm fond of a mystery series about a San Francisco based detective called nothing but Bill.  Kudos to Bill Pronzini for keeping that mystery alive for over 40 published works in the nameless Detective series. And the other end of the spectrum - the late Robert B Parker's Spenser series,  Bet ya don't know Spenser's first name.  And his oft times sidekick Hawk - a very aptly named badass sidekick.  And of course many authors publish their works under pen names.

Sports generates some great nicknames.  A few of my faves include Stretch - aka Willie McCovey, the Say Hey Kid - Willie Mays, David "Deacon" Jones - Deacon being one of the greatest pass rushers in NFL history,  the Splendid Splinter - Ted Williams,  Gerry "Cheesy" Cheevers.

Of course entertainers rarely seem to go by their given names.  Take Prince (or whatever he goes by today).

Most people know who Marion Michael Morrison is but can you name:

Allen Konigsberg
Betty Joan Perske
Richard Walter Jenkins
Maurice Micklewhite

Surely you know Woody Allen, Lauren Bacall, Richard Burton and Michael Caine.

Then there are our pets.   Ginger, Cheech and Chong are the names of my dog and 2 cats.  There's nearly always a story behind pets names - I happen to be a huge fan of Cheech & Chong. And if you want to ride in the desert on a horse, how about




Names are fun to discuss.  Of course there can be a serious side to names and the discussion thereof - just not today by me. But what about my LBC cohorts?? Check them out - they're listed over there on the right.....


7 comments:

  1. I have a neighbor who wrote and published a murder mystery that is based in San francisco. But this particular neighbor is really weird. All of us who live around him were thinking we should read the book in case it was about how someone killed off all their neighbors. lol

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  2. I had never heard either song and both are fascinating. Thanks.

    Learning a little more about you every LBC post is also fascinating.

    I am surprised that this did not feature in your post.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAOVRkSCWmg

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    1. We're even Rummy - didn't know the song til you suggested it

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  3. Thanks Bubba, I now have a new party game with that first number. I did know who Richard Walter Jenkins & Maurice Micklewhite, were, but not the first two. Lauren Bacall was my mother’s time, and I was never a fan of Woody Allen.

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    1. Lauren Bacall was hot before hot became a descriptor :-)

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  4. I'm stickin' with Shackman. It's catchy and different. Didn't know until now why you use it.
    blessings ~ maxi

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  5. I always enjoyed the commentary on the need for Joe Montana to have a nickname as discussed in The Chronicle. They decided that after all is said and done, he was born named with a nickname and nothing should be added! Another player like that was the football player that I always thought had the best football name ever - Bronco Nagurski!

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