Ohhh... NOW I get it!

[ArtVark]

In a related vein, I try to use "ATM" myself and refrain from correcting the hoi polloi when they say "ATM machine."

I work for a company whose development matrix is based on a document called "The TDF". What does TDF stand for? "THE Delivery Framework". I suggested we simply call it "the DF", but that idea was shot down. Ironically the front page of the document includes the slogan. "Lead. Simplify. Execute flawlessly."

Here in Los Angeles, I can go to "the La Brea tar pits" or watch "the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim" Translated into the same language, these phrases read:
"the the tar tar pits" and "the the angels angels of Anaheim."

Spanish speakers refer to a hotel here as "El the Biltmore."

[carlopanno]

I remember an old Bugs Bunny cartoon that I must have seen a hundred times on Saturday morning TV in the '70s and '80s. It's the one where Bugs falls in love with the mechanical bunny at a dog track. Well, a few years ago, after happening across this cartoon again, I realized that early in the cartoon the announcer cannot believe what he's seeing on the track and announces "Now I've seen everything!" followed by a gunshot. He's never heard from again for the rest of the cartoon. Missed that joke every time as a kid.

I was pretty thick as a kid.

Naw, that's just the effect of cartoon censorship. I'm sure the original version made the suicide much more explicit.

Don't be so sure. Some of Tex Avery's funniest gags happened offscreen.

If you want to investigate further, Warner Bros. has issued several box sets of uncensored and unedited Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons, complete with warnings that they are NOT recommended for children.

Full disclosure: My wife works at Warner Bros., but my recommendation is NOT based on that.

--c

[rockgolf]

I got the first box set of those several years ago, but was disappointed so many of my favorites weren't on it (What's Opera, Doc?, One Froggy Evening).

When I first watched cartoons as a child in the early sixties, I believe there was less censorship of those old Freleng/Chuck Jones/Avery classics. The "Now I've seen everything" line followed by a suicide by pistol shot to the temple was a relatively common motif. (Where else would I have seen it that specific action as a kid?) Many of these cartoons were shown on local TV stations, and without the means or interest to trim potentially offending segments.

By the 70's, the Saturday morning cartoons had become so benign that even Super-Friends wouldn't get into a fist fight. And, yes a lot of Warner Bros classics were trimmed or completely removed from circulation. I regularly read Mark Evanier's blog, who worked on Garfield and Scooby-Doo, and it was crazy how much they had to avoid saying or doing to get past the network censors.

[j]

When I first watched cartoons as a child in the early sixties, I believe there was less censorship of those old Freleng/Chuck Jones/Avery classics. The "Now I've seen everything" line followed by a suicide by pistol shot to the temple was a relatively common motif. (Where else would I have seen it that specific action as a kid?) Many of these cartoons were shown on local TV stations, and without the means or interest to trim potentially offending segments.

Though evidently not as...experienced...as Rockgolf (so I couldn't have seen the original airings in the '60s), I have seen my share of unedited Looney Tunes at various arthouse cinema screenings and can attest that a ton of them end with a character pointing a gun at his temple and blowing his brains out.

[billiej]

When I first watched cartoons as a child in the early sixties, I believe there was less censorship of those old Freleng/Chuck Jones/Avery classics. The "Now I've seen everything" line followed by a suicide by pistol shot to the temple was a relatively common motif. (Where else would I have seen it that specific action as a kid?) Many of these cartoons were shown on local TV stations, and without the means or interest to trim potentially offending segments.

Though evidently not as...experienced...as Rockgolf (so I couldn't have seen the original airings in the '60s), I have seen my share of unedited Looney Tunes at various arthouse cinema screenings and can attest that a ton of them end with a character pointing a gun at his temple and blowing his brains out.

Most of them must have still been intact in the late 60's, early 70's when I was watching them because I noticed a lot of stuff missing when re-viewing some of them later as an adult.

[Ken Jennings]

I got the first box set of those several years ago, but was disappointed so many of my favorites weren't on it (What's Opera, Doc?, One Froggy Evening).

From what I remember, this was a common complaint at the time. Warner Home Video wanted to put out a bunch of these box sets (they finally released 6, with 60+ cartoons each) so they decided not to front-load the first set with every possible top-ten classic. "What's Opera, Doc?" and "One Froggy Evening" are on the second set (Golden Collection Vol. 2) if you're still looking for them. These are great DVDs.

[braggtastic]

Are your kids interested in Bugs Bunny? If so, do you let them watch the unedited cartoons? I'm curious how parents handle things like this. Over Christmas I was watching Holiday Inn with my sister's family and when the Abraham Lincoln blackface scene came on, there was a lot of explaining to the 7 & 9 year-old in attendance.

[rockgolf]

I got the box set for me. I tried to get the kids interested in it, but they were mostly bored.

My kids are old enough now to know how things were racially not that long ago, but they've been in a racially-mixed family for most of their lives, so to them it's a ridiculous conceit of the past, more pathetic than offensive.

[LorieH]

Snuck in to see the R-rated Ordinary People as a kid because I had a huge crush on Timothy Hutton. Loved it, saw it many times, still remember the day when I later learned what the line to his psychiatrist "do you jack off, or jerk off, or whatever you call it?" was referring to...a sheltered child, yes.

[argus]

I had the same two latish-in-life realizations as the OP but I figured out most of the other things mentioned pretty early on.

I remember a "Sixty Minutes" segment where a Foreignian archaeologist repeatedly used the word "PAT-i-na" and the 60 Minutes guy, in his followup question, pronounced it "pa-TEE-na", as if subtly correcting the ESL guy. I don't mind when corrects me incorrectly, but if you're going to be so ostentatiously polite about it, you'd better be ****ing right.

Fred Astaire sang "it could be EE-di-pus Rex" in The Band Wagon. Of course, Gene Kelly would have sung it "ED-i-pus".

[Graham!]

When I started using firefox, I lost my screen name and haven't bothered posting. I wanted to add something, so I went on a mission to find my screen name (I should be writing my thesis... it's due in 7 hours and I have one page finished...) but now that I'm logged in I have no idea what I wanted to add.

I can say, though, that I've had such fun informing people that they've got "another think coming" over the last few weeks. I have learned so much from this thread...

Whenever the discussion of old cartoons (in the context of the thread) came up, it reminded me of this:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2227090536

and the alternative

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2227400839

[Graham!]

And of course, as soon as I click submit, I remember my original inspiration.

Here's one where I'm still looking for that "Aha!" moment:

Empathic or Empathetic?

For a while, I was going with Empathic (reasoning: One could be an "empath," as one could be a "psychopath" but not a "sympath.") I have since decided that empathetic is probably right (reasoning: I can't really find that much justification for the inclusion of the word "empath" outside of sci-fi/fantasy genres, and at that point, "sympath" has equal validity).

This must be the first time I've discussed this via FireFox, as its little spellchecker function doesn't like "empath" much at all. So perhaps I have had my "Aha!" moment.

Thoughts?

I once had a false "Aha!" moment with Country Fried Steak, when I realized that it was actually chicken. Interestingly, I can't remember when I figured out that my revelation was incorrect... I think there were a few years where I thought that Country Fried Steak was just fried chicken, though...

Also, I remember in fifth or sixth grade when I got a pair of corduroy pants and realized that it was not just the name of a bear missing a button... I think I had a similar reaction to velveteen--though, to be honest I'm still not entirely sure what velveteen is... some kind of faux velvet (felvet?), right?

[skullturfq]

Whenever the discussion of old cartoons (in the context of the thread) came up, it reminded me of this:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2227090536

and the alternative

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2227400839

Here in Canada, we have a department store called The Bay. When I was a kid, it completely blew my mind that the bizarre shape in their logo was supposed to be a B.

http://www.cawlocal240.ca/the%20bay.jpg

[skullturfq]

I didn't realize until I was in my late twenties that the term "coffee cake" usually refers to cake that one would typically eat with coffee, and not (usually) to coffee-flavored cake.

[billiej]

I didn't realize until I was in my late twenties that the term "coffee cake" usually refers to cake that one would typically eat with coffee, and not (usually) to coffee-flavored cake.

I had to chuckle because I've lost count of how many times I've had to explain this to my husband:

"I don't like coffee cake."
"Why?"
"I don't like coffee."
"Well, there's no rule that says you have to drink coffee with it."
"But doesn't it have coffee in it?"
(sigh...)"For the (nth) time...."

[Whatsahoe]

Is it okay to admit that I confused the words "vegetarian" and "virgin" when I was younger?

[SpiffWilkie]

Is it okay to admit that I confused the words "vegetarian" and "virgin" when I was younger?

I used to mix up lesbian and Lebanese

Edit: And just to be clear, I'm referring to the word, not the people. I never had that issue.

[skullturfq]

I remember being confused by "ovation" and "ovulation".

[Momma Snider]

When I was little, they still advertised cigarettes on the radio and TV, and I asked my mom once why we never buy Pall Mall, like the man told us to. I think I thought it was some kind of hot cereal, because it sounded kind of like "oatmeal."

[billiej]

I remember being confused by "ovation" and "ovulation".

And what was a standing "O"?

[Don WW]

When I started the first grade and the teacher first mentioned a rest room, I thought it would be a nice room with comfortable beds for us to rest in. Imagine my disappointment.

[mavman]

As a small child watching the NFL for he first time in the '70s, I thought that every time they mentioned a 1st round draft choice, or a verteran, they meant that player had served in Vietnam.

[ArtVark]

As a child, I remember seeing footage of ships being launched by having bottles of champagne smashed against them. When I heard that Helen of Troy had a face that launched a thousand ships, I imagined a lady smashing her face against the bows of ships until they started moving.

I figured that she must not have been too good looking after that.

[Whatsahoe]

I always thought Africa was a country and Egypt was a continent.
Also I heard the Pope was bishop of Rome so I thought the U.S. president was mayor of Washington DC
And am I the only one that didn't know what "R.I.P." meant

[skullturfq]

By the way, since we're on the subject, there's a website out there (iusedtobelieve.com) with many user-submitted examples of childhood misconceptions, sorted by category. Some are more amusing than others, and there are some repetitions, but you may find it interesting. (I'm not affiliated with the website or anything.)