This page was last updated on July 9, 2011.

This page gives the sought-after pronunciation for the less-obvious punny people names.

In some cases, the pronunciation is clear enough, but the reference may not be understood. For example, P. Quad is pretty clear for pronunciation; but does everyone get the reference to Pequod, the ship in Moby Dick?

In fact, the National Lampoon references are generally very smart — reflecting, I submit, the good education of the early, early Baby Boomers who created the yearbook parody from which the names are taken.

Plus, there are references to things of the era that are no longer so near the top of one’s brain — Dyna Flow transmissions, for example.

The list below includes some punny names that I didn’t get on my own. I needed help that was kindly supplied by visitors to this site.

Al Ivo: Alive oh, or Alive-O. Probably refers to a line from an old Irish folk song about a pretty fishmonger named Molly Malone, who sold her wares on the streets. The line goes, “Crying ‘Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh!’”
     Before refrigeration was invented, alive was the only way you wanted to buy your shellfish and such.

Carolina Rice: A brand of rice.

Cheri Flip: A cherry flip is a cocktail made with cherry brandy.

Flo Dallone: Float a loan

Ida Lowers: Idle hours

Joan Adog: “D'ja own a dog?” or “Do you own a dog?” Say it with kinduva country drawl.
     The pronunciation of the contraction might be better illustrated by an exchange like this:
“D’ja eat yet?” [“Did you eat yet?”]
“Naw, d’jou?” [“No, did you?”]
     Also, there was the “Curb Your Enthusiasm” episode in which Larry gets in trouble for how he asked this question about eating. An overly sensitive person thought Larry had said “Jew, eat!” instead of “D’ju eat?”

N. D’Vennaira: [The] end of an era

Petey Bowt: P.T. Boat [as in JFK’s P.T. 109]

Theopholos Punnoval: The awfulest pun of all

Walt Step: Waltz step

K.L. Chingah: “Spanish” for “What the Fuck”
     (as in “Que el chinga”)

If you want a punny name explained, all you need to do is e-mail me at crassman@verycrasswords.com. I will answer your e-mail with an explanation. If  your query seems helpful to the world at large, I will add the associated punny name to the list below.
 

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