Name Shame

Hitler’s Cross

2008-02-22T21:14:00.004-05:00

In Bombay, an eatery opened for business in 2006 as Hitler’s Cross. The combination of the name and the swastika logo were enough to provoke outrage, and they are now The Cross Café.

Moron

2008-02-22T18:54:00.005-05:00

Henry Herbert Goddard, a guy who advocated rounding up the feeble-minded in special colonies a century ago, coined the word moron, meaning a person with an IQ score in the 50-75 point range. That term is long gone from the medical lexicon, but there is still a term for a nearly identical IQ range: mild mental retardation.

Star Hustler

2008-02-20T20:00:00.006-05:00

Jack Horkheimer's beloved Star Hustler television series coasted through the 80's unscathed, only to lock onto a collision course with the Internet. When it became clear that kids were looking for the show in search engines and finding porn, that excellent little program was rechristened Star Gazer.

Fairy Penguin

2008-02-19T21:55:00.003-05:00

Some people in Australia have officially given up on the name Fairy Penguin, and have declared their intention to refer to them as Little Penguins.

Area 51

2008-02-14T15:56:00.012-05:00

The infamous Area 51 test range at Groom Lake Nevada has inspired generations of inquisitive nutcases. The cumulative effect of all that tinfoil-hatted attention made a mockery of its image as a no-nonsense military installation. It needed a new name that would better reflect its vital national security role. That name, for now, is Homey Airport.

TrekStor i.Beat Blaxx

2008-02-12T22:35:00.012-05:00

The TrekStor i.Beat Blaxx mp3 player will be henceforth known as TrekStor Blaxx. Sometimes, one strongly worded letter is enough to induce an immediate renaming.

Enron Field

2008-02-10T23:42:00.003-05:00

When Enron declared bankruptcy, Enron Field signage was yanked before they were able to pull together a proper new name for the structure. It was known as Astros Field for the ensuing two months before finally being dubbed Minute Maid Park, as apparently even the word "Field" had taken collateral damage.

Celica Tsunami

2008-02-10T18:38:00.001-05:00

After a deadly tsunami swept across south Asia in December 2004, Toyota abruptly backed out of plans for a Celica Tsunami and decided that a more evocative name might be Celica Sports Package.

Ayds

2008-02-09T22:05:00.001-05:00

Ayds diet suppressant "candy" had a perfectly acceptable name for a long time, before being overtaken by fate in the early 80's. In a desperate bid to distance their brand from the AIDS disease and retain brand recognition, they briefly renamed the product to Diet Ayds before bowing to the heedless winds of history and yanking the product off the shelves.

Jewfish

2008-02-09T13:41:00.001-05:00

For whatever reason, the highly influential Committee on Names of Fishes has decided that Jewfish is a name with unwanted baggage. This denizen of the deep is to be known henceforth as the Goliath Grouper.

Condoleezza Rice

2008-02-09T11:43:00.000-05:00

Despite Rice's own contention that "I'm very proud of my association with Chevron", someone, somewhere, was not feeling the pride. Chevron's oil tanker formerly known as the Condoleezza Rice is now known as the Altair Voyager.