The Real People Behind Some Famous Brand Names

A lot of the brands of foods, clothes, appliances, and what have you that we use every day are named after the people who invented and/or developed these products. Which got me thinking...what do these people look like? Here's a few of the ones I found. You might find them interesting...

Ever seen this guy before?

No? Well, don't feel bad. I hadn't, either. This is Duncan Hines.

Now where have you heard that name before?

Oh yeah, that's where! (Great, now I want brownies...)

Maybe you've used one of these gadgets before...

Or maybe you own a pair of Bushnell binoculars. If you're a hunter, 

you might even have a Bushnell rifle scope. Ever wonder what 

that Bushnell guy looks like? Me neither. But just for the 

sake of argument, here he is. Mr. David P. Bushnell...

Now what about this lady? She look familiar?

No? But I bet you know her name pretty well.

It's Liz Claiborne. She designs clothes. Like these...

Maybe you own a set of these from way back when?

These weirdly-named encyclopedias were named for their

publishers. First, you've got Mr. Isaac Kaufmann Funk...

And his publishing partner, Mr. Adam Willis Wagnalls...

Interesting-looking character, that one. Anyway...

Do you like cookies as much as I do? You do?

Did you ever try Mrs. Fields' cookies?

They're good, aren't they? Well, in case you were wondering

what Mrs. Fields actually looks like (unlikely), this is her...

Her friends just call her Debbi.

Now this guy just looks like an old-school baseball player, 

huh? Which makes sense, 'cuz that's what he was...at first. 

Upon retiring from baseball, however, this dapper gent got 

into the sporting goods business. His name's Albert G. Spalding. 

You've probably come in contact with one or more

of his products at some point, I'll bet. Like this one...

Do you like mayonnaise? I do. (My wife doesn't.)

Ever wonder what the guy who came up with Hellmann's 

looks like? No? I didn't think so. But humor me for just a 

minute. This is Mr. Richard Hellmann in the flesh...

Incidentally, there was never an actual person

named Miracle Whip. Sorry to burst your bubble.

Do these guys look familiar?

I didn't think so. This is Bill Hewlett and his business partner,

Dave Packard. They started this IT business called Hewlett-

Packard a long time ago. You might have one of their printers?

What about this lady? Ever seen her before?

Probably not. Her name is Lena Himmelstein Bryant.

When she started designing clothes, she changed 

around the letters of her first name and dropped her 

maiden name. Now maybe you've heard of her?

Maybe you're one of those folks like my dad who loves a fancy

pen. (I've got something for everybody here, people!) Have

you heard of Parker Pens? Here's what some of them look like...

Pretty nice, huh? Anyway, Parker Pens (like practically everything

else in this list) was named after the founder of the company. In this

case, that person was Mr. George Safford Parker. This is him...

Ever been to Barnes & Noble to buy a book?

I know I sure have. I even worked at one for four years. Anyway,

before it was a mega-chain, Barnes & Noble Booksellers was only

in one location in downtown Manhattan. It was started by two 

guys named – not surprisingly – Mr. Barnes and Mr. Noble. 

I couldn't find a picture of Mr. Charles Barnes. But here's

a pic of his bookselling partner, Mr. Gilbert Clifford Noble...

Do you wear jeans? You probably do. If so, 

what brand do you prefer? Perhaps Lee Jeans?

Well, that's certainly a disturbing ad. But anyway...

The Lee Jeans Company was started by a fellow 

named Mr. Henry David Lee. This is him...

Maybe you prefer Levi's?

If so, you may be interested to know (or not)

what Mr. Levi Strauss, the jeans company's

founder, looked like. This would be him...

Maybe you're one of those people who just has to have top-of-

the-line accessories (I'm not judging). Like Louis Vuitton...

You may be interested to know that the real Louis

Vuitton was quite creepy-looking. This is him...

I'll bet you don't know who this guy is.

But I'll bet you recognize his last name.

This is Mr. James A. Folger...

Yes, that Folger. The guy who came up

with Folgers coffee. It's pretty good, too!

Maybe you like shoes. Well, whether you like them or

not, chances are you have to wear them out in public.

Anyway, did you ever own a pair of Vans? (I never did.)

Well, Vans got their name from their co-founders, brothers

Paul and James Van Doren. I couldn't find a good

picture of both of them, but this is James Van Doren...

Okay, hang with me here. There's only a few more of these...

Like I was saying earlier, maybe you're one of this folks who 

likes high-end stuff. Maybe you're not a Louis Vuitton kind 

of person. Maybe Dolce & Gabbana is more up your alley...

This is Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. They

design stuff. It costs a lot. But people like it. A lot.

Now here's an interesting-looking fellow. The 

name's E. E. Dickie. Nickname: "Colonel."

 No, not the fried chicken colonel. This guy makes clothes.

Hard-working clothes for hard-working...workers.

He calls them Dickies.

Now, here's an interesting story. This guy, Mr. Charles Revson...

...partnered with his brother, Mr. Joseph Revson...

...and another guy named Joseph Lachman (not 

pictured) to form a company that sold cosmetics. The

brothers didn't think that "Revson" was a very good

name for their company, plus they felt bad about leaving

Mr. Lachman out entirely, so they took the "L" from

Lachman's name and used it to replace the "S" in 

"Revson" and came up with the name "Revlon."

And it stuck...

This guy probably doesn't look familiar. But chances are,

you've heard his name a time or two. He sells sporting goods,

outdoor apparel, and even luggage, if I'm not mistaken.

The name's Eddie Bauer...

You might have one of these at home...

But have you ever seen a picture of the guys whose names grace

this and hundreds of other tools like it? Well, you have now. Ladies

and gentlemen, Mr. S. Duncan Black and Mr. Alonzo G. Decker...

You may have some of these tires on your automobile right now...

If so, then you owe it to yourself to know what Mr. Firestone

looks like. If not, well, you've come this far, so you may as 

well look at the picture anyway. This is Mr. Harvey Firestone...

I saved a picture of this guy, but I've forgotten who he 

was and why he was important. Chances are, he invented or 

developed some well-known product that still bears his

name. But I didn't make myself a note about him, so I can't

actually identify him. Anyway, here he is...some old guy.

The Poky Little Puppy Returns: An Original Story For Kids

With our kid well on his way to being here, I've been thinking a lot about books I loved as a kid. My absolute favorite book when I was young was the Little Golden Book classic, The Poky Little Puppy. Back when I was in high school, for an English class journal entry, I wrote a sequel to the original story. I've never done anything with it until now. But here it is. If you like it, feel free to read it to your kids. If you don't like it, that's okay too...

"THE POKY LITTLE PUPPY RETURNS"

Once upon a time the poky little puppy made his fantastic voyage over the hills, under the fence, and beyond. No matter what dangers he faced, the poky little puppy was fearless. He had courage when all his other brothers cowered in fear.

Over the next few years, the poky little puppy's brothers grew to be fine, strapping dogs and were all adopted out to caring, loving families. But the poky little puppy was still poky and still little.

Just recently, the poky little puppy had been abandoned, and the dogcatcher had come and put him in a dirty old cage in an animal shelter and left him there. Indeed, it seemed that nobody loved the poky little puppy anymore.

The other dogs in the animal shelter were big and strong and could run fast. The poky little puppy was small, weak, and very slow. The other dogs barked loud, but the poky little puppy's bark sounded more like a squeak.

Then one day, the kind old people who ran the animal shelter decided that there was no more room for the poky little puppy, and that he was going to have to be put to sleep. The poky little puppy didn't understand what the humans were planning to do, but he knew that it was scary and that it was not good.

So the poky little puppy decided to run away. But how would he break through the wire bars? He tried to gnaw at them, but it made his teeth hurt and the wire still wouldn't break anyway. He tried to dig a hole underneath his cage, but the floor was cement and it hurt his claws to scratch at it.

Exhausted, the poky little puppy lay his head down on the cold cement. It was no use, he decided. Then he had an idea!

Maybe he could climb out the top of the cage. Only a thin cardboard layer stapled to the wood frame of the cage separated him from freedom. But how could he ever climb up the side of the cage and claw himself free?

He tried several times, unsuccessfully, to climb the cage. But he was already tired, and it was a very hard task. Then with the last bit of strength he could muster, he scaled the wall of the cage and began butting the cardboard with his head over and over again till it finally came loose.

The poky little puppy looked back at the filthy cage that had been his miserable home these past few days and knew he would not miss it. 

With hope in his heart, the poky little puppy squeezed his way out the top of the cage. All that was left now was to escape from the shelter itself, which was easier said than done.

Just then, the old man who ran the shelter saw that the poky little puppy was loose and began running after him. The poky little puppy turned on all the speed he could manage, and raced down the hallway toward the screened-in front door.

The old man was gaining on him, but the poky little puppy was not going to be stopped this time. The man ran toward the screen door and tried to block the doorway. But when he did the door opened behind him, and the poky little puppy slipped right through it.

At last, the poky little puppy was free! But where would he go now? What would he do? He thought about it for a minute and decided that he didn't care. Anywhere he went was better than where he had been.

As the sun set on the western sky, the poky little puppy waddled away, over the hills, under the fence, and on his way to a new life.

THE END

Things I've Lost (And Things I Haven't)

Someone I knew -- not well, but well enough -- passed away yesterday after a long illness. I can only imagine what his family is going through right now. Loss is never an easy thing to deal with. The loss of a life is by far the worst. Other losses can also be devastating, though. The possibility of further losses to come can make for an uncertain future.

Which got me thinking...here are a few things I've lost, and a few more that I haven't (so far, at least)...

THINGS I'VE LOST...

 My Focus

My Perspective

Respect (For Others, Of Others)

Friends

Time

Money

Sleep

THINGS I HAVEN'T LOST...

  Weight

 My Hair

My Mind

Heart

My Faith

My Way

Myself