Made me laugh!

[NY]

I'm well aware that Durex is a brand name in Australia of what we call Sellotape in the UK.

I subscribe to a "Word a Day" mailing list and today's word is Durex. Interestingly, for the Oxford English Dictionary, it only lists the Australian sellotape meaning.

But what made me laugh was the etymology:

"Etymology: < the name of Durex Abrasives Ltd., U.K.-based company formed in 1929 by several U.S. manufacturing companies (including 3M), to manufacture various branded products (including Durex cellulose tape and Durex masking tape) for international markets."

The thought of Durex (in the UK "condom" sense) being manufactured by a company that manufactures *abrasives* brings tears to my eyes ;-) Sand-coated johnnies for extra sensation?

[nothanks]

They both come to a sticky end (sorry!)

[Davey]

When I worked in Michigan, we often bought products, such as Neoprene gasketing, from The Exotic Rubber Company. I always wondered what else they made.....

[Brian Gaff]

Maybe better grip?

It set me thinking about other manufacturers names being linked to actual devices. You know my Hoover is a Shark.

For a long while before there was a lot of competition, Kenwood was what we called food mixers. I noticed the other day that there were rolls of what looked and felt like Velcro, but had some other name and called something like tooltidies or some. Brian

[Brian Gaff]

But markets are exploited if you get an idea of how to use your skills or a particular product for something else. I love the term Artisan. You get artisan everythings these days, but the very first time I saw or hear it was for a furniture maker, who made hand made custom furniture somewhere in the west country. Interestingly, as well as normal furniture, they made what the guy said were novelty pieces that could be made into other things. From his comments I gathered that these were meant for creative sex games, shall we say. I'm sure there are many stories like that and most are mundane things, but its the more sleazy ones we tend to remember.

I'd love to have found out who convinced Hitachi to create the first sex toy, for example. What was the board room discussion on that one. Brian

[inri]

An invitation to France.

[SH]

many years ago I came across gravy granules made by a company called Brown and Polson which had such a terrible font I would read it as brown and poison!

[Chris Hogg]

FWIW, the London Rubber Company (makers of Durex condoms) owned the Royal Worcester Porcelain Company for a while in the mid 1980's, which caused a certain amount of mirth in the tableware industry.

[NY]

My mucky mind always conjured up visions of young women in skin-tight rubber suits, whenever I saw the brand name "Rubbermaid". I'm sure I'm not alone in that...

[jim.gm4dhj]

and their office buildings were converted into flats......

[wasbit]

Inside, outside or dual coated?

[JNugent]

Isn't *all* rubber exotic as far as Europe and North America are concerned?

At least as exotic as pineapples and bananas.

[Max Demian]

I think most of what we call "rubber" is made from crude oil, not latex from rubber trees. "Foam rubber" is really polyurethane foam.