Terms Which Have Disappeared

[Fading Fast]

A lot of people don't know that the trademark "Apple" is owned by The Beatles for many things musical and electronic and Apple Computers has had to pay them to license many things. For example, Apple Computer had to pay them something like $600MM to be allowed to create iTunes.

Well at least with that payment the Beatles won't be poor anymore.

 

[HudsonHawk]

Well at least with that payment the Beatles won't be poor anymore.

I think beginning next year they can start reclaiming their publishing rights, so they'll have something to live on in their old age.

 

[Fading Fast]

I think beginning next year they can start reclaiming their publishing rights, so they'll have something to live on in their old age.

It is funny, as I knew the Beatles owned the "Apple" name in some way as it was a big deal at the time when they did that - but I somehow missed - what I'm sure was big news at the time - that they sold some rights from it to Apple.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Basically, they allowed "Apple Computer" to exist without infringing on their own "Apple Corps" trademark.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Corps_v_Apple_Computer

 

[Fading Fast]

That account seems odd as Apple Computer won the '06 court case and, then, paid, reportedly, $500 million in '07 for all the rights Apple Corp had to the name? Maybe it was worth - what to Apple Computer was - a small dollar amount to own the name without issue, but the Wikipedia account is missing some connect between '06 and '07 - even insanely wealthy companies don't win court cases and, then, settle by paying out half a billion dollars. There's more to that story.

 

[HudsonHawk]

That account seems odd as Apple Computer won the '06 court case and, then, paid, reportedly, $500 million in '07 for all the rights Apple Corp had to the name? Maybe it was worth - what to Apple Computer was - a small dollar amount to own the name without issue, but the Wikipedia account is missing some connect between '06 and '07 - even insanely wealthy companies don't win court cases and, then, settle by paying out half a billion dollars. There's more to that story.

My understanding is that the one of the outcomes of the 06 case was that Apple Corp (The Beatles) owned all rights to distribute music under the "Apple" name. That meant when Apple Computer wanted to create iTunes, an online music distribution program, they had to license it from Apple Corp.

 

[Upgrade]

Noticed that excelsior is used to describe packing material for fragile specimens in Steinback's Cannery Row.

Wikipedia calls it "wood wool".

 

[BlueTrain]

Does anyone still say "As modern as tomorrow?"

 

[LizzieMaine]

There was a time when people who thought they were funny would say "Abysinnia" -- the obsolete name for Ethiopia -- when they meant "I'll be seeing you."

 

[Fading Fast]

I'm sure this has come up in this thread before, but in several '30s / '40s movies, I've heard "natch" used for "naturally" or "of course."

 

[Trenchfriend]

These days, I was interested in the history of the popular "Chukka boots"/"desert boots". I wanted to find out, if there's a special advantage on them, which made them so popular until today. Originally, it seems to be the light weight and the grippy handling.

 

[Fading Fast]

^^^While I'd say those terms are still in regular use, both have a vintage vibe as a term. As to today's popularity - my guess - it is because (1) they are still practical - the light weight and grip you mention, (2) they are reasonably priced (at least some are) and (3) to many, they have a classic / timeless look (I've seen them on Mickey Rooney in the '30s, Steve McQueen in the '60s and many, many others throughout the years).

My best understanding is that desert boots were invented for the British Army in India / other desert terrain.

Chukka boots are a more generic term for any ankle boot with only a few eyelets, but deserts need the gum sole you mention and suede uppers.

So desert boots are a subcategory of Chukkas. While I've seen some tie the term Chukka to the game of Polo as a Chukka is a time period of play in Polo and because, at some time in history, ankle boots were worn by the players, this connect seems less definite than the desert boot one to the British Army.

I claim no authority on this - the above is just knowledge I've acquired randomly over time - and am happy to be corrected by others. Oh, and I am a big fan of desert boots and wear them regularly

 

[vitanola]

I'm sure this has come up in this thread before, but in several '30s / '40s movies, I've heard "natch" used for "naturally" or "of course."

As in the use of "natch" in the lyrics of the song "By the Light of a Flickering Match"?

 

[Stanley Doble]

Got any research on "divan"? I used to hear that used every now and then, but I can't recall when I last did.

What we would call today a Cigar Club or Cigar Lounge was called a Cigar Divan in the 1800s. I recall vaguely that Robert Louis Stevenson wrote a story about one in London.

 

[MisterCairo]

Pay phone.

Car phone.

Cable tv.

Dial-up.

"Vintage" is a term that varies in definition every few years. I'm amazed at how an entire generation I interact with has never used the terms above.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Even more vintage than "cable TV" was CATV -- Community Antenna Television., which was the pre-satellite ancestor of the cable systems that exist today. It was popular in fringe-reception areas, and involved, basically, a big antenna tower on top of a mountain or a tall mast that would receive distant TV signals, which would then be amplified and distributed via cable to subscribers. No HBO, no ESPN, no CNN, no "superstations" or "cable networks" of any kind. Just regular over-the-air tee vee, but more of it, and with a clearer picture that most viewers were capable of receiving unaided.

 

[BlueTrain]

Technically, the word "vintage" should only be used only in connection with wine. And a similar word is "antique." It's not enough to be old for something to be a real antique but it's still something they discuss on Antiques Road Show. Sometimes I can even understand what they're saying.

But post #3216 (wow!) reminds me of other things, like party line, telegram, and phone booth, which is probably more familiar than pay phone. But other words gone out of everyday usage might include phone book, long-distance (call), and maybe even telephone operator. We still get mail delivered by a postman but we don't get so many letters. Letters, if we do get any, might be written in cursive but we used to write in script and if we were in a hurry, it was longhand. But we don't write letters so much these days. We still get a fair number of catalogs but no phone books.

Script, as a form of writing, is not to be confused with scrip, which is something else from the distant past. Sometimes a big company might pay its employees in "scrip," which was essentially company cash that could only be spent at a company store and most people haven't even heard of a company store. I doubt any still exist and moreover, I doubt they are missed, either. Subway tokens and things like that are a form of scrip, I suppose but they are purchased and not used as payment to employees.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Scrip was a major thing nationwide when the banking system collapsed in early March of 1933. Many banks, towns and cities issued scrip for use in everyday transactions due to the shortage of actual currency and the collapse of the check-processing system.

This whole episode is something that tends to be overlooked when people talk about the Depression. There was a period in late February and early March of 1933 when, not only were "times tough," but the entire financial structure of the United States fell apart. It didn't matter if you had money in the bank or not -- if the bank had failed, you lost it all. If the bank hadn't failed, it had closed to prevent rushes -- and you couldn't get your money. If you had money, especially gold coins, you hoarded it in a tin can or a mattress, and you slept with a gun under your pillow in anticipation of being looted. To all appearances, the American Apocalypse was at hand.

 

[Fading Fast]

^^^ One interesting thing is how quickly humans / societies adapt - banking system collapses and scrip pops us as a pure barter economy is hell. Cigarettes in prison is another one. While gold has a long history as money, it isn't easy to transport, use daily - hence, some substitute always appears.

And as I'm sure Lizzie can tell us better than I can, company scrip was, many times, just another way companies screwed their employees by paying them in scrip that could only be used at overpriced company stores.

 

[Bushman]

Dial-up.

And thank goodness, too. I couldn't stand losing the internet every time the phone rang. And that dial up tone was the stuff of nightmares.