What’s In A Name?
Mrs. Publicist: Fifteenth of the month, when we discuss a name from the Chet and Bernie series. Good morning, Pete. It’s eleven degrees out there so I’m assuming no bike ride today.
Pete: Don’t bet on it.
Mrs. Publicist: Hmm. Before you go then, what character name should we talk about today?
Spencer Quinn: How about Brando?
Mrs. P: The cat belonging to Thad Perry, the troubled and troublesome movie star in A Fistful of Collars?
Pete: Exactly.
Mrs. P: Described initially by Chet as follows: “Yes, a cat. Not particularly little, by the way, in fact, kind of monstrous.”
Pete: That’s the one. In terms of plot, Thad Perry turning out to be a cat person is a big red flag, certainly in Chet’s eyes. But the name itself says Hollywood, entitlement, self-satisfaction. Plus there was a feline aspect to Marlon Brando – I’d go so far as to say feminine, but let’s omit that – and that fit nicely. Of course Marlon Brando was one of those movie stars who was actually an artist, and Thad Perry turns out – maybe surprisingly – to be that type, too. So there you have it.
Mrs. P.: Thanks, Pete. Dress warm. See you next month for more of What’s In A Name!
Tags: A Fistful of Collars, Brando, Marlon Brando, Thad Perry, What's In A Name
This entry was posted on Saturday, January 15th, 2022 at 8:03 am and is filed under Chet The Dog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
9:30 am on January 15th, 2022
Greetings!
Brando…perfect name in light of SQ’s reasoning.
If you are going for a bike ride Spence, remember you want to dress in layers. :^)
Create a good day!
10:50 am on January 15th, 2022
Interesting.
Good day to all.
2:29 pm on January 15th, 2022
Good day to everyone!
Brando is quite a name for a cat, but as we remember he was quite a cat.
OFA comes up with interesting names.
2:52 pm on January 15th, 2022
11 degrees. Insane.
Didn’t know Brando was an artist. Knew Sinatra was. It’s surprising how many actors cross over into other artistic disciplines. Of course, music is pretty obvious. But quite a few others. George Chakiris retired from acting and designs jewelry. Duncan Regehr has established quite a name as writer and multimedia artist.
8:35 pm on January 15th, 2022
Names are so interesting. I know the history of my sister’s and my names. (I was supposed to be names Christine but someone close to the family had a baby first.) Not having children myself and only having a limited supply of pets over the years, I haven’t near used up all the “good names”I have thought of over the years. Oh to be a writer and get to name characters and bring them to life! I must say that being an educator was nice as I got to hear thousands of names over the years. I taught one summer class for 6 weeks to Alaskan natives from villages and I really struggled with their names and it made me feel sad.
!
8:39 pm on January 15th, 2022
I need to change my handle to The Hobbling Hobbit. Before Thanksgiving I had badly sprained my left ankle and broken a small bone in that foot…now last week I have broken a toe on my right foot. Neuropathy makes one so clumsy. I am fine. by the way, and continue to walk Sadie (priorities). It will take a couple of months before I am A-ok.
9:57 pm on January 15th, 2022
I was supposed to be Steven. That didn’t work out. And I didn’t get possession of my train set until I was in my 30s.
Then I was supposed to be Deborah until the hospital.
My Dad is Catholic and I was born on the day or in the month of St Mary or something so at the last minute that’s how I ended up. Since I had an Aunt Rosemary who was known as Mary I was called by my first and middle name whenever we visited, which thankfully wasn’t very often.
I have always named my dogs after fierce warriors, even though most were docile marshmallows. I don’t want to be calling Fluffy or Fifi. When I call my dog I want to strike fear into the neighborhood. So I had Caesar, Goliath and Ramses. Then my Mom said I had to get girl dogs from now on. For whatever reason. She thinks they mark less but that hasn’t been my experience. So Diana pawPrints is named for an Amazon Warrior, Wonder Woman. And Freyja, who I thought was a Keeshond, was named for a Norse warrior goddess. She should probably have an Alaskan name for some sort but too late now. Her name was originally Grey (although she never answered to it) so Freyja was as close as I could get.
My parents go really old school. Their previous dog was Candy and their current one is Dolly.
My next dogs will have to be small, no more than 35lb in case I decide to move into a senior complex I have my eye on. But the naming will continue. Little 35 lb Achilles, Hercules, Genghis or Geronimo. I will call “ATTILA!” and a 15 lb piece of fluff will come running.
There is also Boudicca, Ishtar and Zenobia if I end up with girls.
10:02 pm on January 15th, 2022
Hobbit! We’re you bored after recovering from cancer and decided to cripple yourself to add excitement to your walks with Sadie? Big Tiny says BE CAREFUL! You need to be A-OK to take care of Mr. Big!
10:03 pm on January 15th, 2022
We’re = were.
Blasted auto correct!
11:32 pm on January 15th, 2022
BooBear’s Mom: I think I was unconsciously trying to get out of housework and I’ve succeeded!