How Some Common Household Products Got Their Name, Part 1

Alberto VO5 (invented in 1956) is named after Alberto, the chemist who invented it. "VO5" stands for the fiveVital Organic emollients in the product.
Alberto, by the way, is the last name; no one at Alberto-Culver (business partner Blaine Culver) can recall the chemist's first name.
In 1972, Alberto-Culver had the first one minute commercial.
Alberto-Culver owns the world's largest chain of beauty supply stores, Sally Beauty Supply.
Alberto-Culver sells its personal use products in more than 100 countries.

Alka-Seltzer got its name from a coined word word suggesting alkalinity and the carbonation of seltzer.
The buffered aspirin in Alka-Seltzer peaks within 30 minutes; regular aspirin tablets peak in about two hours.
Baking soda is the main ingredient in Alka-Seltzer.

In 1914, pharmacist Dr. George Bunting combined medication and vanishing cream to create "Dr. Bunting's Sunburn Remedy". A customer told Bunting "Your cream knocked my eczema", inspiring Bunting to change the name of his sunburn remedy to Noxzema. For three years, Bunting mixed, heated, and poured Noxzema from a large coffee pot into blue jars-ultimately founding the Noxzema Chemical Company in 1917.
Noxzema achieved national distribution in 1938.
In 1961, Noxzema launched the Cover Girl line of cosmetics.
In the U.S., Cover Girl is the number-one cosmetics company, Revlon's number-two, and Maybelline's three.

Krazy Glue (invented in 1963), is named for its seemingly crazy strength, quick-setting properties, and longevity as an adhesive.
Food stylists use Krazy Glue to keep food "in place" during photography sessions for advertisements, TV commercials, and movies.
Elmer's Products, Inc., which distributes Krazy Glue in the U.S., also makes Elmer's Glue-All and Elmer's School Glue.

Tang (invented in 1959), is short for tangy and also suggests the flavor of tangerine.

Uncle Ben's (invented in 1943)-The original Uncle Ben was a black rice farmer known to rice farmers (millers) in and around Houston, Texas for consistently delivering the highest quality rice for milling.
Uncle Ben harvested his rice with such care that he purportedly received several honors for the high quality. Other rice growers always used his rice as a "measuring stick" or the standard at times, claiming their rice was "as good as Uncle Ben's."
Further details of Uncle Ben's life (including his last name) were lost to history.
The picture on the box is Frank Brown, who was a maitre'd in a Houston restaurant.
In the 1980s, the company dropped Uncle Ben from the rice boxes for two years. Sales plummeted; the company quickly reinstated Uncle Ben's picture.
The world's leading rice producer is China.
The world's leading rice exporter is Thailand, followed by the U.S.
The world's leading rice importer is Iran.
Adding one tablespoon of oil, butter, or margarine to the water before adding the rice will prevent it (the rice) from becoming sticky.
Rice is the mainstay for nearly 40% of the world's population.
Uncle Ben's Converted Brand Rice retains up to 85% of the natural B-complex vitamins, giving it more natural food value than ordinary white rice.

Elmer Cline, the Taggart Baking Company vice president appointed to merchandise a new one-and-a-half pound loaf bread, was awed by the sight of the sky filled with hundreds of colorful hot-air balloons at the International Balloon Race at the Indianapolis Speedway. The wonder of that sight prompted Cline to name the new bread Wonder Bread, and colorful balloons have been featured on the Wonder Bread wrappers ever since.
Wonder Bread does not contain any cholesterol or saturated fat.

Efferdent is a combination of the words effervesce and dentures.
Throughout history, denture wearers brushed their dentures-until 1967, when Efferdent was introduced.

Jif (invented in 1956) is short for jiffy, the amount of time it takes to make a peanut butter sandwich.
The peanut is a member of the pea family.
Peanut butter sticks to your mouth because its high protein content draws moisture from your mouth.
The average jar of peanut butter is consumed in less than thirty days.
80% of all Americans purchase peanut butter.

SPAM (invented in 1937)-possibly a contraction of two words, spiced ham.
South Koreans consider SPAM as upscale food.
The average Hawaiian eats twelve cans of SPAM a year, followed by the average Alaskan with six cans, and then Texans, Alabamians and Arkansans with three cans apiece.

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