dynaflow
Well-known member
the other one
have a good female friend that calls the frig The kelvinator
have a good female friend that calls the frig The kelvinator
"Frigidaire" as a common noun
- Thread starter passatdoc
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For years in Australia, a dishwasher was a Dishlex, and all purpose spray cleaner is Spray and Wipe, processed cheese slices are Kraft, Toilet cleaner was Harpic, and Bleach is White King.
Jim, I can relate to the Glucometer, Mum has been diabetic since 1960, she's still got her Chemical set that she used up until the early 80's, she has her BD Housebrick shaped Glucometer and then another unit from the early 90's that is about the size of a block of butter. The rest of them since the late 90's onwards are all non-descript and about the size of a credit card. The government issues her with a new unit every 12 months now. It always amazes me to look at the technology and how its evolved.
Jim, I can relate to the Glucometer, Mum has been diabetic since 1960, she's still got her Chemical set that she used up until the early 80's, she has her BD Housebrick shaped Glucometer and then another unit from the early 90's that is about the size of a block of butter. The rest of them since the late 90's onwards are all non-descript and about the size of a credit card. The government issues her with a new unit every 12 months now. It always amazes me to look at the technology and how its evolved.
Our babysitter, who would be 104 this year if she were still living, always called refrigerators "the Frigidaire", regardless of the brand involved. Her kitchen contained an Admiral from the 1940's. I remember she also called a piano "the Pi-anna".
My mom always called the garbage disposer a Dispose-all, even though it was a Waste King Pulverator.
Myself, I always refer to a tissue as a Kleenex, and bandage strips as Band-Aids.
My mom always called the garbage disposer a Dispose-all, even though it was a Waste King Pulverator.
Myself, I always refer to a tissue as a Kleenex, and bandage strips as Band-Aids.
My paternal grandmother (God bless her soul) referred to every fridge she ever owned (at least since I was able to remember) as "Frigidaire".
In our household, bleach is called "Roman Cleanser", from an extinct Detroit brand. Cleanser has always been "Comet". Stain spray has been "Spray and Wash" since it was introduced in the seventies.
Wow, this is interesting. The other night a few of us were talking about how our parents called out different sayings around the house and we picked them up as well. My great grandmother always called it the Frigidaire. My mom born in 29 never had a refrigerator until she got married always called it the ice box. Our 1st house had a gas Servel fridge. My mom would say it is out above the Bendix and my dad would say it was above the automatic washing machine. Mom, back porch dad would say service porch. Parents record player or HiFi and I called it the Stereo. For some reason my mom called all cold cereal Post Toasties. It was just the way it was. Parents are gone now but this brings back many memories. Dano
LOL, my grandmother washed dishes in the Zinc, used not clorox or purex but Purox and warshin powder, in laundry. She also called christmas ornament hangers, hookers, we loved christmas tree time. My dad, scrubbed his white walls with Activated Sesmitite (sp) (cleanser). I even tried to google sesmitite sedsmitite. Most of the older relatives on my Dad's side called any cleanser Bonami. alr2903
lordkenmore
Well-known member
I haven't noticed any of these appliance examples, but there are countless examples of trademark names being used as a generic. Another common example is Styrofoam, which is a trademark for "extruded polystyrene foam." Now that I think of it, next time I go to a social event, and see Styrofoam cups, I'll have to ask for an "extruded polystyrene foam cup of punch." Then, again, maybe it's crazy ideas like this that pretty much guarantee that my invitations are far and few in between.
For those old enough to remember the days when schools used something other than photocopies--which is most, but not all of us--Ditto and Mimeograph were also trademarks. (If you want to feel REALLY old, try explaining either of these technologies to a member of the iPod generation!)
For those old enough to remember the days when schools used something other than photocopies--which is most, but not all of us--Ditto and Mimeograph were also trademarks. (If you want to feel REALLY old, try explaining either of these technologies to a member of the iPod generation!)
, no small wonder we boomers have ADD. alr2903passatdoc
Well-known member
Mimeographs
Mimeographed copies were the standard method for copying school materials when I was in elementary/middle/high school. You could Xerox the materials, but the technology was still too expensive. Mimeographed materials gave off an odd chemical odor that some folks sniffed, but what I remember was that the font was an odd purple color. The hardest part was creating the stencil, which required making NO errors on the typewriter.
When I was in AP English senior year, our class of 60 was broken down into six groups of ten for discussions. Each day a different student had to write a paper on that day's topic in advance and distribute them to the others in the group---if you created a stencil, the school would reproduce them for free. I was a fast typist but not error-free and I was
Mimeographed copies were the standard method for copying school materials when I was in elementary/middle/high school. You could Xerox the materials, but the technology was still too expensive. Mimeographed materials gave off an odd chemical odor that some folks sniffed, but what I remember was that the font was an odd purple color. The hardest part was creating the stencil, which required making NO errors on the typewriter.
When I was in AP English senior year, our class of 60 was broken down into six groups of ten for discussions. Each day a different student had to write a paper on that day's topic in advance and distribute them to the others in the group---if you created a stencil, the school would reproduce them for free. I was a fast typist but not error-free and I was
passatdoc
Well-known member
getting frustrated with the stencil. I wound up making the copies at a photocopier (may have been Xerox brand) at five cents per copy. Better to spend $1 than to mess with a stencil. Had I been a day early in writing the paper, I could have taken the paper to my father's office and copied it, but I would usually not complete the paper until the early morning hours of the day it was due.
General Motors introduced air conditioning with their 1953 models. Initially the system included the underhood compressor and a trunk-mounted evaporator and fan. Consequently, the system was only available in closed sedans and coupes (no wagons or convertibles). The earliest set of controls that I've personally seen were in a 1956 Buick, which by then had all of the equipment installed under the hood with the air distribution in the instrument panel. However, at no place on the instrument panel did the words "air conditioning" appear. There were levers and switches for "heat" and "defrost" and.........you guessed it.......... "Frigidaire".
Lawrence
Lawrence
GM A/C . . .
This reminds me of a funny story an acquaintance told me back in the '70s. He had been a teenager in the mid '50s, back when new car introductions each fall were a Big Deal. It's easy to forget now, but in the '50s each year brought lots of advancements in both engineering and conveniences, in addition to new styling. My friend grew up in an upscale neighborhood and his parents always drove Cadillacs, which of course had trunk-mounted a/c with the clear plastic ducts to carry cold air into the roof where it was distributed from small registers above the windows.
One September a neighbor bought a new and fully loaded Olds 98, and so the first weekend my friend's family hurried over to check it out. One of the new features was a/c that was ducted through the dash and not the headliner. As they walked back across the street after having checked out the Olds, my friend's father remarked "That Olds is a nice car, but those vents in the dash will never fly . . . who'd want all that cold air blowing in their face?"
This reminds me of a funny story an acquaintance told me back in the '70s. He had been a teenager in the mid '50s, back when new car introductions each fall were a Big Deal. It's easy to forget now, but in the '50s each year brought lots of advancements in both engineering and conveniences, in addition to new styling. My friend grew up in an upscale neighborhood and his parents always drove Cadillacs, which of course had trunk-mounted a/c with the clear plastic ducts to carry cold air into the roof where it was distributed from small registers above the windows.
One September a neighbor bought a new and fully loaded Olds 98, and so the first weekend my friend's family hurried over to check it out. One of the new features was a/c that was ducted through the dash and not the headliner. As they walked back across the street after having checked out the Olds, my friend's father remarked "That Olds is a nice car, but those vents in the dash will never fly . . . who'd want all that cold air blowing in their face?"
rinso
Well-known member
My Italian grandparents and their children all referred to the refrigerator as a Frigidaire. They did evolve from victrola to record player, but mostly referred to everything else by its brand name.
FYI : Frigidaire is the French pronunciation of refrigerator
according to my high schoool French teacher who was born and raised in France that is....PAT COFFEY
according to my high schoool French teacher who was born and raised in France that is....PAT COFFEY
ronhic
Well-known member
LordKenmore, didn't a mimeographed test "smell"
Mimeographs don't actually have the 'smell' that you are referring to alr2903....
....Ditto's do.
Mimeographs use ink for printing from the master whereas Ditto's use alcohol which is where the smell comes from - a combination of the transfer of master and alcohol combination.
I vividly remember Mrs Wood, the first aid and copy person, running off copies with her plastic half-sleeves and apron protecting her clothes when I was 7 or 8 year old (1976-77) and the smell from the copy room was incredible. I'm surprised she wasn't high all the time.
Mimeographs don't actually have the 'smell' that you are referring to alr2903....
....Ditto's do.
Mimeographs use ink for printing from the master whereas Ditto's use alcohol which is where the smell comes from - a combination of the transfer of master and alcohol combination.
I vividly remember Mrs Wood, the first aid and copy person, running off copies with her plastic half-sleeves and apron protecting her clothes when I was 7 or 8 year old (1976-77) and the smell from the copy room was incredible. I'm surprised she wasn't high all the time.
Mimeograph or Spirit Duplicator
I remember in High School Office class, we had to learn how to use both. The mimeograph had the stencil that was wrapped around an ink laden drum and produced copies in the color of the ink in the drum (But could be changed with a revolutionary thing called a color pad). The stencil was usually a waxy green in color and when one typed and/or wrote, the wax was pushed away and there were holes left in the stencil.
The Spirit Duplicator was the one that was most commonly done in the wonderful purple print and smelled of alcohol when fresh off the duplicator.
OMG, I'm Old!
duetboy
aka Jeff
I remember in High School Office class, we had to learn how to use both. The mimeograph had the stencil that was wrapped around an ink laden drum and produced copies in the color of the ink in the drum (But could be changed with a revolutionary thing called a color pad). The stencil was usually a waxy green in color and when one typed and/or wrote, the wax was pushed away and there were holes left in the stencil.
The Spirit Duplicator was the one that was most commonly done in the wonderful purple print and smelled of alcohol when fresh off the duplicator.
OMG, I'm Old!
duetboy
aka Jeff
ptcruiser51
Well-known member
Appliguy
Thank you for your post! I was 99% sure that the generic French word for refrigerator was "frigidaire", but it's been 40+ years since high school French!
Hey, maybe I'm not so old after all!
Thank you for your post! I was 99% sure that the generic French word for refrigerator was "frigidaire", but it's been 40+ years since high school French!
Hey, maybe I'm not so old after all!
Here in the UK .....
The most common example of this, in most areas of the country is that a vacuum cleaner, no matter what its make is a Hoover. Indeed it has also become a verb, as in "I must do the Hoovering today"
Anther example, in my family at least, is that washing up liquid is always "Fairy Liquid" - for those not in the know its a P&G main brand dishwashing liquid.
Al
The most common example of this, in most areas of the country is that a vacuum cleaner, no matter what its make is a Hoover. Indeed it has also become a verb, as in "I must do the Hoovering today"
Anther example, in my family at least, is that washing up liquid is always "Fairy Liquid" - for those not in the know its a P&G main brand dishwashing liquid.
Al
