How to Play Base-Ball, by Connie Mack

Was Mack the most respected man in the history of baseball?

Maybe "Rube" was an ironic nickname.

So what would it take to bring back thee hyphen in "base-ball"?

Ryan Rowland-Smith making it back to the big leagues?

Does it truly make no sense to you that a practice conceived against the abandonment of the female's given name would often put the name of the female first?

The one that would normally have been given up, and had been up until hyphenating began.

there is a practical reason for the parties in a marriage to adopt a single name.

This is a fantastic link. I had no idea Connie Mack's real name was Cornelius McGillicuddy.

"She just wanted something that was ours. So we made "heart," out of "Eckhart," and we made "song" out of "Soren," and we put "heart" and "song" together and we were Bob and Toni Heartsong."

The name sounds like something from classic screwball comedy or from '40's radio.

She just wanted something that was ours. So we made "heart," out of "Eckhart," and we made "song" out of "Soren," and we put "heart" and "song" together and we were Bob and Toni Heartsong."

I didn't read "If hypenating is supposed to be such a 'we're so progressive and liberated' thing..." as particularly objective or without agenda

This is a fantastic link. I had no idea Connie Mack's real name was Cornelius McGillicuddy.

I had no idea Connie Mack's real name was Cornelius McGillicuddy.

I remember when I first learned of it I thought it was cool. And, if you know anything about Connie Mack, so apt. The name sounds like something from classic screwball comedy or from '40's radio.

Or even more precisely, from a W.C. Fields movie: Eustace McGargle, J. Effingham Bellweather, Harold Bissonette, Larson E. Whipsnade, Cuthbert J. Twillie, Egbert Sousè (accent grave), or Mahatma Kane Jeeves.

Yes, but as Vaux notes, what happens with her daughter? Does she double-hyphenate?

A colleague of mine, starting with one of the most common Korean family names, married a husband who had one of the other most common Korean names. They decided to hyphenate - a completely American style hyphenation. The result has an interesting flair to it. (And helps distinguish her from two other colleagues with the same name.)

What happened to all the McGillicuddys?

When it comes to names that tickle,

"The Rube" was known for arriving just before game time in his street clothes, and then strolling through the grandstands raising a commotion. He was said to be fond of drinking beer, eating red hots, and sometimes picking fights with the fans. Often, he'd throw free peanuts to kids, and it is said that he would usually change into his uniform as he ran across the diamond to the clubhouse. This was a spectacle all in itself, as "The Rube", it is claimed, never wore any underwear....

One such account (as reported in a 1905 issue of the Philadelphia Daily News) documents an incident in which the hayseed, while thoroughly enjoying himself on a houseboat cocktail party, responded to a frantic cry for help. Faster than you can say, "free agent," Waddell dived into the frigid waters and succeeded in rescuing a passing log.

I think the English upper classes mainly did it when the mother's family was more prestigious than the father's. They wanted everyone to know who your were.

Evelyn Waugh married Evelyn Gardner. Much hilarity ensued.

Whatever happened to the woman just using her maiden name as a middle name? My mom took my dad's last name, but always makes a point of using her maiden/middle name also.

The biggest reasons to want to keep the maiden name are recognizing your family lineage and professional continuity. That's achieved either way. But the middle-name route prevents confusion/difficulty on forms, maintains unity of name across the family, etc., as well.

The hyphen seems to be superior only as a political statement.

Lately, I've been buying the generic brand of waxed beans. You know, I rip off the label...I can hardly tell the difference.

The hyphen seems to be superior only as a political statement.

But my sense is that in most cases of hyphenation, the woman hyphenates, the man doesn't. I could be wrong.

"Compared to Rube Waddell, Dizzy Dean was a Rhodes scholar."

Probably the neatest solution was by a couple I knew that kept their surnames, had two kids, and gave the daughter the mother's surname and the son the father's. That to me is ingenious, equable, and distinctive; no reason you couldn't cross genders as well and just give a kid a name that sounded good along with either parent's surname ...

Probably the neatest solution was by a couple I knew that kept their surnames, had two kids, and gave the daughter the mother's surname and the son the father's. That to me is ingenious, equable, and distinctive;

It's equable (equitable?), and it's distinctive, but it's terrible. Siblings should have the same name. In my opinion. I don't understand this solution at all.

I think Durocher did some "Game of the Week" broadcasting in between being fired from his Dodgers' coaching job and getting hired as the Cubs' manager.

I think Durocher did some "Game of the Week" broadcasting in between being fired from his Dodgers' coaching job and getting hired as the Cubs' manager.


He did indeed. This was before NBC had the exclusive rights to broadcast a nationwide game of the week and the various networks (CBS/NBC/ABC) contracted with individual teams to televise weekend games. I want to say that Durocher served as the color man on ABC's telecasts but I could be wrong.