How the Mario Characters Got Their Names

Sdílet
Vložit
  • čas přidán 25. 05. 2024
  • Is Luigi named after a pizza parlor? Who actually came up with the name Donkey Kong? Why is King Koopa named after a bowl of soup? Learn the inspirations behind the names of 8 Super Mario characters!
    CHAPTERS
    00:00 - Intro
    00:24 - Mario
    05:28 - Luigi
    07:07 - Princess Peach
    08:54 - Toad
    10:57 - Yoshi
    12:29 - Donkey Kong
    17:54 - Wario
    19:12 - Bowser
    ▶️ Subscribe | czcams.com/users/gaminghistori...
    Follow Gaming Historian:
    🐦 Twitter | / gaminghistorian
    💻 Facebook | / gaminghistorian
    🕹️ Twitch | / gaminghistorian
    📷 Instagram | / gaminghistorian
    For a list of sources, visit www.thegaminghistorian.com
    #Mario #Nintendo #GamingHistorian
  • Hry

Komentáře • 2,3K

  • @GamingHistorian
    @GamingHistorian  Před 2 lety +1085

    This video has some new information, mostly around the development of Donkey Kong, from my research at the National Archives. Hope you all enjoy it! Please give it a share if you learned something new.

    • @lostfan5054
      @lostfan5054 Před 2 lety +29

      Hey Norm!!
      Any chance you could do History of Squaresoft, and maybe explain the other great series (SaGa) they did.

    • @ottoneiii4353
      @ottoneiii4353 Před 2 lety +4

      ok, but who won the trial?

    • @Str0b0
      @Str0b0 Před 2 lety +10

      Another sources say Nintendo lost the licence to (or was unable to licence) Popeye and that was the reason they changed it to Donkey Kong?

    • @jamess9623
      @jamess9623 Před 2 lety +21

      @@ottoneiii4353 Nintendo won. It was established that Universal didn't even own the rights to King Kong as it had been in the public domain. Universal had gone around threatening all the companies using the Donkey Kong name and most submitted and paid royalties to Universal, including Coleco of the Colecovision. Nintendo stood their ground and went to court and won.

    • @rayhero21
      @rayhero21 Před 2 lety +6

      Isn't their last name also Mario? I'd like to know more about that.

  • @ErikaFurudo1337
    @ErikaFurudo1337 Před 2 lety +1418

    Basically Toad is like having a friend named: Human

    • @closeben
      @closeben Před 2 lety +333

      Well, there are people named Guy.

    • @Yapsalot00
      @Yapsalot00 Před 2 lety +175

      hugh mann

    • @Richard_Nickerson
      @Richard_Nickerson Před 2 lety +33

      @@closeben
      Fact

    • @OtakuUnitedStudio
      @OtakuUnitedStudio Před 2 lety +90

      @@Yapsalot00 Hugh Mann. Now that's a name I can trust!

    • @ElToland
      @ElToland Před 2 lety +57

      But "Toad" is short for "Toadstool", then a human should be called "Hu" or "Hum"

  • @Exnem
    @Exnem Před 2 lety +563

    Mario Segale passed away pretty recently, I do find it funny that his reaction to the character being named for him is *_"wheres my money",_* it kind of fits the origin story told in Game Over. RIP

    • @primal2020
      @primal2020 Před 2 lety +33

      the stories make him out to be a grouchy real estate guy and that seems to be exactly who he was lol

    • @Mantorok12
      @Mantorok12 Před 2 lety +43

      if an acquaintance used my likeness to create a trillion dollar IP, I would be interested in a bit of compensation.

    • @miguelangelhernandezsolis7849
      @miguelangelhernandezsolis7849 Před rokem +22

      @@Mantorok12 but they didn't use his likeness only use his name and he didn't have the rights over the name Mario

    • @poppinc8145
      @poppinc8145 Před rokem +25

      He was being sarcastic. Otherwise he'd have actually asked or done something to get compensation.

    • @Exnem
      @Exnem Před rokem +6

      @@poppinc8145 Eh, maybe. Or maybe he felt that way but didn't bother taking on a massive corporation with an army of well paid lawyers.

  • @Emberheart_
    @Emberheart_ Před 2 lety +238

    I'm kind of glad they never stuck with Ossan. Just imagine the localization: "It's-a me, mid-life-man!"

    • @scaper8
      @scaper8 Před rokem +4

      @2 Corinthians 4:7-11 Alright alright alright.

    • @El_Omar2203
      @El_Omar2203 Před rokem +5

      Sounds more like a car brand than a name

    • @LilXancheX
      @LilXancheX Před rokem +4

      @Mr. MXB mid-life crisis 64 😂

    • @wchan39
      @wchan39 Před rokem

      ​@@LilXancheX
      Mid-Life Crisis Sunshine
      Mid-Life Crisis Galaxy
      Mid-Life Crisis Odyssey
      And so on...

    • @LilXancheX
      @LilXancheX Před rokem

      @@wchan39 sure. Why not

  • @sillywar601
    @sillywar601 Před 2 lety +120

    There's one thing I need to clarify about naming Peach "after a peach". So in Japanese, peach is pronounced as momo. Pink in Japanese is spelled with peach+color character, making it pronounced as momo-iro. So I don't think she was named after a peach, but rather after the color pink.

    • @fixedfunshow
      @fixedfunshow Před 2 lety +2

      A little late but in Japan her name is Piichi-hime, not Momo??

    • @sillywar601
      @sillywar601 Před 2 lety +1

      @@fixedfunshow I don't remember the full context of the video but I meant peach fruit was momo in Japanese.
      I said what I said because when you look at the fruit, most people's instinct isn't thinking it's a pink color. I think when talking about peach color, it's officially a tint of yellow in English?
      So my thought was people would probably think naming Peach character after peach fruit would be weird considering her dress looks nothing like a peach fruit while people in Japan thinks it makes sense.

    • @JASpiring
      @JASpiring Před rokem +7

      Yeah. The Japanese counterpart of the pink Ninja Steel Power Ranger is called Momoninger. Which means Pink Ninja. Super Sentai's first pink ranger is called Momoranger, literally Pink Ranger. They definitely use Momo for Pink. Momo means both the colour pink and the fruit peach, not unlike how orange is a fruit and a colour in English.

    • @barbieblues7639
      @barbieblues7639 Před rokem +4

      Asian peaches are pink usually, while the yucky ones here in the states are yellow (too lazy to tag lol)

    • @Mari_Izu
      @Mari_Izu Před rokem

      @@fixedfunshow Could be a multi-reference, they named her after the color, but the fruit name in English sounded better than Pink.

  • @Nintendrone42
    @Nintendrone42 Před 2 lety +361

    13:55 Looking at the court document, I see that Donkey Kong was almost named "Funky Kong", and now I'm imagining a timeline where the radical ape was the star of the the whole series instead of just a supporting character and the god of Mario Kart Wii.

    • @adamk8639
      @adamk8639 Před 2 lety +42

      I love some of the variations... Custom Kong? Rookie Kong? And let's all be glad they didn't go with KONG DONG.

    • @darreljones8645
      @darreljones8645 Před 2 lety +23

      The court case also named another classic Nintendo character. The lawyer for the video-game company was named (I believe) John Kirby.

    • @0._.0
      @0._.0 Před 2 lety +11

      @@adamk8639 KONGUS DONGUS

    • @JamesDavy2009
      @JamesDavy2009 Před 2 lety +6

      @@darreljones8645 I thought it was Jack Kirby. I may be wrong.

    • @gameyfirebro9645
      @gameyfirebro9645 Před 2 lety +8

      We wouldn't've gotten the DK Rap, then.

  • @curseyoujordanshow
    @curseyoujordanshow Před 2 lety +849

    I've always adored the idea that "Toadstool" was her formal name, sounding even regal considering she rules the Mushroom Kingdom, but that "Peach" was the name she went by with her close personal friends. It's extremely cute, but there's also something about it that makes her seem so much more real and relatable.

    • @X_Leonhart
      @X_Leonhart Před 2 lety +27

      I really think that her name was just originally changed in America for the same reason Puck-Man’s name was... It was so easy to make it sound like an offensive word.

    • @ElToland
      @ElToland Před 2 lety +70

      I thought the same: "Princess Toadstool" being her "royal title" and "Peach" her name

    • @Compucles
      @Compucles Před 2 lety +93

      Couldn't her full name be Peach Toadstool? "Toadstool" sounds much more like a family name or title than a given name.

    • @DELTARYZ
      @DELTARYZ Před 2 lety +26

      @@X_Leonhart All you would need is a marker and any arcade cabinet could be made to say FUCK-MAN

    • @darthpaul99
      @darthpaul99 Před 2 lety +40

      @@Compucles That’s how I see it her full name is Princess Peach Toadstool.

  • @latexu9589
    @latexu9589 Před rokem +10

    20:26 When you think about it, Bowser is a pretty common name for a dog, because it's likely derived from an onomatopoeia for a dog bark, "bow-wow".

  • @chiefchimp2789
    @chiefchimp2789 Před 2 lety +80

    I really love the early 80's history of Nintendo. What an interesting time for that company. Greatness was right around the corner.

  • @OneAndOnlyDanky
    @OneAndOnlyDanky Před 2 lety +529

    I can’t believe Expand Dong dates back to before the first game ever released. Incredible

  • @brownyuio
    @brownyuio Před 2 lety +105

    I love how Doug Bowser was all “Hey! My last name’s Bowser! Neat, huh? :D” during that presentation and was never seen again.

    • @johnpenguinthe3rd13
      @johnpenguinthe3rd13 Před 2 lety +39

      The reason he was never seen again is because he's probably been planning on kidnapping a princess right now and bringing her to a castle. LOL.

    • @DELTARYZ
      @DELTARYZ Před 2 lety +27

      @@johnpenguinthe3rd13 The next Mario game is just going to have the actual Doug Bowser, live action footage, in place of Bowser. Nothing else is different. This will not be explained or justified in any way, and this will be the only appearance of Doug Bowser until the next Mario game.

    • @vu1pix
      @vu1pix Před 2 lety +10

      so long gay bowser

  • @banobobot
    @banobobot Před 2 lety +13

    The Princess Peach/Toadstool situation is EXACTLY like the Doctor Eggman/Robotnik confusion. Its only until their transition to 3d where their Japanese names became mainstream.

    • @bubufubu
      @bubufubu Před 2 měsíci

      *Original names

    • @banobobot
      @banobobot Před 2 měsíci

      @@bubufubu same thing in this instance lol

  • @JJMcCullough
    @JJMcCullough Před 2 lety +163

    I often used to wonder if the whole "the dictionary said 'donkey' was a synonym for 'stubborn'" was just a cleaned-up version of the dictionary saying "ass" was a synonym for 'stubborn' and then "donkey" being a synonym for "ass."

    • @spartythespart
      @spartythespart Před 2 lety +50

      Okay but, hear me out, if thats what it means, and if "Kong" just means monkey... Then technically Donkey Kong's name just means Butt Monkey

    • @jabrown
      @jabrown Před 2 lety +2

      lmao it's J.J. McCullough, ayyy sup

    • @DrawsomeDrawer
      @DrawsomeDrawer Před 2 lety +1

      Yoooo, didn't think JJ would be here

    • @hkl614
      @hkl614 Před 2 lety +13

      "Ass Kong Country" or maybe "Ass and Diddy Kong 's Adventures" both may very well have been huh?

    • @rockhistoria2537
      @rockhistoria2537 Před 2 lety +2

      @@spartythespart "Butthurt Monkey" I mean it just fits his character

  • @ThatFanBoyGuy
    @ThatFanBoyGuy Před 2 lety +655

    My head canon believes that the Princess's full name is "Peach Toadstool." At first, the Princess was formal with Mario, using her formal title "Princess Toadstool," but after a few rescues from Mario, the Princess is not as formal, using her first name with Mario.

    • @chadd990
      @chadd990 Před 2 lety +35

      the only problem with that is I can't think of any royalty that identifies by their last name.
      King George
      Queen Elizabeth
      Princess Diana
      I don't even know the last names of these people, that's how uncommon it is.

    • @Scarybug
      @Scarybug Před 2 lety +57

      My hadcannon says Mario and Luigi's last name isn't Mario, it's Jumpman.

    • @bubufubu
      @bubufubu Před 2 lety +7

      When you really think about it, that would be ridiculously stupid. She's not a Kinopio nor did she marry one. She presides over that kingdom but her name is Princess Peach.

    • @NoeLPZC
      @NoeLPZC Před 2 lety +4

      That's how I saw it too.

    • @Hamstray
      @Hamstray Před 2 lety +39

      Princess Peach from the house of Toadstool

  • @Retrotude
    @Retrotude Před 2 lety +431

    I wouldn't be surprised if NOA really did name Bowser after the Sha-Na-Na member, considering they followed up with naming the Koopalings after famous musicians.

    • @ElToland
      @ElToland Před 2 lety +28

      Except Larry Koopa xD

    • @Tinkererer
      @Tinkererer Před 2 lety +48

      @@ElToland That's Larry Mullen Jr., from U2.

    • @PostAttraction
      @PostAttraction Před 2 lety +48

      Bowser was named after an American boy that said one day he was going to run Nintendo (America) one day

    • @Dimumouto
      @Dimumouto Před 2 lety +30

      @@Tinkererer That was proven wrong. I've heard it on this channel and some others, but an interview with the guy who named them said 'he just looked like a Larry'.
      czcams.com/video/MxT6IwUtLSU/video.html
      It may not be a direct quote in this video, but its very similar.

    • @ordinary_deepfake
      @ordinary_deepfake Před 2 lety +6

      @@PostAttraction believe it

  • @viktornystrom5801
    @viktornystrom5801 Před rokem +76

    In what I've always though is probably a coincidence, the word for an adopted child in Japanese is also "Youshi" (養子), and since you basically find Yoshi as a parent-less egg and "adopt" him in Super Mario World, I thought it might not be impossible to think of that as a possible origin for the name as well. Just a little interesting piece of info for you, there :)

    • @latexu9589
      @latexu9589 Před rokem +8

      And in Yoshi's Island games, the exact opposite happens, when Yoshis take care of infant Mario.😉

    • @ericriley1985
      @ericriley1985 Před rokem +6

      The pronunciations are completely different. If you were to write out "Youshi" (養子) in katakana it would be ヨウシ with the "Yo" sound being stretched out and the accent on the "Shi" sound. Yoshi's Japanese name is ヨッシー with the accent on the "Yo" sound and the "Shi" sound being stretched out.

    • @viktornystrom5801
      @viktornystrom5801 Před rokem +3

      @@ericriley1985 True, but that doesn't mean it can still be a somewhat intentional pun, changing pronunciation and letters of the word to hint at a different word is after all the whole point with puns :)

  • @Joemetheus
    @Joemetheus Před 2 lety +5

    I worked in the building where John Kirby lived, a lawyer who worked the defense for Nintendo in the Universal lawsuit. He was also the person who Kirby was named after, according to Shigeru Miyamoto. I only knew him as Mr. Kirby until his death in 2019, when suddenly it clicked as people started talking about his significance the day Memorial services were being held at his apartment.

  • @SonofMrPeanut
    @SonofMrPeanut Před 2 lety +60

    0:16 "...I thought the Mario Kart 64 roster was perfect."
    We were this close to the Roots of Kamek, folks.

  • @dwaynezilla
    @dwaynezilla Před 2 lety +217

    Miyamoto is just a treasure, hahaha. And seeing him drawing Mario characters looks so right.

    • @JamesDavy2009
      @JamesDavy2009 Před 2 lety +16

      It's like watching Michelangelo carve his Statue of David.

    • @chadd990
      @chadd990 Před 2 lety +2

      If I ever invent a time machine, I'll remember to steal his work.

    • @TheDumontShow
      @TheDumontShow Před 2 lety +6

      possibly the GOAT of all game designers. three of his games inspired an entire generation of gaming period.

    • @erikhendrickson59
      @erikhendrickson59 Před 2 lety +8

      @@TheDumontShow Alongside Koji Kondo's musical compositions they literally changed the media landscape of the entire world! Both Nintendo characters and their respective musical themes are instantly recognizable to literally BILLIONS of people around the world.

    • @TheDumontShow
      @TheDumontShow Před 2 lety +2

      @@erikhendrickson59 look, when you have a theme park built around your franchises, that's something no game company can ever match. But my thing is that Nintendo lost their way. It's the people that bought into them that made them. Miyamoto still has that spirit of caring about the fans and those who love games. That's why he is always gonna be so revered.

  • @TheAbsoluteJay
    @TheAbsoluteJay Před 2 lety +16

    I was really surprised be Wario's origin, because it always seemed to me that it was much simpler than that, just flipping the W. As usual, awesome piece.

  • @latexu9589
    @latexu9589 Před rokem +7

    18:54 Strangely, the name mixing with Waluigi works even better than with Wario, because it seamlessly combines "warui" with "Ruigi", Luigi's Japanese name. (because in Japan, letter "L" is pronounced "R", for some reason)

    • @dachickensandwich
      @dachickensandwich Před 3 měsíci +1

      It's because there is no L sound in Japanese; the closest thing is their "R" sound

  • @speelbergo
    @speelbergo Před 2 lety +162

    "I spent two weeks reading depositions at the national archives"
    Bless your heart...

    • @johnjekyllson28
      @johnjekyllson28 Před 2 lety +9

      Thanks to him, we finally know the full story behind the weirdest name in video games, after nearly 40 years!

    • @joecoolmccall
      @joecoolmccall Před 2 lety +2

      That's actually awesome

    • @Deoxys911
      @Deoxys911 Před 2 lety +7

      Did the court never ask him why he chose "Kong" specifically to mean/evoke a gorilla over the other possible options? I kept waiting for that detail to be mentioned in the video, but it wasn't.

    • @Dr.Quarex
      @Dr.Quarex Před 2 lety

      My doctoral research was never this practical

  • @Leahi84
    @Leahi84 Před 2 lety +321

    A Zelda version of this would be cool.
    I always thought Toadstool was Peach's last name.

    • @spavatch
      @spavatch Před 2 lety +15

      Yeah, I always wondered why they gave the main male protagonist a female name ;)P

    • @chrisjamesr77
      @chrisjamesr77 Před 2 lety +15

      I heard Zelda was named after Zelda Fitzgerald.

    • @Oldjp312
      @Oldjp312 Před 2 lety +3

      Peach toadstool I mean I don't see it

    • @Richard_Nickerson
      @Richard_Nickerson Před 2 lety +17

      I always thought it was her title. That it was more like Princess Peach of Toadstool.

    • @Richard_Nickerson
      @Richard_Nickerson Před 2 lety +19

      @Hamikon
      They know, they're trolling

  • @ycg7575
    @ycg7575 Před 2 lety +19

    It’s funny growing up I heard Donkey Kong’s name came from a mistranslation error from Japan to America where in Japan he was called Monkey Kong and the localization team messed up and called him Donkey Kong instead. Japan love the name and decided to keep it. This is the version I remember hearing when I was little. It’s cool to hear where it really came from

    • @AndrewANIMETOYS
      @AndrewANIMETOYS Před rokem

      That's what I remember, I thought it was mistranslation

    • @brare45996
      @brare45996 Před rokem +1

      I heard that when I was younger too! I looked it up later in life and found nothing on it, leaving me a little embarrassed as I told that ”fact” to some friends as a teen 🥲

    • @robbiewalker2831
      @robbiewalker2831 Před rokem

      @@AndrewANIMETOYS I recall this misconception was in “I Love the 80s Strike Back”.

    • @teemum
      @teemum Před měsícem

      I also heard this story and up until now believed that was legitimate.

    • @nicholaslienandjaja1815
      @nicholaslienandjaja1815 Před měsícem

      Monkey Kong Country

  • @nousernamehere1
    @nousernamehere1 Před rokem +6

    21:03 "Soo long gay Bowser"(Bowser explodes on impact and dies)

  • @MelodyTCG
    @MelodyTCG Před 2 lety +398

    Donkey Kong is actually named after Dr Donald kongnelius
    He was a surgeon who gave miyamoto his cybernetic enhancements, cementing him as a cyborg. As a sign of gratitude, miyamoto named donkey Kong after his nickname for the beloved doctor

    • @That_Lady_Charlie
      @That_Lady_Charlie Před 2 lety +49

      thank you for your service, Doctor Kongnelius 🙏🏽

    • @GGoAwayy
      @GGoAwayy Před 2 lety +16

      Donkey Dong?

    • @benadamourful
      @benadamourful Před 2 lety +5

      Naturally

    • @GamingHistorian
      @GamingHistorian  Před 2 lety +112

      Incredible, thank you for this NEW information!

    • @Cyril29a
      @Cyril29a Před 2 lety +6

      @@GGoAwayy Konkey Dong czcams.com/video/30AdZ_NIp_U/video.html

  • @dwood78part23
    @dwood78part23 Před 2 lety +351

    This is worthy of a series of it's own.

    • @GamingHistorian
      @GamingHistorian  Před 2 lety +154

      Maybe Sonic characters next?

    • @John-te7ex
      @John-te7ex Před 2 lety +13

      @@GamingHistorian Metroid characters maybe?

    • @QuintessentialWalrus
      @QuintessentialWalrus Před 2 lety +37

      @@GamingHistorian I was thinking Zelda characters since lots of them have, as best as I can describe it, normal real person names and not made-up fantasy names.

    • @Outta-hz1ej
      @Outta-hz1ej Před 2 lety +9

      @@GamingHistorian I hope so. I've always wonder the WHY of sonic characters names. Who decided Miles Prower? Why was Eggman renamed Robotnik? And so on and so forth.

    • @roweboat
      @roweboat Před 2 lety +6

      @@GamingHistorian yes, please! Also covering the backgrounds behind the localization is awesome as well!!

  • @smbcollector
    @smbcollector Před 2 lety +41

    Resident Super Mario collector, here! Allow me to identify the figures being shown here for those interested:
    The Mario, Luigi, Toad, and Yoshi figures are from 1994 and were originally sold packed in small boxes along with Mars candy.
    The Peach in a Wild Wing kart is a “Pull & Speed” Mario Kart Wii pull-back kart made by Carrera circa 2010 (they also made a nearly identical slot car, so it could potentially be that as well).
    The Bowser is a “Super Mario Brothers Trophy Figure with Scorecard” called “Bowser Guards Princess Toadstool” made by Hasbro in 1988.
    The Wario action figure was made by Jakks Pacific in 2014 as a part of wave 1-1 of their “World of Nintendo” line of 4-inch figures.
    The 8-bit Donkey Kong figure was made by Jakks Pacific in 2015 as a part of wave 1-5 of their “World of Nintendo” line of 2.5-inch figures, and also in 2019 in a Walgreens exclusive “Mario and Donkey Kong” 2-pack.
    I’m a longtime viewer, Norm! Thanks for the insightful video!

  • @sgt.jimmyrustles8234
    @sgt.jimmyrustles8234 Před 2 lety +6

    It's ironic. Princess toadstool eventually went away as they went with the Japanese name, but Nintendo has doubled down on Bowser. It's more common to see Bowser than Koopa, and there are more references to Bowser in Japanese, than there are to Koopa (not the species) in Western releases. Technically DIC cartoons and such got it right!
    Also the Mario Pinball machine from gottleib has both the DIC king koopa and our well known Bowser both on the same cabinet.

    • @robbiewalker2831
      @robbiewalker2831 Před rokem +1

      In the Super Mario 3 cartoons, he was sometimes called “Bowser Koopa”, because of how the Koopalings were his children at the time. He was also referred to as Bowser Koopa in the Nintendo Comic System lineup of Mario comics.

  • @inknation2912
    @inknation2912 Před 2 lety +57

    “Jokingly called it…Donkey Dong”
    It’s like a precursor to EXPAND in a way

  • @KoalaTulip47
    @KoalaTulip47 Před 2 lety +37

    Universal Studios then: Sues Nintendo for the name Donkey Kong because of King Kong
    Universal Studios now: now has a Donkey Kong ride in one of their theme parks in the same place as the King Kong ride.
    The serendipity of that is just hilarious.

  • @lrgogo1517
    @lrgogo1517 Před 2 lety +7

    About the explanation for Peach’s name: A common word for _pink_ in Japan is _momoiro,_ which literally means ‘peach-colored.’

    • @am05mhz
      @am05mhz Před 2 lety

      So momotaro can mean pink boy or peach boy 🤔

    • @AJWRAJWR
      @AJWRAJWR Před 2 lety

      It's interesting that the Japanese associate peach-coloured with pink though.

  • @gezeo750
    @gezeo750 Před 2 lety +16

    Man I love your Mario content! The nostalgia just washes over me and it just feels like home. Thanks for this.

  • @charliepalmer3244
    @charliepalmer3244 Před 2 lety +126

    I grew up VERY close to the Nintendo US headquarters in Redmond WA. It was there before Microsoft BTW, who has built it's headquarters around Nintendo's essentially. There has never been a pizza place in Redmond by that name, or Kirkland or Bellevue. Case closed, good work, and keep up the good work bud.

    • @charliepalmer3244
      @charliepalmer3244 Před 2 lety +14

      (I still live in Redmond btw, lol)

    • @eccojedi
      @eccojedi Před 2 lety +2

      @@charliepalmer3244 what’s the story with Digipen? Is it still there?

    • @charliepalmer3244
      @charliepalmer3244 Před 2 lety +4

      As far as I know. I get gas at a Chevron right next to Nintendo/Digipen off the freeway exit and I have seen cars there. I haven't known anyone that's been a student there for over ten years, but all looks normal there as far as I can tell. Matter of fact I'll probably get gas there tomorrow.....lol

    • @motzo8235
      @motzo8235 Před 2 lety +3

      @@eccojedi Am a Washington resident, Digipen changed buildings a while ago. It's no longer by that Chevron gas station

    • @nickwallette6201
      @nickwallette6201 Před 2 lety +2

      I know someone going to Digipen. :-) Can confirm, still a thing.

  • @Rotog
    @Rotog Před 2 lety +94

    Sometimes I just remember how silly “Donkey Kong” is. It’s like the greatest name ever.

    • @bmac4
      @bmac4 Před 2 lety +17

      Just makes me think of that old Futurama quote. "I know that Monkey! His name is Donkey!" "Monkeys aren't donkeys, quit messing with my head!"

    • @nickfarace9339
      @nickfarace9339 Před 2 lety +10

      Hey man, according to that document he could have been Kong Dong. Expand Dong is real.

    • @kenrickeason
      @kenrickeason Před 2 lety

      Songs were made off that name 😂
      DONKEY KONG synonymous with everything now.. 😂😂

    • @nicholaslienandjaja1815
      @nicholaslienandjaja1815 Před měsícem

      Fun fact: One of Diddy Kong’s beta names was “DK Lite”, and King K. Rool’s beta name was “Krudd”.

  • @katerobinson9632
    @katerobinson9632 Před 2 lety +53

    Evertime I tell the family a new episode of Gaming Historian is on CZcams, they come running full of excitement. Your episodes are informative and are always fun to rewatch. Thank you!

  • @KronosTheDeejay
    @KronosTheDeejay Před 2 lety +6

    Quite possibly the most informative and thorough gaming show ever.
    No exaggeration. Your show is soothing and never boring, and always keeps me hanging on for the next piece of information.
    Thank you, Gaming Historian, for all you do and all that you are.

  • @SynGirl32
    @SynGirl32 Před 2 lety +42

    Two videos in a month, now THAT's a treat.

  • @RubyBlueUwU
    @RubyBlueUwU Před rokem +2

    It’s kinda nice that Mario feels like it could be derived from “mr video” to be honest, it may be unintentional but it feels like a spiritual nod to his first ever name.

  • @moltenfreddythepiratechann7148

    13:54 big kong is an actual arcade game bootleg of crazy kong which is an officially licensed version of donkey kong that was only released in japan in 1981.

  • @cswrye
    @cswrye Před 2 lety +29

    I have heard that Peach's current official name according to Nintendo is Princess Peach Toadstool--"Princess" being her title, "Peach" being her first name, and "Toadstool" being her last name. Likewise, Bower's current official name is King Bowser Koopa--"King" is his title, "Bowser" his first name, and "Koopa" his last name. I wonder if this is true or if it's just a fan theory that got spread around to reconcile their current names with their historical names.

    • @Justin-Hill-1987
      @Justin-Hill-1987 Před 2 lety +6

      It was written as "Bowser, King of the Koopas" in the 7th and final letter in Super Mario Bros. 3.

    • @revengeofbcraig5755
      @revengeofbcraig5755 Před 2 lety +2

      Those are full names the fans give for Bowser and Peach. Peach’s official name is Princess Peach, they just took her Japanese name and swapped it out for her Americanized name, Princess Toadstool and refer to that ever since. They never combined Bowser or Koopa either and still use his name or allowed some adaptations to use his Japanese name, like the DiC cartoon and the live action movie.

    • @Diwasho
      @Diwasho Před 2 lety

      @@Justin-Hill-1987 If Bowser is the king of Koopas then why does much of his army consist of Goombas, a mushroom species that should be governed by Peach/Toadstool?

    • @Belphegirl
      @Belphegirl Před 2 lety

      @@Diwasho Apparently they’re traitors

    • @Diwasho
      @Diwasho Před 2 lety

      @@Belphegirl I think I heard something like this, but how is it that the entire species is traitorous to its native kingdom? Are they former Toads who transformed into Goombas when they decided to be evil? I know Paper Mario has friendly Goombas but it has its own canon, as far as I know no friendly Goombas exist in the main series.

  • @davidbartel6823
    @davidbartel6823 Před 2 lety +16

    I always thought Bowser was named after the flamethrower attachment for tanks in WWII, seeing how he does breathe fire

    • @jabrown
      @jabrown Před 2 lety

      Good observation! Now I'm thinking this must be it!

  • @ironiceire
    @ironiceire Před 2 lety +1

    Fun fact: a “bowser” is the name used for a mini tanker that people attach to the trailer hitch of cars, they were mostly used to smuggle green (agricultural) diesel across the Northern Irish (UK) border during a civil war in the 1970s-1990s known as the troubles

  • @humb1s3rvant
    @humb1s3rvant Před 2 lety +4

    I cannot tell you how refreshing it is to watch a 20min video, be thoroughly entertained, and not see one interruption trying to sell me something. Thank you, kind sir

  • @enriquemedina3631
    @enriquemedina3631 Před 2 lety +31

    Your Patreon outro is nostalgic to me because it reminds me of the PBS kids “viewers like you, thank you”.

    • @MerkhVision
      @MerkhVision Před 2 lety +6

      That pbs ending was a fundamental part of my childhood! Lol

    • @gamephreak5
      @gamephreak5 Před 2 lety

      I freaking hate PBS. Never donated to that crap hole network!

    • @hrtlsbstrd
      @hrtlsbstrd Před 2 lety

      @@gamephreak5 You showed them!

  • @noirlavender6409
    @noirlavender6409 Před 2 lety +32

    "it was outside of seatle washington, not new york" bold of you to think that Shigeru cared at all for US geography

  • @Otto500206
    @Otto500206 Před rokem +3

    8:27 Her full name is... Well, you can guess from that change.
    "Princess Peach Toadstool" was used on the manual of Super Mario 64, according to Mario Wiki.

  • @SirSoliloquy
    @SirSoliloquy Před rokem +1

    Watching your videos is always an interesting experience… the tone is more reminiscent of older-style, pre-internet documentaries, and for some reason that always makes me expect that I’m not going to hear anything new about the subject that I hadn’t heard a thousand times before.
    Then you go on and hit me with three things I’ve never heard before every single minute and I’m left flummoxed.

  • @imjoesmama
    @imjoesmama Před 2 lety +6

    Players heard the iconic line...
    "So long gay bowser"

  • @ClaireZhasa
    @ClaireZhasa Před 2 lety +11

    True story, when I was like 8, I lived next door to a short Italian man with a thick mustache named Mario, he was a plumber and even had a brother named Luigi who was a bit taller than him.
    Luigi was a carpenter.

  • @ThechicagoRedshow
    @ThechicagoRedshow Před rokem +1

    Dude, real talk your videos are so awesome. I love coming across your stuff and just learning more about my childhood gaming favorites. awesome work

  • @jjinc1957
    @jjinc1957 Před 2 lety +70

    Every time Norman puts up a new video, it’s an event for my child and I; popcorn and all. Thank you for the moments and memories, as well as the incredible videos you create every single time!

    • @wickedlee664
      @wickedlee664 Před 2 lety +5

      Same! My son and I love these.

    • @joelman1989
      @joelman1989 Před 2 lety +8

      Why did my eyes get watery reading this? Maybe because I’m a new dad and would love to have this kind of relationship with my kid eventually.

    • @Mike-ky6jc
      @Mike-ky6jc Před 2 lety +6

      @@joelman1989 its awesome being able to share parts of your childhood with your own kids.

  • @kirbymarchbarcena
    @kirbymarchbarcena Před 2 lety +11

    @6:38 "So the whole name Luigi thing is just a coincidence"
    It would appear that everything in Nintendo was a coincidence.

  • @GRAF_22
    @GRAF_22 Před 2 lety +3

    Love every episode of gaming historian, but this is probably one of my most beloved episodes ever

  • @NoobOS_YT
    @NoobOS_YT Před 2 lety +3

    19:13 WHAT DID THEY DO TO YOU BOWSER

  • @joshjohnson3442
    @joshjohnson3442 Před 2 lety +16

    Lol when Mario is regular sized, I still call him Little Mario

  • @ThatOneVideoGamer
    @ThatOneVideoGamer Před 2 lety +735

    Oh wow. Mario.

  • @Marble_1
    @Marble_1 Před 2 lety

    Thanks for uploading, Norman! This channel became one of my favourites ever since I ran into your SMB2 video. Keep it up.

  • @CCCeramics
    @CCCeramics Před 2 lety +1

    When I saw the title subject for this video, I wasn't excited to watch it since it's trivia I am already familiar with and sounded more like something a listicle writer would cover. I should have known better since it's Gaming Historian. I love that you were able to untangle some of the fanciful stories from the facts, and even more that you have things like actual documents from the Universal court case backing up some of your conclusions. Add in the unique illustrations and the images from magazines, interviews, and journal/sketchbooks... very entertaining and satisfying. Keep up the good work!

  • @JawnGG
    @JawnGG Před 2 lety +23

    I love these deep dives into the history of games. It is always a great day when there is a new Gaming Historian video!

  • @TheHiddenChest
    @TheHiddenChest Před 2 lety +23

    This would make for an amazing series, I'd love to see a part 2, or one about Zelda!

  • @atarimetalhead
    @atarimetalhead Před 2 lety

    Norm your videos are ALWAYS great, but this one is such a perfect upload. Perfect musical choices on this one. Great job, brother!

  • @KingPBJames
    @KingPBJames Před rokem +3

    30 years after Nintendo feared their game being mocked "Donkey Dong," the internet went full circle to EXPAND DONG, the ultimate humiliation in Smash Bros.

  • @evanhanley6437
    @evanhanley6437 Před 2 lety +10

    This is absolutely incredible. Love all the little touches with the music and the dialogue.

  • @aarons_guitars
    @aarons_guitars Před 2 lety +5

    You gave a good explanation of peach and bowser, bc I remember seeing their names change as time went on and never knew why.

  • @Swenglish
    @Swenglish Před rokem +1

    I always figured Bowser was named after Bowzer Bauman because all the Super Mario World bosses except for the Big Boo and Morton Koopa Jr. (who was named after talk show host Morton Downey Jr.) seem to be named after musicians.
    (Trent) Reznor, Iggy (Pop), Lemmy (Kilmister), Ludwig (van Beethoven), Roy (Orbison), Wendy O. (Williams), Larry (Mullen Jr.)...
    It seems fair to suspect that the reason they were named after musicians may have been because Bowser was.

  • @hotrob4000
    @hotrob4000 Před 2 lety +1

    This is you are number 1, gaming historian! Well done! All the best!

  • @Mike_oliver1313
    @Mike_oliver1313 Před 2 lety +38

    It’s always a great day when we get a new video from gaming historian!!

  • @CrashFan03
    @CrashFan03 Před 2 lety +4

    8:34 I always thought of toadstool being her last name and peach being her first name

  • @RetroGameUp
    @RetroGameUp Před 2 lety +1

    I love your documentary! Even though I'm in the retro gaming world since a long time, I still learn new thing. Keep up the good work!

  • @chrismyghostwriter
    @chrismyghostwriter Před 2 lety

    Just want to take a moment to say how great your music is in all of your videos! I love it! Great video, as always!

  • @acarbonbasedlifeform70
    @acarbonbasedlifeform70 Před 2 lety +8

    Thank you for this episode of the Naming Historian!

  • @lk-pheo962
    @lk-pheo962 Před 2 lety +6

    I remember a art book. It was called "Learn to Draw Nintendo Villains" or something. I last saw it back in elementary school but ill never forget that Bowser was called "Kerog" in that book.

    • @domino1518
      @domino1518 Před 2 lety +1

      Funnily enough, "Kerog" is actually the name of the frog enemies in Bubble Man's stage, in Mega Man 2.

    • @1993Southparkfan
      @1993Southparkfan Před 2 lety +1

      Whoever made that art book must not have played a Mario game before.

    • @bubufubu
      @bubufubu Před 2 lety

      @@domino1518 *Bubbleman's stage, in *Rockman 2: Dr. Wily no Nazo

  • @balrogdahomie
    @balrogdahomie Před 2 lety +3

    17:22
    I’m glad that people have been making Konkey Dong jokes since the beginning, lmao

  • @markwebster4996
    @markwebster4996 Před 2 lety

    These videos are so well done! Thanks Norm! Truly PBS quality and thats a compliment

  • @DiestroCorleone
    @DiestroCorleone Před 2 lety +10

    Norman, the work you do for gaming history in invaluable. Thanks for such amazing content.

  • @weirdotzero7065
    @weirdotzero7065 Před 2 lety +66

    "the iconic line... 'So long Gay Bowser'"
    A man of culture.

    • @Wonkyman
      @Wonkyman Před 2 lety +7

      I always just heard it as “So long-a Bowser.” In the same vein as “It’s-a me”

    • @thisisfyne
      @thisisfyne Před 2 lety +11

      @@Wonkyman Clearly, you've misheard

    • @Omar_E11
      @Omar_E11 Před 2 lety +2

      @@Wonkyman It's supposed to be "so long K Bowser"

    • @skyking2325
      @skyking2325 Před 2 lety +2

      @@Omar_E11 no it actually so long a boswer

    • @skyking2325
      @skyking2325 Před 2 lety +1

      @@Omar_E11 ok so we are both wrong
      Charles martinez said it's so long kinga boswer
      info czcams.com/video/Jf84drhv2po/video.html

  • @magsblack8344
    @magsblack8344 Před 2 lety

    I love you Norm. Seeing one of your videos come up in my feed is always a highlight of my day. Thank you.

  • @SpeedWaggin
    @SpeedWaggin Před 2 lety

    It's always a treat to watch something from you. Thank you for the awesome info!

  • @dwaynezilla
    @dwaynezilla Před 2 lety +8

    That Luigi-Ruigi similarity is just _nice._
    Happy little accidents!

  • @R0BB23
    @R0BB23 Před 2 lety +19

    As a side note: Its not only that Luigi sounds like ruiji, but Japanese replaces L sounds (which don't exist in Japanese) with R's. So a more direct translation is ruiiji (ルイージ). Which still isn't exactly the same as ruiji and double vowels do change the pronunciation a bit. But just wanted to point that out.

  • @dallinvader2382
    @dallinvader2382 Před 2 lety +4

    20:58 but everything changed when the fire nation attacked

  • @enfieldjohn101
    @enfieldjohn101 Před 2 lety

    Interesting stuff! Some info in here that I didn't know and I've seen other documentaries. Great job digging up some of the more obscure info.
    Yoshi is my favorite Mario character both in how he looks and what he can do in his games.

  • @8thLife
    @8thLife Před 2 lety +8

    Such a great breakdown, thank you for taking the time to put all of this together!

  • @CorndogNinja
    @CorndogNinja Před 2 lety +4

    Very impressive presentation! I enjoyed how thorough the explanations were, especially Donkey Kong. It was fun to see the different alternate names that were considered or used.

  • @Twentydragon
    @Twentydragon Před 2 lety +1

    20:20 - The name "Bowser" deriving from a musical artist would fit the theme with the Koopalings, but of course that doesn't make this hypothesis accurate.

  • @user-mk8dv7oo1d
    @user-mk8dv7oo1d Před rokem +1

    14:21 There is "King Kong" in the Katanaka writing system actually in the game design plan. So Nintendo's developers assumed the ape was King Kong at first.

  • @YoshiONE2ONE
    @YoshiONE2ONE Před 2 lety +33

    Honestly, Bowser being named after a little soup dish is extremely fitting with his character when you think about it lol

    • @bubufubu
      @bubufubu Před 2 lety +4

      The word/name "Bowser" has absolutely nothing to do with Korean bbq or hot rice soup, thus it has no connection to the original name of the character (Kuppa/Koopa). What you're referring to is merely a localization, likely offered up by someone at Nintendo of America.

  • @criznittle968
    @criznittle968 Před 2 lety +4

    The overwhelming quality of content in GH videos brings me back every time - the moment i see a new upload. This was easily one of the best too, just imagine the work that goes into researching and compiling everything, it's outstanding TV worthy stuff

  • @moejoesayson1933
    @moejoesayson1933 Před 2 lety

    My 4 year old & 6 year old niece are just beginning to love Nintendo games & gaming in general. We watch your videos together so they can find games they wanna play and learn about the classics. Thanks for all the quality content and the bonding it creates for us!

  • @btetschner
    @btetschner Před rokem

    A+ video!
    So interesting to learn where the names originated and the process in which they were selected.

  • @deanfranz
    @deanfranz Před 2 lety +30

    Super Mario 64's recton of "Peach" as a nickname was perfect. Well done, Nintendo.

    • @TackyRackyComixNEO
      @TackyRackyComixNEO Před 2 lety +5

      Comparable to how the English version of Sonic Adventure does it with Eggman's name, in addition to solidifying it in Generations with a good joke about it.

    • @roweboat
      @roweboat Před 2 lety

      I always assumed when younger that Peach was her nickname and "Princess Toadstool" was her official title. I always thought super mario rpg would have benefited using Peach, cuz its ya know... text boxes and all.

    • @RobotacularRoBob
      @RobotacularRoBob Před 2 lety +1

      @@TackyRackyComixNEO As a longtime Nintendo fan myself who is Rusty on my Sega/ Sonic Canon, you'll have to elaborate on this knowledge for us Nintendonuts.

    • @i0rpheus15
      @i0rpheus15 Před 2 lety +3

      @@RobotacularRoBob Dr. Eggman = Original Japanese name. Dr. Ivo Robotnik = Western translation, same deal with King Koopa/Bowser and Peach/Princess Toadstool. Like Nintendo, Sega made both names canon with Dr. Ivo Robotnik his actual name and Eggman a mocking nickname given by Sonic

    • @bubufubu
      @bubufubu Před 2 lety

      *Nintendo of America
      Her original name, given to her by Miyamoto, is still Princess Peach and it's not a nickname.

  • @rightnote1
    @rightnote1 Před 2 lety +5

    I'm so flappin' happy that you're still making videos! All of them, SO good! I've played these for my students as an example of doing thorough research and presenting a very enjoyable product! Keep it up man!!!

  • @weskal5490
    @weskal5490 Před rokem

    Excellent presentation as always. Its great to be able to climb inside the heads of these legendary game designers to see how their minds tick when bringing their games from just rough ideas to chart-topping reality.

  • @RetroRescuers
    @RetroRescuers Před rokem

    I watch all your videos and this one for some reason snuck through the crack! Perfect start to the day!

  • @FDestroy3r
    @FDestroy3r Před 2 lety +6

    Damn we can read anything on the internet. I once read that Donkey Kong was a typo of "Monkey Kong" and that they kept the name. Incredible ressearch that you've done here, very very well done sir!

  • @joshzumstien6289
    @joshzumstien6289 Před 2 lety +5

    I thought I knew most of these stories going in but you provided a ton of facts that I had never heard before. Great research and presentation as always Norm, keep it up 👏!

  • @stingraystingray4766
    @stingraystingray4766 Před 2 lety +1

    I can not express how much I appreciate your use of sources and making sure that you cite where you get your information from, even verbally. With your permission I’d like to use this video as an example to students how citing sources is part of the real world. I’m a high school English Language Arts teacher by the way if you haven’t figure that out already. Great video!!!

  • @StepBaum
    @StepBaum Před 2 lety

    the first video of yours ive watched and i am impressed by the detail and passion you did your research with! really enjoyed this video. also great way of showing stuff and speaking speed

  • @JessmanChicken86
    @JessmanChicken86 Před 2 lety +13

    Love the historical credibility with this channel. So professional and honors the search for the truth.