September 4

On this day in 1888, George Eastman registered the trademark Kodak, and received a patent for his camera, which used roll film that made photography a realistic hobby for ordinary people. When Eastman was asked about the name "Kodak", he supposedly replied by stating that "Philologically, the word Kodak is as meaningless as a child's first 'goo'—terse, abrupt to the point of rudeness, literally bitten off by firm and unyielding consonants at both ends, it snaps like a camera shutter in your face. What more would one ask!" That is just a shade nicer than saying ‘it’s no more and no less than a linguistic slap in the face that is pretty much guaranteed to get people’s attention. What could be more fun than slapping people around and then having them buy my stuff?’