Why “Sour Duck”?

A punk duck, complete with spikey dyed hair and nose ring, adorns the packet of Bubble Yum.

“Oh, never mind the hows, and the whys and the do-you-mind-if-I-don'ts.” —George (played by Hugh Laurie), Blackadder Goes Forth

A question I get a lot is, “Why ‘Sour Duck’?” Here's a brief rundown on this blog's name.

I recently relocated to the U.S. after a period of living in the United Kingdom. During the first year I had lots of fun rediscovering American brands and goods. One of these was of course candy and gum (or "sweets"), and since I'm fond of sour candy I gravitated towards anything that promised a slightly painful yet rewarding soury bite.

"Bubble Yum" brand gum hit the American market in the 1970s. As I recall, before that there were only Wrigley's, Trident, Dentene, Big Red, and other brands marketed to adults. The gum sticks were thin, flat and rectangular, so if you wanted to blow bubbles you had to stick at least two in your mouth. Bubble Yum and Bubblicious - both of which came on the scene in the 70s - actively courted school kids with their cartoonish lettering on the packets, and chunky square pieces that were ideal for blowing bubbles.

When I returned to the states, I saw that Bubble Yum had been rebranded with some sort of punk-rock duck with a nose ring and spikey, Young Ones-ish hairdo. Marvelling at this wacked-out mascot, I gravitated towards the Sour Cherry flavor. Sour… cherry? Could it be good?

Well it was sour alright. So by that yardstick it was good. The next week or so I started a blog. I wasn't sure what to name it - I wanted something slightly unusual and therefore memorable, and also unique. I remembered the gum and, not thinking too much, chose "Sour Duck". It didn't mean anything to me, so it seemed ideal, and anyway, I was just experimenting with blogging and would probably change the name to something more meaningful later on.

The name has stuck, though, much like - yes you see it coming don't you? - a big wad of gooey gum.

Next up: “Why ‘World Shut Your Mouth!’?”

(P.S. - For the record, my preferred gum is 1940s-era Dubble Bubble.)

Photo credit: Hershey's