The planet Uranus, forever the butt of jokes, might have had a different name.
"William Herschel tried to name his new planet ``Georgium Sidus" for King George III, but the international astronomy community would have none of that, calling it Uranus instead." writes Owen Gingerich in the Boston Globe http://www.boston.com/news/globe/ideas/articles/2006/09/03/planet_politics/?page=full
Given that George III has been the butt of many jokes in America, that's not surprising.
The recent controversey about Pluto has brought many of these jokes back out of the closet. Consider today's Brewster Rocket comic:
"Sorry O-Dor, the other planets voted that Uranus jokes don't get old."
O-dor: "You mean the planet formerly known as Uranus. We got a corporate sponsor to buy naming rights to our planet. No longer will Uranus be the butt of jokes."
"Who is your sponsor?"
O-Dor: "Preparation H"
http://www.comicspage.com/brewster/brewster.html
This will be my fourth mention to Uranus being the butt of jokes, so perhaps it's time to end this entry.
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