Last week, two people told me about an article in the San Jose Mercury entitled “What are those little creatures really saying?”
McDonald’s swears up and down that the little yellow “Minions” Happy Meal toy is speaking only nonsense words and not something a little more adult.
Experts say the company may be right, and the curse words many hear may be tied to how our brains are primed to find words even when they’re not really there.
The world’s largest hamburger chain and purveyor of Happy Meals said Friday that it doesn’t plan to take the talking Happy Meal toy out of distribution, even though some customers say it sounds like it’s cursing.
Naturally, this story led to a topic led to a familiar path in the LOUIE LOUIE universe….
The technical name for the phenomenon is “pareidolia,” hearing sounds or seeing images that seem meaningful but are actually random. It leads people to see shapes in clouds, a man in the moon or the face of Jesus on a grilled cheese sandwich.
The audio form of pareidolia has been causing confusion for years and years. In the 1960s the FBI investigated The Kingsmen‘s version of the song “Louie Louie” after concerned citizens complained that the lyrics were obscene. The band denied it, but hardly anybody could figure out the lyrics, including the FBI. The agency officially declared the words unintelligible.
Based on the controversial nature of these toys, I fully expect some of my friends to be visiting McDonalds in the near future…
Reference Link:
“What are those little creatures really saying?” – Marin Independent Journal / SJ Mercury News/ MediaNews Group article