how can you know the name?

[on:]

I'm wondering when or where the names of the two policemen were said - Smitty and URL?
And the name of Leela's mother - Turanga Munda?

[Reply #1 on:]

Someone on the staff told us.

[Reply #2 on:]

And, I know that URL at least has his name on his little wind-up toy's box. I would assume that Smitty may be mentioned there as well.

[Reply #3 on:]

 

Originally posted by evan:
his little wind-up toy's box

    what box?

[Reply #4 on:]

I coulda sworn somewhere they say those names..........  I'll have to get more episodes....... (I hope they're not onto my downloading habits.....)...............

[Reply #5 on:]

 

Originally posted by winna:
I coulda sworn somewhere they say those names.......... I'll have to get more episodes

I saw all episodes - this names never were said. I think that Groening or Cohen said somewhere "that are the names of this people" and so it is.

[Reply #6 on:]

 

Originally posted by TheLesbianLeela:
   

Originally posted by evan:
his little wind-up toy's box

      what box?

Bender and URL were both released as wind-up toys as part of the Futurama merchandise. Supposedly, they're really really really cool, despite the fact I haven't seen one in real life yet.   

I couldn't find an actual picture of URL in case, but use this Shiny Bender pic as a reference. Use your imagination, please.

 

[Reply #7 on:]

Smitt'ys name I'm pretty sure is meationed on the audio comentries on te DVD's or in the extras some where.

[Reply #8 on:]

 

Originally posted by TheLesbianLeela:
 

Originally posted by evan:
his little wind-up toy's box

     what box?

Somebody needs to revise there futurama, don't they young lady 

[Reply #9 on:]

Hey maybe they say it in an yet unaired episode.....  Possibly???

[Reply #10 on:]

Their names were never said in an episode, like Comic Book Guy.

[Reply #11 on:]

Yeah, but I think later we find comic book guy's name is Lewis or something, I heard it off of a site.

[Reply #12 on:]

Wow, if it's on the internet, it's gotta' be true!

[Reply #13 on:]

The Lewis thing was a joke. Get it "Lewis Lane"

[Reply #14 on:]

 

Originally posted by evan:
Bender and URL were both released as wind-up toys as part of the Futurama merchandise.

Never heard about this wind-up toys... Another piece of Futurama merchandise, you can't buy in Germany   

[Reply #15 on:]

I think URL is in the show... Smitty said something like:

"Hey URL, check out that (something about Bender)"
"Yeah, but check out todays Marmaduke. Solid."

Or maybe he was saying there was no suspicious activity. I think I'm wrong...

[Reply #16 on:]

 

Originally posted by TheLesbianLeela:
Never heard about this wind-up toys... Another piece of Futurama merchandise, you can't buy in Germany   

Yeah, well, you can't FIND them over here in the States. And I'm not up for shopping on-line. (Don't trust god-flaren adding machines.)

[Reply #17 on:]

 

Originally posted by Guy:
Wow, if it's on the internet, it's gotta' be true!

I SAID I think   

[Reply #18 on:]

Turanga is from that place tooronga

[Reply #19 on:]

 

Originally posted by What up 1:
Turanga is from that place tooronga

Actually Leela is most likely named after the symphony Turangalila, a classical piece of music written by Oliver Messiaen.

Olivier Messiaen said the Turangalila-symphony is a song of love and a hymn to joy. Quite fitting, eh?

[Reply #20 on:]

not really considering she can't find love and is seldom joyful.

[Reply #21 on:]

It's ironic.

[Reply #22 on:]

Don't ya think?

Hey, Teral, I'm curious to how you know the "Leela" part also comes from that thar symphony you mentioned. Is it something from the not-available-in-the-US DVDs?

[Reply #23 on:]

I'm not sure, but it's definetely not from the DVD. I think I saw it on TLZ first, they may have gotten it from  this LA Weekly article about Matt Groening and Futurama (third paragraph).

Another explanation on what Turangalila means (taken from here):

 

 
Capitol Hill: How should I feel about the revelation that the FUTURAMA character Leela's full name is "Turangaleela"? Someone who writes for an animated cartoon that airs on the Fox network knows from Messiaen? My brain hurts.

Tim Page: Boy, that is weird. But the word comes from the sanskrit. Here's what Messiaen had to say: "As with all words from ancient oriental languages, its meaning is very rich. 'Lila' literally means play -- but play in the sense of the divine action upon the cosmos, the play of creation, destruction, reconstruction, the play of life and death. 'Lila' is also love. 'Turanga': this is the time that runs, like a galloping horse; this is time that flows, like sand in an hourglass. 'Turanga' is movement and rhythm. 'Turangalila' therefore means all at once love song, hymn to joy, time, movement, rhythm, life and death..."

[Reply #24 on:]

Was Mom's real name mentioned ever? Probably in the comic with the PE-men team?
What's the full name of Mayor Poopenmeier? Something with Quincy, maybe. I can't remember the episode ...

[Reply #25 on:]

 

Originally posted by TheLesbianLeela:

And the name of Leela's mother - Turanga Munda?

That was written on Leela´s letter in LTH,altough we knew that befere (staff comments).

[Reply #26 on:]

Smitty and URL's names were mentioned on the comentary for "Space Pilot 3000," just like 'that guy' whose name is mentioned on the commentary for "Future Stock."

[Reply #27 on:]

Lila is actually german for purple... if I remember my schooling correctly...

[Reply #28 on:]

 

Originally posted by paranoir87:
Lila is actually german for purple... if I remember my schooling correctly...

Yes, you do remember right:
lila [pronounced like "Leela"] = purple
frei [pronounced like "Fry"] = free

[Reply #29 on:]

And is it any coincidence that Leela has purple hair?

What other backgrounds are there on the names of the characters?  I know they chose Zoidberg as a reference to the old video game Zoid.  Never seen that game, but I think it was something where there was a dot moving around the screen and you had to block it in by building walls.  Or something like that.  perhaps one of you guys can clarify.

What about other characters?  Kif?  Zap?  Farnsworth?

[Reply #30 on:]

 

Originally posted by Tiberius:
What about other characters?  Kif?  Zap?  Farnsworth?

Farnsworth is named after Philo T. Farnsworth.

[Reply #31 on:]

You won't find any copies of Zoid lying around, Tiberius, as that was a game DXC himself programmed, yet never had published (though not for lack of trying, if the commentary is to be believed.)

[Reply #32 on:]

Claudia De La Roca/Countess De La Roca

[Reply #33 on:]

I think "Zapp Brannigan" is supposed to sound like some sci-fi hero from the fifties or so.  You know, the Buck Rogers type stuff.

[Reply #34 on:]

"Zapp Brannigan" is a play on "Flash Gordon."  Just like me to know this kind of thing (or at least hypothesize it), right? 

Another hypothesis: Dr. Zoidberg is a shellfish with a Jewish accent.  The last name is a play on "Goldberg," which is a Jewish surname.  I think they just put "Zoid" in it to make it sound more futuristic.

[Reply #35 on:]

Yeah, with a name like Zap (is it one P or two?), it's definately gotta be a Flash Gordon type of thing.

About Zoidberg's accent.  They never really had the accent until Billy West did the voice.  Since Zoidberg was around long before that, did they always plan on making him a Jewish lobster thingy?

[Reply #36 on:]

Considering the "berg" at the end of his name, probably.  Unless they didn't decide to name him Zoidberg until they'd heard Billy West's voice, which I suppose is possible.  I think it really all works together, though.  A lot of doctors are Jewish, shellfish aren't kosher, and a lobster would make a rather clumsy doctor.

[Reply #37 on:]

Yes, "Zapp" the name is with two P's.

I think Billy West said he decided to base Zoidberg's voice on some Jewish comedian.  I don't know about the name thing, though.

[Reply #38 on:]

I have a dumb question (or, I guess, a barrage of dumb questions--duck!). I googled "Turangalila Futurama" only without the quotes and found  http://www.sciencedaily.com/encyclopedia/turangalila_symphony . It had this to say:
 

In the TV series Futurama it is also the name of the little song that Captain Turanga Leela hums to herself whenever she feels happy.

Does she really, or is this just a case of a website getting a little overexcited about a great pun? If she does, when? The beginning of Godfellas comes to mind, but that's just a wild guess. Anyone with an ear for music want to shed some light on this?