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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/8096988.stm
Madame de Gaulle was said to have been lunching with the American ambassador at the time of her husband's retirement when she was asked what she was most looking forward to in the years ahead.
She thought for a moment before announcing boldly: "A penis". A startled hush fell over the table until the former president leant over and said: "My dear, I think it's pronounced 'happiness'."
I don't know if Madame de Gaulle actually said that, but the joke was used in the 1970 movie "There's a Girl in My Soup", starring Peter Sellers and Goldie Hawn. A French hotelier does the dishonors.
Something like this happens in other languages too. An indie singer from Taiwan has the name Ho Hsin Sui, which is pronounced exactly like the English words "Her Sheen Sway"; she used those words, printed in English, for the title of her second CD.
Foreign language translation, pronunciation, and comprehension blunders are a never ending source of humor. I strive to keep my personal contributions out of print. If the “a penis†story isn't true, it ought to be.
Near where I live there was, till a few years ago when they built a mall, a huge expanse of grass with a few small buildings. I often wondered what English visitors thought as they drove past on the busy road and saw a billboard sized sign declaring “SOD FARM.â€
Martha Barnette
Grant Barrett
Grant Barrett
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