And a Poet Shall Brand Them

Mongoose Civique. Pastelogram. Utopian Turtletop. These were but a few of Marianne Moore‘s inspired suggestions to the Ford Motor Company when, in 1955, an executive approached the poet to suggest some names for its latest product line. Writer Danny Heitman recounted the story in a recent New York Times op-ed piece that suggests a literary bail-out for the beleaguered auto industry.