Hoodwinking readers is one of the many joys as a mystery writer. I avidly incorporate false clues, red herrings, and MacGuffins in my stories. But I recently learned of a phenomenon that made me question how well I was paying attention.
Welcome
to The Mandela Effect.
First
named by paranormal researcher Fiona Broome, The Mandela Effect is a collective
false memory hiccup where multiple people share the same incorrect historical
or pop cultural references.
For
instance, we’ve all seen the TV show Friends a million times. Replay the
theme song in your mind. How many hand claps are there? Five, right?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGqzXQQEn6A
It’s
four.
This is
more than simply mishearing lyrics. There’s a collective visual discrepancy
going on, too.
As a kid, for your lunch, who grew up with JIFFY peanut butter? It’s Jif.
Or Oscar Meyer bologna? It’s Oscar Mayer. This one really played with my head because when I sing the jingle, I still hear it as “My baloney has a second name it’s M-e-y-e-r.”
The Monopoly Millionaire wore a monocle, right? Nope. Honestly, I think this one cross-pollinated with Planters Mr. Peanut.
Was Looney Toons really spelled Looney Tunes? Okay, Bugs, you
rascal. You got me.
Star
Trek’s Captain James T. Kirk never said, “Beam me up, Scotty.”
Star War’s Darth Vader never said “Luke, I am your father.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lOT2p_FCvA
Golden
C3PO had a silver lower right leg.
Have you experienced The Mandela Effect? Please share your examples in the Comments.
Interesting post. Thanks. Until someone points out one of my false memories, how do I know they are false?
ReplyDeleteIt got me thinking about what kicked off Fiona Broome's naming the phenomen the Mandella Effect, which was she and several others all misremembered that Nelson Mandella had died in the 1980s in a South African prison. Hard to know how they friends got talking about the subject, but I can imagine one saying they remembered feeling X when it happened. And another --having a vague memory of something like that accepts the initial statement as fact and then adds what they remembered feeling at the time.
I knew Mandella didn't die in the 1980s, but remembered the death of Steve Bilko who died while in custody and whose death was the spark that fianlly turned the world against the South African government. I remember the furor and would have accepted that it happened in the early 1980s. And I might very well have spoken of reading the headlines in the newspaper. It actually happened in 1977.
As for others -- it's like the big lie -- if you hear it often enough, you come to believe it -- even if you persoanlly witnessed something else.
Ah, yes. All the things "everybody knows..." that really aren't true.
ReplyDeleteI fear we are presently in the throes of massive group-delusion for many of aspects of our political process.
Oh, yes, I’m with you on all of those you mentioned. I think it occurs in songs, too. Hold me closer Tony Danza!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kait for that ear worm. I'll be singing it wrong the rest of the day. LOL
ReplyDeleteI had great fun researching The Mandela Effect because I turned up another brain related syndrome that must become a story detail someday: Synesthesia. When you experience synesthesia, you hear music, a word, or a name, but you see colors or shapes. For instance, you read the word "murder" and you taste a banana. Or you hear a lyrical love song, and you see pink. You can't give me something like this and not expect me to use it. LOL
ReplyDelete"Ground round virgin, mother and child." That's how I sang Silent Night when I was little. Imagine my surprise when I learned to read.
ReplyDeleteEeek, Molly! You made me laugh out loud.
ReplyDeleteMolly, one of my brothers drew a picture of the nativity. When asked about the chubby figure in attendance with the shepherds and wise men, he said it was "Round John Virgin."
ReplyDelete"Play it, Sam. Play it again for old time's sake."
ReplyDeleteIt's not, "Play it again, Sam."
You got me with some of those above. But I got the hand claps in the Friends theme song correct!
Congratulations, Mark. I had trouble believing that one. I would have sworn it was five. Now I'm being super careful and probably over-checking everything.
ReplyDeleteI thought I was recalling someone else's memory, but when I was talking with my sister today and told her of this incident that I thought was someone else's, she said it was mine. I have no memory of attending one of our cousin's wedding. I said I wasn't there. Then, she pointed out a picture of us all standing together at the wedding. Oh, yeah--guess I was there. Maybe it was my memory. I just thought someone told me about it.
ReplyDeleteMartha--all of your examples I would have sworn to also. It was Jiffy Pop popcorn, not Jiffy peanut butter!
Another cross pollination. I was willing to swear that the Sun on the Raisin Bran box wore sunglasses. I need to stop this before I injure myself.
ReplyDeleteAnd Pluto is a planet. Lol
ReplyDelete