Re: Parents giving their kids numbers instead of names.
Props should instead go to Charles Schulz, of Peanuts fame. He had a numbered character named 555 95472. His dad gave all his kids numbers instead of names because of the creeping feeling that people were becoming numbers rather than names - way back in 1963!
This wasn't even in response to computerization, but the introduction of the ZIP Code! I think punch card bills were still a couple years in the future ....
(Although I guess the ZIP Code itself was at least partially inspired by creeping computerization ...)'
Re: Parents giving their kids numbers instead of names.
Props should instead go to Charles Schulz, of Peanuts fame. He had a numbered character named 555 95472. His dad gave all his kids numbers instead of names because of the creeping feeling that people were becoming numbers rather than names - way back in 1963!
This wasn't even in response to computerization, but the introduction of the ZIP Code! I think punch card bills were still a couple years in the future ....