Catch 18?

I've been thinking a bit about naming & branding a bit lately. When lawyers are involved and checks have to be cut to incorporate names for new entities, you want to be sure you're making a good choice. The whole thing can become just a little intimidating.

Gary Dexter recently published a new book, "Why Not Catch 21: The Stories Behind the Titles" that explores the backstories of branding some of our more famous texts.

Here's one of my favorite tid-bits:

In 1953, Joseph Heller published the first chapter of his novel "Catch 18". Three years later, he submitted the entire text to Simon & Schuster and it was quickly accepted for publication. He continued to hammer away at the novel until its completion in 1961.

In other words, he spent eight years imagining that his brainchild book would launch with the title "Catch 18".

However, shortly before its publication, Leon Uris also gave birth to a novel about the war entitled "Mila 18." At the time, folks thought Heller should be the one to adapt his work for the sake of differentiation.

In a 1975 interview, Heller remembered, "I was heartbroken. I thought 18 was the only number."

And so, the process of consideration began:

Catch 11? Nope. The original film "Ocean's Eleven" had that one taken.

Catch 14? Too "non-descript", according to the publisher.

Catch 22? "Well, 22 is a funny number", thought Heller.

There they had it: They settled on Catch 22. It not only became a classic text, but the phrase is still part of our modern day vernacular. And to think, it could have been Catch 18.

That's the funny thing about branding & naming. Sure, words matter. Numbers matter. Images matter. But ultimately its how your brand lives, acts & plays that earns you meaning. At a certain point, you make a call on naming and more importantly spend your energy living up to the hope, aspirations & ambitions associated with it.