Spam Celebrates ‘Spam’

Today when someone says the word Spam, chances are they are talking about the junk mail in their inbox – there’s even a folder specifically created for it. But years ago it only meant one thing: Hormel’s lunchmeat. In its 75-year history, Hormel had never faced a challenge like the one it had to face when junk mail was named after its most popular product.

According to an article in Bloomberg Businessweek, it started when Star Wars fans started “spamming” Star Trek chat rooms. Why Spam? The author writes, “The word was chosen because of the famous Monty Python sketch in which every item on a restaurant’s menu includes Spam, Hormel’s canned, spiced lunchmeat.” In the article, “How Spam Survived ‘Spam,’” writer Karl Taro Greenfeld reveals how Hormel’s lunchmeat survived and thrived even after its association with junk mail.

Read more: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-05-17/how-spam-meat-has-survived-spam-e-mail