By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD
My bride and I recently watched the movie Get Smart. As a long-time fan of the 60s TV series, I was greatly anticipating this flick—and was not disappointed. There were a good number of subtle tie-ins and allusions to the show, but not so many as to be excessive or alienate new fans.
Overall, I greatly enjoyed the movie. Despite some unnecessary crassness, there were some truly funny parts and on more than one occasion I had tears rolling down my face from laughing so hard.
Given the movie’s promotion, star power, and success, I fully expected reruns of the TV show to crop up some place—and I was ready to watch—but to my knowledge that hasn’t happened. (Yes, I know that I could just buy the series on DVD.)
Sitting down in our seats at the theater, I have my popcorn and hand my bride her Snickers. On the back it says “Nougatocity.” Apparently, it’s been this way for a while, but we’re in the habit of eating Snickers — not reading the wrapper.
Although Snickers is a registered trademark, nougatocity is not. Being the curious sort, I do some investigating after the movie. First, according to Google, there are over 9,800 mentions of “nougatocity” in cyberspace. Several entries date to November of 2007, but I did find a blog mention of it two years ago on August 28, 2006, where Arnold Zwicky indicates that the word (along with others) were coined for a Snickers ad campaign.
Next, although TheFreeDictionary.com doesn’t know what nougatocity is, the Urban Dictionary does. However, their definition is not what I expected.
Of course the Urban Dictionary often contains explanations that are so slang as to be unfathomable. I’m sure that someone, somewhere may have uttered those words in the manner indicated, but I doubt if there are many who do.
To me, it is self-apparent that nougatocity has something to do with gooey goodness packed inside each Snickers bar. By the way, if you’re really into nougatocity, the domain name, www.nougatocity.com, is currently available—but I think I’ll pass.
The main reason I bring this up is that my bride dared me to write a blog about nougatocity.
Read more in Peter Lyle DeHaan’s Sticky Series books, including Sticky Customer Service, Sticky Sales and Marketing, and Sticky Leadership and Management featuring his compelling story-driven insights and tips.
Peter Lyle DeHaan is an entrepreneur and businessman who has managed, owned, and started multiple businesses over his career. Common themes at every turn have included customer service, sales and marketing, and leadership and management.
He shares his lifetime of business experience and personal insights through his books to encourage, inspire, and occasionally entertain.
