KLIM

Playing with words appears to be something that runs in my family. In 1905 my grandfather, Lewis C. Merrell, co-invented the world's first powdered whole milk. The name for this concoction? Klim, which is ... well, I think you can figure out what that spells backwards.

Klim wasn't the first commercial name created that way. And it certainly wasn't the last. Serutan, a natural laxative product, touted its name's origin by using the slogan "Read it backwards." Equally apt is a regional beer with the name Regal.

Other products that inadvertently spell words when reversed are Evian, Saab, Seiko, Siri, Devil Dog, and the unfortunate Tums. Several others remain unchanged when reversed. Aviva, Civic, M&M, and Xanax are a few examples, with "a Toyota" sort of qualifying. One last variation is New York City's Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Appearing on signs as MTA, it spells ATM when reflected in a window or mirror.

An interesting side story that involves Klim occurred in World War II (after Borden purchased the Merrell-Soule company). Cans of the powdered milk were included in the rations of many U.S. soldiers. Additionally, the Red Cross supplied Klim to Allied prisoners held in German P.O.W. camps.

In one camp, Stalag Luft III, the prisoners fit together over 1,000 Klim cans to form ventilation tubes in their escape tunnels. The cans were also cut apart and used as lamps, with mutton fat instead of wax and wicks made of pajama fabric. The fumes were so noxious, however, that another method was needed. The prisoners stole some unattended electrical wiring, ran it through the tunnels, and hooked it into the prison's circuit board. After that, it was only during blackouts that the Klim lamps were used.

The prisoner's scheme was chronicled in the book The Great Escape by Paul Brickhill, the basis for the popular 1963 film.

Photos: (top) promotional photo by the Merrell-Soule co.; (left) © PA; (right) the history blog
Further reading: http://robdavistelford.co.uk/webspace/gt_esc/