A recent discovery has brought out many possibilities Alternative titles for Donkey Kong evaluated by Nintendo before the American launch, including a really strange one: Kong Dong. How did the discovery happen?
In the early 1980s, the film company Universal took Nintendo to court over Donkey Kong, in a famous trial that made history in the video game industry. The accusation concerned the alleged copyright infringement of King Konga trademark of the company. It was Universal’s own president, Sid Sheinberg, who wanted the cause, as he was looking for a way into the then nascent video game market.
Non-sexual
In fact, Universal threatened to sue several companies, guilty of having violated the trademark. The only one that resisted was Nintendo, which decided to go to trial led by attorney John Kirby (after whom the pink character we all love is named). Considering that Donkey Kong was his biggest success at the time, if he had not won the case the history of video games would have been very different from what we know. The trial began in 1982 and ended in 1984, with a clear victory for Nintendo who was thus able to keep the Donkey Kong character.
The case’s extensive documentation was filed in the National Archives. In recent weeks, video game historian Norman Caruso decided to visit the archives to consult it, discovering some curiosities, shared online. One of these concerned the Donkey Kong title itself.
Shigeru Miyamoto, the game’s author, stated during the hearing that several titles were considered for the game, including King Kong himself. One of the documents found by Caruso lists all those who were evaluated, including some really strange ones (not that Donkey Kong isn’t strange, of course): Funny Kong; Kong the Kong; Jack Kong; Funky Kong; Bill Kong; Steel Kong; Giant Kong; Big Kong; Kong Down; Kong Dong (!); Mr. Kong; Custom Kong; Kong Chase; Kong Boy; Kong Man; Kong Fighter; WildKong; Rookie Kong; Kong Holiday; and Donkey Kong.
What immediately catches the eye is certainly Kong Dong, which we could translate into Kong Batacchio or Kong’s Clapper, to make it clear why it would have been the perfect title for an 80s video game designed for everyone. Probably the person who proposed it was Japanese and did not know the double meanings that the word dong carries with it. Also interesting is the presence of Funky Kong, a name that will later be taken up by Rare in Donkey Kong Kountry.
Let’s also read the Transcript of the judge’s words on the differences between Donkey Kong and King Kongwhich contains some nice little gems, such as the fact that the main character was identified as Mario (so no Jumpman): “Donkey Kong is comical and fun. The player tries to get the plumber Mario up a structure of beams by making him climb ladders and run up ramps, avoiding obstacles, barrels, beams and more. The goal of the game is to get Mario to the top, where he can free a girl from the clutches of a large gorilla. The funny, childish and non-sexual Donkey Kong has a humorous aspect [sic] and teases Mario by jumping up and down and strutting around in various ways.”
What did he mean by “non-sexual?” However, the judge noted the huge differences between the two gorillas. “At best, Donkey Kong is a parody of King Kong, but such a parody is not copyright infringement.”
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