The city's difficulties with a certain mayor's name have gone national. Here's the Associated Press version of the story on the MSNBC site:
A former Indiana mayor who won four terms in the 1930s and 1950s is proving less popular with modern-day city leaders, who say they probably won't name a new government center for him because of the jokes his moniker could inspire.
Harry Baals is the runaway favorite in online voting to name the new building in Fort Wayne, about 120 miles northeast of Indianapolis. But Deputy Mayor Beth Malloy said that probably won't be enough to put the name of the city's longest-tenured mayor on the center.
The issue is pronunciation. The former mayor pronounced his last name "balls." His descendants have since changed it to "bales."
Supporters said it's unfair that the former mayor can't be recognized simply because his name makes some people snicker. But opponents fear that naming the center after Baals would make Fort Wayne the target of late-night television jokes.
Good Lord. "Tee-hee. Harry Baals. Snicker, snicker. Guess they'll be scratching that name, huh? Har-de-har-har." It's like being in junior high again. Haven't heard a sophisticated joke that funny since the iPad was introduced.
So what if we're the "target of late-night television shows"? Dimwits will get their chuckles, and Fort Wayne will become better known. I heard a good idea on the radio this morning: Fort Wayne should name the building after Harry, then make a killing with T-shirt and sweatshirt sales. Just think about all the money that's been made with the (snicker, snicker) Ball U shirts.
