18. Mario Is Named After The Landlord Of Nintendo America's First Office
NintendoEver wonder where the name of Nintendo's greatest mascot came from? Did the company just pick the stereotypical Italian name out of a hat or what? The answer lies in Mario Segale, the landlord of Nintendo's first American office in the early 1980s, and after he became disgruntled about their failure to make rent payments on time, Nintendo of America's President at the time, Minoru Arakawa, subsequently decided to rename Donkey Kong's protagonist from Jumpman to Mario. As for Segale? He has mostly distanced himself from the association, though in an interview did hilariously declare that, "You might say Im still waiting for my royalty checks." In 2010, Kotaku discovered that the now-elderly Segale, rather than mooch off his potential fame, is
working hard as a property developer in Washington. Still, whether he likes it or not, his grandest legacy is destined to be known as part of the inspiration behind one of the most beloved and lucrative pop-culture creations in history.