The Mandela Effect and its Residue

One of the hottest trends going into 2019 has been the mind-bending interpenetration of subjective and objective reality called the Mandela Effect, or ME. The name derives from a collective experience in 1980’s South Africa where Nelson Mandela was reported dead in prison and buried with much fanfare, only to be released from prison many years later, and go on to the become the President of a unified South Africa.

Stated in its simplest terms, what countless people are now noticing is that there have been a large number of small changes in the things they remember, be they names, brands, movie lines, book titles, slogans, map locations, historical events, etc. that have been altered as if the former versions never existed. The collective memory no longer matches, in other words, the historical record. People, of course, misremember all the time, and assume lines like “play it again, Sam” or “Lucy, you have some splainin’ to do” were actually said, and mishear phrases like “there’s a bad moon on the rise” as “there’s a bathroom on the right.”

The Mandela Effect is altogether different, in that there has been an actual change made in reality. Today, for example, I looked into my closet for a bottle of crafting glue that, when I bought it two years ago, was called Modge Podge. Today, after the Mandela shift, the bottle is labeled Mod Podge. The old name of this product doesn’t exist anywhere, in fact there is no record it ever existed.

The only evidence left of the former reality is a trace, known as residue, of stray references to the old reality, such as a shot of the book cover of Portrait of Dorian Gray (now the Picture of Dorian Gray) in a still from a different movie, an old newspaper review that refers to Reba McIntyre (now McEntire), an Amazon listing under the Charles M. Schultz name we remember where the actual book sold has the “correct” Charles M. Shulz name that has now become the only possible spelling of his name, sporadic references to the lion laying down with the lamb although the original bible verse it is based on (Isaiah 11:6) only refers to “the wolf and lamb” laying down together. The ME change can be small, such as Forrest’s Gump’s iconic line “life is just a box of chocolates” now existing as “life was just a box of chocolates,” or it can be big, such as the memory of so many of visiting the Statue of Liberty on Ellis Island (when in fact there is no historical evidence it has ever been anywhere but Liberty Island).

What specifically causes this I have to leave to the many people in the field who are now pursuing it – suffice it to say there are many theories, from CERN-based time-space continuum ruptures, to deliberate AI gaslighting to keep us obsessed with our addictions to technology. One can choose to look at the phenomenon from the victim standpoint as someone powerless before forces trying to mess with us, alter our sense of reality a la Philip K. Dick, and divide us along the lines of our subjective experience, or look at it as evidence that life is much more miraculous and unknowable than our former programming believed it to be, to the point where the past can be seen as mutable and the veil over the illusion as starting to peel away.  

It can be jarring, however, to have vivid memories of, say, Tom Cruise dancing to “Old Time Rock and Roll” in the movie Risky Business wearing a white shirt and sunglasses (which he iconically threw off mid dance), only to find that he was actually wearing a pink shirt – and no sunglasses – in all historically preserved versions of the movie (except, of course, parodies like the movie Never Been Kissed, where he is back to white and sunglasses – the residue). Or to have built at least a part of one’s cultural archive from Sally Field’s “immortal” acceptance line at the 1985 Oscars “You like me, you really like me,” only to find it is now rendered as “You like me, right now, you like me.” Or to be told the startling revelation from Star Wars “Luke, I am your father” never happened, instead Darth Vader said “No, I am your father.”

It is all-too-easy to dismiss the pain of others when one doesn’t have the same cultural touchstones. I, for one, do not remember “Stouffer’s Stove Top Stuffing” so I cannot feel the frisson my wife feels at the loss of this reality. On the other hand, I know for fact that Mr. Rogers began every one of his Mister Rogers Neighborhood shows by singing “it’s a wonderful day in the neighborhood,” NOT “it’s a wonderful day in this neighborhood,” as all the archival footage now attests. But the change is so subtle, so seemingly inconsequential, that others just look at me sadly, as if my memory has failed and my sanity has become questionable. I can’t imagine what it would be like for those people who watched the comedian Sinbad’s 1993 genie movie Shazaam – one I remember but never saw – only to find out the movie never actually existed – even Sinbad himself claimed it was never made. And then, when you insist, to be mocked for your false memory by mind control websites like Snopes.

That is the heart of subjectivity’s darkness in this thing. But it is a human choice whether to make it stay that way. To demonstrate, I’ll use the example of one of many historical Mandela Effects, the change in narrative involving the Charles Lindbergh Jr. kidnapping. Anyone of a certain age remembers this as one of the great mysteries of the 20^th century: What happened to the Lindbergh baby? The inability of the authorities to ever locate him or find his body made finding the perpetrator all but impossible. Even the Lindbergh’s themselves were put under a cloud of suspicion. Finally a German immigrant Bruno Hauptmann was apprehended – railroaded in many people’s estimation because he had none of the ransom money and no apparent connection to the Lindbergh’s – and convicted after a speedy trial amid a flurry of anti-German sentiment. Before his sentence was even carried out, he committed suicide in jail under less than clear circumstances, without a suicide note.

It was widely regarded as a Rosenberg-type miscarriage of American justice based on ethnic stereotypes and a need for closure. Without the baby, though, there was never closure, and the missing Lindbergh baby became a fodder for late-night comedians for over 50 years. As late as 1993 Grandpa Simpson woke up from a nap to claim he was the Lindbergh baby.

Fortunately, thanks to the Mandela Effect, none of that actually happened. The baby’s body was found shortly after the kidnapping, Bruno worked for the Lindbergh’s, was identified after an initial forensic problem of lack of fingerprints, and definitively put to death by electric chair less than six months later. The only evidence that it was ever anything different are the aforementioned Simpsons episode and similar American Dad and The Good Wife references (“The Lindbergh baby is an ongoing investigation” is the line from the latter – 2010 - TV episode).

So, in effect, they’ve solved one of the greatest forensic cases in U.S. history by re-writing it! And not just the books; tangible evidence, court records, newspaper accounts. It all appears to have been operated on some alternative – more convenient – timeline.

I received personal verification of this myself when I brought the Lindbergh ME to the attention of my best friend, in an effort to interest him in this topic. Instead of his remembering the missing Lindbergh baby as a long-running gag, he proclaimed himself an expert on the case and immediately and passionately offered theories, arguments and details that fit the new reality, as if he had been studying it his whole life. He considered my account to be like gibberish compared to his detailed understanding of the case, which was equally baffling to me.

And this, I submit, is cause for wonder and awe, not confusion and terror. Consider another example, the switching of the Superman Reeve(s) names. What a bizarre coincidence of history that the two most prominent actors to play Superman both died prematurely through inexplicably violent means (known as “the Superman curse”) and, more to the point, both had last names that were a variant of Reeve. 50’s TV Superman George Reeve was killed / committed suicide by gunshot at age 45, while 70-80’s movie Superman Christopher Reeves died of complications from a paralyzing fall from a horse at age 52. Well, to show that the Mandela Effect is not without a sense a humor in such grisly circumstances, their names have now been switched; it’s now George Reeves and Christopher Reeve. And the residue on this one is fascinating! We have the spectacle of hard-core Superman fans bragging about their autographed photo of “George Reeve,” but the actual photo is signed “George Reeves.” Similarly, a later fan located a rare first contract for “Christopher Reeves”, but the signature itself is by “Christopher Reeve.” The names that fans remember have been excised from existence.

But it gets even weirder; one researcher found a clip of an old Jay Leno show where Jay Leno referred to Christopher Reeve (“you are friends, right, with Christopher Reeve?”) but his guest Robin Williams referred to Christopher Reeves (“yes, Mr. Reeeeeves, Mr. Reeeeeves.”) Are they operating on two different timelines, in alternate realities? Or is the erasure process somehow not yet complete?
 

This picture was posted in 2017 on a debunking theMandela Effect website as an example of how it’s so easy to confuse JCPenny with JCPenney even store employees can put the wrong sign on the building. The only problem is that in 2019 the sign says JCPenney, indicating that it too has shifted to the new reality. 

A similar mid-erasure trace can be found in the Mt. Everest explorer Sir Edmond Hilary, which half the time is spelled with one l, the other half with two. I have an interesting theory on this. It has to do with a long-refuted claim by Hilary (now Hillary) Clinton that the odd spelling of her first name (one l) was because she was named after Sir Edmond (also one l). Such statements would not make any sense, now that her name has been safely changed for posterity, if the New Zealand explorer’s name wasn’t correspondingly shifted.

But that’s just my theory. The work on this topic has barely begun, and many new researchers have started congregating to the reddit and other social media boards with new examples to vet. For the (ongoing) record, here is a by-no-means exhaustive list of some documented Mandela Effects as of this date. Happy hunting!

Brands (in all these cases, there is little to no record any of these earlier brands existed; this is not a case of re-branding -- like Cup O Noodles to Cup Noodles in 1993 or Herbal Essence to Herbal Essences in 1999):

Anheiser Busch became Anheuser Busch

Bragg’s natural products became Bragg natural products

Captain Crunch cereal became Cap’n Crunch

Cheez-Itz became Cheez-It

Chik-fil-a became Chick-fil-a

Chuck E. Cheese restaurant became Chuck E. Cheese’s

CliffNotes became CliffsNotes

Cracker Jack’s became Cracker Jack

Depends became Depend

Double Bubble became Dubble Bubble

Eddy’s Ice Cream became Edy’s Ice Cream

Etch-a-Sketch became Etch A Sketch

Febreeze became Febreze

Fruit Loops became Froot Loops

Fruit of the Loom logo lost its cornucopia around the fruit

Funions became Funyons

Kit-Kat became KitKat

JCPenny became JCPenney

Jiffy peanut butter became Jif
JoAnn's fabrics became JoAnn

Lego Duplos became Lego Duplo

Little Tykes toys became Little Tikes

Mellow Yellow soda became Mello Yello

Mike N Ike’s became Mike and Ike’s

Modge Podge became Mod Podge

Oreo Double Stuff became Oreo Double Stuf
Orowheat bread is now Oroweat

Oscar Meyer became Oscar Mayer

OxyClean became OxiClean

Pixie Stix became Pixy Stix
The Quaker Oats man replaced his 3 pointed hat with a cowboy hat
The Raison Bran sun lost his sunglasses 

Reddi-Whip became Reddi-Wip

Scott Towels became Scott’s Towels

SEVEN-ELEVEN became SEVEN-ELEVEn

Sketchers became Skechers

Subway logo went from one to two arrows

Target removed a circle from their logo
Tidy Cat became Tidy Cats (This thread is a good example of “flipping,” where the names revert back -- and sometimes forth -- as underlying timelines change; as of today, however, every example of Tidy Cat cited is now Tidy Cats)
Tony the Tiger's nose went from black to blue

Tostino’s Pizza Rolls became Totino’s Pizza Rolls

Vasoline became Vaseline

Vicks Vapor Rub became Vicks VapoRub (this video has some interesting residue of a competitor brand comparing itself to Vicks Vapor Rub, which otherwise never existed)

Volkswagen logo went from connected V and W to separated

Volvo logo went from a circle to a male symbol

WhiteOut became WiteOut

Lines:

 “Mrs. Robinson, are you trying to seduce me?" is now "Mrs. Robinson, you're trying to seduce me. Aren't you?" (1:22 at this clip)

“Luke, I am your father” from The Empire Strikes Back is now “No, I am your father”
“If you build it, they will come” from Field of Dreams is now “if you build it, he will come”
"Nobody bats an eye" from The Dark Knight is now "nobody panics."

“We’re gonna need a bigger boat” from Jaws is now “You’re gonna need a bigger boat” (link) 

“That’s not a knife, this is a knife’ from Crocodile Dundee is now “that’s not a knife, that’s a knife.”

"Do you feel lucky? Well do you punk?" from Dirty Harry is now "Do I feel lucky? Well do you punk?" (see 2:00 in this clip)

“Life is like a box of chocolates” from Forrest Gump is now “Life was like a box of chocolates”

“Another fine mess you’ve gotten us into” from Laurel and Hardy is now “another fine mess you’ve gotten me into”

“Fly my pretties, fly” from the Wizard of Oz is now “Fly! Fly! Fly!”

“Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain” from the Wizard of Oz is now "pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.”

“Mirror, mirror on the wall” from Snow White is now “magic mirror on the wall”

“Heigh ho, heigh ho, it’s off to work we go” from Snow White is now “heigh ho, heigh ho, it’s home to work we go”

“I see white people” from Scary Movie is now “I see dead people”

“Hello Clarice” is no longer a line in Silence of the Lambs

“Please may I have some more” from Oliver Twist is now “Please, sir, I want some more”

“Romeo, O Romeo” from Romeo and Juliet is now “O Romeo, Romeo”

“The lion shall lay with the lamb” from the Bible is now “the wolf shall dwell with the lamb”

Names:

Dan Ackroyd became Dan Aykroyd 

Desi Arnez became Desi Arnaz

Berenstein Bears became Berenstain Bears

Hilary Clinton became Hillary Clinton

Sally Fields became Sally Field (link of some residue)

Evil Knevil became Evel Knievel

Reba McIntyre became Reba McEntire

Proctor and Gamble became Procter and Gamble

Haley Joel Osmond became Haley Joel Osment
Joel Olsteen became Joel Osteen

Gordon Ramsey became Gordon Ramsay

George Reeve became George Reeves

Christopher Reeves became Christopher Reeve

LeAnn Rhimes became LeAnn Rimes

Smokey the Bear became Smokey Bear

Charles M. Schultz became Charles M. Schulz

Donna Summers became Donna Summer

Alec Trebek became Alex Trebek

Andrew Zimmerman became Andrew Zimmern

Lyrics:

“Tomorrow is only a day away” from Annie is now “tomorrow is always a day away”

“I got down on my knees / And I began to pray” from “California Dreamin’” became “I got down on my knees / And I pretend to pray”

“Son, can you play me a memory?” from “Piano Man” became “Son, can you play me a melody?”

“I’m a Barbie girl in a Barbie world” from Aqua is now “I’m a Barbie girl in the Barbie world”

“Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap” (link to residue) from “The Night Before Christmas” is now “Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap” (link to current)

Book and Movie Titles:

Cowboys vs. Aliens became Cowboys & Aliens

Interview with a Vampire became Interview with the Vampire

Looney Toons became Looney Tunes

Mommy Dearest became Mommie Dearest

Portrait of Dorian Gray became The Picture of Dorian Gray

The Rum Diaries became The Rum Diary

Sex in the City became Sex and the City

Arts and Culture

The word “dilemna” is now spelled “dilemma”

The word “liquefy” is now spelled “liquefy”

The word “cemetary” is now spelled “cemetery”

Curious George lost his tail

Pikachu (male) no longer has a black stripe on his tail

Mickey Mouse no longer wears suspenders
Donald Duck's eyes changed from black to blue

Tinkerbell no longer flies over the magic kingdom

Rich Uncle Moneybags, the mascot of the Monopoly board game, no longer has a monocle

Dolly, the metal-mouthed arch Bond villain Jaws’ girlfriend in Moonraker, no longer has braces

The abominable snowman in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer no longer had his tooth pulled out by Hymie the dentist to cure his tooth pain, but was ambushed and had all of them pulled out to prevent him from attacking people

C3PO now has one silver leg, one gold leg
Big Bird now has white feathers on his/her head instead of yellow

Lincoln’s left hand is now under the arm rest at the Lincoln Memorial

The Thinker by Auguste Rodin has moved his fist from his forehead to his chin

The Mona Lisa has gained a smirk

Historical Events

Hitler’s eyes turned from brown to blue

Uncle Sam’s hat turned from red, white and blue to all white

Tiananmen Square tank veered around protester instead of running over him

Franz Ferdinand went from nondescript assassination in an open car to an elaborate plot that included a bomb going off that killed passer-by

JFK assassination went from 4 to 6 people in the presidential car

Sri Lanka moved on the map from due south of India to SE  
The Capricorn astrological sign now has a mermaid's tail
Fidel Castro died in 2011 and again in 2016
The kidneys are now considered to be underneath the rib cage instead in the lower back

The union jack flag no longer has the red in the inner x stripe centered
The U.S. flag now has a white stripe under the stars instead of a red stripe