I don't typically say “It’s on like Donkey Kong”. But I do maybe think it. It means you're ready to throw down. Like, double throw down and get really serious about accomplishing what you maybe had already tried once or twice. I make a lot of rhyming phrases but not this one. But, I wondered, where did it come from?
Peter Hartlaub is the pop culture critic at the San Francisco Chronicle and he made a time line covering the most important moments in the history of this phrase up until 2011. Here are some highlights:
1981: Nintendo’s Donkey Kong, an arcade game that features a plumber dodging fireballs and barrels thrown by a giant ape, becomes an overnight sensation.
Nov. 17, 1992: Rapper Ice Cube brings the phrase to the masses on his The Predator album, in the first line of the track “Now I Gotta Wet’cha.”
It’s on like Donkey Kong
You wanted that fast buck
Now I gotta light that ass up
Here’s the entire track.
June 18, 2000: Rapper and pioneering wordsmith Snoop Dogg uses the term to express his delight over a reconstructed Lakers team that includes Shaquille O’Neal, a young Kobe Bryant and new coach Phil Jackson.
“I really love these hip-hop Lakers. Now with Phil, it’s on like Donkey Kong.”
2000-2005: For the next five years, the phrase exploded in popularity, appearing everywhere from the movie “Dumb and Dumberer” to the NHL finals.
My favorite use of the phrase during this period was in the Trace Adkins song “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk”:
“Got it going on like Donkey Kong, and whoo-wee, shut my mouth, slap your grandma, there oughta be a law”.
May 14, 2006: Guy Fieri wins “Next Food Network Star.” Adopts “On like Donkey Kong” as one of his catchphrases. No word whether he’s changed it to “I’m all that, like Mortal Kombat” in the wake of Nintendo’s recent legal maneuvers. (See below.)
Sept. 3, 2009: “On like Donkey Kong” has been a popular quote in crime stories throughout the years. The best quote by far came from this police blotter item that appeared in the Charlestown Post and Courier in South Carolina.
November 2010: Nintendo files a request with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to trademark the words “It’s on like Donkey Kong.”
And over the past years, it seems that it's held on strong like Donkey Kong too! ; )
As always, thank you for reading!
with appreciation,
Jon
p.s.
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p.p.s.
Looking for a new place to work from in Amsterdam? Know someone maybe keen on renting a desk? Join us at WS6’s next open co-working day this Friday!
Cycling
A Pilgrimage On the Bike
Twotone colleague, SILCA ambassador and from the saddle photographer Frank van der Sman tests SILCA's on-the-bike product line while riding the Camino de Santiago, a pilgrimage taken by over 200,000 people a year.
Also, SILCA is doing an awesome giveaway!
PEdALED at Velodome in Antwerp
We're kicking off with PEdALED today!
Ride with them in Belgium on Saturday : )
And check out their new Odyssey Collection here.
Out Now! GRAN FONDO Issue #011
Check out the latest issue of Gran Fondo here.
Startups
How to Use Marie Kondo’s Konmari Method for Your Digital Work Life
Tell me this doesn't all sound like a good idea.
Rohan SIlva is looking for technology startups that have the potential to improve the lives of disabled people.
Late last year, the technology investment fund Atomico launched a new initiative to support the European tech ecosystem. It’s called the Atomico Angel Programme.
The Better Your Product Is, The Better Your Marketing Will Be
- Does it have a purpose?
- Does it add value to the world?
- How will it improve the lives of the people who buy it?
Sales
Do SaaS Startups Still Require Less Capital than 10 Years Ago?
In 2014, Tomasz TunguZ published a post called Do Startup Require Less Capital to Succeed than 10 Years Ago? It’s been five years and time to see how things have changed. In the analysis, he created a metric, the return on invested capital (ROIC).
In other words, at IPO, how much revenue per VC dollar did the company generate. In 2014 we saw increasing efficiencies over time, which was very exciting because it reaffirmed the efficiency of SaaS go-to-market.
But the efficiency is declining, markedly.
Why It's Easier Than Ever To Build An App But Harder Than Ever To Make It Successful
Feels related to the data above eh? But, is the link below the solution?
B2B subscriptions and the role of channel partners explained
How can you safely join the subscription economy as a B2B player without conflict in your sales channel?
Radness
#RONDJEZUYDERZEE! a 425.6 km ride
💪🏻 I was finally feeling the stoke to ride & it aligned with everyone’s hype around the #afsluitdijk closing. (The Netherlands longest dike was about to close for 3 years.)⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
🤔 I heard about @takobruinsma’s idea to do the #rondjezuiderzee as it was in 1870 via Paul of the The Windjammers.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
🤷🏻♂️ A mere 420km I’d done 500km with my friend Olaf before. Easy, right? ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
🔨 Well, admittedly, I did less than my fair share of work on the front & struggled many times through the day. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👋🏻 I dropped with 70km to go & yolo solo’d back home. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
🤜🏻💥🤛🏻 Pushing yourself like this is, to me, what cycling is all about: the fringe of your limits with new friends in new places. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
🍻 Thanks for the smiles & miles guys! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
🌐 twotoneams.link/rondjezuyderzee