Word Play
Many of the names of characters and places in this album are puns in Brussels dialect:
- Ben Kalish Ezab – kalische zap, liquorice juice
- Bir El Ambik – bière lambic, a type of Belgian beer
- Yussuf Ben Mulfrid – moules-frites, a Belgian dish consisting of French fries with mussels
- Bab El Ehr – babbeleer, chatterer
- the Well of Bir Kegg – beer keg
- Wadesdah; What is that?
- Hasch Abaibabi; Hush-a-bye baby
"Boum !", the iconic song by Charles Trenet, appears in parody as the car breakdown repair company's advertising jingle, which plays on Thomson and Thompson's car radio at the very beginning of the story.
Read more about this topic: Land Of Black Gold
Famous quotes containing the words word and/or play:
“Suit the action to the word, the word to the action, with this special observance, that you o’erstep not the modesty of nature.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“Small natures require despotism to exercise their sinews, as great souls thirst for equality to give play to their heart.”
—Honoré De Balzac (1799–1850)