It struck me that, throughout my formative years, the generic term 'luncheon meat' was invariably used and by a broad base of diners. 'Spam' was known about and an option, but I don't recall the product being regarded as anything gauche, until Monty P placed its spotlight. All Spam was luncheon meat, but not all luncheon meat is spam. Scanning: and at the first link thereto, there is even varied thought on the original rebranding: Hormel’s canned pork shoulder debuted in 1937 as Hormel Spiced Ham, but soon reemerged as “Spam” after actor Kenneth Daigneau, brother of a Hormel vice president, won the $100 prize in a contest to rename the product. So the story goes. Some sources say the name is a merging of “Spiced” and “Ham”; others stand by a derivation from “Shoulder of Pork and Ham.” There is some corroboration at: SPAM | History, Ingredients, Taste, Influence, & Varieties | Britannica At Scout Camp, it was always chalked onto the menu as 'Irish Salmon', by Spud Murphy, I hasten to add. There was also a plausible rumour that bread, baked or sourced for military use, correlated to a slice from a catering sized can, 12.5 lbs weight being cited in the Cook Book for 100 'wads' (as opposed to 'rounds').
Aaaaaaah luncheon meat. Unassailable in the British parthenon of culinary delights. Until................... "Plumrose plopped ham with chork" Down hill all the way after that. Kind regards, bacon in a tin, always, Jim.
