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Table of Contents
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Inspiration
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) were inspired by a comical doodle created by Eastman during a casual evening of brainstorming and crappy television with Laird. 1)
Artists' Names
The TMNT are known to have been named after Renaissance painters. However, did you realize that the original names were spelled differently? Raphael was referred to as “Raffaelo”, while Donatello was referred to as “Donato”. Initially, the designers botched Michelangelo's name — they named him “Michaelaneglo”. 2)
Darker Original
The TMNT were darker in the original comic version than most people believe. Splinter originally trained them for one goal only: to kill the Shredder. 3)
Cheese Grater
Did you know that the design of his armor was inspired by a cheese grater? Eastman allegedly got the idea for the Shredder after accidently putting his arm through a rectangular cheese grating while cleaning the dishes one night. 4)
Grater?
Eastman planned to name the figure “Grater” or “Grate Man” after this cooking equipment, but Laird recommended “Shredder” instead. 5)