I think they came up with the pun at some point and the name stuck. No idea how they got to that point though. I wonder if he had a different name originally.
Anyway, I think he’s called Mater so that they can make the Tomato/ Tow Mater joke. Maybe it’s based on his accent? I dunno, its kind of a weird name.
So Mater’s named after a Fruit huh? Hmm, he always did seem a bit peachy.
I wonder if Mater, at one point in his life, used to be a gardener or something. Can’t imagine why his parents would name him something like that. Or maybe that’s his car brand?
And continuing from Virginia’s post, the guy that Mater is named after did say something about eating so many “tuh-maters” (tomatoes) that he got Mater as a nickname.
I wonder if it’s just a nickname and he has an actual name. I’ve also wondered the same thing about Lightning, I mean seriously, would any parent give their kid such a name? Maybe his real name is Matthew, and Lightning is Leroy or something.
Heh, when I first heard his name, I thought it was because he was a bit of a Lothario, if you know what I mean.