Nickelodeon viewers have said their ‘childhoods have been ruined’ after learning the creepy origin behind Amanda Bynes’ character’s name on her titular show.
She was called Penelope Taynt on the children’s TV show The Amanda Show, which a writer claimed was a deliberate reference to taint, the area between the anus and the posterior part of the external genitalia in vulgar slang.
After learning the disturbing meaning of the name on docuseries Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV, fans on X were left horrified with Tina saying it made them ‘want to vomit’, while Ian said it was ‘disturbing.’
Agreeing with them, Vianey added: ‘What was left of my innocence is gone.#QuietOnSet.’
Account Illixie remarked: ‘Penelope “Tate” all these years I thought it was “Tate” and to find out it was “Taynt” sick ass stuff Talk about childhood memories completely ruined.’
Queen of Sting said the revelation made their ‘skin crawl’ while a revulsed Kimberly Brown commented: ‘#QuietOnSet was not ready for that Penelope Taynt part. Will never look at any of the shows from my childhood the same.’
The Amanda Show writer Christy Stratton revealed the sickening meaning on Quiet on Set, a four-part series on Investigation Discovery that examines claims of ‘toxic and dangerous cultures’ behind shows helmed by Dan Schneider.
Talking about Penelope Taynt’s name, Christy said on the show according to The Mirror: ‘He came up with the name Penelope Taynt. The taint is a part of the body that is between the penis and the anus. It’s that skin there, that’s the taint.
‘Dan had said to us in the writers’ room “Don’t tell what this word really means,” he wanted us to keep that a secret.’
As well as The Amanda Show, Schneider was also behind All That, Zoey 101, iCarly and more.
Amanda, now 37, began her career as a child star on All That and then its spin-off series The Amanda Show.
The Easy A actress – who was freed from a conservatorship in 2022 – had several tough years in the public eye and in recent months has shied away from the limelight.
In December, having just launched a podcast, Amanda performed a huge U-turn on the project and promptly decided to pull the plug.
Instead, she said she wanted to focus her energies elsewhere and become a manicurist.
‘The 1st episode of my podcast did really well..,’ Amanda wrote on Instagram. ‘I was actually surprised and of course was going to keep going after friends encouraged me to..
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‘After thinking about it, though, I would rather get my manicurist license and have a consistent job.'
The Amanda Show, which aired from 1999 to 2002, was a comedy and variety show featuring funny imitations, such as one of Judge Judy and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?.
Drake Bell, Nancy Sullivan, John Kassir, Raquel Lee, and Josh Peck were also part of the show's cast.
You can watch Quiet on the Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV on Max.
