Yinzers roast "The Pitt" over local flubs
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Dr. Frank Langdon should pack his bags after he mispronounced Wholey's. Photo: Courtesy of Warrick Page/Max
It's hard to make a show about Pittsburgh — especially if you mispronounce Wholey's.
Why it matters: Yinzers' provincialism often bleeds into an obsession that makes Pittsburgh a fairly unique, and intense, region.
Driving the news: Episode 10 of Max's hit show "The Pitt" mispronounced Wholey's, a local institution in the Strip District known for its fried goodies and massive fish selection, which led to an uproar online and KDKA responding with a feature story.
- A character pronounced the fish market with a silent W, like in whole, when the correct pronunciation is like wool, as in wool-lees.
🗣️ What they're saying: "Figure it out and get it right. They are not real Pittsburghers," a Wholey's customer told KDKA.
Zoom out: The Wholey's slip-up opened the floodgates for other complaints, and Pittsburghers sounded off on social media, with some saying they wouldn't watch the show because of a few mistakes.
- "They lost me when they talked about the stolen ambulance heading 'east on 376.' No one heads east on 376, they head outbound on the Parkway East," wrote one Blue Sky user.
- After a nurse on the show called a bickering couple "jack offs" instead of the Pittsburghese word "jag offs," a Redditor wrote, "What sad excuse for a Pittsburgher did they hire as a consultant? It's JAGOFF, ya jagoff! Said with the perfect accent, this is a devastating insult."
- "They also put the emphasis on the wrong syllable of Monroeville in one of the first episodes," wrote an X user.
💭 Ryan's thought bubble: I mispronounced Wholey's when I first moved here over a decade ago, and I have been terrified of making similar goofs ever since.
- It's OK to give some grace to newbies, even if they are big-budget TV shows.
The bottom line: One X user summed up the pronunciation fiasco and local response perfectly.
- "My family has been debating the pronunciation for 50 years. Been there thousands of times," wrote @ArtJbutler on X, referring to Wholey's. "However, I take your point — being so petty about such an inconsequential thing is sooo Pittsburgh."