This post is a mixture of history and philosophy.
Perhaps it's more b.s. than anything (coming from yours truly).

Some of you "old timers" might remember the hit TV show, Truth or Consequences. Ralph Edwards started it on radio in 1940, then made it popular on the tube in the 1950s.

The premise was to answer a question correctly or pay the consequence. The questions were usually unanswerable--for example, What color is a hiccup? Once, as a consequence, two contestants were each given half a thousand dollar bill. Starting from opposite ends of the country, they were instructed to find each other by yelling "Heathcliff!" in Chinese restaurants across America.

On the tenth anniversary on radio, in 1950, Edwards wanted to do something special. He announced an offer to some American town to change its name to match that of the show. Hot Springs, New Mexico, needing a "transfusion" and advertising, tossed its hat into the ring. The rest is history.
The town was transformed. For years, Ralph Edwards returned as the celebrity du jour. Truth or Consequences is still known as the "adopted city of Ralph Edwards".

So what has been the consequences coming from the name change? Boom or bust? Well, somewhere in between. Evidently, the townfolks thought fame and fortune would be automatic--self promoting. Turns out, outsiders (travelers and tourists) have forgotten about the hot springs bathhouses that the town was famous for. The size of Truth or Consequences has remained much the same for years (around 7000). And, of course, 60 years later, few people remember Ralph Edwards.

End of Part 1