To go back towards the beginning... Wm. Safire says, "..."spit 'n' image". One longtime meaning of "spit" is "perfect likeness"- a child can be the very spit of his father. But some writers have mistaken the first two words in the phrase to mean "spitting", or ejection from the mouth, and prissily added the mistaken "g" to the sound of "spitt'n". Novelist Paul Theroux entitled a chapter of "Picture Palace" "A Spitting Image". From such a respected writer, one expectorates more.".

He goes on to mention out beloved Lady Mondegreen, as well as "kitten caboodle". He also explains that this "folk entymoogy" has also been called "homophone", "unwitting paranomasia", and "agnominatio". Other Mondegreens mentioned: On your market-set-go! Apache Fog Pullet Surprise next-store neighbor Notar Republic

Obloquy67 p.s. the Japanese expression for "thank you", "do itashimasite", is commonly expressed in English as "don't touch my moustache".