Why do they refer to the main character of this 1951 Disney short as literally "Fat"?

Question

In the 1951 animated short titled Tomorrow We Diet*, the main guy (Goofy) is repeatedly referred to as "Fat". Not "being fat", but literally "Fat":

Hello, Fat!

Where to, Fat?

You're just too fat, Fat!

What'ch you got there, Fat?

Hey, Fat!

Was this a common way to refer to people in the 1950s? As in, literally using what they are as the "name"?

(It's clear that the character's name isn't actually "Fat", because he is seen as having been slim until recently. Also, he gets offended/upset each time.)

Answer 1

It's not uncommon to refer to people by a physical attribute. If you're being nice, you usually refer to positive attributes. Notice the first line, where Goofy says to his reflection

Hello, Handsome!

You can find many examples of this phrase in old movies.

The reflection's reply is a play on this, replacing "Handsome" with "Fat" to emphasize Goofy's weight problem.

"Fat" is not commonly used this way, but school kids might tease someone by calling them "Fatty" or "Fatso". Similarly, someone with glasses would be called "Four-eyes", and someone with braces might be called "Metal-mouth".