"Is it true, Dr. Chandra, that you chose the name HAL to be one step ahead of IBM?"
"Utter nonsense! Half of us come from IBM and we've been trying to stamp out that story for years. I thought that by now every intelligent person knew that H-A-L is derived from Heuristic ALgorithmic."
http://www.visual-memory.co.uk/faq/index.html#slot7
"Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer true; I'm half crazy over the love of you; It won't be a stylish marriage; I can't afford a carriage; But you look sweet, upon the seat; Of a bicycle built for two"
Trivia sidenote -- he called the supercomputer in 2001 HAL because he thought the company IBM would become increasingly dominant in a technical world. HAL's letters each are one below IBM's.