The realisation 'C' was a failed Fortran compiler explains so much.
https://www.nokia.com/bell-labs/about/dennis-m-ritchie/chist.html
"Challenged by McIlroy's feat in reproducing TMG, Thompson decided that Unix—possibly it had not even been named yet—needed a system programming language. After a rapidly scuttled attempt at Fortran, he created instead a language of his own, which he called B."