BS: F(r)ame at last ?

Subject: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: Fred McCormick
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 12:01 PM

I've just come across a list of dignitaries and functionaries for the rotary club of Selma (Alabama?). Turns out I'm due to address them on 13th June. Shock. Amazement. Wish they'd told me sooner. Any chance of a a few bob towards the air fare?

While I'm boggling over this, I noticed that I'm down to do the meals on wheels the previous week. More shock and amazement, especially as it won't be worth coming home, so I'm going to have to hang about Selma for a whole week.

But that's not all. The week I'm giving the public address, Ed McCurdy is doing the meals on wheels, and the following week he's doing the public address! That's eleven years after he died.

Clearly one for the department of curious coincidences. After all, I doubt I'm the only Fred McCormick in the world, and I'll bet if you looked hard enough you'd find a few Ed McCurdys as well. But Selma, Alabama?

It fair reminds me of the time I was waiting in a hospital outpatients'. I knew it would be a long wait because ahead of me in the queue were Margaret Barry, Sara Grey and some geezer whose second name was Playford.

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: Will Fly
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 12:15 PM

Could be worse, Fred - you might be this one:

Anyone have experience with Fred McCormick?

I have bought a watch from Fred McCormick and am concerned that his communication has stopped. I realize that the holiday weekend may effected his ability to stay in contact. Has anyone ever dealt with McCromick? He has many sales posts on TZ, but I can't find anyone who has ever dealt with him. I hope he's legit as the money has been sent. Thanks in advance gentleman. By the way, if he is legit or not, I'll make sure to update this post.

Actually, this Fred was legit - and the watch reached its destination. Bugger being famous, innit? Now - just stop Googling yourself and go back to bed!

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: DMcG
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 12:30 PM

I am CEO of Intelsat in *my* spare time

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: GUEST,John MacKenzie
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 12:37 PM

I directed The Long Good Friday, I'm informed.
Well, I knew about the endless bad Mondays!

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: Fred McCormick
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 12:52 PM

Will. Yes but if I didn't google myself, how would I know whether anyone had caught up with my illicit watch dealing activities?

Anyway, I wasn't googling myself. Remember that mad bastard of a BNP troll who was stealing people's identities a while ago? As a consequence of this crackpot, I set Google Alert to tell me whenever my name came up on the Internet, so that I could take swift and positive action.

I think he's gone back into rehab because things have been quiet for a while. Then the other day I received a catalogue from a company specialising in large ladies' bras. Can you imagine me in a large lady's bra? On second thoughts don't.

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: Bill D
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 12:57 PM

I once got a call from a 'friend' inquiring if I was ok, as he had heard Bill Day, the wooden bowl maker had died. Seems there was a semi-famous old guy who had done demos at the Smithsonian Folk Festival.

It is NOT an uncommon name....though not as troublesome as being one of the John Smiths.

There are no doubt several hundred million folks in the English speaking world who might share names...

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: gnu
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 01:12 PM

And me, I'm Gary Owens.

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: Will Fly
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 01:14 PM

Can you imagine me in a large lady's bra?

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Mmmmm.......................................... (sigh)

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: Bill D
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 01:31 PM

A T-cup? A Z-bra?

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 01:43 PM

Despite having one of the more common names extant (there's even been another of me at mudcat, althugh I don't think I've seen him post for some time) my only claim to public notoriety appears to have been a rather mediocre actor who played many bit parts as a mobster in multiple B-grade movies in the '40s. His best known "talent" was the ability to flip a quarter in the air repeatedly, and the limit of his versatility appeared in the one movie in which he flipped a half-dollar instead. But to claim even that I have to revert to a "nickname" used within the family to distinguish me from the other three then living with the same (common but never famous) given name.

John

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: gnu
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 01:55 PM

Hey! I just googled me and the Gary Owens of fame and fortune was born Gary Altman. Maybe if I changed my name to Gary Altman I'd become famous too. Can't hurt the way things are going.

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: frogprince
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 02:40 PM

I've been an executive with Motoman for years, but I can't remember a bit of it. I also have some recordings out, either with a band called "The Jesus and God Project", or with an album by that title to our credit. I do find, however, that Google does mention 3 or 4   things that I actually remember being there for                         Dean

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: GUEST,Eliza
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 03:29 PM

I'm apparently Director of Research into Ageing (!!!) and a famous animal portraitist. I have an OBE and also own a furnishing centre! I'm VERY impressed with myself.

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: fat B****rd
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 03:37 PM

I was Googling myself (filthy habit) and after finding out that I am by no means the only Charles Stenger on the planet I remembered that I've always thought peple who Google themselves were egotistical prats.
Yours EP B****rd

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: GUEST,Eliza
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 04:12 PM

I have only once Googled myself, to find out what info about me could be gleaned by the general public. But sadly, my real self is not there at all. Probably a good thing!

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: gnu
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 04:22 PM

When I google me I get too many (tw)hits to look at.

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 06:08 PM

In actuality - I'd forgotten about it - my picture is on the back side of the US $10,000 Treasury Bill.

Sorry, but I don't have one to show you. It's a very nice picture, I suppose; but green just ain't really my color.

John

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: Tangledwood
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 06:47 PM

You've got me trying google now. One hit is curious, it's in Welsh. Apparently I'm a Welsh actor who played the part of Graham in a TV series. Odd, because that's my brother's name.

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: Noreen
Date: 16 Apr 11 - 07:05 PM

Ha! I am down as one of the authors of a paper in the Biochem Journal :
The nucleotide sequence of Scenedesmus obliquus chloroplast elongator methionine-accepting tRNA

Strangely enough, this was actually me, in a previous life- well before the days of the internet or digitisation, when research papers actually were papers and were spread around the research community by snail-mail.

My, that takes me back a bit!

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: GUEST,Eliza
Date: 17 Apr 11 - 08:10 AM

Good gracious Noreen, I'm very impresssed! I can't even understand the title of your paper! Scientists have all my admiration.

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: gnomad
Date: 17 Apr 11 - 11:25 AM

Good grief! "About" 11,800,000 results if I search my name excluding the film in which I share names with a lead character. I'm not following up on all that lot, but I do seem to be a busy person.

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 17 Apr 11 - 04:35 PM

The site has been referenced here before, but for those who would like a shortcut to the statistics, try:

http://howmanyofme.com/

The claim is that the site has listed and counted all the names appearing in US Census reports and can tell you how many times your first and last names appear, and how many times they appear used by the same person.

It's much quicker, with a very "compact" report that may be of some help as a starting point for more specific searches.

It claims that there are 5,12,015 people in the US using my first name, and that it is the second most popular first name; that 99.63 percent of those using it are male, and lists the first five most common "variant forms" with an option to check the number using each of 11 variant forms.

There are 581,623 people in the U.S. using my last name, that it is the 27th most common last name, lists 5 famous people using it, and gives links to searches on 16 famous users.

There are 9,547 people in the U.S. using both my first and last name.

Results, unfortunately, are for US Census information only. (For those elsewhere it might only suggest how many of your clan had the good sense to come here, so you can puzzle over why they left you behind?)

Perhaps there are similar sites for other countries or perhaps other subsets of populations?

John

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 17 Apr 11 - 04:40 PM

The site lists the results in tables, and unfortunately the copy/paste dropped a zero in the middle of the 5,120,015 of my first name matches.

I guess I got so excited when my link worked in preview that I didn't proofread the rest as closely as usual.

John

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 17 Apr 11 - 08:19 PM

Some years ago, I found I was a US Politician fighting for election.

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: Melissa
Date: 17 Apr 11 - 08:44 PM

According to the HowMany site, there's "one or fewer" of me. Oddly enough, I used to think there was at least one!

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 17 Apr 11 - 09:23 PM

We shall immediately file a report noting that Melissa failed to return the Census forms.

I seem to have several recent ancestors among those who never appeared in any Census. Family tradition explained that they were "out herding (someone's?) horses" but I've generally assumed they were more likely "up at the still" when the census taker showed up.

John

Subject: RE: BS: F(r)ame at last ?
From: Melissa
Date: 18 Apr 11 - 01:30 AM

..and I would have gotten away with it too if it hadn't been for you meddling kids (and the persistent census lady that kept coming back until she caught me)