The 101 Most Influential People Who Never Lived
 

Found this on a AOL site. Interesting to think about...:
http://books.aol.com/feature/_a/exce...20155509990001

Adapted from the book 'The 101 Most Influential People Who Never Lived: How Characters of Fiction, Myth, Legends, Television and Movies Have Shaped Our Society, Changed Our Behavior, and Set the Course of History' by Allan Lazar, Dan Karlan & Jeremy Salter, copyright 2006 by Allen Lazar, Dan Karlan & Jeremy Salter, published by Harper, a division of HarperCollins Publishers.
Top 25:
1. The Marlboro Man: The American cowboy mythologized by legendary Chicago adman Leo Burnett in service of Big Tobacco still reigns at the reins as a global symbol of capitalism.

2. Big Brother: If George Orwell hadn't created him in his novel '1984,' someone else would have had to make him up: the all-seeing representation of the totalitarian ideal is all-terrifying.

3. King Arthur: Man, myth, legend: Arthur, King of the Britons, embodies governmental decency, bravery and competence. He has also inspired more movies than Mickey Mouse.

4. Santa Claus: You better watch out, you'd better not cry -- when you find out Santa Claus doesn't exist. Saint Nicholas of Patara did, but his generous spirit does not fly a sleigh.

5. Hamlet: Arguably Shakespeare's most famous character, the Prince of Denmark is beset by indecision ("To be or not to be") when he finds his mother in cahoots with his scheming uncle.

6. Dr. Frankenstein's Monster: Mary Shelley never wrote a words about bolts in a neck, but her tale of a scientific project gone monstrously wrong still sends chills up and down our spines.

7. Siegfried: His name means "Conquest," and this human's successful challenge of the Teutonic god Wotan is part of the nationalist mythology that propelled Germany into two world wars.

8. Sherlock Holmes: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famed fictional creation was a detective who relied on logic, questions and facts in order to solve cases; he was the forerunner of today's CSI.

9. Romeo and Juliet: Doomed teenaged lovers from feuding Italian noble families, Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet endure as the example of a couple who stays together against all odds.

10. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: When Robert Louis Stevenson conceived of a single character with two identities, it was the first time literature explicitly ventured into the world of psychology.

11. Uncle Tom: This character from Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' represents the dangers of remaining quiet and submissive in the face of injustices like slavery.

12. Robin Hood: He stole from the rich and gave to the poor. Right? Maybe. But the idea of upsetting the status quo applecart is so powerful that his mythical deeds remain celebrated.

13. Jim Crow: First an African-American folktale character, then a white actor's song-and-dance act, the name "Jim Crow" came to stand for the subjugation of black people in America.

14. Oedipus: He gave his name to Western psychiatry's most famous complex because he was doomed by fate to kill his father and marry his mother. Oh, and pluck out his own eyes.

15. Lady Chatterly: When British novelist D.H. Lawrence wrote 'Lady Chatterley's Lover' in 1928, did he have any idea that his sexually and socially adventurous heroine would be so scandalous?

16. Ebenezer Scrooge: Even if the only Scrooge you know is McDuck, you'll know that the word conjured by Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol' character is miserly. Until the end, of course.

17. Don Quixote: Cervantes invented a middle-aged failure -- and his novel was recently voted as the greatest of all time. In it, Don Quixote, a fool's fool, pursues chivalry to the point of no return.

18. Mickey Mouse: Walt Disney's world-famous cartoon character is so important to America that in 2003 Congress changed the copyright laws to extend the Disney Corporation's trademark.

19. The American Cowboy: Tall, handsome, independent, strong … the myths about this figure go on, spawning novels, movies, television shows, and an image projected to the world at large.

20. Prince Charming: His only sure characteristics are his title and a castle, but Prince Charming remains our culture's most eligible bachelor: a blank slate on which any girl can write her dreams.

21. Smokey Bear: At first a figure for forest-fire prevention, the Smokey ad campaign was so successful, it wrongly convinced many Americans that wildfires could be completely eradicated.

22. Robinson Crusoe: Daniel Defoe's 1719 novel 'Robinson Crusoe' is not just about surviving a shipwreck -- it's about a certain perspective on character and education. And not for everyone.

23. Apollo and Dionysus: Gods of Ancient Greece who embody reason (Apollo) and abandon (Dionysus); they inspire pairings from Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock to The Odd Couple.

24. Odysseus: Even if you never read Homer's epic poem, Odysseus (Ulysses to the Romans) remains the avatar of epic journeys (20 years of sailing!) and the inventor of the Trojan Horse.

25. Nora Helmer: Henrik Ibsen's 1879 play "A Doll's House" shocked audiences by showing the consequences of a man treating his wife as if she is incapable of independent thought or action.

If I may, I'd like to add the astronaut from almost every fraternity who left his badge on the moon.

You are SOOOOOOOOOOO lieing. Santa Claus is REAL. He is damn it! :D

Relax. Jon is really the Easter Bunny and is just jealous.

I'm somewhat surprised not to see Don Juan on that list. Of course, I'm surprised to see that King Arthur didn't exist!

I would venture to guess that he's on there due to things like Mozart's "Don Giovanni" and the Phantom's "Don Juan Triumphant", more then the actual legend.

Kermit the frog is #67. :D

Tyler Durden should've made the list.

No Holden Caufield from The Catcher in the Rye?

I'm surprised Mr. Rogers didn't make the list.

That's because Mr. Rogers truly lived!

was the guy's real name Rogers?

Yes, ma'am - Pastor Fred Rogers!

When ADPi was answering the phones for WQED (public television, first in the USA) during a telethon, a few of us found his set while on a break. We were goofing around it, and when I looked up at the doorway, there was Mr. Rogers, smiling that beatific smile of his, happy to see us playing!

The "pastor" is because he was a Presbyterian minister.

He was also a Sinfonian.

The jury is still out (and probably always will be) on whether there was an actual person who became the King Arthur of legend.

Naturally, a lot of radio folks were talking about this list recently.

I was listening to one woman DJ trying to comment who said, "I don't know who this Big Brother is." Is that Mr. Orwell rolling over in his grave?

She also really didn't understand "Rosie the Riviter" as being a highly successful and important propaganda tool. She assumed that "Rosie" was simply a symbol of womens liberation.

My late mother actually did work in an aircraft factory riviting the wings on fighter aircraft during WWII.

Where has that woman been. Everyone knows that Big Brother is the guy at CBS who puts people in a house over the summer and watches their every move.

No kidding :rolleyes:

Academic careers have risen and fallen in this debate - but for the most part it is almost impossible not to do any work on the sub-Roman era of the British Isles without touching on Arthur and the attendant myths and legends.

So far the earliest mention of him, as far as I know, is in the Welsh epic poem Y Gododdin from around 600AD (or 80 to 90 years after the battles that Arthur was supposed to have fought). Incidentally this manuscript/poem also includes the earliest mention of a Myrddin (Merlin) as an ancient Celtic bard/advisor who accompanied the host defeated at Catraeth (Catterick).

Anyways... it's also debatable whether or not Robin Hood is a fictional character ~ not the Hollywood Robin Hood - but the Robin Hood of earlier legends... or whether Robin Hood is actually the amalgam of two seperate bandit lords.


Interesting mediaeval factoid - Old King Cole of the song is actually a real person; a King of the early British kingdom of Strathclyde.. King Cole was noted as a bardic king how composed and played his own music, held lavish music festivals, was a great patron to bards and poets, and finally lived to a very old age.

Oh. My mistake. I thought we were talking about the obligitory big brother who is the bane of every young girl on TV sitcoms.

Another one I'm surprised about is Charlie Brown. He's the poster child for mediocrity and under-achievers in America.

What? I've seen him in both Monty Pyton and Spamalot! He must have existed!

Eric Idle would never lie to us.

Did you ever hear that, when Charles Schulz went to his class reunion, nobody knew who he was/had become? :(

No. That's so sad. :(

If I remember what my dad told me....he was also a navy seal that had killed 25 people, and he always wore sweaters because he had tattoos on his arms. I love Mr. Rogers.

Urban legend - never served.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Rogers

Check bottom of page

Am I the only one who finds it odd that the Marlboro Man is #1 on the list? I understand why he's on the list, but #1? Really?

Does Karl Rove really exist, or is he just some imaginary whipping boy?

"This is an unusual election in that the media have not even waited for the polls to open before declaring the results. Indeed, the Associated Press was forecasting a Democratic "landslide" as early as May. And since we all know that everything in the papers is true, if the Republicans end up winning, or at least holding their majorities, it can only mean that Karl Rove stole the election." By JAMES TARANTO

No I agree. I personally would've put Mickey Mouse or Santa Claus as #1.

Where is Betty Crocker?? She belongs to all 26 NPC's, doncha know?? :D

booo...i thought it was real :(

Maybe I read your post wrong, but Don Juan is on there. He is number 40:

40. Don Juan: That Don Juan is no Casanova; the Don, after all, was not Italian. But whether or not he was Spanish or Portugese, he still stands for roguish conquest and male wish fulfillment.


:D I too was surprised not to see Betty Crocker on there, like someone else said. ;) And the tooth fairy, where was she? Though I guess maybe she isn't all that influential...

Interesting though that no Arthur has really been king since the potential Arthur of legend (who would have been around the 1200s, way too early for the medieval image people have of him). Every time an British royal names their son Arthur (and he's actually in line for the throne) he dies young...

Well, I had only read the posted 25 when I posted, as I was busy at work. I'll have to go read the rest.

I think the myth of English heirs to the throne with Arthur in their name has been blown - Prince Charles is officiallly "Charles Philip Arthur George Mountbatten-Windsor", and his youth has come & gone!

Althought Prince William also has Arthur: "William Arthur Philip Louis Mountbatten-Windsor". Hmmm...

The "historical" Athur would have been a king from around 480 - 520; at least going from the battles and placenames mentioned in the earliest manuscripts.

Incidentally the 1200's is the beginning of the "Late Middle Ages"... really latest 'image' of Arthur from legend and even Hollywood.

Man, that show went downhill fast when Richard Dean Anderson left, didn't it?

a) my memory sucks, thank you :p I just took a random stab at it... please forgive

and just because Arthur is IN their names, they won't be "King Arthur" They may not even be King William or Charles..

They might not be King Arthur. But you're right -- they get to choose which name they will rule under, so however unlikely, they could choose to be King Arthur. (But would Charles be Arthur I or Arthur II?)

Charles may well choose to reign as Charles III since he is so well known by that name already, and who knows when he will ascend the throne. On the other hand, his grandfather reigned as George VI, even though everyone had known him as Prince Albert (or "Bertie"). In fact, three of the the last six monarchs ruled under names other than the names they were typically called.

Some have speculated that Charles may not be inclined to be Charles III, since history has not been kind to King Charleses in Britain. If he is not King Charles, he will probably be King George VII. Very unlikely that he would be King Arthur, given the legends surrounding the idea of the return of Arthur and the baggage using that name would bring about.

So back to main topic, the Loch Ness Monster is on a list (#56) of "The 101 Most Influential People Who Never Lived"? My son would take issue, both with the Loch Ness Monster being a person and with the contention that it never lived. He's sure it's there -- it's one of his favorite things to read about. He's currently writing a story about it in 3rd grade. (No. Not proud at all, not even while I type this and look at the Nessie on my desk. :D )

I think it would be hard these days to change your royal name. How's the public going to accept Charles becoming George in 20XX (or William... Charles could still be skipped)

The people thing is iffy... Kermit is not a people.. he's certainly a frog.

i wonder why...nevermind, i won't go there

On the, "were they real" note.. I thought that Robin Hood was more likely to have been real than King Arthur... that there were several possible candidates (although the legend was greater than the man..)

Not that hard, I don't think. Karol Wotyla became John Paul II and Joseph Ratzinger became Benedict XVI with few bats of an eye. When it's part of the convention and the tradition (and this is Royal Family were talking about), I don't think it throws too many people.

At least he can talk.

And I think Darth Vader (and maybe Obi Wan) deserves to be on the list as much or more than Luke Skywalker (#85)