# \_\_\_\_\_, the poor man's \_\_\_\_\_ **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 24, 2008, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949 "2008-02-24T14:35:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/1 "2008-02-24T14:35:11Z")
Another thread mentioned Photoshop as the poor man’s scalpel. Which inspires me: Hydrox, the poor man’s Oreos. Styx, the poor man’s Queen. Jayne Mansfield, the poor man’s Marilyn Monroe. Cracked Magazine, the poor man’s Mad Magazine. John Mellencamp, the poor man’s Bruce Springsteen. Others? ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/2 "2008-02-24T15:40:55Z")
[Bump Firing](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bump_fire), the poor man’s Full-Auto mode. ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/3 "2008-02-24T15:55:10Z")
Sytx/Queen??? I’ve never thought these two were remotely similar. Aerosmith, the poor mans Rolling Stones. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/4 "2008-02-24T16:16:10Z")
[Beakman’s World](http://www.beakmansworldtv.com/), the poor mans [Bill Nye](http://www.billnye.com/). ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/5 "2008-02-24T16:23:30Z")
Go to [here](http://www.capohedz.com/typebrighter/2005_08_01_shwanger_archive.html) and scroll down a little to “The Poor Man’s Actor.” ---
**Author:** ![Khampelf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Khampelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khampelf)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/6 "2008-02-24T16:35:59Z")
Pontiac, poor man’s Caddilac. I’ve actually heard a racist acronym made out of Pontiac. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/7 "2008-02-24T16:41:53Z")
[QUOTE=Wee Bairn] Sytx/Queen??? I’ve never thought these two were remotely similar. [/QUOTE] “Remotely” being the key word. They both do the weird classical/shredding hybrid with shifting themes and rhythms in one song (someone who actually knows about music can probably find a better way to explain that), only Queen makes my 15 year old go, “wow, that was _cool_!” and Styx makes him go, “Jesus, that was _lame_!” while my 3 year old sings along the best she can with both. Once upon a time, of course. Kiera Knightly was a poor man’s Natalie Portman. Sometime in the last few years, they may have switched places. Monica Potter is the poor man’s Julia Roberts. Ryan Phillipe the poor man’s John Malkovitch. When I first saw _Cruel Intentions_, I thought he was intentionally copying Malkovitch’s inflections and acting choices because Malkovitch played essentially the same character in _Dangerous Liaisons._ Turns out he \*always \*apes Malkovitch. It’s a little creepy. Micheal Gambon, obviously, is the poor man’s Richard Harris. But Dumbledore is the poor man’s Gandalf. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/8 "2008-02-24T16:50:45Z")
[QUOTE=WhyNot] “Remotely” being the key word. They both do the weird classical/shredding hybrid with shifting themes and rhythms in one song (someone who actually knows about music can probably find a better way to explain that), only Queen makes my 15 year old go, “wow, that was _cool_!” and Styx makes him go, “Jesus, that was _lame_!” while my 3 year old sings along the best she can with both. Once upon a time, of course. Kiera Knightly was a poor man’s Natalie Portman. Sometime in the last few years, they may have switched places. [/quote] You’ve gone mad again. I’d say that Natalie Portman is the most beautiful woman on Earth, but that would be understating the case. ---
**Author:** ![aerodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f08c70/32.png) [@aerodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerodave)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/9 "2008-02-24T17:03:02Z")
Nick Nolte is the poor man’s Gary Busey …or is it the other way around? Boy, that’s hard to tell. Ferrari is the poor man’s Lamborghini. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/10 "2008-02-24T17:03:52Z")
[QUOTE=Skald the Rhymer] You’ve gone mad again. I’d say that Natalie Portman is the most beautiful woman on Earth, but that would be understating the case. [/QUOTE] Hey, there are plenty of beautiful women who are completely unknown. I was just speculating on their comparative box office draw. Ms. Portman did not fare well post-_Star Wars_ and _Closer_. Ms. Knightly, OTOH, is still riding pretty high after _Pirates_. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/11 "2008-02-24T17:05:33Z")
[QUOTE=WhyNot] Kiera Knightly was a poor man’s Natalie Portman. Sometime in the last few years, they may have switched places. [/QUOTE] You bite your tongue. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/12 "2008-02-24T17:06:13Z")
_Lost in Space_, the poor man’s _Star Trek_. _Battlestar Galactica_ (the original), the poor man’s _Star Wars_. Duplo, the poor man’s Lego. Velveeta, the poor man’s cheddar. GURPS, the poor man’s AD&D. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/13 "2008-02-24T17:08:05Z")
Skeet Ulrich, the poor man’s Johnny Depp. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/14 "2008-02-24T17:25:01Z")
[Dane Cook](http://www.thecinemasource.com/moviesdb/images/Dane_Cook%20-%201%20-%20Mr_Brooks.jpg), the poor man’s [Ryan Reynolds](http://www.thecinemasource.com/moviesdb/images/Ryan_Reynolds-1.jpg). And [Ryan Reynolds](http://www.thecinemasource.com/moviesdb/images/RyanReynolds1-300.jpg) is the poor man’s [Jason Lee](http://www.sitv.com/blogs/whatshot/wp-content/uploads/thumb-JasonLee_Steve_199179_400.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/15 "2008-02-24T17:26:16Z")
When I lived in New Mexico, I often heard: Las Cruces, the poor man’s Santa Fe. And in Colorado … Fort Collins, the poor man’s Boulder. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/16 "2008-02-24T18:00:55Z")
James Whitmore, the poor man’s Spencer Tracy. Michael Clarke Duncan the poor man’s Ving Rhames. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/17 "2008-02-24T18:30:10Z")
James Marsden, the poor man’s Ethan Hawke. ---
**Author:** ![brownie55](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f14d63/32.png) [@brownie55](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brownie55)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/18 "2008-02-24T18:33:48Z")
[QUOTE=Elendil’s Heir] _Lost in Space_, the poor man’s _Star Trek_. _Battlestar Galactica_ (the original), the poor man’s _Star Wars_. **Duplo, the poor man’s Lego.** Velveeta, the poor man’s cheddar. GURPS, the poor man’s AD&D. [/QUOTE] Actually, Duplo is the toddler’s [Lego](http://shop.lego.com/ByAge/Product.aspx?p=5417&cn=100003&d=100001) ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/19 "2008-02-24T19:33:16Z")
Datsun 510/BMW ---
**Author:** ![Paladud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Paladud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paladud)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2008, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949/20 "2008-02-24T20:34:58Z")
Terry Brooks, the poor man’s Tolkien \ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/_____-the-poor-mans-_____/438949.md?page=2)