# Artists and Showbiz ppl forever stigmatized by ONE thing they did **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 19, 2009, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606 "2009-04-19T08:51:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/21 "2009-04-19T22:22:12Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > Keanu Reeves is perpetually associated with the “Bill and Ted” movies. Considering his acting ability? I’d say that’s a GOOD thing. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/22 "2009-04-19T22:57:23Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > Robert Englund’s imdb listing shows over a hundred movies and TV shows, yet is most famous for Freddie Krueger in the _Nightmare on Elm Street_ movies. It’s not like Freddy’s an outlier, which has incorrectly shaped the perception of his career, though - it’s shaped his career, to an extent, I’d wager, but there’s little before Nightmare where his being in it is notable, and even then, it’s V, and a couple rather obscure horror flicks, so I doubt even that’s a major difference from what would be if Freddy hadn’t caught people’s imagination like he did. > [@appleciders](#): > > Seriously? I think [Keanu Reeves]'s more strongly associated with “The Matrix”. When people mock Keanu, do they say ‘I know kung-fu!’ or do they go ‘Whoah!’? On a slightly different note from the OP…Mark Hamill’s been ‘marked’ by Star Wars - he’s had a good career since, but a lot of it - certainly the best received part - is ‘only’ voice acting, so, since it’s not another Luke Skywalker, his career has ‘tanked’, despite working frequently, and becoming THE iconic version of an iconic character (the Joker). ---
**Author:** ![ToeJam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@ToeJam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ToeJam)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/23 "2009-04-19T23:33:35Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > When people mock Keanu, do they say ‘I know kung-fu!’ or do they go ‘Whoah!’? When I mock him and say it, I say “Whoa” though in reference to his line in the Matrix. That’s the quintessential matrix line: “Whoa” not “I know kung fu” in my opinion. I don’t usually associate the “Whoah” with B&T (a great film) vs. his Matrixy stuff. I think alot of the younger generation probably does the same, many who weren’t even alive when B&T came out. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_jeffrey_lebowski/32/215_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Jeffrey_Lebowski)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/24 "2009-04-20T00:14:28Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > When people mock Keanu, do they say ‘I know kung-fu!’ or do they go ‘Whoah!’? Personally, I go with “I am an FBI…A-gent!!!” With all due respect, you have got to be kidding me with B & T. The Matrix franchise has grossed over 1.5 billion dollars (Matrix 460, Revolutions 425, Reloaded 740) whereas Bill and Ted has grossed a bit over 40 million. I’ll say that this [actor/director/writer/composer](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000779/) might win this contest in a walk. ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/25 "2009-04-20T00:43:59Z")
Does Roseanne singing the National Anthem count? ---
**Author:** ![Thin\_Ice](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aeb1de/32.png) [@Thin\_Ice](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thin_Ice)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/26 "2009-04-20T01:04:16Z")
How about Michael Richards’ blow-up at a couple of hecklers while he was doing his routine at a comedy club. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/27 "2009-04-20T01:10:26Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](#): > > Personally, I go with “I am an FBI…A-gent!!!” > With all due respect, you have got to be kidding me with B & T. The Matrix franchise has grossed over 1.5 billion dollars (Matrix 460, Revolutions 425, Reloaded 740) whereas Bill and Ted has grossed a bit over 40 million. > I’ll say that this [actor/director/writer/composer](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000779/) might win this contest in a walk. However, Arbuckle was acquitted, so he was stigmatized for something he _didn’t_ do, thereby disqualifying him from this thread. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/28 "2009-04-20T01:26:02Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Are we including sports people? How about Tyson and the ear? If he hadn’t done that, we’d only remember him for raping Desiree Washington and beating up Robin Givens. All told, he’s probably lucky he changed his image to “batshit crazy ear-biter”. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/29 "2009-04-20T02:18:36Z")
> [@C.Montgomery\_Burns](#): > > I’ve heard of Ted Weems. Well, sure, _you_ have. You’re a shriveled old homunculus. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/30 "2009-04-20T04:45:38Z")
The Everly Brothers. Don and Phill had a big fight onstage and didn’t appear together for 10 years. Bye bye, love. StG ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/31 "2009-04-20T13:23:13Z")
John Gilbert is not only known (if at all) for one event, but that one event has become a film cliche that has become an archetype. Gilbert was Greta Garbo’s co-star in the silent days. When sound came in, his career collapsed. The legend was his voice sounded so bad that audiences laughed whenever he spoke. This became legendary; the idea was a plot point in **Singin’ in the Rain** and **A Star is Born**. The reality was that it wasn’t his voice; it was his dialog. The rather florid prose of silent movie title cards comes off badly when spoken aloud. Gilbert got caught in this and his career fell apart (though alcoholism was also a factor). Actually, only a handful of actors had trouble with the transition to sound. About the only one who had to quit solely because of his voice was Raymond Griffith, who had blown out his vocal cords and couldn’t speak above a whisper. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/32 "2009-04-20T13:29:07Z")
Seann William Scott, “Stiffler” in the American Pie movies, will never be known for anything but that one protein-laced beer. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/33 "2009-04-20T13:37:37Z")
Adam West as… Batman… I remember reading that there was some speculation that he would become James Bond. Imagine how that would have turned out. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/34 "2009-04-20T13:40:35Z")
Unless Anthony Hopkin single handedly cures cancer & AIDS, he’ll be remembered as Hannibal Lechter. ---
**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:** [April 20, 2009, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/35 "2009-04-20T14:21:39Z")
Sharon Stone’s coochie-flash from _Basic Instinct_ made it a lot less likely that she’d be doing Shakespeare later in her career. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/36 "2009-04-20T15:46:33Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > The reality was that it wasn’t his voice; it was his dialog. The rather florid prose of silent movie title cards comes off badly when spoken aloud. Gilbert got caught in this and his career fell apart (though alcoholism was also a factor). > > Actually, only a handful of actors had trouble with the transition to sound. About the only one who had to quit solely because of his voice was Raymond Griffith, who had blown out his vocal cords and couldn’t speak above a whisper. Also, wasn’t the same true for Garbo, who had a thick accent? After sound, she was pretty much taking roles like prostitutes/down on their luck women. When you say it was the florid dialogue, do you mean it was the dialogue he was given? or the way he spoke them aloud? B/c if it’s the former, why wasn’t that a problem for other silent stars who were making the transition? ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/37 "2009-04-20T15:57:22Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > It’s not like Freddy’s an outlier, which has incorrectly shaped the perception of his career, though - it’s shaped his career, to an extent, I’d wager, but there’s little before Nightmare where his being in it is notable, and even then, it’s V, and a couple rather obscure horror flicks, so I doubt even that’s a major difference from what would be if Freddy hadn’t caught people’s imagination like he did. On a similar tract, how about Vincet Price? He’s forever associated with “the Fly” and “House of Wax” and other 50s sci-fi/horror B-movies. He rarely is remembered as the acclaimed 40s character actor of “Laura”, “Leave Her to Heaven” and “Dragonwycke.” ---
**Author:** ![cosmosdan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a6a055/32.png) [@cosmosdan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cosmosdan)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/38 "2009-04-20T16:25:38Z")
Going old school Max Baer Jr. played Jethro on the Beverly Hillbillies was type cast as Jethro and hated the role for years even though he was relatively successful as a producer. George Reeves from the old 50s Superman TV series was also frustrated because his TV personna kept him from getting more serious roles. Robert G. Durant played a retarded man on a popular TV series and the public thought he was actually a retarded actor. He was so good at it that he began to get offered several similar roles. I do think there’s a difference between “best known for” and “almost exclusively known for” Lot’s of artists have memorable roles or songs but are still recognized for their other work. Other’s not so much. ---
**Author:** ![apollonia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2bfe46/32.png) [@apollonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apollonia)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/39 "2009-04-20T16:26:08Z")
Fountains of Wayne hit the money with “Stacey’s Mom,” even though they’ve released a few other albums that have gotten a lot of critical praise. Nope. They’re forever going to be “that Stacy’s Mom band!” ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606/40 "2009-04-20T17:06:01Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Also, wasn’t the same true for Garbo, who had a thick accent? After sound, she was pretty much taking roles like prostitutes/down on their luck women. Her accent worked with her image and she was as big a star with sound than before. > [@](#): > > When you say it was the florid dialogue, do you mean it was the dialogue he was given? or the way he spoke them aloud? B/c if it’s the former, why wasn’t that a problem for other silent stars who were making the transition? Probably both. The dialog was originally much like a silent screen title card, which works OK when written, but sounds overwrought when spoken. Also, Gilbert seems to have drawn from his stage background and projected the words so the people in the back seats could hear him. That also didn’t work with a microphone right beside him. In once scene, for instance, Gilbert is kissing the woman and saying, “I love you. I love you. I LOOOOVE you.” It plays more comically than romantic. Gilbert adjusted after his first few films, but the damage to his reputation was done. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artists-and-showbiz-ppl-forever-stigmatized-by-one-thing-they-did/493606.md?page=3)