# Authors who've become icons in themselves **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 6, 2008, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042 "2008-06-06T18:52:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2008, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/41 "2008-06-07T11:52:01Z")
[QUOTE=Airman Doors, USAF] From the pseudo-religious/cult icon group you have Ayn Rand and Elron. [/QUOTE] I’ll forgive you equating the two… THIS TIME! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2008, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/42 "2008-06-07T12:27:51Z")
[QUOTE=Talon Karrde] William Burroughs was in a Nike commercial in the 90’s. [/QUOTE] It’s true. That ol’ wife shootin’ boy buggerin’ heroin shootin’ author was most notable for wearing sneakers 😃 ---
**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:** [June 7, 2008, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/43 "2008-06-07T12:59:50Z")
[QUOTE=MGibson] What’s with the eye patch? Marc [/QUOTE] Vachss was hit in the eye with an exploding firecracker as a chlid, and it destroyed the eye and the socket. There was no reconstructive surgery back then, and he’s just use to wearing the patch. His wife [Alice](http://www.alicevachss.com/) is drop dead gorgeous. Both of the Vachsses have done an incredible amount to protect and heal sexually abused children. I now return you to this thread. ---
**Author:** ![bdgr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a87d85/32.png) [@bdgr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bdgr)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/44 "2008-06-11T10:38:59Z")
[QUOTE=Yllaria] I wouldn’t have thought of him right off, but it’s so true. I’ve never been able to decide if meeting him would be a great experience or if I’d want to smack him within five minutes. He says he’s finished writing novels, too, which is sad, but the sort of thing he’d do. Oh, and don’t forget he sells salsa on the internet. [/QUOTE] Very good salsa…Although it’s just a rebrand of another companies salsa thats sold under different labels. The sale of his goes to benifit his animal shelter. we used to sell it at my coffee shop and on the internet. I have probably 40 jars of the stuff left in my storage unit. Had some of it tonight in fact. Oh, and having met the man, he’s a pretty nice guy. ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/45 "2008-06-11T11:27:10Z")
[QUOTE=E-Sabbath] … Stephen King is identifiable, but not because of personality. Or looks. … [/QUOTE] I dunno. I am most definitely not a fan of his but I certainly recognize him. I remember him from that movie _Creepshow_, and also he is shown on TV in the crowd at Red Sox games from time to time. I would say he is a good example of a living author who is no doubt very well known for his writing but has a distinctive look as well. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Them](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/898d66/32.png) [@The\_Them](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Them)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/46 "2008-06-11T11:30:35Z")
Bill Buckley was pretty distinctive, maybe more for his voice. Though I don’t think he wrote any novels. John Waters is known more for his movies, but he also wrote some books. _He_ sure stands out in a crowd. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/47 "2008-06-11T11:35:29Z")
After re-reading the OP, I withdraw my objection to the inclusion of Shakespeare. There; now we can all go on with our lives. Hemingway would be another author that everybody knows something **about** , even if they haven’t read a word of his work. (And even if, even here on the Dope, they keep misspelling his name.) ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/48 "2008-06-11T11:36:56Z")
[QUOTE=jayjay] I don’t know. Both Bukowski and Burroughs are distinctive _because_ of their work. But I wouldn’t be able to pick either one out of a crowd, which leads me to believe that they, themselves, don’t qualify for the thread. Generally speaking, if the only way most people would recognize an author is if that author were reading one of their books aloud, they don’t qualify. [/QUOTE] You couldn’t recognize [Bukowski?](http://search.live.com/images/results.aspx?q=bukowski&FORM=BIRE) ---
**Author:** ![freekalette](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/50afbb/32.png) [@freekalette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freekalette)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/49 "2008-06-11T11:50:23Z")
[QUOTE=MrDibble] James Joyce, with that eyepatch. In a certain genre: Terry Pratchett, always with the hats and beard. Neil Gaiman, with the leather jacket and tousled hair. China Miéville, with the muscles and the skinhead. Alan Moore, with the beard and wild eyes. I’d recognise any of those in caricature, and so would a lot of geeks. [/QUOTE] Drat! You took mine. (Gaiman and Moore) How’s about J.K Rowling? ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/50 "2008-06-11T12:05:58Z")
Would Roald Dahl count? ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/51 "2008-06-11T12:09:29Z")
[QUOTE=China Guy] You couldn’t recognize [Bukowski?](http://search.live.com/images/results.aspx?q=bukowski&FORM=BIRE) [/QUOTE] Nope. Now, maybe, that I’ve seen a photo. But even then, I doubt it. Frankly, the only place I’ve ever seen his name is here on the Dope, and that, before this thread, only when someone posted a link to that “Charlie Brown as written by Charles Bukowski” site. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/52 "2008-06-11T13:08:21Z")
Jeffrey Archer Salman Rushdie ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/53 "2008-06-11T13:16:27Z")
[QUOTE=The Them] Bill Buckley was pretty distinctive, maybe more for his voice. Though I don’t think he wrote any novels. John Waters is known more for his movies, but he also wrote some books. _He_ sure stands out in a crowd. [/QUOTE] Buckley published nearly twenty novels. ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/54 "2008-06-11T14:06:04Z")
I assume people who are only known for autobiographical work don’t count (e.g. Ann Frank). But I think Thoreau almost escapes that – his writings add enough important thoughts and philosophy to be more than mere autobiography, and yet he’s widely recognized as an individual – you could say “what would Thoreau do here?” and most people would understand it. More esoterically, is Samuel Johnson really known more as the subject of a biography or as a writer? ---
**Author:** ![bbs2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e495f1/32.png) [@bbs2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bbs2k)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/55 "2008-06-11T14:28:27Z")
Salvador Dalí wrote a novel wrote a novel. Who knew? Hidden Faces > [@](#): > > Under the encouragement of the poet Garcia Lorca, Dalì attempted an approach to a literary career through the means of the ‘pure novel’. In his only literary production Dalí describes, in vividly visual terms, the intrigues and love affairs of a group of dazzling, eccentric aristocrats who, with their luxurious and extravagant lifestyle, symbolize the decadence of the 1930s. For the count, I clicked on this thread to mention good ol’ Buk. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/56 "2008-06-11T14:41:23Z")
Lagomorph, King has a look, sure… but, well. It’s not _that_ distinctive. I mean… he looks like a guy, you know? Not a horribly eccentric thing about him. If I were to draw him, the trademarks would be the glasses and hair… but they’re not unusual glasses, and it’s not an odd haircut. Despite that, he’s instantly recognizable. I dunno why. ---
**Author:** ![Lunar\_Saltlick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/977dab/32.png) [@Lunar\_Saltlick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lunar_Saltlick)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/57 "2008-06-11T14:53:39Z")
[QUOTE=The Them] Bill Buckley was pretty distinctive, maybe more for his voice. Though I don’t think he wrote any novels. John Waters is known more for his movies, but he also wrote some books. _He_ sure stands out in a crowd. [/QUOTE] As has been mentioned, William Buckley wrote novels. I don’t know about 20, and the one I read was pretty bad, but he’s a novelist. And I’d say he definitely qualifies for the thread, since he’s an author and an icon for millions of people who were/are of a similar political/social bent. In fact, along with Hemingway, he seems to me to be one of the best examples of what the OP was getting at. Bukowski and Burroughs both qualify, I think. Check out _Poetry in Motion_ sometime – hilarious contributions from both men. I know little about their work, but I know their personality and their voice and their personal style quite well. ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/58 "2008-06-11T14:53:47Z")
[John Waters](http://www.cinemaartscentre.org/images/nov06/John-Waters.jpg) Eh, maybe not. He has authored some books, but is primarily thought of as a Director. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/59 "2008-06-11T17:01:51Z")
I would add a few more: **Gertrude Stein** - Most cannot identify what she has written, but they know she has written. **Joseph Conrad** - That brooding easter European presence. \*\*Barbara Cartland \*\*- Most of the things she is credited with writing she did not write for og’s sake. And I challenge most to name a book she has written, but all know her as a writer. That is iconic. \*\*Louis L’Amour \*\*- The western novel was practically redefined by him. Yet he pretty much transends any one novel. **Neil Simon** - I wonder about this one, but I think once again when someone is virtually the definition of what they write, they are an icon. ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2008, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042/60 "2008-06-11T18:52:28Z")
[ul] [li]Pynchon (his elusiveness is weaved into his notoriety as much as his work at this point)[/li][li]Hitler[/li][li]Marx[/li][li]Jack Kerouac[/li][li]Toni Morrison (maybe, she is very distinctive) [/li][/ul] [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/authors-whove-become-icons-in-themselves/452042.md?page=4)