I met a librarian recently whose last name was Book. She said the family joke is that she should have been named Rita.
Well, there’s Priscilla Feral, the head of PETA. But she changed her name to that, so it probably doesn’t count.
I knew a guy in the Navy with the last name of Sailor.
Dang, I see these sorts of names all the time, but can’t think of any now.
Well, his official job title is Fitter and Machinist, which isn’t as funny, but I do find it amusing that he is now the president of the local wood craft group. My father’s surname is, of course, Turner, and turning is both his job and his hobby. And as I’m sure I’ve mentioned a million times, one of his Turner aunts married a Woodyard, two other relatives married Miss Wood and Miss Greenwood respectively.
Oh, and I’m probably the only person in the world who was amused when we got a new truck driver at work whose name was Laurie (Lorry).
Bridgeport, CT, mid 1940s. The flu or the measles or something is going around like crazy. Mama Doug is about ten and very very sick. A doctor calls Mr. Gabriel, the nearest druggist, to prescribe medicine and have it delivered.
Mr. G’s car pulls up in front of the house, but he’s way backed up on deliveries and can’t spare much time. So he just goes up the drive and honks.
Mama Doug, listless with a high fever in a house of easily alarmed female relatives, causes unimaginable consternation when she calls out to her older sister:
"I HEAR GABRIEL BLOWING HIS HORN!"
There’s an attorney here in Los Angeles name Soo Hoo.
Marina Stepanova was a Women’s 400 Hurdle champion during the 70’s and 80’s.
I knew a guy in the Air Force with the last name of Sailor. He chose the Air Force over the Navy for exactly this reason.
The president of St. Francis University in Loretto, PA, when my brother was a student (mid-90s) was Father Christian…
I once knew a guy named John Johns. He was a plumber.
No, I’m not making that up.
I swear on a stack of Bibles, my first gynecologist was named Dr. Bush.
I once went to a dentist named Trueblood to have some teeth pulled.
Was his first name Harry?
My optometrists’ names (father and son) are Dr. Spector.
There’s a well-known (well, in the field, at least) researcher who studies iron utilization in bacteria. His first name is Ferric.
Ohboyohboyohboy!!!
Finally, a thread that I may be able to contribute to!!!
Long ago, I worked in an insurance firm that insured lawyers, CPA’s and Realtors. I had so much fun writing down the names that came across my desk. Remeber, the following were all real law firms or CPA’s. Would you trust…
Tortalot
Guller
Hassler
Cadle and Cheatham
Eddie D. Crook
Lawless and Ha
Fink and Fink
Smart and Biggar
Lesser and Bader
TC Crooks
Charles Weasel
Power Hagler
Juris Dumpis
Feder, Fine, Poisson
Dunn and Conner Bookkeeping
Beery and Beery
Savage and Killian
G. C. Flake
I’ve got more, but I’m so glad that the list I typed up years ago and stuffed in the “obscure things that make me laugh” file finally came in handy!
The leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party is John Tory.
In the women’s clinic where my OB/GYN worked, there was a Dr. Suzanne Bush.
My parents knew of an gyno whose name was Seymour Kuntz–which he insisted was pronounced “koonts,” but nobody paid any attention. The joke was just too easy to ignore!
I suspect neither was me (even though I’m a librarian), since I don’t get the Buffy references.
<Arrested Development>It’s “Fyoonkay”…</AD>
Thomas Crapper comes to mind