# Celebrities whose names confuse you **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 9, 2016, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638 "2016-02-09T19:00:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![AppallingGael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9bd4f/32.png) [@AppallingGael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AppallingGael)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/81 "2016-02-12T00:28:09Z")
Back when Ed Beckley was the king of infomercials, he and Ed Begley (Jr. or Sr., take your pick, or take both). Btw, I see on the former’s wikipedia page the report that he “nearly died in 1972, after being stabbed multiple times while being mugged by a street gang”. Well after _Twelve Angry Men_, but it adds some color to the old man’s role (They’re not like us! It doesn’t take much for them to stab someone" or such like). Let me add that I know nothing about the ethnic background of the younger’s attackers, nor was any specified for the accused in the Twelve Angry Men script, though you could guess it was probably not shared by any of the jurors. ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/82 "2016-02-12T01:35:53Z")
Emma Stone Emma Watson Emma Roberts Emma Thompson Mira Sorvino Mena Suvari ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/83 "2016-02-12T04:48:54Z")
> [@Laggard](#): > > Emma Stone > Emma Watson > Emma Roberts > Emma Thompson > > Mira Sorvino > Mena Suvari Excellent examples, every one! ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/84 "2016-02-12T04:55:08Z")
During a first date, many years ago, we were discussing the movie “Indecent Proposal.” There was no second date after I confused Rock Hudson and Robert Redford. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/85 "2016-02-12T05:04:16Z")
Mary Surratt and Mary Cassatt. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/86 "2016-02-12T05:11:26Z")
Keith David/David Keith, yes, although I think I’m getting the hang of it. Still can’t remember which Hurt is which. When I was younger, I remember hearing that Katharine Hepburn recently did such-and-such. “I thought she died!” Said I. Looked it up, yep, died in 1993. Then she finally died in 2003. [D’oh](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audrey_Hepburn)! I think it’s more a result of forgetting what the former looked like, but Bill Hader and Jon Heder fit similar milieus. > [@Superdude](#): > > When it comes to celebrity look-a-likes, it doesn’t get much worse than [Katy Perry](https://www.google.com/search?q=katy+perry+zooey+deschanel&espv=2&biw=1600&bih=799&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjDv6SysvDKAhXJFz4KHWKzBNwQ_AUIBigB#imgrc=pXIfbPxAU_0UoM%3A) and [Zooey Deschanel](http://www.instyle.co.uk/celebrity/pictures/celebrity-lookalikes/zooey-deschanel-and-katy-perry-celebrity-lookalikes). Thread’s not about lookalikes, but I’ll note that Katy Perry’s real last name is Hudson. No confusing the two by appearance, though. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/87 "2016-02-12T05:15:21Z")
> [@xizor](#): > > John Hurt is not William Hurt, who in turn is not Bill Pullman > [@BlankSlate](#): > > And neither are John Heard. Well, this explains quite a lot. Not sure what the Hurdt triplets have to do with the Puxton triplets\* though. - Bill Pullman, Bill Paxton, Will Patton ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/88 "2016-02-12T05:27:51Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > Keith David/David Keith, yes, although I think I’m getting the hang of it. Still can’t remember which Hurt is which. > > When I was younger, I remember hearing that Katharine Hepburn recently did such-and-such. “I thought she died!” Said I. Looked it up, yep, died in 1993. Then she finally died in 2003. [D’oh](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audrey_Hepburn)! > > I think it’s more a result of forgetting what the former looked like, but Bill Hader and Jon Heder fit similar milieus. > > Thread’s not about lookalikes, but I’ll note that Katy Perry’s real last name is Hudson. No confusing the two by appearance, though. I know the thread didn’t start out about look-alikes, but I wasn’t the first. Just following the thread drift. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/89 "2016-02-12T12:30:08Z")
I was reminded of an old confusion of mine while watching an episode of _The Prisoner_ last night. Eric Porter was a British actor who played Soames Forsyte in the original version of _The Forsyte Saga_ and Moriarty in the Jeremy Brett _Sherlock Holmes_ series. Eric Portman was a British actor who starred in some of Powell’s and Pressburger’s film like _A Canterbury Tale_ and _The 49th Parallel_. Which one was No. 2 in _The Prisoner_ I was watching? Not the one I thought it would be, and I know I’ve made this same mistake before. I also can never keep James and Edward Fox straight. There was even a time when I thought there was only one actor Fox and I just couldn’t remember his first name correctly. Which one was the Jackal? Which was Lord Darlington? Which was in _The Shooting Party_. Both have been in Poirot episodes. One is married to Joanna David and is father to Emilia Fox. The other is Laurence Fox’s father. But I’d have to go look them up in IMDB to be sure which is which. ---
**Author:** ![edwards\_beard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7bcc69/32.png) [@edwards\_beard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwards_beard)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/90 "2016-02-12T21:16:18Z")
Glad to see no one has confused James Earl Jones and James Earl Ray ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/91 "2016-02-12T21:41:19Z")
My dad was surprised when, after Sonny Bono’s death, U2 kept releasing albums. ---
**Author:** ![Myglaren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@Myglaren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myglaren)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/92 "2016-02-12T22:04:23Z")
You would think it would be easy to confuse Grace Potter and Cat Popper but despite many similar admirable qualities there is no confusing them. [Together on stage](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAOwdf4XwgA) ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/93 "2016-02-12T22:17:15Z")
Musicians Benoit David and David Benoit. Which one is the jazz pianist and which one the former lead singer of Yes? ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/94 "2016-02-12T22:49:10Z")
[Christopher Lloyd](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Lloyd_%28screenwriter%29) (_The Golden Girls_, _Wings_, _Frasier_) is not [Christopher Lloyd](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Lloyd) (_Taxi_, _The Addams Family_, _Back to the Future_). [Jean Simmons](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Simmons) is not [Gene Simmons](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_Simmons). ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/95 "2016-02-12T23:00:19Z")
Name-visually, whenever I see Katherine Heigl’s name on an upcoming movie, I think “Cool, that lady from Battlestar G… uh, nope.” (Tricia Helfer) Face-visually, I sat through Bridesmaids and watched [Kristen Wiig](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1325419/?ref_=tt_cl_t1) as one of the lead characters, absolutely convinced that I was watching [Sarah Paulson.](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005299/?ref_=nv_sr_1) ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/96 "2016-02-12T23:12:45Z")
I still confuse Chan Marshall (Cat Power) and Neko Case (the New Pornographers). Because Neko is “cat” in Japanese (different pronunciation). > [@Superdude](#): > > I know the thread didn’t start out about look-alikes, but I wasn’t the first. Just following the thread drift. I know, mainly was pointing out that Perry had to pick a stage name (her mother’s maiden name). On the subject of lookalikes, [Erika Christensen](https://www.google.com/search?q=erika+christensen&biw=1920&bih=921&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&sqi=2&ved=0ahUKEwjlobbsrPPKAhUB8WMKHWobAKUQ_AUIBigB) is more-affordable [Julia Stiles](https://www.google.com/search?q=julia+stiles&biw=1920&bih=921&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&sqi=2&ved=0ahUKEwjlkqTurPPKAhVU52MKHS0nCeMQ_AUIBigB). > [@psychonaut](#): > > [Jean Simmons](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Simmons) is not [Gene Simmons](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_Simmons). Also not his real name, and it’s odd that his name somehow became less uncool by changing it to “Gene,” the only time in history that this has occurred. ---
**Author:** ![MeepersC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meepersc/32/12088_2.png) [@MeepersC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeepersC)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2016, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/97 "2016-02-13T00:22:22Z")
[Richard Dawson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Dawson) is not the same person as [Richard Dawkins](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Dawkins). (Although, Richard Dawson’s Wikipedia page specifically says "not to be confused with Richard Dawkins, so maybe I’m not the only one who used to be REALLY confused.) ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2016, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/98 "2016-02-13T04:29:05Z")
Green Hornet Green Lantern Buddy Rich Buddy Guy ---
**Author:** ![GoodOmens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@GoodOmens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GoodOmens)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2016, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/99 "2016-02-13T12:03:53Z")
> [@Nobody](#): > > For a while I thought that [Morton Downey Jr.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morton_Downey,_Jr.) and [Robert Downey Jr.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Downey_Jr.) were related. This just blew my mind. I was SURE they were related. ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2016, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638/100 "2016-02-13T12:19:44Z")
> [@GoodOmens](#): > > This just blew my mind. I was SURE they were related. Well, they can’t be brothers; that’s for sure. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-whose-names-confuse-you/745638.md?page=6)