# Consensus "Greatest" things **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 24, 2003, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055 "2003-02-24T01:54:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/1 "2003-02-24T01:54:39Z")
I have an odd question, which I will attempt to ask as clearly as possible. What things or people, in their respective categories, are viewed as the “greatest” by a general consensus. What do I mean by that? Well, there isn’t really any single “greatest baseball player” or “greatest movie star” or “best rock song” that a solid majority of people would agree upon. But, even bearing in mind the fickle orneriness of public opinion, there are a few categories where almost everyone would agree on who or what “the greatest” is. A few examples I’ve come up with: Greatest playwright: **William Shakespeare** Greatest hockey player: **Wayne Gretzky** Greatest painting: **Mona Lisa** Greatest late-night host: **Johnny Carson** Greatest checkers player: [Marion Tinsley](http://www.cs.ualberta.ca/~chinook/people/Tinsley.php) Greatest 20th century saintly humanitarian: **Mother Theresa** Greatest fantasy movie: **Lord of the Rings** Greatest mountain climber: **Reinhold Messner** Greatest director of suspense movies: **Alfred Hitchcock** Greatest blonde bombshell: **Marilyn Monroe** Greatest rock group: **The Beatles** Greatest Guy Who Fights Ignorance Through a Newspaper Column: **Cecil Adams** (Note: I’m not saying that there’s no one who disagrees with the statement “Wayne Gretzky is the greatest hockey player of all time”. I’m just saying that anyone knowledgeable about the issue realizes that Wayne Gretzky is the accepted, de facto, greatest hockey player of all time, and if you hold an opposing view, you’d best be prepared to defend it…) What other examples are there? Does anyone take issue with any of mine? ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/2 "2003-02-24T02:30:16Z")
Greatest (in a bad way) dictator: **Adolf Hitler** Greatest British PM: **Winston Churchill** Greatest thing to come out of Israel: **Natalie Portman** [sub](Worst thing to come out of Israel: **Uri Geller** )[/sub] Greatest Weapon: **Sword** Greatest form of Art: **Music** (To name but a few) ---
**Author:** ![Rhum\_Runner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rhum\_Runner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhum_Runner)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/3 "2003-02-24T04:16:39Z")
Greatest SNL Host: **Christopher Walken** ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/4 "2003-02-24T05:44:19Z")
The Mona Lisa is the greatest painting? I think that there would be a lot of disagreement on that. A lot of the fans of the book _The Lord of the Rings_ think that the movie is a distinct disappointment. I don’t think that there is any general agreement that the Jackson movie version is the greatest fantasy movie. There are people that think Mother Theresa was not such a great person. ---
**Author:** ![Stainless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Stainless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stainless)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/5 "2003-02-24T05:58:48Z")
I found Johnny Carson to be about as funny as a scorching case of the rickets and would prefer Letterman over him in a heartbeat. Unfortunately, this one’s unwinnable for both of us due to the subjectivity of comedy. And art. And music. And blonde-bombshells. ---
**Author:** ![akennett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee59a6/32.png) [@akennett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/akennett)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/6 "2003-02-24T06:10:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MaxTheVool \* > Greatest playwright: **William Shakespeare** > Greatest hockey player: **Wayne Gretzky** > Greatest painting: **Mona Lisa** > Greatest late-night host: **Johnny Carson** > Greatest checkers player: [Marion Tinsley](http://www.cs.ualberta.ca/~chinook/people/Tinsley.php) > Greatest 20th century saintly humanitarian: **Mother Theresa** > Greatest fantasy movie: **Lord of the Rings** > Greatest mountain climber: **Reinhold Messner** > Greatest director of suspense movies: **Alfred Hitchcock** > Greatest blonde bombshell: **Marilyn Monroe** > Greatest rock group: **The Beatles** > Greatest Guy Who Fights Ignorance Through a Newspaper Column: **Cecil Adams** I think you’ll have as much problem with most, if not all, of these as you would with the subjects you admitted there would be no consensus about. How can you say there can be no consensus about the greatest baseball player, but claim there will be a greatest hockey player? You’re leaving out an enormous number of players who could be considered a possibility - Why not Patrick Roy, or can it not be a goalie? Why not Mario (can’t spell the last name)? I’m not saying htat these are the greatest, just that there are plenty of people who would argue for them. You’re not gonna get anywhere near a consensus as the beatles being the greatest rock band. I personally think they are hugely over-rated. I’d rather gouge out my eardrums than listen to more than a couple of their songs in a week whereas I could listen to Ozzy/Black Sabbath all day long. The Mona Lisa as the greatest painting? Are you serious? It’s just a chick sitting there - and she’s not even hot… I don’t think you could ever get a consensus on a greatest checkers player…I doubt you could get more than 2% to even name one in a random polling. As for climbers - I bet more people would name Hillary - just because they’ve heard of him before. ---
**Author:** ![drm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e57/32.png) [@drm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drm)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/7 "2003-02-24T06:17:41Z")
Greatest Phil Donahue impersonator - **Darrell Hammond** Greatest Movie - **Citizen Kane** Greatest Rock Song - **Stairway to Heaven** ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/8 "2003-02-24T09:02:33Z")
I think the only consensus you can get here is the “greatest Internet message board” category. ---
**Author:** ![Dragon\_Phoenix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@Dragon\_Phoenix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dragon_Phoenix)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/9 "2003-02-24T09:22:19Z")
Not even that. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/10 "2003-02-24T11:58:08Z")
I suggest you check out this thread: [Can SDMB Members achieve consensus on ANYTHING?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=160608&highlight=consensus) The majority answer turns out to be “no”, but there wasn’t complete consensus about it. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/11 "2003-02-24T12:00:51Z")
And BTW, consensus doesn’t mean “solid majority”. It means “no one speaks up in opposition”. One single objection results in a failure of consensus. ---
**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:** [February 24, 2003, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/12 "2003-02-24T13:24:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MaxTheVool \* > \*\*Greatest playwright: **William Shakespeare** > Greatest hockey player: **Wayne Gretzky** > Greatest painting: **Mona Lisa** > Greatest late-night host: **Johnny Carson** > Greatest checkers player: [Marion Tinsley](http://www.cs.ualberta.ca/~chinook/people/Tinsley.php) > Greatest 20th century saintly humanitarian: **Mother Theresa** > Greatest fantasy movie: **Lord of the Rings** > Greatest mountain climber: **Reinhold Messner** > Greatest director of suspense movies: **Alfred Hitchcock** > Greatest blonde bombshell: **Marilyn Monroe** > Greatest rock group: **The Beatles** > Greatest Guy Who Fights Ignorance Through a Newspaper Column: **Cecil Adams** > > Does anyone take issue with any of mine? \*\* Well, of all the people mentioned, only two aren’t Anglophone. > [@](#): > > I’m just saying that anyone knowledgeable about the issue realizes that Wayne Gretzky[sub]or whoever[/sub] is the accepted, de facto, greatest hockey player[sub]or whatever[/sub] of all time Surely, anyone knowledgeable about the issue knows that there were a whole bunch of great players/whatevers. To single out one is a bit, well, silly. Shakespere better than Chekov? Mona Lisa better than The Raft of the Medusa or The Scream? Mother Theresa better than Alfred Schweitzer? ---
**Author:** ![hawthorne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@hawthorne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hawthorne)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/13 "2003-02-24T14:16:40Z")
> [@](#): > > _MaxTheVool_ > Greatest 20th century saintly humanitarian: Mother Theresa I wouldn’t even agree that Mother Theresa was a humanitarian of any sort, let alone the greatest. I’m sure if you search here you can find threads which outline that view. > [@](#): > > _MaxTheVool_ > Greatest hockey player: Wayne Gretzky It was my understanding that he played _ice_ hockey, not hockey. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/14 "2003-02-24T14:22:36Z")
Yeah, he’d look silly in one of those little skirts. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/15 "2003-02-24T16:54:50Z")
Greatest brand of orange juice: **Tropicana** Greatest brand of battery: **Duracell** Greatest brand of paper towel: **Bounty** Greatest boxing promoter: **Don King** ---
**Author:** ![silkstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@silkstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silkstar)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/16 "2003-02-24T18:04:04Z")
Greatest Inventions (not necesarily in this order) Indoor plumbing. Air conditioning and heating. Automobiles. Airplanes. Alcohol. ---
**Author:** ![Homer\_J](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c37758/32.png) [@Homer\_J](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homer_J)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/17 "2003-02-24T19:17:26Z")
i) Greatest sauce condiment: Red/Tomato ii) supermarket: Asda iii) fairground ride: rollercoaster iv) entreprenur: Richard Branson v) utensil: Fork vi) Letter: X or G vii) domestic animal: Dog viii)music format: CD or Vinyl (Too tough to call) ix)hot drink: Tea x)cold drink: pepsi after a sport xi) Numbering system: Roman numerals xii)Font - Times New Roman 12 ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/18 "2003-02-24T19:35:22Z")
Greatest Benchmark: Sliced Bread ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_of\_Sandwhich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/91b2a8/32.png) [@Earl\_of\_Sandwhich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_of_Sandwhich)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/19 "2003-02-24T20:05:58Z")
1. Greatest President of the United States a. Bearded: Abraham Lincoln b. Clean shaven: Woodrow Wilson 2. Greatest meal: Hot dog, Chicago style 3. Greatest car: 1969 Chevy Nova, Super Sport, blue 4. Greatest method of Execution: Firing squad 5. Greatest cartoon cause of death: Blow to head, anvil 6. Greatest athlete ever to lose his title and be sentenced to federal prison for resisting the draft, only later to beat the feds in court, regain his title and become an American icon: Muhammad Ali ---
**Author:** ![Murcielago](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/da6949/32.png) [@Murcielago](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Murcielago)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/20 "2003-02-24T21:02:41Z")
Greatest **natural** breasts – Jamie Lee Curtis 😛 . [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055.md?page=2)