# 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:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/41 "2003-02-25T19:04:15Z")
(a) Michael Jordan is certainly the biggest **star** ever to play basketball, but for the question at hand, I think he’s borderline at best. For instance, when Sports Illustrated ranked the 50 greatest NBA players of all time a while back, they put him at #2 behind Wilt the Stilt. On the other hand, he’s often referred to as “the greatest player ever to play the game”, and no one wonders who is being talked about. (b) Bippy: your British background renders you meaningless for the purposes of this discussion. Please wait quietly in the lobby 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/42 "2003-02-26T01:38:05Z")
I both enjoy this category and completely understand the basic point: What is “generally understood” to be the best. The question is whether the category is worth deciding on a best for… - Best Skyscraper: The Chrysler Building - Greatest Architectural Feat - The Pyramids at Cheops - Most Important Novel of the 20th Century - Ulysses (look, you may not agree - I don’t think I do - but it is generally held up to be the greatest novel of the 20th century) - Great American Novel of the 1800’s - Moby Dick (closely followed by Adventures of Huck Finn and the Scarlet Letter) - Great American Novel of the 1900’s - The Great Gatsby (closely followed by A Farewell to Arms, Catcher in the Rye and To Kill a Mockingbird) - Best Science Fiction Novel - Dune - Best Rock Song - Satisfaction by the Stones - Best Rock Band - The Beatles - Best Rock Album - Revolver by the Beatles - Best Rock Guitarist - Hendrix - Best Female vocalist - Aretha Franklin - Best Jazz Album - Kind of Blue by Miles Davis - Best Sculpture - David by Michaelangelo The list could go on, but this is a sample… ---
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/43 "2003-02-26T02:18:00Z")
**WordMan** of your list, the ones I would know what you were talking about would be Greatest Architectural Feat Best Rock Band Best Rock Guitarist Best Sculpture Would anyone not no who I referred to when I say Best Fantasy Trilogy? OK **MaxTheVole** I’ll go back to the lobby 🙂 ---
**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 26, 2003, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/44 "2003-02-26T10:33:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by WordMan \* > **- Greatest Architectural Feat - The Pyramids at Cheops** Hmmmm… the great wall of China? > [@](#): > > \*\*- Best Rock Song - Satisfaction by the Stones > > - Best Rock Band - The Beatles > - Best Rock Album - Revolver by the Beatles > - Best Rock Guitarist - Hendrix > - Best Female vocalist - Aretha Franklin > - Best Jazz Album - Kind of Blue by Miles Davis\*\* I think not even 10% in a poll would give these answers - except maybe for Hendrix. Consensus?? > [@](#): > > **- Best Sculpture - David by Michaelangelo** Rodin - The Thinker? Or The Kiss for that matter? ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/45 "2003-02-26T16:16:52Z")
How “Most famous painting”? You can probably get consensus on that. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/46 "2003-02-26T19:18:02Z")
of the original list, if i heard these in conversation, I would instantly know which ones were being mentioned: Greatest playwright: William Shakespeare Greatest 20th century saintly humanitarian: Mother Theresa Greatest director of suspense movies: Alfred Hitchcock Greatest blonde bombshell: Marilyn Monroe Greatest Guy Who Fights Ignorance Through a Newspaper Column: Cecil Adams now, I happen to AGREE with “Best Fantasy Movie”=FOTR, but i wouldnt recognize it as a quote from others. And in MY list above, I only agree with the first and last, the other 3 i am not knowledgable enough to comment on. ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2003, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/47 "2003-02-27T23:14:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by WordMan \* > \*\* > > - Best Skyscraper: The Chrysler Building > - Greatest Architectural Feat - The Pyramids at Cheops > - Most Important Novel of the 20th Century - Ulysses (look, you may not agree - I don’t think I do - but it is generally held up to be the greatest novel of the 20th century) > - Great American Novel of the 1800’s - Moby Dick (closely followed by Adventures of Huck Finn and the Scarlet Letter) > - Great American Novel of the 1900’s - The Great Gatsby (closely followed by A Farewell to Arms, Catcher in the Rye and To Kill a Mockingbird) > - Best Science Fiction Novel - Dune > - Best Rock Song - Satisfaction by the Stones > - Best Rock Band - The Beatles > - Best Rock Album - Revolver by the Beatles > - Best Rock Guitarist - Hendrix > - Best Female vocalist - Aretha Franklin > - Best Jazz Album - Kind of Blue by Miles Davis > - Best Sculpture - David by Michaelangelo > > The list could go on, but this is a sample… \*\* Wow, you and I must live in different worlds… If I were trying to answer your categories: - Best Skyscraper: For me, it would be a tossup between the Empire State Building and the Sears Tower - Greatest Architectural Feat - I would **never** have thought that there was one most obvious. I guess if I had to settle on one, I might go with the Panama canal, depending on how one defines Architecture… I’m not even sure if the Great Pyramid would be the single greatest Leftover Architecture from the Ancient World… the Great Wall, Stonehenge, Easter Island and various others give it a run for its money - Most Important Novel of the 20th Century - No idea - Great American Novel of the 1800’s - I might conceivably have come up with Moby Dick here - Great American Novel of the 1900’s - I might conceivably have come up with the Great Gatsby. Maybe. - Best Science Fiction Novel - I’m sorry, but there is absolutely no consensus about a greatest science fiction novel. There’s a bit of a consensus that the greatest science fiction short story is **Nightfall** - Best Rock Song - No consensus - Best Rock Band - The Beatles - Best Rock Album - No consensus - Best Rock Guitarist - Probably Hendrix, agreed - Best Female vocalist - No way in hell there’s consensus here. Particularly if you don’t specify genre of music. - Best Sculpture - No consensus ( **David** is certainly well known, but so are the **Venus de Milo** various others) ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2003, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/48 "2003-02-27T23:16:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SmackFu \* > \*\*How “Most famous painting”? You can probably get consensus on that. \*\* Obviously, it’s Dogs Playing Poker ---
**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 27, 2003, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055/49 "2003-02-27T23:20:07Z")
How about Alice Kramden as the just plain Greatest? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consensus-greatest-things/157055.md?page=2)