# Did any enormously talented person have an equally enormously talented child? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 25, 2012, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244 "2012-06-25T14:45:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/81 "2012-06-26T10:56:54Z")
> [@voguevixen](#): > > Carl Ripken jr/sr? Well, it’s “Cal,” for one thing, and the father was a very modestly talented player, and a pretty mediocre coach, so what’s your point? ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/82 "2012-06-26T12:34:24Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > The OP specified: “Equally enormously talented child.” According to his contemporaries, CPE Bach was considered “an equally enormously talented child.” If that’s not what the OP is looking for, than I am completely and utterly confused. ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/83 "2012-06-26T13:04:42Z")
I’d say Miley Cyrus probably surpassed Billy Ray. ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/84 "2012-06-26T13:17:44Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > As Kinky Friedman puts it “No matter how good Hank Williams Jr. is, someone has to come up to him after every concert and say ‘You’re not as good as your daddy was.’” > > So who was/is the highest talented offspring of a highly talented person? I love Jakob Dylan, son of Bob. Think he’s really terrific. But yeah, there must be this sort of problem for him to deal with also. ---
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/85 "2012-06-26T13:49:34Z")
Paul McCartney and designer daughter Stella. ---
**Author:** ![42fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/4/b487fb/32.png) [@42fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/42fish)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/86 "2012-06-26T14:01:37Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > The phrase made me think of another magi9cal family,. > [John Nevil Maskelyne](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Nevil_Maskelyne) > [Nevil Maskelyne](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevil_Maskelyne_%28magician%29) > [Jasper Maskelyne](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jasper_Maskelyne) Also in the magical families department, Harry Blackstone & Harry Blackstone, Jr. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/87 "2012-06-26T14:14:03Z")
Whitney Houstons aunt is another famous singer. Actually, I came in to nominate the Dutch twin brothers de Boer. Both are Big League soccer players. But they are twin brothers, not parent and kid. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/88 "2012-06-26T14:32:02Z")
> [@Drain\_Bead](#): > > I’d say Miley Cyrus probably surpassed Billy Ray. I will agree, and add [Ben Stiller](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Stiller), son of Jerry Stiller and Ann Meara who were brilliant comics a couple of decades or so ago, to such a list. ---
**Author:** ![Snickers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Snickers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snickers)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/89 "2012-06-26T14:38:25Z")
Blythe Danner’s no slouch as an actress, but today’s audiences are probably more familiar with her daughter’s work - Gwyneth Paltrow. (I don’t think one is more talented than the other, myself, tho’ Gwyneth has probably made more money. So if you measure success that way…) ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/90 "2012-06-26T14:45:21Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Kim Jong-il … once played a 38-under round of golf, with 11 holes in one. Wow! It’s really a shame no one was taking video. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/91 "2012-06-26T14:55:54Z")
> [@Jman](#): > > Wow! It’s really a shame no one was taking video. Kim was. He held the camera in one hand. ---
**Author:** ![denquixote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9bd4f/32.png) [@denquixote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/denquixote)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/92 "2012-06-26T15:20:17Z")
[quote=“Maastricht, post:87, topic:626244”] Whitney Houstons aunt is another famous singer. And her mother Cissy Houston is a well known Gospel singer. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/93 "2012-06-26T16:00:19Z")
> [@Jim\_s\_Son](#): > > In Formula 1 both Graham Hill and his son Damon were world champions I guess you might place Gilles and Jacques Villeneuve in there too. (Not that Gilles was a world champion. But he probably would have been, if that pesky dying thing didn’t get in the way.) ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/94 "2012-06-26T16:28:15Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Kim was. He held the camera in one hand. Well, there goes my opinion of him. A truly intelligent person would have obviously used a head camera. I mean, even if you CAN hit 11 holes in one one handed while filming, I’d think that proper logistical analysis would have been more important than showboating. Oh, that horrible dictator stuff doesn’t help either. ---
**Author:** ![SaharaTea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@SaharaTea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SaharaTea)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/95 "2012-06-26T17:40:49Z")
Donald Sutherland and son Kiefer. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/96 "2012-06-26T17:42:31Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > According to his contemporaries, CPE Bach was considered “an equally enormously talented child.” If that’s not what the OP is looking for, than I am completely and utterly confused. During his own lifetime, CPE was probably even more respected than his father. At the time, JSB was remembered primarily as a great organist; his music was pretty much ignored until 80 years after his death. I’m not disparaging CPEB’s gifts, but today we now know what a monumental genius JSB was, and I doubt that very many musicians would consider CPE to be his equal, regardless of what CPE’s contemporaries may have thought. That’s my take on it. . ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/97 "2012-06-26T17:51:48Z")
Does either being Ringo Starr or being a better drummer than Ringo Starr _really_ qualify as being “enormously talented”? ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/98 "2012-06-26T17:57:22Z")
True, but very few of the other families mentioned are evenly talented/accomplished as well - with few exceptions (the Bournelli’s?) there’s always one person who is demonstrably better. For example, one person mentioned Lloyd, Jeff, and Beau Bridges. Well, there’s only one of those that won an Oscar, was a leading man in a career that stretched 30+ years, etc… and that’s Jeff. Beau is a bit player and Lloyd is most famous for the TV show _Sea Hunt_. Equally talented? Hard to argue that, given their various career paths, imho. In addition, the Bach family had talented parents, kids, uncles, etc. The fact that _one_ of them was more talented than the rest (again, only according to our standards) shouldn’t disqualify the _entire_ family of more than 100 musicians and composers. From Wiki: > [@](#): > > Four branches of the Bach family were known at the beginning of the 16th century, and in 1561 we hear of Hans Bach of Wechmar, a village between Gotha and Arnstadt in Thuringia, who is believed to be the father of Veit Bach.[citation needed] > > ``` > * Veit (Vitus) Bach (d. 1619) was "a white-bread baker in Hungary" who had to flee Hungary because he was a Lutheran and who "found the greatest pleasure in a little cittern which he took with him even into the mill". > * His son Johannes (Hans) Bach (d. 1626) "der Spielmann" (lit. the player), was the first professional musician of the family. "at first took up the trade of baker, but having a particular bent for music" he became a piper. > * His second grandson Christoph (1613–1661) was an instrumentalist. > * His first great-grandson Johann Ambrosius was Johann Sebastian Bach's father. > > ``` There are three generations, equally talented, _before_ JSB, then another generation or two after JSB. How this doesn’t qualify merely because JSB is now considered the best of the bunch kind of confuses me. Anyway, this is my last comment on the subject. One’s either convinced or not… more words on my part won’t change this fact. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/99 "2012-06-26T18:10:51Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > I really hope Drew has kids who go into the business–the Barrymores/Drews make the Redgraves look like Johnny-Come-Latelys! I do too, though I’m not holding my breath, at this rate. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2012, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244/100 "2012-06-26T20:51:18Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > True, but very few of the other families mentioned are evenly talented/accomplished as well - with few exceptions (the Bournelli’s?) there’s always one person who is demonstrably better. For example, one person mentioned Lloyd, Jeff, and Beau Bridges. Well, there’s only one of those that won an Oscar, was a leading man in a career that stretched 30+ years, etc… and that’s Jeff. Beau is a bit player and Lloyd is most famous for the TV show _Sea Hunt_. Equally talented? Hard to argue that, given their various career paths, imho. I agree completely with both your overall statement and your choice of the Bridges as an example. > [@JohnT](#): > > In addition, the Bach family had talented parents, kids, uncles, etc. The fact that _one_ of them was more talented than the rest (again, only according to our standards) shouldn’t disqualify the _entire_ family of more than 100 musicians and composers. \< \> There are three generations, equally talented, _before_ JSB, then another generation or two after JSB. How this doesn’t qualify merely because JSB is now considered the best of the bunch kind of confuses me. > Anyway, this is my last comment on the subject. One’s either convinced or not… more words on my part won’t change this fact. I think we’re quibbling over the meaning of “equally talented” and agree that we shouldn’t waste any more of each other’s time. Later gator. Hope you weren’t pissed. I wasn’t. . [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-any-enormously-talented-person-have-an-equally-enormously-talented-child/626244.md?page=6)