# Do you have a Cecil in YOUR town? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 4, 2014, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364 "2014-07-04T20:23:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2014, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/1 "2014-07-04T20:23:32Z")
By this I mean does your local paper have an answer column that reminds you of Cecil Adam’s _The Straight Dope_? Here in Portland a weekly newsrag called _Willamette Week_ runs a column by “[Dr. Know](http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-22755-dr_know_edge_of_midnight.html)” that I enjoy. Here are a [couple more examples](http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-22704-dr_know_streak_legal.html) [of his columns.](http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-22680-dr_know_animal_inmates.html) ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2014, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/2 "2014-07-04T22:50:22Z")
‘I’m Cecil’ ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2014, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/3 "2014-07-05T00:08:56Z")
For a long time, San Diego had Matthew Alice, who was quite funny. I don’t know if he’s still around. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2014, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/4 "2014-07-05T15:15:47Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > For a long time, San Diego had Matthew Alice, who was quite funny. I don’t know if he’s still around. Nope. Like Cecil, Matthew Alice had a shadowy existence. In 2012, we finally learned that “he” was San Diego Reader staff writer Linda Nevin. When Nevin died last year, the Reader discontinued the column. I miss it a lot. ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2014, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/5 "2014-07-06T18:32:35Z")
The Rochester (Minnesota) Post Bulletin has a smart-alec Answer Man who has near encyclopedic knowledge of all things minor and major. He’s pretty clever. Here’s an example of a column: [Beware of Butterballs hitting your windshield](http://www.postbulletin.com/news/local/answer-man-beware-of-butterballs-hitting-your-windshield/article_f96e80d0-6b23-58cb-8f9c-f1e6439522ae.html) ---
**Author:** ![Fleetwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fleetwood/32/271_2.png) [@Fleetwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fleetwood)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2014, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/6 "2014-07-06T19:56:38Z")
In my town, they refer to Cecil Adams by saying “He’s almost as smart as that Fleetwood guy” ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2014, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/7 "2014-07-07T03:41:49Z")
> [@Greg\_Charles](#): > > Nope. Like Cecil, Matthew Alice had a shadowy existence. In 2012, we finally learned that “he” was San Diego Reader staff writer Linda Nevin. When Nevin died last year, the Reader discontinued the column. I miss it a lot. Can you give us a sample? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2014, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/8 "2014-07-07T03:45:30Z")
[This](http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2000/may/25/what-heck-female-announcer-saying-baja-california-/)was one of my favorites. You’d have to be local to get the question, I think. Here’s another [random one](http://www.virtualonlineeditions.com/display_article.php?id=813691), just for flavor. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2014, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/9 "2014-07-07T04:21:02Z")
> [@Greg\_Charles](#): > > Nope. Like Cecil, Matthew Alice had a shadowy existence. In 2012, we finally learned that “he” was San Diego Reader staff writer Linda Nevin. When Nevin died last year, the Reader discontinued the column. I miss it a lot. L.A. could use Column like Matthew Alice. (As far as I know, there isn’t one.) ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2014, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/10 "2014-07-07T04:22:31Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Can you give us a sample? Actually, when I was a kid I confused Matthew Alice and the Straight Dope. As I recall, they were pretty much identical in tone and format. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-cecil-in-your-town/692364/11 "2014-07-08T01:15:48Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > Actually, when I was a kid I confused Matthew Alice and the Straight Dope. As I recall, they were pretty much identical in tone and format. Plus the column was called _Straight From the Hip_, which was clearly a tribute to _The Straight Dope_. The San Diego Reader was actually started by one of the co-founders of the Chicago Reader, so the name and logo were (I’ve read) used with permission. There are various other similarities as well. > [@Czarcasm](#): > > Can you give us a sample? Well, I can give you link. Does that work? [Straight From the Hip Archives](http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/straight-hip/)