# Examples of life imitating art? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 12, 2004, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/examples-of-life-imitating-art/264093 "2004-09-12T01:24:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**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:** [September 12, 2004, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/examples-of-life-imitating-art/264093/1 "2004-09-12T01:24:32Z")
I understand Governator Arnold is throwing around the term “girlie men” these days. Please correct me if I’ wrong, but I believe he stole that from the “Hans and Franz” SNL skits many years back. Can anyone point me to other examples of real life people picking up material from people whi imitate them? ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2004, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/examples-of-life-imitating-art/264093/2 "2004-09-12T02:34:45Z")
I had some other examples of life imitating art, but none so specific as a celebrity actually using catchphrases imitators came up with first. What’s more common are statements/fictional devices that turn out to be eireely prophetic. Redd Foxx actually dying of a heart attack on set always struck me as damned ironic. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2004, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/examples-of-life-imitating-art/264093/3 "2004-09-12T04:25:48Z")
Well if you want to talk about movies, **Executive Decision** (1996) > **[Executive Decision (1996) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116253/)** > > Executive Decision: Directed by Stuart Baird. With Kurt Russell, Steven Seagal, Halle Berry, John Leguizamo. When terrorists seize control of an airliner, an intelligence analyst accompanies a commando unit for a midair boarding operation. whereby Islamic terrorists hijack a 747 is eerily similar to an event that happened 3 years ago today. The film “The China Syndrome” > **[The China Syndrome (1979) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078966/)** > > The China Syndrome: Directed by James Bridges. With Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Michael Douglas, Scott Brady. A reporter finds what appears to be a cover-up of safety hazards at a nuclear power plant. was released March 16,1979. The Three Mile Island mishap occurred on March 28, 1979. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2004, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/examples-of-life-imitating-art/264093/4 "2004-09-12T19:34:21Z")
I once saw a webcast of a fashion show that was showing people dressed up as hobos and hookers and this was after Zoolander had been out. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2004, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/examples-of-life-imitating-art/264093/5 "2004-09-12T21:38:49Z")
Country/Western musicians of the 1940s and 1950s borrowed heavily from Hollywood’s image of the singing cowboy. So much so that Hank Williams (from southern Alabama) named his band the Drifting Cowboys and dressed them up in Western wear. Many outher country musicians from the Southeast borrowed Western imagery during this era, thanks to Hollywood. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2004, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/examples-of-life-imitating-art/264093/6 "2004-09-12T22:45:23Z")
[The modern classic example](http://www.snopes.com/rumors/thecoup.htm)