See the references in Shenkman. He claims that more people have come to believe in Wilson’s claim to be Uncle Sam. One bit of evidence is supposed to be testimony from someone who was there at the time when the term was used(not a relative from what he says). But I admittedly haven’t looked up the cite. Will Garth is another science fiction “House Name”. Among other things, it was used for the novelization of Dr. Cyclops (which I think Manly Wade Wellman wrote). According to the SF Encyclopedia, a lot of people wrote under that name.
“House names” are different from “pen names”, in that pen names really are just pseudonyms for a given writer (or, as in the case of Ellery Queen or Eando Binder, a couple of writers). But a “House name” is used by a publishing entity to cover a body of writing not by a single author or set of authors. In that case, I think you could say that the person “didn’t exist”, rather than just being a pseudonym.
Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. You can tour their houses in Hannibal, Missouri. Well, at least the homes that Tom Sawyer and Becky Thatcher were in. Plus, you can go in the same caves featured in the books.
Interesting list. Are there people who think Superman, Batman, Mickey Mouse, and some of these others existed? The invisible man? Really? Who are these people?
Dracula existed. He was based on Vlad Tepis, also known as Vlad Dracula - “Dracula” meaning “Son of the Dragon”. His father’s nickname was “Dracul” or “Dragon”, from what I understand. Vlad was also known as “Vlad the Impaler” - apparently it was a pastime of his. He lived in the days before TV.
Dr Jeckyll was based on a prominent Victorian doctor who was also a habitual criminal. I forget the real doctor’s name.
It might not be Anne’s house but it is where Lucy Maude was raised and where Anne was based. The only difference is now it has green trim, whereas when LM Montgomery lived there it was simply white washed. All the paths and places in the books around Green Gables was based off actual places that LM had been to/played nearby and such.
Er yes, I love Anne. My cousin even worked at Green Gables one summer a couple years back giving tours… as Anne.
During WWII, there was (supposedly) and inspector named Kilroy…he left his name on ships he inspected…usually wrote “Kilroy was here”. Did such a guy actually exist?
William Shakespeare. As the writer, not the actor.
I mean, how did this guy have the time to write such great stuff while he was a travelling lead actor during Eliazabethan times? While acting in his plays, he surpassed Chaucer in poetry making, and was very close to Milton. And he is all but unequalled in playwriting even to this day. Nobody is even close to him as a playright/poet/actor/set designer. William Carlos Williams, T.S. Eliot, and Edna St. Vincent Millay tried to do all three simultaneously, but their written work suffered when they each indulged on their acting chops.
There is speculation that someone, such as Sir Francis Bacon or Christopher Marlowe, had written at least some of the material that Shakespeare cleverly compiled into his one Folio for his perusal. I can’t help but have the feeling that Shakespeare was the Frank Sinatra of actors, in that the master writers of his time were inspired to write great plays for his Globe Theatre, and the Shakes picked the ones for performance, just as master songwriters wrote songs just for Sinatra to chew on.
While we’re on the subject, let’s scrutinize such things as American History and find out if such people as George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, or Patrick Henry really existed.
(When I read a book titled Kids Sure Rite Funny by Art Linkletter, I found an unintentional comment on this attitude by a kid discussing Shakespeare; the writer suggested that the plays were written b “William Shakespeare, the Different, another man by the same name.”)
Shakespeare, incidentally, was actually buried inside the church, under the name of William Shakespeare–not Francis Bacon, Christopher Marlowe, or whatever… :rolleyes:
In the matter of Jesus, I might point out that the New Testament is far better attested in terms of extant manuscripts than are any number of “secular” persons of ancient times whose existence and accounts–by Tacitus, Xenlophon, Berossus, Herodotus, and so on, are never questioned…
I’d like to nominate Mark Twain, since Samuel Clemens did try to keep his writing persona and his personal life seperate. (Not too well, of course, but still…)
There are a whole mess of former Saints who never existed, or whose existence cannot be confirmed: St. Valentine, St. Christopher, St. Ursula to name a few. Then there’s my personal favorite St. Philomena - whose cult grew out of a sum total of historical documentation consisting of the bones of a early adolescent female found in a Christian catacombs, with the inscription “Peace be with thee, Philomena.” (She is still a saint, however, based on the numerous, and powerful recorded intercessions - but the historical record on her is … umm… sketchy is too weak a word. )
before Finch, there was John Chung, a sophomore star running back at Plainfield (New Jersey) Teachers’ College. The New York Times ran accounts of Plainfield’s lopsided victories and Chung’s consumption of rice between quarters. There’s a cite towards the bottom of this page. I learned of this hoax from a book called Strange But True Football Stories, a must-read for the boys in my elementary school circa 1970.
I read somewhere a year or two ago that he may, in fact, have existed. Something about a guy named Robert who was a royal pain (sorry for the pun), was eventually given amnesty to quit his evil ways, and even worked for the govt. in some capacity.
This one’s rather specialized, but no one passes through Georgia Tech without learning of the legend of George P. Burdell. Granted, no one believes he’s real anymore, but they did once; the linked story tells the tale.
IIRc both did exist. Robert Hood was one of several Sherwood area highwaymen of the time, along with “Friar Tuck”. Yeah the details are embellished but most of the people are identifiable to real people.
I think a while back Cecil took on E.S. in one of the colums. Supposed to have been a charactiure written about someone’s boss I think.
Santa also did exist. Some Norwegian? guy (priest?) who distributed gifts in the winter.
Also I’ll add Moses. There may have been a Moses, however he wasn’t THE author of the whole bible as most believe.
And yeah, I wanna know who believes in Michkey Mouse or Superman.
