# Fictional characters who met actual famous people **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 8, 2019, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408 "2019-01-08T16:31:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2019, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/61 "2019-01-09T16:57:16Z")
Superman met various real people, including a couple of presidents and also Steve Allen. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2019, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/62 "2019-01-09T18:19:26Z")
> [@x-ray\_vision](#): > > Maybe I misunderstood. Are you saying that your examples include instances where someone like Jerry Seinfeld mentions meeting a famous person (or it happens in some other way but isn’t actually shown)? You didn’t tell us who the famous person is in Seinfeld or in any other of your examples. If the meeting is actually shown, the OP is stated it doesn’t count (except in comics 😕). Yes, you are clearly missing my point. I pointed out who the famous person was on each show. > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > In a weird reversal of this, you have series where real life people are characters in the show; _Baa Baa Black Sheep_ ( **Pappy Boyington** ), _Curb Your Enthusiasm_ ( **Larry David** ), _Dave’s World_ ( **Dave Barry** ), _Don’t Trust the B---- in Apartment 23_ ( **James Van Der Beek** ), _Mike Tyson Mysteries_ ( **Mike Tyson** ), _Scorpion_ ( **Walter O’Brien** ), _Seinfeld_ ( **Jerry Seinfeld** ), _The Untouchables_ ( **Eliot Ness** ), and others. On these shows, all of the fictional characters in the series have met a famous real life person. > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I’m sticking with my examples of _Curb Your Enthusiasm_, _Don’t Trust the B---- in Apartment 23_, _Mike Tyson Mysteries_, and _Seinfeld_. You can also add _Arrested Development_ ( **Carl Weathers** ), _Episodes_ ( **Matt LeBlanc** ), _Louie_ ( **Louis C.K.** ), and _The Sarah Silverman Program_ ( **Sarah Silverman** and **Laura Silverman** ). Those shows all depict fictional characters meeting an actual life famous person. All of these are real people. So when, for example, Newman or Susan Ross or Jackie Chiles or Crazy Joe Davola interacts with Jerry Seinfeld in the show, it’s a fictional character meeting a famous real person. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2019, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/63 "2019-01-09T19:01:55Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > All of these are real people. So when, for example, Newman or Susan Ross or Jackie Chiles or Crazy Joe Davola interacts with Jerry Seinfeld in the show, it’s a fictional character meeting a famous real person. No, because the Jerry Seinfeld character is not Jerry Seinfeld the actual person. He plays a fictionalized version of himself, somewhat based on the real-life Larry David. Likewise, Larry David on _Curb_ is a fictionalized version of himself- married to a different person, getting a divorce, etc. But even if they are considered to be their actual selves, it’s not what the OP is going for. The examples in the OP only include examples of meetings that aren’t shown to take place, unless faked like in Forest Gump. It’s reiterated in this exchange: > [@Ashtura](#): > > Just some oblique reference in like a newspaper (invariably photoshopped) or a character name dropping that he met soandso? Is that right? > [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Yes, that’s the kind of thing I’m going for. > > Thanks, all. ---
**Author:** ![P-man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/p-man/32/3606_2.png) [@P-man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/P-man)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2019, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/64 "2019-01-10T01:55:00Z")
> [@Ynnad](#): > > Daisy Moses (“Granny”) meets John Wayne on the Beverly Hillbillies, Season 5, Episode 20, The Indians are Coming. The Clampetts also met Gloria Swanson. I think she was so touched that they showed her films at The Bijou in Bugtussle that she made an appearance there. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2019, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/65 "2019-01-10T02:59:09Z")
> [@P-man](#): > > The Clampetts also met Gloria Swanson. Also [Leo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Durocher) [Durocher](https://youtube.com/watch?v=T_qR2ry8fLk). And of course Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs. ---
**Author:** ![CelticKnot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/celticknot/32/3392_2.png) [@CelticKnot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CelticKnot)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2019, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/66 "2019-01-11T14:20:39Z")
_Quantum Leap_ had a number of famous people, most before they were famous. Sam gave many the inspiration they used to become famous, or helped their career somehow. I’ve been reading James R Benn’s Billy Boyle WWII mysteries, and he has interacted with many real famous people, both historical for their roles in WWII (Uncle Ike) and those who were famous or became famous for other things. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2019, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/67 "2019-01-11T14:44:15Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Also [Leo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Durocher) [Durocher](https://youtube.com/watch?v=T_qR2ry8fLk). And of course Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs. Yet you started [this](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=868590) thread? ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2019, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/68 "2019-01-11T15:45:21Z")
In _You Only Live Twice_ (the novel, not the movie), Kissy Suzuki mentions having worked with Westerners before, on a film set. She did not care for most of them, but she liked David Niven. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2019, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/69 "2019-01-11T16:30:13Z")
Going really obscure. In Peter David’s Artful, the Artful Dodger teams up with a young Queen Victoria pulling a Roman Holiday to be vampire hunters. It was an… unusual read. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2019, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/70 "2019-01-11T16:35:49Z")
Samantha Stevens met a lot famous people due to hi-jinks from Aunt Clara and their ditsy maid Esmeralda (and maybe some others) Ben Franklin, Julius Caesar, Napoleon, George Washington among others. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2019, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/71 "2019-01-11T19:04:49Z")
> [@x-ray\_vision](#): > > No, because the Jerry Seinfeld character is not Jerry Seinfeld the actual person. He plays a fictionalized version of himself, somewhat based on the real-life Larry David. No, the basis for the character of Jerry Seinfeld was the real Jerry Seinfeld. Larry David was the basis for the character of George Costanza. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2019, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/72 "2019-01-11T22:18:24Z")
Jack Slater met Arnold Schwarzenegger. They didn’t get on too well. [Daredevil met Uri Geller](https://www.cbr.com/remember-to-forget-daredevils-team-up-with-uri-geller/). ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2019, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/73 "2019-01-11T22:24:52Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > No, the basis for the character of Jerry Seinfeld was the real Jerry Seinfeld. Larry David was the basis for the character of George Costanza. Are you arguing that Jerry on the show is not a fictionalized character and defending your earlier stance, or are you just nit-picking that George is based on Larry David? I know that’s who George is _based_ on. However, what I claimed is also true- the Jerry character is _somewhat_ based on Larry, even living next to a Kramer. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2019, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/74 "2019-01-11T23:27:01Z")
Two of my favorite movies–ALMOST FAMOUS and MIDNIGHT IN PARIS–are jam-packed with such meetings. In the comics, Dr. Strange explored “The Occult History of America” with his girlfriend, Clea. They met Ben Franklin (who put the moves on Clea) and Francis Bacon (who never went to America, but wrote NEW ATLANTIS, viewed as a prototype of the American experiment). The writer, Steve Englehart, had planned for this to be a long storyline, but quit/was fired from the book when the editor pulled the plug on it. The Fantastic Four met Thomas Jefferson; Valeria was not impressed with him. Captain America and Dr. Doom both met Henry Kissinger circa 1975. Coyote (Epic Comics) met Hsing Hsing and Ling Ling, the pandas at the Washington Zoo. Howard the Duck met KISS and Anita Bryant. Superman and Jimmy Olsen met Don Rickles, or some 4th-dimensional imp version of him, I’m not real sure what was going on with that story. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2019, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/75 "2019-01-12T01:46:27Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > What I’m thinking of is more like: > . . . . > Jack Aubrey in the Napoleonic naval adventures of Patrick O’Brian is proud to have once shared a meal with Lord Nelson (who at the time uttered that deathless phrase, “May I trouble you for the salt, sir?”). Apart from the meeting with Lord Nelson (which is reported by Aubrey but doesn’t form part of the series narrative action), many other historical characters appear. Here are just a few: Lord Melville, First Lord of the Admiralty, in several of the books [Robert Dundas, 2nd Viscount Melville - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Dundas,_2nd_Viscount_Melville) Lt. Governor Stamford Raffles, known for founding Singapore, in _The Thirteen Gun Salute_ and _The Nutmeg of Consolation_ [Stamford Raffles - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stamford_Raffles) Elizabeth Macquarie, wife of Governor of New South Wales Lachlan Macquarie, in _The Nutmeg of Consolation_ [Elizabeth Macquarie - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Macquarie) Dr. Redfern of New South Wales in _The Nutmeg of Consolation_ [William Redfern - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Redfern) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2019, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/76 "2019-01-12T02:06:49Z")
> [@x-ray\_vision](#): > > Are you arguing that Jerry on the show is not a fictionalized character and defending your earlier stance, or are you just nit-picking that George is based on Larry David? I know that’s who George is _based_ on. However, what I claimed is also true- the Jerry character is _somewhat_ based on Larry, even living next to a Kramer. I’m arguing that any real life person is fictionalized to some degree when they appear as a character in a work of fiction. The real life Jerry Seinfeld doesn’t live next door to a guy named Cosmo Kramer. The real life Queen Elizabeth never met Paul Sheldon. ---
**Author:** ![MrKnowItAll](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrknowitall/32/87_2.png) [@MrKnowItAll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrKnowItAll)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2019, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/77 "2019-01-12T05:16:18Z")
Weird concept for a thread. Excluding real people portrayed on TV or the movies, but allowing appearances in comic books? Well, whatever. Luckily I’ve read a lot of comics. Reed Richards and Johnny Storm once met George Washington. Any number of comic characters have met Hitler. Death of the Endless has technically met every person ever, even in our own world, including Emperor Norton I. (Of course it’s debatable whether she qualifies as “fictional”.) Superman has boxed Mohammed Ali. He has also met Ronald Reagan. Prez Rickard met Richard Nixon, at least in one reality. Also John Belushi. I could probably come up with a lot more with some thought. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2019, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/78 "2019-01-12T07:18:52Z")
Stuart Redman tells Frannie Goldsmith about an encounter he had with Jim Morrison after the latter’s death in “The Stand” by Stephen King. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2019, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/79 "2019-01-12T08:11:21Z")
The Thing and the Torch once met the Beatles. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2019, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408/80 "2019-01-12T08:22:03Z")
> [@MrKnowItAll](#): > > Weird concept for a thread. Excluding real people portrayed on TV or the movies, but allowing appearances in comic books? > > Well, whatever. Luckily I’ve read a lot of comics. > > Reed Richards and Johnny Storm once met George Washington. > > Any number of comic characters have met Hitler. > > Death of the Endless has technically met every person ever, even in our own world, including Emperor Norton I. (Of course it’s debatable whether she qualifies as “fictional”.) > > Superman has boxed Mohammed Ali. > > He has also met Ronald Reagan. > > Prez Rickard met Richard Nixon, at least in one reality. Also John Belushi. > > I could probably come up with a lot more with some thought. Don’t forget about the Avengers meeting David Letterman back in 1984. [https://nerdist.com/that-time-the-avengers-went-on-david-letterman/](https://nerdist.com/that-time-the-avengers-went-on-david-letterman/) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-characters-who-met-actual-famous-people/827408.md?page=5)