# Game: spot the obscure movie/book/etc.. references in doper's nicks **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 1, 2004, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544 "2004-12-01T19:00:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![hazel-rah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@hazel-rah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hazel-rah)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2004, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/141 "2004-12-02T22:25:16Z")
> [@Marlitharn](#): > > Anybody want to guess mine? I think I know! Heh. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2004, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/142 "2004-12-02T22:36:44Z")
I;m sure at least two dopers know mine! ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Death](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecccb3/32.png) [@Evil\_Death](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Death)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2004, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/143 "2004-12-02T22:50:02Z")
> [@Winston Bongo](#): > > Ooh, ooh! I think I know! Is it from Bruce Campbell’s bio, _If Chins Could Kill?_ (“Ain’t you the guy from them Evil Death movies?”) I just read that recently. Never read it, and it has nothing to do with the Evil Dead movies. And **pachocco**? Life would be so much easier for all of us if your research methods didn’t consist solely of typing a phrase into Google and hitting the I’m Feeling Lucky button. 😃 No, my nick is hard to guess because it was indirectly inspired. Figuring out what inspired it not only requires knowing my habits and likes, but also possessing an encyclopaedic degree about them. My posting history might help a little … if you have a near-eidetic memory or are an ubergeek. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Death](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecccb3/32.png) [@Evil\_Death](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Death)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2004, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/144 "2004-12-02T22:51:37Z")
> [@Winston Bongo](#): > > Ooh, ooh! I think I know! Is it from Bruce Campbell’s bio, _If Chins Could Kill?_ (“Ain’t you the guy from them Evil Death movies?”) I just read that recently. Never read it, and it has nothing to do with the Evil Dead movies. And **pachocco**? Life would be so much easier for all of us if your research methods didn’t consist solely of typing a phrase into Google and hitting the I’m Feeling Lucky button. 😃 No, my nick is hard to guess because it was indirectly inspired. Figuring out what inspired it not only requires knowing my habits and likes, but also possessing an encyclopaedic degree of knowledge about them. My posting history might help a little … if you have a near-eidetic memory or are an ubergeek. ---
**Author:** ![Tenar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@Tenar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tenar)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/145 "2004-12-03T00:11:32Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I am not a fish dammit. 😃 > > I was thinking more about the film director [Ken Loach.](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0516360/) > Thats not where I got it either. Could it be pidgin English for a nasty bug in a Chinese restaurant? ---
**Author:** ![Sunshine\_and\_Smiles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@Sunshine\_and\_Smiles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunshine_and_Smiles)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/146 "2004-12-03T00:34:16Z")
> [@down by law](#): > > h.e. pennypacker. Ah! I was going to go with that spelling too, and now I look like a total fool. But oh well, you learn something new everyday. Cheers, down by law ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/147 "2004-12-03T00:39:59Z")
> [@Frostillicus](#): > > My name is based on a fairly obscure Simpson’s reference. Anybody know the particulars? (Think Apu’s defective freezer.) I think mine is an even more obscure Simpson’s reference. > [@Rubystreak](#): > > It’s also the name of Patrick Swayze’s character in _Point Break_. 😃 **Bodhi** is also, of course, the name of the tree at Bodh Gaya under which the Buddha sat on the night he attaindd enlightenment. ---
**Author:** ![sinjin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@sinjin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sinjin)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/148 "2004-12-03T01:37:10Z")
Not too obscure by **Thursday Next** is the heroine of the Jasper Fforde books: _The Eyre Affair, Lost in a Good Book, etc_ ---
**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:** [December 3, 2004, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/149 "2004-12-03T01:46:16Z")
> [@Evil Death](#): > > No, my nick is hard to guess because it was indirectly inspired. Figuring out what inspired it not only requires knowing my habits and likes, but also possessing an encyclopaedic degree of knowledge about them. My posting history might help a little … if you have a near-eidetic memory or are an ubergeek. Do you have brothers called Blood & Guts, perhaps? ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/150 "2004-12-03T01:56:27Z")
Man, do I feel invisible. What do I have to do, drop anvils on your heads? _sigh_ Maybe it’s just that no one thought my name was obscure enough? Yes I’m sure that’s it. ☹ > [@faldureon](#): > > I can’t search the list of members so I am not sure, but if > **Bodhi** is a real username then she is the evil vampress from Baldur’s Gate 2 > [@Rubystreak](#): > > It’s also the name of Patrick Swayze’s character in Point Break. > [@Gangster Octopus](#): > > **Bodhi** is also, of course, the name of the tree at Bodh Gaya under which the Buddha sat on the night he attaindd enlightenment. You want obscure? How about Bodhi as the name of the glowing ball thingy from the movie Solarbabies? That awful movie on roller skates. It did have a hot young Adrian Pasdar in it though. I believe Hazel-rah is a Watership Down reference. Is Marlitharn, too? I’ve actually been looking for my copy of the book for a few weeks to reread it, I’m a bit rusty on it. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/151 "2004-12-03T02:18:47Z")
> [@Cugel](#): > > Is mine obscure? Not at all, but it might be a little adVanced for some here. ---
**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:** [December 3, 2004, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/152 "2004-12-03T02:24:28Z")
I’m considering changing my name to **Little Hunchback** and giving my location as _The Office._ Feel free to find the reference. I don’t think it’s \*too \*obscure. ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/153 "2004-12-03T02:49:00Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I am not a fish dammit. 😃 > > I was thinking more about the film director [Ken Loach.](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0516360/) > Thats not where I got it either. I always get a mental picture of you in a helicopter. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/154 "2004-12-03T02:50:42Z")
Mine’s probably not that obscure–it has been recognized in at least one previous thread. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/155 "2004-12-03T02:54:10Z")
**yoyodyne** , as long as we’re almost on the subject, is it Pynchon or Banzai? ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/156 "2004-12-03T03:00:17Z")
> [@DrFidelius](#): > > **yoyodyne** , as long as we’re almost on the subject, is it Pynchon or Banzai? Banzai. Along with **Emilio Lizardo**. ---
**Author:** ![LifeOnWry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/96bed5/32.png) [@LifeOnWry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LifeOnWry)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/157 "2004-12-03T03:08:28Z")
**Fretful Porpentine** is a reference to Hamlet. It’s also a jibe used by Claire to Jamie in one of the Diana Gabaldon Outlander books. When I guessed, I guessed the latter, and of course it was the former. **Alessan** is also a character in Anne McCaffrey’s Pern series. Mine actually comes to me in a very roundabout way. Linda Ellerbee once referred to her former broadcast partner Lloyd Dobyns as “a ham on wry.” A friend said that described me, as well. Then she said she liked my short stories because they were “slice of life.” Thus was born my webpage, “A Slice of Life on Wry.” ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/158 "2004-12-03T03:21:34Z")
Here ya go: Mine’s a reference. Tripler No comment from here on out. . . ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/159 "2004-12-03T03:28:33Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I have it straight from the horses mouth (so to speak) that he took the name from the Batman villain. But not _just_ the Batman villain, the Batman villain as portrayed on the '80s kiddie cartoon _Superfriends_. Just in an attempt to get extra-credit super double-dog esoteric points: it’s technically from the villain as portrayed in my favorite Cartoon Network commercial (“Solomon Grundy want pants too!”), which was based on the villain as portrayed in the _Superfriends_, which was based on the comic book character, which was named after the nursery rhyme. And people keep telling me that he was originally a Green Lantern villain, and I just have to nod and say “okay.” Because I’ve never seen a comic book with Solomon Grundy in it. (Except for that one 12-part holiday killer Batman series that came out a couple of years ago, where he was in one issue. And also an issue of _Starman_, now that I think about it.) Back to the OP: I don’t think anyone’s yet mentioned **Torgo** , who was a character from the movie _Manos: The Hands of Fate_ and a favorite of MST3K fans everywhere. ---
**Author:** ![auliya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/90db22/32.png) [@auliya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/auliya)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2004, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544/160 "2004-12-03T04:05:33Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > Queen of the Damned? Feels like it sometimes, but no 😛 “AULIYA: In the Zensunni Wanderers’ religion, the female at the left hand of God; God’s handmaiden.” Obscure religious sect in Frank Herberts ‘Dune’ Also from the Koran “auliya” means friend or helper or protector. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-spot-the-obscure-movie-book-etc-references-in-dopers-nicks/277544.md?page=9)