# Happy Birthday to Sir Paul! and a question... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 18, 2014, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071 "2014-06-18T15:55:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/1 "2014-06-18T15:55:31Z")
You’ve been needed and feeded for a good eight years now, I hope it’s been going well for you. Question, though (and Dopers are encouraged to jump in if you have the answer): You were famously known back in 1964 as “the cute one.” What qualities were the other three known by? ---
**Author:** ![peedin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peedin/32/14095_2.png) [@peedin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peedin)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/2 "2014-06-18T16:05:43Z")
George was “the quiet one.” Ringo was the funny one, although I don’t know if the public called him that. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/3 "2014-06-18T16:27:40Z")
John: The smart one. Paul: The cute one. George: The quiet one. Ringo: The silly/dumb one. ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/4 "2014-06-18T16:30:07Z")
I think John was “the brainy one” or “the rebellious one.” I remember taking a quiz in 16 magazine about which Beatle was right for me, and one of the questions asked if I believed anything could be made fun of. In order to get John, you had to answer yes. ---
**Author:** ![SaharaTea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@SaharaTea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SaharaTea)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/5 "2014-06-18T17:03:36Z")
I grew up after his death, but it really surprised me when I heard that John had a wonderful sense of humor. That is not how I pictured him at all. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/6 "2014-06-18T17:54:59Z")
Don McLean’s “American Pie” has a line that could be interpreted a couple of ways: “While Lenin read a book on Marx” Either Vladimir Lenin and Karl Marx or John Lennon and Groucho Marx (referring to John’s sense of humor). ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/7 "2014-06-18T18:03:18Z")
> [@SaharaTea](#): > > I grew up after his death, but it really surprised me when I heard that John had a wonderful sense of humor. That is not how I pictured him at all. Yes, he was very well known for his sharp wit and his wisecracks. Also for having published two slim volumes of hilarious nonsensical prose and poetry during the Beatlemania period. ---
**Author:** ![toast\_pakora](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3ec8ea/32.png) [@toast\_pakora](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toast_pakora)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/8 "2014-06-18T18:58:26Z")
John: The married one ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/9 "2014-06-18T19:09:20Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Don McLean’s “American Pie” has a line that could be interpreted a couple of ways: > > “While Lenin read a book on Marx” > > Either Vladimir Lenin and Karl Marx or John Lennon and Groucho Marx (referring to John’s sense of humor). Actually, John and Karl go together quite well. John was the radical/political one too. (And _all_ the Beatles were irreverently funny. There is a story that what finally persuaded George Martin to record them was a snarky comment that “quiet one” _George_ made about his tie.) However, although I also have imagined he might be singing “Lennon”, I am pretty sure McLean actually (and anachronistically) says “Lenin”. ---
**Author:** ![DChord568](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@DChord568](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DChord568)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/10 "2014-06-18T20:41:28Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > Yes, he [Lennon] was very well known for his sharp wit and his wisecracks. True enough, but we ought not whitewash the situation. John could also be incredibly cruel at times, and would pounce without a moment’s notice on anyone he perceived as weak. There were reasons why he was the way he was, of course. And I believe he owned up later in life to his cruelty, misogyny and other less-than-admirable traits. But they really have to be acknowledged if you want a complete picture of John Lennon. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/11 "2014-06-18T21:24:36Z")
> [@DChord568](#): > > True enough, but we ought not whitewash the situation. John could also be incredibly cruel at times, and would pounce without a moment’s notice on anyone he perceived as weak. > > There were reasons why he was the way he was, of course. And I believe he owned up later in life to his cruelty, misogyny and other less-than-admirable traits. But they really have to be acknowledged if you want a complete picture of John Lennon. I don’t think anyone said the man was perfect. This seems like a weirdly gratuitous response to remarks about Lennon’s sense of humor. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/12 "2014-06-18T21:33:15Z")
If his sense of humor was often meanspirited, as I have read, then no it’s not gratuitous. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2014, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/13 "2014-06-19T14:58:08Z")
In his autobiographical song “Strawberry Fields” Lennon sang: No one I see can be in my tree. I mean, it must be high or low. > [@wiki](#): > > The second verse goes, ‘No one I think is in my tree.’ Well, I was too shy and self-doubting. Nobody seems to be as hip as me is what I was saying. Therefore, I must be crazy or a genius—‘I mean it must be high or low’ ",and explaining that the song was “psycho-analysis set to music”. Lennon knew from a young age he was either a genius or a madman. ---
**Author:** ![dba\_Fred](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c37758/32.png) [@dba\_Fred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dba_Fred)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2014, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/14 "2014-06-19T15:02:47Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > \ > Lennon knew from a young age he was either a genius or a madman. At a young age, don’t we all? ---
**Author:** ![DChord568](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@DChord568](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DChord568)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2014, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/15 "2014-06-19T18:21:42Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > I don’t think anyone said the man was perfect. This seems like a weirdly gratuitous response to remarks about Lennon’s sense of humor. Let me make it clear that I’m a tremendous admirer of John Lennon as a songwriter, musician and especially as a singer. My remark was meant as an antidote to those who would lionize him as a human being (and there are LOTS of those). I was only pointing out that those who do are not always fully aware of his darker side, which could be very dark indeed at times. And Lennon, later in life, would have been the first to agree with this assessment. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2014, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/16 "2014-06-19T18:26:34Z")
According to [TV Tropes](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BoyBand), the five types are “The Sweet one”, “The Bad Boy”, “The Clown”, “The Cute One,” “The Shy/Quiet One” and “The Older Brother.” So Paul is the cute one and George is the Shy one. Then, I’d probably make Ringo the Clown and John the bad boy. I could see someone arguing that John is the Clown, but then I’m not sure where to put Ringo–older brother maybe, since he’s so innocuous? I guess it’s hard because they predate the boy bands, and thus don’t so easily fit into the stereotypes. They weren’t designed like most boy bands. ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2014, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/17 "2014-06-19T19:57:17Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > Yes, he was very well known for his sharp wit and his wisecracks. Also for having published two slim volumes of hilarious nonsensical prose and poetry during the Beatlemania period. From memory so(?): “I sat benumbly 'neath a tree, humble fat and small…” ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2014, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/18 "2014-06-19T21:47:56Z")
Ringo: The other one. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2014, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/19 "2014-06-19T23:51:35Z")
Stu Sutcliff: The Dead One. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2014, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071/20 "2014-06-20T00:45:26Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > In his autobiographical song “Strawberry Fields” Lennon sang: > > No one I see can be in my tree. > I mean, it must be high or low. > > Lennon knew from a young age he was either a genius or a madman. In examining his lyrics, I think we would all do well to remember that Lennon was often full of shit. I worship him on one level and think he was perhaps a musical genius, but he’s generally given way too much credit as a thinker. Also, “No one I see can be in my tree”??? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/happy-birthday-to-sir-paul-and-a-question/691071.md?page=2)