# Have you met someone who didn't know a really well-known pop or historical reference?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [March 22, 2013, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658 "2013-03-22T17:57:13Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 7
### Author:  [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2013, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/121 "2013-03-24T23:00:44Z")
> [@Arrendajo](#):
>
> A quick google search would have told you it’s **2 girls 1 cup**.
I’ve never googled this either. Really, what is it? Do they drink pee from a cup or something?
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### Author:  [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2013, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/122 "2013-03-24T23:13:25Z")
> [@Leaffan](#):
>
> I’ve never googled this either. Really, what is it? Do they drink pee from a cup or something?
It’s the product of a nearby orifice that’s in the cup.
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### Author:  [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2013, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/123 "2013-03-24T23:34:35Z")
Think of Austin Powers mistaking Fat Bastard’s stool sample for coffee.
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### Author:  [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2013, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/124 "2013-03-24T23:41:34Z")
Yum!
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### Author:  [@Desert\_Nomad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desert_Nomad)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/125 "2013-03-25T00:05:42Z")
I have not had a TV in over a decade and have lived in six countries. Recent US pop-culture is unknown to me.
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### Author:  [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/126 "2013-03-25T00:13:32Z")
> [@Leaffan](#):
>
> I’ve never googled this either. Really, what is it? Do they drink pee from a cup or something?
If only.
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### Author:  [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/127 "2013-03-25T00:15:08Z")
My Ex could never remember which Korea was “the bad one” and always got Reagan and Nixon confused.
ETA: Also, I regularly have to Google modern pop-cultural references. I’m not bragging or doing the hipster “I don’t watch TV!” thing. I just happen to not be too into most of the shows on right now.
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### Author:  [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/128 "2013-03-25T00:49:45Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#):
>
> You have to ask at what point does ignorance of popular culture become just plain ignorance. Is not knowing about Mickey Mouse or Darth Vader or the Beatles somehow more excusable than not knowing about George Washington or Joseph Stalin or Martin Luther King? Popular culture is as much a part of what makes up society as history is.
I think you do have a point but popular culture is made up of a whole bunch of flash in the pan type phenomena. The vast majority of those are not important in historical terms at all and don’t say anything about a person’s overall world understanding. All the examples you gave are. You can let the history books sort it out for you. If you don’t know what was important decades later, that is true ignorance.
Some of that applies to every discipline. I would say that a person is ignorant if they haven’t ever heard of Michael Jackson or the Beatles just because they had a huge influence on the world of music that is lasting. However, there is some flash mob type dance now and some Korean YouTube video that I couldn’t tell you anything about that won’t be important to anyone in two years.
There is no need to compare Macarena to the Magna Carta.
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/129 "2013-03-25T02:00:20Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#):
>
> I think you do have a point but popular culture is made up of a whole bunch of flash in the pan type phenomena. The vast majority of those are not important in historical terms at all and don’t say anything about a person’s overall world understanding. All the examples you gave are. You can let the history books sort it out for you. If you don’t know what was important decades later, that is true ignorance.
>
> Some of that applies to every discipline. I would say that a person is ignorant if they haven’t ever heard of Michael Jackson or the Beatles just because they had a huge influence on the world of music that is lasting. However, there is some flash mob type dance now and some Korean YouTube video that I couldn’t tell you anything about that won’t be important to anyone in two years.
>
> There is no need to compare Macarena to the Magna Carta.
I agree. Not all cultural references are created equal. Some of them, like the Beatles and George Washington, are big enough that everyone should know them. Others are more like Millard Fillmore or the Dave Clark Five.
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### Author:  [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/130 "2013-03-25T02:28:24Z")
As a teenager in the '90s, I used to annoy my mother by knowing more about '60s rock music than she did (and making fun of her for it). Once we heard “I am the Walrus” on the radio in the car and she thought the DJ was joking when he said it was a Beatles song. “That’s not a Beatles song.” “Yes, it is.” “How would you know?” “It’s famous! Everyone knows this one!”
She also thought Jim Morrison was the lead singer for The Who, and didn’t believe me when I said that the singer for The Who was named Roger Daltrey and that Jim Morrison wasn’t even from the same country. My mother did grow up in a small town, but she was only an hour or so from a major city and she went to college and everything so I’m really not sure how she wound up so out of touch with her own generation’s pop music.
Circa 2010 my mother did know who Lady Gaga was though, while a coworker of mine her same age did not. I wouldn’t expect a middle aged person to necessarily know any of Lady Gaga’s actual songs, but I was surprised that my coworker was totally unaware that there was any sort of celebrity called Lady Gaga. My best explanation was “Well, she’s kind of like Madonna but she wears weirder costumes.”
Although to be honest, I’d have little awareness of contemporary pop music from these past few years if not for _Glee_.
> [@tdn](#):
>
> This was inspired by an e-mail from a friend whose coworker was on the phone to a customer. He explained that the order must have fallen down that bottomless pit that Gandalf fell down. After a bit of confusion he said “So you don’t know what second breakfast is!” Really? Not everyone in the universe has seen LotR?
I don’t find this surprising. I’d expect most people to have some idea who Gandalf is and what hobbits are, but not to be familiar with specific scenes or elements from the _LOTR_ series. I’m fairly geeky but never had much interest in Tolkien (I read the beginning of _The Fellowship of the Ring_ when I was about 13 but gave up on it; years later I did see the movie version but not the two sequels), and while I’ve heard of second breakfasts in reference to hobbits if there’s any meaning to that beyond the obvious one of hobbits just liking to eat a lot then I don’t know what it is.
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### Author:  [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/131 "2013-03-25T02:31:27Z")
I was in a restaurant in W Virginia once and ordered a frozen margarita with my meal. She said, “Oh, sir, all the drinks here are _fresh_.” Other than the times I got food poisoning, it was the worst meal and the worst drink I ever had. I should have seen her comment as a red flag.
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### Author:  [@tenacious\_j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tenacious_j)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/132 "2013-03-25T02:47:41Z")
> [@Ponch8](#):
>
> Initially I was surprised whenever someone told me they’ve never heard of my favorite pop culture topic, Ke$ha. Then I started noticing a pattern: childless people my age (36) and younger generally do know who she is. People who are older than me and/or have kids generally don’t. It’s just one more reason I’m glad I don’t have kids. 🙂
:eek: If it would mean never having heard of Ke$ha, I’d have had lots and lots of kids.
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### Author:  [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/133 "2013-03-25T09:31:32Z")
> [@Kenm](#):
>
> I have no clue as to the song reference in the first link, other than referencing The Wizard of Oz, so I clicked the second link.
>
> It didn’t help either because the link is copyright blocked in Canada. So now I’ll never know.
It was blocked for Aus too. I took a punt that it was the right clip. 🙂 Try this [http://touch.dailymotion.com/video/x7dld\_toto-africa\_music](http://touch.dailymotion.com/video/x7dld_toto-africa_music)
> [@](#):
>
> I emigrated from Mars.
Which part? Do you know my other half, Div? He grew up in the nice part of the capital, his Dad worked for the power company. Perhaps we can get you all round for drinks one night, share stories about life on the red planet. Pm me, we’ll set it up.
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### Author:  [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/134 "2013-03-25T13:58:31Z")
> [@Honey](#):
>
> I met a girl once who was totally amazed that Paul McCartney had been in a group before Wings.
SNL, 11/17/79, _At First He Cries_ Bill Murray and Larraine Newman. 😉
Overheard phone conversation:
“Yes he was. Dude, you’re wrong. He was too! He most certainly was! Hold on, I’ll prove it. Hey tdn, wasn’t Barry Manilow a member of Jethro Tull?”
(All these years later I’m wondering if he got confused with Barrimore Barlow.)
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### Author:  [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/135 "2013-03-25T14:33:03Z")
Reading a newspaper article that some con man had swindled author Mary Higgins Clark out of millions.
Co-worker: Does she really have that much money?
MARY HIGGINS CLARK?
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### Author:  [@svd678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/svd678)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/136 "2013-03-25T14:50:44Z")
On myself: A mag recently listed 10 most popular TV shows. I had never heard of 9 of them. And I watch a lot of TV, do a lot of channel surfing too. And on “star performers,” musical pop music was just about extinct by 1960.
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### Author:  [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/137 "2013-03-25T15:17:04Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#):
>
> Reading a newspaper article that some con man had swindled author Mary Higgins Clark out of millions.
>
> Co-worker: Does she really have that much money?
>
> MARY HIGGINS CLARK?
I think some of you have a different idea of “really well-known references” than I do.
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### Author:  [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/138 "2013-03-25T15:49:59Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#):
>
> Reading a newspaper article that some con man had swindled author Mary Higgins Clark out of millions.
>
> Co-worker: Does she really have that much money?
>
> MARY HIGGINS CLARK?
Hmmm, the name sounded vaguely familiar so I looked her up. Nope, never heard of her or anything credited to her. So does she have millions?
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### Author:  [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/139 "2013-03-25T16:02:11Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#):
>
> Co-worker: Does she really have that much money?
>
> MARY HIGGINS CLARK?
Two things, I know she has written a bunch of stuff, from seeing her name at bookstores and libraries, but I don’t actually know how big her sales are, nor do I know how much she makes from her writing.
Sure, I know that Stephen King and JK Rowling are rolling in dough, not so much MHC or Patterson or Pratchett, or other recognizable names in writing.
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### Author:  [@Terra1041](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terra1041)
#### Post date: [March 25, 2013, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-met-someone-who-didnt-know-a-really-well-known-pop-or-historical-reference/653658/140 "2013-03-25T18:52:22Z")
Yep, I’ve met me.
I tend to be oblivious to pop culture, as movies and TV don’t hold my interest. I will usually get historical or geographical references though.
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