A handfull of sc-fi geeks might take that as a reference to Michael Crichton. No one else will have a clue, unless they have a particular interest in plays. I’ve taken several university literature courses, and I didn’t. It’s been a long time so my memory may be failing, but I don’t think I’ve even heard of the author before, though in my defense I wasn’t an English or a lit major.
I also knew a South African lady here in Bangkok who thought Harvard University was 100 years old. She reasoned this because nothing in America could possibly be older than that. Really, I am not making that up. And also really, she ended up being committed to a psychiatric hospital and not exactly deported, but her family was persuaded to take her home.
Our Lady Peace?
As for Mary Higgins Clark, I know she’s an author because my wife reads her books. I know she’s written a ton of books because she’s always reading a different one. Knowing this, I would assume she’s pretty successful and wealthy due to the sheer number of books she’s written.
I met a guy working in a Walmart electronics section who’d never heard of Paul McCartney.
I personally have never seen the Lord of the Rings films, not because of any aversion to the genre, but just because it seems so dang time-consuming to get into at this point.
While living in Indianapolis during a time the Pacers were quite successful, I dated a girl who honestly didn’t know if they were the basketball team or the football team. (Ironically, long after we’d split up, our high school class had its commencement ceremony in the Pacers’ new arena, Conseco Fieldhouse).
Probably the biggest example I can think of, though, of the top of my head, is that at Blockbuster, I was once approached by an American customer of about 19 or 20 who had literally never seen a movie his entire life. His parents didn’t allow television in the house, or let him watch TV at friends’ houses, or (presumably) even allowed him to watch movies at school, I guess. Now living on his own, he looked to me for advice on what movies to watch to get him started. (I think I suggested a few of my personal favorites, spreading through multiple genres).
Of course, in “The Germans” episode of “Fawlty Towers”, Basil sarcastically refers to Manuel as TAC.
They didn’t draw a blank at “Fawlty Towers”, did they?
A “no-TV-background” encounter: in the early 1970s, I was acquainted with a girl whose parents were devout Catholics, and intellectuals: they had always forbidden television in their home, reckoning it both morally dodgy, and a purveyor of, mostly, mindless trivia and garbage. Their daughter seemed inclined to follow that lead. This was in the UK: at that date, “Monty Python” as a TV show had been established and well-known there for several years, and raving over it was de rigeur for any self-respecting young trendy person.
The lass concerned, had barely heard of “Monty Python”: she confused and conflated it with the goofy comedian Marty Feldman, who was popular at the time (and whom she considered to be rubbish). I honestly envied her as regards “Monty Python” – I being a heretic who has from the very first, loathed MP and almost everything about it.
That one is both age and location linked. I’ve heard about it - from my mother, who’s 3 years older than you. I’m reasonably sure that if you polled my HS class of 200 you’d not find more than 10 who even know the name, and those will have heard it from their parents. And the pope’s name gets localized; the mule usually wouldn’t.
A lot of the references in this thread are linked to age.
Actually my first thought was of the uptight character from the movie Stripes.
“Any of you homos touch my stuff, and I’ll kill ya.”
“Lighten up, Francis.”
Sometimes it is an age thing. A couple of years ago I met a college professor who constanly had to tell her younger students what 9/11 was.
Last night I was hanging out with someone who has met quite a few people who were under the impression that Edgar Allen Poe grew up in Baltimore. Apparently it’s a Raven thing.
This is a joke, right? Because he really did have family ties in Baltimore.
He lived there for most of his adult life and died there. The Ravens football team was named that for that reason.
Really? Wow, consider my ignorance fought.
My husband didn’t know what the “Harlem Shake” is until last night.
I still don’t know what the Harlem Shake is. 
Anything like a Glasgow kiss?
I met a child that didn’t know whom John Wayne was.
This generation, I tell you…
Interesting. I know it’s a dance, and I understand that many videos exist where people are doing it in various odd places, but I have never seen these videos and do not care to.
Some time in the late 80s or early 90s I overheard a young man (ca 20) in Brighton who had seen a very funny skit that he was telling his equally young friends about and apparently none of them had seen it or heard about it before. It was about a man who complained about his dead parrot. I and my friend suddenly felt very old.
Me too, I understand that the Harlem Shake is a dance and that people are posting videos of themselves doing this dance. I don’t really need to know more than that. It was the same with that Gangman Style (or whatever) video.
For a while there I thought Gangnan Style was some form of clothing.