# How does no-one know who Spiderman is? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 16, 2006, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778 "2006-07-16T21:35:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2006, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/1 "2006-07-16T21:35:26Z")
I’m watching the first Spiderman film since it’s on TV, and on seeing it again i’m struck by just how poorly Peter Parker keeps his identity secret. - He first discovers his web-shooty powers in the school cafeteria, accidentally whipping a tray into someone’s back. He then exits the room, _the tray still on the webbing from his wrist_, it being dragged behind him. The room being filled with other people. - Shortly after, he gets into a fight where he performs all sorts of feats of agility, as well as doing a couple of backflips from standing. Right in front of a group of other students, of course. - When he joins the wrestling group, he performs under the name Spiderman, in a similar version of his costume, and reveals his face to the organiser as well as anyone backstage; people quite likely to sell him out for the money. - He rescues Mary Jane at several points. Does he make a show of not knowing her? Nope, it’s all “I’ll save you, MJ!”. It’s not like she could compare the sound of his voice to all the people she knows, or something. :dubious: How can everyone (in the film universe, anyway) _not_ know who he is? ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2006, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/2 "2006-07-16T21:45:23Z")
Everybody knows. He just went public, a dumb move. There’s gonna be a tragedy, I predict. ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2006, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/3 "2006-07-16T21:48:41Z")
Someone didn’t read the last sentence of my OP. 😉 (And yeah, it is a dumb move. Bye, Aunt May.) ---
**Author:** ![Dan\_Norder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4af34b/32.png) [@Dan\_Norder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dan_Norder)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2006, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/4 "2006-07-16T21:54:19Z")
The OP is talking the movie, not the jumped-the-shark-in-the-early-90s-and-just-keeps-getting-worse-and-worse comic book series. ---
**Author:** ![JoeSki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b487fb/32.png) [@JoeSki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoeSki)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2006, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/5 "2006-07-16T22:01:29Z")
History can be very easy to lose track of. I suspect that the moments you mentioned might have been pecuiliar in the minds of people who have witnessed them, but nothing that would actually make it to the papers or actually recorded ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2006, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/6 "2006-07-16T22:16:55Z")
For the school incidents, no one else has ever seen “webbing,” so they don’t know that it’s “webbing.” It’s some kind of rope. None of them are likely to have the chance to examine Spider-Man’s webbing up close to compare it to that rope they saw one time. As for the agility, that’s certainly unusual but the leap from “bizarrely agile” to “superhumanly strong, able to leap dozens of feet into the air and stick to walls” is still a big one. The people backstage at the wrestling show might make the connection between the two, but how will most of them remember him? Medium height, medium build, brown hair. Describes at least a hundred thousand people in New York City. As for MJ, does he call her by name while in costume? His mask would muffle/distort his voice while he’s wearing it over his mouth and even if his voice sounds familiar when the mask is pulled up, is she going to make the leap between “puny Parker” and Spider-Man right away? And, IIRC, at the end of the movie it’s pretty clear that she suspects and of course in the second movie she finds out for sure. ---
**Author:** ![Terrifel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c68b51/32.png) [@Terrifel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terrifel)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2006, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/7 "2006-07-16T23:10:03Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > The people backstage at the wrestling show might make the connection between the two, but how will most of them remember him? Medium height, medium build, brown hair. Describes at least a hundred thousand people in New York City. Except for the fact that he was asked to fill out a medical waiver. I was so certain that this was going to be the hook behind Bruce Campbell’s cameo in Spider-Man II-- the announcer remembers the amazingly agile kid who he dubbed “Spider-Man” in the first movie, makes the connection to the city’s new costumed vigilante, and checks through the paperwork until he finds the original wrestling application for Peter Parker (“Stage Name? [Please Print]: _The Human Spider_”). Then he sells the information to the highest bidder (either the Daily Bugle or Harry Osborne). Instead, Bruce was suddenly a theater usher. I never could figure that one out. Are we to infer that he somehow lost his job as a wrestling announcer and was forced to seek employment elsewhere, coincidentally landing a job in the exact same theater where Mary Jane would eventually perform? Maybe that’s it; Bruce tried to sneak into the back offices at the wrestling arena to steal the info for himself, but was caught in the act and fired before he could find it. That’s why he was so insufferable to Peter in the second movie-- he subconsciously recognized Peter’s voice as Spider-Man’s, and was impelled to extract some petty measure of revenge. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2006, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/8 "2006-07-16T23:50:39Z")
> [@Terrifel](#): > > Except for the fact that he was asked to fill out a medical waiver. Did he sign his real name? > [@Terrifel](#): > > Instead, Bruce was suddenly a theater usher. I never could figure that one out. Are the two cameos supposed to be the same character? If so, there’s certainly no reason why the guy can’t be working two jobs. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/9 "2006-07-17T00:24:36Z")
It’s because Peter Parker just doesn’t **look** like a spider! Only four limbs, only two eyes, etc. Who would guess?! ---
**Author:** ![Electronic\_Chaos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Electronic\_Chaos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electronic_Chaos)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/10 "2006-07-17T04:07:19Z")
Screw that, I want to know why nobody realizes that Clark and Superman are the same in Superman Returns. Let’s see, they’ve both been gone for 5 years, only to both show up on exactly the same day. Not conspicuous at all. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/11 "2006-07-17T06:07:30Z")
> [@Terrifel](#): > > Instead, Bruce was suddenly a theater usher. I never could figure that one out. Clearly he was one of a family of triplets. As evidenced by whatever his cameo role will be in the third film. ---
**Author:** ![First\_Amongst\_Daves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/4491bb/32.png) [@First\_Amongst\_Daves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/First_Amongst_Daves)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/12 "2006-07-17T09:54:39Z")
> [@Electronic Chaos](#): > > Screw that, I want to know why nobody realizes that Clark and Superman are the same in Superman Returns. > > Let’s see, they’ve both been gone for 5 years, only to both show up on exactly the same day. Not conspicuous at all. At least when Supes went off world in the comic everyone thought Clark Kent was dead. And then he had the help of a shape-shifting parallel universe Supergirl to substitute in for Clark. (I can’t believe I just wrote that in a serious conversation.) ---
**Author:** ![Seymour\_Gams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Seymour\_Gams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seymour_Gams)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/13 "2006-07-17T12:44:25Z")
> [@First Amongst Daves](#): > > (I can’t believe I just wrote that in a serious conversation.) I can’t believe you think this is a serious conversation. 😉 I completely agree with the OP, this has always been my biggest pet peeve with superhero movies and Spider-man is one of the worst offenders. ---
**Author:** ![Subway\_Prophet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecb155/32.png) [@Subway\_Prophet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Subway_Prophet)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/14 "2006-07-17T13:28:24Z")
It’s been a while since I’ve read the comics regularly (except for the Ultimate Spiderman series) - it’s been something of a running gag that Petey’s identity is one of the worst-kept secrets on the planet. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/15 "2006-07-17T14:10:51Z")
> [@Electronic Chaos](#): > > Screw that, I want to know why nobody realizes that Clark and Superman are the same in Superman Returns. > > Let’s see, they’ve both been gone for 5 years, only to both show up on exactly the same day. Not conspicuous at all. Reminds me of my favorite scene from _Lois and Clark_: the villian calls Lois the stupidest person in the world for not figuring out the dual identity. “Look, with the glasses I’m Clark, without I’m Superman.” Doh! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Innanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecd19e/32.png) [@Innanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Innanna)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/16 "2006-07-17T14:15:22Z")
> [@D\_Odds](#): > > Reminds me of my favorite scene from _Lois and Clark_: the villian calls Lois the stupidest person in the world for not figuring out the dual identity. “Look, with the glasses I’m Clark, without I’m Superman.” Doh! :smack: Well, in her defense, at least she isn’t a crack investigative reporter or something. Nevermind. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/17 "2006-07-17T15:25:04Z")
> [@Terrifel](#): > > Instead, Bruce was suddenly a theater usher. I never could figure that one out. Are we to infer that he somehow lost his job as a wrestling announcer and was forced to seek employment elsewhere, coincidentally landing a job in the exact same theater where Mary Jane would eventually perform? Maybe that’s it; Bruce tried to sneak into the back offices at the wrestling arena to steal the info for himself, but was caught in the act and fired before he could find it. That’s why he was so insufferable to Peter in the second movie-- he subconsciously recognized Peter’s voice as Spider-Man’s, and was impelled to extract some petty measure of revenge. Or maybe, it was just Bruce Campbell playing two different characters…or maybe they’re twins who both live in NYC and are both on the margins of the entertainment industry. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/18 "2006-07-17T15:32:10Z")
Peter Parker is Spiderman?! :eek: Who knew?! ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/19 "2006-07-17T15:44:54Z")
> [@Electronic Chaos](#): > > Screw that, I want to know why nobody realizes that Clark and Superman are the same in Superman Returns. Don’t start that _again_. Clark Kent wears glasses. Superman _doesn’t_ wear glasses. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2006, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778/20 "2006-07-17T15:58:28Z")
Yeah. Superman obviously has perfect vision. He can’t possibly be Clark. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-no-one-know-who-spiderman-is/364778.md?page=2)