I’ve never read any Tolkien. Not The Hobbit or nothin’. I just never got around to it when I was a kid, and the few times I started his stuff when I was older, I felt like I’d read it all before. (Utterly ironic, I know, but since the sci-fi/fantasy I did read drew so much on Tolkien, it was Tolkien that came across as being hopelessly derivative.)
I’ve never read any Dickens. Don’t know why–it wasn’t assigned at school. And while I devour books (I even used the word ‘bibliophagy’ in my law school essay!), Dickens has never interested me as much as, say, Wodehouse (to use a completely dissimilar example).
And if y’all haven’t completely lost respect for me by now, here’s a partial list of the crushingly obvious movies that I never happen to have seen.
The Godfather trilogy Jaws Citizen Kane Gone with the Wind Titanic It’s a Wonderful Life The Sound of Music Terminator Alien Singing in the Rain Beauty and the Beast Braveheart Rocky Annie Hall
Not that I take pride in it, mind you. Well, except for Titanic. I relish not having seen that.
Anyway, you know what? Despite it all, I’m still wonderfully well-read, and a huge film buff to boot. Feels good to get that off my chest, though. Anyone else?
At least half the movies on your list I’ve never seen any of, either. I’ve seen only parts of at least 3 more. At least once a week, my girlfreind or I say to the other “you’ve never (seen/read) THAT?!?!”.
I was recently SHOCKED to find out that a friend of mine had never seen/read Cinderella. We were in isketch (www.isketch.net) and someone was trying to draw “Cinderella” and they drew a pumpkin with wheels. He asked what that had to do with “Cinderella” and it came about that he had no clue what the story was even about. He was raised in New York, it’s not like he was off in some remote island never visited by modern man.
I’ve managed to miss about a third of the OP’s list. And, I was without a TV for several years - I got a new one a couple of years ago, but had gotten so out of the habit of watching that I haven’t turned it on since I got it (a friend bought it for me - he thought it unnatural for me to be without one).
Thus I’ve never seen Seinfeldt (sp?), The Simpsons, Friends or any other recent popular show.
This does result in a deficit in common culture that is often apparent, most notably when I go to a comedy club.
Never seen an episode of “The X Files.” I’ve also never seen an episode “Saved by the Bell” – i don’t know if anyone actually liked this show, but it seems that everyone i’ve ever met who’s within 5 years of my age has seen at least one episode. The same holds true for any series made by Aaron Spelling. I’m particularly proud of the last one.
Notable movies:
*Schindler’s List,
Citizen Kane,
Gone With the Wind
I’m sure there are others, but i can’t think of them right now.
Never read Lord of the Flies or Catcher in the Rye.
I’ve only seen one James Bond movie and I’ve forgotten which one.
I was 25 when I saw my first John Wayne movie. It was “The Searchers,” on TV, in the common room of a bed and breakfast place in the north York moors when I was on a vacation in England! (I’ve seen a few others on TV since then.)
Reminds me of the joke about someone who saw “Hamlet” for the first time: “That Shakespeare guy had no imagination. Too many clichés!”
::screams:: You’ve NEVER seen the Simpsons?! I can’t believe you’ve never seen/read that!! But no, it’s cool.
Let’s see.
Last year in English class, I turned out to be one of three people who hadn’t seen Titanic. And no, still haven’t seen it.
I’ve never read Hamlet. (But give me time, I think we’re going to read it senior year.)
I’ve never seen Gone With the Wind (read it though) or Citizen Kane either. Or Godfather. Hell I’ve seen practically nothing. Really. Its not even funny.
But that’s all i can think of so far.
The Phantom Menace was my first Star Wars film. I have never seen the others. This is not weighing heavily upon my soul. Seeing as how I am a resident of the planet Earth and everything, I still know all of the characters and the plot and most of the lines, but I’ve never seen the films.
My excuse is that I’m waiting so I can watch the whole series in order.
** Gadarene**, if you really are a film buff why would you deprive yourself of such excellent movies as The Godfather, Jaws, Citizen Kane, etc? (not Titanic though, good move there)
Having said that, I’ve never seen The Sound of Music, Gone With The Wind, or Singing in the Rain either and I have a friend who’s never seen Rocky.
One day I was quoting Mickey at him “You’re a BUM!” and he just looked at me in confusion.
I was like, “Hello? Burgess Meredith in Rocky?”
“Oh, I’ve never seen Rocky…”
What?!? And you call yourself an American?!?
I read the OP with grateful tears in my eyes–yesss! twins separted at birth!–then read subsequent posters and thought, "triplets, quadruplets, uh, sextuplets, hexagrams, wait a minute…"
It’s one thing to be uncultured and know it; it’s another to totally blank out even on pop culture! Hey, sometimes it’s suave, elegant shorthand–but it’s very specific.
I’ve never seen Titanic and won’t watch it for free on TV. (Been a diehard shipwreck fanatic for years, way before the hype. Ask me about the Andrea Doria!) Never seen the Simpsons. Was too bored by the hype to bother w/ Phantom Menace. Caught snippets of Seinfeld; clever but etoliated; turned it off and read.
(blush) Don’t noise it around, but can’t tell ya how many bestseller/critical gotta-reads I’ve started and couldn’t finish.
My post-college roommate worked in TV advertising, so every night we used to watch three TVs (one with sound, two w/o) so that he could watch ad placement. It was just too much of an overload. So I haven’t seen any shows that have been on since about 1995. (Yes, I do have a TV. Its purpose is for watching sports.)
I had a work study intern in my office a few years ago, and when I found out he hadn’t seen Star Wars, I gave him a paid vacation day provided he use it to watch the trilogy. He was hooked.
I am very proud to have never seen the following films:
Titanic
Good Will Hunting
Shakespeare In Love
The more people tell me I must see/read/watch/listen to something, the more I resist it. I have a naive idea that the more popular something is, the worse it must be. Maybe it’s due to the lingering effects of having read Ayn Rand in my early twenties.
I once told a co-worker “There’s a method to my madness.” He looked at me as if I was, well, mad. Shakespear, I told him. He never heard of him. I should mention he was Hassidic and did not go to public school.
It just surprised me that someone as smart as him could lead such a sheltered life.
I’ve only seen one Star Wars film and it didn’t really impress me. And I too, am less likely to see something if someone says “you’ve GOT to watch this!” it makes you resist the pull…
In David Lodge’s novel Changing Places one of the characters (most of whom are literary academics) invents a parlour game he calls “Humiliation”.
This presents an impossible dilemma at a faculty party for another character, an insecure careerist who
He finally persuades the others that he’s serious, that he’s seen the Olivier film version but never actually read the text. Three days later, he’s passed over for tenure by the English Department, who refuse to grant tenure to someone who admits to never having read Hamlet. The repercussions of this continue on into the sequel, Small World (a rare case of a sequel to a very good book that’s actually even better than the first installment).
As for your list of unseen films, a handful are on my list as well: (the Godfather movies, Terminator and Alien specifically). I’m also pretty sure that I’ve never seen The Wizard of Oz straight through, though I’m certain I’ve seen it all in bits and pieces spread out through the years.
And while I have read a couple of Dickens novels, I couldn’t agree more with anyone who says
I’m surprised by how many people who have never seen Titanic. IS it because you resisted the hype deliberately? Is it because you hate Leonardo DiCaprio? Is it because you seriously just didn’t care about it?
I mean, it’s not a bad movie - I really enjoyed it. Both times I watched it. Even though I knew how it ended.
