# I just realised I am old **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 2, 2024, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575 "2024-11-02T12:50:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2024, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/161 "2024-12-15T15:24:14Z")
I recognized him, but I wasn’t sure whether he was Benny Goodman or Artie Shaw or Glenn Miller or someone else in that category. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2024, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/162 "2024-12-15T16:15:04Z")
Heard of him but had no idea that was him. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2024, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/163 "2024-12-15T17:36:09Z")
I mistook him for George Gershwin, but I know Benny Goodman. But I’m a big fan of popular music and have read a lot about its history. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2024, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/164 "2024-12-15T17:37:24Z")
I was sure it was Goodman, because I have a couple of his songs on my iPhone, and the album cover art uses that same photo. ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2024, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/165 "2024-12-15T17:55:06Z")
I didn’t recognize the face. But I definitely know the name, and I spent a bit of time checking out big band stuff many years ago because, well, check out as much as possible. It wasn’t my kind of music, though, so I didn’t pursue it beyond those few weeks of giving it a chance. So my answer was no on IDing the picture, but I could give someone a one-paragraph explanation of who he was and what he did. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2024, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/166 "2024-12-15T18:09:06Z")
FWIW, I just remembered that the Clash’s “Overpowered By Funk” name drops Benny Goodman, but of course that song also is 42 years old. But I’m sure I got the reference when I first heard that song way back. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/nnteP054Ej8/maxresdefault.jpg "Overpowered by Funk (Remastered)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnteP054Ej8) ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2024, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/167 "2024-12-15T21:26:25Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > recognized him, but I wasn’t sure whether he was Benny Goodman or Artie Shaw or Glenn Miller or someone else in that category. Me too. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2024, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/168 "2024-12-15T22:18:36Z")
Benny Goodman is my favorite from the big band era. Most of the others were too syrupy for my tastes. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2024, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/169 "2024-12-15T23:59:26Z")
I know the _name_ Benny Goodman and might be able to recognize some of his music but had no idea what he looked like. Why would I? ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/170 "2024-12-16T13:14:44Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Why would I? I was just curious after reading several posts complaining about young people not knowing names that were normal to them, then I stumbled upon an article that mentioned the obsolescence of artist’s fame and Benny Goodman’s picture as the finishing example. As I could not identify him I wondered how the dopers would do. And as was to be expected they are doing very well: currently 50% from 30 votes say they knew him. That gives this forum complaining rights about ignorant greenhorns. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/171 "2024-12-16T14:18:11Z")
> [@dirtball](#): > > I didn’t recognize the face. But I definitely know the name, and I spent a bit of time checking out big band stuff many years ago because, well, check out as much as possible. It wasn’t my kind of music, though, so I didn’t pursue it beyond those few weeks of giving it a chance. > > So my answer was no on IDing the picture, but I could give someone a one-paragraph explanation of who he was and what he did. This. His name and work is still famous. His face? Not so much. I doubt I ever had any idea what he looked like. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/172 "2024-12-16T14:19:15Z")
> [@LurkMeister](#): > > A few years ago someone called me “young man”. I was tempted to ask her if she’s had her eyes checked lately. LOL that happened to me a few months back. I was in the motor oil aisle at WalMart looking for some two cycle oil for the lawn mower when I heard someone say “Excuse me, young man?” I didn’t even react, because I’m over sixty, so they obviously weren’t talking to _me_, but when I heard it again I looked around and saw an elderly man on one of those scooter-carts, and yes he was talking to me! 😅 ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/173 "2024-12-16T14:32:17Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > I didn’t even react, because I’m over sixty, so they obviously weren’t talking to _me_, but when I heard it again I looked around and saw an elderly man on one of those scooter-carts, and yes he was talking to me! 😅 I’m going on sixty, but I don’t mind when someone older than me calls me young man. But when it’s a \<30 years old sales clerk at the bakery, I always wonder if they mock me. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/174 "2024-12-16T14:38:45Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Last night the cute young thing serving my dinner mentioned her birthday was right around now. Guessing her to be college-aged or a bit more I said “It’ll be fun turning 21 … again.” She said “Gee I wish; I just turned 19.” I have trouble guessing the age of young people too, but for me usually in the other direction. Everybody 30 or under looks like a child to me these days. At a former job, a young woman was hired as a marketing manager, and I privately thought “how can she possibly have the experience to be a manager? She doesn’t look old enough to drink!”. Then I was having a conversation with her, and she told me she was about to turn 30, and was not looking forward to it. “I’m getting so _ **old!** _” ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/175 "2024-12-16T14:46:05Z")
And today just happens to be the 80th anniversary of his disappearance in WW2. So if you asked me today, then yes I do recognize him. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/176 "2024-12-16T14:49:53Z")
> [@carrps](#): > > It seems to me that people are not only more siloed politically, but also pop culturely. When I was young, I knew all about older actors, singers, famous politicians who had mostly died before I was born. I listened to all kinds of music – differnt genres, different eras, etc. And I watched a lot of old movies. It seems younger people today only know who’s and what’s popular _right now._ Seems so limited to me. I think it depends on the person. My son is in his 20s, and he is very culturally pop-savvy. I’m often amazed at the obscure pop culture references and music from the ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s that he is aware of. One example that came up recently was his knowledge of how Jefferson Airplane (who sang “[White Rabbit](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Rabbit_(song))” and “[Somebody to Love](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somebody_to_Love_(Jefferson_Airplane_song))”) devolved into Jefferson Starship and then Starship (which was notable—in his telling—for one of the worst pop songs of the ‘80s, “[We Built this City](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/We_Built_This_City)”). He also had to explain to _me_ why Brian Wilson’s masterpiece album _[Pet Sounds](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pet_Sounds)_ was so significant. (But then again, he is really into music. And not having grown up in that era, he also has gaps that occasionally arise.) ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/177 "2024-12-16T14:54:14Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > And today just happens to be the 80th anniversary of his disappearance in WW2. So if you asked me today, then yes I do recognize him. Wasn’t that Glenn Miller? ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/178 "2024-12-16T15:12:42Z")
Yes ! ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/179 "2024-12-16T15:19:15Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > Wasn’t that Glenn Miller? QED! 😏 ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2024, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575/180 "2024-12-16T18:51:34Z")
Not only did I recognize him, I just finished a book with a short biography of him and lots and lots of pictures. My mother had the book. A highlight of her life was when she got to sit at the table with him at a UN Day celebration he was guest of honor at, thanks to my father being an organizer. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-realised-i-am-old/1009575.md?page=10)