I participated in a board which had a professional athlete member–not a superstar by any means, but a name that was recognizable to serious fans of the game. He made some great comments, and then it came out who he was and he was besieged with questions and comments, largely inane (equivalent to asking a writer for tips getting started writing, or worse), and quickly dropped out. I was really embarrassed for the board.
Not all successful entertainers are recognizable to even a few fans of whatever genre of music that they play. Think studio musicians. If you are good enough and have the drive, a comfortable living can be made in this field.
We also have at least one professional opera singer, Le ministre de l’au-dela.
I remember seeing comments or rumors around here that Weird Al Yankovic is a fan of these boards, although I have no idea if he’s actually ever posted or not.
I haven’t seen an anthropologist or for that matter an archeologist post here. But then, I’m relatively new. Do we have any?
Was that A-ha?
n/m
My spouse, Imp of the Perverse who posts here on occasion, has an undergraduate degree in archaeology, and worked in the field for quite a few years, but mostly as an diver on underwater sites. I don’t think she’d have much insight into the City of the Dead, but she’d be a source regarding her li’l niche.
Heck, I have an undergrad Anthro degree. Those are pretty common around here. As for professional musicians, I know this person posts here.
ianzin.
Do strippers count?
Sure; mostly small bills.
Didn’t Opalcat used to work as a stripper?
Once. Twice. (But not) Three times a lady.
I think it’s Indygrrl who is (was?) a stripper…
ianzin was about the only professional entertainer that I can recall on SDMB, and while he is obviously very, very knowledgeable about magic, I don’t know if he is a known personality in the magicians world…
My question was a genuine one—Are there any Dopers making a living as professional entertainers who are famous enough that 1% of random Americans (granted, a huge number of people, 3 Million or so) would know who they are?
James Randi is a member though he has only posted a very few times. And it’s conformed it’s the real guy.
The problem with some of the questions asked in this thread is that nobody would admit to them. Major areas of expertise, sure. But the CEO of a Fortune 500 company couldn’t come out and say that without being besieged with questions, comments, and criticisms regarding everything the company did. And, technically, being a CEO isn’t a “major field of study,” which is what the OP called for.
For niche areas, people who post anonymously here might not want to admit to it either. Before I started posting under my real name, I didn’t want to say too much about closed captioning, for example, because there are so few technical experts in the field, and I’m the only one who has written books about it.
That said, I’m curious whether we have any experts in Celtic history or Celtic/Gaelic languages.
Ah. I am by no means an expert, but that is the kind of analysis I was doing for a while back then.
Yep. I’m a professional archaeologist for a private consulting firm in California.
Astronauts?
(Aside from “yo’ momma”)
Wow, we’ve got some bright people here. Once again, I’m impressed by the dope.
Have we had an * ask the embalmer * thread yet?
Gahhh what’s her username. She did autopsies (was a coroner?). Someone will come by with her name. Started with a g. Gwen-something?