# Lateral Thinking Puzzles. Let's do it again! **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [October 23, 2019, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193 "2019-10-23T21:32:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 268
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5348 "2022-10-15T19:44:36Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Is the punchline here that, unlike Armstrong and Aldrin and et cetera, there were some lesser-known real-life astronauts who happened to be named “Bruce Wayne” or “Clark Kent” or whatever? No. No nicknames. No punchline. ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5349 "2022-10-15T19:45:59Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > Or [Guy Gardner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_Gardner_(astronaut))? No. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5350 "2022-10-15T19:49:55Z")
I won’t say it, per the post by the OP, but I know of a comic book that is about a real astronaut, written a couple of decades after his death. The comic’s whole reason for being is to tell the story of this person. In other words, he was an astronaut first, and then a comic book character. Is this the case for all three? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5351 "2022-10-15T20:00:51Z")
When you say that the characters “made real life space trips”, does that mean that… …two-dimensional illustrations went into space? …three-dimensional representations of the characters went into space? …living things named after the characters went into space? …nonliving objects named after the characters went into space? …people or things that inspired the comic characters went into space? Did they go into space on manned missions? Was it the same set of characters all three times? Was it different characters each time? Were the characters superheroes? From superhero comics? From other action-based comics? From comics primarily intended to be humorous? From comics primarily intended to be dramatic? From comics primarily intended to be erotic? Were the characters of American origin? Japanese? European? Somewhere else? Are the characters fictional? Were these characters present on the trips for some scientific purpose? Were they on the trips for public outreach purposes? Were they on the trips at the whim of some NASA employee? Was their presence on the trips public knowledge, before the starts of their missions? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5352 "2022-10-15T22:02:40Z")
reply toRivkahChaya: I won’t say it, per the post by the OP, but I know of a comic book that is about a real astronaut, written a couple of decades after his death. The comic’s whole reason for being is to tell the story of this person. In other words, he was an astronaut first, and then a comic book character. Is this the case for all three? [/quote] No. Famous in comic books first. ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5353 "2022-10-15T22:27:01Z")
reply to Chronos: When you say that the characters “made real life space trips”, does that mean that… …two-dimensional illustrations went into space? No. …three-dimensional representations of the characters went into space? No. …living things named after the characters went into space? Rephrase …nonliving objects named after the characters went into space? No. …people or things that inspired the comic characters went into space? Yes. Did they go into space on manned missions? Yes Was it the same set of characters all three times? Yes. Was it different characters each time? No. Were the characters superheroes? No From superhero comics? Yes From other action-based comics? Yes From comics primarily intended to be humorous? Yes. From comics primarily intended to be dramatic? Yes. From comics primarily intended to be erotic? No. Were the characters of American origin? Yes.Japanese? No.European? No. Somewhere else? No. Are the characters fictional? Yes. Were these characters present on the trips for some scientific purpose? Yes. Were they on the trips for public outreach purposes? No. Were they on the trips at the whim of some NASA employee? No. Was their presence on the trips public knowledge, before the starts of their missions? Yes. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5354 "2022-10-15T23:25:43Z")
So, we’ve got some number of fictional American comic characters, from a variety of different sorts of comics, including superhero comics though none of them are themselves superheroes, inspired by someone or something real. They were famous as comic strip characters first, but the people or things they were inspired by eventually went to space, for some scientific purpose. Is that correct? Wait, were they from Archie Comics? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2022, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5355 "2022-10-15T23:59:47Z")
reply to Chronos: So, we’ve got some number of fictional American comic characters, from a variety of different sorts of comics, including superhero comics though none of them are themselves superheroes, inspired by someone or something real. They were famous as comic strip characters first, but the people or things they were inspired by eventually went to space, for some scientific purpose. Is that correct? The characters were famous from comic books, not from newspaper comic strips. Otherwise, more or less correct 😉 Wait, were they from Archie Comics? Not characters from Archie. ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5356 "2022-10-16T00:49:13Z")
Chronos, some of the questions you asked have been hard to answer. Just know we are talking about characters made famous from comic books that eventually REALLY went into space. Three different times. Even once on the shuttle Discovery. Where I said “rephrase” above I think should just be “Yes.” And now I am going to try and go back to answering “yes” or “no” only. ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5357 "2022-10-16T18:49:17Z")
Were the characters based on real people (who went to space)? Were the real space travelers named after the fictional characters? Were the real space travelers human? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5358 "2022-10-16T19:17:40Z")
reply to Ana\_Byrd: Were the characters based on real people (who went to space)? No. Were the real space travelers named after the fictional characters? No\* Were the real space travelers human? No. \*Not exactly, anyway. This goes back to Chronos’ rephrase question. Not sure how to answer. ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5359 "2022-10-16T19:20:10Z")
Were the real space travelers alive? Were the characters they were based off villains? Sidekicks? Other side characters? Were the characters they were based off human or humanoid? Was there some reason for this beyond novelty? ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5360 "2022-10-16T19:27:34Z")
Were the real space travelers animals? Were they actors? ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5361 "2022-10-16T19:39:15Z")
> [@Biotop](#): > > Were the real space travelers human? No. Hmm. There was a comic about Laika-- obviously, that’s not the answer, since she didn’t travel for NASA, but are we talking about something like that comic? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5362 "2022-10-16T19:43:18Z")
Did the fictional characters have the same names as the real spacefarers? Do they have names that are very similar, even if not precisely the same? Were the fictional characters named after the real spacefarers? Were the fictional characters and the real spacefarers both named after the same people/things/whatever? Was there a coincidental similarity in names? Is this sequence of events correct: The real spacefarers went into space (at least, for the first time), then comic book characters based on them were published, then they became famous. Are the fictional characters all from the same publisher? Are they from the same continuity? Do the fictional characters routinely appear together? (to clarify those last questions: Wolverine and the Transformers were both published by Marvel, but (probably) not in the same continuity. Thor and Wolverine are in the same continuity (at least, in the comics), but don’t routinely appear together. Wolverine and Jean Gray routinely appear together.) > [@Biotop](#): > > Were the real space travelers human? No. Were the real space travelers animals? Plants? Animate devices? Inanimate objects? ---
**Author:** ![eschrodinger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschrodinger/32/122_2.png) [@eschrodinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschrodinger)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5363 "2022-10-16T20:05:51Z")
Was at least one of the characters/spacefarers a dog? Were they all dogs? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5364 "2022-10-16T20:16:13Z")
replt to SurrenderDorothy: Were the real space travelers alive? Yes Were the characters they were based off villains? No.Sidekicks? No.Other side characters? No. Were the characters they were based off human or humanoid? Yes. Was there some reason for this beyond novelty? Yes. ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5365 "2022-10-16T20:19:21Z")
reply to Ana\_Byrd: Were the real space travelers animals? Yes. Were they actors? No. ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5366 "2022-10-16T20:32:53Z")
reply to RivkahChaya: Hmm. There was a comic about Laika-- obviously, that’s not the answer, since she didn’t travel for NASA, but are we talking about something like that comic? No. +++++ reply to Chronos: Did the fictional characters have the same names as the real spacefarers? Not specific names, no. Do they have names that are very similar, even if not precisely the same? No. Were the fictional characters named after the real spacefarers? No. Were the fictional characters and the real spacefarers both named after the same people/things/whatever? No. Was there a coincidental similarity in names? No. Is this sequence of events correct: The real spacefarers went into space (at least, for the first time), then comic book characters based on them were published, then they became famous. No. Are the fictional characters all from the same publisher? Not sure. I guess so. Are they from the same continuity? Yes. Do the fictional characters routinely appear together? Yes, though not always. (to clarify those last questions: Wolverine and the Transformers were both published by Marvel, but (probably) not in the same continuity. Thor and Wolverine are in the same continuity (at least, in the comics), but don’t routinely appear together. Wolverine and Jean Gray routinely appear together.) > [@Biotop](#): > > Were the real space travelers human? No. Were the real space travelers animals? Yes.Plants? No. Animate devices? No. Inanimate objects? No. +++++ reply to eschrodinger: Was at least one of the characters/spacefarers a dog? Were they all dogs? No to dogs. ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2022, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/5367 "2022-10-16T20:50:10Z")
Are any Disney characters involved? (I’m imagining lab animals named Huey, Dewey, and Louie or something.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193.md?page=267) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193.md?page=269)