# Obvious things about a creative work you realize after the millionth time (OPEN SPOILERS POSSIBLE) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 24, 2009, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117 "2009-07-24T13:20:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 234
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4665 "2022-02-14T13:52:27Z")
The giant monster that Arnold fights at the end of Conan the Destroyer had Andre the Giant in the suit. Makes sense-who else are you gonna get? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2022, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4666 "2022-02-15T01:53:39Z")
On the back of the first **John Denver’s Greatest Hits** album, there’s a pic of him and one of his dogs sitting in the sunny woods. One of the liner notes says _John and Murphy are managed by Jerry Weintraub…_. Who the hell is Murphy? I scanned every single piece of info I could find on JD. Was it a fellow instrumentalist? Was it a fellow songwriter he was doing a cover tune from? Michael (“Wildfire”) Murphy? I wracked my brain for years. Murphy is the doggy in the picture. 🙄 ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2022, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4667 "2022-02-15T02:05:09Z")
Don’t tell John, but Jerry was only taking 5% from Murphy. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2022, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4668 "2022-02-15T04:01:13Z")
LOLOLOL, he LOLed, inserting characters for that consarn it Discord! 🤣🤣🤣 ---
**Author:** ![gdave](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gdave/32/3683_2.png) [@gdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gdave)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2022, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4669 "2022-02-15T12:58:45Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > On the back of the first **John Denver’s Greatest Hits** album, there’s a pic of him and one of his dogs sitting in the sunny woods. One of the liner notes says _John and Murphy are managed by Jerry Weintraub…_ . Who the hell is Murphy? I scanned every single piece of info I could find on JD. Was it a fellow instrumentalist? Was it a fellow songwriter he was doing a cover tune from? Michael (“Wildfire”) Murphy? I wracked my brain for years. > > Murphy is the doggy in the picture. 🙄 [Reads post] [Looks at avatar] [Looks at username] Combo does _not_ check out. 😜 ---
**Author:** ![Pavelb1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/439d5e/32.png) [@Pavelb1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pavelb1)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2022, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4670 "2022-02-16T14:57:40Z")
Was watching Linda Ronstadt sing “You’re No Good”…paid attention to her introducing her band cause I wanted to see if I knew anyone she introduced. I recognized Andrew Gold’s name, so I checked him out. Dude wrote "Lonely Boy, “Thank You For Being a Friend” (!) and “Spooky Scary Skeletons”??? Talk about having an effect on the world in very different spheres. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2022, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4671 "2022-02-17T00:11:50Z")
> [@Pavelb1](#): > > Thank You For Being a Friend When this came out, I immediately understood I would be hearing this song for the rest of my life. 40 years later, Betty White dies and here it comes again. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2022, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4672 "2022-02-17T01:25:48Z")
Lookin’ better than a body has a right to… ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2022, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4673 "2022-02-17T01:46:12Z")
Ah, Leah! ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2022, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4674 "2022-02-17T02:04:08Z")
I love that song. 💖 ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2022, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4675 "2022-02-17T09:11:43Z")
My mother went to high school with Donny. He’s a local celebrity. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2022, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4676 "2022-02-17T09:53:18Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > Lookin’ better than a body has a right to… 🏌️‍♂️👏 ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2022, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4677 "2022-02-17T12:48:33Z")
Out of curiosity, what does this mean? ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2022, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4678 "2022-02-17T13:37:38Z")
That’s the auto signature on my email. I forgot to delete it. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2022, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4679 "2022-02-17T13:44:07Z")
Sorry, I shouldn’t have quoted it then. Can a Mod delete that part of my post? ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2022, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4680 "2022-02-18T12:49:57Z")
This one could be my wild imagination, but the title of Terry Pratchett’s _The Unadulterated Cat_ seems like a riff on, or reference to, Albert Lewin’s _The Unaltered Cat._ ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2022, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4681 "2022-02-18T14:00:49Z")
It’s not unrealized as much as unknown, but TIL that Mitt Romney and Don Bluth were cousins. ---
**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:** [February 18, 2022, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4682 "2022-02-18T14:10:17Z")
The legend/ballad of John Henry, the Steel-Driving Man. I had always assumed that his goal was just to drive as much steel as humanly possible, so he could beat the machine, and that it was unfortunate that giving it his all wouldn’t leave any margin for surviving. But I just realized the other day that he actually wanted to die, because he knew that even if he won the contest on that day, the machines would win in the end, and he didn’t want to live in that world. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2022, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4683 "2022-02-18T14:45:42Z")
Now you’ve gone and done it: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/6UITg6N_ztw/maxresdefault.jpg "[I Simpson] Bart - The Steel Driving Man (Sub Ita)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UITg6N_ztw) ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2022, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117/4684 "2022-02-18T14:58:22Z")
[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/5FuC5-vmgRs/maxresdefault.jpg "The Smothers Brothers - The Saga of John Henry") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FuC5-vmgRs) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117.md?page=233) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-things-about-a-creative-work-you-realize-after-the-millionth-time-open-spoilers-possible/504117.md?page=235)