And I don’t like Sandman, by the way. I love a number of his novels, though.
I know who Gaiman is, though I’m not familiar with most of his work. My six-year-old daughter is a big fan of Mirrormask.
I’m not going to play that game. I don’t have a literal Top Ten; it was a hyperbolic remark. Yes, there’s stuff on your list that I haven’t read; there’s stuff on your list that would also be on mine (Ulysses is my favorite book of all time), and there’s stuff on your list that I don’t think is anywhere close to being as good as Sandman.
So you can now get back to your game of “Neil Gaiman isn’t as famous as you think he is, neener neener neener.”
I know both. I do not, however, appreciate anything about Lady Gaga.
I think you mean “it,” there, Marley.
Having now examined the preceding thread, I think this one has been running on a misinterpretation.
What DrDeth actually said was that an intelligent cultural observer would know Neil Gaiman–not necessarily that most people would. The post in question didn’t use the word “pop” at all, and the first mention of Gaiman in the thread is contrasting him with Larry the Cable Guy in the context of talking about correlation between tastes and intellect–no mention of relative celebrity status.
The first mention of “pop culture” is from Boyo Jim, who at that moment doesn’t know who Gaiman is at all. Shot From Guns seizes that remark, backdates the “pop” part of it into DrDeth’s earlier remark, and assumes a question of popularity where there really wasn’t one. Nobody has claimed that Gaiman is as famous as Gaga, or Larry, or Octomom. The only assertion is that intelligent, culturally-conversant people ought to have a clue who he is. Expanding upon that assertion,
“Rather well known” here is the first suggestion of Gaiman’s degree of fame, and it’s hardly hyperbolic.
We might debate which names should be on the list, but the basic notion–that smart and literate people ought to recognize certain names–seems unremarkable to me.
I used the word “first” in my post. The books were numbered and so I grabbed the first one.
From context, I took that to mean you didn’t like the first one you read.
I wouldn’t want to start midway through a series like that. It’d be like watching a single episode halfway through Lost!
I recognize Neil Gaiman’s name because I’ve seen him mentioned in other threads here on the Dope. After looking at his Wikipedia entry it looks like I’ve seen the film adaptation of Stardust, which I enjoyed very much. However, it looks like he co-wrote the screenplay to Beowulf, which I thought was a terrible film. I’ve neither seen nor read his other works.
I know who Lady Gaga is, what she’s famous for, and she has at least one song that can get stuck in my head if I let it. I know who Neal Gaiman is, but none of his work that I’ve seen has appealed to me.
The poll should offer the option: “The Straight Dope Message Board: I know what it is and what it is famous for.” How can anyone be pop-culture-aware without that?! 
Outside the Dope I don’t know much about Gaiman. If it hadn’t been for Coraline and the Graveyard Book (haven’t read either but have heard about them), would never have heard about him outside the SDMB at all.
Suit yourself.
Thank you.
Yes, I’m aware of the wording of the first post of that thread of discussion, seeing as I’m the one who linked it for you. You’ll also note that I didn’t say **DrDeth **specifically called it pop culture at that point–merely that it started the chain of discussion. Here’s a more relevant post:
No, that has nothing to do with whether someone is a *mainstream *writer. Dan Brown, Danielle Steele, Stephen King, Stephanieyie Maeyerer whateverthefuck: *those *are mainstream writers. How *good *you are is not a measure of how *mainstream *you are, or you wouldn’t be able to find a single copy of a *Twilight *book in so much as a thrift store next to the ten-cent romances.
I am not at all sure this is the board where you will find out what is NORMALLY considered pop culture. Seems to be a huge fanboy bias here. Of course most know who Gaiman is.
I think that when over 1/5 of the people responding to *this *poll on *this *forum have never even *heard *of him (versus barely over 1% who haven’t heard of Lady Gaga), it makes a pretty good point about how mainstream he is (or, rather, isn’t).
I personally find Rushdie, Murakami and A Confederacy of Dunces the most overrated literature of the past 100 years. I’d stick in some Dos Passos, Borges and Kobo Abe (maybe even John O’Hara or Salinger) in their place. Still, I agree calling Gaiman one of the 10 greatest literature writers of the 20th century is vastly overstating his skills.
You think they don’t belong on a top 10 list, or you think they were crap? I won’t argue if you say there’s better–after all, you’ll note, these are simply ten random books that are IMO better than Sandman, not a top-anything list.
Dos Passos and Borges I haven’t read, but I have enjoyed Abe. Speaking of which, is The Ark Sakura any good? It’s been kicking around my shelves for a couple of years since I picked it up for like a quarter at the downtown library’s used book store.
One is an extremely talented writer and artist that has altered the landscape of their art. The other is some British guy I just heard about yesterday.
The thing about Gaga is that she’s a multifaceted experience. She doesn’t just do pop vocals. She does fashion. She does performance. Her shows, for example, feature a storyline with a full theatrical performance. Contrast that with, say, P Diddy or Garth Brooks.
It’s no surprise that the Dope loathes her. It’s an old crowd here. You won’t like her music unless you still go clubbing. And since most of you are past those days, it’s no shock that you’re more familiar/bigger fans of the comic book guy.
Dunces I tried to read about 20 times and could never get into it. Murakami and Rushdie I just found unmoving. Obviously they have talent; I just found them lacking in heart. I’ve got The Ark Sakura unread on my shelf at home, as well - perhaps that’ll be the next one I crack open.