# Steve Austin X 2 **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 20, 1999, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steve-austin-x-2/3534 "1999-09-20T03:49:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 1999, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steve-austin-x-2/3534/21 "1999-09-22T08:06:00Z")
When Steve Austin was on the Late Late Show, Kilborn asked him if he got the idea of his wrestling name from the Six Millon Dollar Man. Austin laughed at the question, but didn’t really answer it. I still don’t see how he can be sued for that. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 1999, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steve-austin-x-2/3534/22 "1999-09-22T13:29:00Z")
Just an aside, because I think this is trivia that needs to be removed from my brain please: Michael J Fox included his initial so as not to be Michael Fox (whoever he was) an already registered actor. Except Michael’s middle name is Andrew! But who wants to be ‘Michael. A fox.’? Not him. So in honour of funky actor Michael J Pollard, he chose J instead. Told you that _had_ to be removed from my brain. ---
**Author:** ![Hungry\_Boy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a183cd/32.png) [@Hungry\_Boy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hungry_Boy)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 1999, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steve-austin-x-2/3534/23 "1999-09-22T14:40:00Z")
So, would I be allowed to wrestle under the names James Bond or Jay Gatsby? How about Bone Cold Steve Austin? And wouldn’t anyone want a hunk of my T-Shirt revenues? ---
**Author:** ![Keeves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f05b48/32.png) [@Keeves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeves)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 1999, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steve-austin-x-2/3534/24 "1999-09-23T13:21:00Z")
Has anyone ever noticed that the names Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock are often followed by “TM” ? My guess is that Paramount has trademarked the names of most Star Trek characters to prevent this exact sort of thing from happening, and since the $6M Man people failed to do this, there was nothing to stop Stone Cold from taking the name. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 1999, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steve-austin-x-2/3534/25 "1999-09-23T15:28:00Z")
_Keeves: Has anyone ever noticed that the names Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock are often followed by “TM” ?_ I noticed this too. All their characters (listed on [Star Trek Continuum](http://www.startrekcontinuum.com/startrek.asp)) have TM after their name, except for “The Doctor”. Either it’s too generic, or the Doctor Who people have some claim to it. A little disturbing: they have trademarked “Q”. A letter! Does this mean that Q will never again sponsor a “Sesame Street” episode? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 1999, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steve-austin-x-2/3534/26 "1999-09-24T14:55:00Z")
Stone Cold Steve Austin is a member of the Screen Actors Guild. He wouldn’t have to be as a wrestler, but he’s appeared as an actor on at least two TV episodes, and you have to join the union before you can do your second. And, of course, Paramount hasn’t trademarked the letter “Q”. They’ve trademarked a-godlike-space-alien-named-Q. * * * John W. Kennedy “Compact is becoming contract; man only earns and pays.” – Charles Williams ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 1999, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steve-austin-x-2/3534/27 "1999-09-24T16:04:00Z")
Then what about Q of the James Bond genre? He was around before Star Trek’s Q. (Qs, queues?) ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 1999, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steve-austin-x-2/3534/28 "1999-09-28T19:48:00Z")
When I was a kid, I got a plastic model kit of the Six Million Dollar Man throwing a gorilla, and a plastic model kit of the Six Million Dollar Man kicking in a steel door. Both of these kits included little blurbs describing the Six Million Dollar Man’s origins. In both of these blurbs, “Colonel Steve Austin” did _not_ appear with a TM anywhere in his name, but “Bionic” _did_. I sure hope the folks who produced the cartoon series titled _The Bionic Six_ got permission from Harve Bennett or Universal Studios or whoever owns the trademark on “Bionic”! * * * Visit the Internet Stellar Database at [www.stellar-database.com](http://www.stellar-database.com) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steve-austin-x-2/3534.md?page=1)