My wife does this because her first name is the same as her mother’s, and so she’s called by her middle name. My last employer did it for the same reason as my wife. And none of us are rich.
My middle and last name are the same as the first and last name of an ancestor of mine who wasn’t really famous in any meaningful sense but did help civilize a small Little House on the Prairie-esque town in the US midwest and marry the daughter of one of the earliest settlers. I visited the town a few years ago and intentionally went around and used my full first, middle, and last name around town and, as you might expect, very few people cared. Only one or two people had even heard of my ancestor. I suppose if I ever move there I could adopt the first initial - middle name practice to emphasize my ancestry.
Parents named you Penis Ann, huh?
P.Ann O.
Was over at my friend Brad’s house, and I noticed he had a legal envelope addressed to “M. Bradley King”. I’ve known him for 20 years, and never knew Brad wasn’t his first name. I asked his wife, and she just shook her head, and said “He really doesn’t admit he’s got a legal name besides Brad”, and said I’d have to ask him.
I had to buy him multiple beers before he’d admit it. Turns out he just really hated “Morris” since he was four.
That’s Finch, F-I-N-C-H.
I worked in a bank, and having multiple generations of men with the same exact name led to all kinds of confusion; especially with credit bureaus. And it got even more confusing taking into account thinks like joint accounts or a so still living at home (or a father that moved in with his son and/or handles his finances). Personally my father, older brother, and nephew all have same exact name. My brother uses a nickname and my nephew uses his initials, except on legal stuff. I also went to high school with a IV; nobody knew until graduation. He also had two middle names, once of which was probably an ancestress’s maiden name.
Maybe one of you can answer this.
I can understand not liking your first name. What I’ve always wondered is–
Why use your first initial at all? Your name and/or signature can be whatever you want it to be–WHY, WHY, WHY would you not simply use MiddleName LastName instead of bothering with that crazy first initial?
And if it’s some formal or official event where you’re requested to sign the way it is on your ID, how does using a first initial in place of a first name help anything?
If you want to make a distinction between yourself and a relative of the same name, then use a nickname, or just your middle name, or SOMETHING besides that horrible, stupid, pretentious first initial.
Maybe it’s something like this: When I have a landline telephone, I would really rather have an unlisted number. But, I think it’s wrong to have to pay extra for that. I generally go by my first name. So, for my listing in the phone book, I gave my middle name. That way, if anyone calls asking for my middle name I just hang up. And if I get any mail addressed to my middle name it just goes directly into the circular file.
So perhaps, for some reason, John P Harkey is Mr. Harkey’s personal/friend/family name and Mr J Paul Harkey is his business/professional name?
I’ve always gone by my middle name. I was named after both grandmothers; the one whose name was selected for my first name never liked the way the name sounded when pronounced with a Southern accent, and begged my parents to either switch the order of the names or call me by my middle name.
I’ve never been accused of being pretentious for it, but a guy in one of my college classes thought it looked British.
Just realized that this is a zombie and I’ve already replied once.
Whoops…
The same reason you would use an initial for your middle name. If a full name is required, and you go by your middle name. F. Middle Last name is your name. Unless you are proposing that they go legally change it.
It’s pretentious in the same way that people around here in Northern Arkansas think that wearing a suit to work is pretentious. You just only encounter it in pretentious settings.
But specifically in the case of rich people, the initial using person might have been named after rich grandfather or uncle as a condition of the aforesaid person’s will, and using the initial only might be a way of saying “You can name me Tiberius, but I’m going to go by John”
One of the reasons I do it is to make my signature distinctive. Any credit card receipt, etc that has my full first name is clearly not me.
Simple answer: Because it’s my name.
This.
It is an easy way to distinguish yourself from someone else with the same first and last name.
I went to high school with a guy whose family had been naming their firstborn male child Carl for 300 years. He was known by his middle name, as was his father before him, and his official school records listed his first name as “C.” to avoid substitute teachers accidentally calling him by the wrong name.
My own family has a similar tradition: in … let’s say odd numbered generations, the firstborn male would have the same name as his father, but be called by his middle name. Thus John Robert (called “John”) would have a son John Robert Jr (called “Robert”) whose son might be Edward James (called “Edward”) whose son would be Edward James Jr (called “James”).
I should point out that neither my family nor the one of my friend from high school were wealthy.
That, or … my parents, in teaching me how to be a good adult and not screw up my kids lives too badly, said if one simply must indulge in a bizarre name, give the kid something to fall back on. Moonbeam Sullivan does not sound like the name of an attorney, but M. Elizabeth Sullivan works fine. 
I’ve got an uncle whose name is J.
No middle name, just the first name, and that isn’t his initial, that’s his whole name.
J. Insertlastname.
Bingo. An old friend whose first name is John styles himself on documents as “J. Richard Smith.” He’s known to his friends as simply, “Rick.” Rick doesn’t like the name John. He much prefers “Richard,” or “Rick.” So that’s how he is known. It is his name, after all; and he calls the shots. So, while schoolteachers called him Richard, his friends just called him Rick.
And Rick is hardly rich; he’s about as blue-collar as you can get. But it is his name, and he makes the rules.
I realize this post is a few years old, but I’m giggling at the thought of Pork Rind; Pork Rind, jr; Pork Rind III; Pork Rind IV.
What a Dick.
Cool! That’s classy!
In my dad’s case, it’s because he was named after his uncle…and he absolutely damn well hated that no-good son-of-a-pitchfork. He refused to use that name.