# You know what they sat about people with Two first Names?? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 25, 2001, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595 "2001-09-25T00:32:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FloChi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/58956e/32.png) [@FloChi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloChi)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/1 "2001-09-25T00:32:52Z")
No I don’t. This was just something I read somewhere and the context was that you can’t trust them. I have never heard this before, does anyone have any idea where it came from? Does it have any deeper meanings? Thanks for your time FloChi ---
**Author:** ![Gaspode](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/aeb1de/32.png) [@Gaspode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gaspode)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/2 "2001-09-25T01:48:10Z")
Are you sure it’s first names? There’s an oldish joke about people with hyphenated surnames (eg. Fossington-Gore, Bjelke-Peterson) that says that the mother couldn’t work out who the father was. In other words such people are the offspring of women of dubious moral character and probably illegitimate. ---
**Author:** ![racinchikki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eada6e/32.png) [@racinchikki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racinchikki)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/3 "2001-09-25T02:14:53Z")
I’ve heard the “never trust people with two first names” thing - usually in reference to, say, Billy Bob’s Used Cars, etc. Couldn’t really formulate an educated guess as to the origin, and don’t feel like coming up with a WAG - just saying that yeah, I’ve heard it too. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/4 "2001-09-25T02:26:46Z")
Maybe it is an oblique way of saying you shouldn’t trust the poor. ---
**Author:** ![tavalla](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tavalla/32/89_2.png) [@tavalla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tavalla)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/5 "2001-09-25T02:49:02Z")
As the proud possessor of a double-barrelled first name, all I have to say to that is “😛 😛 😛 😛 😛 😛 😛 😛 :p” [sub]Psst - wanna buy a used car?[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![23skidoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/f04885/32.png) [@23skidoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/23skidoo)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/6 "2001-09-25T03:26:46Z")
Did you mean a person like “Billy Bob Thornton” who has two names to his first name? Or did you mean someone like “Paul Simon”, whose last name is really a first name? I’m one of the latter, and sneaky as all git out. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/7 "2001-09-25T03:30:22Z")
Don’t say that to Emily Elizabeth, or she’ll sic her [big red dog](http://pbskids.org/clifford) on you. :D:D ---
**Author:** ![Doughboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@Doughboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doughboy)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/8 "2001-09-25T03:33:30Z")
I’ve heard it to mean somebody who has a last name that is usually a first name, like skidoo said. Dave Thomas for example, or Marc Anthony. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/9 "2001-09-25T04:00:05Z")
I think what the saying means is that many infamous criminals are known by their full name; Lee Harvey Oswald, James Earl Rey, Mark David Chapman, John Wayne Gacy, etc. But appearances are deceiving. Usually the first time most people hear the name of a criminal is via a police bulletin. And listing the full name of a suspect is standard police procedure. Most of these criminals were not known by their full names to the people who actually knew them in life. ---
**Author:** ![saudade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@saudade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saudade)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/10 "2001-09-25T04:11:13Z")
When I was a kid, I usually only heard my first, middle, and last name together when I was in deep trouble - mainly from my mom. Maybe that’s what the FBI is doing. They are basically a parent on the front porch yelling “Darryl Wayne Johnson, you get back into maximum security or there’s going to be no supper for you”! ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/11 "2001-09-25T04:40:54Z")
Besides the police report, the media uses the full name of notorious criminals to disambiguate them from other people with the same first and last names. For instance, there are several other Mark Chapman’s around, but probably none have the middle name of David. Even so, many of them still collect abuse from the usual idiots who find their names in the phone book. ---
**Author:** ![saudade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@saudade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saudade)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/12 "2001-09-25T04:51:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dtilque \* > \*\*For instance, there are several other Mark Chapman’s around, but probably none have the middle name of David. Even so, many of them still collect abuse from the usual idiots who find their names in the phone book. \*\* According to the IMDB, an actor named “Mark Lindsay Chapman” lost a role because of his name… [http://us.imdb.com/Name?Chapman,+Mark+Lindsay](http://us.imdb.com/Name?Chapman,+Mark+Lindsay) But given the title of the project, it was probably unavoidable. ---
**Author:** ![kniz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@kniz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kniz)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/13 "2001-09-25T05:32:44Z")
My oldest son ran around with a bunch of guys and he was always talking about **Billy Ray**. One time we needed to get in touch with our son and I asked my wife if she knew Billy Ray’s last name. She said she never heard it mentioned. When our son got home I asked him and he said “Ray, of course”. I agree with **saudade** about parents using the first and middle name. It was a sure sign trouble was coming. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/14 "2001-09-25T09:32:50Z")
**Doughboy** you mean Marc Anthony the singer? Marc Anthony is his artistic name, his real name is Marco Antonio Muñiz, with Muñiz being the last name. ---
**Author:** ![Motog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85e7bf/32.png) [@Motog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motog)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/15 "2001-09-25T09:47:30Z")
My gradfather used to say “never trust a man with two first names” regularly. He was definitely referring to the Paul Simon type rather than the Billy Bob type (which was then (1960s) virtually unknown here in Australia). Mind you he had a collection of them including: - Never trust a dog with orange eyebrows - Never trust a man in a brown suit Actually, I’ve always found that the last one is a good rule to live by. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/16 "2001-09-25T13:41:41Z")
I was born with **FOUR** first names. That’s right. Four. Anyone got a problem with that??? \<------standing with fists on hips, shoulders back, eyes blazing, looking more than a little like Linda Carter in [Wonder Woman](http://wonderwoman.simplenet.com/). My parents wanted to use the names of BOTH Great-Grandfathers…oye. Cartooniverse ---
**Author:** ![AbbySthrnAccent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/eb9ed0/32.png) [@AbbySthrnAccent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AbbySthrnAccent)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/17 "2001-09-25T14:15:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Cartooniverse \* > \*\*I was born with **FOUR** first names. > > That’s right. Four. > > Anyone got a problem with that??? > > \<------standing with fists on hips, shoulders back, eyes blazing, looking more than a little like Linda Carter in [Wonder Woman](http://wonderwoman.simplenet.com/). > > My parents wanted to use the names of BOTH Great-Grandfathers…oye. > > Cartooniverse \*\* No problem with it, but can you be trusted??? ::: Hands on hips, and glaring back, but all Abby no wonder woman here.::: ---
**Author:** ![Another\_Primate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Another\_Primate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Another_Primate)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/18 "2001-09-25T14:32:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dtilque \* > Besides the police report, the media uses the full name of notorious criminals to **disambiguate** them from other people with the same first and last names. Dear **dtilque** , May I please adopt that word you just birthed? Or, at least, be a godmother to it? I love it, and I promise to feed it often. -Sue p.s. About this thread – Somehow “Mary Ann” or “Betty Lou” seems normal to me, but “Joe Bob” or “Billy Ray” sounds foreign. But then, I’ve never been south of Pennsylvania (OK, I lived in California for a while, but that’s one of those low-latitude places that aren’t ‘the south’.) It’s likely that my perception is a regional thing. ---
**Author:** ![23skidoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/f04885/32.png) [@23skidoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/23skidoo)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/19 "2001-09-25T14:57:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Little Nemo \* > \*\*I think what the saying means is that many infamous criminals are known by their full name; Lee Harvey Oswald, James Earl Rey, Mark David Chapman, John Wayne Gacy, etc. > > But appearances are deceiving. Usually the first time most people hear the name of a criminal is via a police bulletin. And listing the full name of a suspect is standard police procedure. Most of these criminals were not known by their full names to the people who actually knew them in life. \*\* This made me think of these lines from the Mel Gibson flick “Conspiracy Theory”: Jerry: David Berkowitz, Ted Bundy, Richard Speck… Alice: What about them? Jerry: Serial killers. Serial killers only have two names. You ever notice that? But lone gunmen assassins, they always have three names. John Wilkes Booth, Lee Harvey Oswald, Mark David Chapman… Alice: John Hinckley. He shot Reagan. He only has two names. Jerry: Yeah, but he only just shot Reagan. Reagan didn’t die. If Reagan had died, I’m pretty sure we probably would all know what John Hinckley’s middle name was. ---
**Author:** ![Lockfist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/838e76/32.png) [@Lockfist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lockfist)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595/20 "2001-09-25T16:38:05Z")
I can’t believe you are leaving out our 2nd favorite loafered vice cop, Phillip Michael Thomas. Three first names ! Amazing ! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-know-what-they-sat-about-people-with-two-first-names/83595.md?page=2)