I share a name with a very famous professional athlete. I don't even think about it usually but as soon as I have to give my name to someone I can pretty much count on some remark about the athlete by the same name.
I've dealt with this in many ways over the years but my most recent method is to pretend to have never heard of that famous person by the same name. That makes the conversation awkward and they usually move on.
Also, if you meet someone who shares a name with a celebrity, keep these things in mind:
- There is nothing you can say about it that is funny or clever. We have heard it all before. Just don't.
- If you do have something to say about it that is truly original and absolutely hilarious, see the previous rule.
My brother in doppelnamer!!
I share a name with a fairly famous actor with a very uncommon name. After the βwait, is your name really XYZ?β comment I just say βyep, no relation.β with a laugh. I get it about once a week. It used to irritate me but itβs a good icebreaker, and they never forget my name.
I am just grateful he keeps himself out of trouble. Michael Bolton is rough, but no one wants to be the other Jeffrey Epstein.
Yeah, it could be worse. I used to work with a guy who shared a name with some random executive that went on a racist tirade that went public. He had to lock down his social media because of all of the death threats.
Father Johnathan?
A friend of my brother has the same name as a Muppet. Used to haul his ID out in bars and use it as an ice breaker. I mean he could have used "me like you" as an ice breaker, given his physical appearance, so not sure how much of an advantage this gave him.
Edit: just realized I inadvertently imitated Cookie Monster, but it was a different Muppet.
Definitely Elmo
My money's on Guy Smiley
Wasn't there an American president named Elmo something?
Well there was president Grover Cleveland; and president Teddy Roosevelt had a son named Kermit. Jim Henson liked to use historical names occasionally for Muppet characters. No Elmos in the White House yet though.
Bunsen Honeydew
.... Floyd Pepper?
Bobby Benson