Say what you will about Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul, but one thing is for sure — he has a first name and a last name that can both be first names.
He is not alone. There are countless people in the world who have surnames (last names) that sound like common given names (first names).
Some even have three "first" names. Take New York Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul for example.
Lots of famous people have Paul for a last name. There's guitar legend Les Paul, L.A. Clippers guard Chris Paul, and British actor Adrian Paul, who starred as Duncan MacLeod on the "Highlander" TV series.
When I was a kid, I knew a boy who had a last name that is an uncommon first name. His parents named him Christian Fletcher, the opposite of Fletcher Christian, the mutinous master's mate on the HMS Bounty.
But there are plenty of people who have more common names.
One of my favorites is Puerto Rican actor Raul Julia, who won the acclaim of many critics prior to his death in 1994. One of his most acclaimed roles was that of political prisoner Valentin Arregui in "Kiss of the Spider Woman." Younger folks might recognize him as Gomez Addams in two Addams Family films.
My favorite role of Raul Julia is as Roberto Strausmann, the right-hand man to the dictator in "Moon Over Parador." He enlists the help of an actor played by Richard Dreyfuss to impersonate the dead dictator to keep the citizens of Parador unaware of the death. Julia occupies the role with an understated humor.
For the record, his given name was Raul Rafael Carlos Julia y Arcelay.
Another person of note is St. Louis-born comedian, actor and activist Dick Gregory (Richard Claxton Gregory). Much of his comedy has an edge to it. Take for instance, his joke, "If it wasn't for Abe Lincoln, I'd still be on the open market."
The other day, my wife and I ran through a rather long list of famous people with last names that could be first names.
We laid two ground rules. First, they had to be common first names. Second, they could not be pluralized versions of the name.
The first stipulation would exclude George Harrison even through his last name can be a first name in the case of someone like Harrison Ford.
The second stipulation removes people like sportscaster Al Michaels, Poison lead singer and reality TV star Bret Michaels (Bret Michael Sychak), and actress Julia Roberts from the conversation.
This week's trivia contains some of my wife's suggestions. Thank you, honey.
The topic of this week's trivia is first names as last names.
1. Who played comic book vigilante "The Punisher" in the 2004 film?
2. What co-creator of "Seinfeld" stars in the HBO series "Curb Your Enthusiasm"?
3. Who won a best supporting actress Oscar in 1966 for her role as Honey in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"
4. What character did Tommy Lee Jones play in the film version of "The Fugitive"?
5. What British actor stars as the title character in the TV drama "House"?
6. What former major league pitcher's name is commonly used in reference to a surgery called ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction?
7. Who played Doug Heffernan in the TV series "The King of Queens"?
8. What actress was nominated for a 1996 best actress Oscar for her role as Katharine Clifton in "The English Patient"?
9. Who served as the first chief justice of the Supreme Court of the United States?
10. What director's credits include "The Terminator," "Alien" and "Avatar"?
ANSWERS: 1. Thomas Jane. 2. Larry David. 3. Sandy Dennis. 4. Samuel Gerard. 5. Hugh Laurie. 6. Tommy John. 7. Kevin James. 8. Kristin Scott Thomas. 9. John Jay. 10. James Cameron.
Shawn Clubb is managing editor of the Suburban Journals for St. Louis and St. Charles counties. You can contact him at sclubb@yourjournal.com.
