Being in a similar situation, I feel for
ElectricSound. I know all too well the pain of sharing a name with a famous person. But, there is a twist.
The person I am named after is only mildly famous, and isn't a contemporary figure, as with ElectricSound. No, I am named after an obscure patriot/hero of the American Revolution. My name is Nathan Hale (see the node if you don't know who he was).
Everytime I introduce myself, I too get a barage of questions that I am utterly fed up with.
You're name sounds familiar...do I know you from someplace?
Nope, Strike One.
Nathan Hale... Give me Liberty or give me death, right?
Ohh...swing and a miss, Strike Two. That was Patrick Henry. Nathan Hale was a spy in the American Revolution, who is famous for saying "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country" before he was executed.
Oh... I guess you get that a lot.
And its Out of the park! Holy Cow! Only... let's see... every time I meet someone!
Having the
famous person with whom you share a name be somewhat obscure is in many ways worse. People vaguely remember the name from a
history course that they took years ago, and need me to explain to them why they remember. This
opens a whole new can of worms. At least in
ElectricSound's case, everyone knows who he is named after (which leads to a totally different line of questioning).
But, I can't tell you how irritating it is to have people quote Patrick Henry when they hear my name. There must be some sort of uncertainty principle for famous names and quotes. At any given time, you can know either a famous person who said something, or what was said, but never both. (I suggest the Hale Uncertainty Principle.)
On the plus side, when asked to pick a historical figure for a history project, I have an easy choice.
Also, like ElectricSound, I like my name. It is fun being named after Nathan Hale. There's even a nuclear submarine called the USS Nathan Hale. I even have a hat and a shirt that say "USS Nathan Hale," like those navy guys wear. How neat is that? Plus, I have usually been well liked by social studies teachers, even before they know me. But still, it can get really annoying.
I really would prefer if the people who brought it up knew what they were talking about.