Has anyone famous ever posted on Metafilter/Askmetafilter? April 28, 2021 11:20 AM Subscribe
Pretty self-explanatory. I'm asking solely out of curiosity.
Define “famous” - Alex Goldman, John Scalzi, Charlie Stross, and Scott Adams (ugh) are all “famous” for various degrees of fame, and have posted and/or commented at different points. Beyonce has probably not posted anything.
posted by Going To Maine at 11:37 AM on April 28, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by Going To Maine at 11:37 AM on April 28, 2021 [5 favorites]
Relevant MefiWiki articles:
Famous
Hey, That's Me!
posted by zamboni at 11:40 AM on April 28, 2021 [7 favorites]
Famous
Hey, That's Me!
posted by zamboni at 11:40 AM on April 28, 2021 [7 favorites]
Do comments count? I have written a few.
posted by trotz dem alten drachen at 11:42 AM on April 28, 2021
posted by trotz dem alten drachen at 11:42 AM on April 28, 2021
Yes, comments absolutely dount
posted by BadgerDoctor at 11:42 AM on April 28, 2021
posted by BadgerDoctor at 11:42 AM on April 28, 2021
Count...
posted by BadgerDoctor at 11:42 AM on April 28, 2021
posted by BadgerDoctor at 11:42 AM on April 28, 2021
Steve Wozniak was my personal favorite.
posted by JanetLand at 12:14 PM on April 28, 2021 [18 favorites]
posted by JanetLand at 12:14 PM on April 28, 2021 [18 favorites]
Linda Holmes seems pretty peachy-keen.
Fame is like a fishbowl, and human beings aren't designed for constant, waterlogged exposure. I hope some celebrities keep their RL identities close to the vest when joining up, or opt for sockpuppetry later on. They get to have an outlet, and this community benefits from their contributions.
[I miss not-George Clooney.]
posted by Iris Gambol at 12:17 PM on April 28, 2021 [5 favorites]
Fame is like a fishbowl, and human beings aren't designed for constant, waterlogged exposure. I hope some celebrities keep their RL identities close to the vest when joining up, or opt for sockpuppetry later on. They get to have an outlet, and this community benefits from their contributions.
[I miss not-George Clooney.]
posted by Iris Gambol at 12:17 PM on April 28, 2021 [5 favorites]
Oh brain twist, flashed on Holmes, no that was Elizabeth Holmes.
posted by sammyo at 1:05 PM on April 28, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by sammyo at 1:05 PM on April 28, 2021 [1 favorite]
How dare
posted by Iris Gambol at 1:05 PM on April 28, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by Iris Gambol at 1:05 PM on April 28, 2021 [2 favorites]
Kristen Roupenian, author of the famed New Yorker short story Cat Person, is a Metafilter member. (She used a sock in that thread to preserve the anonymity of her regular account.)
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 1:39 PM on April 28, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 1:39 PM on April 28, 2021 [5 favorites]
There’s a famous Mefite that shows up in the “Nearby users” section of my profile.
Everyone knows it’s impossible to impersonate someone on the internet, so we can all be sure it’s definitely him.
posted by Huffy Puffy at 2:09 PM on April 28, 2021 [7 favorites]
Everyone knows it’s impossible to impersonate someone on the internet, so we can all be sure it’s definitely him.
posted by Huffy Puffy at 2:09 PM on April 28, 2021 [7 favorites]
A guy named Matthew Haughey fits the definition of famous around here.
posted by beagle at 2:10 PM on April 28, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by beagle at 2:10 PM on April 28, 2021 [5 favorites]
You're all famous to me.
posted by aniola at 3:48 PM on April 28, 2021 [13 favorites]
posted by aniola at 3:48 PM on April 28, 2021 [13 favorites]
To my mind, asavage is the most famous consistent user of the site.
posted by Horace Rumpole at 4:05 PM on April 28, 2021 [14 favorites]
posted by Horace Rumpole at 4:05 PM on April 28, 2021 [14 favorites]
(watch very closely for the removal of this sign)
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:46 PM on April 28, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:46 PM on April 28, 2021 [3 favorites]
I'm not famous but my work has been published in over 30 books.
posted by b33j at 2:28 AM on April 29, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by b33j at 2:28 AM on April 29, 2021 [2 favorites]
Inactive but not buttoned - Tom Watson MP, former deputy leader of UK Labour party
posted by crocomancer at 3:04 AM on April 29, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by crocomancer at 3:04 AM on April 29, 2021 [2 favorites]
I like to think of myself as pre-famous, and I've been posting here for years. I'll let everyone know when I'm officially famous.
(Infamous counts, rights?)
posted by Pater Aletheias at 5:35 AM on April 29, 2021 [6 favorites]
(Infamous counts, rights?)
posted by Pater Aletheias at 5:35 AM on April 29, 2021 [6 favorites]
Miguel Esteves Cardoso, who is quite well known in Portugal, used to post and comment here a ton back in the old days, wonderful stuff, but is seldom seen now.
posted by JanetLand at 6:08 AM on April 29, 2021 [9 favorites]
posted by JanetLand at 6:08 AM on April 29, 2021 [9 favorites]
Don't see Mefi's own Mythbuster Adam Savage (asavage) listed yet, but haven't check the compilations posted - I assume he's there. Wasn't there an ask thread where he helped a person "break" back into their place after they locked themselves out?
On preview - yup, previously mentioned, I just fail at reading. Oh well.
posted by cgg at 7:33 AM on April 29, 2021
On preview - yup, previously mentioned, I just fail at reading. Oh well.
posted by cgg at 7:33 AM on April 29, 2021
In my opinion GaelFC was the most exciting celebrity user Metafilter ever had but she hasn't posted since 2011. She wrote the Pop Culture Junk Mail blog and, I just discovered, some books!
posted by Jess the Mess at 8:28 AM on April 29, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by Jess the Mess at 8:28 AM on April 29, 2021 [2 favorites]
Well, Scott Adams notoriously did.
Somehow, just this morning I realized that it's been 10 years since that encounter. How strange.
posted by a Rrose by any other name at 11:03 AM on April 29, 2021 [3 favorites]
Somehow, just this morning I realized that it's been 10 years since that encounter. How strange.
posted by a Rrose by any other name at 11:03 AM on April 29, 2021 [3 favorites]
In my opinion GaelFC was the most exciting celebrity user Metafilter ever had
Heck yeah! She's a friend of my mom. My most recent "sighting" occurred some months back when I was researching a Zamboni fire (because Zamboni fire), scrolled up on the article I'd just read, and discovered that she of all people had written it.
posted by Carouselle at 12:44 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]
Heck yeah! She's a friend of my mom. My most recent "sighting" occurred some months back when I was researching a Zamboni fire (because Zamboni fire), scrolled up on the article I'd just read, and discovered that she of all people had written it.
posted by Carouselle at 12:44 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]
pre-famous
Surely, a temporarily embarrassed famous person...
posted by porpoise at 2:42 PM on April 29, 2021 [3 favorites]
Surely, a temporarily embarrassed famous person...
posted by porpoise at 2:42 PM on April 29, 2021 [3 favorites]
There was that time that someone posted an AskMe to ask people to identify a "bald, bad complexion, menacing, sandpaper voiced, beady-eyed actor" they had seen in some project or other. The actor was eventually identified as Dan Moran, and Dan himself showed up in the thread to say hi.
posted by orange swan at 4:51 PM on April 29, 2021 [10 favorites]
posted by orange swan at 4:51 PM on April 29, 2021 [10 favorites]
The surly yet sorely missed David Graeber showed up, provoking a contentious post on the grey.
I know there are a couple of lurking authors other than scalzi and cstross who have some modest fame in SFF circles.
posted by Frowner at 5:19 PM on April 29, 2021 [10 favorites]
I know there are a couple of lurking authors other than scalzi and cstross who have some modest fame in SFF circles.
posted by Frowner at 5:19 PM on April 29, 2021 [10 favorites]
Oh, that's neat, Carouselle! I'm glad to see she's still out there doing her thing. I miss PCJM - it seems like a relic of a more innocent time now.
posted by Jess the Mess at 6:25 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by Jess the Mess at 6:25 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]
Tao Lin, until he was banned. Which was after one post astroturfing about Tao Lin.
posted by dobbs at 11:55 AM on April 30, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by dobbs at 11:55 AM on April 30, 2021 [2 favorites]
I hope the deletion reason was "Go to bed Tao Lin."
posted by thatwhichfalls at 12:32 PM on April 30, 2021
posted by thatwhichfalls at 12:32 PM on April 30, 2021
Thanks for the link, Freelance Demiurge. Had no idea jesus had been on the blue for 20 years.
posted by Bella Donna at 11:29 AM on May 1, 2021
posted by Bella Donna at 11:29 AM on May 1, 2021
Pull that trigger.
Notice the institences of some " famous" have run the Metafilter gauntlet. Cannot put a metric on it but several examples exist in this thread. I have always wondered about those who did appear. Shawn Wallace for example. Jesus.
Ford was famous but so was Billy Durant. Betting person may say the later prevails in the annals of history. So famous is relative.
but jscalz is a favorite. Miguel was probably the most prolific, man ran the gauntlet and charmed and delighted the hell out of one. Anything else is sorta name dropping like if I said in the field of Linguistics, Languagehat is famous but I won't say that.
posted by clavdivs at 10:27 PM on May 1, 2021 [2 favorites]
Notice the institences of some " famous" have run the Metafilter gauntlet. Cannot put a metric on it but several examples exist in this thread. I have always wondered about those who did appear. Shawn Wallace for example. Jesus.
Ford was famous but so was Billy Durant. Betting person may say the later prevails in the annals of history. So famous is relative.
but jscalz is a favorite. Miguel was probably the most prolific, man ran the gauntlet and charmed and delighted the hell out of one. Anything else is sorta name dropping like if I said in the field of Linguistics, Languagehat is famous but I won't say that.
posted by clavdivs at 10:27 PM on May 1, 2021 [2 favorites]
Clearly, the quidnunc kid deserves a shoutout in this thread.
posted by infini at 8:21 AM on May 2, 2021 [7 favorites]
posted by infini at 8:21 AM on May 2, 2021 [7 favorites]
I was Time Magazine's person of the year in 2006.
posted by roue at 8:37 AM on May 2, 2021 [6 favorites]
posted by roue at 8:37 AM on May 2, 2021 [6 favorites]
Hey! I was TIME’s person of the year in 2006!
posted by Going To Maine at 12:57 PM on May 2, 2021
posted by Going To Maine at 12:57 PM on May 2, 2021
Rereading the plannedchaos thread never gets old...
posted by Windopaene at 9:35 PM on May 2, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by Windopaene at 9:35 PM on May 2, 2021 [3 favorites]
The thread immediately below this one on the passing of Metafilter user Dan Kaminsky - he was pretty famous in the technology community and probably a recognizable name to 10’s of thousands of security nerds. Not super-famous - but famous enough that a lot of people were shocked and upset by his (way too soon) passing.
posted by inflatablekiwi at 6:53 PM on May 3, 2021
posted by inflatablekiwi at 6:53 PM on May 3, 2021
In an old episode of the podcast Talking Simpsons, they had on artist Nina Matsumoto as a guest. She was talking about her career doing Simpsons comics at Bongo Comics, and how she broke in when her "The Simpsonzu" image went viral in 2007. She mentions offhand that she met Matt Groening at some convention that year, and he praised the picture which he said he had seen on MetaFilter.
So at some point in the mid-2000s, Matt Groening apparently walked among us.
posted by star gentle uterus at 8:16 AM on May 4, 2021 [2 favorites]
So at some point in the mid-2000s, Matt Groening apparently walked among us.
posted by star gentle uterus at 8:16 AM on May 4, 2021 [2 favorites]
Matt Groening apparently walked among us
His name makes me shudder after Virginia Guiffre described having to massage his crusty feet under Epstein's watch.
“I was enjoying our conversation, when Jeffrey insisted that I give Matt a foot massage throughout the duration of the short flight. I never turned down a client but when I saw the shape of his feet, I nearly threw up at the thought of having to touch them. He had yellow crusty toenails that even someone with a chainsaw would’ve had troubles cutting through and then there was the fluffy balls of leftover pieces of sock wedged between the crevices of his sweaty toes, now that was the real icing on the cake for me, no way could I attempt this I thought. Then I had an idea. I went to the back of the plane and rinsed a wash cloth in warm soapy water and returned for his dreaded foot massage but not before attempting to clean them first.
She was 16.
posted by Dressed to Kill at 9:00 PM on May 5, 2021
His name makes me shudder after Virginia Guiffre described having to massage his crusty feet under Epstein's watch.
“I was enjoying our conversation, when Jeffrey insisted that I give Matt a foot massage throughout the duration of the short flight. I never turned down a client but when I saw the shape of his feet, I nearly threw up at the thought of having to touch them. He had yellow crusty toenails that even someone with a chainsaw would’ve had troubles cutting through and then there was the fluffy balls of leftover pieces of sock wedged between the crevices of his sweaty toes, now that was the real icing on the cake for me, no way could I attempt this I thought. Then I had an idea. I went to the back of the plane and rinsed a wash cloth in warm soapy water and returned for his dreaded foot massage but not before attempting to clean them first.
She was 16.
posted by Dressed to Kill at 9:00 PM on May 5, 2021
I love this thread because my response to about 80% of the examples is "who"? Fame is utterly relative and if I told you Paul McDermott or hell, even Julia Gillard were on MetaFilter I bet 90% of you would say "who"? (To my knowledge neither of my examples is on MeFi.)
Because I am a librarian of a certain age, my famous suggestion is jessamyn.
posted by Athanassiel at 2:20 PM on May 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
Because I am a librarian of a certain age, my famous suggestion is jessamyn.
posted by Athanassiel at 2:20 PM on May 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
His name makes me shudder after Virginia Guiffre described having to massage his crusty feet under Epstein's watch.
Back when he was only famous for his Life in Hell comic strip, he similarly cartooned and autographed the copies of his books of that series which I gave to my somewhat underwhelmed -- because not The Simpsons -- nieces when they were young. Which I found incredibly gracious.
But then, he knew who I was from my writing for The Rocket where Life In Hell appeared at the time, so there is that. But judging from what he wrote to and what he wrote upon for the people in line ahead of me, incredibly gracious still describes his behavior at the time. He was very patient and accommodating.
posted by y2karl at 7:15 PM on May 10, 2021
In return for my services Matt was kind enough to draw me two quick sketches on blank paper from his briefcase of my two favorite characters, Homer and Bart. I asked if he wouid make them out to my little brother and dad, the true fans of the family not missing an episode during dinner over the past ten years or so. Next to the A-4 size drawing he was able to fit in the quote ‘To my greatest fan from Matt Groening’ and their names next to it. I knew they’d absolutely love it, and it was such a nice gesture his feet were no longer an issue as I laughed it off and even made a joke to the comedian about getting a pedicure before hitting beaches.Virginia Giuffre apparently forgave him for the gnarliness of his feet. And gave him fairly good advice in regards to them to boot -- I would have sent him straight to a podiatrist, myself.
“The flight was only short and we arrived in busy L.A within the hour, saying Good-Bye to Matt, who was a pleasure to meet.”
Back when he was only famous for his Life in Hell comic strip, he similarly cartooned and autographed the copies of his books of that series which I gave to my somewhat underwhelmed -- because not The Simpsons -- nieces when they were young. Which I found incredibly gracious.
But then, he knew who I was from my writing for The Rocket where Life In Hell appeared at the time, so there is that. But judging from what he wrote to and what he wrote upon for the people in line ahead of me, incredibly gracious still describes his behavior at the time. He was very patient and accommodating.
posted by y2karl at 7:15 PM on May 10, 2021
I'm incredibly famous, but unfortunately it's important that my true identity remains unknown.
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 4:25 PM on May 12, 2021
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 4:25 PM on May 12, 2021
Lady Ada, founder of Adafruit Industries, definitely isn't Beyonce-level famous – but she's a big deal in the DIY/maker electronics scene. She showed up in a thread about synthesizers (and DIY clones thereof).
Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls posted in a 2008 thread about misogynistic treatment from her record label. (I know little of Palmer or her band, but they have a lot of fans on MeFi.)
posted by escape from the potato planet at 4:09 AM on May 17, 2021
Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls posted in a 2008 thread about misogynistic treatment from her record label. (I know little of Palmer or her band, but they have a lot of fans on MeFi.)
posted by escape from the potato planet at 4:09 AM on May 17, 2021
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posted by zamboni at 11:37 AM on April 28, 2021 [10 favorites]