Famous Railroaders List - Still Growing

Yes, it should. Though why anyone should care whether "famous" people are railway modellers is beyond me.

Most of them seem fictional to me.

That's probably why you'll remain a less than notable yourself in the hobby. The fact is that famous faces, whether you know them or not, can and do influence product use and sales of those products.

I've never once been asked if I knew Mark Newton was a model railroader but I have been asked about Walter Cronkite.

See how that works?

-- Ray

What makes you think I thunk you wuz a journo??????

You're a Humpty Dumpty.

No, we're just looking for accuracy.

So? I model to satisfy myself, no-one else. If I was seeking fame, I'd choose a more reliable means to achieve that than modelling.

Ooh, "Introduction to Marketing" by Haddad...Which so-called famous face on the list has been endorsing model railroad products?

No, I don't. What product did Walter Cronkite influence you to buy and use?

Are we that insecure about our hobby that we get excited at the suggestion that an entertainer or sports player is a modeller?

Who else would train them?

Wolf Kirchmeir wrote: >>

Yeah, and you've lost the plot - as well as the ability to argue your case convincingly.

Tata!

You really do have a problem with irony, eh.

Accuracy??????

Just what was inaccurate in the subject line of this thread?

What case? Oh, I see, you need it spelled out in some detail. Ok, I'll try to be polite.

As I recall, somebody objected that the people on the original list weren't famous because they weren't well known outside the USA. So what? "Famous" does not mean "known outside the USA", it does not mean "known in Australia", it does not mean "known everywhere on Earth", etc. It just means "talked about, well known". No specification of location, place, locale, nation, planet, etc. That's my case.

You wanna use words to mean what you want 'em to mean, that's your privilege. Just don't get all shirty when others don't agree with you.

The claim that the persons on the list are all famous is inaccurate.

The problem is yours - you can't do irony very well at all.

Are you sure you're not an American?

So, they're not famous if the only people who've heard of them are dim-witted American TV viewers. That's what.

Which is exactly my point. A great many of those on the list are *NOT* "talked about, well known". So by your definition they're not famous.

I absolutely agree with the meaning of "famous" as defined. I'm s***ty that unknown non-entities are presented as famous.

I take it you don't have any response to my opinion about MRRs being insecure?

Are we that insecure about our hobby that we get excited at the suggestion that an entertainer or sports player is a modeller?

Over on the Model Railroader forums there's been any number of people pissing their pants with excitement about the magazine article featuring Rod Stewart's layout. I have no strong views one way or the other about him or his layout, but the number of posts verging on hagiography is laughable. I thought that sort of boneheaded s*it was confined to teenage girls reading about slatterns like Spears/Lohan/Hilton in some supermarket tabloid rag.

Knowing that someone like Rod Stewart has a layout has no discernable effect on me or my enjoyment of the hobby. I'd be fascinated to know why others think it's such a big deal.

Only according to your definition of "famous."

Suck it up.

The problem is that I expect people to recognise it without emoticons.

Sure they're talked about,. just not by you and the people you know. So what?

SWuck it up.

As opposed to dim-witted Ozzie TV viewers, I guess. Well, "fame/famous" is an ascriptive adjective, not a descriptive one. It should be obvious, really: if "fame/famous" means "talked about", then it can only refer to people talked about in some community of talkers. That other communities of talkers talk about other people doesn't change that. So whenever someone is characterised as "famous", that just means that there's a bunch of people somewhere among whom (s)he is well known and talked about. So you're not part of that bunch. So what?

We are each of us outsiders to almost all social circles that exist on this planet. Actually, the social circles in which we participate constitute such a small fraction of the total that in engineering terms it's "vanishingly small", and therefore irrelevant. If you'd think a little beyond your immediate experience, you might realise that one of the functions of celebrity is to enable outsiders to feel like insiders. There are many people who don't have much of a social life, or worse, don't value the social life they do have. If you do not belong in that vast category, count yourself blessed. Don't piss on their parade.

So they're not talked about by you and your friends. So what?

I wrote "shirty." NB the spelling.

Well, some are, but again, so what? Are you secure about every aspect of yourself, your personality, your life, etc?