Another one

[cozmik_cowboy]

I just got a suggestion from LinkedIn that I add James Johnson to my network.  Intrigued, I clicked and checked him out:  Nope; not a football coach, a racy-car driver, a cartoonist, a Muscle Shoals guitarist, a Chicago guitarist (that one would be a trick......), or an amazing bassist.  This dude is a Professor Emeritus of Finance at Northern Illinois University.  Now, I know several NIU Emeriti, but finance?  Nope.  Didn't add him.


Oh well.........


Peter (who would have jumped at the chance to add several of the other Jimmys J)

[edwardofhuncote]

I wonder how often this has happened to our buddy Jimmy J. over the years? 

True story; I have a last name that is a bit unusual. It's also where my internet handle comes from. Huncote is a small village in the central U.K. my ancestors left about 400 years ago. Sailed from the London Docks on July 24th, 1635 actually. Upon landing here, when asked who he was and where from, William replied he was William, of Huncote. Phonetically, it sounded like... how it's spelled today; Honeycutt. There are a couple other spellings, but the English to American generally went close to that, so when I run into someone else with that name, I know we are absolutely related somehow.

Several years ago, I got what I thought at first was a scam email. It looked like a receipt for a camera, a nice one too. I hadn't bought any camera. So I clicked nothing but the red X, and deleted the email. Another one followed up, my camera was ready to ship. The address and contact information was somewhere in Northern California. Wait, what?! So I looked up the business, it was legitimate. It was not my card information, and I had not been charged, but there were definitely some crossed wires, so I called the shop. They thought I was either nuts or wanted to scam them somehow. So I called the phone number to this person who bought a camera to let them know their camera receipt had come to me, and, well... sorry about that. And... it was someone else who actually had my exact, same name. Our email addresses are one letter different, and I got his receipt accidentally.

Turned out, the other Gregory Honeycutt is descended from my great-grandfather's estranged brother who had pulled up stakes and relocated to the other side of the Country 100 years ago. We never heard from them again. 95% of us are in Western North Carolina and Southwest Virginia.

[JimmyJ]

Good story Greg, what a surprise!

I must say I've enjoyed the anonymity of having a very common name.  Especially in this day of info sharing and "targeted marketing" BS.  I try to keep a low profile online and the name helps a bit.

The only trouble it used to cause was when reentering the USA after traveling abroad. I would always get pulled out of line and asked questions like: "have you ever lived in Florida?" Or "do you have any tattoos?".  It turns out the INS had records of one or two Jimmy Johnsons - possibly with my same DOB - who had felony records. So I was to expect that questioning every time. 

Happily, with "Global Entry" things have gotten better.  So much better in fact that all I had to do last week was LOOK at the kiosk machine's camera and it gave me the green light.  Hmmm, that's a bit unsettling...

One more same-name story for you.  Several years ago I was staying at the Parker Meridian in midtown NYC, a common place for touring bands to stay, when my in-room phone rang:
"Jimmy?"
"Yeah"
"Jimmy Johnson?"
"Thats me"
"Jimmy Johnson the bass player?"
"You're talking to him"
"... with Reba?"
"um ... NO!"

Turns out Reba McEntire's touring bassist at that time was a JJ working out of Nashville.  I never met the guy but that experience cracked me up.

OK, as you were...
Jimmy J (you know, the one who hangs out in the Alembic Club)

[gtrguy]

A few years back at Christmas I used to regularly get a nice gift box of BBQ meat from Texas from someone with the same last name as me.
I know they were thinking I was someone else though, and it stopped after a few years. I now think I should have started sending them a card at Xmas in return where I pretended to know them, so that the BBQ kept on a-coming!

[lbpesq]

There was another William Panzer who was a Hollywood producer, known for the “Highlander” TV series.  When our son was young, he heard about the guy and thought he had built our Toyota Highlander SUV.    Being a rare name, I’ve only met very few others with it and, when I have, it turned out we were related somewhere down the line.

Bill, tgo

[edwardofhuncote]

This one happened to my Grandmother probably 20 years ago, I reckon she'd have been about 80, but quick-witted until she died at 99. Probably still is.

Phone rang in the middle of the night, woke her up. She automatically assumed something terrible had happened, so she answered. Person on the line asks;

Mrs. Honeycutt?
Yes...
I just want you to know, your son George is out running around Durham drinking and driving!
Well thank you, but since he's about 60 years old, I reckon he can do what he wants to.

*click*

In their defense, there are probably 100 George Honeycutts in the Durham, N.C. phone book. And none of them is my Dad. One of them happened to be my Grandfather though. I guess he didn't hear the phone.

[cozmik_cowboy]

My father-in-law once got pissed at me; he'd signed an e-mail to me "Charlie/Dad" and been informed "I have no father named Charlie in the United States".

Turns out he put my first initial after my last name in the addy, instead of before as I use it, and had gotten a German-born UK self-help-speaker Peter Gerlach instead.  My one and only occurrence of same-name confusion - though I have gotten many e-mail to my proper address for both Paula & Phillip (neither of whom I have any idea about).

Peter

[bigredbass]

Several years ago, for some reason, everywhere I went, somebody would look at me and say 'I KNOW you from somewhere . . . . '.  I knew better, I never forget a face (though I'm awful remembering names at first).  Over and over again.  Strange . . .

Finally, it came to me:  I'd say, 'ya know, seems like I remember you too . . . . . weren't we in River Bend at the same time (the Tennessee State Prison)?'

It semed to slack off pretty quick as it went along after that.

[cozmik_cowboy]

Several years ago, for some reason, everywhere I went, somebody would look at me and say 'I KNOW you from somewhere . . . . '.  I knew better, I never forget a face (though I'm awful remembering names at first).  Over and over again.  Strange . . .

Finally, it came to me:  I'd say, 'ya know, seems like I remember you too . . . . . weren't we in River Bend at the same time (the Tennessee State Prison)?'

It semed to slack off pretty quick as it went along after that.

Ok, I'm stealing that one (but I'll probably go with Menard - Joliet has been closed for years).

Peter

[lbpesq]

Is there a “Tennessee Prison up on Brushy Mountain”?    I’ve been singing that line for years when we play John Hiatt’s “Tennessee Plates”.

Bill, tgo

[cozmik_cowboy]

Is there a “Tennessee Prison up on Brushy Mountain”?    I’ve been singing that line for years when we play John Hiatt’s “Tennessee Plates”.

Bill, tgo

Brushy Mountain Penitentiary operated 1896-2009; it's now a tourist attraction, and houses a distillery & restaurant.

Peter