Remarkable Names of Real People

by John Train, Pierre Le-Tan (Illustrator), S.J. Perelman (Preface)

"In assembling this gallimaufry of actual names, the industrious Mr. Train has ransacked nature to confirm the extraordinary riches of the world around us," writes S.J. Perelman of John Train's unusual enterprise.

And here is the culmination of his search – a connoisseur's collection of the most remarkable and amusing names on record, assembled with the help of an international network of assiduous correspondents and wryly annotated by the author. The gathering reflects Mr. Train's strict standards of selection and the years of research that have been devoted to verifying the subjects' names and occupations.

An earlier smaller edition, distributed through the Paris Review under the title of How to Name Your Baby, was said to be one of the most highly stolen books in publishing history. This expanded version – its delicate drawings by Pierre Le-Tan perfectly complementing the sardonic, scholarly wit of Mr. Train – is certain to be even more fervently enjoyed.

A superbly written book, already hailed as a classic.

Genres: Humor, Nonfiction

63 pages, Hardcover

First published April 6, 1981

About the author

John Pell Coster Train was an American investment advisor and writer. He was a founding editor of The Paris Review.

Reviews

[Daniel A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

For those individuals who are more familiar with author John Train's works on business and finance, they're really missing out on some charming ephemera with his Remarkabilia series. This entry in the (non-numbered) series, Remarkable Names of Real People, or, How to Name Your Baby, is, like all the others I've read, somewhat disposable yet excellently piquant. Part of the "thing" with books such as this is that, for the most part, I'm basically unable to remember most of the names cited (with some exceptions; I don't remember whether the Wall Street Journal's conservative columnist Vermont Connecticut Royster is in this volume or Train's next, but by God, there is a Rosetta Stone—paging Cheech & Chong), but the ones I do remember, as excerpted above, are doozies. Some are suggestive, if not borderline pornographic or scatological; some are very, very weird; but all are verified by Train—as V.C. Royster's inclusion suggests.

Also part of the charm of Remarkable Names of Real People is Pierre Le-Tan's illustrations; although in True Remarkable Occurrences and Remarkable Words with Astonishing Origins, Le-Tan's illustrations reflect the content of the books, here they don't, which beautifully reflects the utter whimsy of this volume. In addition, the introduction by S.J. Perelman complements the content wonderfully. All in all, a fun and delightful book.

[reading is my hustle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I came across this book while weeding and brought it home this weekend. Here are some of my favorite entries:

Ima & Ura Hogg
Houston, TX

Iona Victory Bond
Victoria, British Columbia

Mary Louise Pantzaroff
Huron County, Ohio

Silence Bellows
Editor
(Christian Science Monitor)

Warren Peace
Williams College, Massachusetts

[john lambert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an odd little book. Just 62 pages filled with some very strange names. Plus, probably a dozen line drawings of some of the oddly-named folks. The drawings are also great. All the names are 'confirmed' to be real people with some address or source given. See below.

I've never heard of John Train nor the illustrator, Pierre Le-Tan. But they're both very talented.

Now I used to collect odd names myself. When I worked for a bank in the city there were promotion lists of people who became a VP, for instance. My favorites and the ones I remember:
Monica B. Superville.
Rutherford G. Toohig (Rutherford actually called me one day about some business, introducing himself as "Rutherford G. Toohig, friends call me Rud..." I was so tempted to call him Rud, but didn't. I liked the name so much I put it in my first novel.)

Highlights are pretty much on any page, so opening to page 30.
Charles Adolphe Faux-Pas Bidet
Commissaire de Police
Paris, Franc

Firman A. Gryp
Banker
Palo Alto, CA

(Madame) Fouqueau de Pussy
Authoress

It's silly and fun.

[Sofia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Found this while packing up books as we prepare to movie. Read it in a few minutes. A couple of entries made me smirk, but a book like this, which came out in 1977, doesn’t quite have the same edge given the internet, not to mention the variety of names one encounters today. The illustrations by Pierre Le-Tan, however, are delightful.

[Elle · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Judd Maltin]

This book has entertained me for the last 40 years. We found it when it was first published, and it's been with me ever since.

Ivan Odor.

[furious · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book is GREAT for giving characters silly names. outside of that...

[Grete · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusing, but lingers unnecessarily in the gutter.