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Name of Actor That Doesnt' Exist

#1
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1/10/05 at 10:01am
  • Joined: January 2001
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I remember reading somewhere that there is a name that has been used repeatedly in Hollywood by actors who do not want their names attached to the movie, so they use this pseydonym as sort of a joke or something.

I dont remember the name that is used. Does anyone know what I am talking about and what the name is? Thanks.

Mike Eckman
Chicago Heights, IL
Music Webpage: http://www.metalreviewcentre.com
Car Webpage: http://www.metalreviewcentre.com/transam.htm

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#2
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1/10/05 at 10:05am
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I believe it's Freddie Prinze Jr.

~T
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#3
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1/10/05 at 10:07am
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I thought it was directors: Alan Smithee, isn't it?

Kind of hard to pretend you're not in a film when you're an actor...
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#4
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1/10/05 at 10:23am
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--
H
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#5
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1/10/05 at 10:47am
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It is the director and the name *was* Alan Smithee. It is no longer used since the lid was blown off the scam. I believe "American History X" was the film that ended it, but I could be wrong.

Quote:
Kind of hard to pretend you're not in a film when you're an actor...


I agree.
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#6
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1/10/05 at 12:34pm
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Actually, Alan Smithee is still used in writing and non-directorial technical capacities (for example, Smithee did camera work on the sex tape "One Night In Paris").

As for Mike's question, I believe the name is George Spelvin.

Sincerely,

John Kilduff...

I could be wrong, though.

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#7
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1/10/05 at 1:36pm
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Here's what IMDB has to say about Mr. Smithee's professional career...

Moe.

- Confidence implies the knowledge of one\'s limitations, while arrogance implies that one does not have any.

- There\'s no such thing as \"normal\". The secret is to find someone that\'s screwed up in a way that seems \"normal\" to you.

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#8
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1/11/05 at 9:52pm
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Simone

Live Free or DIE!!!!!

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#9
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1/11/05 at 10:13pm
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Writers can use almost any pseudonym that they want to if they think their scripts have been altered excessively. Actors can't because SAG rules require them to use a registered professional name to make it easier to track residuals. Directors used to be able to take their names off a picture and use any nom du bomb they chose, until a Director's Guild of America contract with the studio introduced the single allowable psuedonym of "Alan Smithee". There is an appeals process that must be followed before the Smithee name can appear in the credits. There has never been a similar catch-all fake name for actors as far as I know.

Regards,

Joe
My Home Theater

My DVD Collection

My niece, "Miss Goofy Face"
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#10
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1/12/05 at 3:38am
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I thought it was, ironically, "An Alan Smithee Film" that ended Alan Smithee's "career"? Although the IMDB link shows credits after "An Alan Smithee Film".

American History X is still credited to Tony Kaye, although IIRC towards the end of the editing process it was taken away from him and again IIRC Ed Norton finished it? Apparently this probably was the first "good" film where the director requested a "Smithee" credit (but the DGA didn't give it to him).

Have a look at Wikipedia's listing, which is quite informative:-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Smithee

In short, Smithee was dropped after "An Alan Smithee Film", but has still been used since, and nowadays a pseudonym is used on a case by case basis, the first such being "Thomas Lee".
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#11
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1/12/05 at 12:09pm
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Quote:
I believe it's Freddie Prinze Jr.

I was thinking of Denise Richards.
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#12
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1/12/05 at 3:45pm
  • Joined: December 1969
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"Jim Belushi"

or "Any Baldwin other than Alec"

(I once read a movie review that said, "This film was so lousy I kept expecting to see Jim Belushi turn up in the next scene")

Regards,

Joe
My Home Theater

My DVD Collection

My niece, "Miss Goofy Face"
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