The 101 Most Influential People Who Never Lived: How Characters of Fiction, Myth, Legends, Television, and Movies Have Shaped Our Society, Changed Our Behavior, and Set the Course of History (Paperback)

by Dan Karlan (Author), Allan Lazar (Author), Jeremy Salter (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
In the opening pages of this entertaining compendium of influential characters, myths and legends, the authors ponder whether the Wright brothers would have built the first airplane without the legendary example of Icarus and Daedalus. Perhaps, the authors muse, the Wright brothers would have built something else altogether. Authors and friends Karlan, a computer programmer, Lazar, a former faculty member at the Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons, and Jeremy Salter, an analytical chemist, followed two criteria to determine their admittedly subjective list-"the number of people affected and the depth of impact." Darth Vader, Charlie Brown and Mr. Whipple did not make the list ("popular" does not always translate as "influential," explain the authors). However, Dr. Frankenstein's monster, Uncle Tom, G.I. Joe and HAL 9000 did, largely due to their impact on popular culture and how we define ourselves. Of particular note are the book's "Did You Know" boxes, which offer figures and trivia.
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Product Description

From Santa Claus to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, from Uncle Sam to Uncle Tom, here is a compelling, eye-opening, and endlessly entertaining compendium of fictional trendsetters and world-shakers who have helped shape our culture and our lives. The 101 Most Influential People Who Never Lived offers fascinating histories of our most beloved, hated, feared, and revered invented icons and the indelible marks they made on civilization, including:

# 28: Rosie the Riveter, the buff, blue-collar factory worker who helped jump-start the Women's Liberation movement

# 7: Siegfried, the legendary warrior-hero of Teutonic nationalism responsible for propelling Germany into two world wars

# 80: Icarus, the headstrong high-flyer who inspired the Wright brothers and humankind's dreams of defying gravity . . . while demonstrating the pressing need for flight insurance

# 58: Saint Valentine, the hapless, de-canonized loser who lost his heart and head at about the same time

# 43: Barbie, the bodacious plastic babe who became a role model for millions of little girls, setting an impossible standard for beauty and style

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Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Harper Paperbacks (October 17, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061132217
• ISBN-13: 978-0061132216
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #98,654 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A great concept-- but not particularly well done, May 18, 2007

By	L. F. Smith (E. Wenatchee, WA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I read a review of this book in a magazine, and I was intrigued by the concept: Michael Hart's "The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History" deals with actual people; wouldn't it be possible and useful to do the same with fictional characters? Yes, it would, but, unfortunately, the authors don't execute the concept very well.

The problem for me isn't the rankings. After, all, they're admittedly subjective, and in the end, they don't matter that much any way. The thing that I found jarring at first-- and then grating as I read on-- was the uneven quality of the essays. I suspect that this was in part due to the simple fact that there are three co-authors. It would be very difficult to coordinate the styles and lengths of the essays.

More seriously, though, they clearly didn't attempt to coordinate the point of the essays. That is, some of them are straight biographies. Some are pop-cultural analyses of the significance of the characters. Some are political screeds. Some are failed attempts to be cutsie, best illustrated by the essay supposedly written by an author's dog. Many of the essays read as though they were responses to homework assignments that were written at the last second by a student hoping that his teacher will mistake generalities and clever wordplay for content.

Now, this isn't to say that I hated the book; in fact, I actually liked it. It's just that it disappointed me. With a little more authorial discipline-- or maybe stronger editorial control-- it could have been a GREAT book.

So, in summary, I think it's worth reading, and it's entertaining, but I believe it could have been so much better.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing that Fictional People Have the Influence they Do, December 9, 2006

By	John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Well you can pretty much guess what this book is all about just from reading the title. The only thing left to argue about is the content of the list. Uncle Sam is there, as is Uncle Tom, there's Sherlock Holmes and Luke Skywalker. But there's no Harry Potter, perhaps when he grows up. Mickey Mouse is there, along with Buck Rogers and Superman, but no Charlie Brown or any of the Peanuts gang. Atticus Finch is there - Who's that again? Atticus Finch, the defense lawyer in To Kill a Mockingbird.

I could go on, but with 101 people to argue about it would take forever.

After you argue about who is included in the list, then you can start to argue about their ranking. I can't believe that The Marlboro Man #1, ranks higher than Santa Claus - #4.

With each name on the list there is a page or three of description as to who is this person and why he was included. All in all, this shows an amazing amount of research into these characters and I must admit present pretty good arguments to justify their inclusion.

Pretty good arguments, wrong, but pretty good.

Delightful reading.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting concept, disappointing execution, November 30, 2007

By	Jacob A. Manalan (seattle, wa United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As a person with a long and meaningful relationship with fiction, I was excited to read a book based on the effects of fictional persons on a societal level.
However, most of the book is dedicated to introducing you to these characters, their history and introduction, and very little time (almost no time) is spent talking about the cultural impact. For instance, Superman (#64) is introduced as a creation in comics and later discussed how he differs from conventional heroes, followed by a discussion of a few later incarnations. There is no discussion about the hero mentality, the usage of Superman in language to embody the exceptional. There isn't even a note about the irony with the Nazi "superman" concept.

The book is broken up into a series of individual character vignettes of about 2 pages each. They offer a brief history of the character with some relatively mediocre quips of humor. The information offered is not a discussion of the impact of fictional characters, so much, as a simple introduction to each character in turn.

Even at the beginning of the book with their self proclaimed "subjective" ranking, they fail to offer any kind of metric or ideal on how they rated each character. They may have, for all I know, picked the names out of a hat, which would be why Buffy the Vampire Slayer is listed as MORE influential than Helen of Troy, Batman, and Atticus Finch.

The writing is ok, and the content is amusing. The book is a simple overview of 101 fictional characters in a quick and relatively enjoyable fashion. Their influence and impact remain pretty much unmentioned.

Probably a decent bathroom book, since each character has an isolated area that can be read in any order. However, I can't recommend it for more than that.