It’s the Ten Famous People You’d Enjoy Having Over for Dinner meme, via Adam.
Though it’s not stated explicitly, I’m going to limit it to living individuals. Otherwise, the list gets way too long, way too quickly.
I’m also going to assume that language translation won’t be a problem.
- George W. Bush
- Pope John Paul II
- Joss Whedon
- Joe Straczynski
- Saddam Hussein
- Bill Gates
- Molly Ivins
- Jon Stewart
- James Lileks
- Steve Martin
My goal would be to have interesting conversations that would give me a chance to hear some answers I might not get otherwise.
I suspect most of the conversation would be political in nature. Which is fine.
As I considered the list (and I suspect I could refine this for days), I was surprised by how few political leaders, though, I had. I want George, both because I think he’d be a convivial dinner guest and because I’d love a chance for a sit-down with him. After him, though, while it would be interesting to have some other Administration member, or high-ranking Congresscritter, or Supreme Court Justice, nobody stands out that prominently.
(George, Sr., might be kind of interesting, too.)
Saddam is the “short-timer” on the list. I’d just like to chat with him (and be a fly on the wall as the others did, too.)
There are few entertainment celebrities in the list above (no “movie stars” except Martin, who’s proven himself in other media, and no singers). By and large, aside from stammering that I enjoyed their work in X, I’m not sure there’s much more there would be to discuss. Maybe I need to make a separate list of them.
Stewart and Martin both would be wild cards, and I think they would keep things going at a nice simmer (as would Ivins — I wish I could think of some other women, too).
And, damn, I’d love to get JMS and Whedon in the same room. Who knows what might happen … (If JMS couldn’t make it, I’d take Peter David as an alternate.)
that list makes my head hurt…