dreaming@echonyc.com

while we're on the subject of names, let me tell you about another of my freakish little obsessions. i like finding names that make a complete sentence. as an example, let us consider

george wendt

if you say it aloud, you think, "hm. i wonder where george went." you do. quit shaking your head no.

there are zillions of these. you just have to be alive to the possibilities. here are some to get you started. this list is in no way exhaustive.

• wesley snipes
  
• ben folds
  
• don knotts
  
• taye diggs
  
• george burns
  
• robin quivers
  
• puffy combs
  
• john hurt
  
• norman fell
  
• william f. burroughs
  
• rosa parks
  
• charlie rose
  
• nancy drew
  
• santa claus

the big fun begins when you start considering more complicated ones, with two words built into a single last name:

• tom sizemore
  
• sid caesar
  
• william h. macy

i once saw a writer's name in a magazine that made me shiver with joy:

• cheryl alters jamison

there is some controversy over whether imperatives are allowed, with an implied comma or without:

• buck mulligan
  
• gregory peck
  
• jennifer love hewitt
  
• bob hope

i tend to frown on these. they're cheap. however, i will make a single exception on the imperatives, so that my favorite one will pass muster:

• cher