Dinner guests and table talk

[AllanJ]

Covers may want to try this after dinner tease.

If it was possible to assemble 8 famous people from any point in history up to and and including the present day, to a dinner at which you would sit at the head of the table, in the expectation of fascinating/great conversation and exchange, who would they be?

To start off - a selection of mine - the text layout denotes their seating places:

..............................Me

Mohandas Gandhi...............Albert Einstein

Charles Chaplin..................Plato

Charles Dickens.................Niccolo Machiavelli

William Shakespeare...........Mae West

 

[Wes Bucey]

I suppose we are assuming we/they all speak the same language as well.

Interesting exercise - I need more time to consider the "mix" as well as the individuals. I can think of dozens of individuals for one-on-one, grouping them is much harder than I expected. Why don't you tell us what aspects of the folks you chose influenced YOUR mix?

 

[Greg B]

What a great idea.

I was thinking about all of the famous people from Sports, History, Wars, Adventure, and Politics etc that I could invite and then I thought..."Hey, these are ALL Men! And none of them are related to me...I wonder what my relatives were like?"
So I think I would Invite a relative from each of the last 8 centuries (4 male and 4 female). It would be great to discover, first hand, how I and my family arrived at where we are today and I'm sure they would love to know how their progeny have fared.(sp)

 

[Rachel]

What a great idea.

I agree!...although I'm skipping the part about "head of the table", and not putting too much concern into whether they'd get along with *each other*!

Circular table, moving clockwise:

• me
• Isaac Newton (I would be open to the possibly of a nightcap with this guy!)
• Lester B. Pearson
• David Suzuki
• Jesus Christ (hope that isn't breaking any Cove rules)
• Marie Curie
• Albert Einstein
• Sophia Loren (strictly as a favour to the next guest)
• my dad

Note: I reserve the right to modify this list - I threw this together rather quickly.

 

[Jim Wynne]

As with Rachel, a round table and no particular order:

Winston Churchill
Lenny Bruce
Dorothy Parker
Mike Royko
Jonathon Swift
James Thurber
Stephen Jay Gould
Samuel Clemens

 

[Aaron Lupo]

Tough call but I would have to go with:

Jesus
Genghis Kahn
Attila the Hun
Alexander the Great
Hirohito
Mussolini
Napoleon
Babe Ruth

 

[Kwilson]

Wow

What a challenge.

Here we go. This is a tough list to compile.

My Dad
Maternal Grandfather (millwright during WWII, 10 patents)
Paternal grandmother (school teacher in 1 room school house, artist)
Thomas Edison
Albert Einstein
Henry Ford
Stevie Ray Vaughan
My Dads great great grandfather (owned a foundry a long time ago)

Originally I was going to fill it with family members from past generations, then narrowed it 4 family members, can my wife and daughters be walking around the room too?

 

[jmp4429]

At the risk of sounding un-intellectual, I'll say that I prefer my dinner parties to be a little bit rowdy, resembling a circus. That being said, I'd invite the following people over for a barbecue:

George W. Bush
Michael Waltrip (The man just isn't right. I find him intensely amusing.)
R. Lee Ermey
My Baby Brother (He's famous in his own mind.)
Chesty Puller (I know my brother would love to meet him.)
Ann Coulter
Toby Keith
Tony Hawks (Not Tony Hawk, the skateboarder)

I picture the results being something of a train wreck.

 

[Claes Gefvenberg]

Good idea. My selection in no particular order of preference:

Leonardo da Vinci
William Shakespeare
Marie Curie
Isaac Asimov
Amelia Erhardt
Attila the Hun
The unknown soldier from L'arc de Triomphe
Mahatma Gandhi

/Claes

 

[Randy Stewart]

If I was to sit down with the people that I'll list, I probable wouldn't be able to talk because I would be in awe.

U. S. Grant
George Patton
Neil Armstrong
Ronald Reagan
Any Marine from the Utah Beach Landing on D-Day
Any Marine from Iwo Jima