By choice or by chance, a number of actors, directors, and other celebrities share a name with another famous person. How many conversations proceed blithely along before the participants realize they’re talking about two different people with sound-alike names?
1. Anne Hathaway
Anne Hathaway (1555 or 1556 – 1623) was 25 or 26 and pregnant with their first child when she married 18-year-old William Shakespeare. Anne was stuck in Stratford with the kids while Will spent most of his time in London pursuing a career in the theater. In Will’s will he left his wife only his “second-best bed with the furniture.”
Anne Hathaway is also the birth name of the award-winning American actress (1982 – ) known for her performances in movies including Brokeback Mountain, The Devil Wears Prada, and Les Misérables.
2. Jane Seymour
Jane Seymour, (1951 – ) the English actress (born Joyce Penelope Wilhelmina Frankenberg), played James Bond’s love interest in Live and Let Die (1973) and the title role in the American TV series Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman from 1993 to 1998. She took her stage name from the third wife of Henry VIII. That Jane Seymour died in 1537, two weeks after giving birth to a son, Edward, who was King of England and Ireland (under a Regency Council) from the age of nine until his death at age 15.
3. Steve McQueen
Don’t be surprised if Netflix says, “Recommendations for [your name] include The Thomas Crown Affair, Bullitt, and The Towering Inferno … because you liked 12 Years a Slave.” Netflix works in mysterious ways, but it’s easy to figure out what’s happening here: It’s got the American actor and “King of Cool” Terence Steven “Steve” McQueen (1930 – 1980) confused with the British director, screenwriter and video artist Steven Rodney “Steve” McQueen (1969 – ).
4. Peter Sellers
Another actor-director pair with sound-alike names is Peter Sellers (1925-1980), the British comedic actor and star of the Pink Panther movies, who played multiple roles, including the title one, in Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb; and the equally oddball Peter Sellars (1957 – ), American director of theater and opera known for casting and staging Mozart’s Don Giovanni as if it were a blaxploitation film.
5. Nick Cave
Two artsy types giving a shout-out to the inventive sounds of Nick Cave may find their voices echoing in two different caverns. Australian rocker Nicholas Edward “Nick” Cave (1957 – ), best known as the front man for Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, performs the Higgs Boson Blues.
Nick Cave (1959- ) is an American fabric sculptor, dancer and performance artist known for his blend of sculpture and costume called Soundsuits.
6. Graham Greene
Although they’re both listed in the Internet Movie Database, you’re not likely to confuse (Henry) Graham Greene (1904 – 1991), the British author of The Third Man, The End of the Affair, and The Quiet American with the native Canadian actor Graham Greene (1952 – ) who appeared in The Green Mile, Dances with Wolves, and Die Hard:With a Vengeance. If you’re wondering why the writer is in IMDb, it’s because 66 movies were based on his works.
7. John Ford
How about a director and a playwright? American film director John Ford (born John Martin Feeney) (1894 –1973), cast an unknown John Wayne in Stagecoach, the first of several classic Westerns the two made together. Ford went on to win a record four Academy Awards for Best Director.
John Ford is also the name of a British playwright (1586 – c. 1639) whose plays have regained popularity in the last 20 years, after centuries of obscurity. Anticipating revivals of his “two best plays,” The Broken Heart and ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore, in 2012, Alexis Soloski wrote in the New York Times, “John Ford never met a character he didn’t want to kill: gruesomely, ingeniously, poignantly.”
8. Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard (1943 – 2017) was an American playwright, actor, and director. He also published books of short stories, essays, and memoirs. His plays have garnered many awards, including the 1979 Pulitzer Prize in Drama for Buried Child. Although he played legendary test pilot Chuck Yeager in The Right Stuff, Shepard had an aversion to flying.
Life was not so kind to Sam Sheppard (1923 – 1970), a physician from Cleveland, Ohio, who in 1954 was found guilty of murdering his pregnant wife after a sensational trial that drew nationwide media attention. The media circus attending his trial was comparable to the one surrounding the O.J. Simpson trial about 40 years later. After nearly a decade in prison he was retried and acquitted. A few years later, he made his debut as a professional wrestler known as “The Killer.”
9. Spike Jones
Lindley Armstrong “Spike” Jones (1911 – 1965) was an American bandleader who specialized in performing novelty arrangements of popular music, complete with bells, whistles, gunshots and zany vocals. One of his most famous spoofs was “Cocktails for Two.”
Spike Jonze (born Adam Spiegel in 1969) is an American director, producer, screenwriter and actor who directed Her as well as the 1999 cult classic Being John Malkovich (which gave him a nomination for Academy Award for Best Director). He was also a co-creator of MTV’s Jackass. Apparently his eccentricity began early; when he was growing up in Bethesda, Maryland, a local store owner dubbed him “Spike Jonze” after the bandleader.
10. Francis Bacon
Sir Francis Bacon, (1561 – 1626) was an English philosopher, statesman, and scientist best known for establishing and promoting inductive methods of scientific inquiry that became known as the Baconian method, or simply the scientific method. While driving in March of 1626, he was struck with an idea for an experiment concerning the effects of freezing on the preservation of meat. He stopped the carriage, bought a fowl and stuffed it with snow. He caught a chill and died the next month of a lung infection, but no one has put the cause of his death to fowl play.
Francis Bacon (1909 –1992) also experimented with meats—as a subject for his painting. One of the most famous works by the Irish-born British expressionist painter, “Figure with Meat,” shows a ghoulish Pope Innocent X framed by two hanging sides of beef. Although some viewers find Bacon’s raw, aggressive style unsettling, many critics consider him one of the major painters of the 20th century. Last November, his triptych “Three Studies of Lucian Freud” sold for $142,405,000, the most expensive piece of art ever auctioned.
11. Erik Erickson
Erick Erickson (1975 – ) is an ultra-conservative American TV pundit and blogger known for inflammatory tweets about a Supreme Court Justice, President Obama, and “feminazis.”
Erik Erikson (1902 – 1994) was a German-born American developmental psychologist and psychoanalyst known for his theory on psychosocial development. The product of an extramarital affair, he never knew his father. In an apparent rejection of both his natural father and the stepfather who raised him, he named himself Erik Erikson, symbolically becoming his own father. Not surprisingly, he is famous for coining the phrase “identity crisis.”
Want a longer list of namesakes? Find 44,639 confusable people at the “Category: Human name disambiguation pages” in Wikipedia.
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The 5 Best Indian Restaurants in the U.S., According to Guy Fieri
Chicken vindaloo in Alaska and lamb curry in New Mexico? These are the unexpected Indian restaurant picks that made Guy Fieri’s list.
ByNitya Rao|May 12, 2026, 8:34 PM EDT
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Guy Fieri has spent decades behind the wheel of his red Camaro, proving that you don’t need a plane ticket to Delhi to find world-class curry. From the high-desert heat of Santa Fe to a hidden gem inside a Utah gas station, the Mayor of Flavortown has uncovered a “real deal” map of Indian cuisine right here in the U.S.
We aren’t just talking about your standard, lukewarm lunch buffets or the neon-red chicken you find at the mall. We’re shouting out five standout restaurants where the spices are toasted fresh, the tandoors are roaring, and the flavors are, in Fieri’s words, “off the hook.”
If you’re ready to trade the burgers for biryani and see how the spice trade meets the American Main Street, explore this mouthwatering list of Fieri’s top five Indian restaurants in the U.S.
- Paper Dosa – Santa Fe, NM
- Tandoori Oven – Logan, UT
- Gandhi Mahal – Minneapolis, MN
- Hari Om Cuisine of India – Fairbanks, AK
- Al Noor – Baton Rouge, LA
Paper Dosa – Santa Fe, NM
Lamb Curry
Santa Fe is world-renowned for its green chile, but Paper Dosa is successfully putting South Indian comfort food on the New Mexican map. This isn’t your typical rich, cream-based fare; instead, Chef Paulraj Karuppasamy offers an aromatic, authentic approach to the subcontinent’s lesser-known culinary region.
While their namesake paper-thin fermented rice crepes are a work of art, Fieri was specifically floored by the lamb curry. The dish features a lighter profile than most Northern Indian stews, relying on fresh curry leaves and toasted mustard seeds rather than heavy dairy. The result is a vibrant, aromatic dish with layers of flavor—”spice,” “smoke,” and “acid,” to be specific—that allow the tenderness of the lamb to shine through. After sampling the spread, from the potato-stuffed masala dosa to the fragrant lamb curry, Fieri noted that a visit here “isn’t just a meal; it’s an experience.”
Tandoori Oven – Logan, UT
Chicken Tikka Masala
In the world of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, some of the best culinary treasures are found in the most unassuming places. Case in point: Tandoori Oven, which is famously tucked inside a Utah gas station. While travelers might stop for a tank of unleaded, locals know to head inside for a “smorgasbord of flavors” that the Arora brothers have been perfecting for years.
When giving Fieri the lowdown on the restaurant’s offerings, Chef Sham Arora clarified that Northern Indian food is typically richer than its Southern counterparts, and the signature chicken tikka masala he later whipped up is a prime example. The secret to this creamy, spicy “Indian stew,” as Fieri describes it, lies in a rigorous two-day marination process that breaks down the proteins until the meat is so tender that your teeth simply sink into it.
After a trip into a traditional clay tandoor oven, the chicken is smothered in a vibrant, orange-red tomato-onion gravy and served with rice, naan, or—if you’re doing it right—both. Between the “perfect blend of spice” and the high-heat char from the clay tandoor, Fieri found himself struggling with the etiquette of eating something so delicious. He joked that his only real anxiety was figuring out how to “shovel it in fast enough” without looking like a dog who had never seen food before.
Gandhi Mahal – Minneapolis, MN
Dal with Naan
Gandhi Mahal is a Minneapolis legend that proves you can be “green” while serving up red-hot curry. Before its original building was lost in 2020, the restaurant was a marvel of urban sustainability, featuring a full aquaponics system in the basement. This high-tech setup allowed the kitchen to grow its own fresh produce and raise fish right on-site. Today, that commitment to fresh ingredients continues through their “Curry in a Hurry” concept.
When Fieri visited, he was immediately floored by the “outstanding” chicken tikka masala, noting it had “such a depth” of flavor. He specifically praised the “richness” of the ground almonds in the sauce and the juiciness of the chicken, which he likened to butter.
But the “next level” experience didn’t stop there. Fieri also got a taste of the plant-based side of the menu, continuing his Indian feast with a helping of earthy dal and blistered naan. The lentils are simmered for hours before being finished with a tarka—a traditional technique where whole spices are tempered in hot ghee to create an explosion of flavor.
Fieri was so impressed by the bite of smooth dal and pillowy naan that he declared the combination “multi-layered perfection.” For Fieri, the soulfulness of the cooking made it the perfect entry point for any skeptic: “If you don’t think you like Indian food, let this be your visa.”
Hari Om Cuisine of India – Fairbanks, AK
Chicken Vindaloo
If you think you have to be in a major metro area—or even the mainland—for authentic spice, Hari Om in Fairbanks is here to prove you wrong. Located just a few hours south of the Arctic Circle, this eatery provides a fiery contrast to the Alaskan chill thanks to the expertise of Chef Amit Paul.
With nearly three decades of experience, Paul has mastered the Dum Pukht tradition—a specialized slow-cooking method where the pot is sealed, allowing the food to steam in its own juices. This technique is likely why Fieri was so impressed with the texture of the chicken vindaloo, noting that the chicken was so tender it “just fell apart.”
The dish features a thick sauce built from a potent paste of red chiles and vinegar, a combination that hits all the right notes for the Mayor of Flavortown. “I love the spice, and I love the acidity,” Fieri remarked, adding that the dish has a “really nice mix of spices” and a distinct “zip.” While the vindaloo brought the heat, Fieri also sampled the lamb korma, a rich, nut-based curry that showed off the kitchen’s range.
Ultimately, Fieri concluded that the meal is “everything you want it to be, especially on a cold day in Fairbanks.”
Al Noor – Baton Rouge, LA
Lamb Kebabs
Baton Rouge might be the land of gumbo and crawfish, but Fieri found a culinary powerhouse tucked away in a suburban strip mall at Al-Noor. Chef Khalad Al-Noor famously walked away from a career in corporate engineering to return to his roots, and the result is what Fieri calls “Indian Soul Food.”
The lamb sheekh kebabs are a masterclass in tandoori cooking. The process starts with fresh ground lamb mixed with a total of 16 flavorful ingredients, including fresh ginger, garlic, and a custom blend of toasted spices. Next, the supple meat is hand-molded onto long metal skewers and lowered into a roaring clay tandoor. The intense heat renders the fat perfectly, creating a kebab that is incredibly juicy with a signature charred exterior.
While Fieri called the restaurant’s unique espresso-rubbed venison “off the hook,” it was the lamb that he deemed truly “outrageous,” noting that the spices aren’t just on the meat—they’re in it.
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