- Am I real or an illusion? Woo. Okay, well clearly I'm a real person. In fact, I've met many
of you at YouTube events. However, believe it or not, some of the most famous
people that you all knew never even existed at all. Here are 10 famous people
who never actually existed. Number 10 is David Manning. In July of 2000, after seeing
a number of poor reviews on multiple films coming
out of Columbia Pictures, David Manning decided to take
matters into his own hands. He began giving positive
and supportive reviews for every movie that he saw, encouraging others to go see movies such as Kevin Bacon's Hollow Man and Rob Schneider's The Animal. The problem was David Manning was not actually a reviewer at all, but was actually the
pseudonym for Matthew Cramer, a marketing executive at Sony, the parent company of Columbia Pictures. Conspiracy, yell it from the rooftops. Cramer made multiple posts, and many people went to see terrible films because he called them winners. Newsweek eventually outed him, and Sony wound up paying $5 back to every moviegoer that
wasted an evening seeing a dud because David Manning loved it. That's like a YouTuber
clicking on their own video. Nobody does that, heh heh. Number nine is Alan Smithee. If you've been following
Hollywood director Alan Smithee's career, you're likely wondering
how the guy had time to make so many films
in such a short period. The thing is you can actually
have all the time in the world if you're imaginary. Alan Smithee was the official false name used by directors in the film industry who wanted to distance
themselves from a project. Created back in 1968, the first use of the pseudonym was for the 1969 film
Death of a Gunfighter. Replacement director Don Siegel decided that he wanted the
Director's Guild of America to know it was lead actor Richard Widmark who was really in charge, and thus it wasn't Siegel's
fault if it bombed. The moniker was used until the year 2000, when it was formally discontinued. Still, the name can be seen in the credits of dozens of films. You know, I actually do
this with my YouTube videos. I upload them on another channel called Princess Banana Hammock, and it... I've said too much. Number eight are the Gorillaz. ♪ I'm not real ♪ ♪ Does that make you mad ♪ ♪ I got sunshine in a bag ♪ Formed in 1998 in Essex, England, Gorillaz is a collaborative virtual band that was initially
created by Damon Albarn, the lead singer of Blur, and artist Jamie Hewlett, the co-creator of the comic Tank Girl. While this four-man group has
sold several million records and performed live at venues
like the 2002 Brit Awards, its accomplishments
are all more impressive when you learn that they're not real. The bandmates, 2D, Murdoc
Niccals, Noodle, and Russel Hobbs are all cartoon characters
drawn by Hewlett, while Albarn provides the actual music, producing it either solo or with outside contributing artists. On the rare occasion that
the Gorillaz perform live, they use technology such as large projector
screens or holograms. But the four most
recognizable faces in the band are all computer-generated. I'm sorry I had to make this that obvious, but I'm afraid that some of you out there might actually think that
those cartoons are real people. And if that's the case,
you need to seek help. Number seven is Donald Kaufman. In late January 2003, the nominations for the 75th annual Academy
Awards were announced, and included one name
that truly stood out, mostly because he was
a fictional character. Twin brothers Charlie and Donald Kaufman were up for Best Adapted
Screenplay for Adaption, which was based on Susan
Orlean's novel The Orchid Thief. Now this confused a lot of people, as Charlie did not have a twin brother. The fictional Donald was
created by Kaufman for the film, but in an attempt at being clever was also credited with writing the movie, and even got a special In
Loving Memory of Donald Kaufman at the end of the credits, due to his character dying
in one of the final scenes. Man, this guy's twisted, damn. Donald might just be the
only fictional character to ever actually receive
an Oscar nomination. Okay, that's hilarious. A fictional guy actually
got an Oscar nomination. I guess it just shows how
smart these judges really are. Number six is Betty Crocker. Wait, what? Then whose delicious muffin
mix have I been buying? Long before her name or image was appearing on boxes of
cake mix or cookie dough, Betty Crocker was a kitchen
advice-giver in 1921, responding to letters and baking questions mailed in from people all
over the United States in a newspaper called the
Saturday Evening Post. Readers were content knowing that their cooking
and product inquiries were being handled by Betty, a mature women who spent most
of her time in the kitchen. Aw, she's a lovely old woman,
except she never existed. That's right, Betty Crocker
was never an actual person. She was created by
advertising director Sam Gale, who felt that women wouldn't be willing to hear cooking advice from a man. So he wrote his column
under the pseudonym. The character wound up
taking on a life of its own, even gaining her her own radio show and appearing on multiple products. Every bite into those
delicious cupcakes were a lie. (melancholy piano music) Number five is Aunt Jemima. More delicious syrupy lies! A staple on breakfast tables
all over North America, Aunt Jemima syrup and pancake mixes are a very popular line of products. Although trademarked
by Quaker Oats Company out of Chicago, Illinois in 1937, Aunt Jemima has been a household name all the way back to 1889. Most people in the
United States even today can picture what she looks
like in their own head, which is odd considering
she's not a real person. Disturbingly, the first version of Jemima was inspired by a person in blackface, in apron and kerchief. Former slave Nancy Green was the first woman to
portray the brand icon, something she continued
to do for nearly 33 years, until her death in 1923. Since then, multiple women
have taken on the role, none of them being the real Aunt Jemima that prepared your syrup for you. Disturbing beginnings
of delicious pancakes. Number four is Pope Joan. According to a famous legend, during the Middle Ages a brilliantly-smart and talented actress named Joan decided to disguise herself as a man, and managed to move up the
ranks in the church hierarchy until she was eventually elected pope. She remained the head of
the church until one day, while in a procession, Pope Joan suddenly gave birth
right there on her house. Can we slow this thing down a little bit? It's galloping, oh, too late. Some versions of the story say that she died immediately after, while others say that she was murdered by a mob of people over her deception. Well, it's most likely that
neither version is accurate, as the evidence of her
ever actually existing is in and of itself nonexistent
outside of the tale itself. Believers often point out that the church destroyed
all records of the incident. But regardless, today Joan is lauded, fictional or not, as an inspiration. Hey man, if it makes people happy and gives them hope, why not? It's kind of like Superman. It just gets people all warm and fuzzy. Number three is Carolyn Keene. For any fans of the Nancy Drew books, this one might change the way you look back on those stories. Released between 1930 and 1985, these mystery novels were
very popular with young girls. Each book has a single name
credited as the author, right on the cover and
in a few places inside. That name is Carolyn Keene, and many of you may recognize it. Yeah, but the thing is she didn't write any of
the Nancy Drew books. "But Matt, how can that be?" Well, if you weren't paying attention to the title of this video, it's because she doesn't exist. The moniker was a pseudonym
used by several writers, all hired by Edward Stratemeyer,
the book's producer. Each ghostwriter was paid
$125 to complete the book and then sign away all credit, so the stories seem like they
all came from the same place. It wasn't until fans started
asking questions about Keene in the late '70s that the
truth started coming out. That's like 45 years of deception. She could be the next James Bond, damn. Number two is Tony Clifton. Bah, Tony Clifton. Bah, look out, a real
artist is coming through. Created by actor and comedian Andy Kaufman in the late 1970s, Tony Clifton is a lounge singer
and anti-comedy performer. Before his death to lung
cancer on May 16, 1984, Kaufman frequently performed as Clifton, doing rude comedy specials at lounges, where he'd verbally berate customers and act like a womanizer. Lady, you got a nice mustache. A little bigger than mine, ha. However, once people caught on that Clifton and Kaufman
were one and the same, Andy messed with their heads by appearing on stage or in the audience while Tony was performing. His brother Michael would sometimes take on the Clifton role, but most often it was Kaufman's
close friend Bob Zmuda behind the dark glasses and fake mustache. Clifton is often credited
as himself even in films, leaving many to question to this day if there really is a Tony Clifton. And Andy got the last laugh on everyone. I don't know, but it's
a fun character to play. And number one is Robin Hood. I'm going to steal from
the rich and give to nobody because I don't exist. For any of you that
have ever read the books or watched the movies, this may come as a real shock to you. Robin Hood has been cemented
in modern storytelling, appearing in movies, television programs, and of course books. So much so that seeing him
loosing arrows on the big screen leads people to wonder if
they're watching something based on true events. And if you believed it,
well, I don't blame you. Stories of the archer date back all the way to 1370 AD, if not earlier. Plus many of the tales
involve real places, like Nottingham Castle
and Sherwood Forest, adding to the evidence that people use to prove that he was a real man in green who robbed rich nobles and crooked lords, and gave what he stole to the
poor, lower-class townfolk. Still, most historians agree that Robin of Loxley
was not a real person. There you go, childhood ruined. You're welcome. So that was 10 famous people
who never actually existed. And if you guys enjoyed this, remember to give it a big thumb's up. Also, be sure to subscribe and turn on notifications
by clicking the little bell beside the Subscribe button, so that you never miss a video, because I release new ones all the time. Thank you guys for watching, and I'm going to go rob the
rich and give to the poor. But not really, because I don't exist. Bye!
