No one is world famous

By its definition world fame is impossible, for anyone or anything.
There are whole groups of people who wouldnt know the US President, the Pope, Lady GaGa, the Mona Lisa, etc etc if they saw them.

That said:
What do we really mean by the term?

What's the minimum number of people knowing something/one needed to be considered world famous?

Is it just being known in certain parts of the world that can get something/one the status?

What parts of the world, if any, dont matter, to being world famous?

World famous simply means that people from all over the world know who they are.

Do you really get to know anyone in your lifetime anyways? Knowing the shape or the title of a person is really just a shell of an arquetype of a person, fame has very little to do with an actual human being, let alone an actual world 👆

I would say Superman is world famous. I had heard a while back that the "S" shield is the 3rd most widely recognized symbol in the world, following the Christian Cross, then the Red Cross. Except perhaps for the most remote, tech-backwards parts of the planet, tie a towel around a child's neck, and immediately you know who he "is."

Also, I had heard that Muhammad Ali was very, very well known the world over.

Superman, Tarzan and Sherlock Holmes are the 3 most famous people that never lived....

Originally posted by riv6672

What's the minimum number of people knowing something/one needed to be considered world famous?

3

I think you mean the number of licks it takes to get to the tootsie roll center of a tootsie pop...😆

I read a book about this a long time ago.

World famous will be

Jesus, Hitler and Superman

Kind of feel bad about putting a religious figure like Jesus alongside Hitler or Superman.

But separating religious ideology from anything else

In most parts of the world

Their images and symbols will be recognized

And I think the term "world famous" will refer to the "civilized" world separating the little villages on remote regions of the world

Originally posted by riv6672
Superman, Tarzan and Sherlock Holmes are the 3 most famous people that never lived....

Really? I'd think Mario could beat Tarzan at some point.

Originally posted by Rao Kal El
I read a book about this a long time ago.

World famous will be

Jesus, Hitler and Superman

Kind of feel bad about putting a religious figure like Jesus alongside Hitler or Superman.

But separating religious ideology from anything else

In most parts of the world

Their images and symbols will be recognized

And I think the term "world famous" will refer to the "civilized" world separating the little villages on remote regions of the world

To be fair, Hitler kind of wanted to become a mesianic figure, and many would argue Superman is sort of a modern take on Jesus. The christian cross was the symbol that went with several huge empire over centuries, so it makes sense for it to be very widthspread.

Originally posted by Bentley
Really? I'd think Mario could beat Tarzan at some point.

To be fair, Hitler kind of wanted to become a mesianic figure, and many would argue Superman is sort of a modern take on Jesus. The christian cross was the symbol that went with several huge empire over centuries, so it makes sense for it to be very widthspread.

Yep and it is kind of incredible that after more than 50 of his death We are still drawn and fascinated with his story.

I think he was a major @sshole but can't deny how much he influenced the modern world.

Michael Jackson is.

Originally posted by Rao Kal El
I think he was a major @sshole but can't deny how much he influenced the modern world.

And he WAS man of the year once. '38 or '39 i think?

Originally posted by Mindship
IIRC, about 14 years ago he was one of Time magazine's contenders for Man of the Century.

Originally posted by Omega Vision
He should have won. Can't think of a single person from the 20th century who had more of an impact on it.

Y'all are forgetting Mickey Mouse. Here in the States, he's collectively got more write-in votes for President than several actual candidates. He might be the most well-known fictional character in the world.

Much as i'd like to believe it, the US is not the world...🙁 😉

Originally posted by Digi
Y'all are forgetting Mickey Mouse. Here in the States, he's collectively got more write-in votes for President than several actual candidates. He might be the most well-known fictional character in the world.

That's Donald Duck's sidekick, right?

You're thinking of Bugs Bunny. Daffy Duck's sidekick.

Originally posted by Omega Vision
He should have won. Can't think of a single person from the 20th century who had more of an impact on it.

The Wright brothers did develop the basis for the weapons that defined World War 2. You could argue that without air transport entire decades of post-war economy would be entirely different.