CULTURE CLASH: Identity crisis more likely, compliments of the Internet

May 14 Norwich Bulletin

Perkins: Doppelgangers. Everyone has one. I have had several. By definition, a doppelganger is the ghostly double of a living person and often, they’re sinister. Most recently, my doppelganger has been sighted in cyberspace. So, I’ve officially been “doppelganged,” both physically and metaphysically. Where’s your doppelganger, Meo?

Meo: Oh, I’m often imitated, but never duplicated, or doppelganged ... Is that even a word? I say it isn’t. If we were playing “Mirror, Mirror” though, I’d likely have a good counterpart. At least, that’s what I’ve been told by many people for many years.

Perkins: It’s one thing to be mistaken as the fourth blonde triplet in high school. Or maybe your friends swear they saw you in line at the drive-through at McDonald’s (wasn’t me). It’s another thing to Google your name and find your work all over the place. If someone is going to serve as my doppelganger, let it be Olivia Wilde and not Hiliary Duff, as previously proposed. Who would be your celebrity doppelganger? (P.S.: I’m going for a word-usage record.)

Meo: I Google myself and get ... Myself. Which is probably a good thing, although I’m sure there’s some “guest” in this country rockin’ my Social Security number. Celebrity doppelganger? I’m pretty sure I’ve never been confused with someone on TV or in movies. If I throw a hoodie on, I look like the Unibomber composite, but who doesn’t? In high school, I had the misfortune of resembling David Koresh. Neither counts as a celebrity, right?

Perkins: Looks as if you’re a one of a kind. If I were you, I’d stay away from those creepy non-celebrity comparisons. Maybe I should consider changing my name to some absurd celebrity baby-type combination. It’s pretty clear no one’s identity is sacred these days. I can’t even buy my own domain because www.emilyperkins.com is taken by a brunette sci-fi actress. There must be a way to combat the doppelgangers. What would Andy Samberg do?

Meo: Samberg (and crew) would write a song and do a video featuring unlikely celebrity cameos in which those celebrities make fun of the themselves by wearing ’70s cop mustaches and velour tracksuits. Googling johnmeo.com returns johnmoe.com – no idea who he is – and variations of me, edited echoes of me appearing in publications scattered throughout GateHouse (I assume) ... yup, complete with archive video and that ridiculous mug shot (no, the other one). That settles it Perkins, I’m my own twin. Which you thought only happened in the South.

Perkins: I’ll refer you to Hulu for the Samberg interpretation. You win “most original” on this one. Congrats. As for my doppelgangers. I’ll find them one way or another. In the meantime, I guess I’ll go by Emily C. Perkins.

Emily C. Perkins is the editorial assistant at the Norwich Bulletin. She can be reached at various locations through the United States and via the World Wide Web. John Meo is design editor at the Norwich Bulletin. He shot the wrong guy, didn’t he? Yeah, he did.