Okay, I confess. I haven’t seen the movie Escape From New York. If you are a fan, I apologize for what follows. It’s just that right after doing a post on full-fledged characters, I took a break, switched on the TV and the credits from that movie were running. The juxtaposition cracked me up.

Below are the “names” of Escape From New York‘s “characters”. It probably fits this movie just fine, but it made me think . . .

If you write literature with a capital L, you tell us way more about your characters than I want to know.

If you write good genre fiction, you tell just enough to do the job.

If only eight out of forty of your characters even have names . . .

Never mind, it just struck me funny.

Cast, Escape From New York:
(names of actors not given here)

Snake Plissken
Hauk
President
The Duke
Girl in Chock Full O’Nuts
Brain
Maggie
Rehme
Secretary of State
Romero
Cronenberg
Gypsy #1
Gypsy #2
Gypsy Guard
Gypsy #3
Gypsy #4
First Indian
Second Indian
Third Indian
Stewardess
Secret Service #1
Secret Service #2
Secret Service #3
Red Bandana Gypsy
Helicopter Pilot #1
Helicopter Pilot #2
Duty Sergeant
Controller
Computer Operator
Trooper
Police Sergeant
Theater Manager
Theater Assistant
Punk
Bum
Drunk
Helicopter Pilot #3
Helicopter Pilot #4
Slag
Dancers (there were several)