Who Are Your Inspiriations?
 

I'm wondering what people have inspired all of you here, who have affected your lives in some way or another that has left a lasting impact on you? Also, due to how much conflicting interest this kind of question could bring, I'll just ask that no one make any disparaging remarks about some people's inspirations in this thread, so no bad blood is brought between anyone. Anyways, mine are:

My Grandfather Henry: He was, quite possibly, one of the single greatest men I ever had the pleasure of knowing personally. He's one of the reasons why I believe in what I believe as much as I do, and someone I aspire to hope I can make proud.

My Father: In many ways, it is only natural for a boy to adore and look up to his father. Despite that, I've always admired him for how hard he's worked for the good of our family.

Soren Kierkegaard (Philosopher): Kierkegaard, who I discovered about four years ago, has made a major impact on how I live my life, as well as helping shape my own religious beliefs to the point they're currently at.

Friedrich Nietzsche (Philosopher): While I'm far from an atheist, I still can't help but admire Nietzsche's philosophy and views of society at large. In many ways, I've adopted many of his basically beliefs about society while shying away from his religious beliefs.

C.G. Jung (Psychologist): I am an adherent Jungian in the way I believe the human mind works. It's hard for me to say anything else on the matter unless others have a good understanding of psychological and Jungian principles.

H.P. Lovecraft (Creator of the Cthulhu Mythos): Lovecraft is the defining author of the American horror story since the 30s, and has made an incredible impact on how I view the working of horror and the way I write it.

Stephen King (Author): Any horror author, and a personal hero of mine since childhood. He's writing, especially the Dark Tower series, has influenced me nearly as much as Lovecraft's.

Well my father and grandfather of-course. They're such hard workers and selfless people that I can't help but wish to be half the man either of them are.
I also really look up to and respect my ancestor, Sir Charles Tupper. The man lived a long and productive life. He was a doctor, one of the founding fathers of confederation, and even the Prime Minister of Canada at one point. Definitely a character if there ever was one.

I draw inspiration from various sources. Guerrilla leaders, secessionists, and freedom fighters like Thomas Jefferson, Ethan Allen, Robert E. Lee, and Jim Bowie of course, but also from Germanic and Celtic folklore. Gods such as Thunor and Woden (Anglicised spellings of Thor and Odin) and culture-heros like Sigfried and Beowulf lend me spiritual and moral inspiration.

also i raise the drinking horn to Jack London for writing Call of the Wild. Truth woven in ink and paper.

Without explanation, and in no particular order other than the first:

Frankie Foster
George Washington
Chester Nimitz
Albert Einstein
Darien Shields
Thomas Paine
Charles Darwin
Kim Wilde
Thomas Altamore
Sir Lancelot
Boris Yeltsin
Winston Churchill
Rochelle Defalco
Sarah Sussman
Edward Busch


I left out a few names to avoid potential controversy, and I'm sure I neglected to mention two or three, but it's otherwise a fairly complete list. The names you don't recognize are from my personal life, past and/or present.

Edit - Added the following:

William Tecumseh Sherman
James Kirk
Jean-Luc Picard

That's an excellent list, Cassini, good to see Einstein,Paine and Darwin there especially but I had to raise an eyebrow at Boris Yeltsin as his faliures always seem more apparent to me than his successes which were handed to him by the hapless Mikhael Gorbachev. There's a very funny story about Yeltsin's finest hour though, not that I'm not trying to assasinate him or anything, you understand. During the coup in 1991 when the Communist die-hards tried to stem the reformist tide and removed Gorbachev from power, Yeltsin bravely stood his ground in the Russian Parliament building and waited for the tanks he knew the central commitee would have to send. As the world waited for the seemingly inevitable bloodbath, Gorbachev's friend and ally Eduard Shevardnadze (later President of Georgia) went to see Yeltsin in his office and came back telling the world's media that Yeltsin was in fighting form and would die to protect Russia's fledgling democracy. Only much later did he reveal that Yeltsin, expecting death, had got blind drunk and fallen asleep under his desk. Of course, Shevardnadze wasn't going to tell the world that.

Oh I forgot to add any of my own. Too many! Let's see....George Orwell, Ursula Leguin, Kurt Vonnegut. Hmm all writers. How about Nestor Mahkno? Not many have heard of him. Now he was a Ukrainian chap who fought (successfully for a while) both Reds and Whites in the post russian revolutionary-civil war. He knew very well that the Bolsheviks were dangerous control freaks and those fighting them in the Ukraine(supported by the rest of Europe and America) were a bunch of reactionary anti-semites, who'd led the pograms of the previous decades.

Martin Luther King Jr.-If it wasn't for this famous civil rights leader, the world we live in would have never become a reality. I owe Martin my deepest respect for his hard work.

Shigeru Miyamoto-From Mario to Zelda, Miyamoto is the greatest influence in the video game industry, and one of the few people the convinced me to get involved in the industry as well.

Hideo Kojima-The creator of the Metal Gear Solid franchise knows how to write and create in order to entertain video gamers whenever they play one of his games.

Pablo Picasso-He was able to prove that art didn't have to be realistic all the time, but rather, be creative and awe-inspiring.

My Dad-He is hard-working and responsible, as well as very determined.

Always a good choice (Frankie too;)). Right on, bud!:D

i see you've been to Atlanta 8D

BTW Koos, ive got an exceptional book on the 1917 revolution, apparently there was a third Russian power, the Green army, who were Sepratists fighting EVERYBODY. Your Nestor chap wouldn't happen to be one of them?

And i would like to add to my list the Russian Nationalists who volunteered for the German Army during WW2 to help fight the Communist regime. Brave Cossacks who had been persecuted during the Revolution and afterwards for their devotion to the Tsars, their culture and people had been destroyed, and entire SS battalions were formed solely of Cossacks fighting under the Imperial Russian flag. That takes guts, to stand up to the entire Red Army like that!

Being a movie buff, if there was one person that has an influence on me, it's Mel Brooks.

His humour is what gave me my sense of humour, and the films that he makes are wonderful (most noteably The Producers (2005), Robin Hood: Men in Tights and Spaceballs). Of course, he also co-created that great show Get Smart. :bloogrin: