You have to wonder what goes through the minds of new parents when they decide on the name of their new offspring. Occasionally, some ridiculous names given out. Think about poor Humperdink Fangboner, who grew up to be a lumber dealer in Sandusky, Ohio. Of course, his wife Fanny Fangboner didn't have it much easier.
Then we find Mr. and Mrs. John Senior of New York City, who named their son after his father. The baby thereby became John Senior, Jr. Then there is Mrs. Belcher Wack Wack. She wasn't born with that name, however. It seems that Miss Belcher married Mr. Wack, thereby becoming Mrs. Wack. Following her husband's death, she married her husband's brother but kept her maiden name and her first married name as middle names, as many women do. Therefore, she became Mrs. Belcher Wack Wack.
The Odd Names page on F2.org has many more such listings. Some of them are so outlandish that you might question their authenticity. The site claims that these are all real names, but I have my doubts. Some of these names sound like they came out of a W. C. Fields movie (see footnote). There are no source citations listed, so I will leave the validity to your judgment.
To see some of the strangest names that you will ever see, look at http://f2.org/humour/language/oddnames.html.
Now, just who is in your family tree?
NOTE: If you have never read the credits at the end of a W. C. Fields movie from the 1930s, you have really missed half the humor of the movie. Larson E. Whipsnade, Egbert Souse (pronounced 'soo-ZAY'), Eustace McGargle, Charles Bogle, Otis Criblecoblis, Mahatma Kane Jeeves and other names often appear as actors, writers, and other assorted roles. All are pseudonyms for W. C. himself.
W. C. Fields' name at birth was William Claude Dukenfield.
