17) What’s in a name?

Have you ever Googled yourself? I was astonished to discover just how many Gary Goldsteins there are out there. There’s Gary Goldstein, the movie producer of Pretty Woman, Gary Goldstein; the script writer for Hallmark Channel ; Gary Goldstein, the author of Jew in Jail; Gary Goldstein, the movie critic for the L.A. Times; Gary Goldstein, photographer; Gary Goldstein, the fine artist... Throw in a few doctors and lawyers, but the list goes on and on.

I often wonder if I’m related to any of my name doppelgängers, but “Goldstein” is like “Smith” in its commonality. And my particular branch of the Goldstein family is shrouded in mystery. After my grandfather, Louis Goldstein, was murdered in his haberdashery on November 26, 1921, the Goldstein relatives seemingly disappeared. I’m not sure if this was because my grandmother’s family, the Winograds, dominated the family’s presence in Cleveland... or some other reason. My membership in ancestry.com did not resolve any questions, created some new questions, and just led to dead ends.

In the course of my research I found another Goldstein who was a cartoonist. Here are a couple of cartoon panels from my collection by Walter Goldstein, who had done work for The New Yorker, The Saturday Evening Post and other magazines.

If you have any questions or comments, please email me at themythfits@gmail.com.