I just had an odd thought. I wonder whether Chen Chow (Clark's friend in 'Chi of Steel') and Arthur Chow (the second wealthiest man in the world) are related?

I do realize that 'Chow' is an extremely common surname; but the L&C universe tends to be a small one, and one in which (*much*) stranger things have been known to happen.

Joy,
Lynn

Good question. I suppose it's a very real possiblity that they could be related. It certainly makes things more interesting, at any rate.

I've always wondered if Penny Barnes -- Jimmy's girlfriend from AKA Superman -- was related to Henry Barnes -- gold thief from I'm Looking Through You.

A good question, Virginia.

It seems to me there is the makings of a humorous sketch here. I'm not sure what it would be, though.

Joy,
Lynn

I was watching "The Rival" recently and heard Lois say that Paul -- yes, THAT Paul -- was actually "Paul Bender". I wonder if he was any relation to Sheldon Bender (Lex's lawyer) as their moral compas seems similar.

Funny how the writers didn't catch these similarities... lol

Like how both Clark and Perry both have the middle name Jerome.

Well, Chow is such a very common name (most Chinese names are) that I would not expect a relationship there. Barnes is also common enough that a repeat is not surprising. Bender though is not very common, so I expect that a relationship is quite likely with that one.

Where do we learn that Perry's middle name is Jerome?

People Vs. Lois Lane when Perry takes the stand.

That explains why I do not remember it, I have re-watched that episode a few times and skipped the Perry on the stand scene every time.

Is that really the earliest time we hear Clark's middle name? I know that Martha called him by his full name at least once when she was scolding him. I think she did it when she grabbed his ear and pulled him into a conference room in the Space Rats one.

I actually prefer Joseph as Clark's middle name, which has been used in the comics. I guess I just prefer the name, but both of them refer to Superman's creators.

Me too! I just can't sit through it. It just upsets me too much... isn't that funny?

Well, I think Jerome is a fun name. Actually I am pretty sure the line where Martha says his full name is the only in-canon place we learn Clark's middle name is Jerome.

In the wedding episode the marriage certificate just gives his names as "Clark Kent".

With regards to the middle name stuff: I couldn't help but make a post plugging another one of my favorite fanfics, Elsewhere by bulbus over on fanfiction.net.

It's a "Smallville" fic, and an early-season "Smallville" fic at that. The plot: a young Clark Kent is sucked into an alternate dimension where Kal-El, as an infant, landed in downtown Smallville and was taken prisoner by Lionel Luthor (Lex Luthor's father in the "Smallville" universe.) Clark has to rescue his imprisoned, experimented-upon counterpart, and gives him the name of "Joseph".

I've heard it said that Clark's middle name is variously given as Jerome or Joseph, in homage to Superman's creators of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.