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Power Grid

10 Hoopy Froods Who Really Know Where Their Towel Is

by The Mary Sue Staff | 12:55 pm, May 24th, 2011


Allow Us To Explain

Allow Us To Explain

May 25th, while not the most logical of dates on the face of it, nevertheless is a holiday known to many geeks as Towel Day. It commemorates the life and creative work of a medium sized ape-descended life form from an utterly insignificant little blue-green planet orbiting a small unregarded yellow sun in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the Western Spiral arm of the Galaxy named Douglas Adams. Towel Day does not occur on either of the days in which Adams entered or unexpectedly left this universe, nor does it occur on any numerological significant date relating to his books, radio, television, video games, or movies. It happens every year two weeks after the anniversary of his death.

So it goes — Wait, wrong author.

On Towel Day, all of Adams’ fans are encouraged to carry a towel around with them, or to at least know where their towel is, following the great tradition of hitchhiking, traveling, managing, and adventuring laid out in his work. Naturally, this got us to thinking about all the hoopy (really together guy) froods (really amazingly together guys) that we know in fiction that really know where their towels are. You know, the characters who you could drop off anywhere and anywhen in the space time continuum, and come back in an hour and they’d already be lounging in perfect confidence and opulence, knocking back something highly alcoholic. Any one who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still knows where his towel is, is clearly a person to be reckoned with.

This grid is dedicated to the many runners up, including, but not limited to Han Solo, Spider Jerusalem, Jack Harkness, Hob Gadling, Odysseus, Wesley, Moist Von Lipwig, Gambit, and Mal Reynolds.


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  • Jaime Kimbrel

    It’s also Lilac day for Discworld fans! Support PTerry and Vimes by wearing a lilac, or do what I do and carry a purple towel.

  • Plaidearthworm

    And it’s Geek Pride Day and Star Wars Day too! It’s the nerd quadrapalooza! ;)

  • Star Wars Fan

    I thought Star Wars day was May 4th. What are you talking about.

  • Lindy

    Star Wars day is in honor of the May 25, 1977 release date of Star Wars: A New Hope.

  • Hop_froggy06

    I feel like Sam of “Sam and Fuzzy” fame could qualify for honorable mention as well. Who else could turn an international ninja crime syndicate into a “weird stuff” investigation business?

  • http://twitter.com/Riviare Kimberly

    So I should be alright if I carry a lilac towel, a lightsaber (which may or may not also be lilac), and.. what would cover geek pride.. how about my D&D book on elves? That should count. Unless the lightsaber covers that too.

  • Anonymous
  • http://twitter.com/jgaryt J. Gary Thompson

    Never without a towel: beach, bath or tea.  Enjoyed your article.  (Bit of a typo in the gargle blaster link, but it happens.)

  • http://twitter.com/butlerfetish Jade

    My sons are named after numbers 1 and 10. I suppose I can’t argue your list.

  • http://twitter.com/WanderinDreamr hbm

    The link on the page for The Doctor is broken just FYI, it tries to redirect me to this page instead of the youtube one.

  • Anonymous

    Fixed, thanks. 

  • Mo Nado

    You did say fiction and not movies, right? How about Retief or  Nicholas van Rijn?

  • http://twitter.com/diefrankenmaus Kate

    Oh man, Retief is a completely hoopy frood. Those stories are all just as good as they were when they were first written, something that’s pretty unusual in the Sci-Fi realm. 

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Bexley-Lister/100000454520033 Bexley Lister

    I’m sorry, Captain Jack Harkness has *got* to be on the list.  Coraline?  Yes, brave and resourceful in the way of many child heroes, but you’re not going to drop her “anywhere and anywhen in the space time continuum, and come back in an
    hour” [to find her] “lounging in perfect confidence and opulence,
    knocking back something highly alcoholic.”

    How about Xena?  Captain Kirk?

    And am I the only one who now wants a story about Jack Harkness crossing paths with Han Solo?

  • http://profiles.google.com/stevi.ferg Stevi Ferguson

    Wait, how are Jack Harkness, Han Solo and Mal Reynolds runners up? Aren’t they the very definition of Hoopy Frood? I would also add Westley from The Princess Bride.

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