Claude la Badarian
On the even lighter side (and still off message, but not much longer): one of you has made me aware of an author named William Monahan, who wrote this sentence in the final installment of his serial story Dining Late with Claude La Badarian (reviewed here):
I was able to convince the police, after a few minutes difficulty on the landing (I was coming back from the shower, inconvenienced by precarious towel, soap-on-a-rope in the form of Sneezy the Dwarf), that I was not “Claude Le Bandarian,” blackmailer, but a paperless German anthropologist named Andreas Kluth.
I would be flattered, but No, as far as I know, I cannot have inspired this reference. (Paperless? I try. German? Largely, but that’s between us. Anthropology? More as object than subject. Andreas Kluth? Unequivocally.)
I admit that my name is not exactly household. But you do notice that I couldn’t get the .com or .net domains. I’m aware of a municipal politician somewhere in Germany who has my name. He must be the anthropologist. 😉
Hannibal and Me: life lessons from history 
Hi! That was me who haphazardly wondered if the mention of an “Andreas Kluth” in “Dining Late with Claude La Badarian” was any sort of inside-joke on the part of its author William Monahan, and whether you were in on it. It wouldn’t have been the first instance I’ve discovered in which a character’s name in Dining Late was actually a real person working in media. Jason Binn, the CEO and founder of Niche Media Holdings, gets a mention. So does Tina Brown, Graydon Carter, Bruno Maddox, among a few others. Anyhow, it’s a very funny serial story. Thank you for entertaining my inquiry.
Still… very interesting set of circumstances. Both you and Mr. Monahan have worked in magazines, which is the framework for the entire Dining Late series. Interestingly, Mr. Monahan had a relationship with Riverhead Books for his novel Light House: A Trifle, and likewise Riverhead is publishing your book as well. I don’t know exactly how those circumstances hold up in 2001 when the Dining Late short stories were first published. Perhaps the modifiers “paperless” and “anthropologist” are in reference to an article you published in The Economist in 2001? Some kind of inside-joke, which is a prevalent motif with Dining Late. I went into Google Books and there really are no other “Andreas Kluth”s in history or presently. It is strange how Mr. Monahan just pulled the name out of thin air but then again that is what writers do. Amusing stuff, anyhow. Best…
Hmmm. The plot thickens. And I seem to be in good company. I may have to concoct some theory about how this really was a reference to me. 😉
Ha. That would be funny. It might spur Mr. Monahan to reveal for the uninitiated reader the meaning behind the inside joke.