10 Famous People Who Never Actually Existed

3. Alan Smithee

The second director to appear on the list, Alan Smithee has been involved in the creation of at least 91 films - yet he has never actually existed as a person himself. Instead, Alan (or Allen) Smithee was the official pseudonym adopted by film directors who wished to disown their own work between 1968 and 2000.

Smithee's first "direction" was Death of a Gunfighter (actually Don Siegel) and, although officially dropped by the Director's Guild of America in 2000, he has still claimed at least 20 film credits since as a kind of tribute. When a director did choose to use "Alan Smithee" instead of his own name during its official days, they were required by guild rules not to discuss the circumstances behind this or ever to acknowledge they were the actual person behind the film.

An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn drew unwanted attention to the fake director, and so the Director's Guild dropped the official use of the pseudonym as a result. Despite this, historically Smithee has still been responsible for such "classics" as City in Fear, River Made to Drown In and The Birds II: Land's End. Undoubted masterpieces, that's for sure...