It has come to my attention that many people apparently do not know that Kieran Culkin is the brother of Macaulay Culkin.
When this report reached me, I clapped my palms to my cheeks and froze in an adorably photogenic open-mouthed scream.
It seems that for some — an unscientific data analysis suggests that these are mainly under-30s — this is news. This is unfathomable to me, an over-30, who could no less imagine not knowing the family relation between these same-named and extremely-similar-looking brothers than any other now-forgotten concepts, like the Food Pyramid and not having to dial area codes to call local numbers.
Here is a short primer:
It is Macaulay Culkin, 41, who starred in the Home Alone franchise, My Girl, and The Good Son in the early- to mid-1990s, at which point he was reportedly the highest-paid child actor in history. He has gone on to some local oddness, though also some more film and television roles. He recently had a baby with girlfriend Brenda Song and last week walked in Gucci’s fashion show on Hollywood Boulevard.
It is Kieran Culkin, 39, one of his younger brothers, who is currently starring as Roman Roy in Succession, at which point he is attracting press attention and an Emmy nomination by being generally horny about Gerri.
It is Rory Culkin, 32, who has been in a bunch of stuff, probably most notably Signs or, for art-house types, You Can Count on Me, and who once played the younger version of the character played by his older brother Kieran in Igby Goes Down, as well as the younger version of the character played by his older brother Macaulay in Richie Rich.
There are several other Culkins, including Shane, Quinn, and Christian. (Dakota Culkin, the namesake of her brother Macaulay’s daughter, died in an accident in 2008.)
It is Macaulay Culkin whom I once saw rack up an enviable score on the NBA Jam machine at Hackers, Hitters, and Hoops (d. 1999) in the Chelsea District of New York City.
It is 1st Baron Macaulay (Thomas Babington Macaulay) whose five-volume History of England helped enshrine what has come to be known as the Whig interpretation of English history.
Michelle Malkin, a former Fox News commentator (the network which serves as a shadow model for ATV on Succession), is unrelated.
I hope this will clear up any confusion for my young friends.
Related: Connor on Succession (Alan Ruck) is Ferris Bueller’s friend Cameron (Alan Ruck).