TVTropes Now available in the app store!
Open

Follow TV Tropes

Following

Real Life section maintenance (including NRLEP and LRLEO) (New Crowner 9/20/25)

Go To

Note: If a newly launched trope was already given a No Real Life Examples, Please! or Limited Real Life Examples Only designation while it was being drafted on the Trope Launch Pad, additions to the proper index do not need to go through this thread. Instead, simply ask the staff to add the trope via this thread.

This is the thread to report tropes with problematic Real Life sections.

Common problems include:

Real Life sections on the wiki are kept as long as they don't become a problem. If you find an article with such problems, report it here. Please note that the purpose of this thread is to clean up and maintain real life sections, not raze them. Cutting should be treated as a last resort, so please only suggest cutting RL sections or a subset thereof you think the examples in question are completely unsalvageable.

If historical RL examples are not causing any problems, consider whether it would be better to propose a No Recent Examples, Please! (via this forum thread) for RL instead of NRLEP. If RL examples are causing problems only for certain subjects, consider whether a Limited Real Life Examples Only restriction would be preferable to NRLEP.

If you think a trope should be No Real Life Examples, Please! or Limited Real Life Examples Only, then this thread is the place to discuss it. However, please check Keep Real Life Examples first to see if it has already been brought up in the past. If not, state the reasons and add it to the crowner.

Before adding to the crowner:

  • The trope should be proposed in the thread, along with reasons for why a crowner is necessary instead of a cleanup.
  • There must be support from others in thread.
  • Any objections should be addressed.
  • Allow a minimum of 24 hours for discussion.

When adding to the crowner:

  • Be sure to add the trope name, a link to where the discussion started, the reasons for crownering, whether the restriction being proposed is NRLEP or LRLEO (and in the latter case, which subject(s) the restriction would be for), and the date added.
  • Announce in thread that you are adding the item.
  • An ATT advert should be made as well (batch items together if more than one trope goes up in a day).

In order for a crowner to pass:

  • Must have been up for a minimum of a week
  • There must be a 2:1 ratio
  • If the vote is exactly 2:1 or +/- 1 vote from that, give it a couple extra days to see if any more votes come in
  • Once passed, tropes must be indexed on the appropriate NRLEP or LRLEO index
  • Should the vote fail, the trope should be indexed on KRLE page

Sex Tropes, Rape and Sexual Harassment Tropes, and Morality Tropes are banned from having RL sections so tropes under those indexes don't need a crowner vote.

As per Real Life Troping, we never trope unscripted real life sports — so sports tropes where RL examples would only apply to those scenarios don't need a crowner vote.

Crowner entries that have already been called will have "(CLOSED)" appended to them — and are no longer open for discussion.

After bringing up a trope for discussion, please wait at least a day for feedback before adding it to the crowner.

NRLEP tag:

%% Trope was declared Administrivia/NoRealLifeExamplesPlease via crowner by the Real Life Maintenance thread: [crowner link]
%%https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13350380440A15238800

LRLEO tag:

%% Trope was declared Administrivia/LimitedRealLifeExamplesOnly via crowner by the Real Life Maintenance thread: [crowner link]
%%The following restrictions apply: [list restriction(s) here]
%%https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13350380440A15238800

Notes:
  • This thread is not for general discussion regarding policies for Real Life sections or crowners. Please take those conversations to this Wiki Talk thread.
  • Do not try to overturn previous No Real Life Examples, Please! or Limited Real Life Examples Only decisions without a convincing argument.
  • As mentioned here, the consensus is that NRLEP warnings in trope page descriptions can use bold text so that they stand out.
  • The [[noreallife]] tag no longer works. This is a deprecated tag that was introduced many years ago — originally, it would have displayed a NRLEP warning banner when you edited the page. Per word of admin as of 2025, any replacement for this system will not use markup, so these tags can be removed.
  • If a newly launched trope was already given a No Real Life Examples, Please! or Limited Real Life Examples Only designation while it was being drafted on the Trope Launch Pad, additions to the proper index do not need to go through this thread. Instead, simply ask the staff to add the trope via this thread.

Edited by GastonRabbit on Aug 3rd 2025 at 6:31:00 AM

BoltDMC Since: May, 2020
#11601: Jun 16th 2022 at 5:41:56 PM

Handsome Lech has a Real Life folder that tropes five real life people as if they were fictional. Cut.

    Real Life 
  • Famously, John F. Kennedy. Unfortunately, this seems to have been a literal sex addiction related to his debilitating autoimmune disease.
    "If I don't have a woman every three days, I get terrible headaches."
  • Lord Byron was renowned during his life for being one of these. Handsome, a romantic poet with scandalous private life.
  • Tucker Max. The man created a literary genre and made a small fortune off stories of his sexual exploits.
  • Benjamin Netanyahu is well known in Israel for his relentless skirt-chasing. He's been married three times and in 1993 publicly confessed to infidelity wherein he'd been videotaped.
  • Errol Flynn is the epitome of this trope. Handsome? Check. Famous? Check. A serial womanizer who was accused of statutory rape by two 17-year-old girls and only beat the rap because he was able to woo the jury? Check.

Accidental Pervert has a Real Life folder that mostly tropes real life people as if they were fictional. There are also general examples and ZC Es. Cut, see annotations.

    Real Life 
  • The paparazzi pictures of Hilary Duff accepting her marriage proposal from boyfriend/hockey player Mike Comrie were taken from an odd angle, as they were at an open window several floors above ground level. Hilarity Ensued. See for yourself. Troping real person. Cut.
  • This happens often enough in stores that companies have studied how to prevent it from happening. Customers who do this tend to leave the store quickly without buying anything. In his book “Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping” (2000), Mr. Underhill expounded on the dangers of “butt brushes” (if the aisles are too narrow and people brush up against each other when they pass, they tend to leave the store). General example. Cut.
  • Jeremy Paxman of all people became this in an interview while explaining how hard it can be to interview Boris Johnson. Explaining how Johnson tended to pat him on the arm repeatedly in interviews, he proceeded to miss the hostess' upper arm and immediately apologize. Troping real person. Cut.
  • If you've ever played a game of "Marco Polo" with a group of friends, odds are this will happen at some point. Ditto Twister, hence its popularity for Ship Tease in various media. ZCE. Cut.
  • Truth in Television if this thread is anything to go by. ZCE. Cut.
  • Surprisingly happened to a pair of Danish handball-players when one of them fell down in the middle of a game. Unlike most examples in fiction, the two got up, laughed it off, and kept playing. Troping real person. Cut.
  • British Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, congratulating his fellow MP Emily Thornberry on her re-election, gave her the "most awkward high-five ever", as this video called it. Troping real person. Cut.
  • In this video (the relevant part begins at 7:18), Felicia Day describes how she once teased a Dragon Con panel attendee about whether he'd had his character sleep with her character in a videogame. Because the audience was seated at a distance from the panel, Felicia couldn't see them very well and thought the attendee she was talking to was around nineteen. After the panel, she was informed that he was actually twelve. Troping real person. Cut.

BoltDMC Since: May, 2020
#11602: Jun 16th 2022 at 5:49:12 PM

[up][up] The Trauma Conga Line Real Life folder is large and a mess. For sure, all the general examples and real life troped examples can go. There are also things such as countries being troped, which seems like shoehorning.

We can try crownering it also. I'm fine with that.

MacronNotes (she/her) (Captain) Relationship Status: Less than three
(she/her)
#11603: Jun 16th 2022 at 6:23:37 PM

It's actually already on the crowner and by the looks of things, it's going to keep its real life examples unless things change drastically. That doesn't mean we can't clean the folder though

Edited by MacronNotes on Jun 16th 2022 at 9:24:46 AM

Macron's notes
Amonimus the "Retromancer" from <<|Wiki Talk|>> (Sergeant) Relationship Status: In another castle
the "Retromancer"
#11604: Jun 17th 2022 at 1:10:28 AM

~BoltDMC, You need to enter the wikiword (part URL). Try ThePollyanna/RealLife. If that fails I'll try myself.

TroperWall / WikiMagic Cleanup
BoltDMC Since: May, 2020
#11605: Jun 17th 2022 at 2:46:57 AM

[up] Thanks, finally got it to work. I was entering it wrong.

TheUnsquished Filthy Casual from A youngun between two oldies Since: Nov, 2014 Relationship Status: Married to the job
Filthy Casual
#11606: Jun 17th 2022 at 2:51:49 AM

[up][up][up] Curate rather than cull?

(Annoyed grunt)
namra Since: Sep, 2021
#11607: Jun 17th 2022 at 3:47:43 PM

[up][up][up][up]this can't be right. trauma conga line, as i already said, is a narrative trope. it shouldn't have a real life example section in the first place.

Edited by namra on Jun 17th 2022 at 3:48:50 AM

MacronNotes (she/her) (Captain) Relationship Status: Less than three
(she/her)
#11608: Jun 17th 2022 at 3:51:26 PM

Not everything goes the way we want on crowners. If a majority of people who voted want Trauma Conga Line to keep its real life examples, then we have to abide by that. After a a few months have past, we can try crownering it again.

That being said, the crowner isn't stable and didn't like it can be called tomorrow anyways. We can give it a few more days to see how things progress.

Edited by MacronNotes on Jun 17th 2022 at 6:57:11 AM

Macron's notes
WarJay77 It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (3,795/50,000) from My Writing Cave (Troper Knight) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (3,795/50,000)
#11609: Jun 17th 2022 at 3:53:55 PM

Is it a narrative trope? The description does talk a lot about the narrative impact, but the trope boils down to "character goes through a lot of trauma in a short time".

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
MacronNotes (she/her) (Captain) Relationship Status: Less than three
(she/her)
#11610: Jun 17th 2022 at 3:55:39 PM

Yeah, It's a characterization trope about how a character multiple trauma's in a short period of time and it affects them. I wouldn't say it's a narrative trope.

Edited by MacronNotes on Jun 17th 2022 at 6:56:05 AM

Macron's notes
nw09 Since: Apr, 2018
#11611: Jun 17th 2022 at 4:46:15 PM

A lot of examples on it are just "person has had a tragic life".

WarJay77 It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (3,795/50,000) from My Writing Cave (Troper Knight) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (3,795/50,000)
#11612: Jun 17th 2022 at 4:47:28 PM

And those can still be cut, which is why we're saying to clean the folder.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#11613: Jun 17th 2022 at 5:12:04 PM

Tropes that get NRLEP'd for being narrative tropes usually get listed because they are meta tropes and make no sense in a real life context. All tropes are narrative tropes, really, but some can work in a real life context as they are inspired by reality.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
GastonRabbit C'est la vie. (he/him) from Robinson, Illinois, USA (General of TV Troops) Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
C'est la vie. (he/him)
#11614: Jun 17th 2022 at 9:11:16 PM

I disagree with the crowner not being able to be called tomorrow, per this rule:

If the vote is exactly 2:1 or +/- 1 vote from that, give it a couple extra days to see if any more votes come in.

This crowner option is so far below that that I don't see it going any way other than KRLE. Besides, the one-week minimum we give to options in this thread is already longer than what we give to most TRS crowners.

Edited by GastonRabbit on Jun 17th 2022 at 11:13:05 AM

I got a rock for Halloween.
MacronNotes (she/her) (Captain) Relationship Status: Less than three
(she/her)
#11615: Jun 17th 2022 at 9:24:05 PM

I probably misread that somehow then.

I'll just call it now since it's the 18th.

Edited by MacronNotes on Jun 17th 2022 at 12:27:08 PM

Macron's notes
namra Since: Sep, 2021
#11616: Jun 17th 2022 at 10:15:17 PM

i don't understand. why does a characterization trope need a real life example section? shouldn't it be removed right off the bat because of that?

MacronNotes (she/her) (Captain) Relationship Status: Less than three
(she/her)
#11617: Jun 17th 2022 at 10:27:08 PM

Again, the crowner chose to not mark the trope as NRLEP. Being a characterization or narrative trope is a reason to want a trope's real life section pulled but it can't justify a blanket ban because we don't operate that way. If the real life folder needs cleaning feel free to do that but otherwise please let this issue go. If the real life is still a problem 1-2 months down the line, we can re-crowner Trauma Conga Line.

Macron's notes
WarJay77 It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (3,795/50,000) from My Writing Cave (Troper Knight) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (3,795/50,000)
#11618: Jun 17th 2022 at 10:30:26 PM

And to answer the question, there's no real reason to blanket ban character tropes since most of them are just personality traits or things characters go through, all of which are possible IRL.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
Albert3105 Since: Jun, 2013
#11619: Jun 18th 2022 at 10:08:48 AM

Was going to add a sentence to NoRealLife.Gossip And Stereotypes:

  • Mean Character, Nice Actor — Also carries the unfortunate implication that any person who plays a villain or jerk who isn't listed on this page is by default a jerk.

Edited by Albert3105 on Jun 18th 2022 at 1:09:02 PM

namra Since: Sep, 2021
#11620: Jun 18th 2022 at 12:04:48 PM

[up][up][up]in that case, we need to clean up the real life section. it's a massive mess.

Amonimus the "Retromancer" from <<|Wiki Talk|>> (Sergeant) Relationship Status: In another castle
the "Retromancer"
#11621: Jun 18th 2022 at 12:06:39 PM

[up] Which we're doing and you're free to join.

TroperWall / WikiMagic Cleanup
RallyBot2 (Elder Troper) Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
#11622: Jun 18th 2022 at 4:07:57 PM

I think need to make it more clear what we as a wiki mean by "narrative trope" and "troping real people as fictional characters," as different tropers seem to have different definitions of these two things in particular. (As well as the extent of how far we can go on the latter.)

BoltDMC Since: May, 2020
#11623: Jun 19th 2022 at 4:43:40 AM

Regarding troping real life people, Lord Gro took a chainsaw to the Johannes Brahms page not long ago, removing all but two examples from it. I brought up the issue at ATT back then asking if that was okay, especially given that among the things cut were entries that troped Brahms’s music career. There was overwhelmingly positive support for what Lord Gro did, and I was literally the only poster who had an issue with it. At the time, it was stated that only works themselves can be troped on creator pages.

Unless we put all those examples back, I can’t see any basis for troping real life people themselves.

Link to ATT discussion.

Edited by BoltDMC on Jun 19th 2022 at 4:46:38 AM

TheLivingDrawing Lucas the Dreamer from The Town of Clayton Since: Apr, 2019 Relationship Status: Yes, I'm alone, but I'm alone and free
Lucas the Dreamer
#11624: Jun 19th 2022 at 1:58:14 PM

Battleaxe Nurse is a morality trope about abusive, if not downright evil, nurses. It still allows for real life examples.

Edited by TheLivingDrawing on Jun 19th 2022 at 5:04:15 AM

Once Upon A Time.
BoltDMC Since: May, 2020
#11625: Jun 19th 2022 at 3:02:25 PM

[up] I’m all for either a crowner or clean up. Definitely a ROCEJ issue here.

Projects: Long Term/Perpetual: Real Life Section Maintenance
20th Sep '25 9:57:50 AM

Crown Description:

Vote UP to cut real life examples; vote DOWN to keep.

Anything marked DONE has been resolved.

In order for a crowner to pass:

  • Must have been up for a minimum of a week
  • There must be a 2:1 ratio
  • If the vote is exactly 2:1 or +/- 1 vote from that, give it a couple extra days to see if any more votes come in
  • Once passed, tropes must be indexed on the appropriate NRLEP or LRLEO index
  • Should the vote fail, the trope should be indexed on KRLE page

Total posts: 16,914
Top