---
type: guest
cover: https://media.codingcat.dev/image/upload/v1709747212/main-codingcatdev-photo/podcast-guest/randal-schwartz.jpg
name: Randal Schwartz
published: published
slug: randal-schwartz
start: January 1, 2000
socials:
  linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/randalschwartz/
  twitter: https://twitter.com/RandalSchwartz
websites:
  - http://www.stonehenge.com/
---

## Profile

- Working

  I'm the primary person to blame for [Stonehenge Consulting Services, Inc](/).

- Hanging out online

  I frequent the Usenet Perl newsgroups, [the Perl mailing lists](/cgi/go/http://lists.perl.org), a bunch of other mailing lists, IRC Perl channels, and [the Perl monastery](/cgi/go/http://perlmonks.org).

- Writing

  I write [books](/books/) and [magazine articles](columns.html), primarily about Perl.

- Cruising

  I've been on every [Geek Cruise](/cgi/go/http://geekcruises.com) so far.

- Taking pictures

  I've got about [40,000 pictures online](Pictures/) here, although I'm slowly moving them to [my Flickr account](/cgi/go/http://www.flickr.com/photos/randal-schwartz/).

## Am I related to any other famous Schwartz folks?

Not likely. My grandfather changed his name from Von Schraeder to Schwartz when he came from Germany to the US mid-West around 1900. My dad thinks it was to avoid any constabulary entanglement. So, I'm stuck with a hard-to-pronounce name that has a consonant-to-vowel ratio of 7.0. I'd change it back to Von Schraeder, but that would probably just confuse people now.

I'm a western-European mutt, with about 30% German, and the rest a mix of English, Scot, and Irish.

## Mariel and me: twins!

I've discovered that the actress [Mariel Hemingway ](/cgi/go/http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Hemingway,+Mariel)was born on the same day as me, and only one state over (in [Mill Valley, California](/cgi/go/http://wings.buffalo.edu/geogw?mill+valley%2C+ca)). But does she ever write me or call me? **Nooooooooo.**

Well, at least not until her personal assistant was kind enough to pass along my invitation to my (our) 35th birthday party, and Mariel replied by sending me a very nice [autographed picture](bw-mariel-auto.jpg) and a postcard (scan forthcoming). Mariel also asked for an autographed copy of my book in exchange, which I sent. Now to finish editing the video shot at our party...

## My travel schedule

For the past 15 years or so, I've been on the road about 20 weeks a year, accumulating over a million frequent flyer miles. See my [plan file](dot-plan.txt), which should contain my travel schedule if I've been following my own plan.

## Gogopuffs

I've got the word gogopuffs here just so [Google](/cgi/go/http://www.google.com) can find it, and then later I can say "Google for Gogopuffs" and hit my page.

If you don't get that, you've not watched the ads for breakfast cereal during the Saturday morning cartoons.

## Contacting me

You can reach me at [`merlyn@stonehenge.com`](mailto:merlyn@stonehenge.com). You can also call the office, but I'd much rather be reached by email.
