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Clan Chattan have always been known for their fearsome drive and power, and many of their descendants seem to have inherited these traits by the bucket load. Read our blog to find out more about some of the Famous Faces of Clan Chattan!
Meet the Famous Chattans
Walter Chatton
You may not have heard of our first famous face, but he had an astounding impact on 14th century philosophy and remains a significant philosophical figure today!
Walter Chatton was born in the North of England in around 1290 and entered the Franciscan Order at a very young age. He received a first-class early education in philosophy, building an impressive wealth of knowledge while still only a child. He then went on to the University of Oxford to study theology, where he encountered the work of William of Ockham for the first time. He was greatly influenced by the older scholar, though he disagreed with many of his ideas.
Ockham is best known for his Ockham’s razor theory, the idea that the simplest answer is often most likely to be the correct one. Chatton provided invaluable academic rebuttal to this concept, which both added another deeply interesting stream of thought to the philosophical field, and assisted Ockham in strengthening his arguments. There is even evidence that Ockham changed his views on several issues as a direct result of Chatton’s criticism.
Chatton also contributed to a number of other key areas in medieval theology and philosophy, including the concepts of intuitive cognition and consciousness.
However, Chatton was not only admired for his academic achievements, he also gained an extremely respected position in the Catholic church becoming a Franciscan regent master after graduating from Oxford, and even serving as an advisor to Pope Benedict XII!
Scholarship on Chatton and his work is steadily growing. While Ockham specialists have long recognised his importance, he has historically been underrated. Recently, however, a number of complete critical editions of his writings have become available, and we have seen a steady uptick in studies on his life, views, and great influence.
Hopefully this fearsomely intelligent early Chatton will only continue to gain more acclaim!
Grian Chatten
Our next famous face of today is decidedly more modern and has made a big splash in the music world.
Grian Chatten, born on the 19th of July 1994, is the lead singer of popular Irish band Fontaines D.C.
Chatten spent his teen years in Dublin, where he studied at the British and Irish Modern Music Institute and met his future bandmates. The group bonded over a shared love of poetry, lyrics, and music and formed Fontaines D.C. after graduating in 2017. It wasn’t long before they had gained a reputation locally for their energetic live shows and remarkable talent. In 2019, they released their debut album, Dogrel, which immediately received enthusiastic critical acclaim, with Chatten being likened to such stars as Ian Curtis and Mark E. Smith for his lyrical prowess and passion.
The bands’ follow up albums, A Hero’s Death and Skinty Fia were also highly praised, helping them to win a number of prestigious awards, including ‘The Brit Award for International Group’ in both 2021 and 2023, and NME’s ‘Best Band in the World’ prize. Quite an accolade!
Chatten has also launched a solo career alongside his ventures with Fontaines, releasing his debut solo album, Choas for the Fly on the 4th of May 2023. It charted at number 1 for UK Independent Albums and has been applauded by fans and critics alike, being called ‘Leonard Cohen-esque,’ ‘short but sweet, bleak but beautiful,’ and ‘mature, expansive, and tender.’
It seems certain that Chatten is still only at the beginning of a ground-breaking career, and we can’t wait to see where his talents take him next. If you haven’t yet listened to his music, please do check it out and let us know what you think!
Jeanie MacPherson
As Clan Chattan is technically more of a confederation than a singular clan, we thought it only right to highlight a famous face from one of the families in the alliance.
Perhaps one of the most impressive characters we came across was Jeanie MacPherson, an actress, writer and director from the classic age of Hollywood!
Born Abbie Jean MacPherson in Boston, Massachusetts on the 18th of May 1886, the young girl showed a precocious talent for the arts from a young age. After completing schooling in the United States as well as Paris, MacPherson enrolled in the Kenwood Institute in Chicago and began to work as a dancer and theatre performer. She also used her time as a student to take singing lessons, and soon earned a spot as part of the chorus in the Chicago Opera House.
In 1908 MacPherson won her first film role, acting in D. W. Griffith’s ‘The Fatal Hour.’ From here on out, she became a staple of the silver screen, and in less than 10 years she collected 146 acting credits.
MacPherson was blessed with the classic Chattan drive, so was not content to stick to only one skill! In 1913, she wrote, directed, and starred in ‘The Tarantula,’ becoming the youngest director ever in the history of cinema! This experience spurred her on to focus more on writing, and she struck up a long-term collaboration with Cecil B. DeMille, writing scripts for 30 of his films, including ‘The Girl of the Golden West,’ ‘Rose of the Rancho,’ and ‘The Woman God Forgot.’ Many scholars consider this to be one of Hollywood’s most influential and successful partnerships.
Alongside her cinematic prowess, MacPherson also nurtured several other remarkable skills, including flying! She prided herself on her piloting abilities and aimed to take daily flights. She was also the only woman to ever fly the plane of Ormer Locklear, a famous American actor and stunt pilot.
She was undeniably an incredibly multi-faceted and multi-talented woman!
Her incredible work ethic kept her working until the end of her life, when she was sadly diagnosed with cancer while researching her last film, aptly named ‘Unconquered.’ She died in the summer of 1947 in Los Angeles and was buried at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. She was also commemorated with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6150 Hollywood Boulevard. If you ever find yourself in LA, why not take a moment to seek it out, and pay your respects to this esteemed and brilliant member of the Chattan Clan.
We have been heartened to discover how talented, distinguished, and driven the Chattan family truly are. It has been great to see the level of success and acclaim they have achieved! If you are blessed with any Chattan heritage, we hope you feel inspired having read about just some of the great accomplishments of your peers.
Do you think we have missed anyone out who we should have mentioned? If so, please get in touch and let us know. We’d love to hear from you! If you’d like to learn more about the mighty Clan Chattan, keep an eye out for our upcoming Chattan blogs, and make sure to check out the Clan Chattan page on our website.
Image Sources:
Tower in the gardens of Oxford University by Tadeas Navratil - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0
Jeanie MacPherson by Unknown photographer - Photoplay (Jul - Dec 1921) (1921), Public Domain
Grian Chatten by Paul Hudson from United Kingdom - Record Store Day 2019 - Fontaine’s DC, CC BY 2.0
