Childish taunts of "Elephant Man" flung by cruel classmates didn't score the blow they might have against Jon Merrick in his school days. After all, there was no actual family connection with the horrifically deformed man according to Jon's grandparents — what shame such a relationship would have brought on the family.

The elder Merricks called it coincidence that Jon's name was the same as that of the disfigured legend, who had lived in the 1800s in their same central England city of Leicester. Still, Jon — now 48 — ruled out giving either of his sons his own first name, in consideration of the ridicule it would predictably invite upon a junior Jon Merrick.

Discovering the Elephant Man Connection

When their first baby was born in 1981, Jon's wife, Michelle, casually looked back a few branches into each of their family trees to include in newborn Ben's baby book. What she discovered on Easter six years later — having been bitten by what she describes as the genealogy "bug," — was astonishing: the long-denied kinship between Jon and the Elephant Man unquestionably did exist, borne out by a single document from her municipality's records office connecting Jon and the Elephant Man's father, Joseph Rockley Merrick.

Jon's great-grandfather was the Elephant Man's cousin, explains Jon, following up with an illustration of the close relationship: When my dad visited his grandparents, he slept in their house, where the Elephant Man lived. He and my dad would have known each other if the Elephant Man had lived to be 60 years old. (The Elephant Man died in 1890 at age 27, without children of his own.)

By the time they made their familial discovery, Michelle and Jon were parents of three kids, all younger than 5. Where could their minds have traveled, upon discovering genes lurking in their bloodline that could ravage a body into a disturbing, lumpy form? The thought alarmed them at first, and they inquired of their doctor, "What does this mean? Could this be genetic and affect our kids?" No, their doctor promptly assured them — the three children were without the disease-signaling café spots. And generations of Merricks had been free of signs of any similar disease.

A Deeper Meaning

Relieved of that devastating fear, only excitement remained, Jon says — a profound curiosity to delve into the true story of his relative who had made his living drawing crowds as a fairground freak. More than two decades after the popular movie The Elephant Man portrayed his famous ancestor's life, Jon says he has gained a personal perspective beyond the movie-depicted "suffering and adversity."

"Shining through all of that misfortune was the spirit of this peaceful, pleasant, kind and gentle man who wasn't bitter about the world at all," Jon says. "If you can be that unfortunate and still have the sort of soul that this guy had, that shows character."

Jon and Michelle's children, too, have great respect for their inspiring ancestor. Says their 19-year-old second son, Joseph, "Although I have had some teasing through my life ... I have come to accept [the family tie] and be proud of it." Joseph, who was named after Michelle's relatives — the name Jon having been eliminated from consideration for the extra ribbing it might attract — ironically did turn out to have the same name as the Elephant Man. The most famous Merrick of all, known to the world for many years as John — based on the press, medical documents and even the movie about his life — wasn't really named John at all, but Joseph, like his father.