F. D. C. Willard

F. D. C. Willard (1968–1982) was the pen name of Chester, a Siamese cat, used on several papers written by his owner, J. H. Hetherington, in physics journals.

A colleague, to whom he had given his paper for review, pointed out that Hetherington had used the first person plural, "we", in his text, and that the journal would reject this form on submissions with a sole author.

Rather than take the time to retype the article to use the singular form, or to bring in a co-author, Hetherington decided to invent one.

The unmasking of Hetherington's co-author on the Physical Review essay, which was frequently referenced,[6] caused the co-authorship to become world-famous.

[7] F. D. C. Willard appeared henceforth repeatedly in footnotes, where he was thanked for "useful contributions to the discussion" or oral communications,[1] and even offered a position as a professor.