Alan Gratz: Hi, my name is Alan Gratz. That's Gratz like rats, not Grads like pods. As for the name Alan, it's spelled A-L-A-N, not A-L-L-A-N, or A-L-L-E-N. I've always liked the way my first name is spelled and I was sure my parents had chosen to spell it that way for a special reason. A notable relative perhaps, or a famous Alan spelled A-L-A-N like Alan Shepard maybe, or Alan Alda. When I asked my mom why my name was spelled A-L-A-N, she said, "Do you remember that chest of drawers that you had when you were a boy? The one with the alphabet blocks for knobs? It only had room for four letters, so we spelled your name A-L-A-N." So there it is. The very special reason my first name is spelled A-L-A-N. I suppose I should be thankful that Bubba has five letters. That was the other name my parents considered naming me, but it didn't fit on the furniture.