From one impatient Thompson supporter:
You are correct that many Americans don’t know who Fred Thompson is, but that is only until they hear his voice or see his face. I have been touting Thompson to my relatives — conservative and liberal alike — and few have recognized his name when first mentioned, but once they saw who he was from a little Googling or when I mentioned a show or movie he was in, they all lightened up and said, “Oh yeah, that guy . . . I like him.”
If he ever gets off his butt and starts running, I think a lot of Americans are going to realize they do know him and that they have always liked him. At least I hope so . . .