I was reading a book in which two characters meet after a long time, and the dialogue sounded like this:
A: Is that you, Michael Smith?
B: Oh, heavens, is that you, John Walker?
A: How you been you son of a gun, Smith?
B: Certainly not as well as you, Walker.
And so on, sometimes the full name, sometimes the first and sometime the surname.
Now I understand that there must be some people who talk like this. I can even imagine the conversation happening in front of me, like maybe when I've gone to a high school reunion and two guys are trying to be all cute about meeting each other after a long time (mind you, I can only imagine two men talk like that, for reasons I don't understand).
Having said that, for some reason, I can't stand it in a book. Reminds me of a salesperson I met at a party, who seemed to use this technique as a way to remember people's names. It also reminds me of amateur writers who use this as a way to tell the reader who is who. Just gets on my nerves.
by davecopperfield