United States cartoonist who drew intricate diagrams of very complicated and impractical contraptions that accomplished little or nothing (1883-1970)
"The inventor claimed his new machine was a true goldberg, featuring so many unnecessary steps that it never actually worked."
A surname, from German, fairly common in the U.S.A.
"My neighbor Goldberg introduced his family to us at the community picnic."
Goldberg is a surname borrowed directly from German, combining "gold" (gold) and "Berg" (mountain). It was originally one of the ornamental names adopted by Jewish families in Germany during the 18th and 19th centuries when they were required to take surnames.