Designated Hero: The fitness of several of Wagner's heroes to protagonisthood has been questioned. ("How could Elisabeth choose that whiner Heinrich over Wolfram?")
Love It or Hate It: Even to this day, Wagner's music is some of the most polarizing ever written. There's a saying that, in polite company, one should "never discuss politics, religion, or Wagner."
Misattributed Song: No, Wagner did not write any part of Carmina Burana.
Nor did he write "In the Hall of the Mountain King."
Older Than They Think: Many people think that the saxophones were invented in the Jazz Age, but Wagner had requested Adolphe Sax to figure out how to create an instrument to play a smooth brass/woodwind sound back in 1840.
Seinfeld Is Unfunny: Wagner's „Musik der Zukunft‟ ("The Music of the Future") was considered daringly, even outrageously, innovative in his own time; but he became so influential that his music is now reckoned old-fashioned and even stereotypical by some.
Wagner's leitmotif technique - that is, associating one musical idea with a particular character, item or feeling and repeating it whenever that/they recurred - was revolutionary at the time, but is standard practice in film music today. His writings also had a huge influence on the development of musical theater.