Interesting information about a popular person. Interesting stories from the life of great people that can inspire
It's no secret that famous personalities get into extraordinary life situations and various stories more often than others, which, thanks to eyewitnesses, are imprinted in their biographies for centuries. As a rule, these stories are anecdotally funny, sometimes curious and not very pleasant, as well as instructive, which have passed into the category of parables. Today we will talk about interesting facts from the life of famous Russian and European classical artists.
An artist's autograph worth ten times more than the painting itself
Ilya Efimovich Repin. Once a certain lady bought a painting with the signature “I. Repin”, paying 100 rubles for it. After a while, having come to the painter's studio, she showed the artist her acquisition. Repin, laughing at the unlucky customer, wrote at the bottom of the canvas: "This is not Repin." After that, the lady resold the painting, but for a thousand rubles. Painting is immortal
Pablo Picasso. One fairly well-known doctor at the exhibition approached Picasso and said importantly: - I know quite well the anatomical structure of the human body. So, I can say that the people on your canvases cause some regret and bewilderment. “Quite possibly,” Picasso retorted. - But I can assure you that they will live much longer than your patients. Children's individualism
Self-portraits. Pablo Picasso at 15 and at 90. Once, having visited an exposition of children's drawings, Pablo Picasso thoughtfully said: - When I was at their age, I could paint like Raphael, but it took my whole life to learn how to draw like them. 
Portrait of the artist's mother (1896), painted by 15-year-old Picasso. Expensive check
Salvador Dali. Salvador Dali had a very clever ploy for restaurant owners. Visiting an entertainment venue for the first time, he gathered a large company of friends and acquaintances, and for the whole evening he treated everyone to any dishes and drinks from the menu. When it came time to pay the bills, the artist defiantly wrote out a check for a huge amount, and then ... turned the check over and on reverse side wrote several warm words in gratitude to the owner of the institution and put his autograph. The master's calculation was simple and trouble-free: using his fame as a living genius, Dali was sure that the owner of the restaurant would never dare to cash a check with the original signature of Dali himself! This is how it usually happened: restaurateurs understood that over time they could help out much more money for this check than just the amount on the account, but the master saved a lot of money. Who's crazy?
Salvador Dali. Once, in a conversation with his friends, Salvador Dali said that all the cataclysms that occur in nature no longer surprise him at all. Then the interlocutor began to enthusiastically give an example of a possible situation: - Well, so be it, but if at midnight a light suddenly appeared on the horizon, announcing the morning dawn? You look and see that the sun is rising. Wouldn't that surprise you? Don't you think you've gone crazy? “On the contrary,” Dali said without hesitation, “I would have thought that this sun had gone crazy. Creative unions
Isaac Levitan./“Autumn day. Sokolniki. (1879)./ Nikolai Chekhov. As you know, the artist Isaac Levitan "specialized" only in landscape painting, but there is one canvas in his legacy depicting a female figure walking in the park. "Autumn day. Sokolniki "- this is the name of this picture, written by him in his student years. The artist never undertook to draw people, and in fairness it should be noted that the only image of a woman was painted not by the artist himself, but by his friend from art school, brother famous writer- Nikolai Chekhov. 
Ivan Aivazovsky./ "Pushkin on the seashore"./ Ilya Repin. By the way, this was not the only creative collaboration in the history of art. Why not help an artist friend who is failing in some way? Not many people know that the figure of Pushkin in Aivazovsky's painting "Pushkin on the Seashore" was painted by Ilya Repin. 
K. A. Savitsky and I. I. Shishkin. Early 1880s Photo. / "Morning in a pine forest". And the famous bears in Shishkin's painting "Morning in a Pine Forest" were painted by the artist Savitsky. Well, these funny animals did not work out for the brilliant master of landscape. But the fee of four thousand rubles from the sale of this painting was divided fraternally, and there were originally two autographs on the canvas. Everything is fair... However, the owner of the painting, Pavel Tretyakov, decided to leave the authorship to Shishkinin and personally erased Savitsky's signature. Complimented by the letter "B" to the name of the artist by the emperor himself
Karl and Alexander Bryullov. Until the beginning of the 19th century, the name Bryullov did not exist in Russia. Karl Bryullov, the famous Russian artist, was born in the family of the academician of ornamental sculpture Pavel Bryullo, whose ancestors were from France. The letter “v” at the end of the surname was granted to Karl and his brother Alexander, an architect by profession, by the highest imperial decree before a pensioner's trip to Italy. Exhibition of one masterpiece
Arkhip Kuindzhi. In 1880, an unprecedented event occurred in the world of Russian art. In St. Petersburg, for the first time, Arkhip Kuindzhi's painting "Moonlight Night on the Dnieper" was put on display to the public. It was surprising that she was the only one in the exhibition. Rumors about the extraordinary canvas spread throughout the city long before it was shown, and on the very day of the opening, it seemed that the whole city was going to look at it. Many carriages blocked all the nearby streets, and people crowded in long lines at the entrance. Many visited the exhibition several times. 
"Moonlit night on the Dnieper". The audience was fascinated by the extraordinary realism moonlight in the picture, many suggested that the artist used luminous paints, some even secretly looked behind the picture, trying to find out if there was a lamp illuminating the moon. Vow of Modigliani
Amedeo Modigliani. Amedeo Modigliani, a famous Italian artist, became interested in drawing and painting at a very early age. He made the final decision to become an artist at the age of eleven after severe pleurisy, when, lying in delirium, Amedeo decided: if he survived, he would devote himself to painting. And he kept his word. Kuindzhi and birds
Arkhip Kuindzhi. Arkhip Kuindzhi was very fond of birds. He could sit for hours on the roof of his house, "talking" with pigeons and crows. And he often told his friends that the birds understand his words and easily go into his hands. Well, still .... After all, every month the artist spent a lot of money on feeding the birds, buying 60 French rolls, up to 10 kg of meat and 6 sacks of oats. And once the illustrator Pavel Shcherbov published a cartoon in which Kuindzhi puts an enema on a bird. They say that Arkhip Ivanovich, who did not have a special sense of humor, was terribly offended by his colleague. 
Caricature. Feathered patients (A.I. Kuindzhi on the roof of his house). Author: Pavel Shcherbov. Five thousand for the ceiling
Konstantin Egorovich Makovsky. / Girl dressed as Flora. Konstantin Makovsky was famous not only for salon portraits of the wives of wealthy husbands, but also for their exorbitant prices. And the artist was very fond of delicious food, which is called a true gourmet. But one day he almost got into trouble. Baron Akkurti, having just bought a luxurious mansion with plafonds painted by Makovsky, but without his autographs, invited the most popular artist to have breakfast in a restaurant. In the hope that the artist will sign the plafonds for free as a token of gratitude. So it would have happened if not for one "but" ... Makovsky was already softened in anticipation of an exquisite meal and promised to go immediately after it and sign all three plafonds for free. And the tight-fisted baron finally made an order: he ordered smelt and bread to be served. “Smelt? Me?” Makovsky protested to himself. And he said aloud: “Five thousand rubles for a signature on each ceiling!” Valentin or Anton Serov
Portrait of Mika Morozov. / Valentin Serov. Friends and relatives called Valentin Serov Anton. This name was firmly stuck to him in childhood, when parents, out of an excess of feelings for the baby, called little Valentine Valentosha, Tosha, sometimes Tonya. A little later, in the Mamontov family, Tosha turned into Antosha. And the letters that Ilya Repin wrote to the already adult Serov often began with an appeal: “Anton, Anton!”. Little blackmailer
*Girl with peaches*. Author: V. Serov. The fact that Valentin Serov worked slowly was especially well known to his relatives. And when the artist decided to paint a portrait of Savva Mamontov's 11-year-old daughter, Vera, (and the canvas was conceived as a birthday present for Elizabeth Mamontova, the girl's mother), Serov came across a categorical protest of the future model. Vera immediately realized what threatens her consent to posing for the artist. She was not at all tempted to sit for weeks in a motionless pose, instead of running around the countryside with her peers. Vera was stubborn and Serov had no choice but to agree not to her conditions: after each session, ride horses with her. 
*Girl with peaches*. fragment. / Verochka Mamontova. These facts will make you look at these stars with different eyes.
1. Singer Kesha has an IQ of 140 and she scored 1500 out of 1600 in her final exams at school.
2. The real name of the famous American TV presenter Oprah Winfrey is Orpa.
3. Marilyn Manson's real name is Brian.
4. The mother of Leonardo DiCaprio chose this name for her son when, being pregnant with him, he pushed just at the moment when she was examining a painting by Leonardo da Vinci in an Italian museum.
5. Tim Allen ("Santa Claus", "Shaggy Dad") was arrested in 1978 for possession of 0.6 kg of cocaine and was sentenced to two years in prison.
6. Justin Timberlake's mom was Ryan Gosling's legal guardian when they were on The Mickey Mouse Club. 
7. Actor Jerry Springer ("Love and Secrets of Sunset Beach", "Four Funerals and One Wedding") was the mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio.
8. While living in New York, young Steve Buscemi worked as a fireman for a while.
9. When Madonna moved to New York, she worked at Dunkin' Donuts, a chain of donut coffee shops. She was fired for accidentally staining a client with jelly.
10. Christopher Walken traveled with a circus at the age of 15 and was a lion tamer.
11. Sylvester Stallone's first film was a porno called The Italian Stallion.
12. Sean Connery wore a small wig in all of the James Bond films.
13. The real name of Chuck Norris is Carlos.
14. Elvis Presley was actually blond. He started dyeing his hair black in high school.
15. Johnny Depp suffers from coulrophobia (fear of clowns).
16. Nicolas Cage's middle name is Kim.
17. Singer Alanis Morissette has a twin brother named Wade.
18. Ashton Kutcher also has a twin brother, his name is Michael.
19. And Scarlett Johansson has another twin. She is 3 minutes older than her brother Hunter Johansson.
20. American actor Martin Lawrence (Bad Boys, Diamond Cop) was born in Frankfurt am Main (Germany).
22. Bruno Mars' real name is Peter Gene Hernandez.
24. Ashton Kutcher's real name is Christopher.
25. Singer Brandy was involved in a car accident that killed a man. Brandy didn't have time to stop in time.
26. Laura Bush, wife of the 43rd President of the United States George W. Bush, was also responsible for a fatal accident.
27. Michael J. Fox's middle name is Andrew.
28. Anne Hathaway wanted to become a nun.
29. Ruth Westheimer, American television and radio host, better known as Dr. Ruth, is from Israel and is a sharpshooter.
30. Singers Adele and Taylor Swift are almost the same age. Adele is 28 and Taylor Swift is almost 27.
31. American musician and singer R. Kelly cannot read and write.
32. Ryan Gosling could become a member of the Backstreet Boys, he was offered a place in the group.
33. Mark Wahlberg spent 45 days in jail for beating a Vietnamese man.
34. Martin Luther King Jr. was an avid fan of the Star Trek franchise. The performer of the role of Uhura, Nichelle Nichols, decided to continue participating in the filming of Star Trek precisely after meeting him.
35. David Bowie was injured in his left eye after a fight when he was 15. The pupil of the injured eye became wider, which gave the impression of a different eye color in David.
36. Steve Jobs liked to relieve stress by washing his feet in Apple toilets.
37. When Bill Murray was 20 years old, he was arrested at the Chicago airport for trying to carry about 4.5 kg of marijuana on a plane.
38. American writer and television host, famous for her advice on home economics, Martha Stewart, worked as a model.
39. One day, Nicolas Cage bought himself an octopus, believing that it would help him better transform into roles.
41. Joaquin Phoenix was brought up in a sect. Until 1978, Joaquin's parents raised Joaquin along with his brothers and sisters in the Children of God sect.
42. Tom Cruise inspired Christian Bale to create the image of the main character in the movie "American Psycho".
43. American actress Leighton Meester was born in prison. During this period, her mother was serving time for drug smuggling.
44. Leonardo DiCaprio has a Sulkata turtle weighing about 17 kg. Leonardo bought her at an auction of North American breeders in 2010. Her life expectancy can be up to 80 years.
45. Jim Carrey dropped out of school when he was 16 and started working as a doorman.
47. Nicolas Cage ate hallucinogenic mushrooms with his cat.
48. Nicolas Cage was also once harassed by a strange mime. “I was being followed by some crazy mime. One day he broke into the set of "Resurrecting the Dead" and started doing strange things there."
49. In 1999, Jennifer Lawrence looked almost the same as Justin Timberlake.
50. Tim Curry (Charlie's Angels, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, It) voiced Nigel Thornberry for The Wild Thornberrys.
51. Jackie Chan starred in a porn movie.
52. J.K. Rowling was fired from her job as a secretary for always having her head in the clouds. After that, she wrote her famous story about the wizard boy Harry Potter.
53. Dennis Rodman (Soldiers of Fortune, The Babies) has 28 siblings.
54. American writer, screenwriter and television host James Lipton was once a pimp in Paris.
55. Natalie Portman has twice published her work in scientific journals.
56. Tom Hanks is a fourth-generation distant relative of Abraham Lincoln.
57. This Stupid Love and Welcome to Zombieland star Emma Stone is actually a blonde, not a redhead.
58. Christina Hendricks, of The Replacement Teacher fame, is also a blonde.
59. Once upon a time, Tom Hanks enrolled in a seminary school to become a priest.
60. After the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968, Samuel L. Jackson attended the funeral in Atlanta as one of the bailiffs. After that, he flew to Memphis to participate in a protest march. In 1969, Jackson and a number of other students kept Morehouse College board members on campus demanding reform of the school's curriculum and administration.
61. American basketball player Kobe Bryant is fluent in Italian.
62. Alanis Morissette and Ryan Reynolds dated from 2002 to 2007.
63. Rob Lowe, known for Californication and Parks and Recreation, is deaf in his right ear. Perhaps this was caused by a viral disease that Rob had had as an infant.
64. Matthew Perry lost part of his middle finger right hand due to an accident with the door.
65. Matthew McConaughey is afraid of revolving doors.
66. Tyra Banks is afraid of dolphins.
67. Comedian Louis C.K. is a citizen of Mexico.
68. Before becoming a successful actor, Jeremy Renner worked as a makeup artist.
69. American actor Al Roker and musician Lenny Kravitz are second cousins.
70. Megan Fox suffers from brachydactyly, due to which the thumbs grow more slowly than the rest and the nails on them look underdeveloped.
The inglorious death of a great genius
The great Dutch painter Van Gogh suffered from bouts of insanity. During one of these attacks, he even cut off a piece of his ear. Shortly before his death, the artist decided to settle in Saint-Paul-de-Mosole, a French asylum for the mentally ill. Here he received an isolated room in which he could also paint from time to time. Van Gogh was allowed, accompanied by a doctor, to walk around the neighborhood and paint his masterpieces - landscapes. It was here that he met with Anna Bosch, who bought for 400 francs the painting "Red vine". By the way, this was the first and last time during the life of the artist when his painting was bought.
In 1890, on one of the July days, Van Gogh, having escaped, left his monastery. He walked a little alone, and then wandered into a peasant farmstead. The owners were absent at the time. The artist, having taken out a pistol, tried to shoot himself in the heart, but the bullet, hooking on the bone of the rib, passed by. Then, holding the wound with his hand, he slowly walked up to his room and lay down.
When the attendant saw Van Gogh bleeding, a doctor and police were immediately called from the nearby village. But, to their surprise, the doctor and the policeman saw the artist, who was calmly lying in bed and sucking on his pipe.
Van Gogh died that night.
The brain of all Russian literature
Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev could safely be called the "brain of Russian literature." After his death, pathologists determined that the weight of the gray matter of the writer is 2 kilograms, which is more than that of other famous personalities. And, probably, that is why the doctor Botkin said that the Almighty simply did not have enough materials for a head of this size. But there is a rational grain in every joke: the writer's parietal bone was very thin. Turgenev himself, laughing at himself, said that through it you can feel the brain. It so happened that, even after receiving a light blow to the head, he fainted or for some time remained in a semi-conscious state.
One of distinguishing features Ivan Sergeevich had excessive cleanliness and a love of order almost at a manic level. At least twice a day, he changed into clean linen, before which he wiped his entire body with a sponge moistened with cologne. Before sitting down to work at the desk, he always cleaned the room and folded all the papers. Sometimes he could jump out of bed in the middle of the night, remembering that some thing was not in its place. It also annoyed him if the curtains on the windows were not neatly curtained. Each thing or piece of paper on the table had its own specially designated place.
Complexes of the great dictator
Hitler's father was married several times. When he was about to enter into a third marriage with Clara Pelzl (and they were related), Alois had to apply to the Vatican for special permission. The family had six children, among whom Hitler was the third. Knowing about incest in the family, he tried to avoid talking about his parents. However, this fact did not prevent him from demanding other confirmations, and documentary ones, about the origin.
In addition to the idea of dominating the whole world, the Fuhrer was still very concerned about the issue of health, so he took a lot of pills. Theodore Morell, Adolf's personal physician, recorded this fact in his medical records. The dictator's entourage considered Morell a charlatan, but Hitler himself trusted him immensely. In 1944, the doctor recommended injections to the patient, which included an extract from the sperm and prostate gland of young calves - testosterone. Adolf really hoped that this medicine, in fact, the "Viagra" of that time, would greatly help him during his close relationship with Eva Braun. Apparently, it is precisely the incomplete consistency in relations with women, phobias and complexes that can explain Hitler's perverted cruelty and his desire to subjugate the whole world.
Little prodigy
Mozart was a gifted child. Even at the age of four he had already written a concerto for stringed keyboard instruments. Moreover, this concert was very difficult, such that hardly any of the European musicians could play it. The father, realizing this, took away the notes with the notes from the young Wolfgang, which he had not yet managed to finish. The indignant young talent answered the parent: “And this music is not at all difficult to perform, even a child, for example, me, can perform it.”
All of Mozart's childhood years were associated with musical studies and big amount speeches. Often performing musical works in front of an exquisite European audience, the little genius surprised the audience: his father blindfolded him with a handkerchief, and the child blindly played the clavier, or covered the keys with a piece of cloth, and Wolfgang masterfully coped with the game. During one of the concerts, a cat suddenly entered the stage. And a child is a child - Mozart, leaving the instrument, forgetting about the audience, rushed to her, picked up, stroked, and then began to play with the animal. The angry father demanded to return immediately, to which Wolfgang replied:
"The harpsichord will stand still, and the cat will now run away."
Good psychologist with excellent memory
Stalin had an extremely rich, capacious and tenacious memory. So, D.V. Ustinov recalled that the leader always remembered to the smallest detail all the issues that were discussed, he never allowed even the slightest deviation from the decisions made earlier. He knew everyone who led the Armed Forces and the economy, commanded divisions and managed factories by last name, first name and patronymic. Moreover, he kept in mind the data necessary for himself, which characterized them as individuals, knew almost everything about the state of affairs in the areas of work entrusted to them. Stalin had an analytical mind, which allowed him to focus on the most essential from a large amount of information, facts, and data. He presented his conclusions and thoughts briefly, clearly, in an accessible way, so that there could be no objections. He did not like too much verbosity and did not allow others to talk much.
Reproaching any of the foreign figures in his speech or during the discussion, Iosif Vissarionovich looked at him very expressively and attentively, without looking away for some time. And it should be noted that the object to which he turned his attention did not feel quite comfortable. Stalin's gaze pierced like arrows.
Great Avicenna
Born in Bukhara, he was both a grand vizier, and a criminal whose “crimes” were debunked by the state power, and an eternal wanderer.
Avicenna lived for almost 57 years, but in such a short period he proved himself in 29 branches of knowledge, and his medical conclusions cannot be overestimated. Yes, and it is believed that the very word "medicine" comes from the Latin-style "Madad Sina", which translates as "cure from Sin."
Avicenna did not officially study anywhere, but long before Louis Pasteur discovered pathogens, he concluded that “very small creatures” could cause fever. He also established the cause of most diseases - human feelings and nervousness, he was the first to draw attention to the contagiousness of infectious diseases, described the nature of meningitis, jaundice, stomach ulcers and many other diseases.
What is only worth the diagnostics developed by Ibn Sina on pulse beats. Once a famous merchant from Bukhara had a daughter who fell ill, and no one could help her. The father turned to Avicenna for salvation. The doctor, feeling for a pulse, began to call the streets of the city to the girl, and then asked her to list the names of those who lived on these streets. When the girl said one of the names, her pulse became quickened, and her face turned red. So the wise man learned that she was in love, but her father would never allow her to marry this man. This caused the fatal disease. The merchant was forced to bless his daughter, and Avicenna won fame and respect among people.
The letter that found its addressee after seven years
Yuri Gagarin, about to fly into space and not knowing how his expedition might end, wrote a letter to his wife Valentina, in which he said goodbye to her. Addressing his beloved and the mother of his children, the first cosmonaut said that technology can fail at any time. Therefore, no matter what happens, you need to live on, not lose heart, and most importantly - love, cherish and educate your daughters.
The letter found its recipient seven years later, when the plane on which Yuri Gagarin was flying fell and crashed.
The pilot met his future wife when he was a cadet at the Orenburg Pilot School at a dance. Valentina had luxurious floor-length hair. And she, a beauty, did not like the thin, short, with a large head, short-cropped and sticking hair young man at all. But Yuri was such a persistent gentleman that after a while the girl's heart melted. After graduating from college, they got married, and soon Valentina gave her husband two wonderful, desired daughters.
Saying goodbye to his wife in his last letter, Gagarin also said that after his death she had the right to arrange her life as she wanted, and he, in turn, did not impose any obligations on her. But her beloved wife, having remained a widow at the age of thirty-two, did not marry again, sacredly preserving the memory of the man who first conquered space.
The great philosopher despised women
Confucius, one of China's greatest philosophers, married early. Over time, he kicked his wife out of the house so that she would not interfere with his studies. And in general, the philosopher considered women to be mundane people, incapable of comprehending heavenly wisdom. He said that an ordinary woman is endowed with the mind of a chicken, and an extraordinary woman is endowed with the mind of two such birds.
Such behavior and statements do not seem strange, because Confucius was not endowed with an attractive appearance from birth. Once, one queen, not endowed with chaste morality, having heard a lot of stories about the great wisdom of this man, unambiguously invited him to her place alone, without escort. The philosopher always walked surrounded by his students, but this time he decided to heed the requests of the royal person ... And so Confucius was taken to the chambers. While the queen was absent, the learned man began to examine the room. There was a rustle, and he turned to face the incoming crowned lady. At this time, she wanted to utter greetings, but she froze with her mouth open - she was so struck by the appearance of the sage. When the queen's first shock had passed, she looked contemptuously at Confucius and hurried away. But this did not surprise the great philosopher, because beauty walks apart with the mind.
The great tenor dreamed of becoming a football player
Luciano Pavarotti was born into a simple Italian family. The boy's father loved opera singing and bought a lot of records. In the evenings he listened to them with his son. Thus, Luciano became addicted to singing. But the parents did not support the young talent in this, as they believed that a man should master a serious craft.
Football was another passion of Pavarotti. Since childhood, he was the captain of the youth city football team and saw himself as a professional goalkeeper in the future. But on the advice of his mother, he becomes a school teacher, then works in an insurance agency. Nevertheless, over time, the craving for singing wins. An agreement was drawn up with his father that Luciano, until the age of thirty, could occupy a room in the parental home, and also eat here. Pavarotti promises his father that if, after the expiration of this period, he does not achieve anything as an opera singer, he will be forced to earn a living by any means.
It is only when he is nineteen that the great tenor learns that he has perfect pitch. Soon the first success came: in 1961 he won the competition for young performers. Before this responsible performance, the mother put a rusty nail from the evil eye to her son. From then until the end of his days, Luciano Pavarotti kept this talisman of his.
The great conqueror was a coward
The fact that Genghis Khan (real name Temuchen) was incredibly cruel towards his enemies is not a secret. His horde massacred all who resisted. The rest, of course, were taken prisoner. Then, if there was a need to storm fortresses or cities, these prisoners were put in front of the troops as human shields. It turns out that it was not for nothing that the Muslim peoples considered the Mongol the destroyer of their cultural heritage.
Despite all his cruelty, he himself was terribly afraid of dying. Feeling the advent of old age, Genghis Khan searched for the elixir of immortality, but did not find it. Still, he managed to extend his life. For every warrior lost in battle, the great conqueror mercilessly avenged. It seemed that his life was many times more important than the lives taken by this man.
Genghis Khan did not give rest to the inhabitants of the cities destroyed and burned by his horde. During the invasion of the Mongols, people tried to escape by hiding in the forests and mountains. After the departure of the troops, they returned back. The conqueror created a special detachment, the task of which was to return to the destroyed village and cut out all the survivors.
A distinctive feature of the attack of Genghis Khan was that he never led his horde into battle, but led it from afar. Mongol was such a coward.
Lomonosov knew how to stand up for himself
At a time when Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov was already an adjunct, his apartment was on Vasilyevsky Island. The great scientist made it a rule to take walks in the evenings. One autumn day, at the end of the day, he made a promenade along his usual route - from Bolshoy Prospekt to the bay. In those distant times, Bolshoy Prospekt, located on Vasilyevsky Island, was nothing more than a wide clearing cut through the forest. Lomonosov was returning back when night had already begun to descend over St. Petersburg. The surroundings were deserted. And then three robbers jumped out of the bushes.
Mikhail Vasilievich was endowed with extraordinary strength from birth, so he was not afraid, but began to fight back. One of the villains, not expecting resistance at all, rushed to his heels. Lomonosov managed to knock the second one to the ground with a strong blow. The third, seeing such a situation, began to ask for forgiveness, swearing that they only wanted to take the clothes from a lonely passerby. Then the scientist decided to rob the robber: he ordered the villain to undress, tie his clothes in a knot and give them to him. Throwing the load on his shoulder, Mikhail Lomonosov himself delivered it home, and the next day he visited the Admiralty and reported there about the attack of the sailors-robbers.
Genius among us
Grigory Yakovlevich Perelman, who owns the discovery of the millennium, now lives in St. Petersburg. It is this mathematician who owns the solution of the Poincaré hypothesis, which they tried to prove for more than one hundred years. Moreover, Grigory Yakovlevich did not publish his research in scientific works, but simply posted it on the Internet.
For such a brilliant discovery, the Clay Institute awarded the brilliant scientist a prize of one million dollars. But Perelman refused it, explaining his act by the fact that he was not interested in money and that he had everything necessary for life.
Today, Grigory Yakovlevich leads a solitary life, practically not communicating with anyone.
Since childhood, he has been accustomed to training for his brain. During his school years, Perelman took part in the mathematical Olympiad in Budapest, where he won a gold medal. He was helped in this by the ability to think abstractly.
Almost all his scientific life, the scientist worked on the issues of three-dimensional construction of the Universe. The scale of his discoveries at the present stage is ahead of the achievements that science has made to date. That is why the activities of Grigory Perelman became interested in the special services of many countries.
If a person is talented, then he is talented in everything
Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev had diverse interests. In addition to his life's work - research in the field of chemistry - his circle of hobbies was very wide.
famous discovery Periodic system at first brought him only ridicule, condemnation and accusations of plagiarism. True, with time came glory.
Whatever the great scientist undertook, everything turned out great for him. So, in his spare time, Mendeleev liked to make suitcases. Dmitry Ivanovich bought the materials for their production in the same store, so that the sellers who sold the goods perceived a regular customer with a large beard and shoulder-length hair as a suitcase maker. As a joke, he even wanted to make a business card with the inscription “D. I. Mendeleev is a master of suitcases.”
The scientist was fond of meteorology. Already at an advanced age he flew in a balloon. His merit in metrology is the organization of the Chamber of Weights and Measures. He also proved himself in shipbuilding, taking part in the creation of the first icebreaker in Russia. Well, and finally, it was Mendeleev who managed to establish the most optimal ratio of water and alcohol in the production of vodka - this is sixty parts to forty.
She made herself
One of the wealthiest women in the world, TV presenter, popular actress, public figure, host of her own show - all this is her, Oprah Winfrey. This woman came to the pinnacle of fame and success thanks to incredible hard work, the ability to communicate and, of course, great willpower.
After all, a girl was born in a very poor family. Her parents separated because her mother was not known for her chaste behavior. Oprah was barely nine years old when she was raped by a cousin on her mother's side, then by her own uncle. Since the mother very often brought her clients home, the daughter also provided intimate services, receiving money for this. Mother, most likely, knew about it, but turned a blind eye to everything.
When, at the age of fourteen, Oprah found out that she was pregnant, she wanted to take her own life. Caught in a hopeless situation, the girl, trying to get rid of an unwanted child, drank detergents. And this "helped": the child was born dead.
After returning to school after that, Winfrey completely plunged into public life: she participates in all events, heads the student council. And today, the TV presenter is convinced that if it had then become known that she was pregnant, her fate would have been completely different.
Sigmund Freud has Ukrainian roots
Sigmund Freud, a well-known psychologist, professor at the University of Vienna, founder of the method of psychoanalysis, has Ukrainian roots.
Jacob Freud - his father - was born in the city of Tysmenitsa, which is located in the Ivano-Frankivsk region. He lived in this village for 25 years. Tismenitsa at that time was a multinational city: Poles, Jews, and Ukrainians got along well here. In this city he married and gave birth to Emmanuel and Philip, the elder brothers of the future professor. However, the Ukrainian roots of this surname are even deeper. Many generations of Freuds lived in the town of Buchach in the Ternopil region. Sigmund Freud's grandfather moved to Tismenitsa to continue his education and stayed here forever.
The mother of the famous psychoanalyst - nee Amalia Natanson - was born in the town of Brody, Lviv region. Then for some time she lived in Odessa, and after some time she left for Vienna, where she met her future husband. Her siblings remained in Odessa, with whom the family of Jacob Freud maintained family relations.
When Sigmund Freud was 27 years old, his father decided to establish his own business in Odessa and lived, doing business, in this city for some time. True, this activity did not bring much profit, and Jacob again returned to Austria.
The world famous artist was also an inventor
God endowed Salvador Dali not only with the talent of an artist. He also owns the inventions that were brought to life, although at first they seemed strange.
For those traveling by car, the ingenious artist came up with multispectral glasses in case the landscape becomes boring from the contemplated landscape.
To create a good mood while walking and enjoy the process of walking, he created shoes with springs.
Salvador Dali did not deprive women of his attention in terms of inventions. For them, false nails with a small built-in mirror were invented so that at the right time you could look at yourself. Another gift is a dress with various anatomical overlays as accessories. They were designed by the artist, having previously carried out a series of precise calculations that corresponded to the ideal of female beauty, born in the head of a man as an erotic imagination. One of the outlandish details of such a dress was additional breasts, which had to be fixed on the back. According to Dali, such an outfit was supposed to radically change fashion.
And for the paparazzi, the artist invented photomasks. They are especially relevant today, when many reporters are being called to court for invasion of privacy. And so - put on a photomask with a face famous person- and look for the wind in the field.
Great Diva of Russia
When Alla Pugacheva was born, the doctors during the examination discovered she had a tumor on her throat. An operation was immediately performed to remove it. Perhaps that is why the singer had a special timbre of voice.
As a child, a red-haired girl with thin pigtails loved to play in the yard, but only with boys. Alla was thin, and she also wore glasses, as she had vision problems. After she gave birth to a daughter, Christina, she recovered. Many times I sat down on different diets, but this did not give the desired result.
Another hobby of Pugacheva is drawing. She has had this hobby since childhood. She painted several hundred paintings that she presented to close friends. In the future, the Primadonna plans to take on a pseudonym and in some place where she can retire, she will take up painting.
Once, Alla Borisovna, having opened up, admitted that none of the men could sleep next to her in bed. Turns out she snores a lot at night. She did a lot to cure this deficiency, but no procedures brought results.
The prima donna wants to look good, so from time to time she does plastic surgery. After one of them, held in Switzerland, she almost died due to an abscess that developed. A surgeon from Moscow barely saved the singer. As a sign of gratitude, Pugacheva presented him with a gift - an apartment.
These two young men met at Stanford while at university. At first, they often argued, and at times even cursed. And although both were absolute opposites, they soon became so friends that they could not take a step without each other.
After they created a system for searching information on the requested page at their home university, and the management was about to close it, Sergey and Larry had to think about how to save their offspring. The search for sponsors began, but many of the wealthy people did not understand at all what kind of system it was, and they did not want to invest money in the “doubtful” project.
But fate was kind to the young men and sent them Andy Bechtolstein. Not being able to listen for a long time to a story about what advantages the new search engine has, the businessman took out a checkbook. Brin and Paige, dumbfounded and surprised, took a check drawn up for $ 100,000 and did not immediately notice that it was issued to Google. Inc., not on Google. That's what they planned to call it. Googol is a one followed by a hundred zeros, which meant "an immeasurably large search engine."
To get this money, it was necessary to urgently found a company. Friends take academic leave and do what they love.
Hard road to glory
At the age of eight, Yuri Kuklachev, a famous cat trainer, saw Charlie Chaplin perform on TV. The boy really liked how the great actor moved, and he asked his parents to send him to a ballet school. For five years, Yura studied ballet, but when he graduated from school, he firmly decided to enter the circus school.
For seven years in a row, Kuklachev made an attempt to become a student at the school, but he was not accepted, explaining that his face was not suitable and his height was small.
Then he began performing in the national circus, and later even became the winner of the All-Union Festival. Somehow, the folk circus gave a performance in a building on Tsvetnoy Boulevard, and the director of the school was present in the hall. After Kuklachev's performance, he approached the artist and invited him to study at his institution.
Yuri started training cats later. He did not leave the thought of what to do to be different from famous clowns. While on tour in Cherkassy, I came across a stray cat with intelligent eyes and took it for myself. In Moscow, I picked up another cat - Strelka, with which I put my first number. The success was unprecedented, because before him no one entered the arena with such a number. This was the feature that Yuri Kuklachev was looking for.
The youngest of the boxing brothers
In childhood, Wladimir Klitschko dreamed of becoming a doctor. At the end of the eighth grade, he even tried to enter the medical school at the paramedic department, but the attempt was unsuccessful. He was not accepted due to the fact that at the time of the entrance exams he had not yet reached the age of fourteen.
The elder brother Vitaly at that time was already seriously engaged in boxing, and he invited Vladimir to attend a training session and try his hand at sports. So, trying to be like Vitaly in everything, the younger brother ended up in the boxing section. And after six years of hard work in the gym during training, Vladimir wins the title of Olympic champion.
Almost no one knows that the meeting in the ring between the Klitschko brothers, so intriguing to everyone, is long in the past. Back in mid-1992, secretly from the coach, despite his prohibitions, the brothers decided to compete. The strongest and best could not be determined, since the round ended with an injury: Vladimir broke his leg for an unknown reason for both brothers. So that the parents would not worry once again, Vitaly and Vladimir did not say a word about the fight that took place. The coach, Vladimir Zolotarev, also helped them in this, who immediately took the brothers to the training camp in the Crimea.
1. Napoleon was 26 years old when he captured Italy.
2. The University of Baghdad awarded Uday, the eldest son of Saddam Hussein, a doctorate in political science. Although he did not even have a secondary education. His dissertation was titled "The Decline of American Power by 2016".
3. In 1938, Time magazine named Hitler "Person of the Year."
4. During his service in the KGB, Vladimir Putin had the nickname "Moth".
5. Hitler was a vegetarian.
6. The Egyptian queen Cleopatra tested the effectiveness of her poisons by forcing her slaves to take them.
7. Cleopatra married her own brother - Ptolemy.
8. Cleopatra was not an Egyptian. She had Macedonian, Iranian and Greek roots.
9. Lafayette became a general in the US Army at 19. His full name is: Mary Joseph Paul Yves Rocher Gilbert de Motier, Marquis de Lafayette.
10. The Minister of Culture of the RSFSR in the 50s, Alexei Popov, was a well-known swindler.
11. The Mongol conqueror Timur (1336-1405) played something like polo with the skulls of the people he killed. He created a pyramid of their severed heads 9 meters high.
12. At the time of Lenin's death, his brain was only a quarter of its normal size.
13. Napoleon was not born in France, but on the Mediterranean island of Corsica. His parents were Italian and they had eight children.
14. The national flag of Italy was designed by Napoleon.
15. One of Napoleon's drinking bowls was made from the skull of the famous Italian adventurer Cagliostro.
16. The founder of the theory of communism Karl Marx has never been to Russia.
17. The first American Chief Justice, John Jay, bought slaves to free them.
18. The first person in history to be hit by a train was British MP William Huskinson.
19. The ancestors of Winston Churchill on the maternal side were ... Indians.
20. US President Andrew Jackson believed the Earth was flat.
21. During the reign of Elizabeth I, there was a tax on men's beards. However, Peter the Great did not favor bearded men either.
22. Queen Ranavalona of Madagascar ordered the execution of her subjects if they appeared to her in dreams without her permission.
23. Queen Victoria was given a piece of cheese 3 meters in diameter and weighing 500 kilograms at her wedding.
24. King Henry VIII of England executed two of his six wives.
25. President of Uganda and one of the most ruthless dictators in the world, Idi Amin, served in the British Army before coming to power.
26. British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston died in 1865 on a pool table where he was making love to his servants.
27. At the court of the King of Spain, Alfonso, there was a special position - a hymnal. The fact is that the king had no musical ear at all, and he himself could not distinguish the anthem from other music. The hymnal had to warn the king when the national anthem was played.
28. The Roman emperor Nero married a man - one of his slaves named Skorus.
29. The Roman emperor Nero forced his teacher philosopher Seneca to commit suicide.
30. The height of Peter the Great was approximately 213 cm. Despite the fact that in those days the average height of men was significantly lower than today.
31. Sir Winston Churchill smoked no more than 15 cigars a day.
32. Tom Cruise at the age of 14 went to study at the seminary to become a priest, but left it after a year.
33. The French king Louis XIV had 413 beds.
34. The Israeli king Solomon had about 700 wives and several thousand mistresses.
35. King Louis XIV of France, known as the "Sun King", had over 400 beds.
36. Napoleon had ailurophobia - fear of cats.
37. Winston Churchill was born in the women's room of the Blenheim family castle. During the ball, his mother felt unwell and soon gave birth.
38. Physicist and owner Nobel Prize Niels Bohr and his brother the famous mathematician Harald Bohr were football players. At the same time, Harald was a member of the Danish national team and even took second place at the 1905 Olympics.
39. The phrase "The king is dead, long live the king" was uttered by Catherine de Medici when she learned about the death of her son Charles IX.
40. The Swedish King Charles VII, who was killed in 1167, was the first king of the state with the name Charles! Charles I, II, III, IV, V and VI never existed, and it is not clear where the prefix "seventh" came from. A couple of centuries later, King Charles VIII (1448-1457) appeared in Sweden.
41. Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes stories, was an ophthalmologist by profession.
42. Attila the Barbarian died in 453 on his wedding night immediately after the wedding.
43. Beethoven always brewed coffee from 64 grains.
44. The British Queen Victoria (1819-1901), who ruled Britain for 64 years, spoke English with an accent. She had German roots.
45. In 1357, a dead woman was crowned Queen of Portugal. She became Princess Ines de Castro, the second wife of Pedro I. 2 years before, her father-in-law, Alfonso "Proud", who hated her for being a commoner, secretly ordered his people to kill her and her children. When Pedro became king, he ordered the removal of Inés' body from the grave and forced the nobility to recognize her as Queen of Portugal.
46. In 1849, Senator David Atchison became President of the United States for only 1 day, and most of that day he ... overslept.
47. The Grand Vizier of Persia, Abdul Kassim Ismail (who lived in the 10th century) never parted with his library. If he went somewhere, the library "followed" him. 117 thousand book volumes were transported by 400 camels. Moreover, the books (together with the camels) were arranged in alphabetical order.
48. The great Genghis Khan died while having sex.
49. Hannibal died in 183 BC. e. taking poison when he learned that the Romans had come to kill him.
50. Hans-Christian Andersen could not write almost a single word without errors.
51. Henry IV often flogged his son, the future Louis XIII.
52. The Danish king Frederick IV was a bigamist. He married twice while his wife Queen Louise was alive. His first lover died in childbirth, his second lover was only queen for 19 days after the death of Queen Louise. All the children from both of his mistresses either died at birth or in infancy, as he believed for his sinful life. He later became extremely religious.
53. Jack the Ripper, the most famous killer of the 19th century, always committed his crimes on weekends.
54. Dr. Alice Chase, who wrote the book " healthy eating and many books about proper nutrition died of malnutrition.
55. Once the merchant Krasnobryukhov turned to Alexander I with a request to change his surname, and he allowed him to be called ... Sinebryukhov. After that, the merchant went to Finland with grief and founded the famous Koff brewing company there.
56. When the Russian Queen Elizabeth I died in 1762, more than 15,000 dresses were found in her wardrobe.
57. Mozart started composing music at the age of 3.
58. There is not a single living descendant of William Shakespeare left on Earth.
59. Before composing music, Beethoven poured a bucket of cold water on his head, believing that it stimulated the brain.
60. Thomas Edison wrote 40,000 pages while designing the light bulb.
61. "A Midsummer Night's Dream" Felix Mendelssohn wrote at the age of 17. It became his most famous work.
62. Beria suffered from syphilis.
63. More than 100 descendants of Johann Sebastian Bach became organists.
64. In the ZZ Top group, only one member does not have a beard. And his name is Beard, which in English means ... "beard".
65. Since 1932, only Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush have not been elected to the United States for a second term as president.
66. Ilf and Petrov discarded ideas that came to both minds at once - in order to avoid clichés.
67. When Beethoven wrote the famous Ninth Symphony, he was completely deaf.
68. Composer Franz Liszt was the father-in-law of the German composer Richard Wagner.
69. Paul McCartney's mother was a midwife.
70. Writer Rudyard Kipling couldn't write in ink unless it was black.
71. Writer Charles Dickens wrote with his face to the north. He also always slept with his head to the north.
72. The Roman emperor Commodus gathered dwarfs, cripples and freaks from all over the Roman Empire to arrange fights between them in the Colosseum.
73. The Roman emperor Julius Caesar wore a laurel wreath on his head to hide his growing baldness.
74. Russian composer Alexander Borodin was also a well-known chemist in St. Petersburg.
75. The smallest of the American presidents is James Madison (1.62 m), and Abraham Lincoln is the tallest (1.93 m).
76. The shortest British monarch is Charles I. His height was 4 feet 9 inches (about 140 cm). After his head was cut off, his height became even smaller.
77. The body of Voltaire, who died in 1778, was stolen from the grave and was never found. The loss was discovered in 1864.
78. Balzac has a whole book dedicated to ... a tie.
79. The British Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603) had about 3,000 outfits.
80. American Pete Ruff knocks an apple off his own head with a boomerang.
81. American industrial tycoon and billionaire John Rockefeller donated over $550 million. to various foundations and institutions.
82. American President Benjamin Franklin advocated that the national bird of America was the turkey.
83. In 1856, the English chemist William Perkin, while trying to obtain quinine from aniline, invented the first artificial dye, mauveine.
84. In the village of Lobovskoe, Saratov region, there lives a beekeeper who is able to withstand 40 hours in a hive with bees completely naked.
85. In the period from 1952 - 1966, 5 children were born in the family of Ralph and Carolyn Cummins and all of them have a birthday on February 20th.
86. Galileo Galilei was the first person to propose using a pendulum to measure time.
87. Hannibal died in 183 BC after taking poison when he learned that the Romans had come to kill him.
88. Grover Cleveland was the only US president to marry in the White House.
89. James Madison was the smallest of the American presidents (1.62 m), and Abraham Lincoln was the tallest (1.93 m).
90. Dr. Alice Chase, who wrote the book Healthy Eating and many books on proper nutrition, died of malnutrition.
91. For 35 years, Mozart created over 600 works. But after his death, the widow did not have money for a separate place in the cemetery
92. Famous 19th century bullfighter Lagarijo (born Rafael Molina) killed 4867 bulls.
93. When the German physicist A. Einstein died, his last words went with him. Nurse, former nearby did not understand German.
94. The maximum number of crosswords was Andrian Bell. From January 1930 to 1980, he sent 4,520 crossword puzzles to The Times.
95. Robert Lincoln, son of President Lincoln, was rescued from a car accident by one Edwin Booth. As it turns out, Edwin is the brother of Abraham Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth. The father tried to kill the father, and their children saved each other
96. The first American president to use the telephone was James Garfield.
97. The concept of a negative number was first introduced by the Italian merchant Pisano in 1202, denoting his debts and losses.
98. The world's largest private collection of meteorites belongs to the American Robert Haag - from the age of 12 he collected 2 tons of heavenly stones.
99. Thomas Edison had a collection of birds in 5000 copies.
100. Frenchmen Jeanne Louise and Guy Bruty made a crossword puzzle on a sheet of paper 5 m long and 3 m wide, from 18 thousand words and 50 thousand cells.
101. Shakespeare mentioned roses more than 50 times in his poems.
102. Andrew Johnson, 17th President of the United States, was the only president to make his own clothes.
103. Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin were born on the same day - February 12, 1809. The scientist lived almost 20 years longer than the politician.
104. Bill Clinton sent two emails during his entire presidency, one of which was a test to check that everything was working properly. I wonder who the second letter was to? Maybe Monica?
105. In 1759, Arthur Guinness leased St. Gate's brewery for 9,000 years at a rent of £45 a year. The famous Guinness beer was brewed there.
106. In 1981, Deborah Ann Fontan, Miss New York, was disqualified for excessive use of cotton stuffing in a swimsuit competition.
107. George Washington did not shake hands when meeting - he preferred to bow
108. The only president of the United States, concurrently being the chairman of any union - Ronald Reagan, head of the Guild of Actors (Screen Actors Guild).
109. If you remember a little school course physicists, you know that there is a Richter temperature scale. So this same Charles Richter was a malicious nudist, because of which his wife left him.
110. If you read the works of the writer Stephen King, you should notice that most of the actions of his stories take place in Maine. Paradoxically, this state has the lowest crime rate in the United States.
111. The founder of psychoanalysis has a lot of oddities. Freud was terrified of the number 62. He refused to book a hotel room with more than 62 rooms for fear of accidentally getting a room with the number 62. He used cocaine, like many of his contemporaries.
112. The famous entrepreneur Henry Ford preferred to hire people with physical disabilities - among the workers of his factories in 1919, there was one disabled person for four healthy people.
113. Research Louis Pasteur sponsored a beer factory. They also paid him a ticket to an international congress. When Pasteur was given the floor at the congress, the first thing he did was to hang advertising posters with beer on the stage. And he began his speech with the words that this beer is the best. And then he got down to business.
114. Madonna and Celine Dion are cousins of Prince Charles's wife, Camilla
115. The father of the famous comedian Leslie Nielsen (The Naked Gun, etc.) served as a policeman in Canada, and his brother worked in the Canadian Parliament
116. The father of tennis player Andre Agassi represented Iran at the 1948 and 1952 Olympics. He was... a boxer
Once, Henry Ford, traveling in a small car of his company, saw on the road exactly the same car with a damaged engine.
He immediately provided the unfamiliar motorist with the necessary assistance: he supplied spare parts, adjusted the engine. When the grateful owner of the stuck car handed over five dollars, Ford smiled, “No, no, no money. Things are going well for me." “I don’t really believe it, venerable one! he replied. - If you succeed in business, you wouldn’t be shaking in a miserable “fordik” ...”.
Galileo Galilei spent his wedding night reading a book. Noticing that it was already dawn, he went to the bedroom, but immediately went out and asked the servant: “Who is lying in my bed?” "Your wife, sir," replied the servant. Galileo completely forgot that he was married.
The German mathematician Peter Gustav Dirichlet was very taciturn. When his son was born, he sent his father-in-law a telegram, perhaps the shortest in the history of the telegraph: "2 + 1 = 3."
The outstanding American scientist Thomas Edison, the author of many inventions in the field of electrical engineering and communications, film technology and telephony, chemistry and mining, military equipment, never worked without an assistant. For a long time, one of the assistants, a simple sailor in the past, helped Edison in conducting laboratory experiments and demonstrating new technology. When he was asked a question about how Edison makes his inventions, he was sincerely surprised every time: “I can’t figure it out myself. After all, I do everything for him, and Edison only frowns his forehead, but lets go of remarks addressed to me. And in general: I work, and he rests!
Once Voltaire was invited to a dinner party. When everyone was seated, it turned out that the maestro found himself between two grumpy gentlemen. Having drunk well, Voltaire's neighbors began to argue how to properly address the servants: "Bring me some water!" or "Give me water!". Voltaire unwittingly found himself right at the epicenter of this dispute. Finally, tired of this disgrace, the maestro could not stand it and said: - Gentlemen, both of these expressions are inapplicable to you! Both of you should say: "Take me to the watering hole!".
Traveling in France, Mark Twain traveled by train to the city of Dijon. The train was passing, and he asked to wake him up in time. At the same time, the writer said to the conductor: - I sleep very soundly. When you wake me up, maybe I will scream. So ignore it and be sure to drop me off at Dijon. When Mark Twain woke up, it was already morning, and the train was approaching Paris. The writer realized that Dijon had passed and became very angry. He ran to the conductor and began to reprimand him. - I've never been so angry as now! he shouted. "You're not as angry as the American I dropped off at Dijon last night," replied the guide.
After the first telegram was successfully transmitted from Europe to America, Alexander Stepanovich Popov made another report in one of the capital's clubs about his invention of a wireless telegraph system. Representatives of the royal court were present in the hall among the public, some of them were very skeptical about Popov's message. So, one of the high-society ladies, not understanding a word from the report, turned to Popov with what she thought was a tricky question: “However, how do you explain that this telegram did not drown or even get wet during its passage through the ocean, from mainland to mainland?” Alexander Stepanovich just shrugged his shoulders, and the lady, looking around, smiled smugly.
At the closing ceremony of the 1896 automobile exhibition in Paris, the French physicist and electrical engineer Marcel Despres proposed a toast to a future car that would reach speeds of 60 kilometers per hour. In response, one well-known then designer of cars responded with displeasure: - Well, why is there always someone who, with his stupid predictions, will spoil the whole celebration!
One day, an acquaintance of Alexander Pushkin, officer Kondyb, asked the poet if he could come up with a rhyme for the words "cancer" and "fish". Pushkin replied: "Fool Kondyba!" The officer was embarrassed and offered to make a rhyme for the combination "fish and cancer." Pushkin was not at a loss here either: "Kondyba is a fool."
"There is no great man for a servant." A curious confirmation of this old rule was the opinion of an old gardener who served Charles Darwin for several decades. He was fond of the famous naturalist, but had a "minimum opinion" about his abilities: "Good old gentleman, but it's a pity - he can't find a worthwhile occupation. Judge for yourself: for several minutes he stands, staring at some flower. Well, would a person who has some serious occupation do it?
Once, speaking at a polytechnic institute at a debate about proletarian internationalism, Vladimir Mayakovsky said: - Among Russians, I feel like a Russian, among Georgians - a Georgian ... - And among fools? - suddenly someone shouted from the hall. “And for the first time among fools,” Mayakovsky replied instantly.
English theoretical physicist Paul Dirac married Wigner's sister. Soon a friend came to visit him, who still did not know anything about the event. In the midst of their conversation, a young woman entered the room, calling Dirac by name, pouring tea, and generally behaving like a mistress of the house. After some time, Dirac noticed the guest's embarrassment and, slapping his forehead, exclaimed: - Sorry, please, I forgot to introduce you - this is ... Wigner's sister!
Bernard Shaw, already a famous writer, once collided with a cyclist on the road. Fortunately, both escaped with only fright. The cyclist began to apologize, but Shaw objected: - You're out of luck, sir! A little more energy and you would have earned immortality as my killer.
One day, a very obese man said to a skinny Bernard Shaw, “You look like you might think your family is starving. - And look at you, you might think that you are the cause of this disaster.
The Prussian king Frederick II, considering himself an erudite man, liked to talk with members of his academy of sciences, sometimes asking the most ridiculous questions during these conversations. He once asked academicians: "Why does a glass filled with champagne give a cleaner ring than a glass filled with burgundy?" Professor Sulzer, on behalf of all the academicians present, replied: “Unfortunately, the members of the Academy of Sciences, with the low content that Your Majesty appointed them, are deprived of the opportunity to set up such experiments.”
Once Ilf and Petrov were asked if they had to write under a pseudonym. To which they replied: - Of course, Ilf sometimes signed Petrov, and Petrov Ilf.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, for fun, chose the addresses of 12 of the largest London bankers, who have a reputation for exceptionally honest and respectable people, and sent a telegram to each of them that read: “Everything came out. Hide." The next day, all 12 bankers disappeared from London. All of them acknowledged the criminal and anti-social nature of their activities as a fact of their flight.
Alexandre Dumas once dined with the famous doctor Gistal, who asked the writer to write something in his guest book. Dumas wrote: "Since Dr. Guistal treats entire families, the hospital must be closed." The doctor exclaimed: - You flatter me! Then Dumas added: "And build two cemeteries ..."
Guy de Maupassant worked for some time as an official in the ministry. A few years later, a description of Maupassant was found in the archives of the ministry: "A diligent official, but writes poorly."
In 1972, a young Indian wrote to John Lennon that he had a dream to travel around the world, but no money, and asked him to send the necessary amount. Lennon replied: "Meditate and you can see the whole world in your imagination." In 1995, the Hindu nevertheless went on a trip around the world. He received the required amount by selling Lennon's letter at auction.
Once a customs officer, inspecting the luggage of the British playwright, poet and writer Oscar Wilde, who was widely known for his wit, who arrived in New York, asked the distinguished guest if he had any jewelry and art objects that needed to be included in the declaration. “Nothing but my genius,” replied Oscar Wilde.
When the current heir to the British crown, Prince Charles, studied at Cambridge, a bodyguard went with him to all classes. The Cambridge system of education allowed the bodyguard to participate in discussion and debate. And at the end of the training, the teachers offered him to pass the exams. As a result, the bodyguard scored more points than the prince himself, and also received a diploma.
Once, at a reception, Charlie Chaplin performed a very complex opera aria for the assembled guests. When he finished, one of the guests exclaimed: - Amazing! I had no idea that you sing so wonderfully. - Not at all, - Chaplin smiled, - I never knew how to sing. I was just imitating the famous tenor I heard at the opera.
During the rest of Vladimir Vysotsky in Sochi, thieves looked into his hotel room. Together with things and clothes, they took all the documents, and even the key to the Moscow apartment. Having discovered the loss, Vysotsky went to the nearest police station, wrote a statement, and they promised to help him. But no help was needed. When he returned to the room, there were already stolen things and a note: “Sorry, Vladimir Semenovich, we didn’t know whose things these were. Jeans, unfortunately, we have already sold, but the jacket and documents are returned safe and sound.”
photo found on the internet