Some famous people have died in strange ways...
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Attila the Hun:
One of the most notorious villains in history, Attila's army had
conquered all of Asia by 450 AD--from Mongolia to the edge of the
Russian Empire--by destroying villages and pillaging the
countryside.
How he died: He got a nosebleed on his wedding night
In 453 AD, Attila married a young girl named Ildico. Despite his
reputation for ferocity on the battlefield, he tended to eat and
drink lightly during large banquets. On his wedding night, however,
he really cut loose, gorging himself on food and drink. Sometime
during the night he suffered a nosebleed, but was too drunk to
notice. He drowned in his own blood and was found dead the next
morning.
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Tycho Brahe:
An important Danish astronomer of the 16th century. His ground
breaking research allowed Sir Isaac Newton to come up with the
theory of gravity.
How he died: Didn't get to the bathroom in time
In the 16th century, it was considered an insult to leave a banquet
table before the meal was over. Brahe, known to drink excessively,
had a bladder condition -- but failed to relieve himself before the
banquet started. He made matters worse by drinking too much at
dinner, and was too polite to ask to be excused. His bladder
finally burst, killing him slowly and painfully over the next 11
days.
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Horace Wells:
Pioneered the use of anesthesia in the 1840s
How he died: Used anesthetics to commit suicide
While experimenting with various gases during his anesthesia
research, Wells became addicted to chloroform. In 1848 he was
arrested for spraying two women with sulfuric acid. In a letter he
wrote from jail, he blamed chloroform for his problems, claiming
that he'd gotten high before the attack. Four days later he was
found dead in his cell. He'd anaesthetized himself with chloroform
and slashed open his thigh with a razor.
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Francis Bacon:
One of the most influential minds of the late 16th century. A
statesman, a philosopher, a writer, and a scientist, he was even
rumored to have written some of Shakespeare's plays.
How he died: Stuffing snow into a chicken
One afternoon in 1625, Bacon was watching a snowstorm and was struck
by the wondrous notion that maybe snow could be used to preserve
meat in the same way that salt was used. Determined to find out, he
purchased a chicken from a nearby village, killed it, and then,
standing outside in the snow, attempted to stuff the chicken full of
snow to freeze it. The chicken never froze, but Bacon did.
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Jerome Irving Rodale:
Founding father of the organic food movement, creator of "Organic
Farming and Gardening" magazine, and founder of Rodale Press, a
major publishing corporation.
How he died: On the "Dick Cavett Show", while discussing the
benefits of organic foods.
Rodale, who bragged "I'm going to live to be 100 unless I'm run down
by a sugar-crazed taxi driver," was only 72 when he appeared on the
"Dick Cavett Show" in January 1971. Part way through the interview,
he dropped dead in his chair. Cause of death: heart attack. The
show was never aired.
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Aeschylus:
A Greek playwright back in 500 BC. Many historians consider him the
father of Greek tragedies.
How he died: An eagle dropped a tortoise on his head
According to legend, eagles picked up tortoises and attempt to crack
them open by dropping them on rocks. An eagle mistook Aeschylus'
head for a rock (he was bald) and dropped it on him instead.
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Jim Fixx:
Author of the best selling "Complete Book of Running," which started
the jogging craze of the 1970s.
How he died: A heart attack....while jogging
Fixx was visiting Greensboro, Vermont when he walked out of his
house and began jogging. He'd only gone a short distance when he
had a massive coronary. His autopsy revealed that one of his
coronary arteries was 99% clogged, another was 80% obstructed, and a
third was 70% blocked....and that Fixx had had three other attacks
in the weeks prior to his death.
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And finally there's Lully, one of our favorite 16th-century
composers, who wrote music for the king of France.
While rehearsing the musicians, he got too serious beating time with
his staff, and drove it right through his foot. He died of
infection.
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Apparently these were written by Malcolm Forbes and if you'd like more
look at the Bathroom Readers Press.
