Private Lives: Curious Facts About the Famous and Infamous

The fascinating private worlds of famous figures throughout history are uncovered: childhood, marriage, children, and sex life; physical appearance and favored clothing; unusual personality traits, work habits, and mannerisms; sports and hobbies; religion, politics, health, and even the manner of death. Some examples: Alexander the Great had two wives, one of whom murdered the other. Christopher Columbus wrote a book foretelling future events. Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales at first were considered unsuitable for children. James Matthew Barrie added the idea of "fairy dust" to his Peter Pan play because children were taking Peter's ideas about flying too literally. Winston Churchill wrote several screenplays for film director Alexander Korda, for which he was paid $25,000 each.