A true compendium of curious facts, bizarre habits and fascinating anecdotes about the private lives of the famous and infamous throughout history

You may not win a spot on Who Wants to be a Millionaire? but knowing these true though obscure facts about 200 of the world's most famous figures certainly can stimulate dinner conversation. Picture the reaction when you mention that Walt Disney couldn't draw Mickey Mouse. Or, when you explain how Casanova, who seduced 10,000 women, suffered from smallpox marks all over his face; that a superstitious Hitler timed major battles for the seventh day of the month, Lincoln held séances in the White House, and Mark Twain invented and patented the first self-adhesive photo album. Illustrations are by great caricaturists such as Max Beerbohm, Ralph Steadman, and Saul Steinberg, and add just the right touch to this most unusual biographical dictionary.