Monday, May 18, 2009


2500 Years of History Unzipped


Napoleon's Privates by Tony PerrottetWhen author Tony Perrottet heard that Napoleon's "baguette" had been stolen by his disgruntled doctor a few days after the emperor's death, he rushed out to New Jersey. Why? Because that's where an eccentric American collector [elderly American urologist John K. Lattimer], who had purchased Napoleon's member at a Parisian auction [in 1977], now kept the actual relic in an old suitcase under his bed.

The story of Napoleon's privates triggered Perrottet's quest to research other such exotic sagas from history, to discover the actual evidence behind the most famous age-old mysteries: Did Churchill really send condoms of a surprising size to Stalin? Were champagne glasses really molded upon Marie Antoinette's breasts? What was JFK's real secret service? What were Cassanova's best pickup lines? Why did the Marquis de Sade hate his mother-in-law? Will Lincoln ever be outed?

2 comments:

Anna Campbell said...

Wow, Keira! I didn't know about Napoleon's lowest ranks in his army. Privates? Geddit? Yeah, I thought it was a terrible joke too! It's a bit like Einstein's brain. It had a really strange history as well. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein%27s_brain

Keira Soleore said...

So long as you don't go into Napoleon's Privates's Privates all lined up. *shaking head*Haw. Haw. Haw about Einstein. The things folks do and collect. Imagination is one thing, but when the thought leaps into action...