Daily Cute - Kitty Pics & Fun Facts

Who Ordered The Cute?

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Famous Cat Lovers Throughout History:

Albert Einstein (1879-1955) Physicist Fond of animals

Einstein kept a tomcat named Tiger who tended to get depressed whenever it rained. One acquaintance recalled him saying to the melancholy cat: "I know what's wrong, dear fellow, but I don't know how to turn it off." Einstein was also quoted as saying, "A man has to work so hard so that something of his personality stays alive. A tomcat has it so easy, he has only to spray and his presence is there for years on rainy days."

Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) Author (works include For Whom the Bell Tolls, Old Man)

Hemingway shared his Key West home with more than 30 cats. The story goes that Hemingway made the acquaintance of a sea captain who owned an unusual six-toed tomcat. Upon his departure from Key West, the captain presented the cat to Hemingway. Today many of the numerous cats that inhabit the grounds still possess the unusual six toes. Hemingway once said, "A cat has absolute emotional honesty; human beings, for one reason or another, may hide their feelings, but a cat does not."

John Lennon (1940-1980) Singer

The famous Beatle loved cats; as a boy he reportedly cycled to the fishmonger's to buy hake for his cat. He named his first cat Mimi after his cat-loving aunt. He and his first wife Cynthia had up to ten cats.

Louis XV (1710-1774) King of France

The King had a favorite white cat that was allowed to play on the table during Councils of State.

Queen Victoria (1819-1901) Queen of England

Her favorite cat, a large Angora named White Heather, outlived her and was inherited by her son and successor King Edward VII

Charles Dickens (1812-1870) Author (works include Oliver Twist, Nicholas Nickelby, David Copperfield, A Christmas Carol)

Charles' cat, Willamena, produced a litter of kittens in his study. Dickens was determined not to keep the kittens, but he fell in love with one female kitten who was known as "Master's Cat". She kept him company in his study as he wrote, and when she wanted his attention she was known to snuff out his reading candle. (xmission)

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Famous Cat Haters Throughout History:

Johannes Brahms - (1833 - 1897)

One of Brahm's favourite forms of relaxation was to sit at an open window and attempt to kill neighbourhood cats with a bow and arrow

Napoleon Bonaparte -

Napoleon was once found sweating with fear and lunging wildly with his sword at the tapestry-covered walls. The source of his fear was a small kitten

Noah Webster - (1758 - 1843)

Webster described the cat as a "deceitful animal and when enraged, extremely spiteful"

Dwight D. Eisenhower - (1890 - 1969)

Eisenhower's loathing for cats was so great, he gave his staff orders to shoot any seen on the grounds of his home

Henry III - (1551 - 1589)

Henry was like a lion when persecuting the Protestant minority in France, but the presence of a cat turned him into a chicken. He would faint if a cat came near him

Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon - (1707 - 1788)

The French naturalist praised dogs, but claimed that cats possessed "an innate malice and perverse disposition which increases as they grow up." He added that they "easily assume the habits of society, but never acquire its manners (xmission)
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Fun Folklore About Cats!

-A cat on top of a tombstone meant certainly that the soul of the departed buried was possessed by the devil. Two cats seen fighting near a dying person, or on the grave shortly after a funeral, are really the Devil and an Angel fighting for possesion of the soul.- old English superstitions

-In Transylvania, if a cat jumps over a corpse, the corpse will become a vampire

-If you dream of a ginger cat, you will be lucky in money and business.

-To dream of being badly scratched by a cat means sickness and trouble

-A kitten born in May will be a witches cat.

-If you kill a cat, you are sacrificing your soul to the Devil

-When you see a one-eyed cat, spit on your thumb, stamp it in the palm of your hand, and make a wish. The wish will come true. - American superstition

-A black cat crossing one's path by moonlight means death in an epidemic. -Irish superstition (xmission)

What are your opionions on cats?

Love them?

Or Not so much?

Have any of your own?

Works Cited:
xmission. famous cat lovers. 2008. Web. May 2010
xmission.cat folklore. 2008. Web. May 2010