Mark Twain remains one of the most celebrated authors in American history. Initially, he worked as a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River before he found fame with his pen. Furthermore, his sharp wit and biting satire defined the humor of his generation. Consequently, his adventurous life offers as many surprises as his beloved novels. Explore these fascinating details about the father of American literature.
Mark Twain
Halley’s Comet marked both his birth and his death. He entered the world in 1835 when the comet passed the Earth, and he predicted he would leave with it. True to his word, he died one day after the comet returned in 1910.
Mark Twain actually invented the modern bra strap. He received a patent for an “Improvement in Adjustable and Detachable Straps for Garments” in 1871. Although he intended it for vests and pantaloons, the fashion industry eventually adapted his clasp design for brassieres.
He loved cats more than he liked people. At one point, he owned 19 cats at his farm in Connecticut. Furthermore, he gave them hilarious names like Satan, Sin, Sour Mash, and Buffalo Bill to amuse his guests.
Twain rented kittens when he traveled. Because he felt lonely without his pets during summer vacations, he paid locals to let him borrow their cats. Generously, he always returned the well-fed felines to their original owners at the end of his trip.
He lost a massive fortune on a typesetting machine. He invested the modern equivalent of millions of dollars into the Paige Compositor. Unfortunately, the complex machine failed constantly, and the linotype machine eventually rendered it obsolete.
Nikola Tesla and Mark Twain maintained a close friendship. The author frequently visited the inventor’s laboratory to witness electrical experiments. On one occasion, Tesla’s “earthquake machine” shook Twain so hard that he had to run to the bathroom immediately.
He wore his famous white suit to break social rules. In 1906, he started wearing white linen suits year-round, even during the muddy winter months. He wanted to stand out in the crowd of men who wore dark, gloomy clothing.
His pen name comes from a riverboat term. “Mark Twain” means the water is two fathoms deep, which signals safe passage for a steamboat. He adopted this pseudonym to honor his time as a pilot on the Mississippi River.
He quit school at the age of twelve. After his father died, he left the classroom to work as a printer’s apprentice to support his family. Thus, he gained his education through life experience and voracious reading in public libraries.
Mark Twain predicted his brother’s death in a vivid dream. He saw his younger brother Henry lying in a metal coffin with a bouquet of white flowers on his chest. Tragically, Henry died in a steamboat explosion weeks later, and the funeral scene matched the dream exactly.
He patented a self-pasting scrapbook. Unlike his failed typesetting investment, this invention proved incredibly successful and profitable. He earned over $50,000 from the sales, which helped him recover from his other financial losses.
He smoked anywhere from 22 to 40 cigars a day. His friends often complained about the cheap, foul-smelling tobacco he preferred. Consequently, he once remarked that he would not go to heaven if he could not smoke cigars there.
He voluntarily paid off his bankruptcy debts. Although the court declared him legally free of his financial obligations, he felt a moral duty to pay every creditor in full. Therefore, he embarked on a grueling global lecture tour to earn the necessary money.
He claimed to have no exercise routine whatsoever. Humorously, he stated that he never took any exercise except for sleeping and resting. He believed that vigorous physical activity was unnecessary for a happy life.
Finally, Mark Twain hated the editing process of his own books. He once described the editing of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as a terrible chore. He wanted to write the story once and never look at the manuscript again.
