Useless Presidential Trivia

More musings from the master:

On this day in 1886, President Grover Cleveland marries in the white house. His wife Frances was 27 years younger than him. Frances’s father had been Cleveland’s law partner. Cleveland had been her legal ward, administering her late father’s estate on her behalf since she was 11 years old. He had known her literally all of her life. There was some speculation that Cleveland might, perhaps, marry Frances’s mother, but he surprised his friends when he married Frances as soon as she turned 21. Frances remains the youngest First Lady in American history.

Grover Cleveland is the only person to have served two non-consecutive terms as president. He was our 22^nd and 24^th president. Upon leaving the White House at the end of her husband's first term, Frances is reported to have told the staff to take care of the building since the Clevelands would be returning in four years. A prophetess? You must judge that for yourself.

Did you know that the Curtiss Candy Company claims that the candy bar Baby Ruth was named after the Cleveland’s first daughter, Ruth? It’s probably not true. The candy bar’s name was changed from Kandy Kake to Baby Ruth in 1921, which was 30 years after Cleveland left the White House and 17 years after Ruth’s death. It’s more likely that it is named after Babe Ruth, who was nearing the zenith of his popularity around the same time. The more plausible scenario is that the candy company didn’t want to pay royalties to Babe, so they made up a bogus story about the origins of the candy bar’s name. I simply adore scandals, conspiracy, and corporate espionage, so you know I find all this riveting.


Daily Affirmation: When you earnestly believe you can compensate for a lack of skill by doubling your efforts, there’s no end to what you can’t do.