Famous cat lovers

Many famous people including inventors, scientists, artists, musicians, writers, political and military leaders, and humanitarians have been cat lovers. The following are just a few of them.

• Ernest Hemingway, author, owned 30 Cats. His most unusual cat was a six-toed cat given to him by a ship's captain.
• Sir Winston Churchill: Prime Minister of England [1874 - 1965], owned an orange tabby cat named Jock. He commissioned a painting of Jock, who slept in his bed every night and was even taken to all the wartime cabinet meetings.
• Nostradamus: Seer and Prophet [1503 - 1566]. The French Astrologer had a cat named Grimalkin.
• Abraham Lincoln: American President [1809], came into presidential office accompanied by Tabby, his son's cat. Tabby was the first of several White House cats.
• Sir Isaac Newton (1643-1727) Scientist and philosopher, invented the cat-flap, likely so he wouldn't be disturbed by his cats' comings and goings!
• Charles Dickens (1812-1870) Author. His 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.
• 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."

... to be continued

Millionaire cats

Some of the felines seem to be much more fortunate than the others! Well that's life.

• A millionaire lawyer has left £25,000 for his beloved cats. Andrew Nimmo-Smith had around 30 cats when he died aged 85. And he has ensured their care with a donation from his £4.8million estate!
• A Canadian man has left a fortune to his beloved cat in his will. 79-year-old Batchelor David Harper made his fortune by working hard and living frugally. In his will Mr Harper has made Red, the 3 year old tabby cat, the sole beneficiary of the $1.1million estate so that Red will be cared for for the rest of his 9 lives!
• When British recluse Ben Rea died, he left $15 million to various cat charities, and to his cat Blackie!
• Tinker was a stray, regularly visiting Margaret Layne, an old widow. In return for Tinker's loyalty, he was awarded a fortune. There is a $226,000 trust fund for Tinker, as well as a new home - worth about $800,000. Tinker has been joined by two lovely female cats, Lucky and Stardust!
• Beryl Reid was an actress. She had a lovely $1.8 million cottage. She was also famous for her love of cats. So, when she died, her cats Hamish, Boon, Eileen, Coco and Tuffnel inherited. A friend was commissioned to look after them as they lived in their house!
• Mary Burton was a church organist in Great Paxton, Cambridgeshire, Enlgand. She left her entire estate to the Wood Green Animal Shelter, provided her cat - a ginger tom - was well cared for. Fluffy, the ginger tom, received $60,000, plus the ability to live in the house and be well cared for. His diet was even specified: steamed cod, lean roast beef, milk, frexh pilchards and vegetables. Fluffy also requires plenty of sun and relaxation!
• Brownie and Hellcat: These felines each received $415,000 in the 1960s when their owner, Dr. William Grier, died. Charlie Chan, another cat beneficiary of Grier, received $250,000!

Cat Heroes

Yes, there are plenty of feline heroes out there. Cats have saved humans in various ways. Below are some of their amazing stories.

Hero cat saves 97-year-old owner from pit-bull attack!
Hero Cat Roused Sleeping Owner as Carbon Monoxide Filled Family's Home
Hero cat up for a cong
Hero cat apparently dials 911 to help owner!

and the list goes on and on ...

Cat heroes
When cats save your life

What about your cat? I'm sure all of our cats have their heroic moments!

Cat jokes

• A tom cat hijacked a plane, stuck a pistol into the pilot's ribs and demanded: 'Take me to the Canaries'.
• What is a cat's favourite subject in school? HISStory.
• What is a cat's favourite colour? Purrrple!
• What is a cat's favourite car? The Catillac.
• Where did the kittens go on their class trip? To a mewseum.
• What does a cat like to eat on a hot day? A mice cream.
• How do cats end a fight? They hiss and make up.
• How do you know when your cat has been using your computer? When your mouse has teeth marks on it!

Famous/ celebrity cats - Orangey

Orangey the Cat - an orange tabby - is the only feline double-winner of the Patsy Award, the animal kingdom's equivalent of the Oscar. Orangey won his first Patsy for his cinema debut in Rhubarb (1951), playing the eponymous baseball team-owning cat in the 1951 film. Ten years later, he won his second Patsy, playing "Cat" in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), a homeless feline described as a "poor slob without a name" by Holly Golightly (Audrey Hepburn), whom he visits. Other films that Orangey the Cat appeared in during his 15 year career, include The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957), Gigot (1962), and Village of the Giants (1965). Orangey's longest gig was a recurring role as Minerva the Cat in the TV series "Our Miss Brooks" (1952) from 1952 through 1958.

Famous/ celebrity cats - Morris

The most famous cat in America, was a fourteen pound orange tabby charmer who was rescued from a Chicago animal shelter, by Bob Martwick, a professional animal trainer. Morris became spokes-cat for Purina’s 9 Lives cat food in 1969, and eventually became honorary director of Star-Kist Foods, with veto power over any cat food flavor he didn’t like. President Nixon invited Morris to co-sign (with a paw-print) the National Animal Protection Bill. Up until the time he died in 1978, Morris lived with Bob in a Chicago dog kennel where there was never any question who was top cat.

Cats attacked by .... a tortoise!?!

Unbelievable!

Interesting cat trivia

• Researchers claim that the domestic cat has a vocal range of as many as sixty notes, from a gentle purr to growls of varying intensity
• Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds, while dogs only have about ten
• Just like fingerprints, every cats nose pad is different
• Cats are the only four-footed animal, with the exception of camels and giraffes, that walk by moving their front and hind legs first on one side and then the other
• With powerful leg muscles, especially in their hind legs, the domestic cat has been known to reach running speeds of up to twenty-five miles an hour
• The top two rows of a cat's whiskers can move independently of the lower two rows. This allows maximum perception of the cat's immediate surroundings
• A cat uses whiskers to determine if a space is too small to squeeze through. The whiskers act as antennae, helping the animal to judge the precise width of any passage
• The lightness of a feline's tread can be attributed to the fact that they walk on their toes - the soles of their feet rarely touch the ground. The pillow-like balls of their paws allow them to prowl noiselessly in the wild