The owner of the Café de la Rotonde in Paris would allow starving artists to pay for their drinks with a painting or drawing. In the 1900s the walls of the cafe would have been casually adorned with works now considered priceless.
poverty
In 1807, Noah Webster set upon writing…
In 1807, Noah Webster set upon writing ‘An American Dictionary of the English Language’. It took him 26 years to write it all himself, including the etymologies, which required that he learn 28 languages. He was plagued by debt to fund the project.
Frank Wills, the security guard who…
Frank Wills, the security guard who discovered the Watergate break-in that eventually led to the resignation of Richard Nixon, struggled with unemployment and poverty for the rest of his life. By the time of his mother’s death in 1993, Wills was so destitute that he had to donate her body to medical research because he had no money with which to bury her. He died at age 52 of a brain tumor.
Charles Dickens’ father was imprisoned…
Charles Dickens‘ father was imprisoned when he was boy for unpaid debts. At the age of 12, Dickens’ was forced to leave school and work 10-hour long days at a warehouse for 6 shillings per day.
Author H.P. Lovecraft was never able…
Author H.P. Lovecraft was never able to support himself from his earnings as an author. His book “The Shadow Over Innsmouth”, written one year before his death, sold a meagre 200 copies. He died in poverty at age 46.
Curt Degerman was a Swedish man who…
Curt Degerman was a Swedish man who died a millionaire (1.2 million USD) at the age of 60 after collecting and recycling cans and bottles for 40 years. What no one knew was that, after making the rounds to collect recyclables from trash throughout the city, Curt spent hours in the local library pouring over financial newspapers. Over the years, he became an expert on the stock market, investing the modest sum he earned from recycling in stocks and mutual funds, valued at close to a million dollars.
During Elvis Presley’s childhood…
During Elvis Presley‘s childhood, the family often relied on help from neighbors and government food assistance.
There was a 70 year study on…
There was a 70 year study on over 70,000 children in Britain after WW2 on how to be a good parent. The most important factor is, don’t be poor. Other factors include listening, setting goals, exercise, and maintaining a bedtime.
One of the richest woman…
One of the richest woman in China was born in extreme poverty in a remote mountain village. She got her wealth by selling her chili sauce, lao gan ma, which she originally made for her noodle stand.
Derreck Kayongo collected barely-used bars of soap from hotels…
Derreck Kayongo collected barely-used bars of soap from hotels, melted them together, and distributed them to poor countries. He’s the founder of the Global Soap Project, which improves access to basic sanitation and reduces disease and child mortality.