Famous Cats in History
In this month’s blog post, I thought a change from our regular medical based articles was in need so today we are going to take a look back at some of the famous cats in history! Do you recognise some of these famous moggies or are you learning about them for the first time?
The Chief Mouser of the United Kingdom
Whilst this grand designation has been given to many a cat since 1515 when Cardinal Wolsey established the title for his cat whilst in power, right through to Larry, the current inhabitant of 10 Downing Street, Chief Mouser is the official title for the resident cat to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Grumpy Cat
Perhaps one of the most famous cats in today’s time is the internet sensation Grumpy Cat who’s real name is Tardar Sauce! Grumpy Cat’s unique features are due to an ailment known as feline dwarfism and a skeletal abnormality causing a pronounced underbite. At the height of Grumpy Cat’s fame, he had more then 2.6million followers on Instagram and 1.5million Twitter followers. Grumpy Cat passed away in 2019 at just 7 years of age.
Space Cadet Felicette
Felicette is the first and only cat to have returned to earth after travelling to outer space! On October 18th, 1963, Felicette was launched into space by the French aeronautical institution. French Scientists were looking at the effects of lack of gravity on animals to better predict the outcome for humans. Felicette was chosen for the tricky mission out of 13 other cats in training due to her calm nature.
Crème Puff the Guinness Book of Records Title Holder
Crème Puff was the oldest known cat in history, earning himself the Guinness World Record title for oldest known cat. Crème passed away at the AMAZING age of 38 years and 3 days old. Crème Puff hailed from Austin, Texas with his 34-year-old feline brother and his owner attributed their long life to a diet of turkey, bacon, eggs, asparagus, broccoli and coffee with cream!
Station Master Tama
Tama was the beautiful Calico kitty that was named Station Master at the Kishi Station in Japan by railway officials in 2007. Her official duties were to greet passengers and look cute. As way of payment, Tama was supplied with all of her food, a golden name tag for her collar with her official title engraved and she even had a station masters cap made specifically to fit her little kitty head. Tama passed away in 2015 and it is estimated that Tama contributed 1.4billion Yen to the Japanese economy from people specifically travelling to see little Tama at the station.
Silver Screen Star Orangey
Best known as ‘Cat’ in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, superstar Orangey has played roles alongside celebrities such as Audrey Hepburn and Dick Van Dyke. He has appeared in multiple roles in both film and television pieces and even won a Patsy Award. In true celebrity style, Orangey was known to have a bit of a reputation in Hollywood for scratching and biting his co-stars and then running away when he simply had enough for the day.
Mayor Stubbs of Talkeetna, Alaska
After the people of Talkeetna, Alaska disliked every single human candidate standing for local mayoral election, they decided to elect a stray ginger cat known around the town as Stubbs. Stubbs’ mayoral office was set up at the town’s general store and stayed there until he retired from office some 20 years later! Each afternoon the feline mayor could be found enjoying a wine glass full of water and catnip at one of the towns local restaurants. Stubbs passed away in 2017 surrounded by his constituents.
A Street Cat named Bob
In this touching story, a cute ginger kitten is credited with saving the life of his now owner James Bowen, a former drug addict and homeless man. When James had given up on life, a chirpy little kitten he named Bob, wandered across his path with an infected wound on his leg and demanded James’ attention. Bob gave his new owner a reason to keep living and a reason to turn his life around. The pair have been inseparable since day one and their heart-warming story was later published in book form and then as a major motion picture to which Bob starred in as himself.
Snowball Hemingway the Polydactyl Marvel
As the name suggests, Snowball Hemingway was the beloved feline companion to Ernest Hemingway, who was gifted the polydactyl (more toes than normal) feline friend from a sea captain back in 1930. The six toed tabby had many a kitten and approximately 50 cats with the rare multi-toed condition are known to live in the town of Key West where Ernest and Snowball resided.
Ta-Miu Grandchild to a Pharaoh
Ta-Miu is one of the most notable cats of Ancient Egypt being the grand-kitty of Pharoah Amenhotep III in the 18th dynasty. More is known about this ancient moggy then then of her princely owner, Crown Prince Thutmose, and her life was more celebrated then of her owners. After her death, Ta-Miu was mummified and buried in a decorative sarcophagus adored with gold, precious gemstones and elaborate illustrations.
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