10 Really Bizarre And Odd Deaths Of Notable People

10 Really Bizarre And Odd Deaths Of Notable People

1. Aeschylus: Father of tragedy was murdered by an eagle and a tortoise for being bald

Aeshylus' legacy and works surpass the bizarre death of his and maybe fairly so, but fact remains that his death remains even today as one of the most bizarre in history and that's not an exaggeration at all. Aeschylus is considered the father of Tragedy and he's worshiped worldwide to this day for that, since he was the first of the three great ancient Greek tragedians with the other two being Sophocles and Euripides. This is the well-known part of Aeschylus' life. Now the bizarre part of his story is fully connected with his death. Actually he is the only documented case of human death directly attributed to a tortoise. It seems like Aeschylus was a victim of his own bald head. According to many historical sources Aeschylus died when a hungry eagle dropped a tortoise on his head (so the cell could break and the eagle could have access to the “raw meat”), apparently mistaking his bald head for a rock. It's probably the most bizarre death recorded in this list and in a joking manner it was probably the first “hate crime” committed against a bald man.

2. Pietro Aretino: The artist who died from laughing way too much 

Pietro Aretino was a very interesting man and he becomes even more intriguing as a person when you learn more and more about him. For someone who lived back in the dark and harsh eras of the medieval years, Aretino was indeed very dashing and courageous in his own unique way. He was a playwright and author with an immense influence on art and politics, but what made him even more daring was the fact that he would often ignore the strict local and religious authorities and pick on them through his works. An unrepentant satirist and a true pioneer of modern literate pornography died just like he lived: a happy and wild man who had a good time doing his thing. Even though there are different versions about his death and how exactly things took place, the most reliable version implies that Aretino died of suffocation during a party with friends from "laughing too much”.

3. Draco: The Athenian Lawgiver that was smothered to death by his grateful worshipers 

Draco has been well-known through history as one of the very first lawmakers in history. Actually he was the very first lawgiver who systematically recorded in written forms a series of codes and laws, which would later consist the very first constitution of Athens and would replace the dominant system (until then) of oral law. The laws of Draco were just like their creator: clear, strict and in many cases inhuman. Draco was known as a man who valued State and public interests more than the citizen as a human. Even by modern standards, the term “Draconian Laws” has come to be used to refer to any unusually harsh law. The Athenian citizens however seemed to be very thankful and grateful to the lawgiver despite the harsh nature of his laws and they saw in him the man who represented divine justice. Their appreciation was meant to be fatal for Draco. As he was visiting Aegina island to be honored in front of a large crowd during a theatrical event, Draco was covered in so many caps and cloaks that he suffocated to death. Draco was literally “killed by appreciation and kindness”.

4. Tennessee Williams: When a bottle cap of eye drops becomes a deadly weapon

Tennessee Williams is probably one of the greatest playwrights in the history of American theater and most people are familiar with his works and writings. His amazing career lasted for nearly six decades and some of his plays such as “ The Rose Tattoo” and “ Cat on a Hot Tin Roof “ among many others are considered instant classics. What many people don't know about Williams though is a bizarre ritual he had, a ritual that would cost his life. While in his New York City hotel room, Williams as it was usual for him would use eye drops by following a specific order: he would open the bottle, then he would routinely place the cap in his mouth, lean back, and place his eye drops in each eye. That night however things didn't work the right way for him and the medical examiner's report would show that he choked to death on the cap from the bottle of eye drops he had used. There were speculations that Williams might had done excessive usage of drugs and alcohol that night and that played a factor to the outcome, something however, that was never proved to be true officially.

5. Li Bai:He tried to kiss the moon and he died for it

Even though Li Bai is one of the most important figures of Chinese poetry, he has not managed even to this day to enter the “Western Market”. Famous for his excessive romanticism and love for the natural beauty and all that includes, Li Bai died exactly just like he lived: hopeless romantic and a dedicated lover of Mother Nature. Li Bai became famous a the man who tried to kiss the moon and all this came with a really high cost, which was his own life. Li Bai tried to kiss the reflection of the moon in the water next to his boat when he fell overboard and drowned. The people who knew him better describe him as a man who struggled with the bottle and considered very possible for him not being sober during the fatal incident. Ironically only a few weeks before his death he wrote a poem with title “Alone and Drinking Under the Moon.”

6. Arius: The man who died in the grossest possible way from Diarrhea

Arius was a very powerful and influential Christian presbyter and priest during his lifetime and in some cases he became the main figure behind major controversies with the “Arian controversy” being one of the most characteristic examples. His teachings about Father's divinity over the Son made him famous around the Christian then world, and his opposition to Trinitarian Christology, made him a primary topic of the First Council of Nicea. For all the popularity and influence the man enjoyed while being alive, it seems like he will always be remembered for the bizarre way he died. According to Socrates Scholasticus' graphic descriptions, Arius was walking across the imperial forum of Constantinople when he suffered sudden diarrhea followed by hemorrhaging, which caused his intestines to be expelled from his anus. Many of his enemies implied that Arius's death was miraculous and a consequence of his heretical views, while in reality it was nothing but the product of poisoning.

7. Jim Creighton: When a home run became literally deadly 

Even though Jim was competing during an era that baseball was nothing but an amateur sport, he was one of the sport's first superstars and the type of player that excited the crowd and masses like no other. For all the talent and charisma Jim had as a player, bad luck and destiny had different plans for him. In 1862 Jim had reached the absolute peak in terms of popularity and he was dominating the game; he was that good that he used to hit several home runs during a game, but that one home run was meant to kill him. It was an afternoon of October 1862 when Jim injured himself in what would be the last game of his life, when he suffered a ruptured abdominal hernia hitting a home run. The rupture caused internal bleeding and fatally Jim died from it only four days later

8. Pyrrhos of Epirus: a tile kills one of the greatest generals, who had survived some of the bloodiest battles of all time

According to Hannibal of Barca, Pyrrhos was the greatest military tactician and general he had ever seen, second only to the greatest Greek general, Alexander the Great. During his incredible reign he managed to become King of Epirus, King of Ancient Macedonia among other Greek city-states and he also became Ruler of Sicily and he was the only Greek general that was beating a prime Rome in various battles. Many historians agree that if he had lived longer, maybe history could have been a little different, but unfortunately for him and Greece, that was not the case. As great as the man was and after surviving in numerous bloody battles and wars, he found an ignominious death. During a civic dispute in Argos, Pyrrhos found himself trapped in the narrow city streets, when an old woman spying him from the rooftop of her house, threw a tile which stunned him (most historians agree that it killed him instantly), allowing a soldier from Argos to behead his already dead body.

9. Hans Steininger: The man with the longest beard in the world, dies because of it

The only sure thing is that if The Guinness Book of World Records existed back when Hans was alive, then the man would definitely hold one of the many bizarre records the specific book includes. Hans Steininger was an Austrian man who became famous for having the world's longest beard, which according to various estimations was over 1.50 m long, and he became even more famous for dying because of it. It might sound unbelievable and funny (even though the death of someone is never funny) but seems like one day Hans was trapped accidentally on his long beard which made him lose his balance, with the outcome being him falling down and breaking his neck(!) from the unexpected accident. He died instantaneously.

10. Béla I of Hungary: A king that got killed by his own precious throne 

Béla I was a decorated King of Hungary who leaded his country in a very successful campaign and victorious war against the Holy Roman emperor Henry III, to defend Hungary's independence. Béla I had a dream from a really young age and he would not rest in peace if he didn't achieve it: he wanted to become a king and in his case that was not an easy thing at all. Béla I had the bad luck to come from a big family with several brothers, cousins and nephews who were all successors of the throne. When finally and after many struggles and battles he managed to become The King of Hungary in 1060, he wasn't meant to enjoy it for that long. His reign was interrupt violently only three years later, when Béla was preparing for a military campaign against emperor Henry IV, who supported Salamon's claim to the throne. For his bad luck Bela died from severe injuries that he sustained when the wooden structure of his throne collapsed. The man literally died for what he had fought and loved the most in his life: his own throne.

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