News outlets reported this week that legendary broadcaster Walter Cronkite never amended his will to include Joanna Simon, who had been his girlfriend for the last four years of his life. Cronkite’s daughter said the newsman never planned to leave Simon, a former opera singer and older sister of Carly Simon, any sort of inheritance, but either way, wills are back in the news. What better time to look at some of the most bizarre codicils ever written?
1. Leona Helmsley
The notoriously egomaniacal hotelier famously left $12 million to her Maltese, Trouble, while entirely cutting two of her grandchildren out of her will (for “reasons which are known to them”). Her other two grandchildren didn’t get off the hook entirely; their inheritances were contingent upon their regularly making visits to their father’s grave, where they would have to sign a registration book to prove they had shown up.
2. Carlotta Liebenstein
Don’t think Trouble Helmsley is the richest pooch on the block. When Liebenstein, a German countess, died in 1991, she left her entire $80-million estate to her dog, Gunther.
3. Jeremy Bentham
The 18th-and-19th-century social philosopher left the world a rather odd bequest in his will: his preserved, clothed body. No one’s quite sure what Bentham was getting at with this “gift,” but since his 1832 death his clothed skeleton – topped with a wax model of Bentham’s head – has been preserved in a wood-and-glass cabinet known as the Auto-Icon. It now resides at University College London and is occasionally moved so Bentham can “attend” meetings.
Bentham didn’t want for the Auto-Icon to feature a wax head; he actually carried around the glass eyes he wanted used in his preserved face for years before his death. However, the preservation process distorted his face, so the wax replica had to stand in. For many years Bentham’s real head sat between his feet in the Auto-Icon, but it was such a target for pranksters that it eventually had to be locked away.
4. Sandra West
West, a California socialite and oil heiress, died when she was just 37 years old and requested that she be buried “in my lace nightgown … in my Ferrari, with the seat slanted comfortably.” Her family buried West in her powder-blue 1964 Ferrari 330 America, then covered the car with cement to deter car thieves. Good call: nice examples of that year’s 330 America can now sell for well over $300,000.
5. Luis Carlos de Noronha Cabral da Camara
The Portuguese aristocrat was a childless bachelor, so he divvied up his estate by picking 70 names at random from the Lisbon phone book. When he died 13 years later, his attorneys notified the unsuspecting beneficiaries that they stood to inherit their benefactor’s cash, his home, and his car.
6. Heinrich Heine
The German poet left his entire fortune to his wife, but with one catch: she had to remarry “because then there will be at least one man to regret my death.”
7. S. Sanborn
Sanborn, a 19th-century New England hatter, left a rather macabre bequest to a friend—a pair of drums made from Sanborn’s skin. The friend received further instructions to go to Bunker Hill each June 17th and play “Yankee Doodle Dandy” on the drums.
8. T.M. Zink
Zink, an Iowa lawyer who died in 1930, must have had some pretty bad experiences with women. When he died he left his daughter a measly five bucks, and his wife got nothing. He stipulated that the rest of his $100,000 estate be put in a trust for 75 years, then used to create the Zink Womanless Library. The library would have no feminine decorations, no books or magazine articles by female authors, and was required to have “No Women Admitted” carved into the stone over the entrance.
9. Charles Millar
The Canadian attorney died a childless bachelor, but he left $568,106 to the mother who gave birth to the most children in Toronto in the 10 years following his 1928 death. This bequest prompted what Canadians called “the Baby Derby” as mothers raced to win the fortune. Finally, in 1938 four winners split the prize after giving birth to nine babies apiece.
10. Robert Louis Stevenson
When the celebrated author died, he left his friend Annie H. Ide his birthday. Ide had previously complained to Stevenson about the inconvenience of being born on Christmas, so the writer left her November 13th as a new birthday provided she take care of it with “moderation and humanity… the said birthday not being so young as it once was.”
11. Ruth Lilly
This one’s not like the others on this list, since Ruth Lilly is still alive. Lilly, a pharmaceutical heiress and aspiring poet, spent much of her life trying to convince editors to publish her verses. Although she didn’t get any bylines, the editor of Poetry magazine once sent Lilly a handwritten rejection note, and that was enough for her. In 2002, Lilly pledged $100 million worth of stock to the foundation that publishes the journal.
12. Henry Budd
It’s not clear how he originally made 200,000 pounds, but when Henry Budd died in 1862, he left his substantial fortune to his two sons on the condition that neither sullied his lip with a mustache.
13. Mark Gruenwald
When longtime comic book writer and editor Mark Gruenwald died in 1996, fans of the Marvel Comics icon probably thought they’d seen the last of the former Captain America writer. Gruenwald had other ideas, though. He requested that his ashes be mixed into the ink used to print the first trade paperback anthology of Squadron Supreme, another one of his landmark creations.
More from mental_floss…
Get Rich Quick: 6 People Who Accidentally Found a Fortune
*
They Had to Start Somewhere: The Strange Summer Jobs of 23 Famous People
*
Fordlandia: Henry Ford’s Ill-Fated Foray Into the Brazilian Jungle
*
The Quick 10: 9 Women Who Inspired Beatles Songs (and one song not inspired by a woman)
*
The White House Gift Guide: 13 Unique Presidential Gifts
*
Cheetos Lip Balm & Other Bizarre Brand Extensions
*
6 Movies With Far More Depressing Alternate Endings
*
31 Unbelievable High School Mascots
Comments (35)
Comment
- subscribe /
- give a gift /
- terms of service /
- about /
- contact us /
- write for us /
- ad info /
- subscriber services /
- press /
- privacy policy /
- rss /
© 2012 Mental Floss Inc. All Rights Reserved. Mental Floss is a registered trademark owned by Felix Dennis. mentalfloss.com is a trademark owned by Felix Dennis.
Disclaimer: All submissions made to mental_floss become the property of Mental Floss Inc and may be used without further permission by the submitter and without compensation to the submitter. If you do not agree to these terms, please do not submit anything to mental_floss.
Here’s one you didn’t list: The will of Madame de la Bresse instructed her life savings of 125,000 francs to be used to buy clothing–not for the poor, but for naked Parisian snowmen. In 1876, the courts ruled her bequest valid, thereby making French snowmen the best dressed in the world. (from “Stupid History” by Leland Gregory)
posted by Krie on 8-27-2009 at 10:40 am
Great article! Has anyone heard whether the Zink Womanless Library was ever built? 75 years after his death would have been 2005. Just curious…not that I’d be allowed to visit.
posted by Erin on 8-27-2009 at 11:05 am
I have an idea of what I want done with my body when I die. I’m seriously contemplating on writing it into my will. I want my organs donated to those in need first. Then I want the rest of my body to go to science. Whatever part of my body isn’t used, (incluting donated ones) I want thrown over a boat as shark chum. (bones can just be thrown over anywhere in hopes that they will generate a reef of some sort. And NO, I don’t want a casket or container of any kind. I want life to continue directly on my dead body.)
Me, eccentric? noooooooo.
posted by Steven on 8-27-2009 at 11:14 am
Erin — I googled Zink Womanless Library and discovered his family challenged the will, the library was never built.
I kind of wish it had been, it would’ve been quite interesting to see what was included, how it looked. And I wouldn’t be allowed inside, either.
posted by Tracie on 8-27-2009 at 11:17 am
Re Zink – I had to know more, too, so here we go… From http://www.wunderkabinett.co.uk/damndata/index.php?/archives/442-The-Zink-Womanless-Library.html
“My intense hatred of women is not of recent origin or development nor based upon any personal differences I ever had with them but is the result of my experiences with women, observations of them and study of all literatures and philosophical works.” Alas, [Zink's] family successfully challenged his post-mortem plans and the Zink monument to misogyny was never built.
posted by Hyacinth on 8-27-2009 at 11:21 am
Wheeling Gaunt, a former slave who purchased his own freedom, came to Yellow Springs in the 1860s and owned a substantial amount of land upon his death in 1894. Gaunt bequeathed to the village a large piece of land on its western side, requesting that the rent be used to buy flour for the “poor and worthy widows” of Yellow Springs. Although the land was used to create Gaunt Park, and thus does not generate rent, the village expanded the request to include sugar and still delivers flour and sugar to the village’s widows at Christmas time.
posted by Brad on 8-27-2009 at 11:25 am
@Steven, even though it isn’t necessarily culturally and socially acceptable to do what you have indicated, I’m not sure you’re wrong. Why should my family spend a bunch of money on a casket to stick in the ground? I’d rather they use the money for my casket on a nice piece of furniture I can use now! I will donate my useable organs to those who need them, and the rest can be cremated and scattered.
posted by Hyacinth on 8-27-2009 at 11:30 am
And I thought my will idea was weird… I want to be buried WITHOUT a casket under a Douglas Fir Tree in my home town of Estacada, Oregon. I feel that there are enough cemetaries and worthless money-making bullshit around when it comes to death that I’d rather just fulfill my purpose as plant-food and be done with it.
recaptcha: immodest facilities
posted by Kate on 8-27-2009 at 12:18 pm
I’ve told my wife that when I die, all she has to do is freeze dry my body and stick on the couch with a Coke in my hand and she’ll never even know I’m gone.
posted by Anthony on 8-27-2009 at 12:36 pm
I don’t have plans yet, I’d like to something a little more socially responsible than Charles Millar, that’s for sure.
posted by Jim on 8-27-2009 at 1:23 pm
Wasn’t Jeremy Bentham an alias used by John Locke on LOST? One character, two philosophers for namesakes.
posted by Melissa on 8-27-2009 at 1:34 pm
@Jim
There are so many levels of depth with Millar’s will if you think beyond it. Whether it was intentional or not, Millar was very intelligent. First off, even though he was childless, his existence was the direct cause of a lot of lives to be brought to this world. Secondly, and slightly more sinister, he uncovered the colors of many many people by offering money for that purpose. The result was that those people put a numerical value on life. By my calculations, half a million dollars won’t go far in a family of at least 11, especially during the Great Depression (let alone getting the prize split into four).
So in a way, Millar giveth, and Miller taketh away. (he definitely, unintentionally taught people responsibility)
posted by Steven on 8-27-2009 at 1:34 pm
Tracie and Hyancinth, thanks for the research! I have to admit; I’m pretty disappointed. I had almost worked out an entire plan to disguise myself as a man and sneak in, place a few books by female authors in random places, and stash some feminine products in the bathrooms…guess I’ll never get to achieve my dream.
posted by Erin on 8-27-2009 at 1:46 pm
LOL@ Erin… I also was pretty intrigued by the ‘no women allowed’ library…. seems like something a little boy would do!
I’m a tad upset it didn’t come into existence. But then, with all the women’s rights groups around, it may not have lasted.
Though there is still a place (mountain?) in Greece or somewhere that no female living creature is allowed….
posted by ariaDne on 8-27-2009 at 2:18 pm
I once lived in a small town in which a very wealthy woman had a running feud with the mayor, who happened to be obsessed with acquiring her historic and very beautiful family home, the largest in town. She had no kin to will the home to, so she knew it would be sold after her death–she so despised the man and was so determined that he not end up owning it that her answer was to leave it to her many cats and their progeny. Gives new meaning to the term “cat house.”
posted by P on 8-27-2009 at 2:22 pm
I agree with everyone that says funerals/burials/cemetaries are a waste. I like what some cultures do that are in the jungles and that’s put the dead bodies on the tree tops for the birds to eat. Cremation is a waste of time and energy too. When I’m gone just take what you can then dig a hole and throw the rest of me in it…or throw me in the water or where ever you want.
posted by Mike James on 8-27-2009 at 2:45 pm
All of this should be fascinating, but instead is just taking me back to my Wills & Trusts class in law school (which I would prefer not to revisit). Rule against perpetuities problems abound throughout, as well as legal problems with leaving money/property to animals directly.
And as far as Mr. Zink and his womanless library go, his wife probably could have “elected a widow’s share” of the estate, even if the will explicitly disinherited her, entitling her to perhaps as much as 40% of his estate. That’d show him.
posted by Jeremy on 8-27-2009 at 3:49 pm
Mike James: they bury people 6 feet underground and in a sealed box for a reason. I don’t want your nasty contaminated body in water that I could drink. ew.
posted by Hidden Sunshine on 8-27-2009 at 4:14 pm
@ ariaDne –
I believe you are speaking of Mt. Athos in Greece.
posted by Rebecca on 8-27-2009 at 5:46 pm
Anyone who leave their entire fortune to their pets should be shot!! (if they weren’t already dead). I’m all for a pet being taken care of after someone dies…but what the hell is a dog suppose to do with $80 million? That money could be better spent going to a charity or for cancer research. Some people are just f**king stupid!
posted by andy on 8-27-2009 at 5:59 pm
@Melissa: Yes, Jeremy Bentham was the name used for John Locke when he was the dead body in the casket. How sneaky of the Lost writers to use the name of a man who refused to be buried in a casket!
posted by Sarah on 8-27-2009 at 6:09 pm
Robert Louis Stevenson
When the celebrated author died, he left his friend Annie H. Ide his birthday. Ide had previously complained to Stevenson about the inconvenience of being born on Christmas, so the writer left her November 13th as a new birthday provided she take care of it with “moderation and humanity… the said birthday not being so young as it once was.â€
How clever and thoughtful RLS. She has obviously taken good care of it since it is still around and will be celebrated in a few weeks. Happy birthday Anne!
posted by Ken on 8-27-2009 at 7:28 pm
“Mike James: they bury people 6 feet underground and in a sealed box for a reason. I don’t want your nasty contaminated body in water that I could drink. ew.”
Once again, ignorance of dead bodies is shown. It has been said time and time again that dead bodies are not diseased or contaminated, nor do they lead to plagues. It’s the live ones you have to worry about. The WHO has addressed this many times.
posted by Dawn on 8-27-2009 at 7:49 pm
Jeremy Bentham also developed the idea of the panopticon, which was a structure designed to facilitate the surveilling of students, prisoners, the sick, etc… so it’s no surprise that he’d want his dead body watching over future generations!
posted by Megan on 8-27-2009 at 9:10 pm
Sigh, Jeremy. You are going to give W&T professors a bad name! Many states have created laws either specifically allowing animals (pets) to receive bequests, or allowing bequests to be given to someone else in trust for the benefit of an animal (pet). Many states do not provide for a widow’s share either, assuming that is similar to the spousal share in California and other community property states. If it something else, then please forgive.
Also, I don’t see any Rule Against Perpetuities problems. (For non-lawyers, the RAP is summarized as voiding any bequest in a will to a group of people if all of them aren’t certain and identifiable within 21 years after the death of the writer of the will (the testator). For the long version, and how ugly the RAP can get when you apply it, check Wikipedia.) All of these wills are to people who are identifiable within 21 years after the death of the testator (or are trusts for things other than people (which don’t face RAP issues) or are simple … requests(?) like Bentham’s and Sanborn’s.
Finally, the Zink Womanless Library WOULD be legal in the U.S. At least based on this synopsis, it doesn’t actually prohibit the admission of women – it only requires a carving over the door that SAYS no women allowed. The lack of feminine decorations and the refusal to include works by women should be enforceable, I think.
‘Nuf said!
posted by Brian on 8-27-2009 at 9:20 pm
How could Sanborn have requested his friend to play “Yankee Doodle Dandy” in his will?
“Yankee Doodle Dandy” wasn’t written by George Cohan until 1942. Perhaps you meant to write “Yankee Doodle”.
posted by steve on 8-28-2009 at 12:31 am
You can get a Zombie Will & Testament too! You know, in case of zombie attack! http://www.zombiewill.com
posted by Steve on 8-28-2009 at 12:36 am
Though I do believe most places in the US have laws dictating burial practices (ie, no casket-less burials), one option for those who’d rather go without is to donate to the University of Tennessee’s Body Farm or one of the similar programs that have started up recently in other universities. Their donation page is linked in my name.
posted by Katie on 8-28-2009 at 12:14 pm
My favorite two weren’t listed. George Bernard Shaw’s will created a trust to create a new English alphabet consisting of at least 40 letters. The court determined the trust was analogous to trusts for political purposes, which are not considered charitable. His wife’s will fared better–her testamentary trust was to teach the Irish “self control, elocution, oratory, and deportment in the acts of personal contact of social intercourse” and was upheld by the court.
posted by Thomas Irvin on 8-31-2009 at 11:54 am
I’m with Mike James. Use what organs you can and recycle the rest of me. Why close my body away in an expensive box? Let it decompose as it’s supposed to.
posted by Pretty much amazing on 8-31-2009 at 2:46 pm
@Krie
I LOVE that book. I actually thought of that example when reading this post too.
Very interesting topic! Thanks for the distraction!
posted by Hastings on 8-31-2009 at 4:14 pm
Does Ikea even sell caskets? IF my husband is *forced* to put the damm together, AND he threatens to divorce me…I’ll just HAUNT him! P.S. You are all witnesses, I bequeath MY-Mother-Lode of seed beads to the Houston Bead Scocity…
posted by HouStoned on 6-8-2011 at 10:39 am
Well, I for one would like to be sealed up nicely and buried six feet under the ground. I’m an organ donor on my DL, but I’d preferably go with all my parts attatched. I know I would hate to be on my deathbed knowing my body would be chopped up or going to a body farm (which is disgusting, however helpful). Some of these people may be eccentric and leaving a good story or legacy, but I’d rather go out the normal way.
posted by Brah on 6-8-2011 at 12:48 pm
I don’t remember the name, but there was a mildly famous actor who bequeathed his skull to a theater to be used as sir yorick in.hamlet, provided he was listed in the program.
posted by JLBOB on 7-24-2011 at 2:22 am
You forgot James Smithson, a Brit who left his entire fortune to the United States to build, you guessed it, what is now the Smithsonian!
posted by SB on 7-24-2011 at 8:44 am