Hemingway once survived two plane crashes in two days in 1954. Newspapers reported his death, so he was able to read his own obituary.He was grandfather of actress-models Margaux and Mariel Hemingway.He rewrote the last page of A Farewell to Arms, about his experiences in World War I, 39 times.Hemingway loved polydactyl cats (cats having six or more toes on each foot).In Spain in the 1920s and ’30s, where he became fascinated with bullfighting and worked as a journalist covering the Spanish Civil War, he picked up the nickname of “Papa.”His favorite meal was a New York strip steak, a baked potato, Caesar salad and a glass of Bordeaux.An expert fisherman, in 1938 he set a world record by catching seven marlins in one day.In July in Key West, where he had a home, the annual Ernest Hemingway Look-Alike Contest honoring his birthday has been held at Sloppy Joe’s bar since 1981.Hemingway served as an ambulance driver in Italy during World War I, and in July 1918, he was badly wounded by mortar fire, but still helped Italian soldiers reach safety. For this, he was awarded an Italian Silver Medal of Valor.Gertrude Stein was Hemingway’s son Jack’s godmother.Hemingway dedicated a book to each of his four wives: The Sun Also Rises to first wife Elizabeth Hadley Richardson, Death in the Afternoon to second wife Pauline Pfeiffer, For Whom the Bell Tolls to third wife Martha Gellhorn and Across the River and Into the Trees to his final wife, Mary Welsh.He preferred to write standing up.Hemingway’s last words were “Goodnight, my kitten” (told to his wife Mary).In 1954, Hemingway was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature “for his powerful, style-forming mastery of the art of modern narration, as most recently evinced in The Old Man and the Sea.” He donated the medal to the people of Cuba.Hemingway had a boxing ring built in the backyard of his home in Key West so he could spar with guests.
Next, The Best Gifts For Lit-Lovers, Inspired By the PBS Documentary Series Hemingway
