Fun Facts about the Presidents

Introduction
Hello, all. I've come to you today with a very important announcement. Because I'm fed up with the way things are going in the U.S. these days and the fact that some political figures are unapologetically getting their American history wrong, I've decided to do something about it. It will be epic (or boring if you care nothing about American history). This will be an abridged version of the book on Presidents I've had since I was a child with modern updates and my own comments and notes added in. It will be told in 11 parts, starting with this entry. As we all know, abridging can be fun (and since this is a book, which can be abridged without the feds complaining, no one will care; I did have to remove it from YouTube because of the music I used in the background, which you can find cited below). Thus, I have kept it to relevant topics such as political parties and economic depression. It was far more interesting to do it by era instead of summarizing each President's entry. You'll have to find the pictures yourself this time, though.

Fun Facts
Of the five presidents who took part in the Revolution, three of them (John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Monroe) died on a Fourth of July. In addition, Zachary Taylor took ill on a Fourth of July and died five days later.

George Washington was sworn in as President in New York City. The Capitol at that time was located in Philadelphia. It moved to D.C. during Adams' term. The original White House was burned by the British during the War of 1812 and had to be rebuilt.

Washington is the father of the United States. Adams is the father of the United States Navy. Jefferson is the author of the Declaration of Independence (but father of the University of Virginia). Madison is the father of the Constitution.

Francis Scott Key wrote "The Star-Spangled Banner" during the War of 1812. It became the national anthem of the United States.

Franklin D. Roosevelt is distantly related to Washington, Adams, Madison, Van Buren, Harrison, Taylor, Grant, and Taft.

Andrew Johnson and Lyndon Johnson are not actually related. However, they were both Vice Presidents who became Presidents when their running mates were assassinated. Both were also Freemasons.

Herbert Hoover and J. Edgar Hoover are not related.

Nicknames
John Adams: The Agitator (1776)
Andrew Jackson: King Andrew I
William Harrison: Old Tippecanoe
Zachary Taylor: Old Rough and Ready
Ulysses S. Grant: The Butcher, U.S. Grant (real name Hiram Ulysses Grant; his mother's maiden name was Simpson)
Rutherford Hayes: Old Granny
Chester Arthur: Gentleman Boss
Benjamin Harrison: Little Ben
Theodore Roosevelt: Teddy
William Taft: Big Lub, Big Bill
Calvin Coolidge: Silent Cal
Herbert Hoover: Secretary of Commerce and Undersecretary of Everything Else
Franklin D. Roosevelt: FDR, that madman in the White House
Dwight Eisenhower: Ike
John F. Kennedy: JFK, Jack
Lyndon B. Johnson: LBJ
Gerald Ford: (real name Leslie Lynch King)
Ronald Reagan: The Gipper, The Great Communicator, The Teflon President
Bill Clinton: (real name William Jefferson Blythe)
George W. Bush: W, the accidental President, the President of conviction

(if FDR's the "madman," then can W be the "idiot?")

"Think of all the celebrated heads of state and specially great communicators. Did they have brains or knowledge? Don't make me laugh. They were popular!" (Galinda, Wicked)

(YouTube took all my vids down. Apparently all of our patriotic songs are copyrighted. Who knew?)

Music Used (or referenced)
"But, Mr. Adams" (1776)
"Is Anybody There?" (1776)
"Popular" (Wicked)
"Star Wars Theme" (John Williams)
"Twilight Town Clocktower" (Kingdom Hearts)
"Hail to the Chief"
"The Star-Spangled Banner"
"Kickassia Theme" (Skitch)
"Yankee Doodle"
"Yankee Doodle Boy"
"Shrouding Dark Cloud" (Kingdom Hearts)
"Thirteenth Dilemma" (Kingdom Hearts)
"Dearly Beloved" (Kingdom Hearts)
"Strange Whispers" (Kingdom Hearts)
"Jedi vs Sith" (John Williams)
"Anatomy of Your Enemy" (Anti-Flag)
"Radiant Garden" (Kingdom Hearts)
"Organization XIII" (Kingdom Hearts)
"Hollow Bastion" (Kingdom Hearts)
"Destati" (Kingdom Hearts)
"Imperial March" (John Williams)
"Victory" (Tonci Huljic)
"Gettin' Jiggy With It" (Will Smith)/Irate Gamer Rob the Robot Stack-up Review (Chris Bores)

Dedicated to my U.S. history teachers: Robert Seroski (8th grade, likes Star Wars) and Bonnie Nicholson (10th grade, likes "Victory"). Also to my contemporary issues teachers Bill Freeman (9th grade) and Chris Buchas (12th grade).

Blassingame, Wyatt. The Look-it-up Book of Presidents. Random House, New York: 1993.
www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/williamjclinton
www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/georgewbush
www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/barackobama