Category: How Old Were They

Sir William Lawrence Bragg was only 25 when the Australian-born British physicist shared the 1915 Nobel Prize in Physics with his father William Henry Bragg “for their services in the analysis of crystal structure by means of X-rays,” an important step in the development of X-ray crystallography. Bragg remains the youngest Nobel Prize winner in any scientific category. Read Who Cares? about the struggle for dignity at Woodruff Home for the Aged, “a lively place where old people go to die.” Learn more about the book and its characters, aged 9-90, in NOVELS.

Sir William Lawrence Bragg youngest Nobel winner in any science category

Woodruff Home for the Aged, where aging with dignity battles corporate greed

DeWitt Clinton was 48 when, at the beginning of his first term as New York State Governor (1817-1822), he advocated for construction of the Erie Canal. The canal was finished at the beginning of his second term (1825-1828). The first shipping route between the country’s interior and the Atlantic Ocean, the Erie Canal turned New York City into an economic powerhouse. Read Who Cares? about the struggle for dignity at Woodruff Home for the Aged, “a lively place where old people go to die.” Learn more about the book and its characters, aged 9-90, in NOVELS.

NY State Governor DeWitt Clinton had the foresight to build the Erie Canal

Woodruff Home for the Aged, a lively place where old people go to die

Blaise Pascal, age 19, created the first mechanical (digital) calculator in 1642. At 16, the French genius had written a treatise on geometry. A follower of “intuitionism,” he claimed to experience God through the heart rather than reason. In later years, he corresponded with Pierre de Fermat on probability theory, which influenced economics and the social sciences. Who knows what else he’d have accomplished if he hadn’t died at age 39? Read Who Cares? about the struggle for dignity at Woodruff Home for the Aged, “a lively place where old people go to die.” Learn more about the book and its characters, aged 9-90, in NOVELS.

Pascal was a mathematical genius of invention during his short life

Woodruff Home for the Aged, where aging with dignity battles corporate greed

Drummer Buddy Rich began performing in vaudeville at 18 months. Born in Brooklyn in 1917, he was still in diapers when he appeared with his family as “Baby Traps, the Drum Wonder.” By age 11, Rich was leading his own band and by adulthood, after adding composing and conducting to his accomplishments, was already considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Rich is best known for his superhuman speed, flawless technique, and showmanship. Read Who Cares? about the struggle for dignity at Woodruff Home for the Aged, “a lively place where old people go to die.” Learn more about the book and its characters, aged 9-90, in NOVELS.

Bernard “Buddy” Rich discovered his affinity for jazz as a toddler

Woodruff Home for the Aged, where aging with dignity battles corporate greed

Ernest Hemingway was 27 when his debut novel The Sun also Rises was published in 1926. His novels, story collections, and non-fiction are classics of American literature, characterized by their pared down language and distinct grammar, often borrowed from Spanish. Easily parodied, but not successfully emulated, Hemingway was awarded the 1954 Nobel Prize in Literature “for his mastery of the art of narrative and influence he has exerted on contemporary style.” Read Who Cares? about the struggle for dignity at Woodruff Home for the Aged, “a lively place where old people go to die.” Learn more about the book and its characters, aged 9-90, in NOVELS.

Hemingway, icon of American literature, is easily parodied but unsuccessfully emulated

Woodruff Home for the Aged, a lively place where old people go to die

Julia Child was 40 when she found her true calling. A name now synonymous with culinary excellence, she didn’t know what a shallot was when she moved to Paris after WWII and fell in love with French cuisine. At a loss about what to do with herself, she studied at the celebrated Cordon Bleu cooking school. More than a decade (and many rejections) later, she published Mastering the Art of French Cooking and began the PBS program “The French Chef,” which ran for 10 years. Read Who Cares? about the struggle for dignity at Woodruff Home for the Aged, “a lively place where old people go to die.” Learn more about the book and its characters, aged 9-90, in NOVELS.

The quintessential French chef didn’t discover her passion until age 40

Woodruff Home for the Aged, where aging with dignity battles corporate greed

Frederick Banting was 32 when he became the youngest Nobel Prize winner in Physiology or Medicine in 1923 for his discovery of insulin and its role in diabetes in his lab at the University of Toronto. A surgeon and orthopedist, Banting shared the award with his student Charles Best. That same year, the Canadian government granted Banting a lifetime annuity to continue his work. Read Who Cares? about the struggle for dignity at Woodruff Home for the Aged, “a lively place where old people go to die.” Learn more about the book and its characters, aged 9-90, in NOVELS.

Discovery of insulin & its role in diabetes earned Banting Nobel Prize in Medicine at age 32

Woodruff Home for the Aged, a lively place where old people go to die

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was 5 when he composed his first piece of music. Already competent on keyboard and violin, the prodigy performed for European royalty and wrote his first symphony at age 8. Despite his short life (1756-91), Mozart is credited with creating between 650 and 800 compositions, including operas, symphonies, concertos, chamber music, religious music, and other instrumental works such as serenades, divertimenti, and dances. Read Who Cares? about the struggle for dignity at Woodruff Home for the Aged, “a lively place where old people go to die.” Learn more about the book and its characters, aged 9-90, in NOVELS.

Child prodigy Mozart composed hundreds of works in his short life

Woodruff Home for the Aged, where aging with dignity battles corporate greed

Mary Shelley was 19 when she wrote Frankenstein, in response to a dare to write a ghost story. An early example of science fiction, the idea came to her in a waking dream. The Gothic theme and philosophical questions were likely influenced by the death of her premature daughter with poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, and the suicide of his wife. More tragedy followed. Only her fourth child survived; her husband drowned. Shelley continued to write until she died of a brain tumor at 53. Read Who Cares? about the struggle for dignity at Woodruff Home for the Aged, “a lively place where old people go to die.” Learn more about the book and its characters, aged 9-90, in NOVELS.

Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein, wrote the story on a dare

Woodruff Home for the Aged, a lively place where old people go to die

Peter Mark Roget was 73 when the first issue of Roget’s Thesaurus, a project to scientifically order language, was published in 1852. An esteemed member of London’s Royal Society, he’d already developed the slide rule, published medical and scientific papers. and contributed to the invention of motion pictures. Roget oversaw every update of the thesaurus until his death at age 90. Read Who Cares? about the struggle for dignity at Woodruff Home for the Aged, “a lively place where old people go to die.” Learn more about the book and its characters, aged 9-90, in NOVELS.

Roget, of thesaurus fame, didn’t rest on his laurels

Woodruff Home for the Aged, where aging with dignity battles corporate greed