Mark Twain—Writer, Humorist, Entrepreneur, Poet, Publisher…well, and Prophet?

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Editor’s Note: Mark Twain didn’t pull any punches when he wrote and spoke. He was a man ahead of his time. I’m sure he was an equal offender hitting on issues of his day. I’ve always enjoyed reading his quotes, many of them still resonant 121 years later. Below are a few of my favorite Twain quotes:

“Never argue with stupid people, they will only drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience”

In the first place God made idiots. This was for practice. Then He made School Boards.”

“Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please.”

“Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself.”

“When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.”

 

The Life of Mark Twain

Mark Twain, whose real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. He was born on November 30, 1835 and passed away on April 21, 1910.  Clemens used Mark Twain as his pen name.

Mark Twain, was an American writer, entrepreneur, poet, humorist, publisher, and lecturer.
He is often hailed as “the greatest humorist the United States has produced.”Mark Twain is the author of the first great American novel— The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. but his rambunctious tales aren’t the only legacy he left behind. He is often quoted and misquoted as well.

His wit and humor in unparalleled. There’s no question that Mark Twain was one of America’s greatest humorist.

During the remarkable course of his almost a mythical status and career, Clemens, well…Twain—wrote more than a dozen novels—plus countless short stories and essays. Twain was also an inventor and discovered new products and would often associate with well-known scientists.

Interesting Facts about Mark Twain. …


He was born in the town of Florida, Missouri
Mark Twain dropped out of school
Mark Twain loved to self-educate. …
He got the name Mark Twain from a steamboat
Mark Twain worked as a miner to
He first used his pen name while working as a journalist
Mark Twain was born on the day Hailey’s Comet in 1835

Twain died on the next appearance of Hailey’s Comet
Twain predicted his own death stating, ”I came in with Hailey’s Comet and I expect to go out with it”

Mark Twain visits Jerusalem…Did he fulfill prophecy? 

Mark Twain’s unwittingly prophetic vision for the State of Israel

 

According to The Jerusalem Post, at his peak, Mark Twain was probably the most popular American celebrity of his time. What few realize is that it was an unlikely trip to the Holy Land that established his fame as an author.

Picture: Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) boyhood home in Hannibal, Missouri

A century and a half ago, Twain traveled on an excursion with his American church group to Europe and the Middle East. The material he gathered, first published in a San Francisco newspaper, formed the basis of the humorous book that made him hugely popular: The Innocents Abroad.
See full article: https://www.jpost.com/opinion/unto-the-nations-505760

According to Wikipedia, Twain was raised in Hannibal, Missouri, which was the setting for Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. Twain had served as a printer’s apprenticeship and later worked as a typesetter, contributing articles to the newspaper of his older brother Orion Clemens.
Twain later piloted a riverboat on the Mississippi River voyaging westward to join Orion in Nevada. He referred humorously to his lack of success at mining, turning to journalism for the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise.[5] His humorous story “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” was published in 1865, based on a story that he heard at Angels Hotel in Angels Camp, California, where he had spent some time as a miner. The short story brought international attention and was even translated into French.[6] His wit and satire, in prose and in speech, earned praise from critics and peers, and he was a friend to presidents, artists, industrialists, and European royalty.

Twain earned a great deal of money from his writings and lectures but invested in ventures that lost most of it—such as the Paige Compositor, a mechanical typesetter that failed because of its complexity and imprecision. He filed for bankruptcy in the wake of these financial setbacks, but in time overcame his financial troubles with the help of Henry Huttleston Rogers. He eventually paid all his creditors in full, even though his bankruptcy relieved him of having to do so. Twain was born shortly after an appearance of Halley’s Comet, and he predicted that he would “go out with it” as well; he died the day after the comet made its closest approach to the Earth.