7 Famous Dogs Throughout History

When you think of those who’ve earned fame, you tend to think of those humans who have been dubbed as famous. But fame doesn’t only include those people who have earned some type of celebrity. There are also plenty of animals that have become famous over the years, and many of them included dogs. Check out the following list of seven famous dogs throughout history.

1. Togo and Balto

The use of dogsleds is popular in Alaska, and Balto and Togo are two sled dogs that earned great fame. Diphtheria had entered Nome, Alaska, and there wasn’t enough medicine on hand for the local doctor to treat everyone. Since the last ship of the season had just left, the Board of Health had to send medicine by dog sled. Togo and Balto made it over 674 miles in just five days, and to date, the record has not been broken.

2. Lady

The sinking of the Titanic plays an epic role in history, and many people discuss those who survived as well as those who lost their lives. But along with human survivors, there were also a few canine survivors, and Lady, a Pomeranian, was one of them. Owner Margaret Hays covered Lady in a blanket, and since crewmembers assumed it was a baby, they allowed Margaret to bring it on board a lifeboat. Lady was one of four total dogs that survived the sinking of the Titanic.

3. Bobbie

Bobbie and his family traveled from Oregon to Indiana on vacation. While in Indiana, Bobbie found himself away from his family, and despite their best efforts, they could not find Bobbie before they left. Six months later, Bobbie showed up on the doorstep of his family’s home—more than 2,500 miles away. He walked the whole thing and earned plenty of fame from his journey.

4. Bo Obama

The White House is not complete without the companionship of a pup. When the First Family announced that they were shopping for a dog to add to their family, the media buzzed about what type of dog they would choose. Ultimately, the Obama’s chose a Portuguese Water Dog named Bo, whose hypoallergenic fur was best for Malia’s allergies.

5. Argos

If you want to discuss famous dogs from historic times, then Argos is probably the most popular. Argos was the dog of Odysseus, and the mention of Argos can be found in plenty of Greek literature and mythology.

6. Laika

Laika earned fame for being the very first dog in space. On November 3, 1957, Laika was placed on board Russian satellite Sputnik 2. Unfortunately, Laika died shortly after making it into space, but her journey proved that a living thing could survive a launch into orbit.

7. Faith

Stories about dog’s who overcome challenges always earn mass media attention, and Faith is one of those dogs. Faith was born with two fully functioning hind legs and only one front leg, which was deformed. The front leg was amputated when Faith was seven months old, and many veterinarians told Jude Stringfellow, Faith’s owner, to euthanize her. Even Faith’s own mother tried to suffocate the puppy. Instead, Jude taught Faith to walk solely on her hind legs, making her truly unique and famous.

 

Rachel Doyle is a blogger and animal lover with DogTrainingCollars.com who often writes about everything from interesting pet facts to reviews on excellent obedience training equipment for your dogs.

Image Credit: 1, 2, 3.

3 Of The Most Surprising Celebrity Medical Success Stories

Celebrities are the pearls of most people's eyes. They lead lives that most can dream of in terms of luxury, elegance, and overall pleasure. However, just like anyone else, celebrities have to encounter hardships at a personal level. Money can never buy immortality and health; this is a reality of life that everyone has to accept. Medical hardships can be tougher on celebrities than the average Joe due to the media circus that is always around. No one wishes to be swamped by cameras as they are battling to survive. This piece will focus on celebrity medical success stories and what these individuals are doing to assist others with similar problems.

Lou Ferrigno

Better known as the Hulk from television show The Incredible Hulk, Ferrigno gained a lot of publicity for his personal struggles with his medical condition. Ferrigno overcame his battles to go on to act, play professional football, and body build. His story is truly remarkable and inspiring for individuals suffering from hearing loss (Better Hearing Institute). At the age of 21, Ferrigno lost 65 percent of his hearing and had to start wearing hearing aids. The battle was tough, but he never gave up and continued to pursue his dreams of bodybuilding and acting. Not only did Ferrigno have to overcome his hearing loss, he had to work on his speech deficiencies in order to act and function on a daily basis. He continued to persevere and is now able to speak fluently and articulate himself better than most people.

What does Ferrigno do to inspire others? He has said his only goal was to become famous enough to tell his story. He has gone on to become a celebrity in the sporting and acting world and continues to progress to new heights with his charitable causes. Ferrigno has been a supporter of the Better Hearing Institute for over 25 years.

Scott Hamilton

This figure skating phenom was one of the finest in his field during the 80s. He had a huge fan following and continued to progress to new heights each year. Further into his career, he was diagnosed with testicular cancer and had to halt his career (People). He eventually won his battle against testicular cancer and was able to return to doing what he loved most, figure skating. He has gone on to publicize and share the importance of the fight against testicular cancer around the world.

Scott Hamilton has even gone on to open the Scott Hamilton CARES Initiative. This is his way of giving back to the world and using his celebrity power to work toward a brighter future. He is actively seen promoting his charity.

Olivia Newton-John

Singing had been Newton-John's passion from the early years of her childhood. She could never have imagined going from stardom to a battle against breast cancer (Olivia Appeal). Yet this was exactly what happened. But she persevered through the battle and came out on top. Olivia Newton-John produced two benefit albums for the sole purpose of giving back to cancer charities.

To learn more about celebrities and medical success stories, guest writer Laura Reddick recently visited www.pbtalent.com/medical-speakers

Image Credit: 1, 2, 3.

4 Celebrities Who Got Hair Replacement Done

Everyone’s human even the celebrities that are so talked about in the news. While many people revere them and remain star struck, it’s subtle reminders like loss of hair, growing old and other things the help to remind us that in the end celebs are only human and they have problems too.

Moreover, balding is something which afflicts everyone and you’ll find that while considered to be epitome of perfection, there are many celebrities that have reverted to hair replacement surgeries to combat male pattern baldness at young or old age.

While many have come clean about their hair replacement surgeries, others have kept mum about it. Nonetheless, the proof is in the pudding and these following celebrities have undeniably had hair replacement surgeries:

Nicholas Cage

Among one of the most conspicuous hair transplant cases in Hollywood, Nicholas Cage opted to remain quiet regarding his suddenly full and deliciously brunette hair. However, even though he’s one of the most profiled stars of Hollywood since the 1980’s; his hair loss had becoming surprisingly evident as the years rolled by. However, it was evident that his male pattern baldness has definitely become very active over the past few years and eventually prompted the star to resort to hair replacement surgeries.

 John Travolta

Another one of the golden oldies, John Travolta was the biggest Hollywood heartthrob after Grease.  Undeniably good looking in his youth, John Travolta seems to have aged increasingly well. To be honest he doesn’t look too bad nowadays either. He’s aging a little too well, don’t you think? That’s right.  John Travolta took a page out of his fellow celebrities’ books and got some hair replacement surgeries done. Although in his 50’s now John Travolta sports a lush head of hair which has raised many eyebrows at him. While gorgeous with a full head of hair, he’s still a looker even when without hair and the ladies still loved him when he’s had to go bald for some roles for his movies.

Mel Gibson

Considered to be the sexiest man alive in 1985, Mel Gibson was making ladies swoon with this thick head of hair and striking blue eyes. Nonetheless, this ruggedly good looking guy started to suffer from a receding hairline fairly early in his career. While not going public about it, there is rumor that the star got some hair replacement surgeries in 2006. Although his looks have mellowed over the years, there are still times when seeing him with a full head of hair you can see the sexiest man alive of 1985 again.

Al Pacino

It’s been 35 years since Al Pacino played the role of wild and young Micheal Corleone in the classic movie The God Father. Since then Al Pacino has had a heavy and illustrious career. Therefore it became noticeably perceptible how his hair weathered the years with him. Sometimes thick, sometimes thin, Al Pacino joins the pack of Hollywood stars that’ve gotten hair replacement surgeries yet chooses to refrain from making any comments about it.

Nonetheless, there are many other celebrities in Hollywood many world soccer stars like Wayne Rooney had a succesfull Hair Transplant surgery. who’ve gotten hair replacement surgeries such as Ben Affleck, Brendan Fraser, Johnny Depp, Robin Williams and many others as well.

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Mark is a hair loss consultant providing services at HDC Hair trichology centre which you can follow on Google plus

Rolf Harris - Great Artist Or Lucky Amateur?

Rolf Harris is one of the world’s best known contemporary artists and his original works regularly fetch six figure sums. His painting is undeniably popular but is it actually worthy and does it really matter if it is? Rolf Harris’s work may be loved by the masses but art critics generally loathe it and have showered the artist with a barrage of unfortunate comments over the years with one branding him “a fairground painter at most”.

The Value of Success

I have no idea how Harris rates his own work and I am sure he would love to receive more critical acclaim but he is certainly getting the last laugh with the amount of money he has made. History is littered with great masters who have died poor men and you have to ask what is better for the individual, success or technical brilliance?

The Merit of Popularity

I have said it before and I will say it again. There is surely something affirming about popularity. 
Popularity is a merit it its own right and it is pure snobbishness to dismiss art as unsound when it so sought after. Unfortunately aficionados of the arts always deride anything which is popular and I feel this is probably at least in part to maintain their position of superiority which would be somewhat undermined by agreeing with the great unwashed.

Enjoyment

Whatever the truth of the matter Rolf Harris’s work is most certainly popular. Doubtless this is in large part due to his high profile as an entertainer but give the public some credit. Those with money might buy his original work as an investment regardless of what they thought of the quality but people would not generally buy his prints unless they actually liked them whoever the artist was. I hope that settles the argument. Rolf Harris may not be the most technically gifted or inspired artist that ever lived but he paints images that people enjoy and that is surely just as important. Even more crucially he has inspired an interest in art and that is where I believe his greatest talent lies.

Inspiration

Art has always been a signature element of Harris’s live performances as an entertainer. He may not possess artistic brilliance but he does have a unique talent for engaging an audience with art. His act usually involves painting a picture quickly and in such a way that the subject of the work is not obvious until the painting nears completion. In this way he has created an interest in art amongst many people who may never have come to the subject at all. He can inspire interest and creativity in others and that is a rare talent which should be celebrated.

Rolf Harris has received the kind of criticism you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy. The critic’s appear to feel that his work is so poor that it makes jack Vettriano look like Michelangelo but I am not so sure. At the end of the day the work of Rolf Harris is much loved and he certainly has the ability to inspire an appreciation of art generally. I have to conclude that whilst he is no Van Gogh he is not a lucky amateur either but rather an inspired teacher and that should be admired if nothing else.

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•  License: Creative Commons image source 

Sally Stacey is a professional writer who also owns a bridal shop and was on the board of a London based distribution company for 16 years. A frequent traveller for both leisure and business, Sally is always looking for a new adventure to write about

DJ Khaled Proposes To Nicki Minaj With A Stunning 10 Carat Diamond Ring

It has been said that a girl never forgets the way that she's proposed to, and this will definitely be the case for Nicki Minaj, who was recently offered a proposal of marriage by DJ Khaled, an offer that included an amazing 10 carat diamond ring!

In fact, Khaled recently posted a video on MTV, stating to his family, and the rest of the world that he wants Minaj in his life, while turning a rather large ring box around to reveal the absolutely stunning piece of jewelry. Some people claim that it was a stunt, but he seemed pretty serious to me. The only downside to his proposa was doing it on TV instead of in person like everyone else.

A Shining Proposal with a Diamond Can Make All the Difference in the World

Today, there are many ways to propose marriage to one's intended lifetime partner. Over time, there have been highway billboards, airplane skywriters, and of course, the ever famous proposal on the jumbo screen at half-time of a sporting event, but the truth is that a proposal that includes a shiny diamond ring can be the most heartfelt of them all.

Some believe that the tradition of offering an engagement ring with a diamond came about as early as the year 1477, when Archduke Maximillan of Austria offered his intended wife to be, Mary of Burgundy, a diamond in his proposal of marriage.

Ever since that time, the gifting of a diamond engagement ring became a widespread tradition among the wealthy and upper class. This was the case until the late 1800s, when diamond mines were discovered in the South African regions, which made the availability, and the affordability, of diamonds more prevalent. Today, proposing with a diamond ring is meant to symbolize eternal love - as the saying goes, "diamonds are forever."

Diamonds Truly Are a Girl's, and an Investor's, Best Friend

Although diamonds have been "girls' best friends" for many years, they have also become loved by investors. Throughout the years, these gems have been highly valued - outperforming equities over the past several decades.

So what's the appeal? For one, diamonds can provide a nice hedge against inflation, as well as ownership of a highly valued commodity that is not tied to the volatility and fluctuation of the equity or bond markets. Recently, diamonds have even "dethroned" gold, as investors seek alternative investments to replace their declining-in-value gold and silver assets.

 

Are Khaled and Minaj Really a Match Made in Heaven?

While it is now rumored that Khaled's proposal may have only been a stunt, used for the sole purpose of promoting his new single titled, "I Wanna Be With You" the couple appears to be pretty cozy as they appear together on the related video.

And, even though DJ Khaled and Nicki Minaj have never actually dated, given the effort that Khaled went to, along with the absolute beauty of the diamond engagement ring, Minaj may actually have a hard time turning down the offer. After all, with a 10 carat diamond in the mix, how could she possibly say anything but "Yes!"

Featured images:

•  License: Creative Commons image source 
•  License: Creative Commons image source 

Dina Silverberg is the creative director of DiamondEnvy.com.  She holds a Graduate Diamonds degree from the GIA and a Bachelor’s in Creative Writing from CUNY-Hunter.