Surprising Things You Never Knew About Each President Of The United States

31. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was related to his wife by blood.

FDR certainly liked to keep it in the family. He and his wife Eleanor were actually related by blood. They could both trace their lineage back to the same Dutch immigrant who had moved to America in the 1640s. However, FDR and Eleanor were fifth cousins, once removed, so it was a very distant relation.

32. Harry S. Truman’s middle initial doesn’t stand for anything.

Like Ulysses S. Grant before him, Truman’s middle initial doesn’t really stand for anything. Supposedly, his parents both wanted to name him after separate relatives whose names began with S., and they compromised by just giving him the middle initial.

33. Dwight D. Eisenhower didn’t mess around when it came to golf.

Eisenhower took his golf game seriously. He had a putting green installed near the Oval Office, but was frustrated by squirrels digging up the green, so he ordered them to be shot. Wisely, groundskeepers did not shoot them but rather caught and released them in a nearby park.

34. JFK donated his entire salary to charity.

Many aspects of JFK’s life have been analyzed through popular books, movies, and other media. But one thing that’s often not mentioned is that while he was in office, he donated his entire congressional and presidential salaries to charity. He made more than enough money through his family’s trusts, so he didn’t particularly need the income.

35. Lyndon B. Johnson is the only president to be sworn in on an airplane.

When LBJ took the oath of office shortly after Kennedy’s assassination, it was notable for several reasons. He’s the only president to ever be sworn in on an airplane, and the only one to be sworn in by a woman, Judge Sarah T. Hughes. Also notable was the fact the Jackie Kennedy stood by his side for the swearing-in, with blood still on her coat.

36. Richard Nixon had many talents.

While he certainly isn’t known as the best politician, he is known for his many other talents outside of the Oval Office. Nixon knew had to play five instruments, was an avid bowler, and a huge football fan.

37. Gerald Ford could have been a professional football player.

Ford could have taken a very different path as an NFL player instead of a politician. When he graduated from the University of Michigan in 1935, he received offers from Detroit Lions and the Green Bay Packers but turned them both down to study law and coach football.

38. Jimmy Carter won a Nobel Peace Prize after leaving office.

Carter is probably one of the few presidents whose post-presidency accomplishments are more recognized than when he was president. Since leaving office in 1981, he’s won a Nobel Peace Prize, built homes for needy families, and written 28 books.

39. Ronald Reagan was the first president who had been divorced.

Although Reagan left his acting career behind to pursue politics, Hollywood certainly left a mark on him. He was partially deaf in one ear thanks to an accident on a movie set where a gun went off next to his head. He had also married actress Jane Wyman, but the pair divorced in 1948, making him the first president to enter office with a divorce.

40. George H.W. Bush once shaved his head.

Bush surprised his friends and family in 2013 when he decided to shave his head (for a very sweet reason). The son of one of his Secret Service guards was diagnosed with leukemia. Bush told TODAY, “A lot of the agents shaved their head … I said, ‘Well why not me?’ It was the right thing to do.”

41. Bill Clinton is a Grammy winner.

Did you know that Bill Clinton is also a Grammy winner? He won Grammys in 2003 and 2004 for spoken word albums My Life and Peter And The Wolf/Beintus: Wolf Tracks (both audiobooks). He’s one of three presidents to win a Grammy, along with Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama.

42. George W. Bush’s family is especially unique.

Bush’s family is unique for a couple of reasons. In addition to being the son of a former president, Bush is the only president to have twins. He and Laura Bush are parents to twin girls Jenna and Barbara, who are now 36 years old.

43. Barack Obama’s first job made him hate ice cream.

Long, long before becoming president or even senator, Obama worked a summer job at a Baskin-Robbins. Sounds sweet, but the former president said it actually made him dislike ice cream. Instead, he prefers chocolate-peanut protein bars or caramels.

44. Donald Trump has made several TV cameos in the ’90s.

These days, most of us are used to seeing Donald Trump on our screens. But he’s no newbie to television: In addition to The Apprentice, Trump appeared in a slew of television shows and movies in the ’90s, including Home Alone, The Nanny, and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

Credits: goodhousekeeping.com