Robert Ripley

Date of Birth: December 25, 1890

Zodiac Sign: Capricorn

Date of Death: May 27, 1949

Biography

Robert LeRoy Ripley, born on December 25, 1890, in Santa Rosa, California, was an American cartoonist, entrepreneur, and amateur anthropologist. He is best known for creating the “Ripley’s Believe It or Not!” franchise, which started as a newspaper panel series featuring unusual and extraordinary facts and events. Ripley’s work gained immense popularity, leading to radio shows, television series, and a chain of museums. Ripley traveled extensively, collecting oddities and sharing them with a curious public, effectively becoming one of the world’s earliest and most famous collectors of the bizarre and unusual. He passed away on May 27, 1949, but his legacy lives on through the continued success of the Ripley’s brand.

5 Interesting Facts about Robert Ripley

1. Robert Ripley was a voracious traveler, visiting over 200 countries during his lifetime.

2. His first “Believe It or Not!” cartoon was published in 1918 under the title “Champs and Chumps.”

3. Ripley’s New York home, a 28-room mansion, was filled with his collection of oddities and artifacts from around the world.

4. He received a special Pulitzer Prize in 1936 for “the most amazing man-made or natural oddities and events.”

5. Despite his fame, Ripley was known to be quite shy and socially awkward.

5 Most Interesting Quotes from Robert Ripley

1. “Believe it or not, I can’t draw a straight line.”

2. “My curiosity got the better of me and I began to wonder about the strangest things.”

3. “I have traveled in 201 countries and the strangest thing I’ve seen was man.”

4. “Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn’t.”

5. “If you want to be a success, you must always work harder than your competition.”

Highest Net Worth Achieved

At the peak of his career, Robert Ripley’s net worth was estimated to be around $1.5 million, equivalent to approximately $16.7 million today when adjusted for inflation.