So many famous people hail from Long Island. We assembled some crazy facts about people from Long Island. Click on the links to learn more about each one.
Teddy Roosevelt
Bully! Sagamore Hill in Oyster Bay was known as the Summer White House for all the time that Theodore Roosevelt spent there. The 26th President of the United States spent time there from 1885 until his death in 1919.
According to the National Park Service website, during Roosevelt's time in office, his "Summer White House" was the focus of international attention. You can still go there to explore the natural surroundings and become inspired by the legacy of one of America's most popular presidents.
Click here for some historical photos of Teddy Roosevelt on Long Island.
Billy Joel
Joel attended Hicksville High School until 1967, but did not graduate with his class. His first attempt at fame was in a heavy metal band called Attila. We all know where he ended up from there! Amazingly, he is the only performer to play both Yankee and Shea Stadiums.
Joel is the fourth best-selling solo artist of all time in the U.S. according to Recording Industry Association of America. The 1985 compilation Greatest Hits Volume I & Volume II is the second best-selling album by a solo artist (Michael Jackson’s Thriller is number one).
Click here to read more crazy facts about Billy Joel.
Jerry Seinfeld
Seinfeld, whose father was a sign painter (you can’t make this stuff up!), grew up in Massapequa and graduated from Massapequa High School.
The comedian’s first stand-up comedy gig was an open mic night in 1976 at Catch a Rising Star in Manhattan. He had a small role in the TV sitcom Benson in 1980 and appeared on The Tonight Show for the first time in 1981.
Yada, yada, yada, you know the rest.
For more crazy facts about Jerry Seinfeld, click here.
Nikola Tesla
While not from Long Island, the scientific genius did spend time out in Shoreham building his famed tower.
Around the turn of the century, potato farmers on the east end of Long Island along the North Shore could be seen driving their products past the looming tower of scientific achievement that was Nikola Tesla’s Wardenclyffe Tower. Possibly confused or ignorant of the basic principles of the science - as was Tesla’s dramatic nature to wax wistfully of the philosophical implications of his project without much hard evidence to back it up - the farmers probably shook their heads in disbelief at what was happening in their backyards.
What Tesla hoped to achieve was very clear: wireless communication and distribution of electricity by using the earth’s surface as a conducting and transferring method. (Sounds slightly familiar.) How he hoped to accomplish this, or if it was feasible, will never be known as the project was doomed to fail, embattled by his increasing competition with fellow inventor Guglielmo Marconi and ultimately, financial strain.
Want to know more? Click here to read all the crazy facts we could find about Tesla’s Tower on Long Island.
Princess Occum (Eliza Beaman) & Anthony Beaman (Chief Running Bull)
According to some accounts, the Shinnecocks and the Montauks rarely intermingled even though their territories were a mere 14 miles apart. Anthony Beaman (Chief Running Bull), of the Shinnecock Nation, and Princess Occum (Eliza Beaman), a member of the Montauk tribe, were married, though their tribes were estranged.
The married couple were known for keeping their tribal traditions and folklore alive.
Click to read more about each and see historical photos of both these Long Island natives.
Dee Snyder
Twisted Sister went through three different singers until Dee Snider joined in 1976. Dee Snider’s real name is Daniel but a bandmate suggested he shorten it to Dee when he joined the group. Snider became the main songwriter for the group after he joined penning their biggest hits.
The band's 1984 album “Stay Hungry” was a huge smash containing their hits "I Wanna Rock" and "We're Not Gonna Take It" making the top 40 and the videos enjoyed heavy rotation on MTV.
The cover for the album featuring Snider holding a bone was a last minute shot after a 22 hour photo shoot in a rundown, abandoned building. Apparently, the bone stunk and no one else wanted to touch it. Photographer Mark Weiss told Snider to “Go nuts! Get into character like you're a caged animal, and you're hungry” when photographing him. “The very last photo was the photo they used for the cover," Weiss said.
Read more crazy facts about Twisted Sister here.