Top Five Relatively Recent Cases of Famous Men Having Illegitimate Children/Second Families
by Ernie on 12/02/10 at 9:37 am
5. Strom Thurmond: After the Senator’s death, it was revealed that the staunch racial segregationist had, at age 22, fathered a child with his family’s black maid, then-16-years-old, Carrie Butler. Thurmond supported his daughter, Essie Mae Washington-Williams, at various times throughout her life, paying her college tuition and occasionally providing her with money, but never publicly acknowledging her.
4. Francois Mitterand: At his funeral, his illegitimate daughter, Mazarine Pingeot, was publicly acknowledged for the first time. She is the daughter of art historian Anne Pingeot. While President of France, Mitterand established some highly legally questionable wiretaps, allegedly in order to fight terrorism, but at least partially motivated by his desire to acquire material on members of the press that he could use as leverage to prevent them from revealing the existence of Mazarine.
3. Albert II, Prince of Monaco: The unmarried prince is the father of at least two children outside marriage: Jazmin Grace Grimaldi, daughter of an American woman he met while she was on vacation in Europe, and Alexandre Coste, son of a flight attendant from Togo.
2. Jacques Cousteau: While married to his first wife (Simone), he had an affair with flight attendant Francine Triplet for many years, and they had two children together, Diane and Pierre-Yves. After his first wife died, he and Triplet married.
1. Charles Lindbergh: Following the death of Lindbergh and his wife, it was revealed (and supported by DNA analysis, photographs, and a large trove of letters) that Lindbergh had a second family in Germany. He fathered three children with Brigitte Hesshaimer. Then, it was revealed that he had a third family: he fathered two children with Brigette’s sister, Marietta. Then, it was revealed that Lindbergh had a fourth family, with his private secretary, Valeska, who is Prussian. He spent time with each family every year, even designing and building a house for Marietta. Whatever else may be said of the man, he wins this contest hands down!
