http://awesomedudes.com Amazing people you probably haven't heard about Mon, 14 Jan 2008 00:03:13 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Hans-Ulrich Rudel (July 2, 1916 – December 18, 1982) was a Stuka dive-bomber pilot during World War II. Rudel is famous for being the most highly decorated German serviceman of the war (Hermann Göring was nominally more highly decorated, but he did not achieve his Grand Cross of the Iron ... http://awesomedudes.com/archives/hans-ulrich-rudel Harrison C. Summers  (July 12, 1918–August 3, 1983)was a paratrooper during World War II who fought with the 1st Battlallion, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division on D-Day. A staff sergeant at the time, he landed as part of the night drop during Operation Chicago early on D-Day. ... http://awesomedudes.com/archives/harry-summers James Allan was the son of a British businessman, after his father's death he quickly squandered his inheritance gambling and partying in France. In his autobiographical book "Under the Dragon Flag: My Experiences in the Chino-Japanese War" which you can read online in it's entirety at the project Gutenberg ... http://awesomedudes.com/archives/james-allan-witness-to-the-port-arthur-massacre In a time when innocent people were brutally murdered only for their nationality and religion, one soldier stands out among the rest. He defied the Germans, repeatedly risking his life to save the lives of thousands. Dr. Eugene Lazowski is considered a hero to many, but for ... http://awesomedudes.com/archives/eugene-lazowski-tricked-the-nazis-using-a-fake-epidemic Insane climbing and jumping stunts were Dan Osman's life pursuits. This fearless climber specialized in speed climbing sheer rock faces and jumping off bridges and cliffs with rope harnesses You can see some of his feats on youtube http://awesomedudes.com/archives/dan-osman-daredevil-climber Alvin Cullum York (December 13, 1887 – September 2, 1964) was a United States soldier, famous for his heroism in World War I. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for leading an attack on a German machine gun nest, killing 20 German soldiers and capturing 132 others. From York's Medal ... http://awesomedudes.com/archives/sergeant-york Joseph Caspar Mezzofanti (1774-1849) was an Italian Cardinal who spoke more than 38 languages fluently. He never left Italy and yet managed to learn how to speak languages without accent. People from all over the world came to challenge him in their native tongue. They all reported their ... http://awesomedudes.com/archives/cardinal-mezzofanti-the-man-fluent-in-38-languages (December 14, 1932 – June 8, 1989), nicknamed Bert by his friends, was a French criminal chiefly known as the organizer of a break-in into a Société Générale bank in Nice, France in 1976. He was involved with the pro French Algeria movement OAS and also worked for the Chilean ... http://awesomedudes.com/archives/albert-spaggiari Morris "Two-Gun" Cohen (1887 - 1970) was a Polish-born adventurer who became a bodyguard for the Chinese leader Sun Yat-sen and a general in the Chinese army. According to a biography written by Charles Drage with Cohen's assistance, Morris Cohen was born in London to a family that just arrived from ... http://awesomedudes.com/archives/morris-two-gun-cohen Born Eugene Jacques Bullard in Columbus, Georgia, one of ten children. His father was known as "Big Chief Ox" and his mother was a Creek Indian. Bullard stowed away on a ship bound for Scotland to escape racial discrimination (he later claimed to have had witnessed his father's narrow escape ... http://awesomedudes.com/archives/eugene-bullard-first-black-fighter-pilot