Presidents and First Ladies Trivia

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You are too good at this; maybe we should ban you from trivia questions! Just kidding...

Of all our philandering Chief Executives, Warren G. Harding may rank #1. Some of us probably know about his most famous mistress, Nan Britton, because he fathered a daughter with her, and she later wrote a book about it. However, before and during his affair with Nan, he maintained one for over 15 years with his next door neighbor's wife, Carrie Phillips.

Carrie always hoped that Harding would divorce his wife and marry her, but Harding knew that would spoil his political ambitions (which were mainly the wife's ambitions). When he announced his candidacy for President, Carrie flew into a rage; and she and her husband saw the opportunity to strike it rich.

The couple demanded to be bought off - either by Harding or the Republican Party. After recovering from the shock of Harding's admission to adultery, the big-wigs put together a slush fund that paid Carrie $23,000 upfront and promised $5000/month while Harding was in office. Carrie became the first person to successfully blackmail a major political party -- and Harding's other mistresses soon followed.

Carrie didn't take the money and run, however. She started showing up at campaign gatherings, much to the irritation of Florence Harding. Once again, the political bosses paid Carrie and her husband out of town. $20,000 was paid for the couple to visit China, Japan, and Korea for a year. This time, the Phillipses did take the money and run. When they returned, Carrie had a treasure trove of diamond bracelets, earrings, and necklaces.