Pietro Aretino

On 21st October 1556, the notorious poet, painter, satirist, and blackmailer Pietro Aretino, laughed himself to death ~ after his sister told a dirty joke at a party in Venice.

Aretino was a true rags-to-riches story, born to a shoemaking father who abandoned his family when Pietro was a child. Determined to make something of himself, Aretino journeyed from his hometown to Rome, in hopes of attaining a wealthy patron to sponsor his art.

He quickly became a hit among the Roman elite, however, he was eventually asked to leave the city, after producing a dirty poetry collection that proved to be too much for even his biggest fans.

An enraged bishop, even hired a hitman in hopes of taking revenge on the man who penned him so unflatteringly in his works.

The poet traveled all over Northern Italy, hoping to escape assassination until he finally settled in Venice.

He lived a luxurious lifestyle there, making a considerable living off of his satirical writing and occasional blackmail.

On the night of October 21st 1556, Aretino attended one of the many grand parties he was routinely invited to with his sister.

Only unlike the previous gatherings, the poet wouldn't be returning home from this one.

It turned out that the talent for telling lewd stories ran in the family, and his sister presented the crowd with a surprisingly naughty risqué joke.

Though accounts disagree on whether Aretino suffocated from giggling, or fell out of his chair and perished instantly, all agree that his excessive laughter at the witty quip ended his life.....

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Source~WeirdHistory

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