1. Martin Luther King Jr. was a super smart kid.
He went to Morehouse College at the age of 15, and he graduated with a degree in sociology.
2. King was arrested 29 times.
They ranged from driving too fast to protesting voting right violations. Some of his arrests were utterly preposterous, but no one could do much to stop the arrests.
3. King is the only non-president to have a holiday in his honor.
MLK day is celebrated across the US on January 16.
4. Martin Luther King Jr. was originally named Micheal.
However, his father changed Martin's name in homage of German professor of theology, Martin Luther.
5. On September 20, 1958, King was stabbed in the chest by Izola Ware Curry.
King was signing books on his tour, and she just stabbed him with a letter opener. The fact that she was African American, and she was the daughter of sharecroppers from the South was shocking to many people. She seemed to have no motive, except that she was mentally ill. Dr. King never pressed any charges against her.
6. In May 1941, King's grandmother died from a heart attack.
He was only 12 at that time and, filled with grief, he jumped from the second story window of his house.
7. Dr. King almost became a doctor or a lawyer, but he later decided the Bible spoke to him.
So, he decided to become a minister. He graduated with a PhD at the age of 25.
8. He spent his honeymoon at a funeral home, since no honeymoon suites were offered to African Americans back then.
9. Dr. King died at the age of 39, but during his autopsy, his medical examiner revealed that King had the heart of a 60 year old man.
It was probably due to extensive amounts of stress.
