Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Debate The The Most Overrated Historical Figures

People Debate The The Most Overrated Historical Figures
man speaking in front of crowd

By now it's common knowledge that history is written by the winners.

But it's also written by the swooners, the myth-makers and exaggerators, the ones who turn a blind eye to the ugly parts of the bio.


Indeed, the “winners" have some selective imaginations.

The great heroes, for all the historically influential deeds, were hardly. Even the saints weren't.

u/HotfoxK asked, "Who is the most overrated figure in history?"

Hype Tomb

King Tut

Really wasn't all that of an important pharaoh and is only well known because a dude named Howard Carter found his tomb and showed his treasure around the world

u/benx101

Dial Down the Penis Talk, Man

Sigmund Freud

His impact on psychology is largely overstated and most if not all of his research and claims are not recognized by modern psychology.

A good equivalent would be comparing him to astrology. Fun to read and think about, but don't take it too seriously.

u/rdg-lee

Sounds Like Grad School

Thomas Edison

Guy was the absolute biggest douche and a good portion of his patents were stolen from his apprentices and students

u/Jackforreall

Frequently Disremembered Racism

FDR

First he interred Asian Americans, actual citizens. We complain about Trump and his detention centers, but they legally aren't allowed to be here. Not saying it is right, but you can't love FDR and complain about border camps.

He refused to accept Jews who he knew would be killed.

He helped create red lining that has caused most, if not all, of the systemic racism in housing.

u/h0sti1e17

Panic Move, Woodrow

Woodrow Wilson

He was a racist and a sexist, and was pretty incompetent with the whole WW1 treaty, where he basically got walked all over by Congress and the others in the Big 4.

u/GamerWrestlerSoccer

Hell of a Set of Jowls, Though

Winston Churchill

The guy had a couple successful years, even that's arguable. The rest was steeped in failure, bloodshed and ash.

u/greengiantsbaby

Not Exactly a Healer

Mother Teresa

She was a sadist who thought poor people were better off suffering because their was purity in their suffering or other such bullocks (making her status as a kindhearted person incredibly ironic).

u/Dash_Harber

Peace and Independence, For Some

Gandhi

He was a racist (he wrote letters to Hitler and they began with "Dear friend"), he forced his lady companions to have enemas daily.

u/TechnicalCase

One Fish, Two -- Wait, what?

Dr Seuss. He only started writing children's books because his porn didn't sell. He based his Grinch character on himself. Cheated on his wife while she was ill with cancer, she committed suicide over it, writing in her note to him that "I cannot conceive of life without you". He later married the mistress.

lovelyb1ch66

The Less Than Wonderful World of Disney


Walt Disney was a racist, sexist, Nazi-sympathizing plagiarist who stiffed his workers.

Virtually everything positive that has ever been attributed to the man was shamelessly stolen from someone else... up to and including Mickey Mouse, who was the creation of an animator by the name of Ub Iwerks. The fellow whose empire now controls a sizeable chunk of the world's entertainment was essentially a media-focused reincarnation of Thomas Edison.

RamsesThePigeon

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Ashley Tisdale
@ashleytisdale/TikTok; Disney

Ashley Tisdale Hilariously Reveals How Her 'High School Musical'-Obsessed Toddler Lets People Know She's Sharpay's Daughter

For many Millennials and Gen Z'ers, the High School Musical films were appointment viewing, and the character of Sharpay played by Ashley Tisdale was one of the franchise's icons.

She was kind of the Cher Horowitz-meets-Regina George of her day, and with Tisdale's roster of other Disney hits like The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and Phineas and Ferb, she's basically Disney royalty.

Keep ReadingShow less
Seven-time Grammy winner and entertainer, Toni Braxton
Christopher Polk/Variety/Getty Images

Toni Braxton's Controversial Graduation Look

Toni Braxton celebrated her son’s graduation from Howard University in a risqué outfit that made fans and fashion critics blush.

The Grammy-winning R&B singer posted a video of her son, 22-year-old Diezel Ky Braxton-Lewis, as he emotionally received his degree in film from the HBCU’s prestigious Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts.

Keep ReadingShow less
Zendaya at the 2025 Met Gala; Law Roach with Entertainment Tonight; Anna Sawai at the 2025 Met Gala
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images; @entertainmenttonight/TikTok; Taylor Hill/Getty Images

Stylist Reveals Zendaya's Sweet Gesture After She And 'Shogun' Star Accidentally Wore Matching Met Gala Looks

Every year, the Met Gala asks their guests to dress to a particular theme. For 2025, the theme was "Tailored for You," which inspired entertainers to show up in looks that best modeled their figures or in some way emulated their greatest inspiration.

Zendaya showed up in an eye-catching white suit with a fitted jacket, vest, and embellished, crystal buttons, and well-tailored pants. To top it all off, she wore a fabulous, floppy white hat. She was styled by Law Roach, her suit was designed by Louis Vuitton, and her inspiration was Diana Ross and Bianca Jagger.

Keep ReadingShow less
Hasan Piker
Gerardo Mora/Getty Images for Real Good Touring

Liberal Commentator Alarmingly Grilled By Customs Over His Views On Trump While Returning From France

Hasan Piker—progressive political commentator, YouTuber, and Twitch streamer—revealed he was detained by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents for almost two hours at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport on Sunday as he returned to the United States from France.

Piker—a U.S. citizen born to Turkish parents in New Brunswick, New Jersey—said the CBP agents' goal was to intimidate him as they questioned him about his opinions on MAGA Republican President Donald Trump, Houthi rebels, Hamas, his bans from Twitch, and Israel. Piker has routinely spoken about the genocide in Gaza, advocated for Palestinian rights, and criticized the Israeli government.

Keep ReadingShow less
HBO Just Announced Its Streaming App Is Going Back To A Familiar Name—And The Internet Can't Even
Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images

HBO Just Announced Its Streaming App Is Going Back To A Familiar Name—And The Internet Can't Even

Max is getting its “HBO” back, says Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD).

Starting this summer, the streaming service will once again be called HBO Max, a move the company announced as not just a name change, but also a strategy shift.

Keep ReadingShow less