The name may not mean anything now, but in early 20th century America, Beautiful Jim Key was one of the biggest celebrities on the promotional circuit, largely because he could do extraordinary tricks. His trainer was a wealthy, educated former slave, Dr. William Key, who originally took purebred Arabian horse Jim on the road to market veterinary medical cures. But eventually, the two honed an act that involved arithmetic, recognizing letters and spelling the names of audience members. The Key show was gigantically famous: Beautiful Jim was called "the Marvel of the Twentieth Century," and his performances were witnessed by a whopping 10 million Americans. The saga is now being made into a film with Morgan Freeman as William Key, so don't expect this one to remain obscure knowledge for long.