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William Wilde

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Doctor

The Resume

    (March 1815-April 19, 1878)
    Born in Castlerea, Ireland
    Otolaryngologist (ear, nose and throat doctor) and surgeon
    Ran St. Mark's Hospital for Diseases of the Eye and Ear in Dublin
    Assistant Commissioner for the Irish Census
    Edited the Dublin Journal of Medical Science
    Wrote the textbook 'Aural Surgery' (1853)
    Knighted (1864)
    Father of Oscar Wilde

Why he might be annoying:

    After a trip to the Middle East, he brought back to Ireland embalmed ibises and the torso of a mummified dwarf.
    He fathered three children out of wedlock.
    His patient Mary Travers claimed he raped her while she was sedated with chloroform.
    After his wife Jane wrote a letter disputing the allegations, Travers sued her for libel. (1864)
    Although Travers was only awarded a farthing, his refusal to testify was held against him as 'ungentlemanly.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He submitted a prize-winning paper on spina bifida while an apprentice surgeon.
    He designed several instruments for surgery of the ear.
    He was appointed oculist-in-ordinary to Queen Victoria.
    He catalogued and illustrated the 10,000 held by the Royal Irish Academy, finishing in four months (1857); a committee of experts had failed to complete the task in four years.
    His out-of-wedlock daughters Emily and Mary died at a Halloween party when their dresses accidentally caught fire (1871).
    He wrote books on archeology and Irish folklore.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying