Mao Zedong - Chinese Communist dictator had odd habits, such as not brushing his teeth - Sidelights

0 Comments | Current Events, Sept 18, 1995

* Mao Zedong (below), the Communist dictator of China from 1949 until his death in 1976, had strange habits. For one, he never brushed his teeth. In response to his doctor's pleas to brush, Mao reportedly replied "A tiger never brushes his teeth." As a result, Mao's teeth looked as if they were coated with green paint.

And one by one they fell out, leaving the dictator toothless as he grew older.