Brain Snacks: Tasty Tidbits of Knowledge
Jonson served in the military for a time. On one memorable occasion, he challenged a Spaniard to single combat, slew him, and stripped the corpse of its armor. Gnarly. (Source)
In 1598, Jonson got into an argument with an actor named Gabriel Spencer. He challenged Spencer to a duel and killed him (he spent some time in prison for this). Yeah, Jonson was not a guy to mess with. (Source)
Ben Jonson is the only person buried in an upright position in Westminster Abbey. So he's got that going for him. (Source)
Although he is a poet, Jonson is not buried in Poet's Corner at Westminster Abbey. He's still standing up, though. (Source)
Despite his popularity, Jonson was very poor when he died. Bummer. (Source)
Jonson influenced a number of seventeenth-century poets. Robert Herrick and Thomas Carew, among others, called themselves "sons of Ben." As opposed to Ben-sons. (Source)