Jane Toppan was an American serial killer, nicknamed "Jolly Jane". After her arrest in 1901, she confessed to 31 murders. She is quoted as saying that her ambition was "to have killed more people-helpless people-than any other man or woman who ever lived". In 1885, Toppan began training to be a nurse at Cambridge Hospital. While she was there she had a lot of friends, and was well liked. Unlike her early years, where she was described as brilliant and terrible, at the hospital she was well liked, bright and friendly, evoking the nickname 'Jolly Jane'. Once Toppan became close with the patients, she picked her favorite ones. The patients were normally elderly, and very sick. During her residency, she used her patients as guinea pigs in experiments with morphine and atropine; she would alter their prescribed dosages to see what it did to their nervous systems. However, she would spend considerable time alone with patients, making up fake charts and medicating them to drift in and out of consciousness and even getting into bed with them.
She was recommended for the prestigious Massachusetts General Hospital in 1889; there, she claimed several more victims before being fired the following year. She briefly returned to Cambridge but was soon dismissed for administering opiates recklessly. She then began a career as a private nurse and flourished despite complaints of petty theft. She began her poisoning spree in earnest in 1895 by killing her landlord, Israel Dunham and his wife. In 1899, she killed her foster sister Elizabeth with a dose of strychnine. In 1901, Toppan moved in with the elderly Alden Davis and his family in Cataumet to take care of him after the death of his wife, Mattie (whom Toppan herself had murdered). Within weeks, she killed Davis, his sister Genevieve, and two of his daughters, Minnie and Edna.
When you fly by private jet charter, you experience travel comfort known only to those who know private jets. And nothing illustrates this luxury better than celebrity private jets. Stars with their own private aircraft fly fancy.
John Travolta, the star of 70s cult movies like “Grease” and “Saturday Night Fever”, is not only one of the most famous Hollywood actors, but also one of the best celebrity pilots. John Travolta is a bonafide aviation enthusiast with five private planes total, which he parks on his front lawn. His most impressive aircraft is a customized Boeing 707-138 (as pictured above), a beast of a plane that he acquired in 1998 upon his promotion to an honorary pilot of Qantas, the Australian airline.
Oprah Winfrey’s production company HARPO bought her custom-built Global Express XRS VIP business jet to provide the media mogul and her associates with maximum aviation comfort. Oprah’s private jet features designer fixtures in the bathroom and galley, along with an exquisite all-leather interior. The aircraft was designed by Bombardier Aerospace to perform as a premier long-range business jet. Custom design allowed for an enhanced cabin layout with nine cushy leather seats, aesthetically-placed lighting, and additional luxury amenities. The jet cruises through the air at high speeds, made possible by two Rolls-Royce BR710 turbofan engines, which produce enough power to send HARPO clear across the map with only one refuel stop
Tom Cruise played an elite naval fighter jet pilot in the blockbuster movie “Top Gun”, and he now indulges his real love for flying in his own Gulfstream IV, one of the finest celebrity private jets around. Cruise’s beautiful business jet accommodates up to 19 passengers, providing comfort and class with state-of-the-art furnishings and aircraft technology. The jet even automatically refreshes the air inside the cabin every two minutes. Designed by Gulfstream Aerospace, Cruise’s jet is powered by two Rolls-Royce Tay 611-8 engines, propelling the aircraft to a maximum altitude of 45,000 feet over a maximum range of 7,820 km, zipping through the air at speeds up to Mach 0.80.
Mark Cuban, business mogul and owner of the Dallas Mavericks, landed himself in the Guinness Book of World Records for purchasing his Boeing 767-277 online in 1999, making “the largest single e-commerce transaction”. Cuban modified the jet with large, custom seats to give his team’s lengthy players plenty of room while flying.