I know that ol Vlad had a brother who was executed by the Tsarist government after being implicated in an assassination attempt. If the others did as well that might figure.
But...um...other than that, I concur with mojo that this seems more of a trick question! :-)
All three were involved in the violent overthrow of monarchies. All three came to power as reformers trying to better the lot of the masses. All three failed.
cirby:
Interesting. That's not what I was going for, although, coincidentally, the next person I was planning on providing as a hint also changed his last name.
They are all better known by names that are different in some respects from their original names. Robespierre's original surname was the aristocratic "de Robespierre." Saddam Hussein was "Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti." Lenin was Vladimir Ilych Ulyanov. Castro's full name, in accordance with the practice in some Spanish-speaking countries of incorporating both mother's and father's surnames into one's surname, is Fidel Casto Ruz.
They all tried out for Major League baseball teams and only turned to revolutionary politics after failing to be drafted, or in Lenin's case, offered a mere pittance to play for Cleveland's AA franchise.
We don't know if they would vote to overturn Roe v. Wade, but if Bush nominated any of them to the Supreme Court, NARAL, People for the American Way, and Ted Kennedy would put out an apocolyptic press release claiming that women's lives were now in jeopardy.
Jay Louis has the one I was looking for. The next person I was going to provide was Bill Clinton, who shares the changed-his-last-name feature that a couple of you pointed out (and, I'm sure, would have given you all fodder for many more jokes).
Off topic for the puzzleblogger: As a professional crossword puzzle constructor, is the replacement of MIERS with ALITO in the category of Americans famous enough to be used in crossword puzzles a positive or a negative? Also, any truth to the rumor that the powerful crossword lobby has been pressuring the administration to nominate a justice with an unusual five letter name?
Arthur,
I would argue that Miers is still legit fodder for crosswords. Both are great, though, because they have very common letters in them. If I'm ever named to the Court, I'll have the double bonus of adding a good first name to the database as well.
They all slept with large numbers of women?
They're all men.
As their power increased, their popularity declined.
They all smoked pot?
They all have the letter "I" in their names.
"They all tried out for Major League baseball teams and only turned to revolutionary politics after failing to be drafted, or in Lenin's case, offered a mere pittance to play for Cleveland's AA franchise." True, but Lenin to Trotsky to Bukharin is still legendary.
But...um...other than that, I concur with mojo that this seems more of a trick question! :-)
Was Robespierre buried? The other two are above ground, at least for the time being.
j/k
Interesting. That's not what I was going for, although, coincidentally, the next person I was planning on providing as a hint also changed his last name.
Took us nearly an hour to get it right. We're slipping.
List should include Mao.
Positive Dennis
I would argue that Miers is still legit fodder for crosswords. Both are great, though, because they have very common letters in them. If I'm ever named to the Court, I'll have the double bonus of adding a good first name to the database as well.
Alternatives:
They all slept with large numbers of women?
They're all men.
As their power increased, their popularity declined.
They all smoked pot?
They all have the letter "I" in their names.
...or my favorite: They all suffered from Atherosclerosis