The Crazy True Story Of William Randolph Hearst

To understand William Randolph Hearst's unquenchable desire for power, look at his father George. Unlike his son, George Hearst was born to relatively humble origins, in Franklin County, Missouri, in 1820. But like his son, George used his sharp wits to improve his own position within the world that was accessible to him: in his case, mining.

According to his official U.S. Congress biography — note the foreshadowing — when he was 18, George graduated from the Franklin County Mining School. He weathered a few setbacks, but eventually made a series of investments in some of the most successful mines in the country. He also bought ranches in California, including the land that his son later used for his famous home, San Simeon, between San Jose and Los Angeles.

Having spent some of his self-made millions funding other aspiring political candidates' campaigns, George decided to go after political power himself. In 1865, three years after moving to San Francisco, he was elected to the State Assembly as a Democrat, but failed to get re-elected after he voted against the 13th Amendment (outlawing slavery). He lost a campaign for governor in 1882, but four years later, Congress appointed him to fill a Senate seat left open when its former occupant died. George was elected in his own right in 1887, but died before his first term was up, in 1891.