Brain Snacks: Tasty Tidbits of Knowledge
When Mark Twain first wrote "The Celebrated Jumping Frog," his life resembled the narrator’s, which means the story could be autobiographical. Before he had fame and fortune as an author, Twain was interested in prospecting for gold and silver.
The short story was made into an opera. In the opera version, the stranger is chased by the townspeople, who catch him and relieve him of his "earnings." Then they celebrate the frog, Dan’l Webster, as the ongoing champion jumping frog.