Tycho Brahe

VanLou Media was essentially founded on a mutual appreciation for Tycho Brahe. Sure, there's the overriding motivation of making videos that we enjoy making and that people will enjoy watching (and sharing) but, really, we came together because both of us have a fondness for a certain 16th century Danish nobleman and astronomer.

Here's Brahe's story, via Wikipedia:
Tycho Brahe was a Danish nobleman known for his accurate and comprehensive astronomical and planetary observations. The data that he collected through his life was eventually used by his assistant Johannes Kepler to derive the laws of planetary motion. No one before Tycho had attempted to make so many planetary observations.

His nose:
While a student, Tycho lost part of his nose in a duel with Manderup Parsbjerg, a fellow Danish nobleman. For the rest of his life, he was said to have worn a realistic replacement made of silver and gold. Some historians have speculated that he wore a number of different for different occasions.

His friends:
Tycho kept a dwarf named Jepp (whom he believed to be clairvoyant) as a court jester who sat under the table during dinner.
He also kept a tame elk who eventually met a tragic demise after drinking a lot of beer at a party and falling down a flight of stairs.

His death:
Tycho suddenly contracted a bladder ailment after attending a banquet in Prague, and died eleven days later, on 24 October 1601. According to Kepler's first hand account, Tycho had refused to leave the banquet to relieve himself because it would have been a breach of etiquette.