Megusta
If you are a cat-aholic, you’ll dedicate love and attention to them as much as possible, even when you’re far away, when you’re sick, or even when you are a rock superstar and your schedule is all booked up. That’s exactly the description about Freddie Mercury – one of the most famous cat lovers in Hollywood.
Here are some of the rare photos of the musical legend with his precious pets in the 90s. Scroll down and check out adorable moments of him and his gang!
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#1
His love for the majestic creature started in the 70s when his girlfriend - Mary Austin took in a pair of cats called Tom and Jerry. According to multiple biographers, including his personal assistant Peter Freestone, while he was on tour with the band, he would frequently call Austin - the one in charge of his cats while he was away) to check up on their little critters.
#2
“He’d get to a hotel, we’d dial through, and he really would talk to his adorable cats,” Freestone reminisced. In his memoir of Freddie Mercury, he wrote: “Mary would hold Tom and Jerry in turn up to the receiver to listen to Freddie talking. This continued throughout the years with succeeding feline occupants of his houses.”
#3
The famous singer was reported to have up to 10 cats throughout 45 years: Dorothy, Tiffany, Tom, Jerry, Delilah, Goliath, Lily, Miko, Oscar, and Romeo. The last six of whom outlived their owner.
"His cats were his family. Mercury made sure each cat had his or her own Christmas stocking filled with treats and toys." Freestone wrote.
#4
#5
The Queen Archives stated that Freddie's love for cats was so significant that he even dedicated his solo album, Mr. Bad Guy, to his cat Jerry, as well as the rest of his brood at the time, and extended the note to “call the cat lovers across the universe.”
#6
An artwork of him dressing as a jester with his cats printed on it was included in Innuendo - the last album he recorded with the group. There was another song titled Delilah, the upbeat rhythm might mislead you to think that the song s about a woman - at least until the line about her ‘peeing all over [his] Chippendale Suite.’
The song also features a guitar solo from Brian May with harmonies that sound like meows. The guitarist is also a cat lover - as he also had a few cats over the years. Presently, his travel commitments restrict him from having one, but according to Smith, “He still is a cat person as opposed to a dog person.”
#7
Fans have gathered clues indicating the Queen singer's love for cats in the Classic Queen CD insert. For what would be his last portrait, Mercury wore a striking vest with cats on it, but closer inspection reveals that the handpainted cats featured are his own. He also wore it for his last video, These Are The Days Of Our Lives.
#8
Delilah, a large tri-colored tabby that was adopted in late 1987, was probably the most famous of the Mercury cat family. She completely took over the house and did pretty much anything she pleased, as the lyrics to her song state (and as Freestone's book confirms).
#9
“She was a real character, that lady!” agreed Smith. “Delilah was just kind of funny. She was a bit of a bully to the others, but was always first on his lap, first for food.” Jim Hutton, the singer’s boyfriend of seven years, recognized their special bond as well. He described Delilah as “the little princess of their home, the one he’d pick up and stroke the most often.” And if that weren’t enough, “she’d sleep at the foot of the bed, before slipping out for a nighttime prowl.”
#10
“Freddie treated the cats like his own children,” he explained in his memoir Mercury and Me. “He would constantly fuss over them, and if any of them came to any harm when Freddie was away, heaven helps us. During the day, the cats had the run of the house and grounds, and at night, one of us would round them up and bring them inside.”
