Ceausescu’s Whack Wife

For all his whackness, Mr. Ceausescu was, for all that we know, the very model of a faithful and respectful husband. According to the infallible Wikipedia, Elana “met 21-year-old Nicolae Ceaușescu in 1939. Ceaușescu was instantly attracted to her which, reportedly, made him never to look at another woman in a romantic manner.[1]”

Among the Ceausescu’s shared passions was Stalinism and megalomania. Her darling husband not only allowed her her share of political power as Romania’s Deputy Prime Minister, but also seat by his side in the Ceausescu personality cult. Called by some “the Mother of the Nation”, she wanted to be known not only as a beauty but as a brain. Despite dropping out of school at 14, she collected academic honors in chemistry from around the world. Most say that she bought these honors and that her PhD thesis on polymers was plagiarized. And, as with her husband, there were strict rules around how she was photographed. Pictures were not allowed to be taken of her in profile as it emphasized her nose, which could be said to be large, and made her look somewhat homely.

See, isn’t she pretty? She thought so, as did her husband.