站在偉人背後的10位重要人物(上)

We like to imagine that successful people are truly self-made, rising to prominence based solely on their own hard work and genius. But the truth is that everyone, even the great figures of history, needs a little help along the way.

我們樂於認爲成功者完全是憑藉自己的努力和天賦而聲名遠播。但其實每個人，甚至是歷史上的諸多偉人，在成功的道路上也需要他人的援助。我們常說，"每個成功男人的背後都有一位成功的女人"，那麼這篇文章前十君要說的就是"每個成功的偉人背後，都有一位絕世好‘基友'"。

his Khan's Adviser

10.成吉思汗的輔臣

Yelu Chucai is the unknown figure behind the great success of Genghis Khan's Mongolian empire. Not a Mongol himself, he had nomadic Khitan ancestry, but grew up in China. Captured by the Mongols, he met the Khan at 28 and quickly impressed him with his vast knowledge and administrative talent. Nicknamed "Urtu Saqal" for his long beard, he soon became one of Genghis's most important advisers.

在成吉思汗統治下的蒙古帝國，有一位不知名的人物，名叫耶律楚材。他並非蒙古人，祖先是遊牧契丹人，後在中原長大。耶律楚材年輕時被蒙古人抓獲，並在28歲那一年見到了成吉思汗，可汗很快爲他的博學和治國才學所折服，而他也迅速成爲成吉思汗的重要輔臣之一。耶律楚材"身長八尺，美髯宏聲"，因其長長的鬍鬚而獲"長髯人"之稱。

Chucai was most notable for convincing the Mongols to tax conquered cities instead of destroying them, arguing that the money and manpower gained from the cities could fund future conquests. With this line of reasoning, he almost single-handedly averted a Mongol plan to wipe out the northern Chinese peasantry in order to return the land to Genghis's son and successor Ogodei mocked him for always pleading on the people's behalf, Chucai famously responded that empires could be conquered on horseback, but never ruled from it. Ogodei apparently came to agree, since he retained Chucai as his chief adviser after the death of his father. However, his fellow advisers conspired against him and he fell out of favor until his death, when he was buried in great splendor by the Mongols who had once been his captors.

耶律楚材最重要的貢獻是成功勸諫統治者建立賦稅制度，放棄屠城、殘害百姓。他主張稅收所得的財政以及人力培養可以爲國家社稷養精蓄銳。蒙古人當時爲了退耕還牧，計劃剷除所有中原北方的農民，而耶律楚材正是靠着這一主張，幾乎是單憑一人之力阻止了這一計劃。成吉思汗去世後，他的兒子窩闊臺繼承皇位，這位新皇帝曾因爲耶律楚材一心爲百姓辯護而嘲笑他。耶律楚材則以一句治世名言回答皇帝："天下雖得之馬上，不可以馬上治。"窩闊臺聽聞此言，無不贊同，於是他也將耶律楚材視爲他的首要輔臣，保留了成吉思汗在世時楚材的地位。然而他的同僚們則密謀陷害他，於是他不再得到皇上的支持，直至離世。耶律楚材死後得到了高級別待遇，蒙古人將這位曾經的俘虜、後來的治世能臣風光大葬。

ey's Sidekick

9.迪斯尼的老夥計

Great minds think alike and Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks were no exception. The pair became firm friends while working at the Pesman-Rubin commercial art agency in Kansas City. They soon teamed up to form Iwerks-Disney Commercial Artists, which didn't last long. The flamboyant Disney eventually set off for Hollywood and formed his own production company, while the timid Iwerks remained in Kansas City doing animation for ad agencies. But Disney knew his friend had real talent and encouraged him to take a chance and join him out in California. In 1924, Iwerks agreed and Disney gave him a 20 percent ownership stake in the company.

都說英雄所見略同，志同道合者方爲朋友，沃特·迪斯尼和烏布·伊沃克斯就是這樣的朋友。這兩位在堪薩斯城的普斯曼-魯賓商業藝術工作室工作時成爲了摯友。很快，二人便成立了伊沃克斯-迪斯尼商業藝術團隊，但這一團隊於不久後解散。當時風光無限的迪斯尼最終選擇前往好萊塢，併成立了自己的製作公司，而不願出去的伊沃克斯則繼續呆在堪薩斯城，爲廣告公司製作動畫。然而，迪斯尼知道他的這位朋友有真才實學，於是鼓勵伊沃克斯抓住機會來加州加入他的公司。1924年，伊沃克斯答應了，迪斯尼將公司20%的股權贈與伊沃克斯。

Not long after they began working together, a rift occurred between Disney and Charlie Mintz, the distributor of Disney's popular "Oswald The Lucky Rabbit" shorts. Since Mintz owned the rights to the character, he fired Disney and then hired most of his animators out from under him. But Iwerks refused to leave his friend and the pair quickly created a replacement character: Mickey Mouse. Iwerks animated the early Mickey shorts almost by himself, which required him to turn out an incredible 600 drawings per day. Luckily, the shorts were a massive success and saved the company. Sadly, Disney and Iwerks had a falling-out a few years later and Iwerks left the company to strike out on his own. But together they had already changed animation history. While Disney was the brain behind Mickey, Iwerks was the animator that brought him to life.

然而好景不長，兩人合作沒多久，迪斯尼與查理·名茨之間發生隔閡，名茨是迪斯尼熱門動畫短片《幸運兔子奧斯華》的經銷商。因爲名茨擁有這一動畫形象的版權，所以他解僱了迪斯尼，進而又從迪斯尼手下挖來了一大部分動畫師。然而伊沃克斯則選擇留在迪斯尼的身邊，這對"好基友"很快創作出一個新的動畫人物：米老鼠。早期的米老鼠動畫短片幾乎是由伊沃克斯一人創作完成，這使得伊沃克斯每天得畫600張圖紙，實在令人讚歎。令人欣慰的是，這一短片收效顯著，獲得巨大成功，也因此挽救了迪斯尼的公司。不過令人遺憾的是，迪斯尼和伊沃克斯在幾年之後便遭遇滑鐵盧，再後來伊沃克斯離開了公司，自己出去打拼。但是那時他們二人已經改變了動畫史。儘管迪斯尼爲米老鼠創作了故事情節，但卻是伊沃克斯賦予了米老鼠生命和活力。

Wright Brothers' Mentor

8.萊特兄弟的導師

It is said that while the Wright brothers taught the world to fly, Octave Chanute taught the Wright brothers how to fly. A self-taught engineer, Octave Chanute became famous and successful for his unusual and creative designs. Among other things, he was the first person to realize that wood could be preserved by treating it with creosote. But Chanute's real passion was flight. At the age of 54, he decided to focus his energies on developing the budding field of aviation.

人們常說，雖然萊特兄弟讓世人看到了人類的飛翔，然而卻是奧克塔夫·沙尼特教會了他倆如何飛翔。奧克塔夫·沙尼特，一位自學成才的工程師，以其創造性，不尋常的設計而聞名遐邇。除此之外，他是第一位發現木材可以經過木榴油處理而得到妥善保存的人。但是沙尼特真正的興趣在於飛行。54歲那一年，他決定全身心投入飛機制造業。

Before Chanute, the study of flight was carried out haphazardly by independent researchers around the world. Almost single-handedly, Chanute turned it into a cohesive field of study. He started lengthy correspondences with anyone he could find working on the topic, collecting and collating their findings. He organized the first scientific aeronautical conferences and financially supported pioneers like Louis Mouillard and Otto Lilienthal. He debunked false breakthroughs and gathered the real ones in his classic handbook Progress In Flying Machines. He carried out numerous experiments of his own, happily sharing his data with anyone who was interested. The Chanute Glider was the most advanced aircraft of its ute took a particular interest in the Wright brothers, who frequently wrote to him for advice. Their 1900 glider was based on his research, and Chanute often sent his assistants to help the brothers out. He was the one who suggested that they should conduct their experiments in a sandy location with strong winds, which prompted their move to Kitty Hawk. He believed more than anyone that the Wrights would succeed in achieving powered flight, which they did in y, Chanute fell out with the brothers in 1905, when they became involved in patent disputes with other early aviators. Chanute had never patented his own work, believing that technical knowledge should be distributed freely. He had always dreamed that the ability to fly would bring about a new age of enlightenment and saw the Wrights' desire to control the new technology as selfish. Happily, they later reconciled enough that Wilbur Wright delivered Chanute's eulogy.

此前，有關飛機的研究都分散於世界各地，並不系統。幾乎是憑沙尼特一人之力將飛機相關領域的研究串聯起來。凡是能與飛機掛鉤的人，他都與之聯繫，收集並校勘他們的研究成果。沙尼特舉辦了首屆科學航空會議，並出資支持路易·莫拉德和奧托·李林塔爾研究飛機。沙尼特還在自己的《飛行器的進展》一書中揭露了那些不實的飛行研究，並收錄了很多真實的研究進展。他也曾進行過無數次實驗，並樂於與同道之人分享結果。而"沙尼特滑翔機"也是當時最先進的飛機。沙尼特非常看好萊特兄弟，兄弟二人常常給他寫信，請求指教。萊特1900滑翔機就是在沙尼特研究的基礎上製成的，沙尼特也經常派助手前去幫助兄弟倆。正是沙尼特向萊特兄弟建議在有強風掃過的沙丘上進行飛行試驗，他們這才選擇了基蒂霍克沙丘。沒有誰比沙尼特還要堅信萊特兄弟一定會在動力飛行方面有所建樹，1903年，萊特兄弟真的成功了。然而遺憾的是，1905年，萊特兄弟與其他飛行研究前輩們發生專利糾紛，沙尼特也因此與兄弟二人發生爭吵，關係進入冰點。沙尼特從來沒有爲自己的研究申請專利，他認爲技術知識應該大家自由分享，相互學習。他總是期盼飛行可以開啓一個新的啓蒙時代，所以他認爲萊特兄弟壟斷新技術是一種自私的表現。不過還好，他們後來和解了，沙尼特去世後，維爾伯·萊特還在沙尼特的葬禮上致悼詞了呢。

e's Third Founder

7.蘋果公司的第三個創始人

Of course, most people have heard of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, but there was actually a third Apple co-founder: Ronald Wayne. The engineer's involvement with Apple started when he met Steve Jobs while working at Atari in the '70s. Jobs asked for Wayne's help drafting the original partnership agreement that established Apple. After Wayne mediated a dispute between Jobs and Wozniak, they asked him to come on board as a partner. Wayne was given 10 percent of the company, allowing him to act as a sort of tiebreaker between Jobs and Wozniak, who each got 45 percent of the shares. Wayne also designed Apple's first logo, wrote the company's first operating manual, and drew up most of the documents. As Wozniak explained in his autobiography, Wayne "seemed to know all the things we didn't."

說到蘋果公司創始人，無人不知史蒂夫·喬布斯，無人不曉史蒂夫·沃茲尼亞克。但實際上，蘋果公司還有第三位創始人，那就是羅納德·韋恩。70年代時，這位工程師在雅達利工作時，遇到了喬布斯，而正是那個時候，他開始了與蘋果公司的情緣。喬布斯請韋恩幫忙起草一份原始合夥契約，這份契約的內容與成立蘋果公司有關。韋恩做了喬布斯和沃茲尼亞克的和事佬後，他倆邀請韋恩成爲公司董事會的一員。他擁有公司10%的股份，喬布斯和沃茲尼亞克各擁有45%。而在喬布斯和沃茲尼亞克發生分歧時，韋恩的角色就是仲裁者。韋恩還設計了蘋果公司的第一個商標，製作了公司第一份用戶手冊，並且起草了很多文件。正如沃茲尼亞克在自傳中說道，"我們不瞭解的，韋恩好像都知道。"

But Wayne was a veteran of several failed business ventures and he feared Apple would also go under, putting him into debt. Additionally, he was significantly older than Jobs or Wozniak and felt unwilling to put in the relentless work required to make Apple a success. Less than a month after the company was formed, he sold his shares to Jobs and Wozniak for $800. He was later paid an additional $1,500 to forfeit any claims on the company. Wayne's stock would be worth as much as $35 billion today. However, Wayne insists that he doesn't regret leaving Apple, since he lacked any passion for computing. In fact, he's never even owned an Apple machine, feeling too familiar with Microsoft Windows to bother switching. As he told CNN, "What can I say? You make a decision based on your understanding of the circumstances, and you live with it."

但是韋恩曾多次投資企業失敗，他擔心新興的蘋果公司會讓他再次陷入債務危機。不僅如此，最重要一點，他比喬布斯或沃茲尼亞克的年紀大，不願意爲了蘋果的成功而進入癲狂的工作狀態。所以公司成立不到一個月，他就以800美金交易額把自己的股份賣給了喬布斯和沃茲尼亞克。後來因喪失公司債權，又獲得了1500美金的補償。韋恩的股份若放在今天，可值350億美元。然而，韋恩堅持稱自己並不後悔離開蘋果，因爲他當時對從事電腦工作沒有任何興趣。其實，他自己也從來不曾擁有蘋果的產品，他覺得已經習慣使用微軟系統了，不願意再麻煩換系統。他在接受CNN採訪時說："我還能說什麼呢？人都是情勢所迫做出了決定，而無論這個決定的結果如何，你都要去承受。"

in Luther King's Twin

6.馬丁·路德·金的好兄弟

Today, Ralph Abernathy is not as well-known as he should be. In part, that's due to the scandal caused by his book, And the Walls Came Tumbling Down, which very briefly mentioned that Martin Luther King Jr. had engaged in extramarital affairs, including on the night before his death. The book made Abernathy a pariah among many of his former comrades, with Jesse Jackson writing that it "appeals to the most prurient tendencies in current public life and gives comfort to the civil rights movement's enemies." But during King's life, there was no one closer to him than Ralph Abernathy.

如今，很多人都不知道拉爾夫·拉伯內亞是誰，而他本應該很受歡迎。那麼爲什麼事實卻是如此呢？從某種程度上來說，原因要歸咎於一本書引發的醜聞，在他這本《衆牆坍塌》一書中，簡要提到了馬丁·路德·金的婚外情祕事，甚至還說到了馬丁·路德·金被殺害前一晚的情事。 正是這些內容讓拉爾夫直接遭到了之前很多"戰友"的蔑視和吐槽，傑西·傑克遜甚至寫道，這本書"不僅吸引了社會上很多好色之徒的注意力，而且還讓抵制民權運動的人們看笑話了。"但是，馬丁·路德·金生前最親近的人，就是拉爾夫·拉伯內亞。

In fact, King even described Abernathy as his best friend in his last sermon before he was assassinated. Abernathy was King's closest ally and confidant at the height of the civil rights struggle, and King consulted him before all key decisions. They were basically inseparable, sharing everything from meals to prison cells, to the point that it's hard to find a public photo of King without Abernathy visible in the background. Even the famous picture of King meeting Malcolm X has Abernathy standing right between them. They were soon referred to as the movement's twins, while Abernathy was dubbed King's alter ego. Abernathy stayed with King right up until his assassination in 1968. They were standing on their hotel balcony when Abernathy stepped inside to put on some cologne. It probably saved his life. King was shot by a sniper mere seconds later.

事實上，金在被刺殺前的最後一次宣講中，還提到拉爾夫是他的摯友。在民權運動鬥爭高潮期間，他是金最親密的盟友和知己，在做出重大決策前，金也總會聽聽拉爾夫的意見。他們兩人形影不離，一起吃飯，一起坐牢，而且從媒體上的照片裏，你幾乎找不到一張是沒有拉爾夫陪伴在金身旁的。甚至那張著名的金與黑人領袖馬爾科姆·埃克斯會面的照片中都有拉爾夫陪伴的身影。很快他們被稱爲"民權運動雙雄"，而拉爾夫也被稱爲金的"黃金摯友"。

翻譯：晃晃 來源：前十網