April 21, 1910

Mark Twain (November 30, 1835 to April 21, 1910)  is one of the more famous cat lovers in history. At the end, he had outlived his wife, sold his adored home, and also suffered the loss of a dear daughter. He was the object of adulation from the public in these latter years. Here is another description of his life at that time:

Col. George Harvey, Twain's publisher, described the writer in his bed with Bambino:

I think that perhaps the funniest thing about Mark Twain now is not his writing, but his bed. He lies in bed a good deal; he says he has formed the habit. His bed is the largest one I ever ...[saw], and on it is the weirdest collection of objects you ever saw, enough to furnish a Harlem flat--books, writing materials, clothes, any and everything that could foregather in his vicinity.

He looks quite happy rising out of the mass, and over all prowls a huge black cat of a very unhappy disposition. She snaps and snarls and claws and bites, and Mark Twain takes his turn with the rest; when she gets tired of tearing up manuscript[s] she scratches him and he bears it with a patience wonderful to behold.....

His publisher only saw one aspect of a complex cat.  Mark Twain would have felt no need to correct another's impression; Bambino's reputation was just another joke. Twain said elsewhere:

"A cat is more intelligent than people believe, and can be taught any crime."