Barack and Brad: All in the family

Barack Obama might have preferred to hide the revelation that Dick Cheney is a distant cousin. But Brad Pitt? Well, that's another story.

The New England Historic Genealogical Society confirms the ninth cousinship between the Hill and Hollywood heartthrobs. Not content with that, they then go on to suggest that Obama can also claim relations with six US presidents and Winston Churchill. At this level, blood might actually be thinner than water.

But there is a final twist in this tale of the beautiful and the powerful. Pitt's partner Angelina Jolie has a ninth cousin of her own with political clout. Who? One Hillary Clinton.

Alice Fishburn

Comments

[Doug]

This isn't so surprising. Some of these relations are very distant and the statistical probability of being related to notable people is quite high at those distances.

[Inna]

It's really interesting how people in the spotlight often wind up being related to one another. Makes me wonder if there's something in the DNA that makes people want the spotlight.