Huey Long drew a lot of comparisons to the famed Dictator for Life of Rome.

Well, he didn't. But others certainly did it for him—mostly his detractors.

These comparisons weren't entirely unfair. Long didn't lead any empire-splitting civil wars or conquer most of the civilized world, but he did grow from the same tree as Julius Caesar. A young up-and-comer with explosive mass appeal who preyed on a corrupt and bloated political machine despite being as (or more) corrupt himself, who quashed civil liberties for the good of the Republic/Louisiana and established a virtual monopoly on power in order to drag the state into modernity and amass as much personal power as possible. They both even had sophisticated propaganda machines that were revolutionary for their times.

As far as comparisons go, we guess you could do worse than Julius Caesar. Unfortunately for Long, the comparison continued to the end, with an assassination in the halls of power.