"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" is a short story written by F. Scott Fitzgerald and first published in Colliers Magazine on May 27, 1922. It was subsequently anthologized in his book Tales of the Jazz Age, which is occasionally published as The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Other Jazz Age Stories. Development rights to the story were held for years by the late Hollywood mogul Ray Stark. Stark retained those rights until his death in 2004, when they were purchased from his estate and used for an adaptation of the story as the 2008 film of the same name, directed by David Fincher. Due to copyright expiry laws, rights to the story deferred to the public domain in 2010. The story dates in 1860, when a very strange event took place: Benjamin Button was born. While a babys birth may not seem like anything out of the ordinary, Benjamins was indeed remarkable, for he was born an old man. Complete with a long beard and white hair, the infant Benjamin is already talking with his father on the day he makes his debut in the world. Realizing that he is actually aging in reverse, Benjamin relies on dyeing his hair and shaving his beard during his childhood and youth to try and appear at least close to his biological age. No matter how well he might hide his secret, however, Benjamin knows that life will always be very different for him. As he grows older (and younger), he meets and falls in love with a beautiful woman, Hildegarde, who happens to be attracted to older men. Benjamin and Hildegarde marry and are happy—but only for a time. As Hildegarde grows older, Benjamins increasingly young heart yearns for freedom. Will this very strange man ever be able to find happiness even as he goes through life backwards? An odd and intriguing fable, this 1922 tale is one of F. Scott Fitzgeralds most unusual and memorable.