Five historic figures are suspected by conspiracy theories to have made a deal with the Devil, just like Faust from Goethe's homonymous work.
Niccolò Paganini's talent drew a lot of suspicion from his contemporaries, with many being convinced that he had sold his soul in order to play the violin as magnificently as he did.
The musician was just 5 years old when he taught himself to play the mandolin and a mere 7 years later he was writing staggering compositions that remain prominent today.
But the profound fame his music brought him also flung him into the trap of gambling and debauchery; at just 22 years old he stopped paying any mind to his talent.
According to one of the legends, Paganini's violin strings broke during a concert, leaving just one, which he used to finish his brilliant performance.
This led the Church to question the purity of the musician's soul and even forbade his funeral in Genoa.
The story of blues man Robert Johnson is a similar one. He is among the musicians to leave this world at 27 years of age, writes the British Guardian.
Before he became world famous, the guitarist did not possess any particular musical talents, until he disappeared one night near Clarksdale, Mississippi. It was there that the Devil was said to have offered him immense talent and worldwide fame in exchange for his soul.
The very next day, Johnson stunned everyone with his performances and original songs. The musician died under quite strange circumstances and the location of his burial remains a mystery.
Hitler was a complete nobody prior to his rising to fame and causing one of the greatest tragedies in human history. He tried his hand at studying and painting but failed all his exams.
It all changed for him 1933 when he became Chancellor of Germany, to the surprise of Germans everywhere. He committed suicide on the eve of April 30 during Walpurgis Night.
The quick and unexpected rise of Napoleon Bonaparte also leads to suspicion that he had signed a deal with the Devil in order to become the first emperor of France.
John Rockefeller, also known as "Devil Bill", also became wealthy rather suddenly, with his charity donations before his death seen as an attempt to pay for his sins.
