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Fryderyk Gabowicz/picture alliance via Getty Images
12. Bono cites his mother's death (of a brain aneurysm she suffered at her father's funeral) in 1974, when he was 14, as the point where his self-confidence as a lad just "cracked," as he told Michka Assayas for the 2005 book Bono. "I felt abandoned, afraid," he recalled. "I guess fear converts to anger pretty quickly. It's still with me." And to that day, "I like to be around people," as opposed to by himself.
13. After Iris died, he lost his taste for any food and stopped enjoying mealtimes. He would eat airplane food that his brother brought home from his job working IT for the national airline for lunch and dinner. (That has since changed, and now he appreciates a good restaurant.)
14. He considers Boy "remarkably uplifting, considering the subject matter."
15. The first rock and roll song he heard was The Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" at age 4, and the first song he ever learned to play on guitar was "Dear Prudence." In 1985, he shared the Live Aid stage with Paul McCartney. Also in the 1980s, "Yoko came up to me when I was in my twenties, and she put her hand on me and she said, 'You are John's son.' What an amazing compliment!"