10 things you didn’t know about Billy Graham

If you didn’t grow up listening to Billy Graham’s Sunday radio show or watching his TV show – you might not know the ubiquitous Christian televangelist from the WWE wrestler.

Outside of being the “pastor to the presidents,” Graham – who died Wednesday at the age of 99 – was one of the first Christian preachers to harness the power of media to spread his religion’s message.

Here are 10 facts about the man known as the “Protestant Pope”:

1. Billy Graham once preached for more than 100 nights straight

Every night for 16 consecutive weeks, Billy Graham addressed the sold-out audiences in New York’s Madison Square Garden at his so-called New York Crusade in 1957. The event was only supposed to last for six weeks.

2. He met 13 post-war presidents

From Harry Truman to Donald Trump, Billy Graham knew them all – attending the inaugurations of six presidents and delivering the invocations for two: George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

3. He helped George W. Bush stop drinking

In his 2010 book “Decision Points,” former President George W. Bush said he was actually drunk when he first met Graham at his parents’ family home in Maine in 1985. The two talked extensively the next day and later, Graham sent Bush a Bible and that he said helped him to better understand Christianity and change his life.

Evangelist Billy Graham, who reached millions of people through his Christian rallies and developed a relationship with every US president since Harry Truman, died Wednesday, February 21, at the age of 99.

A school portrait of Graham, age 17, in 1935. After high school, Graham moved from Charlotte, North Carolina, to Tennessee to enroll in the conservative Christian school Bob Jones College. He then transferred to the Florida Bible Institute. He was ordained a Southern Baptist minister in 1939 and quickly gained a reputation as an evangelical preacher.

Graham preaches in the early 1950s. He said he became "born again" after hearing an evangelist at a tent meeting in 1934.

Graham reads on an airplane during a "Pulpit in the Sky" trip in 1953.

Graham addresses a crowd in London's Trafalgar Square in 1954. Graham's London crusade lasted 12 weeks and drew huge crowds.

Graham speaks to soccer fans in London during halftime of a match between Chelsea and Newcastle United.

In the 1950s, Graham began a weekly Sunday night radio program, "The Hour of Decision."

Graham embraces his family upon his return from his "Crusade for Christ" tour in the 1950s. With him from left are his wife, Ruth, and his daughters Anne, Virginia and Ruth (Bunny).

In 1957, Graham's crusade at New York's Madison Square Garden ran nightly for 16 weeks.

US President Dwight D. Eisenhower visits with Graham at the White House in 1957.

Supporters greet Graham upon his arrival in New York in 1959. Graham and his wife were returning from a six-month speaking tour that included stops in Australia and the Soviet Union.

In 1960, Graham explains the Bible to Waarusha warriors in Tanzania.

Graham visits with children during a trip to Ghana in 1960.

Graham sits in a jungle clearing a few miles from Ibadan, Nigeria, in 1960.

Graham sits with US President John F. Kennedy.

Graham gets a kiss from his wife, Ruth, after they returned to the United States following a tour in Africa and the Middle East.

Graham preached that racial segregation was unbiblical, but some civil rights rights leaders criticized him for not being more involved in the civil rights movement. Graham asked the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to deliver a prayer at a Madison Square Garden crusade in New York in 1957.

Graham dictates a synopsis of his evening sermon into a tape recorder in 1962. Secretaries would then type the synopsis for distribution to the press. Graham was conducting an eight-day crusade in Fresno, California.

Graham appears in the 1963 documentary "The World's Greatest Showman: The Legend of Cecil B. DeMille."

Graham addresses the congregation at the opening of a 32-day London crusade in 1966.

Graham speaks to more than 5,000 US troops in Vietnam in 1966.

Graham addresses an audience in 1967. He was frequently listed by Gallup as one of the "Ten Most Admired Men in the World."

Graham is flanked by US President Richard Nixon, left, and Vice President Spiro Agnew as they bow their heads in prayer in 1969. Graham was speaking at Nixon's inauguration.

Graham rides a donkey in Jerusalem while visiting the city in 1969.

Graham speaks to a crowd of 18,000 on the closing night of the Southern Baptist Convention in 1974.

Graham speaks at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1978. Inclement weather had forced the crusade to the nearby Mid-South Coliseum, but when the clouds lifted, Graham went to the stadium to speak to those who could not get into the smaller indoor arena.

Graham and his wife visit her birthplace in Huaiyin, China, in 1988. They were married for 64 years until her death in 2007.

Graham takes a boat ride with US President George H.W, Bush near Bush's summer home in Kennebunkport, Maine, in 1989.

Graham preaches in New York's Central Park in 1991. It was his first appearance in New York City since 1970. The crowd was estimated at 200,000.

Graham stands next to singer Johnny Cash in New York's Central Park.

Pope John Paul II meets with Graham at the Vatican in 1993. Graham had often been called the "Protestant Pope."

In 1996, House Speaker Newt Gingrich presents Graham with a Congressional Gold Medal during a ceremony on Capitol Hill.

Graham gestures as he speaks to a capacity crowd at Ericsson Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1996.

In 1997, Graham gave the invocation at the second inauguration of President Bill Clinton.

Graham greets Chinese President Jiang Zemin at a California luncheon in 1997.