Mark Twain, the accidental cocaine-dealer. Sir Winston Churchill, the buzz-kill. Sir Walter Raleigh: man or giant? Name a historical figure, and Elliot Engel can tell you all their dirty little secrets—or maybe “all the things they wouldn’t want you to know.”

Engel gives 120 lectures per year, yet he still has enough energy to serve up an entertaining lecture each and every time. Thirty percent of his lectures are scheduled with the National Speakers’ Bureau, an organization that helps speakers get clients, but 70 percent of his time is spent with individual institutions that pay him specifically to speak. Engel generates these clients himself, and he knows how to keep them coming for more; about 80 percent of Engel’s yearly lectures are given to repeat customers.

Engel manages to have a great rate of return because he isn’t only a lecturer—he is an entertainer. When Engel speaks, Lecture halls turn into comedy clubs. Auditoriums suddenly become the comedy halls, and he makes obscure topics in English literature become a rollicking fun time.

“When he talks, he makes [his subjects] seem like actual people with actual problems, as opposed to historical figures,” Katie Sanders, a freshman in microbiology, said. According to Sanders, her parents— both alumni—love Engel so much that they forced her to read one of his books , A Dab of Dickens and a Touch of Twain. Sanders said she grew to love Engel and considers herself a die-hard fan.

While on stage, Engel makes his job seem effortless, but there is more going on than meets the eye. Engel has been a speaker for many years, and his zeal for oration goes back as far as he can remember.

Before Engel was even old enough to be Mr. Engel, he went to one of the meetings for an organization called the Toastmasters. The Toastmasters are a large non-profit organization of small clubs that promote the art of public speaking through their meetings. When Engel was only seven years old, he accompanied his father to one of the meetings and heard a speaker at one of the Toastmaster events. This guest speaker managed to captivate the audience with great skill, but perhaps the most captivated person in the room was Engel himself.

“I remember sitting in the audience, even as a young kid, thinking that he had such power. I’d like to be able to captivate people–to teach them something.”

Engel is not only an orator. He has also written ten books to date. Engel recalls an incident that occurred years ago, in Houston, Texas, near the very beginning of his career as a lecturer. At a Q&A session, a woman asked Engel if he had ever written any books.

“Well yes, I have,” Engel said, “It’s called Victorian Novel before Victoria: British Fiction During the Reign of William IV, 1830-1837.” The woman replied: “Well yes, but have you written a book that anyone would want to read?”

Engel decided then that he should write books more accessible to the public. The proceeds of his latest book, Reigning Cats and Dogs – The Pets that Rule Our Lives, go to the Great Ormond Street Hospital, a hospital that author Charles Dickens helped establish.

“I’m very proud of the money I have raised for the children’s hospital…I think Dickens would be pleased.”

Like the careers of many influential people before him, Engel’s career as a professional lecturer happened entirely by accident. Decades ago, he was in charge of placing lecturers around North Carolina as part of N.C . State’s Humanities Extensions program. One day, he thought he might give lecturing a try himself. He took a sabbatical from teaching and began lecturing, and he was met with great success.

Even though Engel stopped teaching over two decades ago, his legacy still lives on today. Engel regularly makes visits to campus to deliver lectures.

“I thoroughly enjoy his lectures,” Ken Johnson, associate director for the University Scholars Program, said. The Scholars Program makes it a point to schedule a lecture from Engel at least once per year. “I saw him first 20 years ago as a student here, thinking he was just hilarious,” Johnson said. “It wasn’t until about a decade later that I realized how much I’d learned.”