Kathleen Phelan (nee Newton) was utterly unique; a female vagabond who embraced the freedom of the tramp lifestyle and philosophy. Like the infamous women explorers of the Victorian era, she travelled before as a single woman adventuring to everyplace on the planet funding her travels through canny bets on horseracing. At age 26 in 1944, she met and married author and fellow tramp, Jim Phelan who introduced her to his literary circle. She tramped another 40+ years after he passed roaming from continent to continent, staying with Picasso in Spain, playing football with Pele in Brazil, and even telling her stories to the Shah of Iran.
