Anne Bonny, b. 1697-ish. Even the birth of a pirate is disputed.

Top Five Reasons She's Our Favorite Pistol-Packing Mama:

1. The lady had standards: she ditched her first pirate husband for being lily-livered and yellow-bellied, then married a real pirate, Calico Jack.

2. A tomboy from the start, she left the plantation life behind and hit the high seas of the Caribbean to pillage and loot with her newfound bad-boy husband. Why wear hoop skirts when you could have killer boots and a sword?

3. Had a mean Irish temper--legend says when she first boarded Jack's ship, one of the crew spoke against her. She reportedly stabbed him in the heart.

4. Pulled the ultimate disappearing act just before her execution: though there is a grave for her in South Carolina, some stories say she returned to England and some say she returned to piracy under a new name. Can't keep a good woman down.

5. On the day of Calico Jack's execution, she reportedly told him: "If you'd have fought like a man, you wouldn't be hang'd like a dog." Got to love a gal who shoots from the hip.