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Why is it that some people can get away with writing sickly sweet love poetry, turning up with red roses between their teeth or coming to save the day with a black mask and a box of chocolates - yet if real people did it they'd just look daft!?

And how is it that some men are called philandering no-goods when they run around with many women and others are elevated to the status of romantic hero for doing just the same thing? We've pulled out a few famous Don Juan's from the ages to see if we can work out the formula that maketh the hero.

Byron
The original romantic lead himself, Byron is singularly responsible for most of the corny, romantic images that we know today. Not only has his poetry spurned a billion lovesick transcriptions, his descriptions of blonde-haired and ruby lipped women, of champagne and roses, and of his feelings of unrequited love have become part of the fabric of what we now know as storybook "love". But what was it that gave him the edge? Some say it was his dark, classical looks (although his clumsy clubfoot would not have made him the most agile on the dance floor), while others say it was his gift for pillow-poetry and seduction. Whatever the case, Byron through his ventures in Europe and the East, had enough women, mistresses and wives to populate a small nation. And now, nearly two hundred years since his death, he is arguably better known for being one of the first of the international playboys than for his poetry itself.

Rudolph Valentino
Moving on a number of years, new ways and notions of romance were coming to the fore. Up to 1920, with the beginning of the Silver-Screen era, romantic love was projected through simple love-stories where, after much trial and tribulation, the hero would always find his sweetheart swooning into his arms. One of the first romantic icons of this age was Rudolph Valentino, whose appearance in "The Sheikh" gave rise to a whole new age of movie star sex symbols. With his dark features and expression-full eyes, as well as his sturdiness of height and build, Valentino became known as "the sheikh who made them shriek." From 1917 to 1926 he appeared in 14 films before he died rather tragically of peritonitis at the age of 31. Ironically, Valentino always wished to shake off his "lady-killer" image and become a more serious character actor, something which could have happened in the "talkie films", which were then just beginning to come into vogue.

Aly Khan.
In 1929, Prince Aly Khan, heir to Aga Khan III of India and spiritual leader of more than twenty million Muslims, went to London to study law. Never too interested in his studies however, Khan's sable good looks and exotic persona gave him a foot-in first with the aristocratic set, and later the glamorous jet set of diplomats and Hollywood movie stars. During his lifetime Khan was romantically linked with Grace Kelly, Zsa-Zsa Gabor and Rita Hayworth, among many others. So what did HE have that others didn't? Well, besides money, good looks and political influence, Khan was said to have been trained in the ancient art of Indian lovemaking, which gave him the ability to stave off orgasm for hours on end. Khan's other passions (besides attractive women) were equally as play-boyish: he liked race horses and fast cars. Sadly it was the latter which killed him in 1960.

And Not Forgetting -
Charlie Chaplin - According to contemporaries, Chaplin had an amazing amount of sexual appeal and energy. Not surprising, he was still fathering children at the age of 77.

President Kennedy - All the world loves a lover - now don't they? Well, in the case of J.F.K. , who managed to be popular as well as keep his reputation for having a number of mistresses and playthings under wraps throughout his term in office, that certainly seems to be the case.

Pablo Picasso - At least seven great romances resonate in Picasso's work - particularly in his periods of creativity.

Casanova - Asserting he could beguile all but the most virtuous of women, Casanova's complicated love affairs prompted a string of forsaken jobs, as well as an explicit 12-volume of memoirs.