In 1956, William D. Hackett (1918-1999), an American mountaineer, reached the top of five continents. He climbed Denali (1947), Aconcagua (1949), Kilimanjaro (1950), Kosciuszko (1956) and Mont Blanc (1956). In that time, Mont Blanc was considered to be the highest mountain of the European continent. Hackett made an attempt to climb Mt. Vinson and obtained a permit for Mt. Everest in 1960, but due to several circumstances (frostbite, lack of funds, etc.), he never made it to more than five summits.