Weird, Wonderful World
English is a living, breathing, constantly evolving language. It’s a Germanic language, which means that German also has its fair share of made-up words (specifically, “compound nouns”) to describe very specific experiences in life. Der Treppenwitz This translates to “the staircase joke,” and it refers to when you think up the perfect comeback or witty […]
What was the most popular activity of the summer of 1985? Hating on New Coke, Coca-Cola’s ill-fated attempt to reformulate its popular product. First Diet Drinks The first major diet drink on the market was Diet Pepsi, launched in 1964. Coca-Cola offered Tab, but as its cans bore a warning about how the sugar substitute […]
Occasionally, the foot soldiers in the war on drugs get a little too excited. Here are some stories about people who were busted for possessing narcotics…which turned out to be far more innocent substances. The white stuff On July 31, 2019, police in Clinton County, South Carolina, pulled over Shai Werts, quarterback for the Georgia […]
No matter who you are, you’ve got something that everybody else has got, too: a skeleton! Underneath your skin sits a complex system of bones to keep you upright and moving. Here are some fascinating facts you and your kids can enjoy about the human skeletal system. How many bones do humans have? It’s common […]
Tragically, countless individuals have died in airplane crashes or accidents. A rarer way to move over to the afterlife: dying in a model airplane accident. But it happens. Killed by His Own Plane Model plane enthusiast Roger Wallace was flying his five-foot-wingspan toy at the Pima County Fairgrounds in Tucson, Arizona, in May 2002, when […]
We did! Here are some deep dives into some of the questions we all face when we’re standing in the supermarket, trying to decide what foods are delicious, best beneficial to our bodies…and which are also not too expensive. Is “eating local” healthier than not? Yes, but it might not be your health. Eating locally-produced […]
Just some kooky stories about people who died…while flirting with death in other ways. Death by the shock of death In 2010, a man in India named Than Singh received a letter from a local crematorium. That was something of a surprise, as no one in his family or circle of friends had recently died. […]
For the 32nd year, Uncle John and his loyal researchers have teamed up to bring you the latest tidbits from the world of pop culture, history, sports, and strange news stories. If you want to read about celebrity misdeeds, odd coincidences, and disastrous blunders, Uncle John’s Truth, Trivia, and the Pursuit of Factiness has what you need. […]
What’s strange? Playing “make believe” and “dress up” for a living…and getting multi-million-dollar paychecks to do it. What’s even stranger? Using some of that acting money to open up a restaurant. Here are some stars who got into and then out of the kitchen. Pat Boone’s Dine-O-Mat Pat Boone made a name for himself singing […]
Silly fast food companies: Promotions are supposed to earn money, not lose tons of it! No quiero Taco Bell In the late ‘90s, Taco Bell was responsible for one of the most famous fast food advertising campaigns of all time. In a series of TV commercials, an adorable Chihuahua (a dog breed from Mexico) walked […]
In pursuing and sharing fun facts and interesting trivia, we sometimes like to get a little fancy around here. Pour yourself a glass of myth-busting! Myth: You’re supposed to drink red wine with beef and white wine with fish. Truth: First of all, you shouldn’t drink red wine if you don’t like red wine, even […]
You can get a burger with everything on it at almost everywhere these days —gas stations, convenience stores, grocery stores…but you’ll have to go a little but father for these bizarre meat-cutes. All the Cholesterol the Law Allows Since the ‘90s, Atlanta’s The Vortex has served “Coronary Bypass Burgers” to those who dare…and who should […]
The English language is a constantly evolving beast with lots of rules and quirks. For example, “orphan initialisms,” which are acronyms that stand for…nothing. MTV. The channel that started off as “Music Television” hasn’t had a music video-schedule in decades, so it kind of makes sense that “MTV” is the network’s actual name, and the […]
Here’s how all the stuff in your garage, shed, and on the truck got their names. CHISEL Along with the gentle or aggressive tapping of a hammer, a chisel is used to chip away into very hard surfaces like stone or bricks. In a very slow, even indirect way, chisel cuts into stone, so it […]
The Who Knew? titles are collections of articles filled with gems of wisdom to dazzle your brain cells. These books have plenty of tales to surprise and delight even the most ardent trivia fan. The two newest editions to the series are Who Knew? Women in History and Who Knew? Human Anatomy. Enter our giveaway […]
Those Hollywood celebrities: they’re just like us! By which we mean they get themselves into embarrassing situations in restrooms. MAGNUM, PEE? AYE! Even Tom Hanks, the most likeable movie star in the world, can embarrass himself once in a while. In a 2013 interview, he told the story of a moment he wishes he could […]
It was back in 1959 — 60 years ago — that Alaska became a state (#49 overall). Here’s some trivia about what makes “The Land of the Midnight Sun,” a.k.a. “The Last Frontier” one of a kind. That will pay you to live there. The Alaskan state government makes so much money off of the […]
“Big in Japan” is a slightly derisive term in the music business. It refers to American singers and bands that haven’t quite found much success stateside, but who are supposedly “big in Japan.” Sometimes, it’s actually true. Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Cheap Trick didn’t really pop in the U.S. until after Live in […]
