What some popular American products are called overseas…and why.
• In many countries, Diet Coke is sold under the name Coca-Cola Light. It’s essentially the same product, although the calorie-free sweetening agent varies. Diet Coke in the U.S. contains NutraSweet or Splenda. In other countries, cyclamates may be used, which is an artificial sweetener banned in the U.S. in 1969 due to its link to cancer in lab rats.
The Academy Awards will be handed out to the year’s best films on March 2. Who cares? The night before, the Golden Raspberry Award Foundation gives out the Razzies—as in they “razz” the year’s worst films and film performances.
• In the 1970s and early 1980s, Los Angeles publicist John Wilson hosted a potluck dinner for his friends every year on Oscar Night. At his 1981 party, after the Oscars were over, Wilson asked his friends to vote on the worst movie of the previous year—it had some standouts. Wilson was inspired to crown the worst movie after watching a double feature of two stinkers: the Village People musical Can’t Stop the Music, and the roller-disco-based, Olivia Newton-John musical Xanadu. The winner: Can’t Stop the Music. As Wilson was a publicist, he put out a press release to announce it. The news was picked up around Hollywood, and it soon became an annual tradition, except they’re now awarded in an L.A. theater, not Wilson’s living room.
Okay, you know the drill. See if you can answer these brain-benders about the NFL playoffs…and then come back tomorrow to see if you’re right.
This weekend’s AFC title game marks the first time in history that what has happened?
What dubious record is held by the Green Bay Packers?
The Seattle Seahawks are the only team to ever do what in the NFC West?
Want more impossible questions? Check out Uncle John’s Impossible Questions.
Yes, it’s really happening.
If you thought the lines were bad at your local Apple Store every time they roll out a new iPhone, just wait until they start selling lightsabers. Scientists recently declared that they have developed technology that could one day lead to the construction of the iconic weapon from the Stars Wars films.
Earlier this year, we told you about some communities around the country aiming to separate from their states to create brand new U.S. states. Add another candidate to the mix—this one’s in northern California.
In September 2013, citizens and officials in Siskiyou County, the northernmost county in California, met to discuss their dissatisfaction with, and alienation from, the state government in Sacramento. Siskiyou, along with a lot of northern California, is primarily rural, and the economy is driven by farming and logging. Much of the rest of California is highly populated, urban, and leans to the left politically. Feeling that they shouldn’t be government by a government that doesn’t have its needs at heart, the Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 in favor of a declaration to secede from California.
The 2014 Golden Globes have finally been awarded. Usually, they are a precursor to what films and performers will receive Oscar nominations. Other times, they’re completely out of left field. (Bonus: Take a look back at our list of headscratching Golden Globe TV nominations.)
• While the Oscars may nominate up to 10 movies for Best Picture, the Golden Globes nominate five films for Best Picture, Drama, and Best Picture, Comedy or Musical. That categorization is sometimes confusing, because musicals aren’t always comedies. For example, in 2012, the tragic, incredibly serious Les Miserables won the Globe for Best Picture, Comedy or Musical. Also, Hollywood releases so few musicals these days that they’re almost assured a nomination in that category. In 2010, the critical and commercial bomb Burlesque, starring Cher and Christina Aguilera as singing strippers, earned a nomination. (It lost to the comedy-drama The Kids are All Right.)
It’s Friday, and that means it’s time for your weekly faux-news news roundup. As usual, two of these bizarre news items are legitimately true. The other one we legitimately made up off the top of our heads. Answers are below; good luck!
Got your answers all figured out? Let’s see how you did.
1. What distinction is shared by Suzette Charles, Alberto Contador, and President Gerald Ford?
All attained a noteworthy title when the previous titleholder resigned or had the honor taken away due to scandal. Suzette Charles was named Miss America 1984, when the crowned winner, Vanessa Williams, resigned due to a nude photo scandal. (Charles reigned for only seven weeks.) Alberto Contador was declared the winner of the 2006 Tour De France…in 2007, after “winner” Floyd Landis was found to have taken performance-enhancing drugs. Ford was appointed Vice President when previous office holder Spiro Agnew resigned, and when President Richard Nixon resigned in 1974 due to the Watergate scandal, Ford stepped into that position.
Breaking Bad ended its critically-acclaimed run in September, but it keeps making the news…in some very unlikely ways.
In September, Breaking Bad costar Aaron Paul (he portrayed Jesse Pinkman) held an online raffle to raise money for his wife’s anti-bullying charity The Kind Campaign. The prize: the chance to watch the highly anticipated series finale of Breaking Bad with Paul and cast member Bryan Cranston (Walter White) at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. The lucky winner: 28-year-old Breaking Bad superfan Ryan Carroll of Fort Myers, Florida, who was informed personally by Paul. Carroll and his friend flew to Los Angeles, and were picked up at the airport by Paul in an RV just like the one used by drug kingpin Walter White on the show. End of the story? Nope. Carroll was apparently a bigger Breaking Bad enthusiast than anyone imagined. On New Year’s Eve, Fort Myers police raided three homes they believed were linked to a massive synthetic marijuana distribution ring. One of those homes belonged to Carroll—he was in possession of over $1 million worth of drugs, and is believed to be the operation’s “kingpin.”
Think you know everything there is to know? See if you can answer these brain-benders on a bunch of different subjects…and come back tomorrow to see if you’re right.
Elvis Presley is probably the most iconic rock star of all time and certainly the most famous person ever named Elvis. On what would have been his 79th birthday, here are some other notable “Elvi.”
The Funny Elvis
Ylvis are a Norwegian comedy duo. Pronounced “ill-vis,” it’s an abbreviation of the duo’s last name, brothers Bard Yylvisaker and Vegard Ylvisaker. Ylvis hosts I kveld meld Ylvis, or Tonight with Ylvis, a popular sketch comedy show in Norway. Their best-known work is a silly music video called “The Fox (What Does the Fox Say)” which spread around the world via YouTube and has racked up more than 320 million views. The song, about how nobody seemingly knows what kind of animal sound a fox makes, hit #1 in Norway and #6 in the U.S.—the highest-charting novelty song in more than 20 years.
Pour yourself a steaming cup of facts.
The phrase comes from the U.S. Navy in the early 20th century. A well-known origin story traces it to 1913. That year, President Wilson appointed Josephus Daniels to the position of Secretary of the Navy. He immediately made a number of reforms, notably banning alcohol from naval vessels. Sailors now had nothing on board stronger than coffee, which they derisively nicknamed “joe” after Daniels.
Okay, we know he’s not real. But according to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s books, Sherlock Holmes was born on January 6, 1854. Celebrate the day (and look forward to season 3 of Sherlock) with these not-so-elementary Sherlock Holmes facts.
• Have you ever come across anyone, real or fictional, named Sherlock? It’s an obscure, Old English name that means “bright hair.”
• A common theme in all Sherlock Holmes books, movies, and other media is the great detective’s use of “deduction” to solve mysteries. Except that he doesn’t really use deduction. Sherlock uses a technique called abductive reasoning. Deduction eliminates possibilities until only one, hopefully correct theory, remains. Abductive reasoning, however, involves careful observation and consideration of evidence and any outside data to create an educated guess.
It’s Friday, and that means it’s time for your weekly fake-out. Here’s how it works: Two of the three following stories are true. One of them we made up. Can you guess which one is the fake? Pick your answer at the end of the article and see if you’re right.
Since the 1960s, the Golden Globes have honored the finest in television…usually.
Once seen as a second-rate version of the Oscars, combined with a second-rate version of the Emmys, the stature of the Golden Globes has risen in recent years, with highly rated TV telecasts hosted by Ricky Gervais, and Tina Fey with Amy Poehler. It’s still a strange awards ceremony – attendees can drink alcohol throughout the ceremony, and the awards themselves are voted by entertainment journalists from outside of the United States. Result: some headscratching nominations (and even wins).
• In 1978, the long-running TV news magazine 60 Minutes actually won the Golden Globe for Best Drama Series, beating out scripted dramas like Lou Grant and the miniseries Holocaust. 60 Minutes producer Don Hewitt had actually refused the nomination, but the show remained on the ballot anyway.
But it’s a very small chance. Behold the morbid mathematical weirdness of micromorts.
In the middle of the 20th century, “risk assessment” became a field of interest for statisticians and actuaries alike. The idea was to create a mathematical model to determine exactly how risky an activity might be—riding a motorcycle or living in a house with a radon gas leak, for example.
But here’s the thing—everything carries with it some kind of risk. You could die by choking on a banana, or from spontaneous combustion. Both are extremely rare possibilities, but they’re possibilities nevertheless.
It’s Friday, and that means it’s time for your weekly fake-out. Here’s how it works: Two of the three following stories are true. One of them we made up. Can you guess which one is the fake? Pick your answer at the end of the article and see if you’re right.
Once again, Uncle John came in at #2.
• Entertainment Weekly publishes a list of the year’s top movie’s each December. Rolling Stone prints a list of the year’s best albums. The year-end superlatives started in 1927, with Time’s “Man of the Year.” It came about as an idea to fill space during a slow news week (as December often is), and also as a way for Time editors to make good on a mistake from earlier in the year. When Charles Lindbergh made his solo transatlantic flight…Time failed to put him on the cover. To make up for it, editors made Lindbergh Time’s “Man of the Year,” recognizing him as the year’s most dynamic newsmaker.
