Author: Beth Anne Macaluso

Happy Birthday, Jim Henson! On this mental_floss List Show, John Green shares some little-known facts about the brilliant man behind pop culture icons like Big Bird and Kermit the Frog.

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1. Did you know that Jim Henson coined the term “muppet” in the 1950s while working on TV? Contrary to popular belief, the word is not a combination of “puppet” and “marionette.” Henson said, “It was really just a term we made up,” since he did very few things with marionettes.

2. In The Muppet Movie‘s opening scene, Kermit sings “The Rainbow Connection” sitting on a log in a swamp. That scene wasn’t as simple as it looked. To get the shot just right, Jim Henson had to crouch inside a custom-made diving bell submerged under water.

3. Oddly enough, Henson didn’t grow up loving puppetry. He initially just saw it as a way onto television, and by the time he was in college he had a five-minute show on air every weekday.

4. While Henson made money off of that show, Sam and Friends, he also had another college gig: He designed and silk-screened posters for theater shows. He even ran a little printing business out of his college’s student union.

5. Henson made the original Kermit out of his mother’s old turquoise coat. At the time, Kermit wasn’t a frog; he was just an abstract lizard with a dissected ping-pong ball for eyes. Over the years, Kermit gained the frog collar, turned green, and grew webbed feet. As Henson put it: “We frogified him.”

6. If you want to know how much Henson cared about his art, this might give you a good indication: While making a commercial for Southern Bread, Henson decided he wanted to have an archer shoot an apple off the head of a Muppet. So he hired an archer, stuck his hand in the Muppet’s head, and placed an apple right on top. The archer stood twenty yards back and hit the apple on the first shot, but because Henson didn’t like how it looked on camera, he had the archer do it four more times, shooting at his hand—which was a very valuable hand! Fortunately he’d hired a very excellent archer. That’s a great rule for business in general, actually: Never hire a second-rate archer. Unless it’s Jennifer Lawrence. Jennifer Lawrence you should hire for any job, obviously.

7. Jim Henson’s creativity was inspired by his grandmother, Dear. She taught him to draw, and paint, and sew, and amazingly all those skills would come in pretty handy. When Henson finally completed college, taking time off to work on his show and art in between, his degree was in home economics.

8. And he was always a pretty driven individual, and not afraid of a little ostentation. Like, Henson showed up to his college graduation in a Rolls Royce that he’d bought with the money he’d earned over the years of college.

9. Henson wore his beard to cover up acne scars from his teenage years. His agent, Bernie Brillstein, described the look as, “A cross between Abe Lincoln and Jesus.”

10. “In the early days of the Muppets, we had two endings,” Henson said. “Either one creature ate the other, or both of them blew up … I’ve always been particular to things eating other things.”

11. Although he made a number of movies, Jim Henson was only nominated for one Oscar, in 1966, for his experimental short Time Piece. In it, Henson uses no puppets and utters only one word: “Help.” He says it four times.

12. George Lucas consulted Henson when he was creating the Yoda character for The Empire Strikes Back. Henson suggested that his colleague, Frank Oz, should be the performer, and Oz nailed it, both performing and voicing the character.

13. Lucas and Henson stayed friends over the years. In fact, on the first day of shooting Labyrinth, Lucas arranged for Darth Vader to stroll over to Henson and hand him a good luck card.

14. And Lucas wasn’t Henson’s only friend from the science fiction world. Jim Henson was also good friends with Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. They even collaborated on projects, like the Labyrinth video game.

15. Speaking of collaborations, the Swedish Chef has two human hands and is performed by two puppeteers simultaneously. Henson and Frank Oz performed the character together, with Henson voicing the “hoargie-boargie” puppet. Frank Oz performed both of the puppet’s live hands, allowing him to execute the detailed and expressive hand motions and handle the equipment in the chef’s kitchen.

16. Cookie Monster, meanwhile, evolved from a character in an IBM training video. He’s always had a tough time with self-control though: Previously he’d been known as “The Wheel Stealer”.

17. Henson hired designer Don Sahlin to build many of the most popular characters. Sahlin perfected the sewing technique called the “Henson Stitch,” a way of hiding fabric seams so that the puppets would look realistic on TV, even in close-ups.

18. And Henson and Sahlin collaborated to create the “magic triangle,” a way of positioning the eyes and nose and mouth of a puppet so that it appears that the eyes are actually focusing. This is part of what makes all the Henson characters look alive compared to other puppets.

19. The Henson-created TV show, Fraggle Rock, was the first HBO original series. Take that, Sopranos!

20. Jim Henson had a specific and somewhat lofty purpose in creating Fraggle Rock. He wanted to end war by teaching kids about peaceful conflict resolution. Duncan Kenworthy, who produced the show said, “Obviously, if you were going to change the world’s ideas about how to resolve conflict, you had to start with children. And so we began.” This from a man who either blew up his puppets or had them eat each other.

21. In early drafts, the Fraggles were called “Woozles”, and the early name for the Doozers was “Wizzles”, and the Gorgs were giant “Wozzles”. Henson wrote in his notes, “These names will very likely be changed.” Good call.

22. Fraggle Rock was filmed in Toronto but it was designed to work around the world, you know, so that it could end war and everything. From the start, Henson intended to do co-production in various countries where the show would air, replacing Doc and his dog with culturally-relevant native counterparts, and avoiding taboo topics that could present problems in certain cultures. And these co-productions did happen in France and Germany and the UK, but in 90 other countries, they just dubbed the show.

23. I’ve been a bit hard on Fraggle Rock‘s ambition to, you know, end war, but Fraggle Rock was a hit in the Soviet Union. In fact in 1989, Soviet television ran an episode of Fraggle Rock and it immediately received 3000 fan letters. Soon, both Fraggle Rock and The Muppet Show aired in the USSR, making them the first Western shows broadcast on Soviet TV.

24. Henson wrote the 16-page treatment for The Dark Crystal while snowed-in at a Howard Johnson hotel during a blizzard. As he wrote in his diary, “It’s such a wonderful challenge to design an entire world—new kinds of life, vegetation, etc. like no one has seen before.”

25. And Henson was never afraid to experiment with new technologies—like Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas was the first time he used radio-controlled puppetry. The technology was based on the work of some NASA engineers and not only allowed him to manipulate the critters’ mouths, but also allowed for puppets that could, like, row and steer boats in water.

26. Believe it or not, The Muppet Show was turned down by all three U.S. TV networks before being picked up by the British TV mogul, Lord Lew Grade. It went on to become one of the most successful TV shows ever, airing in 106 countries to over 235 million viewers.

27. And the show was also made without a contract; it was just a handshake deal. The only condition was that Henson had to shoot it in England.

28. But of course that wasn’t Henson’s only hit. For instance, in 1970, the Sesame Street song, “Rubber Duckie,” performed in the voice of Ernie, reached number 16 on the Billboard charts. He does make bath time lots of fun.

29. Meanwhile, Henson’s performance of the “Rainbow Connection” reached number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

30. In 1986, Henson was asked to contribute some thoughts for a book called The Courage of Conviction that ended up not being published, but this writing finally surfaced in a book called Jim Henson: The Works, The Art, The Magic, The Imagination which celebrated Henson’s life’s work. He concluded by writing, “At some point in my life I decided, rightly or wrongly, that there are many situations in this life that I can’t do much about—acts of terrorism, feelings of nationalistic prejudice, cold war, etc.—so what I should do is concentrate on the situations that my energy can affect … I believe that we can use television and film to be an influence for good; that we can help to shape the thoughts of children and adults in a positive way. As it has turned out, I’m very proud of some of the work we’ve done, and I think we can do many more good things.”

31. Before he died, Henson wrote up instructions for how his memorial service should be held. He insisted that no one wear black, and that a Dixieland jazz band end the service with “When the Saints Go Marching In.” He wrote, “It would be lovely if some of the people who sing would do a song or two, some of which should be quite happy and joyful. It would be nice if some of close friends would say a few nice, happy words about how much we enjoyed doing this stuff together.”

He got his wish, and the most touching song was “It’s Not Easy Being Green,” performed by Caroll Spinney as Big Bird. He ended it, choking up, by looking up and saying, “Thank you, Kermit.”

Thanks for watching mental_floss video, which is presented to you today by our friends at Lifetime. And as we say in our hometown, “Don’t forget to be awesome.” 

Banner image courtesy of John Gooch/Keystone/Getty Images.

The millennia-old quest for fuzz-free skin has been surprisingly, well, hairy. In ancient Egypt, for example, people relied on tools like seashell tweezers and pumice stones to keep their skin smooth, while cat poop was the depilatory of choice for the British in the 17th century. We’ve rounded up 11 more facts about the history of hair removal, which just might make you feel better the next time you decide to grin and bare it.

1. BEING HIRSUTE IN ANCIENT GREECE AND ROME WAS CONSIDERED GAUCHE.

At the time, if you had little hair it also probably meant that you had heaps of cash. Wealthy women used tweezers, stones, and early razors to remove all body hair, including pubic hair, which was considered unsightly. That’s why many Greek statues depicting the “ideal” female figure are devoid of any fuzz. (It’s not believed to be related to paint flaking off the marble, as statues of males feature pubic hair that has been carved in.)

2. GOING BARE SOMETIMES INVOLVED ARSENIC.

One Renaissance-era DIY depilatory, according to a recipe from 1532, involved mixing one pint of arsenic and an eighth of a pint of quicklime, then smearing all over. “When the skin feels hot,” the text read, “wash quickly with hot water so the flesh doesn’t come off.”

3. QUEEN ELIZABETH I WAS ALL ABOUT THAT FACE.

Queen Elizabeth I removed most of the hair from her face—including eyebrows—but kept her body hair untouched. She was also in the habit of plucking the hairline around her forehead in order to make her face appear elongated. Naturally, her female subjects followed suit. Their depilatory products of choice: walnut oil, which was better than what women (and men) would soon be using. In the mid-17th century, Peter Levens gave a recipe titled “For to take away hair” that suggested the following: “[Get] hard cat’s dung, dry it, and beat it to powder, and temper it with strong vinegar; then wash the place with the same where you would have no hair to grow.”

4. THE PROCESS BECAME (A LITTLE) EASIER IN THE 1800s.

One of the first mass-produced depilatory creams, called Poudre Subtile, was created in the 1840s by the (fictitious) “Dr. T. Felix Gouraud.” Not surprisingly, it could cause skin damage if applied incorrectly or left on for too long. In 1901, King Camp Gillette patented his first disposable razor for men. Fourteen years later, he crafted a razor specifically for women, delicately titled the “Milady Decolette.”

5. BUT THE EARLY 1900s WERE THE PITS.

Around 1915, sleeveless dresses became fashionable. But with exposed armpits came societal pressure to remove decidedly unstylish underarm hair. That May, Harper’s Bazaar featured an ad of a young woman showing off her fuzz-free pits. The text read, “Summer Dress and Modern Dancing combine to make necessary the removal of objectionable hair.”

6. WORLD WAR II GAVE WOMEN THE RIGHT TO BARE LEGS.

A wartime shortage of nylon meant women had to go barelegged more frequently, which led to a slew of new hair-removal products—including the first electric women’s razor in 1940. It also launched a new trend: Women would draw stripes on the backs of their bare legs to give the appearance of stocking seams.

7. THE ADVENT OF THE BIKINI POSED NEW CHALLENGES.

When the two-piece first appeared the United States in 1946, women began to tweeze and shave the hair outside their panty line, too. Writes Sarah Hildebrant in The EmBodyment of American Culture, “As this history illustrated, the more clothes women were ‘allowed’ (or expected) to remove, the more hair they were also expected to remove.”

8. NEW METHODS TOOK ROOT IN THE ’60s.

Although waxing itself is thousands of years old, the method took off again in the 1960s with the introduction of wax strips. Early laser technology was also harnessed in the battle against body hair, but these lasers weren’t yet refined enough to avoid damaging surrounding skin and were quickly abandoned.

9. AND THEN THERE WERE THE BRAZILIANS.

In 1987, seven J-monikered siblings opened the J. Sisters nail salon in New York City. There, in 1994, Jocely, Jonice, Janea, Joyce, Juracy, Jussara and Judeseia introduced the States to South America’s go-bare-or-go-home philosophy. “In Brazil, waxing is part of our culture because bikinis are so small,” Jonice explains on the salon’s website. “We thought it was an important service to add because personal care is no longer a luxury, it’s a necessity.” Today, Brazilian bikini waxing is the salon’s most requested service.

10. SOME CREDIT SEX AND THE CITY WITH GENERATING A BRAZILIAN BUZZ.

In a 2000 episode of the HBO hit, Sarah Jessica Parker’s Carrie Bradshaw feels decidedly bare after getting an accidental Brazilian bikini wax. Ildi Gulas, a wax and laser specialist at New York City’s Spruce & Bond salon, told Refinery29 that scene gave the procedure “a major boom” in clients seeking out the service. But whether you credit the rise of pubic hair grooming to Sex and the City, the J. Sisters’ NYC takeover, or the spread of pornography, the fact is that the majority of American women today either trim, shave, or wax the hair down there. In one survey, published in JAMA Dermatology earlier this year, 84 percent of the 3300 respondents said they’ve always groomed their pubic hair, while 62 percent admitted to getting rid of all of it at least once in their lives. (Back in 1968, 40 percent of women had never touched their pubes, while just 10 percent had ever gotten rid of it all.)

11. EVEN THE GOVERNATOR HAS DARED TO GO HAIRLESS.

While announcing his candidacy for governor of California on The Tonight Show in 2003, Arnold Schwarzenegger told Jay Leno, “It’s the most difficult [decision] I’ve made in my entire life, except the one I made in 1978 when I decided to get a bikini wax.” Today, manscaping isn’t limited to bodybuilders like Ahh-nold looking to show off their hard-won physiques. According to Inc., men’s grooming pulls in $4 billion a year in the U.S.—$1 billion of which is from hair removal products. With those kinds of deep (cultural) roots, there’s no way the hair removal industry will be going the way of, say, those errant hairs stippling your upper lip anytime soon.

STEM careers (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) aren’t what you think. Many take place outside of the laboratories, classrooms, and cubicles typically associated with the field. They’ll keep you on your feet (or treading water) most days. Here are a few likely to pique your interest.

1. BIOENERGY ENGINEER

Bioenergy engineers are focused on creating a cleaner, greener future by harnessing the power of living organisms. In some cases, that means taking waste—which might otherwise stick around landfills for decades—and converting it into renewable energy. These plants, often designed and operated by bio- or other kinds of environmental engineers, take in waste. When heated, the waste’s organic matter is converted into gas, which fuels a combustion engine to produce electricity.

2. NANOTECHNOLOGY ENGINEER

Nanotechnology experts work across scientific disciplines—and industries—to manipulate materials at the molecular or atomic level. The applications for nanotechnology are practically endless, from fabrics with stain-resistant weaves, to targeted drug therapy for patients facing life-threatening illnesses. One thing nanotech experts have in common? Excellent job prospects. According to forecasters, the value of products that use nanotechnology is expected to reach approximately $1 trillion—or 5 percent of the United States’ GDP—by 2020.

3. NUCLEAR MEDICINE TECHNOLOGIST

An important part of treating cancer, heart disease, and other illnesses is the ability to track their progress within the body. Nuclear medicine technologists play a key role here, injecting radioactive dyes that map out a disease’s progress (or lack thereof).

4. INDUSTRIAL PSYCHOLOGIST

This specialty field focuses on how work environments impact employees, from recruitment practices to management philosophies. Industrial psychologists also address that eternal question, “What’s the best way to improve employee morale?” With more companies focusing on employee retention and wellness, industrial psychology is a burgeoning field with high employment rates.

5. FLAVOR TECHNOLOGIST

Behind every wow-worthy chip and fruit drink you’ve tried, there’s a flavor technologist meticulously working away. Combining high-level chemistry and biology, these scientists utilize natural and artificial ingredients to craft the flavors that tickle consumers’ taste buds. And the work’s not confined to the laboratory: Technologists often take field trips to study herbs, extracts, and other raw flavors in their natural habitat.

6. UNDERWATER ARCHAEOLOGIST

History’s treasures aren’t just buried beneath dry land. They’re also hidden at the bottom of lakes and rivers, and covered by rising oceans. That’s where underwater archaeologists come in, working for government agencies, research universities and in the private sector. In addition to the thrill of exploring shipwrecks and other unique finds, underwater archaeologists get to use some pretty high-tech gadgets, like nuclear-resonance magnometers and side-scan sonars.

7. SPACE AGENCY BIOSTATISTICIAN

There are still a ton of unknowns when it comes to the cosmos—including what effects space travel may have on the human body. To that end, NASA has a team of biostatisticians on hand, dedicated to studying how low- and no-gravity environments during far-flung missions affect human physiology—and figuring out the best ways to protect astronauts from harm.

8. ETHICAL HACKER

Nope—that isn’t an oxymoron. Ethical hackers are highly skilled (and often officially certified) computer scientists and programmers hired by financial institutions, government agencies, and major corporations to identify vulnerabilities in a network’s security system. That means anticipating—and finding fixes for—all the different ways potential criminals might be able to gain access to an organization’s digitized information.

Where else can an education in science, technology, engineering, or math take you? Lockheed Martin knows the sky’s the limit—which is why they support STEM students, from elementary school through college, in and out of the classroom. Visit Lockheed Martin’s STEM Education site to learn more about their outreach initiatives and commitment to diversity in the workplace.

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. But if you’re a kid who plans on selling this tangy beverage, it might be a good idea to speak with a lawyer first. In America and elsewhere, ordinary lemonade stands have been a driving force behind everything from world record attempts to life-altering charities. On the other hand, they also have a knack for starting legal controversies. As many city halls can attest, these scuffles often have big repercussions for entire communities. Here’s a look at 15 lemonade stands that—for better or for worse—left a mark on the world at large.

1. TROUBLED STAND INSPIRES BIPARTISANSHIP AND A FRESH “LEMONADE BILL”

Louisiana is synonymous with Mardi Gras parties and Cajun cuisine. In the near future, it might also become the lemonade stand capital of the world. Earlier this year, a Democratic state senator from the Bayou State introduced a bill that would exempt minors from needing to obtain an occupational license before setting up a lemonade stand—so long as the kiddies’ profits don’t exceed $500 per year. The politician says that he was inspired to take action when a child-run stand was cited for not having its paperwork in order. Disgusted by the incident, Democrats and Republicans alike rallied to support young entrepreneurs throughout their state. The proposal—dubbed the “Lemonade Bill” by the press—was unanimously approved in the Louisiana House and Senate, and signed into law on May 27.

2. LEMONADE CONTROVERSY PROMPTS FORT WORTH TO RE-EXAMINE ITS ZONING LAWS

In 1987, three brothers in Fort Worth, Texas, scored a sweet victory. To raise money for their church and fund a family vacation, the boys started a lemonade stand. Things were going well, until a neighbor anonymously complained to city hall about the tiny business. Once these remarks had been filed, zoning officials had no choice but to shut down the operation. A sign that read “closed by city order,” was slapped onto the stand, resulting in a huge public outcry. When asked to justify this decision, public servants claimed that the boys were illegally running a commercial enterprise in a residential area. Fortunately, this setback proved to be temporary. After a week of bad press, the city changed its tune when an overlooked provision in the law was discovered. Since the stand wasn’t open year-round and didn’t sell pre-packaged products, Fort Worth reclassified it as a home-use business. Thus, the children were allowed to re-enter the beverage game. The town’s mayor extended an olive branch by offering them a new venue on his nearby property. They politely turned him down.

3. STAND OWNERSHIP TEACHES FUTURE BILLIONAIRE THE WAYS OF CAPITALISM

With a net worth of more than $66 billion, one of America’s most famous investors is easily one of the wealthiest men alive. In his youth, the Omaha native did what budding entrepreneurs often do: open a lemonade stand. But unlike most kids, this future businessman recognized the value of a good location. The child noticed that more pedestrians walked past a friend’s house than his own home—and so he arranged to build the stand on his pal’s lawn.

4. PLUCKY BROOKLYNITE HELPS TURN THE LEMONADE STAND INTO AN AMERICAN INSTITUTION

Historians don’t know where, when, or by whom the first lemonade stand was established. However, one journalist is often credited with popularizing the concept. Born in the Netherlands, Edward Bok (1863-1930) immigrated with his family to Brooklyn, New York as a boy. By the time he passed away, Bok had achieved national fame as the longtime editor of a women’s lifestyle periodical, and was a vocal women’s suffrage advocate. In 1921, his autobiography was released. The book was a huge critical success and even won a major literary prize. Inside, the author reviews his childhood business ventures. Bok claimed that, as a boy, he used to make money during the summer months by selling ice water on Brooklyn’s muggy streets. When competitors started to peddle their own ice water, Bok wrote, he upped the ante by squeezing “half a dozen lemons into each pail of water.” Then, he’d add some sugar and shout “Lemonade, three cents a glass!” Today, it’s believed that this published anecdote helped inspire a generation of kids to follow suit.

5. FLORIDA TOWN DRAGGED INTO THE LIMELIGHT BY LEMONADE STANDOFF

Naples, Florida, got some unwanted press in 2003. It all began when a neighborhood dispute resulted in the hasty closure of a six-year-old’s lemonade stand. The girl’s parents elected to shut down her business after their next-door neighbor informed the police that it was operating without a permit. A local station picked up the story and before long, pundits on national television were weighing in. The girl received several hundred dollars’ worth of unsolicited donations from sympathizers; meanwhile, the girl’s neighbor was given something else to complain about. Angry passersby took to pelting her house with lemons.  As a result of the brouhaha, Naples considered some new beverage policies. But by a margin of three votes, the city council rejected a proposed law that would have required all lemonade stands to obtain a business license.

6. HIGH-PROFILE LEMONADE STAND BECOMES A PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN ISSUE

When one American president ran for our country’s highest office in 1976, his daughter kept herself busy with a lemonade stand. Then just eight years old, the girl (and one of her friends) set up shop just outside of the family residence, where thirsty journalists made for reliable customers. At one point, a reporter lightheartedly told the candidate that members of the press ought to receive a discount. The candidate’s response? “Reporters should pay double.”

7. TURF WAR LEADS TO HISTORIC “MERGER”

A sausage stand owner in Salem, Massachusetts, faced some stiff competition in 2005. That summer, two local boys began selling homemade lemonade on his turf. Since the professional vendor also sold this citrusy beverage, conflict was inevitable. The sausage man asked Salem’s finest to talk the kids into relocating. Instead, the officers shut down the children’s lemonade business because neither boy had purchased a $2200 vendor’s license. But the story didn’t end there. Hoping to make peace, the mayor of Salem negotiated a special arrangement between the two rival parties. In what was described as a “corporate merger,” the salesman allowed the boys to sell lemonade under his own license as sub-contractors—at least until the school year started.

8. CANADIAN AGENCY APOLOGIZES AFTER TERMINATING STAND

In July 2016, Canada’s National Capital Commission (NCC) found itself in hot water when it closed an Ottawa lemonade stand that was owned and operated by two little girls. The entrepreneurs were sisters—just five and seven years old—who’d been saving dough so they could attend summer camp. In order to take advantage of a public road’s foot traffic, the girls opened up on NCC-regulated land. An officer promptly informed their parents that if the sisters didn’t take their business elsewhere, they’d be fined. What followed was a public opinion battle that the NCC couldn’t possibly win. The commission formally apologized and issued the girls a special permit that allowed them to re-open the stand. In return, the girls donated all of their profits to charity, as per the NCC’s request.

9. CHILD-RUN STAND RAISES RELIEF FUNDS FOR HURRICANE KATRINA VICTIMS

In 2006, an 11-year-old humanitarian came up with one delicious way to raise funds for the Hurricane Katrina disaster relief effort. Determined to help out, the boy and his family rented some space at a merchants’ market near their Kyle, Texas, home. There, the whole gang opened up a charity lemonade stand that generated $540 for the American Red Cross over the course of a single weekend.

10. VOCAL GRANDMOTHER ADVOCATES LEMONADE REFORM

For a $5 fee, anyone can set up his or her own lemonade stand within the city limits of Okmulgee, Oklahoma. But this wasn’t always the case. In June 2016, a local seven-year-old tried getting one off the ground but was told to cease operations by a police officer. That’s when her grandmother took action. When the woman complained to city hall, officials put the current, business-friendly lemonade legislation in place. 

11. BEVERAGE-TOUTING ANIMAL LOVER GIVES LOCAL SHELTER A BOOST

Last July, a girl on Long Island raised several hundred dollars for a local animal rescue and adoption center. How’d she do it? With lemonade, of course. One day, the precocious six-year-old told her folks that she wanted to help homeless pets find new families. To accommodate the girl, her parents and neighbors constructed a charming lemonade stand. Upon settling in, the wee activist began to selling off her sugary drinks at 50 cents apiece. Customers were also given flyers promoting the nearby shelter. Thanks to the girl’s profits—plus some free advertising—the organization was able to purchase tracking chips for some 59 animals, all of whom were adopted.

12. MARYLAND COUNTY IGNORES PERMIT LAWS TO HELP LEMONADE STAND CAPITALIZE ON GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP

“What happened to the entrepreneurial spirit? I mean this is the American dream.” Such were the protestations of one parent after local government officials closed a lemonade stand that her child had co-founded in Bethesda, Maryland, in 2011, the year the town hosted the U.S. Open Championship. Four business-savvy kids decided to take advantage of the situation by planting a lemonade stand near Congressional Country Club, where the big-time sports event was taking place. It looked like the kids were in for a big score—and then the town bureaucracy got involved. A representative from Montgomery County’s Department of Permitting fined the children $500 for (you guessed it) operating without a permit. As it happens, a TV news team was on hand to film part of this exchange. The resultant backlash from viewers and eyewitnesses was both immediate and unrelenting. By day’s end, the county decided to cancel the fine. Officials also allowed the kids to continue selling their drinks if they’d agree to move the stand two feet away from its previous location, which had bordered a congested street.

13. SOLITARY STAND GIVES BIRTH TO CANCER FOUNDATION

The little girl behind one nationwide charity hadn’t even reached her first birthday when she was diagnosed with childhood cancer. At age four, the heroic girl found a way to fight back, asking her parents to help her set up a lemonade stand that would raise money to help other children who were suffering from cancer. Word spread and, within a single day, she earned an astonishing $2000. Encouraged, she launched a second stand one year later. These inspired copycat establishments from a host of other kids, who also began selling lemonade for cancer relief. Sadly, the young philanthropist passed away in 2004, at just eight years old. But she left an impressive legacy behind: The girl, and those who’d followed her lead, had raised more than $1 million total. The following year, her parents launched an official foundation, dedicated to finding a cure for cancer. To date, the charity has funded more than 650 cancer research projects and raised upwards of $127 million.

14. EUSTIS, FLORIDA, PULLS A 180 ON LEMONADE STAND LEGALITY

On one peculiar day in 2000, a lemonade stand that had been running for years was shut down, only to be hastily re-opened in a matter of hours. The booth was the pride and joy of a local nine-year-old girl, who’d long been selling juicy beverages there. Despite its longevity, a zoning law enforcement official instructed the child to close her stand for reasons unknown. That evening, the girl’s father contacted City Hall to protest. Improbably, the code and zoning commissioner took his side. Without a moment’s hesitation, this high-ranking government employee said that the stand’s forced closure was triggered by “an error in judgment” and that it could be reopened. However, the administrator also insisted that the establishment be moved eight feet away from the nearest roadside.

15. LEMON-LOVERS SET WORLD RECORD

At a 2011 charity fundraiser, community members in Birmingham, Michigan, were encouraged to purchase wooden lemonade stands at a cost of $50 each. Afterwards, 349 of these were merged together into a single, marvelous unit by parents, teachers, and students of the Birmingham Public School District. From end to end, the amalgamated lemonade stand measured 1399 feet and 11 inches long—enough to secure its place in history. Profits from the event were used to support both public schools and an assortment of educational initiatives.

There’s nothing more refreshing than an ice-cold glass of lemonade—but GEICO’s friendly customer service may be a close second. Their agents can help you find an insurance plan that fits your needs and your budget. You may even be able to save by switching.