In 1980 William Bergstrom arrived at Binion’s Horseshoe Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada with two suitcases: one containing $777,000 in cash, the other empty. He placed the full amount on a single bet of dice which he won and packed the winnings in the empty suitcase. 00
In 2002, a cow jumped a 6 foot fence at a slaughterhouse…
In 2002, a cow jumped a 6 foot fence at a slaughterhouse in Cincinnati, only to evade police officers for 11 days, making national news headlines, and eventually living out the rest of its life in NY. 10
The first person to perform a cardiac…
The first person to perform a cardiac catheterization was not allowed to perform the procedure on a patient, so he decided to perform it on himself and then walk all the way to the X-ray room with the catheter still in his arm to prove that the tube had reached his heart. 10
The modern English word phoenix derives…
The modern English word phoenix derives from the Middle English word phenix, itself from the Old English fenix, which was borrowed from Medieval Latin phenix, which is derived from Classic Latin phoenix. 00
In 2000 a man looking for a barber chair…
In 2000 a man looking for a barber chair at a garage sale purchased a two deteriorated boxes of items for $45. He later found the boxes contained 65 glass plate negatives from photographer Ansel Adams worth $200 million. 00
An Italian mob pulled an elaborate heist…
An Italian mob pulled an elaborate heist involving olive oil, using adulterated and chemically treated oils and labeling their containers as extra virgin. The profit margin of this heist was said to have “three times the profit margin of cocaine.” 00
A scientist got a call from his dad saying that…
A scientist got a call from his dad saying that the wetlands they used to visit together were extremely polluted and would disappear. He went back and created a recovery project. Paying 90% of expenses by himself he started to clean the lake, and 3 years later thousands of birds had returned. 00
For April Fools Day in 1998, Burger King took out…
For April Fools Day in 1998, Burger King took out a full-page ad in USA Today introducing a Whopper designed especially for lefties. The new burger would contain the same ingredients as the original, but rotated 180°. Thousands of customers swarmed BK restaurants requesting the “lefty” Whopper. 00
Russians purchased 500,000…
In 2014, Russians purchased 500,000 baseball bats, but only one ball. It may not make sense, but in Russia baseball bats are much more frequently used for protection, rather than for actual game. 00
Chess grandmaster Bobby Fischer literally spat…
Chess grandmaster Bobby Fischer literally spat on a US order warning him that a rematch in Eastern Europe would violate US sanctions. He played the match and then spent the next 16 years as a fugitive outside the US until his death. 00