The fabric used for the iconic dress Marilyn Monroe revealed when singing “Happy Birthday Mr. President” was later made illegal in the US. The material worn by the Some Like It Hot star was banned for being too flammable.
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Pictures
Iggy Pop, the historian
In 1995 Iggy Pop reviewed Edward Gibbon’s The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire for peer-reviewed academic journal Classics Ireland.
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Santa vs Santa
In 1935, the dispute began between two toy and candy companies, both based in the town of Santa Claus, Indiana. On one side there was Santa Claus, Inc. On the other side was Santa Claus of Santa Claus, Inc. The former alleged that the latter shouldn’t have chosen such a similar name.
In response, Santa Claus of Santa Claus, Inc. charged that its rival illegally put up a 25-foot, 20-ton Santa statue on land leased to Santa Claus of Santa Claus, Inc.
The lawsuit, Santa Claus, Inc. v. Santa Claus of Santa Claus, Inc., eventually made its way up to the Indiana Supreme Court.
In the end, Santa Claus of Santa Claus, Inc. won the fight. But either way you look at it, Santa Claus won.
via weirduniverse
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Gömböc
A ‘gömböc’ is a 3-d shape that will always end up settling in the same position regardless of how it was originally placed. The mathematics of these shapes has helped explain why tortoises can roll back over onto their legs when they’re placed with their shell to the ground.
Graduated Alone
Eva Mae Bradbury was the only member of her graduating class at the public school in Ada, Kansas. The school nevertheless put on a full commencement program for her, attended by 150 people, which was about the entire population of Ada.
David Duchovny is banned from a Vancouver strip club for making fun of the weather
David Duchovny is permanently banned from a Vancouver strip club for insulting the city’s weather while filming The X-Files.
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Man forgets where he parks his car – then finds it 20 years later
A German man reported his car stolen in 1997 and found it 20 years later. It was in the same spot where he left it, but was so old by that point that he could no longer drive it.
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Bizarre Christmas Cards in Victorian England
Christmas Cards in Victorian England were bizarre to put it mildly. Featuring dead birds, frogs murdering one another, sinister snowmen and others.
The Azerbaijani Carpet Museum Building
The Azerbaijani Carpet Museum in Baku is shaped like a carpet.
See more unusual buildings, museums and houses.
Did you know that the colors indicate wind speeds?
Turns out the colors of windsocks indicate wind speed in actual units of measurement rather than vague “lots of wind” or “just a little wind”.