World’s Strangest

“Dust in the Wind” was released way back in 1977. Written and performed by the band Kansas, it was their biggest hit, despite (or perhaps because of) its prominent viola melody — not something you’d expect in a hit pop song. Since 1977 it has popped up all over the place, from a Will Ferrell [...]

Between her Snickers Super Bowl ad, the petition to have her host Saturday Night Live and just because she’s awesome in general, Betty White has been getting a lot of press lately. She’s been in the business since the 1940s, so you can bet Betty has a few interesting stories up her sleeve. Wouldn’t you [...]

In 1894, Pierre Frédy, Baron de Coubertin—a French aristocrat and intellectual who had previously attempted to incorporate more physical education into the curriculum of the country’s schools—convened a congress in Paris with the goal of reviving the ancient Olympic Games (an idea Coubertin first introduced at a USFSA meeting in 1889). The congress agreed on [...]

So here’s something that happened. Back in the 70’s and early 80’s, Chicago gang members had their own business cards. Created using clip art on a low budget, they’re kind of a riot — many feature heavy metal, unicorns, axes, and other stuff generally considered “awesome” by teens in of the era. Some are overtly [...]

• ”Gnocchi,” a kind of traditional potato dumpling, means “lumps” in Italian (how … appetizing). It can be difficult to pronounce (just ask Katie Couric), but is more or less “gno-key.” • Everyone loves potato dumplings, including Washington’s elite and Russell Crowe (who liked the gnocchi at the DC restaurant Spezie so much he ordered it [...]

As most people know, cell phones are a big no-no during landing and takeoff. What most people don’t know, however, is why. The FAA says cell phones to be “radio transmitting devices” that could possibly disrupt the avionics of the plane. Interesting that they don’t call pacemakers transmitting devices, though. In 2007, the ABC news show [...]

Comic artist Stephen Pfeil recently posted his interpretations of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as the master artists they were named for would have intended them to look. On top of Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael, Pfeil also explored how more contemporary artists would have depicted the turtles, including Dali, Picsaso, Monet, and Pollock. The pictures [...]

Not every superhero gets to leap over tall buildings in a single bound or stop speeding bullets — for every Superman, there’s a Swamp-Man or a Matter-Eater Lad, the superfreaks you just have to feel a little sorry for. Well, now there’s a whole website that takes this idea to the extreme, creating videos and [...]

Two weeks ago, I wrote about librarians busting moves to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” In that post, I mentioned the 2008 Book Cart Drill Team Champions, Santa Monica’s Well-Stacked Sci-Brarians. Here’s seven more videos of librarians who go above and beyond the call of Dewey. Oak Park Public Library The Warriors at Oak Park Public Library took first [...]

As a big Beatles fan, I sure wish I was there 46 years ago when the Fab Four appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show for the first time. Since we haven’t quite worked out that whole time travel thing yet, I’ll have to content myself (and you!) with trivia. 1. Although appearing on Sullivan was [...]