Totally Useless (or not) Fact of the Day

by JackRabbit Sat Feb 20, 2010 8:42 pm

First topic message reminder :

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Since 1950, neither winners

nor heirs may sell their Oscar statuette
without offering to sell it back

to the Academy first for $1.

by JackRabbit Fri Apr 08, 2011 4:40 pm

The Barcolo Manufacturing Company of Buffalo, New York, started the American tradition of the office "coffee break." In 1902 they offered free coffee to their employees in order to boost morale, as well as a few free minutes in which to enjoy it.

by JackRabbit Fri Apr 08, 2011 4:43 pm

The 1904 Summer Olympic Games, held in St. Louis,
included such bizarre competitions as greased pole climbing,
rock throwing, and even mud fighting.
What? ... No buggy races with bunnies and chicks? giggle

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... Maybe that will be a new event in the NEXT Olympics!

by JackRabbit Fri Apr 08, 2011 4:45 pm

New Hampshire is the only U.S. state that does not by law require drivers to wear safety belts while operating a motor vehicle.
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by JackRabbit Fri Apr 08, 2011 4:49 pm

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Mapmakers will often insert a tiny piece of incorrect information in their maps to prevent the illegal reproduction of their work. Called a "copyright trap," the fake text might be a bogus street name or even the mapmakers' initials hidden in the corner of a city park.

by roxanna Fri Apr 08, 2011 7:00 pm

interesting , understand initials, but bogus street names could cause confusion Shocked

by JackRabbit Sat Apr 09, 2011 1:48 pm

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The Parthenon was once painted.

"The Parthenon (Ancient Greek: Παρθενών) is a temple in the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their protector. Its construction began in 447 BC and was completed in 438 BC, although decorations of the Parthenon continued until 432 BC. It is the most important surviving building of Classical Greece ... "
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by JackRabbit Thu Apr 14, 2011 1:19 pm

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Whether you call it "pop" or "soda,"
the first diet version commercially available was No-Cal,
a sugar-free ginger ale introduced in 1952 by the Kirsch Beverage Company.

by JackRabbit Thu Apr 14, 2011 1:27 pm

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O'Hare airport is named after Al Capone's laywer's son,
Lt. Cmdr. Butch O'Hare.

by JackRabbit Thu Apr 14, 2011 1:28 pm

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Ayds, an appetite-suppressant candy in the 1970s, lost 50 percent of its sales when a similarly named virus hit the scene in the 80s. But how did the woefully-named product rebound? By changing their name to "Diet Ayds."

by JackRabbit Thu Apr 14, 2011 1:31 pm

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average was created by former Wall Street Journal co-founder Charles Dow in 1896. Dow picked 12 important companies from a variety of industries from the U.S. Leather Company to the American Sugar Company. The only company still on the list today is General Electric.

by JackRabbit Thu Apr 14, 2011 1:33 pm

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Maine is the only state to border only one state.

by JackRabbit Sun Apr 17, 2011 1:54 pm

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September 8 is International Literacy Day. "Literacy is a cause for celebration," says the United Nations, "since there are now close to four billion literate people in the world. However, literacy for all — children, youth and adults — is still an unaccomplished goal and an ever moving target."

by JackRabbit Sun Apr 17, 2011 1:58 pm

Lobster was so common in 18th-century Maine
that it was used for fertilizer. In 19th-century Europe,
oysters were the luxury food of the day,
and lobster was considered a poor man's food.
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by JackRabbit Wed Apr 20, 2011 12:29 pm

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The foul-smelling skunk cabbage grows mostly in Canada and is known as "devil's tobacco." In late winter, the cabbage gives off heat in order to melt the surrounding snow, making it one of the first plants visible to flies when spring comes. However, if its leaves are damaged for any reason, it releases a foul odor to keep predators away and protect itself.

by JackRabbit Wed Apr 20, 2011 12:30 pm

With a nurse and a calligrapher, Saddam Hussein
had a copy of the Koran written using his own blood.
... Yeah, that's just a little creepy.
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by JackRabbit Wed Apr 20, 2011 12:34 pm

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The Republic of Ireland has the busiest Supreme Court in the world, handling more than double the number of cases as the Supreme Court of the United States per year. This is because the Republic of Ireland is the only country in the world whose constitution gives every citizen convicted of a crime the automatic right to appeal to the Supreme Court.

by JackRabbit Wed Apr 20, 2011 12:36 pm

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Albert Einstein was offered
the presidency of Israel in 1952, but he declined.

by JackRabbit Sun Apr 24, 2011 2:49 pm

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In the mid-20th century, it used to take as much as 27 hours
to make a marshmallow peep. Today, the time has been reduced to six minutes.

by JackRabbit Sun Apr 24, 2011 2:50 pm

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The custom of giving eggs at Easter
dates back to the time of the Egyptians,
Persians, Gauls, Greeks and Romans.

by JackRabbit Sun Apr 24, 2011 2:52 pm

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For Americans, Easter is the second most important
candy-eating occasion of the year, after Halloween.

by JackRabbit Sun Apr 24, 2011 2:54 pm

On Easter, 76% people bite off the chocolate bunny ears first,
while 5% bite the feet first and 4% eat the tail first.

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by JackRabbit Mon Apr 25, 2011 1:37 pm

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The names of Popeye's four nephews are
Pipeye, Peepeye, Pupeye, and Poopeye.
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by JackRabbit Mon Apr 25, 2011 1:42 pm

When a military contractor referred to
a "manually powered fastener-driving impact device,"
he was talking about a hammer.
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by JackRabbit Mon Apr 25, 2011 1:46 pm

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Master escape artist Harry Houdini thoughtfully
bequeathed the rabbits featured in his disappearing acts
to the children of friends just before his unexpected and tragic death.

by JackRabbit Mon Apr 25, 2011 1:49 pm

There are three sets of letters
on the standard typewriter and computer keyboards
which are in alphabetical order, reading left to right.
They are f-g-h ... j-k-l ... and o-p.
(You just checked to make sure ... didn't ya?) giggle

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by JackRabbit Mon Apr 25, 2011 1:53 pm

There are 48 teaspoons in a cup:
three teaspoons make a tablespoon
and 16 tablespoons to a cup.
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by JackRabbit Fri Apr 29, 2011 2:51 pm

Do you know the names of the three wise monkeys? monkey

They are:
Mizaru (See no evil),
Mikazaru (Hear no evil) and
Mazaru (Speak no evil).

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by JackRabbit Fri Apr 29, 2011 2:54 pm

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Felix the Cat was the most popular cartoon character on the American silver screen before the appearance of Mickey Mouse. Felix was first introduced in 1914 by animator Pat Sullivan, and reached the height of his fame in the 1920s. He bowed out to the Mouse in 1930, but returned in a more refined form on television two decades later.

by JackRabbit Fri Apr 29, 2011 2:59 pm

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Tarzan’s mate Jane’s last name was Parker.

by roxanna Sat Apr 30, 2011 2:21 am

who's the kid ?

by JackRabbit Sat Apr 30, 2011 11:07 am

roxanna wrote:who's the kid ?

Hey Roxy!

Did you watch "Tarzan" when you were a little tyke? giggle

The kid ... that's "Boy" ... not as in "that's A boy" ... his name was actually "BOY." Tarzan liked to keep things simple. Of course, you remember that the chimp's name was Cheetah. (Right?) Perhaps the show was more of a "guy thing" ... probably why I remember all this trivia.
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by roxanna Sat Apr 30, 2011 1:33 pm

did watch Tarzan in the early years, my favourite actually ,just don't remember Boy, maybe he came a bit later. thinking

by Ja'aj Sat Apr 30, 2011 3:16 pm

JackRabbit wrote: [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
The Barcolo Manufacturing Company of Buffalo, New York, started the American tradition of the office "coffee break." In 1902 they offered free coffee to their employees in order to boost morale, as well as a few free minutes in which to enjoy it.

Well... [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

by JackRabbit Wed May 25, 2011 1:41 pm

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In 1960, Joseph William Kittinger II jumped from an altitude of 102,800 feet as part of the United States Air Force's 'Project Excelsior' and safetly parachuted back to earth. This record jump was made from an open gondola helium balloon. To this day, this jump set a number of records which still stand.

by JackRabbit Wed May 25, 2011 1:44 pm

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Fingerprinting of criminals was introduced to the United States in 1906 by New York City Police Department Deputy Commissioner Josph A. Faurot.
dancing bunny

Bonus Fact:
The fingerprints of koala bears are virtually indistinguishable from those of humans, so much so that they can be easily be confused at a crime scene even with an electron microscope.

by JackRabbit Wed May 25, 2011 1:48 pm

The phrase "The best laid plans of mice and men" was first used in a poem titled "To a Mouse" by Robert Burns: "The best laid schemes o' mice and men/Gang aft a-gley; And leave us naught but grief and pain/For promised joy." The "of mice and men" words were used as the title to John Steinbeck's popular novel, Of Mice and Men. It later became a hit film and stage play.
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by JackRabbit Wed May 25, 2011 1:51 pm

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For the role of Mike Brady, father to TV's "The Brady Bunch" in the 1970s, Robert Reed was ultimately selected. However, a strong contender for the patriarchal part was actor Gene Hackman.

by Guest Thu May 26, 2011 10:43 am

After reading all the others,i forgot what i was gonna post. thinking

Oh yes! Have a high ball came from the rail roading days. The train personal would get off the train quick while passengers were boarding and run in in & have a quick drink of booze then back quick & they called it Highballing it! happy

by JackRabbit Fri May 27, 2011 3:30 pm

Sneaky is good wrote:After reading all the others,i forgot what i was gonna post. Oh yes! ...

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laughing ass off

You're as crazy as I am! taunt

... And that's a compliment, by the way.
Thanks for the addition sneaky smiley

! Nice one.

by JackRabbit Fri May 27, 2011 3:34 pm

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The name of the camel
on the Camel cigarettes pack is "Old Joe."

by JackRabbit Fri May 27, 2011 3:37 pm

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The Q in Q-tips stands for quality.
They were originally called Baby Gays.

by JackRabbit Fri May 27, 2011 3:40 pm

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Bengay cream is named for Jules Bengue,
the French pharmacist who developed the
pain reliever in the late 1800s.

by JackRabbit Fri May 27, 2011 3:44 pm

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There are 119 grooves on the edge of a quarter.

by Guest Fri May 27, 2011 7:12 pm

Here's Mud in your eye it was him

,came from the pioneer days. They always left for the west in early Spring in order to get west before bad weather. The men would meet in the saloon for a drink,and they would say to those staying. Here's mud in your eye ,because the wheels would throw a little mud from the covered wagons.

by JackRabbit Sun May 29, 2011 1:43 pm

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According to one source, Americans buy about 5 million things that are shaped like Mickey Mouse, or have a picture of Mickey Mouse on them, in the course of one day.

by JackRabbit Sun May 29, 2011 1:47 pm

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The Mona Lisa has no eyebrows.
It was the fashion in Renaissance Florence
to shave them off.

by JackRabbit Sun May 29, 2011 1:51 pm

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There are more than
40,000 characters in Chinese script.

by JackRabbit Sun Jun 26, 2011 6:32 pm

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Actor Kiefer Sutherland
was named at birth: Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland by his parents.

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by JackRabbit Sun Jun 26, 2011 6:36 pm

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One gallon of water weighs 8.34 pounds.

by JackRabbit Sun Jun 26, 2011 6:39 pm

Three ...

- Minimum number of people necessary for a riot, according to criminal law
- Number of basketballs prepared by the referees
for each NBA game
- Number of hearts that an octopus has

by JackRabbit Sun Jun 26, 2011 6:44 pm

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On Scooby Doo,
Shaggy's real name is Norville Rogers.

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