February 2012
37 posts
Jonah Hill's dad was the accountant for Guns N'...
He went on tour with the band.
Yoga on Trial
In the years before World War I, America faced a terrifying enemy on the home front: yoga.
The Ladies’ Privilege
A century ago, marriage proposals by women were a common occurrence—at least on February 29th.
10 Great Masters of Tilt-Shift Photography
They look like models but they’re not.
In a 60 Minutes/Vanity Fair poll last month, 2% of...
Only 6% knew that it’s Willard.
A Decades-Old Quote From Last Night's Winner for...
“When you see who wins those things—or who doesn’t win them—you can see how meaningless this Oscar thing is.”
—Woody Allen
Movie Cameos by Authors of the Original Books
Some authors like to wink at those in the know by appearing in the movies based on their books. Keep your eyes peeled for these writer cameos.
[Read More: 14 Movie Cameos by Authors of the Original Books]
In 1979, Oscar host Johnny Carson joked, "I see a...
Years before she published The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins wrote for several Nickelodeon shows, including Clarissa Explains it All.
Lorax and Truax
In response to the 1971 Dr. Seuss book The Lorax, the forest products industry published Truax in 1995 to teach kids the importance of logging.
On this date in 1930, Clyde Tombaugh discovered...
Fifty years later, he posed for this great photo with a fan.
Who's the One on the Left?
Which Rescue Ranger is Chip? Which crotchety old Muppet is Waldorf? Let’s settle this once and for all: 22 Famous Pairs Explained
Gone Too Soon: Famous Funerals of Megastars Under...
Just 48 when she died, Whitney Houston will be laid to rest today, her “private” funeral webcast live to millions of mourners. Let’s take a look back at past funerals for stars who died too young, and the glorious chaos they left in their wake.
Thomas Edison's Eccentric Job Interview Questions
Could you get a job working for Thomas Edison? Here are some sample questions from his employment questionnaire.
In 1947, a California congressman proposed making...
Icelandic officials called the talk of statehood “improper” and “ridiculous.”
Reykjavik image via Shutterstock
In 1970, Ernie reached #16 on the Billboard Hot...
10 Ways the CIA Tried to Kill Castro
#10: Poisoned Milkshake
100-Year-Old Photos of People Delivering Mail
Vintage photos from the Library of Congress. Check out the last one to see what the Christmas rush looked like in the 1910s.
Until 1957, the BBC went dark from 6-7pm, so...
Read more about The Toddlers’ Truce.
Vince Neil said Mötley Crüe decided to add those...
”We had no idea that it was a pronunciation thing,” he told Vanity Fair.
The Amazing Listerine
From curing dandruff in rabbits to helping women nearing “tragic thirty” find husbands, here are some of the claims associated with Listerine over the years.
Quiz: Guns N' Roses Song or Life-Affirming Book at...
Are these titles songs from Guns N’ Roses albums or books featured by the checkout counter in CVS? Take the quiz.
Due to a shortage of raw materials like paper and...
5 Great Love Stories That Weren't Really All That...
Valentine’s Day annoys a lot of people. So here’s a reminder that some relationships that are considered the greatest love stories of all time were pretty messed up.
Tremendously Geeky Valentine's Day Cards
See More: 14 Geeky Valentine’s Day Cards
[Image via Etsy seller TheWallaroo]
11 Ill-Conceived TV Spinoffs That Almost Happened
For weeks people have been talking about a possible Dwight Schrute spinoff. No doubt the producers and agents involved are too blinded by dollar signs to take the time to examine the fates of previous spinoff shows based on “can’t miss” popular characters. We hereby submit 11 such shows that barely made it past the drawing board.
Words With a 'Q' That Don't Have a 'U'
If you’ve got a nagging ‘Q’ and no ‘U’ to go with it, perhaps one of these words will help.
Thank You Notes from Famous People
See More: 11 Amazing Thank You Notes Sent by Famous People
In 1980, Detroit presented Saddam Hussein with a...
Saddam had made donations to the city’s Chaldean Sacred Heart church.
Today is National Read in the Bath Tub Day
Bath reading image via Shutterstock
Watch the pruning.
Taylor Wilson at the White House
Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
Last summer we ran a profile of Taylor Wilson in mental_floss magazine. Today the kid was at the White House!
He was at the White House Science Fair. According to WhiteHouse.gov:
Taylor Wilson, 17, of Reno, Nevada, conducted research on novel techniques for detecting nuclear threats and developed an environmentally friendly, cost-effective, and...
When asked if he knew the speed of sound, Einstein...
Eli Manning's first name is Elisha.
We’re live-tweeting random Super Bowl facts tonight. A lot of them are about the ads. Most of them are nonsense. But good nonsense!
Follow @mental_floss
Tomorrow is Ice Cream for Breakfast Day
Ice cream waffle image via Shutterstock
Here are some other reasons to celebrate this month: 15 Bizarre February Holidays
New Uses for Old Churches
A Bookstore!
A Brewery!
A Lazer Tag Arena!
[See More: 11 New Uses for Abandoned Churches]
A Brief History of Zork
Here.
What Happens to the Losing Team's Pre-Printed...
The answer and more photos here.
January 2012
61 posts
The Oldest Trees in the World
Joe Burbank/MCT/Landov
Roughly 3,500 years ago, a tiny cypress tree sprouted in the swamplands of Central Florida. Earlier this month, that cypress burned to the ground. As a tribute, here’s a look at some of the world’s oldest and most amazing remaining trees.
Punxsutawney Phil May Not Be the Magic...
Image credit: Punxsutawney Chamber of Commerce
According to the Stormfax Almanac, Punxsutawney Phil’s winter prognostications are only accurate 39% of the time.
[Read More: Where Did Groundhog Day Come From?]
Rest in Peace, Mr. Pitt
Sad to hear Ian Abercrombie, the actor who played Mr. Pitt on Seinfeld, has passed away. Here’s his LA Times obituary, and here’s some advice on how to see those Magic Eye pictures (and why some people just can’t).
Clara Peller, the “Where’s the Beef?” lady, lost her Wendy’s gig in 1985 after appearing in an ad for Prego spaghetti sauce in which she said, ”I found it. I really found it.” Wendy’s argued that statement “infers she found the beef at somewhere other than Wendy’s restaurants.”
Hogwarts Headache
A few years ago, any cool kid who could read was suffering from Hogwarts Headache. The prestigious New England Journal of Medicine actually ran a letter from a physician noting the unfortunate side effect of children reading more, and for longer periods, than they ever had in their lives.
Yes, thanks to a couple extremely long (ostensibly children’s) books, an increasing number of parents...
Saying Goodbye to Mr. Hooper
On Thanksgiving Day in 1983, Sesame Street aired one of its most memorable episodes, acknowledging the passing of actor Will Lee. For many kids of the ’80s, it was their first lesson about death. Here’s the full episode with commentary.
How Apple's '1984' Ad Almost Never Aired (Except...
Here’s the story of the Super Bowl commercial that rocked the world of advertising, even though Apple’s Board of Directors didn’t want to run it.
Blunch Tomorrow?
In its earlier years, the word “brunch” didn’t have a monopoly on describing midmorning meals. In 1896, the English magazine Punch warned readers, “The combination-meal, when nearer the usual breakfast hour, is ‘brunch,’ and when nearer luncheon, is ‘blunch.’ Please don’t forget this.”
Blunch image via Shutterstock
6 Extremely Rare National Animals
Here are six of the coolest, strangest, and most endangered animals repping countries today.
Quiz: Cheesy 80s Movie Songs
Take the quiz.
The Name '3 Musketeers' Used to Make Sense
These are our two favorite pieces of trivia:
1. John Tyler’s grandsons are still alive.
2. The 3 Musketeers originally included three smaller bars: one vanilla, one chocolate and one strawberry. When the ingredients became too costly during World War II, the 3 Musketeers became a single chocolate bar.
Now that the whole world knows about the first, it’s time to work on spreading the...
Fun With Flags
.
Image credit: Monty Brinton/CBS
On Thursday night’s episode of The Big Bang Theory, Sheldon wowed us with some flag knowledge during Sheldon Cooper Presents Fun With Flags.
“The flags of Liechtenstein and Haiti were identical by coincidence — a fact that wasn’t discovered until they competed against each other at the 1936 Olympics.”
I love vexillology.
In 1989, Wal-mart pulled Listerine from shelves...
After tests, the mouthwash was restocked. That’s just how Listerine tastes.