Trivia

The Final Cut

In high school, Robin Williams was voted “most likely not to succeed.”

Play Dough

Playboy Playmate of the Month modeling payouts:

1959-1960: $500
1961-1965: $1,000
1966-1967: $2,500
1968-1969: $3,000
1970-1977: $5,000
1978-1983: $10,000
1984-1989: $15,000
1990-today: $20,000

Moving Words

Kermit the Frog spoke at ventriloquist Edgar Bergen’s funeral.

Just Do It

The Nike “swoosh” logo was created by Carolyn Davidson, a freelance graphic design student, in 1971.

She was paid $35.

The Foarest City

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Terminal_Tower.jpg

Cleveland is misspelled. The Ohio city was named for Gen. Moses Cleaveland, the leader of the crew that surveyed the local territory. But when the town’s first newspaper, The Cleaveland Advertiser, was established in 1830, the editor found that its title was too long by one letter — so he unceremoniously dropped an A.

(Image: Wikimedia Commons)

No Beach Vacations

Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan are doubly landlocked — each is surrounded entirely by other landlocked countries.

Starting in either place, you’d have to cross at least two borders to reach a coastline.

Snow Miser

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Snowmangma_2.jpg

The world’s tallest snowman was Angus, King of the Mountain, built in Maine in 1999. He stood 113 feet 7 inches tall.

In Lithuania, a snowman is called “a man without brains.” Last winter, protesters made 141 snowmen in their capital — one for each member of parliament.

Television Privileges

Emmy Award trophies are made at the maximum-security El Dorado Correctional Facility in Kansas.

The Power of Community

Francis A. Johnson of Darwin, Minn., started a ball of twine in March 1950 and kept going for 29 years. The ball is 12 feet in diameter and weighs 17,500 pounds.

That’s impressive, but it’s also inspiring. Frank Stoeber of Cawker City, Kan., heard about Johnson’s achievement and started his own ball. Sadly, when he died in 1974, Stoeber’s ball measured 11 feet — just short of his goal.

But, in fine Frank Capra style, Cawker City built an open-air gazebo over the ball and began holding a “Twine-a-Thon” every August to increase it.

They’ve succeeded. The Cawker City ball now incorporates 1,325 miles of twine … and weighs 17,554 pounds.

Sunburn Alley

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Us_route_50_nevada.jpg

In Nevada, U.S. Route 50 is known as “The Loneliest Road in America.” Because of the barren terrain and low traffic, AAA warns its member to stay off the road unless they’re sure of their survival skills.

There are only five towns along the road, and all of them offer “Route 50 Survival Kits.” Stop in all five and you’ll get a survival certificate signed by the governor.

One Way

Kamikaze planes had no landing gear.

Oscar the Grouch

No science fiction film has ever been named best picture.

Status Symbol

The first Humvee manufactured for civilian use was bought by Arnold Schwarzenegger.

A Rodent Condo

The largest known beaver dam was discovered near Three Forks, Mont.

It was 2,140 feet long, 14 feet high, and 23 feet thick at the base.

R.I.P.

Tupac Shakur died on Friday the 13th.

To Boldly Go

Captain Kirk never actually said “Beam me up, Scotty” in any Star Trek episode or movie.

Low Expectations

The first Harry Potter book was given a print run of only 1,000 copies.

Today, these copies are valued at between £16,000 and £25,000 each.

Point Nemo

If you want to be really, really alone, head for 48°52.6′S 123°23.6′W in the South Pacific Ocean. That’s “Point Nemo,” the point in the ocean farthest from any land. You’ll be in the middle of 22,405,411 square kilometers of ocean, an area larger than the entire former Soviet Union.

The point on land farthest from any ocean is at 46°16.8′N 86°40.2′E, outside the Chinese city of Urumqi, in the Dzoosotoyn Elisen Desert. It’s 1,645 miles from the nearest coastline.

Self-Reference

http://www.sxc.hu/photo/162041

The Bible does not contain the word bible.

Palindrome Years

2002 was a palindrome year — it reads the same forward and backward.

They occur only once a century. The next one will be 2112.

Homebodies

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg

Only about 400 people have ever left Earth’s atmosphere. Only 12 have walked on the moon.

Two’s Company

Tommy Lee Jones and Al Gore were roommates at Harvard.

Early Training

The 1987 film Predator starred Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jesse Ventura.

Both went on to become United States governors.

Oh, Terrific

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Cockroach_closeup.jpg

Cockroaches are some of the hardiest insects on the planet. They can survive without food for a month, and can live without their heads for up to a week. They can hold their breath for 45 minutes, and they have a very high resistance to radiation.

And they make group decisions.