99 Interesting Facts About The World To Blow Your Mind

99 Interesting Facts About The World To Blow Your Mind 99 Amazing Facts for People Who Like Amazing Facts BY ALVIN WARD AUGUST 8, 2015 Original image ISTOCK 1. In 1939, Hitler's nephew wrote an article called "Why I Hate My Uncle." He came to the U.S., served in the Navy, and settled on Long Island. 2. Furbies were banned from the National Security Agency's Maryland headquarters in 1999. It was feared the toys might repeat national security secrets. 3. Mark Twain invented a board game called Mark Twain's Memory Builder: A Game for Acquiring and Retaining All Sorts of Facts and Dates. 4. In 1991, Wayne Allwine, the voice of Mickey Mouse, married Russi Taylor—the voice of Minnie. 5. Carly Simon's dad is the Simon of Simon and Schuster. He co-founded the company. 6. When the mummy of Ramses II was sent to France in the mid-1970s, it was issued a passport. Ramses' occupation? "King (deceased)." 7. On an April day in 1930, the BBC reported, "There is no news." Instead they played piano music. 8. Johnny Cash's "A Boy Named Sue" was penned by beloved children's author Shel Silverstein. 9. Ben & Jerry learned how to make ice cream by taking a $5 correspondence course offered by Penn State. (They decided to split one course.) 10. The word "PEZ" comes from the German word for peppermint—PfeffErminZ. 11. Failed PEZ flavors include coffee, eucalyptus, menthol, and flower. 12. In the 1970s, Mattel sold a doll called "Growing Up Skipper." Her breasts grew when her arm was turned. 13. Before Sally Ride became the first American woman in space, a reporter asked, "Do you weep when things go wrong on the job?" 14. In the 1980s, Pablo Escobar's Medellin Cartel was spending $2,500 a month on rubber bands just to hold all their cash. 15. The giant inflatable rat that shows up at union protests has a name—Scabby. 16. When the computer mouse was invented, it was called the "X-Y Position Indicator for a Display System." 17. The inventor of the AK-47 has said he wishes he'd invented something to help farmers instead — "for example a lawnmower." 18. The Vatican Bank is the world's only bank that allows ATM users to perform transactions in Latin. 19. The duffel bag gets its name from the town of Duffel, Belgium, where the cloth used in the bags was originally sold. 20. James Avery ("Uncle Phil" on The Fresh Prince of Bel Air) was the voice of Shredder on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon. 21. At Fatburger, you can order a "Hypocrite"—a veggie burger topped with crispy strips of bacon. 22. When asked who owned the patent on the polio vaccine, Jonas Salk said, "Well, the people. There is no patent. Could you patent the sun?" 23. The Q in Q-tips stands for quality. 24. Editor Bennett Cerf challenged Dr. Seuss to write a book using no more than 50 different words. The result? Green Eggs and Ham. 25. Norwegian skier Odd-Bjoern Hjelmeset on why he didn't win gold at the 2010 Olympics: "I think I have seen too much porn in the last 14 days." 26. When asked why he chose the name Piggly Wiggly, founder Clarence Saunders said, "So people will ask that very question." 27. A sequel called Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian was written but never produced. 28. After an online vote in 2011, Toyota announced that the official plural of Prius was Prii. 29. In his book, Dick Cheney says his yellow lab Dave was banned from Camp David for attacking President Bush's dog Barney. 30. Lyme disease is named after the town of Lyme, Connecticut, where several cases were identified in 1975. 31. Reno is farther west than Los Angeles. 32. William Faulkner refused a dinner invitation from JFK's White House. "Why that’s a hundred miles away," he said. "That’s a long way to go just to eat." 33. In 1907, an ad campaign for Kellogg's Corn Flakes offered a free box of cereal to any woman who would wink at her grocer. 34. Why did the FBI call Ted Kaczynski "The Unabomber"? Because his early mail bombs were sent to universities (UN) & airlines (A). 35. As part of David Hasselhoff's divorce settlement, he kept possession of the nickname "Hoff" and the catchphrase "Don't Hassle the Hoff." 36. "Jay" used to be slang for "foolish person." So when a pedestrian ignored street signs, he was referred to as a "jaywalker." 37. Duncan Hines was a real person. He was a popular restaurant critic who also wrote a book of hotel recommendations. 38. The only number whose letters are in alphabetical order is 40 (f-o-r-t-y). 39. Obsessive nose picking is called rhinotillexomania. 40. "Silver Bells" was called "Tinkle Bells" until co-composer Jay Livingston’s wife told him "tinkle" had another meaning. 41. Michael Jackson's 1988 autobiography Moonwalk was edited by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. 42. How did Curious George get to America? He was captured in Africa by The Man With the Yellow Hat — with his yellow hat. 43. In the early stage version of The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy’s faithful companion Toto was replaced by a cow named Imogene.