Funny Facts

Julie d'Aubigny — known as La Maupin — was a 17th-century French opera singer and one of the most feared swordfighters in Paris. When her girlfriend's parents sent the girl to a convent, Julie checked in as a novice, placed a dead nun's body in her lover's bed, set the building on fire, and escaped with her. She was sentenced to death. The king pardoned her. She went on to perform at the Paris Opéra for 15 years.

The Netherlands and the Isles of Scilly (off the coast of England) were technically at war from 1651 to 1986 — 335 years. No shots were fired. No one died. In 1985, a Scilly historian contacted the Dutch Embassy to joke about it. The Dutch ambassador flew to the islands and signed a peace treaty, ending a war nobody knew was still happening.

In 1974, FedEx was days from bankruptcy with just $5,000 left in its bank account — not even enough to cover a $24,000 jet fuel bill. Founder Fred Smith flew to Las Vegas and put it all on the blackjack table. By Monday morning, the company account had $32,000. When confronted by his executives, Smith shrugged: "I knew we needed money for Monday." The $27,000 in winnings kept the planes flying for one more week — just long enough for Smith to close an $11 million rescue deal. FedEx now makes over $90 billion a year.

Nicolas Cage got into a bidding war with Leonardo DiCaprio over a 67-million-year-old Tarbosaurus skull. Cage won with a bid of $276,000. Seven years later, the skull was identified as having been illegally smuggled from Mongolia. Cage had to return it to the Mongolian government. He got nothing back.

In 1975, advertising executive Gary Dahl invented the Pet Rock. Each one was a smooth stone from Rosarito Beach, Mexico, packaged in a cardboard box with air holes and a 32-page instruction manual. He sold 1.5 million of them at $3.95 each and became a millionaire within six months.

In Iceland, construction projects have been delayed or rerouted to avoid disturbing rocks believed to be inhabited by "hidden people" (Huldufólk). In 2013, a major highway project was halted after activists argued it would destroy an "elf church" — a large rock formation. The road was rerouted. Surveys show over 50% of Icelanders say they won't deny the existence of elves.

After being traded to the Phoenix Suns, Shaquille O'Neal went to Walmart at 2 AM to furnish his new apartment. He spent $70,000 on TVs, laptops, and appliances in a single trip. His credit card was declined because the bank flagged it as fraud — they couldn't believe someone was spending that much at Walmart.

Arnold Schwarzenegger agreed to star in the comedy Twins for a $0 salary. Instead, he negotiated for 20% of the film's backend profits. The studio agreed, convinced the movie would flop. It grossed $216 million worldwide. Arnold's cut came to roughly $35 million — more than he'd ever made for a Terminator film.

Donald Miller Jr. of Ohio disappeared in 1986 and was declared legally dead in 1994. In 2005, he showed up very much alive and asked the court to reverse his death certificate. The judge denied it — Ohio's 3-year statute of limitations to reverse a death ruling had expired. The judge told him: "I don't know where that leaves you, but you're still dead as far as the law is concerned."

In 1925, con man Victor Lustig forged government documents, posed as a ministry official, and convinced six scrap metal dealers that the French government was secretly selling the Eiffel Tower for scrap. He "sold" it to the highest bidder. The victim was so humiliated he never went to police. So Lustig went back to Paris and sold it a second time.

Sylvester Stallone was so broke he sold his bull mastiff Butkus outside a liquor store for $40. After selling the Rocky script, he went back to buy the dog. The new owner refused. Stallone kept raising the offer until the man finally agreed — for $15,000. Butkus went on to appear in Rocky.

In November 2017, the Tsukuba Express line in Japan issued a formal public apology after a train departed Minami-Nagareyama station 20 seconds ahead of schedule. Not 20 minutes. Twenty seconds. The statement read: "We sincerely apologize for the great inconvenience." Not a single passenger had complained.

Australian Today show host Karl Stefanovic wore the exact same blue suit on air every single day for a year. Not a single viewer, colleague, or critic said a word. Meanwhile, his female co-host Lisa Wilkinson was criticized for her outfits daily. When he finally revealed the experiment, Stefanovic said: "I'm judged on my interviews. Women are judged on what they're wearing."

In 1996, Richard Branson's Virgin Cola took out full-page newspaper ads warning customers about a new "blue-detecting" technology — their cans would turn bright blue when the drink expired. The public safety message? "Do not buy any blue cans." Pepsi had just launched its bold new blue can design the same week. It was a masterclass in corporate trolling disguised as consumer protection.

In 1999, David Phillips spotted a Healthy Choice promotion: 1,000 airline miles for every 10 barcodes. During the bonus window, that doubled. He found pudding cups at 25 cents each, bought 12,150 of them for $3,140, and donated them all to the Salvation Army — earning an $815 tax deduction. Total haul: 1,253,000 frequent flyer miles and lifetime Gold status. His story inspired the Adam Sandler film Punch-Drunk Love.

Pharrell Williams was fired from three different McDonald's locations. His reason: "I was eating the chicken nuggets." Years later, McDonald's hired him to produce "I'm Lovin' It" — the most successful fast food jingle in history.

Michael Larson was an unemployed ice cream truck driver who recorded episodes of Press Your Luck on his VCR and played them back frame by frame. He discovered the "random" game board only had 5 repeating patterns. He memorized them all. On the show, he hit 45 consecutive winning spins without a single Whammy and walked away with $110,237. CBS investigated and couldn't do a thing.

A memorial tree was planted in Los Angeles' Griffith Park in honor of Beatles guitarist George Harrison. It was killed by an infestation of beetles.

Eminem's mother sued him for $10 million in defamation over one line in "My Name Is." A judge ruled in her favor — for $25,000. Her lawyer took $23,354.25 in fees. She walked away with exactly $1,645.75.

Pepsi ran a commercial showing a Harrier jet for 7 million Pepsi Points. A business student named John Leonard did the math, raised $700,000, and mailed Pepsi a check demanding the jet. Pepsi said no. He sued. A judge ruled "no objective person could reasonably have concluded" the offer was real. Pepsi re-aired the ad with the price changed to 700 million points and a "Just Kidding" disclaimer.

In 1987, American Airlines sold a lifetime unlimited first-class pass for $250,000. Steven Rothstein bought one. He flew over 10,000 flights. Breakfast in London, dinner in Tokyo. He even booked a fake passenger named "Bag Rothstein" to keep the adjacent seat empty. American Airlines estimates he cost them over $21 million before they revoked his pass — and handed him the termination letter at the gate.

Barbra Streisand sued a photographer for $50 million to remove an aerial photo of her Malibu mansion from the internet. Before the lawsuit, it had been downloaded exactly 6 times. Two of those were her own lawyers. After the lawsuit, 420,000 people viewed it in a single month. She lost the case and paid $177,000 in legal fees. The entire phenomenon of trying to suppress something and making it more famous is now called "The Streisand Effect."

A Burger King cook in Vancouver was fired for taking home a fish sandwich, fries, and a drink after 24 years of service. A judge ruled it was a misunderstanding and awarded her $46,000.

Quokkas are known as the world's happiest animal because they always look like they're smiling. But when a predator shows up, mothers eject their baby from the pouch and let it flop around on the ground as a distraction while they run away.