Funny Facts

In 2009, thieves arrived by helicopter on a cash depot roof in Stockholm. They had placed a fake bomb at the police helicopter hangar. Scattered caltrops on every access road. Stole $5.3 million and escaped clean. Police caught them months later through DNA on a piece of duct tape someone had licked.

A man from Dildo, Newfoundland flew his drone and found this iceberg floating into the nearby Conception Bay.

Rob Lowe was offered the role of Derek Shepherd on Grey's Anatomy. He turned it down for a CBS show called Dr. Vegas. CBS pulled it after five episodes. Patrick Dempsey took McDreamy instead. Grey's Anatomy ran for 21 seasons. Lowe later said the decision probably cost him $70 million.

In 1986, Nadine Vaujour hovered a rented helicopter over La Santé Prison in Paris while her husband Michel climbed a rope to reach her. She'd spent three years learning to fly under a fake name specifically for this moment. Michel had fought his way to the roof using nectarines he'd painted green and passed off as grenades. Not a single shot was fired. They disappeared for four months before being caught.

In 1989, the Soviet Union traded Pepsi 17 submarines, a cruiser, a frigate, and a destroyer in exchange for Pepsi products. For a brief moment, PepsiCo had the 6th largest submarine fleet in the world. Pepsi's CEO told the National Security Advisor: "We're disarming the Soviet Union faster than you are."

Red Bull settled a $13 million lawsuit after a customer argued it was no better than coffee. A can has 80mg of caffeine. A cup of coffee has 150mg. Red Bull offered $10 per person to anyone who bought one since 2002. So many people claimed it that the payout dropped to $4.25.

In 1986, Cleveland released 1.5 million balloons to set a world record. A storm pushed them back down. They clogged Lake Erie, shut down a Coast Guard search for two missing boaters who drowned, caused a horse stampede, and triggered so many 911 calls about UFOs that the system crashed. The city was sued for years. The record was never officially recognised.

Before painting happy little trees, Bob Ross spent 20 years in the US Air Force as a Master Sergeant. He was the guy who screamed at you, made you scrub latrines, made you make your bed. When he left, he vowed to never raise his voice again. That's why he whispered.

Kevin Costner was offered the lead in The Shawshank Redemption. He turned it down because he was committed to Waterworld. Shawshank became the highest-rated film in IMDb history. Waterworld became Hollywood's most expensive punchline.

John Travolta was offered the lead in Forrest Gump but turned it down for Pulp Fiction. Both films were nominated for Best Picture in 1994. Travolta was nominated for Best Actor. He lost the award to Tom Hanks - playing the exact role he had turned down.

At his peak, T-Pain had $40 million in the bank. He bought a $1.7 million Bugatti. He let his manager invest in real estate properties that were, in his words, "complete dumps." Within a few years, he was so broke he had to borrow money to buy his children Burger King.

In 1965, French lawyer André-François Raffray agreed to pay 90-year-old Jeanne Calment a monthly fee for her apartment in Arles — he'd get it when she died. Calment lived to 122 years and 164 days, becoming the oldest verified person in history. Raffray died in 1995 at age 77, having paid more than double the apartment's value. His widow was legally required to keep paying until Calment finally died in 1997.

A dog named Eclipse was at a Seattle bus stop with her owner. He stopped to finish a cigarette. The bus came. She got on without him. She rode 3 stops, got off at the dog park, and waited for him to catch up. Then she did it again. Every day. For 7 years. She had her own transit card on her collar.

In 1962, The Beatles drove ten hours through a snowstorm to audition for Decca Records. Decca rejected them. "Guitar groups are on the way out." They signed a local band instead to save on travel expenses. The Beatles went on to sell 600 million albums.

During the Cold War, the CIA spent $20 million and five years on Project Acoustic Kitty. They surgically implanted a microphone in a cat's ear, a transmitter in its skull, and an antenna in its tail. The plan was to eavesdrop on Soviet diplomats. On its very first mission, the cat was released near the Soviet embassy and was immediately hit by a taxi. The CIA concluded the technique was impractical.

Six robbers attacked a jewelry store in Northampton, England, with sledgehammers. Ann Timson, 71, had severe arthritis. She'd bandaged her legs that morning just to get to dance class. She charged all six swinging her handbag and knocked one off his motorbike. Five were caught and sentenced to 26 years combined. Six men brought sledgehammers. She brought a purse.

In 1998, the town of Rabbit Hash, Kentucky, population 315, elected a dog named Goofy as mayor as a fundraiser joke. It worked so well they kept doing it. Every mayor since has been a dog. They have collectively raised over $100,000 for the town. No human has run for mayor since 1998.

Michael Jordan never wanted to sign with Nike. He wore Adidas. He begged Adidas to sign him. They told him: "We can not make a shoe work." Nike offered $2.5 million and a signature shoe. Jordan still did not want to go. His mother forced him onto the plane. Jordan Brand now generates $7 billion a year.

When Forrest Gump went over budget, Tom Hanks gave up his entire $7 million salary in exchange for first-dollar backend points. The studio thought they were saving money. The film grossed $680 million. Hanks took home over $70 million. He even paid for the running-across-America sequence out of pocket after the studio refused to fund it.

Roy Pearson, an administrative law judge in Washington D.C., sued a family-owned dry cleaner for $54 million over a lost pair of pants. He argued their "Satisfaction Guaranteed" sign was a legally binding unlimited warranty. He cried on the stand. He lost the case. Then he lost his judgeship. Then he got suspended from practicing law.

A woman in New York sold her house for $650,000 after spending years telling magazines it was haunted by poltergeists. She forgot to mention the ghosts to the buyer. He sued. A New York court ruled: "As a matter of law, the house is haunted." Law schools teach it as the Ghostbusters Ruling.

Robert Downey Jr. credits a disgusting Burger King burger with saving his life. In 2003, driving along the Pacific Coast Highway with drugs in his car, he stopped for a burger. It was so bad he told Empire magazine he thought "something really bad was going to happen." He drove to the ocean and threw every drug he had into the water.

Howard Schultz offered Shaq a Starbucks franchise deal in the late 1990s. Shaq told him: "Black people don't drink coffee, sir. I don't think it's gonna work." Magic Johnson took the deal instead, opened 105 Starbucks in underserved communities, and sold his stake for an estimated $100 million. Shaq calls it his biggest mistake.

Will Smith turned down the role of Neo in The Matrix because the Wachowskis' pitch confused him. He chose Wild Wild West instead. The Matrix launched a $1.7 billion franchise. Wild Wild West won five Razzie Awards including Worst Picture. Smith later admitted: "I probably would've messed it up."