Contrary to what some would like to believe, history doesn’t exist in a vacuum, and every incident, no matter how minor, can potentially have a great impact on reality. In this scenario, sometimes historic events can have some of the most unexpected consequences. From the discovery of hundreds of species due to a large oil spill to the highest daily bust in pizza sales in history due to the O.J Simpson car chase, below we share some of the most bizarre consequences of famous historical events.
June 17, 1994, the day of the famous O.J. Simpson chase, became Domino’s Pizza busiest day in history
While being under suspicion for his ex-wife’s murder, former football player O.J Simpson decided to hit the highway on June 17, 1994. Simpson was chased by more than a dozen police patrols while 95 million watched live. Not wanting to miss a second of the bizarre incident, that evening most people decided to order pizza instead of cooking. This turned out to be a blessing for famous franchise Domino’s Pizza, which registered its busiest day ever on that same day.
Over 150 Years after it ended, one woman was still receiving a Civil War pension as of late 2020
Irene Triplett, the daughter of Moses Triplett, a US Civil War veteran who fought for both sides, was still receiving her father’s war pension as of late 2020. Irene began receiving the pension in 1967, once her mother passed away. She received a monthly payment of $73.13 for over fifty years until she passed away at the age of 90 on December 16th, 2020, over 150 after the war ended.
Banana sales skyrocketed in Germany after the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989
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Before the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, bananas had always been abundant and cheap in West Germany. This was not the case, however, on the other side of the wall. For people in East Germany bananas were a rare luxury good. On days when stores got a shipment of bananas, everyone could tell by the long lines out the doors, with many youngsters not having eaten a banana in their lives. That’s why, as soon as the wall fell, people from East Germany went crazy over them!
In 1972, a chartered flight crashed in the Andes mountains. Survivors endured exposure, and starvation for 72 days, inspiring hit movie “Alive”
On October 13, 1972, a chartered flight from Uruguay to Chile, crashed in the Andes mountains. During the following 72 days, the survivors suffered extreme hardships, which led to the deaths of thirteen passengers, with the remaining passengers resorting to cannibalism. The incident became known as the “Andes flight disaster” and it inspired the 1993 blockbuster movie “Alive”.
The New York blackout of 1977 was a catalyst for the development of current-day hip-hop
During the summer of 1977, New York went completely dark for over 25 hours after lighting struck an electricity transmission. Soon after, heavy looting started all over the town. Many businesses owner lost both money and product during the infamous incident. On the bright side, according to American rapper Grandmaster Caz, many aspiring DJs who couldn’t afford turntables and mixers were able to obtain the equipment through looting. More DJs appearing on the scene became a reality as a result of this incident.
The abduction of Amber Hagerman in 1996 led to the creation of AMBER alerts
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In January of 1996, 9-year-old Amber Hagerman was abducted from a supermarket parking lot in Arlington, Texas. She had been missing for fours day when her body was found, she had been murdered. Days later, a Fort Worth mom called a radio station and suggested that broadcasters should alert the public about children being abducted just as they would with severe weather. She requested the program would be named Amber. Since then, the AMBER alert program is used across the US and has helped recover over 897 children.
Shaving wasn’t mandatory for soldiers until WW1 when men had to be clean-shaven to properly seal their anti-gas masks
Although quite common today, mandatory shaving in the army wasn’t common until chemical warfare made its apparition during World War 1. Soldiers had to wear masks to protect themselves from deadly enemy poisonous gas, and in order to make sure that the masks would seal properly they had to sport a clean shave at all times. Sporting a clean shave would then become mandatory for soldiers for decades.
The 1883 eruption of Mount Krakatoa was so loud that it was heard 5,000 km away, inspiring the famous painting “The Scream”
The 1883 eruption of Mount Krakatoa, in Indonesia, is considered one of the most deadly volcanic eruptions in world history. The eruption was so loud that it was actually heard 5,000 away, in Australia. In addition, due to the eruption’s ashes, all over the world, the skies were tinted grey, red, and black for months. This phenomenon is believed to have inspired famous Norwegian painter Edvard Munch to create his famous series of paintings known as “The Scream”.
ww1 British and German soldiers held a truce during Christmas in 1914
During the WW1 Christmas truce of 1914, both German and British soldiers climbed over the trenches into “No-mans land” to play a football game. The soldiers also exchanged cigarettes, chocolates, hats, and buttons. Both sides were also able to gather their dead and give them a proper burial with soldiers from both sides in attendance. Sadly, an incident like this has never happened again.
During the search to recover debris from the challenger 1986 crash, a duffel bag containing 25 kilograms of cocaine was found in the ocean
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During the search for the debris of the challenger shuttle after the 1986 disaster, a duffel bag containing 25 kilograms of cocaine was found floating in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. The street value of the merch was around $13 million, which surprisingly it was just enough to cover the entire salvage operation. In addition, 13 shipwrecks and two lost airplanes were also found in the process.
Vaccination rates increased from 2 to 85% in just 3 years after Elvis got his polio shot on Live tv to join the us army
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Despite thousands of fans asking for him to be spared, in 1957 Elvis Presley got drafted into the United States Army. The young singer’s entrance into the army was widely praised as he was seen as a model for all young Americans. Elvis had such a strong influence on American society at the time, that, when he received his polio shot on live television, vaccination rates increased from 2 to 85 percent by the time he was discharged in 1960.
professional wrestler Maurice Tillet became World Heavyweight Champion twice, and also inspired the famous animated character “Shrek”
Born in 1903, Maurice Tillet (was a French-Russian-born professional wrestler, better known as “the French angel”.[3] Tillet was a leading box office draw in the early 1940s and was twice World Heavyweight Champion by the American Wrestling Association. He suffered from acromegaly, a condition that results in bone overgrowth and thickening, and his feet, hands, and head were abnormally large. It is believed that Tillet served as an inspiration to create the famous animated character “Shrek”.
In 1979, Brenda Spencer shot up at an elementary school, In doing so, she gave the Boomtown RATS THEIR SECOND NUMBER 1 ON THE UK cHART
In 1979, sixteen-year-old Brenda Spencer shot up an elementary school from her home across the street in San Diego, California. Spencer killed 2 men and wounded 9 kids. When asked why she committed the act, she said “I just don’t like Mondays. I did this because it’s a way to cheer up the day. Nobody likes Mondays.” The horrible event inspired “I Don’t Like Mondays” a song by the Irish new wave group the Boomtown Rats. The song was a number-one single on the UK Singles Chart for four weeks in 1979.
Colombian Drug Dealer Pablo Escobar illegally smuggled hippos into the country, which have now been declared an invasive species
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During the 1980s, drug lord Pablo Escobar, illegally imported a herd of hippos into his ranch in Colombia After the property was abandoned in 1993, the hippos were left unsupervised. The Colombian government failed to take action on this issue, and over the years the hippos reproduced (there are 130 as of 2020) to the point of becoming a safety hazard for the villagers of the area. Many strategies have been discussed to deal with this issue, including castrating the animals, but none of them have delivered positive results.
Gin and Tonics were born from Malaria
Malaria was a major problem for British citizens in colonial India, and to combat the disease people would rely on quinine, derived from the bark of the cinchona tree. It was again used for fevers, and due to its bitterness, was usually mixed with soda water and sugar. Quinine soon became a new drink – tonic water; the first patents for it appeared as early as 1858. Schweppes tonic water entered the market in 1870 as “Indian Quinine Tonic” and was mixed with alcohol, namely gin.
Somehow, after attending a 1959 American exhibition in Moscow, Pepsi had the 6th largest military in the world
As part of an effort to convince the Soviet Union of the benefits of capitalism, the vice president of PepsiCo attended an American “exhibition” in Moscow in 1959. Pepsi was a big hit and the USSR bought billions of dollars worth of Pepsi. However, because soviet money wasn’t accepted worldwide, the URSS ended up trading submarines, military ships, and a lot of vodka for the soda with Pepsi. For a brief period, PepsiCo had the 6th largest military in the world, until it sold all of the ships and submarines for scrap recycling.
An American atomic bomb testing site, Bikini Atoll, inspired French designer Louis Reard to come up with a name for the modern bikini
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French fashion designer, Louis Reard invented the modern bikini for women in 1946. Reard’s chosen name for his new creation… peculiar. The word “bikini” came from the United States atomic bomb testing site, Bikini Atoll. According to the designer himself, Reard wanted to make a fashion statement that was “as explosive as an atomic bomb”, and that’s how he ended up coming up with this particular name.
In 2002, Brian Banks was wrongly convicted of rape. After being exonerated, he created a hit tv show that examines wrongful convictions
In 2002, Brian Banks was wrongfully convicted of rape after the alleged victim lied in her testimony. Banks spend 10 years in prison until his conviction was overturned in 2012. Banks then pursued a career as a football player and ended up signing a contract with the Atlanta Falcons. After his career in the NFL ended, Banks joined forces with former prosecutor Loni Coombs to deliver a hit TV show that examines potentially wrongful convictions. “Final Appeal”.
Infamous serial killer Ed Gein was the inspiration for Norman Bates, the main character in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho”
Not many people are aware that the infamous serial killer Ed Gein was the inspiration for Norman Bates, the main character in Alfred Hitchcock’s blockbuster movie “Psycho”. Just like Norman Bates, Ed Gein was a murderer and gravedigger who had an unhealthy obsession with his mother. Gein has also inspired other horror movies, including Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Silence of the Lambs.
M&Ms Might not exist if it wasn’t for the Spanish Civil War
After a fight with his father, Frank C. Mars, the founder of the Mars Company, moved to England during the 1930s. Mars developed his own candies in England, and, while visiting Spain in 1937, he run into off-duty British soldiers eating “lentil-shaped, candy-coated chocolates.” Because of its hard shell, the chocolate didn’t melt in hot weather. Mars took the idea back to the US, he called it M&Ms. Because the chocolate didn’t melt, he developed the ideal product to give to troops – one that was much less messy than the chocolate bars that were also part of field rations.
Dozens of new water species were discovered due to the tragic 2010 Oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico
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There is no denying that the 2010 oil spill was a tragic incident. A total of 5 million barrels of oil were dropped into the ocean, covering nearly 5% of the Gulf’s surface area and taking the life of 13 people. However, there is a silver lining: scientists actually discovered over sixty new organisms in the Gulf of Mexico during the investigation of the catastrophe. This provided them with a better understanding of the aquatic environment as a whole.
Silly Putty was created in the WW2 years when General Electric attempted to find a cheap alternative to rubber
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During World War 2, General Electric’s engineering team attempted to find a cheaper alternative to rubber for tank treads and boots. In order to do so, they combined silicone oil and boric acid. Although their efforts didn’t work, the scientists had a blast bouncing and stretching the “mistake”, soon after, someone would come up with the idea to turn the “weird paste” into a kid’s toy.
In 1991, 15-year-old Jeremy Wade Delle took his own life in front of his second-period English class, inspiring Pearl Jam’s hit song “Jeremy”
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Jeremy Wade Delle, a 15-year-old sophomore, fatally shot himself in front of his second-period English class on January 8, 1991. The tragic incident inspired the Pearl Jam hit song “Jeremy”. The song was released in August 1992 as the third single from “Ten”, Pearl Jam’s debut album. The song gained popularity for its music video, released in 1992, which won the category “Best Video of the Year” in the 1993 MTV Video Music Awards.
hOME oWNERS switching from coal to gas CAUSED Play-Doh, originally CREATED TO REMOVE SOOT, TO BECOME A CHILDREN’S TOY
Created by Kutol Products Company in the early 1950s, Play-Doh was originally created to remove soot in coal-burning homes. However, soon after people switched from coal to gas to warm their homes, and the company found itself facing bankruptcy. However, when the head of Kutol, Joseph McVicker learned that his schoolteacher sister was using the “dough” as a modeling clay in her classes he came up with the idea of colored Play-Doh, which was an instant success.
The Syrian primer minister banned yo-yos in 1993 due to popular belief that this toy was the cause of a severe drought
On January 21st, 1933 yo-yos were banned in Syria by then-Prime Minister Haqqi al-Azm. The reason? At the time, there was a drought that severely affected the local cattle. Superstitious Muslims believed this to be a divine punishment for the introduction of the yo-yo. They claimed that while people were praying for the rain to come down from above, the yo-yo goes down and before it reaches the ground, it returns to the user’s hand with a subtle tug of the string. According to them, this supposedly angered the heavens and brought on the drought as punishment.
After THE pROHIBITION ENDED, THE cars USED TO TRANSPORT LIQUOR ILLEGALLY were used in races, creating what now is known as NASCAR races
It is highly likely there’d be no Nascar if it weren’t for the prohibition era. For 13 years, smugglers transported illegal liquor inside tweaked cars with heavy-duty suspension that allowed the cars to move faster and circulate on difficult roads. The cars were also altered to carry as much weight as possible. Once the prohibition was over, very skilled drivers had to find new ways to keep driving. The racecars were the best solution. The sport became widely popular and the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing was formally established soon after.
Immense pressure from the government on Australian farmers during the Great Depression caused the”Emu War”
Following WWI, large numbers of veterans were given land by the Australian government to take up farming. During the Great Depression in 1929, farmers were immensely pressured to increase their wheat crops but the presence of as many as 20,000 emus ravaging the crops in the area made matters harder. So, the farmers decided to fight the emus by employing machine guns. While a number of the birds were killed, the emu population persisted and continued to cause crop destruction.
After “the Wizard of Oz”, gay men would identify themselves as “friends of Dorothy”, prompting the US Navy to launch a massive witch hunt to find her
After the iconic movie “The Wizard of OZ” came out in 1939, gay men, who felt identified with the character played by Judy Garland, started to use the term “friend of Dorothy” to privately identify one another. When the US Navy first heard about this, they launched a massive witch hunt for a woman named Dorothy, whom they suspected runner a massive underground military operation.
America got to the moon in 1969 thanks to a very unlikely collaboration
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Most people are familiar with Apollo’s 11 moon landing in 1969. However, a less-known fact about this history-altering moment is that the US managed to get to the moon thanks to the fact that many former Nazi scientists worked at NASA at the time. The scientists were made prisoners by the US during the war, and their lives were spared once they agreed to collaborate with the US. Leading the operation was Wernher von Braun, an aerospace engineer leading the development of rocket technology in Nazi Germany.
In 1924, Belva Gartner allegedly shot and murdered her lover Walter Law and without knowing it, she changed the curse of Musical History forever
In 1924 Chicago residents Belva Gartner and Beulah Annan went on trial, accused of having murdered their lover and husband, respectively. A young reporter at the time Maurine Dallas Watkins was covering the trials, and in 1926 she was inspired to write the play “Chicago” recalling the incidents. In 1975 the play was adapted into successful a successful Broadway musical with the same name. In 2002, the musical was adapted into a movie that won six Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
During the mid-1800-s Tuberculosis became romanticized to the point that it shaped Victorian fashion
Tuberculosis reached epidemic levels in Europe and the US in the mid-1800s. The infectious disease attacked the lungs and damaged other organs while its victims slowly wasted away, becoming pale and thin. Strangely enough, Victorians romanticized the disease and the effects it caused in the gradual build to death. Between 1780 and 1850, many beauty standards emulated or highlighted these effects: extreme thinness, pale, delicate skin, and rosy lips became the epitome of beauty.
Domino’s Pizza introducing a new mascot in 1980 had tragic consequences
Domino’s Pizza introduced a mascot named The Noid in the 1980s. Under the slogan “Avoid the Noid” the mascot’s goal was to “steal pizzas and make the clients’ pizza delivery late”. Unfortunately, a man with paranoid schizophrenia named Kenneth Noid thought this whole campaign was created to mock and persecute him. So one day, he entered an Atlanta Domino’s location and took two employees hostage. The event lasted for 5 hours until Noid was eventually apprehended.
When a signalman lost both of his legs he received assistance from a chacma baboon, Jack, who became an official employee of the railway
James Wide was a double-leg amputee signalman who worked for the Cape Town–Port Elizabeth Railway service and lost his legs in an accident. In 1881, Wide purchased a baboon named Jack to assist him in performing his duties, Wide trained Jack to push his wheelchair and operate the railway’s signals under supervision. After initial skepticism, the railway decided to officially employ Jack once his job competency was verified.
The Waterloo battle skyrocketed denture sales
During the 18th and early 19th centuries, dentures were a pretty big deal among the upper classes. However, high-sugar diets combined with early attempts at teeth whitening, which wore away tooth enamel instead of brightening it, meant that usually, teeth were in quite a bad way. Taking teeth from the dead was the easiest and most profitable way to acquire human teeth for dentures, and the battlefield at Waterloo presented thousands of recently-deceased soldiers whose teeth were ready to be taken.
Atlanta’s 1985 alcohol prohibition inspired pharmacist John Pemberton to create Coca-Cola
After the city of Atlanta, Georgia, banned the sale of alcohol in 1985, pharmacist and army veteran John Pemberton took matters into his own hands. Pemberton, who used to sell a syrup made of wine and coca extra, created a purely coca-based version of the syrup. The syrup, he suggested, could be mixed with carbonated water and drank as a soda. The rest is history.
Hiram Bingham was one of the first westerners to come across Machu Picchu, inspiring the famous fictional character Indiana Jones.
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Born in 1875, Hiram Bingham III was an American academic and explorer. Bingham is most famous for being one of the first westerners to come across the Machu Picchu ruins, in 1911. Years later, in 1948, he would publish a book on the subject: “Lost City of the Incas”, which became a best seller. It is believed that he was the inspiration for the iconic fictional character Indiana Jones. There are loads of similarities between Bingham and Indy, but the biggest nod to Binghman is the opening scene of Raiders of the Lost Ark being set a stone’s throw away from the Machu Picchu ruins.
Magic Johnson’s announcement in 1991 smashed the HIV stigma
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Born in 1959, Earvin “Magic” Johnson is considered to be the greatest point guard of all time. Johnson played a total of 13 seasons in the NBA, leading the lakers to five NBA championships. However, this wasn’t the only way Magic made history. In a press conference on November 1991, Johnson announced to the world that he was, in fact, HIV positive. The public announcement of his status helped dispel the widely held stereotype, that HIV was a “gay disease” that heterosexuals need not worry about; his bravery in making this announcement was widely commended. Magic remains an advocate for HIV/AIDS prevention and safe sex up to this day.
More than 1,500 grave sites were destroyed during Hurricane Katrina leaving caskets floating around far and wide
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That’s an eerie image, to say the least. A less-known fact about Hurricane Katrina is that it destroyed more than 1,500 grave sites, leaving caskets floating all around New Orleans. In 2006, in the wake of these tragic circumstances, the state of Louisiana passed a law requiring all caskets to have a permanent label including the decedent’s name, date of death, and the funeral home that handled the burial to make tracking easier, should this type of tragic event ever occurred again.
Nuclear bombing actually promoted the advancement of cancer treatment
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There is no denying that the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are among the darkest events in the history of humanity. It is estimated that 160,000 people perished instantly due to the attack, while tens of thousands more died due to radiation exposure and cancer. In this scenario, bone marrow transplantation was determined to be the most efficient treatment to assist patients. Later it was also discovered that this approach might cure some cancers.
China’s “one-child policy” led to the government having to install safe places to drop unwanted children
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China’s “one-child policy” installed in 1980 was followed by most parts of Chinese society. However, it also had some tragic consequences: the number of abandoned babies skyrocketed, placing the number of orphans in China at 460,000 by 2016. To manage this crisis, the Chinese government began building “baby hatches” or safe places for parents to drop off unwanted children.
Since being formed in 2010, k-pop phenomenon “BTS” revitalized South Korea’s economy
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The South Korean boy band phenomenon BTS was wormed in 2010 and debuted in 2013, and although it was expected to be quite successful, nobody could have imagined the level of success the band achieved. The positive impact the band has had on South Korea’s economy has been so remarkable that it has coined its own name: “The BTS effect”. Analysts projected that between 2014 and 2023, analysts BTS would have contributed 41.8 trillion won ($29.4 billion) to the South Korean economy.
The tragic Malaysia Airlines Flight 730 revealed secrets of the deep ocean
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In 2014, Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 went missing 40 minutes after takeoff in the skies above the South China Sea. Despite a massive rescue mission being launched, it wasn’t until the end of 2020 that news broke that the plane’s purported crash site had been discovered in the Indian Ocean. On a brighter note, during the entire mission, long searches with brand-new technology allowed oceanographers to map a pretty comprehensive ocean relief that had previously remained a mystery to them.
The planning of the marathon event during the 1904 summer Olympics was so poor that most of the runners collapsed from exhaustion
To say that the planning was poor during the Marathon event at the 1904 St Louis Summer Olympics is an understatement. The 26-mile race had zero stations for water. In addition, the race was conducted on a road so dusty that the stomach lining of one of the runners tear open due to dust inhalation. It was so disastrous, that most of the runners collapsed due to exhaustion or injuries without making it to the finish line. Oh, and apparently the winner actually drank a cocktail that accidentally contained RAT POISON! Just insane.
Being buried alive was so common during the 18th century that many inventors patented “safety coffins”
The mortality rate was so high during the 18th century that doctors weren’t always present to check that the patient was actually dead, many times the apparent lack of breathing or a pulse was enough confirmation, and many people ended up being buried alive. The problem got so bad that many inventors started to patent “safety coffins” that included a mechanism that allowed the occupant to signal that they had been buried alive.
Unexpectedly, WW2 marked a before and after in the history of women’s sports
With the entry of the US into World War II, several major league baseball executives started a new professional league with women players to keep baseball in the public eye while the majority of men were away. The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League was a professional women’s baseball league that existed from 1943 to 1954. It was the forerunner of women’s professional league sports in the United States, and its effects lasted long after it disbanded. The league created a change in the traditional occupation of women and opened doors to further athletic opportunities for women.
Super Glue was created by Kodak while trying to develop clear plastics that could form precision sight to the US Military guns in WW2
Super Glue was accidentally created by Kodak in 1942 while trying to develop clear plastics that could form precision sight to the US Military guns in WW2. On that occasion, the team unintentionally found a chemical compound that was incredibly sticky but it was 16 years later, in 1958, when Harry Coover, the team leader brought the discovery to the company’s attention. Superglue would become tremendously popular soon after, saving many lives during the Vietnam War, when soldiers would use it to seal wounds.
China’s foot-binding tradition had a great impact on the country’s disability rate
Footbinding was an ancient Chinese technique that consisted of breaking and tightly binding the feet of young girls to prevent them from growing or changing their shape and size. The practice was forbidden in 1912 but the long-term repercussions of this custom remain through time: According to a 1997 study, women with bound feet were more likely to fall and less able to stand up from a chair without assistance than women with normal feet. They also had 14.3% less functional reach and 5.1% lower hip bone density.
The tragic murder of a family in Kansas in 1959 inspired a new literary genre
With his groundbreaking novel, “In Cold Blood”, American journalist, Truman Capote, created an entirely new genre of literature called New Journalism. The non-fiction novel was published in 1966 and provided specific details of a true crime: the 1959 murder of four members of the Clutter family inside their farm in Holcomb, Kansas. To gather the information for his novel, Capote lived in Kansas for months and became intimate with the killers, Richard Hickock and Perry Smith, something that had never been done before that time.
The 1911 triangle shirtwaist factory fire was one of the deadliest in US history. However, it also led to many more rights for factory workers
Known as the worst industrial disaster in US history, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York City, on Saturday, March 25, 1911, caused the deaths of 146 garment workers – 123 women and girls and 23 men. On a brighter note, The State Commissions’s reports made after the incident helped modernize the state’s labor laws, making New York State one of the most progressive states in terms of labor reform. The laws mandated better building access and egress, fireproofing requirements, the availability of fire extinguishers, and the installation of alarm systems among other things.
Excentric millionaire Howard Hughes was Stan Lee’s inspiration to come up with Tony Stark Iron Man’s alter Ego
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Born in December 1905, Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist. Despite Hughes being a prominent film producer, and a figure in the aviation industry, he is mostly remembered in pop culture for the eccentric behavior he displayed later on in his life. However, comic creator Stan Lee decided to use Hughes’ better qualities to create Tony Stark, Ironman’s famous alter ego. Later on, in 2008, the Ironman franchise would be so successful that it would first piece on Marvel’s cinematic universe.
Every year, Norway gifts a Christmas tree to the people of Britain as a token of their gratitude for British support during WW2
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Every year Norway gifts Briaint with the famous Trafalgar Square Christmas tree as a token of gratitude for British support to Norway during the Second World War. The tradition began in 1942 when the first tree was during a raid on the Norwegian island called Hisøy. Hisøy Island is located on the west coast between Bergen and Haugesund. After it was cut down, the tree was then transported to England where the Norwegian King was in exile, and given to him as a gift.
The constant presence of a news ticker wasn’t a regular thing on TV until 9/11
The world was never the same after the horrific incidents of the morning of September 9th, 2001. Reality was forever transformed. And although this fact might seem minor compared to others, that was the day constant news tickers became a thing on TV: due to the gravity of the events FOX news introduce a constant news ticker that, before that day, had only been used to share important information regarding weather conditions or a sports event. Ever since then, tickers have been a thing on every news channel.
The French postal system led to King Louis XVI’s demise
On the night of June 21, 1791, Louis XVI and his family secretly left Paris, in a carriage bound for the border. When they had almost reached the finish line, they were recognized and arrested. Some people said that the reason why people were able to recognize the king was that a post office employee could tell his face looked a lot like the one on the stamps used on French correspondence.
After WW2, iNVENTOR PERCY sPENCER ACCIDENTALLY CREATED the microwave oven while looking for other uses for the magnetron of radar systems
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With the end of World War II, engineers were left looking for other uses for war technology, it was during this process that Percy Spencer came up with the idea of the microwave oven. Spencer was looking for other uses for the magnetron, which generated microwaves for radar systems. One day in 1949, he noticed that a chocolate bar had melted inside his pocket while he was standing next to the device and that is how he came up with the idea of the microwave oven.
The sinking of the Titanic in 1912 changed maritime law forever
After the catastrophic sinking of the Titanic in 1912, several acts and laws were passed to avoid another maritime disaster. For starters, and although it might seem crazy now, it was decided that ships should carry enough lifeboats for every passenger on the ship. Lifeboat drills and inspections were also deemed mandatory. Ship designs also started to change: after the Titanic. the ship’s bulkhead were made higher so water could not get in.
Swiss Chemist Albert Hofmann discovered LSD accidentally and changed the world forever
LSD was discovered by Swiss chemist Albert Hofmann in 1938. In search of new medicines, Hofmann unintentionally swallowed a small amount of LSD. He had the first-ever registered LSD trip. Through the decades, LSD’s popularity would grow exponentially, becoming and theme of undercurrent culture.
Without the 1986 movie “Howard the Duck” there might have been no Pixar
“Howard the Duck” was a 1986 movie starring the titular character as an intelligent alien transported to Earth. The project was taken on by executive producer George Lucas, who envisioned using his computer graphics via The Graphics Group, to create the graphics of the duck. The Graphics Group never got made, but that same year Lucas sold The Graphics Group to Steve Jobs. The company was renamed Pixar and, 9 years later it released Toy Story. The success of that film would then fuel the company’s rise.
Jennifer Aniston’s haircut becoming an international phenomenon during the mid-1990s, “The Rachel”
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After Jennifer Aniston’s character Rachel, showed up on the iconic sitcom “Friends” sporting a brand new haircut in April 1995, she revolutionized history forever. The haircut, which was first showcased on “The One With the Evil Orthodontist” was an instant success, and women from all over the country were requesting it from their hairstylist. Crazy, right?!
“Phone booth Stuffing” was the fad of the hour in the 1950s
Nobody knows where this originated, but back in the late 1950s, “Phone Booth Stuffing” was the fad of the hour amongst the youth. The trend, which consisted of fitting as many people as possible inside a tiny standard phone booth, was widely popular in South Africa, Britain, Canada, and the US. The world record is said to be held by a group of students in Durban, South Africa, who managed to fit 25 inside the phone booth on March 20, 1959.