Random Fact Sheet #43 – 40 Surprising and Strange Facts

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26Salvador Dali

Salvador Dali

When Salvador Dali was exhumed to determine whether a fortune teller is his biological daughter, his mustache was still perfectly intact.


27. When Parker Brothers tried to introduce a German version of Risk, the board game in which players try to dominate a map of the world, the German government threatened to ban it on the grounds that it might encourage imperialist and militaristic impulses in the nation’s youth.


28. Gerald Ford was subject to two assassination attempts, both by women (Sara Jane Moore and Lynette Fromme). Only two presidential assassination attempts were by women in US history.


29. In ancient Greece having a second toe that is longer than the big toe was considered a standard of beauty. This condition, today known as Greek Foot, is depicted in many famous statues, such as Michelangelo's David and the Statue of Liberty.


30. Richard Feynman's dying last words were "I'd hate to die twice. It's so boring."


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31Yellow line

Yellow line

In 1996, Fox tried to place a computerized blue halo around the pucks in hockey games to make them more visible. That technology later evolved into the yellow first down line in football.


32. Oceanographer Bob Ballard found the Titanic just days after completing a secret mission for the Navy. The secret mission's cover-story: Finding the Titanic.


33. The shortest correspondence in history was between Victor Hugo and his publisher in 1862. Inquiring about sales of Les Miserables Hugo telegraphed his publishers the single-character message "?". Having sold out the first print in 24hrs, the reply was “!"


34. The DeLorean in Back to the Future used a custom built speedometer that went up to 95mph. The normal speedometer only went up to 85mph due to a 1979 mandate signed by Jimmy Carter.


35. In 2015, a woman named Angela Kipp jumped from a moving car after seeing a spider on her shoulder. The 9-year-old passenger attempted to stop the car, hit the gas, and collided with a school bus.


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36Toolache Wallaby

Toolache Wallaby

During conservation efforts to save the critically endangered Toolache Wallaby, 10 of the last surviving members of the species were accidentally killed during efforts to capture them for a breeding program. The species is now extinct.


37. The first African-American whose name appeared on ballots as a candidate for President of the United States was Clennon King in 1960. He was called the Black Don Quixote for his efforts and was committed to an insane asylum in 1958 for applying to the University of Mississippi.


38. A broken piece of a spark plug (a.k.a. "ninja rocks") can be used to shatter a car window if thrown with minimum force.


39. People with Type O blood are bitten by mosquitos nearly twice as often as some other blood types.


40. Fabric softeners carry a warning not to use them on children's sleepwear but despite this, smiling happy babies feature heavily in its packaging and promotion.

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