Ripley Entertainment Inc.'s Blog, page 110
December 25, 2021
December 24, 2021
December 23, 2021
The Eggnog Riot Of 1826
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Today, West Point is associated with the best and most disciplined the United States Army has to offer. A little over 200 years ago, however, the military school enjoyed a decidedly different reputation. Colonel Sylvanus Thayer would prove instrumental in turning things around. But he may have gone a bit too far in the process, banning everything from parties to drinking and even reading novels.
Because of his strict anti-drinking policies, the cadets of West Point endured the biggest celebration in the nation’s history, its 50th anniversary on July 4, 1826, without any spirits. To say the soldiers were jonesing for a party proved to be the understatement of the year.
So, it’s little wonder they were determined to celebrate Christmas in a big way during what would become known as the 1826 Eggnog Riot.
Preparing for an Eggnog Party Like None OtherAs the countdown to Christmas moved forward, some students quietly snuck in the makings for an epic party. They stockpiled gallons of rum, brandy, wine, and whiskey, which they would combine with homemade eggnog for a stiff and merry concoction. Three students even risked detection by crossing the Hudson River to buy hard spirits from a tavern located on the opposite riverbank.
Painting of U.S. Military Academy superintendent Sylvanus Thayer by Robert Walter Weir
Despite the stock up on booze, Christmas Eve appeared to go smoothly and quietly (via New York Upstate). Captain Ethan Allen Hitchcock, an officer assigned to monitor the North Barracks, turned into bed, assuming Colonel Thayer’s warnings the students might throw a traditional Christmas drinking party had proven unfounded. But as the academy’s superintendent, Thayer knew a thing or two about Christmas at the Academy.
The Party That Couldn’t Be ContainedWhile Hitchcock snoozed, West Point’s cadets partied in the North Barracks. The partygoers included Jefferson Davis, who would go on to be the president of the Confederacy during the Civil War (via Smithsonian Magazine). Among the early participants at the party, Davis stayed as the crowd swelled in size. By 4 a.m., the noise from the festivities spiraled out of control, rousing Hitchcock.
North front of barracks, West Point, N.Y
After wandering the hallways searching for the source of the noise, he found a group of very drunk cadets and read to them the Riot Act. This act rendered gatherings of 12 or more people as unlawful assemblies.
But instead of scaring the cadets with this harsh clampdown, Hitchcock infuriated them. Soon, students wreaked havoc on the place, throwing rocks through the windows of Hitchcock’s room and covering his door with sticks of wood. Others rampaged through the hallways carrying bayonets, muskets, and swords. One of the students took it next-level, actually shooting at Hitchcock as he tried to break in a door. The violence wouldn’t subside until the following day with a 6:05 a.m. reveille.
A Hangover Like None OtherOn Christmas morning, it became quickly apparent which cadets embraced the debauchery from the night before. While students from the South Barracks gathered, sober and well-rested, many of the cadets from the North Barracks looked and felt terrible. What’s more, the North Barracks remained in disarray with broken windows, destroyed furniture, and banisters torn from stairways.
As the morning progressed, school officials determined that roughly one-third of West Point’s 260 cadets had partied the night away. Of these students, the 22 worst offenders, including Jefferson Davis, faced house arrest on December 26. Court-martials would follow, with 19 troops and one soldier facing punishment.
Surprisingly, Davis wasn’t among those court-martialed. Some historians believe this is because he complied quickly with Hitchcock’s orders and didn’t indulge in the most egregious aspects of the rioting. All 19 cadets were found guilty and faced dismissal, although eight would receive clemency and five eventually graduated. What’s more, 53 students faced lesser consequences, which likely made them think twice before dipping into the eggnog again.
By Engrid Barnett, contributor for Ripleys.com
EXPLORE THE ODD IN PERSON! Discover hundreds of strange and unusual artifacts and get hands-on with unbelievable interactives when you visit a Ripley’s Odditorium!Source: The Eggnog Riot Of 1826
December 22, 2021
Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Officially Opens In Cancun, Mexico
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The newest stop for family fun across the globe has officially opened its doors – welcome, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Cancun! Located in La Isla Mall, guests can explore 11 immersive galleries packed with over 400 wonders, including brand-new interactives, photo ops, and artifacts from around the world.
As you step inside, you’ll meet the world’s tallest man who ever lived, Robert Wadlow! See how you measure up to his astounding heights of 8’11”, and get up close and personal with his size 37AA shoe!
Challenge your reality with mind-bending optical illusions and snap your photo to prove that seeing is believing in the Ames room.
And admire odd art, like a portrait of rapper Nicki Minaj crafted with 8,950 lipstick tubes!
Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odditorium is the final addition to the Ripley’s Attraction trifecta at La Isla. After your day exploring far-off places and unusual artifacts at Ripley’s Odditorium, get lost inside Ripley’s Marvelous Mirror Maze and dip and dodge your way through Ripley’s LaseRace!
If a trip to Mexico isn’t in the cards at the moment, not to fret: Ripley’s has hundreds of other fan-favorite Attractions across the globe! Plan a trip the whole family will enjoy using the button below.
EXPLORE THE ODD IN PERSON! Discover hundreds of strange and unusual artifacts and get hands-on with unbelievable interactives when you visit a Ripley’s Odditorium!Source: Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Officially Opens In Cancun, Mexico
Hoss The Hairball Joins The Ranks Of Weirdest New Year’s Eve Ball Drops!
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
How do you ring in the New Year? The momentous evening typically looks a little like this: a champagne toast, a midnight kiss, and Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve special in the background, muffled by loud music and cheers. And each year, we find ourselves tuning in for those final five seconds where the 12-foot-diameter glass ball drops in the middle of Times Square, signifying the start of a clean slate, resolutions, and a brand-new year.
But some folks aren’t watching a dazzling, gigantic, glass ball slowly descend from the tops of the NYC skyline – some take the quirky countdown tradition and make it their own. From a flea to a pickle to a taxidermied opossum, we’ve rounded up some of the most outlandish New Year’s Eve drops to date and added our own Ripley’s stamp on what’s to come!
Before we kick off this strange list of countdowns across the country, turn on your reminders for our Hoss the Human Hairball Drop this New Year’s Eve, December 31, on Facebook Live at 11:55 p.m. EST.
A Taxidermy Opossum: Tallapoosa, GAIn a town once dubbed “Possum Snout,” Tallapoosa locals celebrate the New Year with a special stuffed opossum named Spencer. He was found on the side of the road by a taxidermist from the area named Bud Jones who decided to take the opossum back home to preserve his being.
Back in the early 2000s, a group gathered for the first annual Spencer “drop.” He was placed in a wireframe ball, decked out in white Christmas lights, atop one of the tallest buildings in town. At first, Spencer’s drop occurred every other year, but as he continued to take the town by storm, the spectacle grew into an annual NYE tradition. And of course, in true New Year’s Eve event fashion, they also provide drinks, food, and music to go along with the experience. Attendees even name a Possum King and Queen – run, don’t walk, to get your name on the ballot and see Spencer in action. It’s a world of opossum-bilities in Tallapoosa on December 31.
A Wedge of Cheese: Plymouth, WIAmerica’s Dairyland does New Year’s Eve in the most delicious fashion. In Plymouth, Wisconsin, “the cheese capital of the world” and home of Sartori cheese, community members celebrate with the annual Sartori Big Cheese Drop. This year’s drop will be the 15th year that the town has lowered a massive wedge of Sartori’s world award-winning BellaVitano® Gold cheese, lined in festive lights. This spectacle typically draws in thousands of Wisconsinites as they eat, drink, and be merry while watching giant cheese fall from the sky.
A Ceramic Flea: Eastover, NCWe’re buggin’ out over this drop. Eastover, North Carolina, is (unfortunately) known for its previous flea infestation. Though it was eradicated years ago, the town has since been referred to as Flea Hill. Fortunately, though, they’ve learned to have a little fun with this nickname, thanks to their flea friend, Jasper. Jasper is no ordinary flea – he’s a 3-foot-tall, 30-pound flea constructed from a mix of fabric, foam, wire, and wood protected in a ceramic shell. He’s been dropped at midnight on New Year’s Eve since 2010, and it doesn’t seem like the town has plans of stopping anytime soon.
A Drag Queen in a High Heel: Key West, FLIf you’re in the market for an extravagant New Year’s Eve celebration, head to the Bourbon St. Pub/New Orleans House in Key West, Florida. Every year, famous drag queen Sushi is lowered from the upper balcony of the venue sporting a glitzy festive ‘fit and sitting in a massive red high-heel shoe. Sushi designs every New Year’s Eve costume from scratch, and the adoring crowd gathers to cheer her on and listen to local performers and guest stars. The venue offers VIP tickets to view from the balcony for those who prefer a front-row seat!
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A Car-Sized Foam Potato: Boise, IDIf you’ve never seen a car-sized potato made of foam, there’s one place you’ll find such a thing – the potato state itself, Idaho. This family-friendly New Year’s Eve celebration welcomes Idaho natives of all ages to join in their spud-tacular drop. The carefully constructed potato is lowered from a crane precisely at midnight. A tradition that began in 2013 continues to go strong. In 2017, the potato even had a “glow up” – literally. Illumination was added to the giant foodie favorite, which the folks in Boise quickly termed the “GlowTato.” Honestly, how perfect is that?
A Human: Las Vegas, NVYou know what they say: what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. To welcome 2021 in the most thrilling way possible, The STRAT Hotel, Casino & SkyPod in Las Vegas, Nevada, held a sweepstakes where the lucky winner literally became the Las Vegas “human ball drop.” Yes, you heard that right. One daring individual took the plunge nearly 855 feet in the air above the Las Vegas strip to close out 365 days of 2020. The STRAT Hotel is home to adrenaline-pumping thrill rides and the infamous SkyJump attraction, which is where the history-making human ball drop took place (safely and using bungees).
A Pickle: Mount Olive, NCPickle lovers know that any event related to their favorite jarred, juicy snack is a must-go, which makes the New Year’s Eve pickle drop in Mount Olive, North Carolina, a crowd favorite. A group of fellow pickle fanatics gathers to listen to live music and watch the giant Mt. Olive pickle lower swiftly to the ground. The live drop is followed by fireworks and of course, some more jams. It’s kind of a big dill!
A Giant PEEP: Bethlehem, PAWho’s ready for one of the sweetest drops yet? Home of the ultimate sugary treat, PEEPS®, the city of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, gathers on December 31 to countdown the New Year. During this event, they lower a 400-pound, 5-foot yellow marshmallow PEEPS chick at the iconic SteelStacks location. If you’re a candy aficionado, this is the New Year’s Eve drop to add to your bucket list!
Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Hoss the Human Hairball: Orlando, FLView this post on Instagram
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Hoss the Human Hairball has officially broken the Guinness World Records™ title for the Largest Ball of Human Hair by a whopping 55 pounds!
Ripley’s Shave the Beard and Make it Weird challenge was launched at the 2021 International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions Expo in Orlando, Florida. It not only helped increase Hoss’ size but also raised funds for Give Kids The World Village, an 89-acre, whimsical nonprofit in Central Florida that helps critically ill children and their families with magical weeklong wish vacations at no cost.
To commemorate the New Year and celebrate Hoss’ astounding size and record-breaking title, we will be dropping Hoss from the heights of the Ripley’s Warehouse! Don’t miss the first-ever Hoss the Hairball drop via Facebook Live on Friday, December 31, starting just before the clock strikes midnight at 11:55 p.m. EST!
By Sam McCormack, contributor for Ripleys.com
EXPLORE THE ODD IN PERSON! Discover hundreds of strange and unusual artifacts and get hands-on with unbelievable interactives when you visit a Ripley’s Odditorium!Source: Hoss The Hairball Joins The Ranks Of Weirdest New Year’s Eve Ball Drops!
Sweet Sculptures: Movie-Inspired Gingerbread Art
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
‘Tis the Season for sweets and treats, especially gingerbread cookies piled high with icing and loads of colorful sprinkles and candies. If you’ve got a family recipe you swear by, then perhaps you’re an “amateur expert” when it comes to assembling cookie couples and castles. However, trying to piece together simple gingerbread house scenes can feel mighty complicated for the rest of us!
But for an artist like Caroline Eriksson of Norway, gingerbread sculpting has gone next-level. Instead of adorable Christmas decorations, she uses gingerbread to sculpt veritable masterpieces, both naughty and nice. Check out some of her most ambitious works to date.
The Queen of Gingerbread NightmaresEriksson first started crafting artwork from gingerbread cookies in 2013. Since then, the artist has created a steady stream of ambitious works evocative of movie magic. Her cookie creations typically take five weeks to complete, although the projects keep expanding in scope. These represent a far cry from the traditional gingerbread houses she made as a child with her family. But even back then, Eriksson remembers wondering what she could really do with gingerbread. The results in adulthood have proven jaw-dropping.
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It all began with a massive Optimus Prime that she made based on the Transformers movie for a gingerbread competition in 2013. She watched the movie for ideas and soon developed a strategy for designing the Transformer using simple inner forms to create the foundational structure. Then, she added layers to these basic structures, building details and embellishing the work. After securing first place with her artwork, the Optimus Prime cookie went viral in magazines and online, marking the beginning of a sweet career.
Eriksson’s Gingerbread RenaissanceEriksson starts by choosing a subject for her gingerbread artwork and designing a 1:1 sketch that she references throughout the process. She uses this sketch to develop a wire structure that acts as the foundational support for the sculpture. This wire structure also helps her judge the proportions of the piece. From there, she begins layering gingerbread pieces onto the frame, using strategically placed melted sugar to hold it all together. But if you assume Eriksson relies on store-bought gingerbread, think again.
She bakes all of her own pieces, ensuring the material has the right texture and stiffness for each cinematic project. This also allows her to cut pieces with exacting care. The confectioner estimates each gingerbread project requires about 15 pounds of flour and 11 packs of sugar to complete.
Art Transcends GingerbreadBesides Optimus Prime, Eriksson has engineered other ambitious and inspiring pieces. These include elaborate subjects such as Smaug the Dragon from The Hobbit and the Xenomorph from Alien. She’s also garnered plenty of attention for her arresting depictions of Darth Vader from Stars Wars and her life-sized rendition of Groot from Guardians of the Galaxy.
Although she whips up these incredible pieces in a mixing bowl, the finished products contain painstaking details and compelling textures. Her rigorous dedication to the process has ensured a steadily growing audience of fans obsessed with her attention to every scale, piece of armor, or spike in the recreation of movie fan favorites. One thing’s for sure: you’ll never look at Yuletide cookies the same way after getting a gander at her frightening and highly detailed Sci-Fi-inspired creations.
TAKE YOUR OWN STEP OUT OF THE BOX!Challenge yourself to get a little weird, try new things, and step out of your comfort zone with inspiration from Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Out of the Box, available now on Amazon and at most major retailers.
By Engrid Barnett, contributor for Ripleys.com
STEP OUTSIDE OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE Experience the stories of adventurers near and far, from a three-year-old mountain climber to hair-hangers and acrobats. Leave inspired by unbelievable talents, breathtaking bucket list-worthy locations, and curious discoveries, all from people just like you as you uncover the pages of Ripley’s newest annual book!
December 21, 2021
Newly Discovered Millipede First To Actually Have 1,000 Legs
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The name “millipede” literally means “a thousand feet.” But truth be told, these creatures have never lived up to the claim; most millipedes are lucky to have a few hundred legs at most. That is, until the recent discovery of a new species known as Eumillipes Persephone, which is rewriting what we know about these segmented bugs and shattering records along the way.
Here’s what you need to know about this incredible find, which scientists have officially named the leggiest creature in the animal kingdom.
The Leggiest Critter in the Animal KingdomBefore the discovery of Eumillipes persephone, the millipede record-holder for the most legs was the Illacme plenipes. This species exists in the depths of the Earth, sporting on average 750 legs — despite only growing to be about an inch long. While keeping those legs in synch is no easy feat, the number of appendages still falls well short of the thousand-leg claim millipedes make with their name.
The previous record-holder for most legs, Illacme plenipes. Credit: Marek, P.; Shear, W.; Bond, J. (2012) (CC BY 3.0)
So, scientists were astonished and delighted to find a new species that finally lives up to the hype, boasting a whopping 330 segments and 1,306 legs. The insect is named for Zeus’s daughter, Persephone, who spent half of each year living in the underworld with her husband, Hades. Fittingly, the insect spends its life living hundreds of feet below ground.
Meet Eumillipes persephoneEumillipes persephone has a cone-shaped head and relies on a beak to nosh on fungi. The eyeless creature uses relatively massive antennae to navigate the pure darkness of its subterranean home, where pheromones provide its only road maps. Scientists believe the incredible collection of legs these creatures amass bears witness to extremely long-lived existences. That said, they tend to curl up like watch springs in the wild, making their segments and legs difficult to eyeball.
Like other millipedes, Eumillipes persephones grow steadily throughout their lives, adding new segments as long as they live. These segments can be tallied like the rings of a tree to determine the age of individuals within the species. As a result, the specimens within the species each contain a different number of legs and segments.
The cone-shaped, eyeless head of Eumillipes persephone. Credit: Paul Marek, et al. 2021 (CC BY 4.0)
Record-Breaking Millipede Astonishes ScientistsPaul Marek, an entomologist at Virginia Tech University and lead researcher on the study, said he examined four samples from the species. They included two males and two females, and their limb numbers diverged significantly. The shortest of the critters had little more than 198 segments and 778 legs.
But Marek also examined the record-shattering female with the 1,000+ legs. These millipedes live on average between five and ten years, whereas most millipedes last for little more than two years. Clearly, the extended lifespan results in plenty of extra leg-growing time.
The Goldfields Hold the AnswersIf you’re hoping to find these creepy crawlies in your backyard, think again. The millipedes live roughly 200 feet beneath the surface of the Earth in a region of Western Australia called the Goldfields. The area has long been a vital mineral extraction site.
Mining companies bore narrow, deep holes in the Goldfields in a quest for cobalt and nickel, abandoning the extraction holes that don’t yield any minerals. Recognizing the abandoned holes as opportunities, scientists now study them, a practice which has yielded the leggiest species on the planet. This discovery goes to show you there’s a whole world of biodiversity just waiting to be discovered.
By Engrid Barnett, contributor for Ripleys.com
EXPLORE THE ODD IN PERSON! Discover hundreds of strange and unusual artifacts and get hands-on with unbelievable interactives when you visit a Ripley’s Odditorium!Source: Newly Discovered Millipede First To Actually Have 1,000 Legs
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