Ripley Entertainment Inc.'s Blog, page 250
September 18, 2019
September 17, 2019
Transforming Trash Into Couture Fashion
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Trashy Fashion
After a successful Texas launch in 2018, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Grand Prairie announced that the popular “Ripley’s Trashy Fashion Show” would return in 2019. While the world’s top designers showcased their new lines during New York’s famous Fashion Week (September 5-13th, 2019), promising designers in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, Texas, areas took the stage, displaying their talent by transforming trash and recycled materials into wearable art.
Many attended this special event to see just what these fashionistas conjured up! Ripley’s judged based on creative use of materials, the model’s runway walk, garment mobility, and overall design.
Believe It or Not! the 16 incredible entries used everything from plastic wrap to bottle caps.
Winners of Trashy Fashion 2019
This year’s Grand Prairie winner is no other than Ikenndra Oliobi, who also won first place in Ripley’s 2018 Trashy Fashion Show.
This year, her entry, once again, swept everyone off their feet with a mermaid silhouette gown made entirely of Haggar Direct plastic shopping bags. The dress took Oliobi more than 100 hours to create.
Last year she created a party dress from silver Diet Pepsi cans, muslin fabric, eyelets, plastic, glue, and shoelaces that won over the judges and audience.
Oliobi fell in love with fashion at the age of 7, inspired by the late singer Selena’s style. At that young age, she wrote to the Art Institute of Dallas to let them know she would be there one day. Oliobi has since graduated and landed her dream job in development with Haggar Menswear. She plans on using her winnings to fund a new startup handbag collection and aspires to grow into a full-fledged apparel company in the future.
The first runner-up was Belsy Rayo, who received a $500 cash prize. Her design was a gown made out of plastic wrap, bottle caps, magazines, and plastic bags. The intricate headpiece was made out of pastel-colored plastic drinking straws detailed with clear bead strings.
The second runner-up won a $250 cash prize. Two contestants received the same score, leaving a tie for this title. Contestant Jenn Yoo with her two-piece co-ord outfit from trash bags, shower curtains, rope and safety pins and contestant Donnesha Watson with her peplum-style dress from paper bags, bubble wrap, and bottle caps were both third-place winners.
Which is your favorite “trashy” outfit in this year’s show? Let us know in the comments below!
Who Really Cut Off Van Gogh’s Ear? – Ripley’s Believe It or Notcast Episode 015
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
It’s common knowledge that Vincent van Gogh cut off his ear, but what scholars are still trying to piece together is why the Dutch artist was driven to such a desperate act and whether he was the one who actually did it.
This week, we look into the theory that fellow artist Paul Gauguin cut off van Gogh’s ear with a sword, and whether a letter from his brother led to a mental breakdown.
For more weird news and strange stories, visit our homepage, and be sure to rate and share this episode of the Notcast!
Source: Who Really Cut Off Van Gogh’s Ear? – Ripley’s Believe It or Notcast Episode 015
September 16, 2019
Crushing It with Can Artist Noah Deledda
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Using only his fingertips, artist Noah Deledda of Tampa, Florida, takes trash and turns it into a true treasure. Converting typical aluminum cans into geometric art, Deledda’s work has sold for upwards of $2,000 a pop.
Deledda’s creative process stems from using his hands to create dents and grooves in a shiny aluminum finish, turning regular soda cans into delicate sculptures. He says this action elevates an item we’d normally throw away, but he also wants to show people how art can turn a discarded object into something extraordinary.
His blank canvas begins with a simple beverage purchase; it is stripped of it’s painted exterior using a special acid wash, leaving a shiny silver face for his sculptures.
His can-do attitude is the driving force behind this beautiful artwork. Pressing inch-by-inch into the exterior of a metal can is no easy feat. The painstaking process takes time, patience, and much-needed breaks. Deledda has been caught up in creative waves quite a few times leading to nerve damage in his fingertips; a true testament to the phrase, “beauty is pain.”
You can find Noah’s can art inside this year’s annual book, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Beyond the Bizarre!
America’s Favorite Pastime: Live Train Crashing
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
On September 15, 1896, two locomotives hurtled at full speed into one another, 14 miles north of Waco, Texas. Their boilers exploded on impact, a wild cascade of wreckage tossed hundreds of yards in every direction. One bolt shot from the crash into the eye of an onlooker, and at least two others died from the ensuing hailstorm of jagged metal. Airborne shards of machinery disfigured countless other individuals.
But, the estimated 40,000 spectators took this in stride. Not only had they paid admission to witness the event, but they weren’t about to let the risk of death or dismemberment get in the way of a little fun. Almost from the moment the cacophony of the destroyed trains died down, the crowd charged headlong into the fray, scavenging for souvenirs amidst the sizzling wreckage.
The trains hitting nose-to-nose and exploding on impact.
Believe It or Not, well before demolition derbies, live train crashing enjoyed a lengthy “moment” in America. Here’s the story behind the mayhem.
Paving the Way for the “Crash at Crush”
From 1896 until the 1930s, staged train wrecks enjoyed wild—albeit destructive—popularity. The forerunner of today’s monster truck rallies, train crashes drew tens of thousands of fans to festivals and fairs across the nation where they paid a couple of bucks to witness each main event.
The Waco crash was spearheaded by William George Crush, a passenger agent for the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad (a.k.a. the MK&T or Katy). But, Crush wasn’t the first man to give this marketing ploy a try. Earlier that year, Ohio resident A.L. Streeter organized the first live train crashing event. It was later described as “the most realistic and expensive spectacle ever produced for the amusement of the American audience.”
Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad Depot
Crowds proved so enamored with Streeter’s event that six more were quickly organized, including the Texas “Crash at Crush.” To prepare for the event, MK&T laborers created a makeshift “city for a day” 15 miles north of Waco, humbly named after Crush himself.
A “City for a Day”
No expense was spared to accommodate the multitude of attendees. Event organizers drilled two wells, ran pipes for spigots, brought in tanks of artesian mineral water, and set up lemonade stands. They also constructed a temporary restaurant using a tent borrowed from Crush’s friend, P.T. Barnum.
Taking inspiration from the 1893 World’s Fair, they erected a row of carnival games and sideshows like Chicago’s Midway Plaisance. The temporary construction was topped off by a 2,100-foot station platform for onlookers and a wooden jail for would-be pickpockets and trouble makers.
Many researchers believe famed Texas musician Scott Joplin attended the event because he later immortalized it in his ragtime song, “The Great Crush Collision March.”
Catastrophic Earnings
Gilded Age America was coming off a major economic downturn, and it was hoped this publicity stunt would earn the MK&T more diehard fans. Money was made by selling $2 roundtrip train tickets to the event, as well as from the games, food, and beverages at Crush.
Even though the railroad industry dominated late-19th-century America, this came with plenty of competition. The MK&T was growing, but it needed to find ways to stay on top. Inexplicably, destroying two of its locomotives in front of the general public seemed like a good way to promote riding the line.
Considering the 19th-century fascination with bare-knuckling boxing, bear and dog fights, and public executions, maybe what followed shouldn’t come as a surprise. Passengers rode the MK&T from every corner of Texas to get in on the action. All told, 40,000 spectators filled Crush that day, making it the second-largest city in Texas.
A Heavy Metal Collision
The track at Crush measured three miles long. On one end sat engine No. 999, a 35-ton locomotive painted bright green with red trim for the event. On the other end was engine No. 1001 painted scarlet with green trim. It also measured a whopping 35 tons. Attached to each locomotive were six boxcars for added measure.
The moment of impact of the train crash show at Crush, Texas on September 15, 1896.
The so-called “duel of iron monsters” was ready to begin.
Two conductors, no doubt with guts of steel, volunteered to drive the locomotives into one another. It was their job to get the trains going at full throttle before jumping off. There was little margin for error.
All told, the trains hit at nearly 50 mph with an initial impact of between one and two million pounds of pressure. And, the boxcars added a second wave of impact.
Time-Preserved Destruction
A collection of still photographs from the event capture the eerie moment when the trains’ noses touched before disappearing into one another, a heap of twisted metal, smoke, and chaos. Despite pre-event reassurances from the MK&T’s engineers, the boilers exploded on impact sending debris in every direction.
The trains facing off for the spectacle in the pop-up town of Crush, Texas.
Countless eyewitnesses decried a terrifying post-crash scene. One Confederate war veteran described it as “more frightening than Pickett’s Charge” at Gettysburg.
We know at least two people died from flying debris; one man lost an eye and ended up with bolts and screws lodged in his head. No one knows how many more were disfigured and burned, especially as they scrambled atop the searing wreckage to collect souvenirs.
One thing’s for sure, nobody appreciated the gravity of the spectacle unfolding before their eyes.
The Aftermath of Crush
Some scholars argue that since steam power and train travel were such recent inventions, it would have been easy for people to underestimate their destructive capabilities. Crush certainly changed all that.
William George Crush was immediately fired by the MK&T but would be rehired the next day once the railroad company realized what a “smashing” success the publicity stunt was. Instead of dwelling on casualties, the media lauded its organizers and created a thirst for future events.
While the appeal of watching train wrecks live waned in the 1930s, movies like Unstoppable (2010) continue to play on our grim fascination with humanmade disasters. But, nothing will ever compare to the outrageous chaos of the “Collision at Crush.”
By Engrid Barnett, contributor for Ripleys.com
September 15, 2019
September 14, 2019
September 13, 2019
Friday the 13th’s Spooky Micro Moon
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
This Week
[September 8-14, 2019] A spooky micro moon, “Double Dave” the two-headed snake, and the rest of the week’s weird news from Ripley’s Believe It or Not!
Full Moon on Friday the 13th
As if a full moon on Friday the 13th isn’t spooky enough, tonight’s moon will also be a “micro moon.”
A micro moon occurs when a full moon coincides with apogee—the point in the Moon’s orbit farthest away from earth. The Moon will look a bit dimmer than usual, giving it that spooky, Friday the 13th vibe. This also means that the Moon will appear about 14% smaller and 30% dimmer than when it is at its closest point to Earth, which is known as perigee.
If you’re hoping to catch a glimpse of this spectacle, Central, Mountain, and Pacific time zones can see the eerie full moon tonight (Sept. 13) at 11:32 p.m., 10:32 p.m. and 9:32 p.m., respectively. East Coasters will have to wait until the 14th to see the Moon at its fullest—12:32 a.m.
Palindrome Week
9/10/19 to 9/19/19 is known as Palindrome Week. This means that each day’s date, if delivered in American numerical format, can be read the same forward and backward. There’s been a Palindrome Week every year since 2011, but the next time this neat number game appears won’t be until 2021.
It’s #PalindromeWeek (the last one this century)! For the next 10 days, every day reads the same forward and backward:
9-10-19 (91019)
9-11-19 (91119)
9-12-19 (91219)
9-13-19 (91319)
9-14-19 (91419)
9-15-19 (91519)
9-16-19 (91619)
9-17-19 (91719)
9-18-19 (91819)
9-19-19 (91919) pic.twitter.com/bozcFqeoSL
— PA Department of Education (@PADeptofEd) September 10, 2019
2019 Comedy Wildlife Photography Award Finalists
These hilariously-timed photographs are a part of this year’s Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards. Through the mix of luck, technical skill, and patience, photographers were able to capture some perfectly-poised shots of animals in the wild. Finalists have recently been unveiled, and final winners will be announced on November 13th. Winners will receive a trophy and a chance to join a weeklong safari in Kenya. Check out the entire gallery for more perfect photo moments of the adorable finalists.
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