Ripley Entertainment Inc.'s Blog, page 302
December 10, 2018
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December 7, 2018
Harp Seals Keep Getting Eels Stuck Up Their Noses
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
[December 2-8th, 2018] Thigh-highs are timeless, a robotic accident, white reindeer, and some silly seals.
Snowball Fights Legalized
Thanks to the efforts of a nine-year-old Dane Best of Colorado, one town’s ban on a beloved Christmas tradition has come to an end. The town of Severance banned throwing rocks or missile of any kind about a century ago. Best, however, fought for his right to bear snowballs in front of the town board, eventually winning a full overturn of the snow fight ban for himself and his fellow townsfolk.
Robot Puts 24 Amazon Workers In Hospital
An estimated 30 Amazon employees were treated for blindness and restricted breathing in New Jersey after a fulfillment center robot seems to have accidentally burst a can of bear spray. The spray, which is a super-concentrated form of pepper spray meant to deter bears sent 24 workers to the hospital, with one in critical condition. Thankfully, however, all are expected to be released soon.
Skeleton in Thigh-Highs
Believe it or not, thigh-high boots were also a winter fashion item 500 years ago. Archaeologists surveying the River Thames found a skeleton from the 15th century. Scientists suspect he met an untimely end, as it’s unlikely he would have been buried in such an expensive pair of footwear at the time. To keep his feet warm and dry, they even found bits of moss stuffed into the soles.
Rare White Deer
As Mads Nordsveen walked through the snow in northern Norway, he spotted an incredibly rare white reindeer walking in the mountains. The creature walked up, posed for a few photos, then hopped away. Though not an albino, reindeer with stripped pigment are considered omens of good luck in Scandinavia.
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Eels In Seals’ Noses
Scientists in the Hawaiian Monk Seal Program thought they had a truly unique experience earlier this year pulling a two-foot-long eel from the nose of a juvenile monk seal. Little did they know the species would be facing an epidemic of comical facial features. Researchers aren’t sure why this keeps happening, but chalk it up to youngsters just getting into trouble.
Ancient Roman Gladiators VS Professional Wrestlers
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
If there’s one thing even those with zero interest in history know about Ancient Rome, it’s that they had a real flair for all things decadent. Showing off power, wealth and accomplishment, that’s what it was all about. Their buildings were the tallest, their empire the biggest, their Emperor the richest, their shows the most brutal. Those fabled arena battles continue to captivate us, centuries later.
Gladiators are, you could say, the most beloved ‘celebrity’ warriors the world has ever seen. Many of those who met grim ends in front of the baying crowd were condemned criminals, but the top gladiators? They were there voluntarily. For the thrill, the sport, for fame and fortune.
Did they actually throw swords onto tables in the audience, howl “are you not entertained?” and then give the smarmy emperor a sound beating before keeling over themselves, as Russell Crowe did in Gladiator? Well, no, but one thing’s for certain: they were deadly showmen. Not unlike today’s professional wrestlers, all told.
Now there’s an interesting question. Who would come out on top, gladiators or today’s wrestlers? To answer that, we’ve got to take a closer look at how they fought, how they lived and how they died.
Round One: Who Were The Bigger Celebrities?
In the days of Ancient Rome, of course, not all of those who fought in the ring were gladiators. Some of them didn’t fight at all but were condemned merely to die theatrically, dramatically and bloodily for the crowd’s enjoyment. They tended to be the lowest of the low, outside of the protection of the law, essentially considered sub-human.
“Gladiators in Rome were regarded as fundamentally untrustworthy and outside of legal protection. It is more useful to think of gladiators as prisoners on death row than as David Beckham with a net and trident,” as The Conversation put it. That was the case for the majority of gladiators, certainly, but those who continued to excel–and survive—could even become (as PBS put it) “the movie stars of the first century.”
The Syrian slave Flamma certainly lived up to that reputation. A particularly beloved gladiator would be offered a rudis, a small wooden sword that indicated their freedom. Flamma was offered the rudis on four separate occasions, but turned it down each time preferring to fight on. He was held in such high regard that his face appeared on a Roman coin!
A true superstar, he died at the age of 30. Proving that a select few gladiators were considered true heroes and buried with honor, his gravestone in Sicily reads, “Flamma, secutor, lived 30 years, fought 34 times, won 21 times, fought to a draw 9 times, defeated 4 times
a Syrian by nationality… “Delicatus made this for his deserving comrade-in-arms.”
The professional wrestlers of the first century, meanwhile, doesn’t have quite the same ring to it. As far as sports go, wrestlers are never quite up there on the A-list of celebrity athletes (wrestling fans may beg to differ). These days, true celebrity wrestlers make their names by expanding beyond wrestling itself. Think Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s acting career, John Cena’s rise to meme stardom and… Hulk Hogan’s hilariously awful Honey Nut Cheerios commercial.
Still, with the cult of celebrity being what it is these days, it’s not hard to become famous. Only the very cream of the crop earned that distinction in the arena. Who wins this round? I suppose it depends on whether you favor quality or quantity, in terms of fame.
Round Two: Who Were The Bravest?
So, round one didn’t really bring us any conclusive evidence. Let’s move on to round two, then: who would win out in a show of force?
In terms of weapons, it’s probably a safe bet that the gladiators would come out on top. If you’ve delved a little deeper into the gladiators of Ancient Rome, you’ll know that they came in a variety of deadly flavors. Classes included the Retiarii, who fought with a net and trident, and the Murmillo, who wielded a sword and shield. Some were heavily armed, while others eschewed heavy armor to be light and agile.
Funnily enough, professional wrestlers don’t tend to have the luxury of bringing deadly weapons into the ring. They all tend to have their own signature moves, which are as theatrical and painful looking as you’d expect, but other than that… oh wait, there was that time that Triple H fought with a sledgehammer, Jeff Jarrett brandished an acoustic guitar and Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts fought with the aid of his snakes! In the name of putting on a show, heel wrestlers have used all kinds of dangerous foreign objects in a match.
Professional wrestling is sometimes dismissed as ‘fake,’ but the dangers are truly, horribly real. In the sad case of Perro Aguayo Jr, for instance, a tag team match in Tijuana, Mexico in 2015 ended in tragedy. A dropkick from Rey Mysterio sent him neck-first into the ropes. The awkward angle saw the unfortunate luchador die within moments.
In another famous case, Owen Hart lost his life in 1999, during the Over The Edge pay-per-view event in Kansas City. He was being lowered into the ring from the rafters to make a dramatic entrance when the quick-release mechanism on his harness (he was to ‘accidentally’ fall face first into the ring from a safe height, to give the audience a laugh) seemed to activate early. He fell almost 80ft into the ring, dying soon afterward.
In the case of the gladiators, fighters of true quality were often so expensive that their shocking ends were accidents at times, too. Both sets of performers would ‘stage’ combat at times, but it was still super dangerous for everybody concerned. Again, it’s hard to pick a winner between the two, especially when you factor in the point that the gladiators (whose fights were supposedly to the death) often weren’t there by choice, to begin with.
Round Three: Who Would Ultimately Prevail?
So, yes. As we’ve seen, in a snarky battle of professional wrestler versus gladiator, there’s little to choose between them. Both have the potential to be quite glamorous Walk of Fame stars in their own times, and both are certainly master showboaters. They’re also probably about equal in the fitness and strength front, too, with the elite training involved in their respective careers.
When it comes right down to it, though, professional wrestlers aren’t really setting snakes on each other or suplexing each other’s spinal cords into 6000 tiny shattered pieces. Because of the very nature of wrestling and the absurd situations that the combatants can get into, some things are for show. The debate as to how far wrestling is a sport and how far it’s purely entertainment, as How Stuff Works explains, still goes on.
By comparison, the grisly spectacles that took place in the Roman arena were usually for real. Wild animals, criminals, gladiators, all bled and died there (the word ‘arena’ is actually Latin for sand, which was needed in copious amounts on account of all of the blood). At some celebratory games, the bloodshed went on for days on end.
Such was the brutality of the arena, even faking your death wouldn’t help you. A man dressed as Charon, the Underworld Ferryman, would pass among the injured or supposedly dead and smash their skulls with a huge hammer. Just to be sure.
Have you ever seen that in a wrestling match? You’re darn right you haven’t.
Don’t forget, though, that staged fights were super common throughout the Roman empire; the best of the best were just too expensive to wantonly risk. There’s evidence that they received medical treatment and care, which isn’t surprising considering the investment and potential earnings they represented.
When all’s said and done, there are lots of parallels to be drawn between professional wrestlers and history’s gladiators. Both have faced great dangers (some intentional, some by accident). Both have seen excellent fighters rise to become legends. Both have wielded lethal weapons in the name of a baying crowd’s entertainment.
Who would ultimately win out if they met in the ring today? That’s for you to decide for yourself. One thing’s for certain though: that’d be another huge spectacle.
By Chris Littlechild, contributor for Ripleys.com
December 6, 2018
The Caesar Salad Is Not an American Creation
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Or Not
In today’s world many misconceptions have been perpetuated—becoming modern day “facts”—when, in reality, myths and hearsay have taken over. Sorry to burst your bubble, but in this weekly column, Ripley’s puts those delusions to the test, turning your world upside down, because you can’t always…Believe It!
Today
: The true origins of Caesar Salad.
Many Americans are fond of the classic Caesar Salad but are unaware that the delectable dish was created in Tijuana, Mexico by an Italian immigrant named Caesar Cardini in the 1920s (some believe his brother or one of his employees actually came up with the dish, but more on that later). Cardini’s restaurant, just south of the U.S. border, was very popular during Prohibition. One day he put together some finger food in a pinch after running low on food, and the Caesar Salad was born.
Cardini grew up near northern Italy’s Lake Maggiore region in the late 1800s. He moved to North American in 1910, settling in California where he opened a restaurant in Sacramento and later in San Diego. When Prohibition was enacted, Cardini started another establishment in Tijuana. Just over 20 miles from San Diego, the city was a hot spot, largely because alcohol flowed freely.
During a particularly busy weekend in 1924, Cardini reportedly grabbed whatever ingredients he could find in the kitchen to whip up a dish for his guests. He created a salad combining romaine lettuce, garlic, croutons, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, and coddled eggs.
Initially, the Caesar Salad was prepared at the table and was intended to be consumed with one’s fingers, not a fork. The lettuce leaves were coated with dressing and arranged flat on a plate. The stems faced out so people could pick them up with their hands.
Two years later, Cardini’s brother, Alex, started working with him at the restaurant. Alex, who had served in the Italian Airforce during World War I, added anchovies to Caesar’s concoction and dubbed it the Aviator’s Salad. Caesar reportedly disliked anchovies in the salad, believing the Worcestershire sauce contained enough fish flavor for the dish. There is some debate over whether Caesar or Alex actually created the recipe that everyone uses today.
Word about the delicious salad spread among Californians and the Hollywood elite, including actors Clark Gable, Jean Harlow, and W.C. Fields. People made special trips to Tijuana just to have a taste. They also enjoyed going to Mexico to imbibe as Prohibition was in full swing.
Julia Child wrote about the Caesar Salad in her book, From Julia’s Kitchen. She recalled a special trip to Cardini’s restaurant in 1925 or 1926 with her parents, noting that Caesar himself made the dish in front of them using a large wooden bowl. While she didn’t remember all the steps he took to create the meal, the eggs made a big impression.
“I can see him break 2 eggs over that romaine and roll them in, the greens going all creamy as the eggs flowed over them,” Child wrote. “Two eggs in a salad? Two one-minute coddled eggs? And garlic-flavored croutons, and grated Parmesan cheese? It was a sensation of a salad from coast to coast, and there were even rumblings of its success in Europe.”
A half-century later, Child attempted to recreate the salad she had remembered so fondly as a young girl. She got in touch with Cardini’s daughter, Rose, who lived in Los Angeles. Rose “knew every detail” about the dish because the salad was so meaningful to the Cardini family. She said her father created it on July 4, 1924.
The salad’s popularity also spread to Europe. According to Terry D. Greenfield, author of In Search of Caesar: The Ultimate Caesar Salad Book, American socialite Wallis Simpson (and future wife of Edward VIII) sampled the salad when visiting Tijuana. She reportedly introduced European chefs to the dish, instructing them how to make it, which they did willingly for the future Duchess of Windsor. Some believe Wallis transformed the dish by requesting chefs prepare it in smaller pieces so it could be eaten with a fork.
While most concur that Cardini was responsible creating the salad, one of his employees, Italian immigrant Livio Santini, claimed it was actually his mother’s recipe and Cardini appropriated it after it became all the rage. It was so popular, the International Society of Epicures in Paris decreed that the Caesar Salad was the “greatest recipe to originate from the Americas in 50 years.”
Cardini patented the dressing in 1948 because so many people copied his creation. Cardini’s Original Caesar Dressing Mix is available to consumers even today. It’s gluten-free and is available at most grocery stores.
By Noelle Talmon, contributor for Ripleys.com
December 5, 2018
The 2,000-Year-Old Grauballe Bog Man
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
In 1952, two peat-diggers in Jutland, Denmark, stumbled across the remains of a 2,00-year-old man.
Now known as the Grauballe Man, scientists are using these incredibly well-preserved remains to learn about prehistoric Germanic tribesmen in the third-century BC. Workmen digging for peat—decayed vegetation used in gardening and fuel—hit the body with their shovels in the Danish bog. Realizing they had found a body, they left it alone for a couple days, though news soon spread and people came to examine the curiosity. Despite surviving for two millennia in the acidic wetlands, it did suffer damage when a townsman stepped on its head. Nevertheless, scientists were ecstatic to study the prehistoric man.
Because of the unique conditions in bogs, many bodies have been found around Europe naturally mummified. Bogs are wetlands that typically contain acidic minerals and spongy soil made up of centuries-old organic matter. Because the peat is often used as fertilizer and fuel, peat diggers occasionally run into mummified bog men.
The Grauballe Man was about 30 years old when he died. Curiously, archaeologists realized he had not died of natural causes. His throat had been slit from ear to ear, and he was stripped of any clothing. His organs and even fingerprints were so well preserved that scientists were able to do extensive studies. Eventually, they were able to conclude he was neither a farmhand or laborer due to his soft hands. Dental impressions showed he had often gone hungry as a child. Scientists aren’t sure why he was killed but hypothesize he was a human sacrifice. Bog bodies have often been thought to be offerings, criminals, or leaders blamed for poor harvests. Since there are no written records by the Germanic tribes of the Iron Age, scientists have no documentation to explain this strange practice.
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