Ripley Entertainment Inc.'s Blog, page 327
August 7, 2018
August 6, 2018
Real UFO? Hoax? McMinnville Doesn’t Care
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Walking down Main Street in this quaint Oregon town is like walking back in time, which is appropriate, considering what may or may not have happened 70 years ago.
It feels pure, wholesome—like you want to live here. The shops are vibrant and kitschy, just like the people. And where else could you go for a walk around the block and run into a five-star restaurant, a cozy coffee shop, and a high-brown wine-tasting room, all right next to each other?
You can do it here in McMinnville, Oregon, a city with a population of just over 30,000 that sits about 40 miles southwest of Portland. With its tree-lined walks and comfortable climate, Parade magazine voted it the No. 2 prettiest Main Street in America in the mid-2000s.
David Krug/Shutterstock
And with an economy based on 14 area wineries, you can expect a laid-back vibe and an appreciation for cuisine. But there’s also plenty of recreation, from surfing on the coast to mountain climbing and skiing. It seems like there’s a little something for everyone in this little valley town nestled in the Pacific Northwest.
And of course, every May, there’s the UFO Festival.
Dee Browning/Shutterstock
“The whole town gets excited,” says Dr. Leonard Finkelman, an assistant professor of philosophy at nearby Linfield College. “We have a parade, and there are film festivals and a fun run and people in costumes walking around. It’s four days long—it’s quite a celebration.”
So much so that thousands of visitors flock to the town in honor of a single series of photographs taken by a local farmer in May 1950.
For UFO enthusiasts, that would be a few years after the legendary crash in Roswell, New Mexico—probably the most infamous unexplained UFO event in American history.
But back to Oregon. A farmer in nearby Sheridan, (nine miles outside McMinnville) claimed to have seen and photographed a UFO in his backyard. A month later, the photos were published in the local newspapers, the first such pictures to be published in the U.S.
They became the iconic pictures of the UFO craze. Though they have not been fully explained, there are many skeptics who believe the pictures are completely genuine; still, others believe they are a total hoax.
No one knows for sure. But what is certain is that it doesn’t take much for a town to have an excuse to party.
In 1999, local brewery McMenamins—who owned the downtown pub at the Hotel Oregon in McMinnville—decided to celebrate the legendary UFO picture. That celebration has turned into the country’s second-largest UFO festival, runner-up only to a similar celebration held in Roswell each year.
“It’s a boom for the town,” Finkelman says. “Every year we get plenty of people coming in. I think the size of the town doesn’t quite double, but it’s pretty close.”
And with it comes its share of weirdness. Podcasters, filmmakers and television personalities appear on panels to discuss the latest in UFOlogy and the paranormal. Families wear cartoon alien heads and munch on food as they walk through downtown. Most realize it’s all in good fun—and few seem to care whether the photo is real or not.
“I’m a philosopher of science, and a scientist,” Finkelman says. “And one thing I think is good to remember is that just because something hasn’t been disproven doesn’t mean it’s true. The evidence I’ve seen regarding the photograph is not enough to disprove its authenticity. But a certain healthy dose of skepticism should always be in order, too.”
Dee Browning/Shutterstock
So Finkelman and other scientists in the area take the opportunity to preach science to the large audience. They will also take part in the festival, setting up their own podcasts and media to discuss various scientific issues.
“It’s important to have fun,” he says. “But it’s a different world right now. And this is special. Let’s face it, anything that can get large groups of people together to celebrate one topic these days is rare. What we’ve got going on here should be an example for us all.”
Still, there are things he wishes he could say to this large group. Like how there are very troubling scientific issues going on right now that—if a group of, say, 30,000 people could get behind a solution—may help save parts of the world.
“The lack of respect with which actual science gets treated can be really troubling,” he says. “I hate to play the role of naysayer, but we’re staring down the barrel of environmental catastrophe and we need people to care. Science literacy is the most important step to take care of large-scale problems.”
So he will try his best to educate during the festival.
“Sure, go wild, have fun,” he says. “But it’s important to recognize how scientists do their work. Discover and evaluate evidence. Learn about the world that isn’t immediately in front of you.
Dee Browning/Shutterstock
“It’s also important to realize that there is a possibility someone may lead you down the wrong path,” he continues. “My hope is that the people who come here have fun but stay on the right path. Overall, it’s a great way to get people thinking.”
By Ryan Clark, contributor for Ripleys.com
August 5, 2018
August 4, 2018
Frozen Worms Wake Up After 42,000 Years
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
[July 29th-August 4th, 2018] A peaceful battle between tanks, a vest vending machine, and some incredible worms.
Castle For Sale
If you’ve ever lusted for the Iron Throne, you can take your first step towards Game of Thrones royalty by buying Riverrun Castle. Northern Ireland’s Gosford Castle, which was used as a backdrop in season three of Game of Thrones, is up for sale. The asking price for the 19th-century fortress is a mere $656,452. To put that in perspective, the median price for a Manhattan apartment is around a million dollars.
Archaeologists Find 14,500-Year-Old Bread
A team of researchers digging in the Black Desert of Jordan excavated a prehistoric oven. Inside they found evidence of brunt bread, pushing back the inception of human bakers before people had even begun to farm. They remade the recipe, reporting it gritty, salty, and a little sweet.
Tank Biathlon
Every year, Russia hosts the International Army games. A peaceful interaction between many of the world’s armed forces, they pit themselves against each other in a sort of military Olympics. The most popular contest: tank biathlons. This year featured the biggest roster yet, but it was Russia herself that navigated slaloms, raced over hills, and dodged mines the fastest.
Vest Vending Machine
Vending machines are known for containing all sorts of strange things around the world, but they always leave people wondering how successful they are. A vest vending machine in the San Francisco airport, however, has proven to be a runaway success. Hoping to prepare venture capitalists for the unexpected cold climate, the machine sells lightweight, but warm, vests. According to the company that owns it, the machine brings in over $10,000 per month, making it one of the most profitable setups in the vending machine market.
SFO has a down vest vending machine for visiting VCs. pic.twitter.com/i0mC6e5Jpu
— Frank Barbieri (@frankba) July 21, 2018
Worms Wake Up From 42,000-Year Nap
After falling asleep in the permafrost of Siberia during the Pleistocene age, frozen nematodes are waking up for the first time in 42 millennia. Russian researchers were able to take the worms from icy riverbanks and thaw them in Petri dishes. According to the scientists, the worms slowly began moving and eating again as if nothing had happened.
August 3, 2018
Inside Ripley’s House Of Wax And A Chance To Win With DeviantArt
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Based at our Orlando HQ, the Ripley Art Department is a tight-knit team. They do it all, from creating giant dinosaur costumes, mermaid tails, once, even a jacket made out of 350 salmon skins as a retirement gift. But, possibly the most time consuming (and slightly creepy) part of the job? Bringing wax figures to life!
Watch the episode of Cool Stuff Strange Things above to see a Ripley figure come to life!
From designing, molding and sculpting to creating the hair, makeup and clothing for the wax figures at Ripley’s, this team does it all. A single figure can take up to 300 hours to create, even longer when challenges present themselves—like in the case of Acrobritt, whose hand-balanced cast had to be based on a 3D-printed model.
The Ripley Art Department is off limits to the public, but for the first time we are offering the chance to visit and join the team for the day. Simply enter DeviantArt’s Unconventional Art Contest!
Unconventional Art Contest
DeviantArt, in collaboration with Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, wants you to break out of your creative norms and take part in the Unconventional Art Contest!
Inspired by Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odd Is Art, DeviantArt wants to challenge you to to create pieces using unconventional means. Embrace your imagination and think outside of the box!
Semi-Finalists will be chosen by a panel of DeviantArt staff and an Independent Judge with the First, Second, and Third Place winners selected by a panel of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Executives & Talent. First Place will win all-expense paid trips for two to Los Angeles and Orlando to view their piece on display at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! and join the Ripley’s Art Department for a day, and more!
DeviantArt’s Unconventional Art contest is open now through August 20th.
Visit www.deviantart.com for official rules, prizing, inspiration and to submit. Weirdness wins!
Source: Inside Ripley’s House Of Wax And A Chance To Win With DeviantArt
August 2, 2018
Cowboys In The Wild West Didn’t Wear Cowboy Hats
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: Did cowboy wear cowboy hats?
Cowboys are a symbol of the American Wild West, but there are some tales about them that aren’t true. They rarely fought Indians, they were more likely to die from falling off a horse than in a gunfight, and they didn’t wear those tall, wide-brimmed cowboy hats you see in Westerns.
The iconic Stetson came onto the market in 1865, and it wasn’t popular until the end of the 19th century. A cowboy’s preferred choice of hat? The derby—also known as the bowler. Photos of the Wild Bunch from 1892 and 1900 clearly show the gang—Harry A. Longabaugh (the Sundance Kid), Ben Kilpatrick (the Tall Texan), Robert Leroy Parker (Butch Cassidy), Harvey Logan (Kid Curry), and Will Carver—donning derby hats.
Left to right: Bat Masterson, Billy the Kid, Wild Bill Hickok, and Jesse James.
Famous gunslinger and gambler Bat Masterson also favored the derby. The classic photo of American West gunfighter Billy the Kid depicts the outlaw wearing what resembles a top hat. Wild Bill Hickok was photographed in a flat, pancake hat. An 1882 photo of Jesse James shows the outlaw in a low-crowned cap with an upturned brim.
Men commonly wore hats on the American frontier, and derby hats were functional for various occasions. Most photographs from that time feature men wearing them and one of the reasons they were popular is because they stayed on in windy conditions.
Frontiersman typically wore hats related to their employment, and they were commonly made of beaver fur-felt and were natural in color. In addition to the derby, men wore flat wool caps, Mexican sombreros, or old Civil War hats (such as the kepi).
As for the ten-gallon hat, it would have been impractical, even if it was impressive to 20th-century moviegoers. Famous lawmen such as Wild Bill Hickok and Wyatt Earp wore low-crowned hats because giant cowboy hats would have made them easy targets for adversaries.
The ten-gallon hat got its name from the Spanish word “Galón,” not because it could hold 10 gallons of water. Galón means braid, and many Spanish hats in era had braids on them. One with 10 braids was called a Ten-Galón hat.
The original Stetson was dubbed “The Boss of the Plains,” and it didn’t resemble what we think of as a cowboy hat today. It featured a high crown and wide brim and looked a bit like an Amish hat. It was waterproof and shielded the wearer from elements such as the sun and rain. The hat’s design, which didn’t have a crease on the open crown, stayed the same for several years.
John Stetson’s classic cowboy hat was possibly inspired by the Spanish-derived hats he encountered after he moved to the West. He created the iconic headwear, which features a crease in the middle of a high crown with a dent on each side, allowing the wearer to remove it by the crown instead of the brim.
Legend is that he met a cowboy on the road, who was so impressed by the hat that he gave Stetson $5 for it (a rather large amount at that time). The rest is history. By the 1870s, cowboys took to customizing their hats, and in 1872, Montgomery Ward Catalog sold hats that allowed men to shape the crowns and brim to suit their preferences.
By Noelle Talmon, contributor for Ripleys.com
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