Ripley Entertainment Inc.'s Blog, page 451
September 30, 2016
Drywall Art Sculptures by Bernie Mitchell
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Using only Drywall Compound, Bernie Mitchell creates 3D murals directly onto a house’s walls.
Bernie Mitchell is a drywall contractor based in Ontario
He started experimenting with drywall art in the 1990s
At first, he just created unique textures and patterns on the walls
Now, he creates detailed wildlife murals out of drywall compound
Drywall compound is a mud-like substance generally used to create a seamless base for paint on interior walls.
The finished product is a permanent piece of drywall art that comes right out of the wall!
For more on Bernie’s art, visit his website and Facebook page.
GALLERY
MINI BION
“BIONs” – short for Believe It or Not – is the word we use at Ripley’s to refer to anything that is unbelievable and worthy to become part of Ripley’s lore and collection.
September 29, 2016
Passage du Gois: The Road That Disappears Twice a Day
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
At one point, it was said that by the year 2000, we’d all have flying cars. Citizens on the Island of Noirmoutier in France probably wish that was true.
Their primary means of transportation to the mainland is the Passage du Gois.
As roads go, the Passage is fine except … it disappears twice a day and is only usable for an hour at a time.
The Passage du Gois
The Passage du Gois was discovered in 1701. It’s a narrow path of silt deposits that built up slowly over centuries. The road is accessible twice a day during low tide.
You won’t have to guess at what times the tide will roll in. Signs are posted on both ends of the Passage to alert travelers if the road is passable or not.
Signage aside, you still travel at your own risk.
No Parking Zone
Because the Passage du Gois is little more than a deposit of silt, and because it’s submerged 13 feet under water for most of the day, the Passage tends to be a bit slippery.
Drivers are cautioned to drive slowly and make no sudden stops, and parking on the Passage is strictly forbidden by law.
One-Hour Road
The road is only available during low tide, which lasts for about an hour. The Passage remains accessible for half an hour before and after low tide, so that only gives you two hours to make the crossing safely.
The perilous nature of the crossing attracts lots of tourists each year eager to attempt the dangerous drive. A number of cars get lost to the Passage du Gois each year. If a driver does mistime their trip, there are poles set at intervals along the Passage so they can climb to safety.
The Crowds
Even if you aren’t a big risk taker and don’t want to brave the drive, the Passage draws crowds every day of people interested in watching it emerge from the briny deep.
The Foulées du Gois
There is also an annual race held on the Passage called the Foulées du Gois. Competitors run the 2.58 miles of the road in the time between the tides.
Source: Passage du Gois: The Road That Disappears Twice a Day
September 28, 2016
People Assist Stingray Giving Birth On Beach!
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Beach Goers Help Stingray Give Birth!
A fisherman accidentally hooked a stingray from the beach
His friends and fellow beach goers were calling for him to toss it back when they noticed something coming out of her
With a little help, the stingray gave birth to four pups
Stingrays employ ovoviviparity, meaning they give birth to live young without use of a placenta
The pups develop in eggs in the mother’s body and feed on a yolk sac
After the sac is gone, they’ll feed on uterine “milk”
Stingrays usually give birth to litters of 5 – 13 pups
MINI BION
“BIONs” – short for Believe It or Not – is the word we use at Ripley’s to refer to anything that is unbelievable and worthy to become part of Ripley’s lore and collection.
Victoria Woodhull, the First Woman to Run for President
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
As a stockbroker, a newspaper editor, and a women’s rights activist, Woodhull’s story is fascinating. She was also the first woman to run for the highest office, and she did it in 1872!
First Female Stockbroker
CC Harvard Art Museum
Woodhull came from humble beginnings. Her mother believed herself to be clairvoyant, and her father was a snake oil salesman, leaving the family destitute and often in trouble with the law.
It was actually due to her following in her mother’s mystic footsteps that led to one of Woodhull’s first financial successes.
She and her sister Tennessee met wealthy widower Cornelius Vanderbilt when they served as mediums to help him contact the spirit of his dead wife.
Vanderbilt was so impressed with their mystic skills that he kept them on and asked them to help him with financial advice from the spirits. The sisters performed the task so well that Vanderbilt backed them in starting the first woman-owned brokerage firm on Wall Street.
The brokerage was so successful that Victoria and her sister started printing a weekly journal in 1870 called Woodhull and Claflin’s Weekly.
On April 2, 1870, Woodhull announced her intentions to run for president by writing a letter to the New York Herald.
[…] believing as I do that the prejudices which still exist in the popular mind against women in public life will soon disappear, I now announce myself as candidate for the Presidency.
Controversy
Caricature of Victoria Woodhull|CC Library of Congress
A woman running for president before women even had the right to vote would be controversial enough, but the difficulties of Woodhull’s run didn’t end there.
She was a suffragette, a proponent of free love, and a strong believer that men’s romantic indiscretions should not be swept under the rug and ignored.
Now, the free love principle might not be what you think. It was the idea that people should have the right to marry, divorce, and have children without government interference.
It was this belief that landed her in so much trouble as the election rolled near.
Prominent Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, the brother to author Harriet Beecher Stowe, set himself up in opposition to Woodhull and spoke out against her free love principals. Using her weekly publication as a platform, Woodhull published a story about an extramarital affair that Rev. Beecher had with a parishioner.
She wasn’t looking to pass moral judgment on the reverend’s actions, but she did want to expose the double standard between men and women.
Upon reading the story, the public was not outraged about the preacher’s infidelity but chose to be upset about the fact that Woodhull had published the story.
She was arrested on charges of distributing indecent material through the mail, and she spent Election Day behind bars.
As if being arrested for telling the truth wasn’t punishment enough, the controversy inspired cartoonist Thomas Nast to draw this caricature of Woodhull as Mrs. Satan.
The image depicts a wife carrying her children and drunk husband and saying to Woodhull, “Get thee behind me, (Mrs.) Satan! I’d rather travel the hardest path of matrimony than follow your footsteps.”
Source: Victoria Woodhull, the First Woman to Run for President
September 27, 2016
Bad Watchdog! Doberman Eats Three Watches
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Mocha the Doberman made it to Angell Animal Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts, just in the nick of time after consuming three wristwatches and some leather jewelry!
Owner Jeff Courcelle rushed Mocha to the vet after noticing her odd behavior. Vets then performed a three-hour endoscopy to search the contents of her belly.
Get Unlock the Weird!
Mocha’s X-ray shows her time-consuming meal, a belly full of metal and leather. (Photo credit MSPCA-Angell)
Amazingly, Mocha managed to swallow 28 watch parts: 3 watch faces, 8 buckle pieces, and 17 rivets, plus other miscellaneous pieces!
The contents of Mocha’s stomach! Ripley’s thought it was so unbelievable, we wasted no time and bought the watch parts for our collection.
Repeat Offender
Despite all the trouble, this wasn’t Mocha’s first time in the ER—she is a repeat offender. In 2014, Mocha had 20 in (51 cm) of intestine removed after a piece of plastic perforated her digestive organ.
Nearly 1 lb (0.5 kg) of leather was found in Mocha’s stomach! (credit MSPCA-Angell)
ANOTHER YEAR, ANOTHER ALL-NEW ANNUAL!
Ripley’s has spent the past year collecting the most unbelievable stories from around the world, filling Unlock the Weird to the brim with fantastic, fun, and even freaky features. Join us back here every week for an exclusive inside look at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Unlock the Weird!
September 26, 2016
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