Ripley Entertainment Inc.'s Blog, page 452
September 25, 2016
September 24, 2016
September 23, 2016
Twiggy, the Waterskiing Squirrel
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Twiggy first stole our hearts when we featured her waterskiing squirrel act in Ripley’s Planet Eccentric in 2005. We decided to catch up with Twiggy for our new book, Unlock the Weird!
Since 2005 she has been riding waves and starring in shows all over the world, including the US, Canada, Bermuda, Paris, France, and Germany.
Twiggy was adopted by Lou Ann and Chuck Best when the baby squirrel was rescued after a hurricane. She quickly became part of the family. When her daughter got a remote controlled boat for her birthday, the running joke was it was more of a present for Chuck because he used it more.
Chuck joked back they bought the boat to teach the squirrel to waterski. Making good on his joke, they started training Twiggy – and it worked!
Soon Twiggy was making appearances on television, books, movies, and doing live performances.
How Do Yo Teach A Squirrel To Waterski?
When we asked Lou Ann how do you teach a squirrel to waterski, she said:
It’s kind of like training a husband. You have to give him lots of love and affection and tell him the same thing over and over again.
Wise words Lou Ann, wise words.
Get more of Twiggy, including show dates on her website twiggyslagoon.com.
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!
Source: Twiggy, the Waterskiing Squirrel
September 22, 2016
Hollie Tatnell’s Grave is in the Middle of a Texas Road
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Medians in roads are common. You can’t cross America without seeing some kind of barrier between you and oncoming traffic. But you don’t often expect the median to contain a dead body. That’s exactly the case, however, in the small town of Hearne, Texas.
While this might sound like the beginning of a horror story or a murder mystery, it’s actually an interesting piece of Americana.
Hollie Tatnell
The story of Hollie Tatnell is one that’s somewhat lost to Hearne, Tx history, and in some ways her grave is all we have left.
Photo by Colley Hodges
Born in 1859, Tatnell was a slave. When she died in 1911, 46 years after the 13th amendment abolished slavery in the U.S., she was buried in Hearne’s segregated cemetery. Her rest there was uninterrupted until 1947.
It’s not that Tatnell was disturbed at that time, but she nearly was. Developers purchased the land and started pushing families of color out of the neighborhood. Bodies were exhumed and moved.
The only family to refuse was Tatnell’s.
The developers tried to fight it, but under a tight construction schedule, they decided to leave the Hollie Tatnell grave right where it was and to construct around it.
Parting the Waters
Now, the grave stands in the middle of a residential road. It’s almond shape evokes the image of a strong island in the middle of a running river; it stands steadfast as the water rushes around it.
The Texas Historical Commission has crafted a sign designating the site as a Historic Texas Cemetery.
This single grave serves as a reminder of the area’s early African-American community and of the sanctity of burial grounds.
Source: Hollie Tatnell’s Grave is in the Middle of a Texas Road
Nguyen Hoang Hung Gives Samurai Sword Haircuts
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Hairdresser Nguyen Hoang Hung cuts hair with a Samurai Sword.
Nguyen Hoang Hung started giving Samurai Sword Haircuts in 2010
He picked up the skill on a gameshow that asked him to cut hair without scissors
He practiced on wigs at first to minimize risk
He only learned it for performances, but then customers started asking for Samurai Sword Haircuts
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 21, 2016
The Special London Underground Mosquito
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
The London Underground has its own distinct subspecies of mosquito called the Culex Pipiens Molestus.
Technically, the mosquito has been found around the world
It gained a lot of attention when it attacked Londoners sleeping in the Underground during the Blitz
It was first described as a distinct species in 1775
They were named Culex Molestus because of their insistent biting
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.
Pink Iguanas Live on One Volcano on One Island in the World
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
There’s a species of pink iguanas in the Galápagos islands that lives exclusively around Wolf Volcano.
Their scientific name is Conolophus marthae
It was discovered that they’re an entirely different species from the normal Galápagos land iguana
They’re generally pink with black stripes, splotches, or spots
The only home for the species is Wolf Volcano on Isabela Island
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.
Source: Pink Iguanas Live on One Volcano on One Island in the World
Summer is the Time for the U.S. Sand Sculpting Challenge
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
If you were an artist specializing in sculpture, what materials would you want to work with? Most people would probably stick with clay or stone. But for the more adventurous artist, maybe snow sculpting would seem like the way to go. Snow might be fine in winter, but summer is the time for beaches, and with beaches comes sand sculpting.
No family beach vacation would be complete without a sand castle. But the sculptures created by these world-renowned artists will put your shovel and bucket creations to shame.
Susanne Ruseler
Photo by Susanne Ruseler
How does someone even get into sculpting sand? Susanne Ruseler is an artist who didn’t start out planning on pursuing a path into sculpture. She got her degree in animal behavior and ecology. Now, she travels the world and makes amazing art out of sand.
I do about 15 projects per year […] in Australia , Japan, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy.
In addition to those projects, Susanne participates in three or four competitions each year, typically in the States or Canada. But how does one go from studying the sciences to working in the arts?
It might seem like a big step from Biology but the things I loved most about my studies were the field work; observing, physical work, being inventive, being creative, being outside and working with interesting people.
There are those overlaps between Biology and Sand Sculptures, and there’s also the fact that Susanne always loved to draw and sculpt, and she has a passion for animals. Since animals continue to be one of her favorite subjects to sculpt, you can see how easy of a transition it actually was.
Photo by Susanne Ruseler
As you can imagine, a lot of attention to detail goes into each of her sculptures. But there are even more considerations to be made than just how to fashion each blade of grass.
You have to consider the kind of sand, the sand can be strong, weak, clean, dirty, fine, course. […] you just have to deal with what you get and adapt your design accordingly (not too steep for weak sand, not too many fine details in coarse sand etc).
All of that knowledge leads to some of the most amazing and remarkable detail you’d ever expect to see in sand.
Photo by Susanne Ruseler
If you’d like to see more of Susanne’s work, you can head to her Flickr page, or to her website.
And what happens when these masterpieces are done? Ashes to ashes, and sand to sand.
U.S. Sand Sculpting Challenge
Once you’ve mastered the art form, what do you do? A sand sculpture probably won’t get much traction in a gallery and can’t neatly be displayed in someone’s home. To get their work shown, sand artists turn to the annual U.S. Sand Sculpting Challenge.
The challenge takes place over four days in San Diego. It’s paired with an art exposition, and lots of family friendly fun. Artists from all over the world gather and battle it out for cash prizes and national pride.
Here are some of the winners from this year’s event.
First Place: “Nostalgia” by Ilya Filimontsev
Second Place: “Alpha Waves” by Fergus Mulvaney
Third Place: “Out of Reach” by Thomas Koet
Team Competition winner: “United We Stand” by I.B. Posse
Team Competition runner up: “Real Eyes / Realize Your Future” Team Archisand
Source: Summer is the Time for the U.S. Sand Sculpting Challenge
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