Abel Gonzales Is The Fried Food King Of The Texas State Fair (Cool Weird Awesome 856)
The Texas State Fair is getting underway, and if it's fried food you're after, you have Abel Gonzales Jr., aka "Fried Jesus," to thank.
A 10 Month Old Kitten Once Climbed The Matterhorn… Somehow (Cool Weird Awesome 844)
Today in 1950, the Coshocton, Ohio Tribune carried a news story with one heck of a headline: “Kitten Scales Matterhorn: Veteran Mountain Climbers Are Astonished”! Here's how the cat, later nicknamed Matt, got there.
Room 8, The Cat Named For A Classroom In L.A. (Cool Weird Awesome 840)
It's back to school season, and while some classrooms will have their own pets this year, none will be quite like Room 8, a stray cat turned classroom cat turned legend.
Why So Many Old Paintings Have Dogs Holding Lit Flares In Their Mouths (Cool Weird Awesome 822)
There's a phenomenon in art history where some paintings feature dogs with lit flares in their mouths. They're not committing arson or leading Indiana Jones through a dark cave... but what are they doing?
John Harrison Lived The Dream As A World-Class Ice Cream Taste Tester (Cool Weird Awesome 805)
It's National Ice Cream Month, and here's the story of a guy who tasted hundreds of millions of gallons of the sweet stuff: John Harrison, longtime ice cream tester.
How A Giant Pack Of Life Savers Ended Up In A Northern New York Town (Cool Weird Awesome 653)
Today in 1987, the community of Gouverneur, in northern New York, placed on its town green a giant roll of Pep-O-Mint Life Savers. It was a tribute to a local man, Edward John Noble, who ended up making Life Savers one of the best known candies in the world. Plus: a cat in Tokyo drops by a Buddhist temple garden, walks into the gravel patterns and takes a big old nap.
Félicette, The First Cat In Space (Cool Weird Awesome 636)
Today in 1963, a black and white cat from the streets of France became the first cat to go into space. She didn't choose to go, of course, but she's a pioneer just the same - and until a few years ago, a greatly underappreciated one. Plus: today in 1922, a girl in Illinois made it to school after being run over by a train?!?
Caught Falling Cat With American Flag
In America we can do anything. Even catch a falling cat with our flag.
The Biggest Ball Of Twine In Minnesota Is Real, And It’s Spectacular (Cool Weird Awesome 598)
Darwin, Minnesota is where you find a 17,400 pound ball of twine that one guy made over the course of 30 years. Here's the twine ball's story. Plus: to no one's surprise, researchers find that cats prefer to get food for free instead of having to work for it.
To Make “The Great Picture,” Artists Turned A Hangar Into A Pinhole Camera (Cool Weird Awesome 571)
Today in 2006, the largest photograph ever taken was released to the world. It’s known today as The Great Picture: 31 feet tall, 107 feet wide. Here's how it was taken. Plus: in Tokyo, a giant 3D screen outside a train station is featuring a giant 3D calico cat that stares down at the people several stories below.