strange stuff

From strange crimes to strange celebrity deaths, read all of the latest weird and strange stuff news stories on Newser.com

Stories 1761 - 1780 | << Prev   Next >>

You&#39;re Looking at a $100K Cheeto
You're Looking at
a $100K Cheeto
Feb 7, 2017 11:24 AM CST

You're Looking at a $100K Cheeto

Harambe, is that you?

(Newser) - Someone bid nearly $100,000 on eBay for a Cheeto that bears a resemblance to gorilla Harambe, shot by handlers at the Cincinnati Zoo after dragging a small boy who had gotten into his enclosure. The seller says he found the cheese snack in a bag of Flamin' Hot Cheetos,...

In One City, Cops Crack Down on Drinking and ... Walking

Many accidents in Namibia's capital involve drunken pedestrians

(Newser) - Police in Namibia's capital are cracking down on a somewhat unlikely group, reports the BBC , following road accidents that are blamed not only on intoxicated motorists but on tipsy pedestrians. Police spokesman Edmund Khoaseb tells the Namibian that people who survive a run-in with a car will be given...

Michigan Residents May Not Want to Flush at Halftime

Macomb County is worried about sinkhole trouble

(Newser) - A giant sinkhole in suburban Detroit is being threatened by the Super Bowl. Macomb County public works chief Candice Miller is worried that thousands of football fans will flush toilets at halftime Sunday night, reports AP . She tells radio station WWJ that it could overwhelm a broken sewer line blamed...

Meet the Man Who Sold His Back as a Piece of Art
A Most Macabre Art Form
on This Man's Back
LONGFORM
Feb 3, 2017 4:48 PM CST

A Most Macabre Art Form on This Man's Back

Not the tattoo itself—what's going to happen to his back when he dies

(Newser) - It was a plan two years in the making, and it took 40 hours to execute, but Tim Steiner has finally fulfilled his dream: to become a walking, talking piece of art. Harry Low reveals Steiner's story for the BBC , which started when Steiner, a 40-year-old Swiss man who...

Cars Can't Seem to Stop Crashing Into This House

Homeowner says drivers 'fly' down a nearby hill

(Newser) - For the fifth time, a Maryland house has been the victim of an out-of-control car. "When he crashed into the wall, I said, 'Damn, another car hit my house,'" homeowner Leonard Miller, 88, tells Fox 5 DC . Miller has lived in the Prince George's County...

Meet the Marten That Shut Down the Hadron Collider

You'll find him in Rotterdam's unique 'Dead Animal Tales' exhibit

(Newser) - The Large Hadron Collider facilitated the discovery of the Higgs boson , but it's not yet immune to animal troubles. Following a similar incident last April, a stone marten jumped a fence at the $7 billion site in Switzerland on Nov. 20 and came into contact with a transformer, causing...

Town-Wide Power Surge Fries Gadgets, Bulbs, Even Siding

Brookville, Pa., started getting a lot of calls about things on fire, smoking

(Newser) - The 911 calls started pouring in just after noon in the tiny Pennsylvania town of Brookville. The electrical meter is on fire. The house siding is burning. My power strip is smoking. The computer is fried. The carpeting is singed. Our light bulb exploded. A power company says a failed...

Trucker Loses 38K Pounds of Marbles
Trucker Loses
38K Pounds of Marbles
Jan 22, 2017 7:31 AM CST

Trucker Loses 38K Pounds of Marbles

A perfectly kooky mishap

(Newser) - A trucker has lost his marbles in the Indianapolis area, "literally," jokes Indiana State Police rep John Perrine. A truck carrying 38,000 pounds of marbles lost its trailer Saturday on southbound Interstate 465, near Pendleton Pike, reports WXIN . The marbles spilled out on the shoulder and in...

Sweden Debuts 'How to Give Birth in a Car 101'

Swedish maternity ward is closing, so midwives take preemptive measure

(Newser) - While expectant American couples taking Lamaze classes prepare for labor with breathing exercises and relaxation techniques, midwives in Sweden are busy prepping soon-to-be parents on worst-case scenarios. "Car accidents, the car could break down, you maybe drive off the road. You have to be ready," Stina Naslund tells...

Firefighters Rescue Cow Stuck in Swimming Pool

Yes, really

(Newser) - Think it's hard for firefighters to rescue a cat in a tree? Try a cow in a swimming pool. Firefighters in Oklahoma City were summoned Sunday morning after a homeowner reported hearing some sort of "snorting" coming from his swimming pool area. Emergency responders arrived and discovered a...

Couple Born on Same Day Get Big Birthday Gift

Son Cade was born on mom and dad's 27th birthday

(Newser) - Luke and Hillary Gardner never have a problem remembering each other's birthday, reports the AP , as the husband and wife were born the same day. And so was their son, 27 years later this past December. The odds of that happening are about one in 133,000, statisticians say....

He Took Out 262 Library Books a Month —and Was Fictional

Library scheme sought to 'save' books

(Newser) - Sorrento, Fla., is not home to the country's most avid reader, though it would appear that way based on the East Lake County Library's records. They show that a man by the name of Chuck Finley checked out 2,361 books over a nine-month period last year, including...

Professor Orders Used Book, Gets Copy She Lost Years Prior

There's a reason it's particularly 'uncanny'

(Newser) - An associate professor of English at an Ontario university lent her copy of a textbook to one of her students five years ago and never saw it again. That is, until she recently ordered a replacement copy on Amazon ... and her old copy arrived, complete with her name and the...

Guy Gets A+ for Effort to Conceal His DWI Arrest

Joseph Talbot tried to squelch report by buying up copies of local paper

(Newser) - The owner of a weekly Western New York newspaper says a man bought hundreds of copies in an unsuccessful effort to keep people from reading about his drunken-driving arrest. State police arrested Joseph Talbot on Dec. 29 in Wayne County and charged him with driving while intoxicated, reports the AP...

Guy Goes to Jail Over Kitty Litter Mistaken for Meth

Ross LeBeau of Texas wants an apology

(Newser) - A December traffic stop in Texas led to deputies discovering what they thought was nearly half a pound of methamphetamine. Houston 24-year-old Ross LeBeau was arrested and spent three days in jail ... at which time he was promptly released, and the case against him dismissed, because a forensic lab showed...

9 Notable New Laws in 2017
9 Notable New
Laws in 2017
Jan 4, 2017 1:04 PM CST

9 Notable New Laws in 2017

They involve sky lanterns, catfish, and tampons

(Newser) - If you plan to hunt catfish in Illinois this year, be sure to bring your pitchfork. Using pitchforks, spear guns, and arrows to catch the fish is now legal under one of several new state and city laws that came into effect with the New Year. Some of the more...

Mad Conductor's Bizarre Frozen Ending Leaves Kids in Tears

He says Santa doesn't exist, leaves the stage

(Newser) - An orchestral performance of Disney's Frozen in Rome last week ended with angry parents and weeping children, Italy's ANSA news agency reports. Orchestra conductor Giacomo Loprieno asked for a microphone at the end of the show, announced into said mic that Santa Claus isn't real, and then...

Ohio Family Cleaning Out Home Finds Live Grenade

Relative had recently died, left behind WWII-era grenade

(Newser) - A family cleaning out a home in the Toledo, Ohio-area home of a relative who recently died stumbled across a live hand grenade from the World War II era, the AP reports. Toledo authorities say such finds are becoming more common. A police spokesman says the bomb squad retrieves old...

Artists' Feud Over 'Blackest Black' Escalates

The guy hoarding it somehow got his hands on 'pinkest pink'

(Newser) - Ever since British-Indian sculptor Anish Kapoor was granted exclusive rights to the color "Vantablack," the world's blackest black that was developed by tech firm Nanosystems and can absorb more than 99% of light, other artists have been up in arms. One paint fight actually broke out between...

The Weirdest News of 2016
The Weirdest News of 2016
Dec 31, 2016 11:17 AM CST

The Weirdest News of 2016

Kangaroo terror and falling catfish

(Newser) - Strange days, indeed: Every year has its oddities and 2016—a year in which it snowed in the Sahara , the Chicago Cubs won the World Series , and Donald Trump was elected president —was certainly no exception. Some of the year's weirdest stories:
  • This was an unlucky year for
...

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