strange stuff

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

Stories 541 - 560 | << Prev   Next >>

Someone Just Paid $16K for This 'Vampire-Slaying Kit'

Wooden box from late 1800s contained all kinds of repellents against the blood-sucking undead

(Newser) - Someone apparently didn't think the crucifixes and holy water they had lying around were enough to contend with the undead—and so last week they paid nearly $16,000 for a late-1800s "vampire-slaying kit" up for sale at a UK auction house, reports Live Science . The sturdy wooden...

After Putin Ally's Alaska Threat, Strange Billboards Emerge

'Alaska Is Ours!' signage in Siberia appears after Putin ally suggests taking back territory sold to US

(Newser) - Sarah Palin may be able to see Russia from her house, but she may soon regret that proximity if one Putin ally and an unnamed "patriot" have their way. Newsweek reports that multiple billboards popped up in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk on Thursday, all bearing the same message...

Now&#39;s Your Chance to Own a Dinosaur
Now's Your Chance
to Own a Dinosaur
Jul 5, 2022 11:53 AM CDT

Now's Your Chance to Own a Dinosaur

Sotheby's is auctioning a Gorgosaurus skeleton, but you'll need at least $5M

(Newser) - The fossilized skeleton of a T. rex relative that roamed the earth about 76 million years ago will be auctioned in New York this month, per the AP . The Gorgosaurus skeleton will highlight Sotheby's natural history auction on July 28, the auction house says. The Gorgosaurus was an apex...

The Wild Story of the Man Who Rode 4K Miles on a Lawn Mower

Brad Hauter managed the feat in 1999

(Newser) - It all started with a forwarded email. In the late '90s, lawn-care company MTD Products Inc. was on the hunt for one person crazy enough to ride the company's Yard-Man riding mower across America, with the goal of raising $200,000 for charity in the process. A co-worker...

Stanley Cup Shows Up at Wrong House
Stanley Cup
Shows Up at Wrong House
Jun 30, 2022 1:33 PM CDT

Stanley Cup Shows Up at Wrong House

Neighbors of Colorado Avalanche's Gabe Landeskog got a memorable surprise

(Newser) - Lord Stanley arrived at the wrong house in Denver, and the mistake is making headlines. It seems the NHL's famed Stanley Cup (named after the aforementioned lord) was delivered to the wrong address on Monday, reports 9News . It was supposed to go to Colorado Avalanche captain Gabe Landeskog, but...

They Showed Up to Arrest His Son. Out Came the Excavator

Vermont's Wayne Tallman is now facing charges, as is son Brandon

(Newser) - "They don't have a scenario at the academy where we practice this one." So Vermont State Police Captain Matt Daley tells WCAX of an incident that saw two troopers threatened by the swinging bucket of an excavator. The troopers had arrived at Wayne Tallman's home in...

This 'Zero-Star Hotel' Will Really Make You Think

That's the goal, anyway, of art installation by twin brothers erected next to Swiss gas station

(Newser) - Some people think best in the shower. Others may find they do their best ruminating while lying in bed in the middle of the street next to a gas station. The latter is what Frank and Patrik Riklin are banking on, anyway, with a concept they hope will spur people...

City Blames Loss of Resident Data on Drunk Guy With USB Drive

Officials in Amagasaki, Japan, say man lost device with info on all of city's 460K residents

(Newser) - If you're a resident of the Japanese city of Amagasaki and find out over the next few months you're the victim of identity theft, you can allegedly blame a worker who had a little too much to drink. CNN reports that the city's government has put out...

Pest Company Makes 'Creepy, Crawly' $2K Offer to Homeowners

The Pest Informer will pay you to let 100 cockroaches loose in your home for 30 days

(Newser) - Looking for "100 creepy, crawly new roommates"? That's how WREG frames a rather unusual call for homeowners (or those who have explicit written permission from the homeowner) who are willing to allow 100 cockroaches to be released in their homes as part of a North Carolina pest...

Supermarkets Find $83M Worth of Cocaine in Banana Shipments
Oops: $83M Worth of Cocaine
Sent to Supermarkets
in case you missed it
Jun 19, 2022 7:05 AM CDT

Oops: $83M Worth of Cocaine Sent to Supermarkets

And in Colombia, cocaine disguised as potatoes

(Newser) - Supermarkets in the Czech Republic got a little more than they bargained for in their banana shipments last week: $83 million worth of cocaine. Police were alerted after grocery workers started discovering blocks of pressed cocaine in with the fruit; ultimately, 1,851 pounds were found, Newsweek reports. The crates...

Virtual Hearing on Peru's Leader Has Unexpected Guest

Clip of male stripper interrupts videoconference on corruption probe into Pedro Castillo

(Newser) - A virtual public hearing into possible corruption involving Peruvian President Pedro Castillo took a briefly bizarre turn on Wednesday thanks to what the Mirror calls a "lewd gaffe" that made its way into the videoconference. As seen in a clip that's now widely being shared on Twitter and...

25 Hurt in Hot Coal 'Team-Building' Walk

13 were hospitalized after Swiss event

(Newser) - A company team-building exercise in Switzerland apparently didn't go the way the firm intended it to—although participants will have a shared experience of extreme pain and injured feet to bond over. Authorities say 25 people were treated for burns after they walked across hot coals at a private...

Boston Transit Agency Really Wants You to Hold It In on the Elevator

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority pilot program will use urine sensors

(Newser) - Urine trouble no more, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority hopes, with a new program to tackle public urination in system elevators with technology. The MBTA, which services Boston and the surrounding area, is launching a pilot program this summer in which urine detection sensors will be placed in four downtown...

Know What This Is? A Curious City Would Like to Know
Know What This Is?
A Curious City
Would Like to Know
in case you missed it
Jun 12, 2022 12:25 PM CDT

Know What This Is? A Curious City Would Like to Know

Amarillo, Texas, looking for help to identify strange figure spotted outside zoo

(Newser) - Is Sonic the Hedgehog looking for friends in Amarillo? Officials in the Texas city are asking for the public's help to identify an odd-looking object, possibly creature, spotted near the city zoo. In the "dark and early morning hours" of May 21, security cameras inside an Amarillo Zoo...

If Ikea Has Its Way, Your Baby Will Be Named Malm

Swedish retailer's Norway branch offers 'name bank' with hundreds of ideas based on its products

(Newser) - Have you thought about Malm, Kivik, or Trotten? Swedish retailer Ikea is known for the distinctive names of its flat-pack home products. Now, the company's Norway branch wants to use the brand's experience to help parents browsing the baby-naming department. Ikea Norway has built a "name bank"...

Check Your Uber for Tater Tots, Metal Legs, Slime

Those are just some of the odd items left behind in the company's vehicles last year

(Newser) - If you've ever left something behind in a cab—or, these days, in a ride-hailing vehicle—you're not alone. It's not uncommon for drivers to discover the phones, keys, wallets, or purses that customers forgot in the back seat, especially in Austin, Texas, the most forgetful city...

After the Club, They Spotted the Puncture Mark

A mysterious wave of needle attacks is being reported in France and beyond

(Newser) - Across France, 302 people have reported being pricked out of the blue with needles at nightclubs or concerts in recent months. Doctors and multiple prosecutors are on the case, but no one knows who's doing it or why, and whether the victims have been injected with drugs—or indeed...

Cops: Lake Had 'No Swimming' Signs, but Man Went in Anyway

Largo, Florida, cops believe man was killed by alligator while looking for Frisbees

(Newser) - Florida police believe a man who was searching for a Frisbee in a lake at a Largo park may have been killed by an alligator. The unidentified 47-year-old man was found dead Tuesday morning in John S. Taylor Park. Largo police say that despite there being "no swimming" signs...

Want to Scare a Male Mouse? Try a Banana


Want to Scare
a Male Mouse?
Try a Banana
new study
May 31, 2022 11:22 AM CDT

Want to Scare a Male Mouse? Try a Banana

Scientists make an odd, and accidental, discovery

(Newser) - It's one of the weirder scientific discoveries in a while: Scientists accidentally found that mice are afraid of bananas—but only male mice, and particularly virgins. It seems that bananas give off the same scent that female mice emit when they're warning males to steer clear of their...

Man Disguised as Woman Throws Cake at Mona Lisa

It was apparently done in the name of the planet

(Newser) - A man seemingly disguised as an old woman in a wheelchair threw a piece of cake at the glass protecting the Mona Lisa at the Louvre museum and shouted at people to think of planet Earth. The Paris prosecutor's office said Monday that the man, 36, was detained following...

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