The tallest wooden roller coaster in the world is the Colossus at Heide Park in Soltau, Germany. It is 197 feet tall. The wooden roller with the tallest drop in the world is El Toro at Six Flags in Jackson Township, New Jersey, USA. It drops 176 feet.
In tempting Brutus to join the conspiracy to assassinate Caesar, Cassius complained that Caesar did bestride the narrow world like a Colussus.
18-year old Louisville Kentucky light-heavyweight boxer Cassius Clay almost did not go to the Rome Summer Olympics in 1960 because of his fear of flying. He begged to go by boat (or even by train!). When finally convinced by a mentor to go on the flight, the young Clay bought a military surplus parachute and brought it on the plane with him.
In Rome, the young upstart defeated the champion from Poland, Zbigniew “Ziggy” Pietrzykowski.
The rest, as they say, is history.
Nazi Germany’s September 1- October 6, 1939 invasion of Poland marked the start of World War II, less than a month after signing the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact that brought Germany and the Soviet Union together as allies.
Chevy Chase is a town in Maryland located in Montgomery county.
Among the World War II campaigns in which Bernard Montgomery was involved were Operation Capri (an attack on the German Eighth Army in the Tunisian town of Medenine) and Operation Husky (Allied invasion of Sicily).
In 2005, a life-size bronze statue of Elizabeth Montgomery sitting on a broom, like her character Samantha Stevens on “Bewitched”, was installed in Lappin Park in Salem, Massachusetts.
The Lady in the Lake was a 1947 movie adaptation of the novel by Raymond Chandler. Director and star Robert Montgomery show the entire film so that the camera was from the point of view of Phillip Marlowe. Montgomery only saw himself when his face was reflected in the mirror, and actors addressed themselves directly to the camera. The experiment was not a success.
Department store retailer Montgomery Ward operated from 1872 to 2001. It was ultimately done in by lower-priced competitors such as Target, Kmart and especially Walmart.
One of the more notable events in the company history came in 1944-45, when the Roosevelt administration seized Montgomery Ward’s American assets because they refused to resolve a strike, causing an adverse effect on the delivery of needed goods during wartime. President Truman ended the seizure in 1945.
And the connection between these two bits of trivia is…?
Harry Truman, after leaving the White House in 1953, was awarded an honorary doctorate by Oxford University.
The University of Oxford’s list of notable alumni is far too extensive to list here, but the number includes 26 British prime ministers, at least 30 foreign heads of state, at least 12 saints, 50 Olympic medal-winners and 20 Archbishops of Canterbury.
Rhodes Scholar Pat Haden, after attending the University of Oxford, was drafted by the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams. The 3rd QB on the Rams’ depth chart behind James Harris and Ron Jaworski, when those two got injured in Haden’s rookie season, Haden led the Rams to win the NFC’s Western Division, and then to a playoff victory over the defending Conference Champion Dallas Cowboys, before losing to the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Conference Championship game.
Emitt Rhodes wanted to call his first album “Home Made,” since it was recorded in his home studio without any help from anyone else. The record company feared that various unions would be upset if this was called to their attention, so released it with no title, just “Emitt Rhodes.” The album is now considered a cult classic, and was compared favorably to Paul McCartney’s first solo album, which was released at the same time.
Tonya Harding, of the Nancy Kerrigan knee-whacking incident, once set a land speed record at Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.
President Warren G. Harding traditionally has been ranked as one of the worst presidents. In a 1948 poll conducted by Harvard University historian Arthur M. Schlesinger, Sr., the first notable survey of scholars’ opinions of the presidents, Harding ranked last among the 29 presidents considered. In a 1962 poll conducted by Schlesinger, he was ranked last again, 31 out of 31. His son, Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., conducted another poll in 1996; once again, Harding was last, ranked 39 out of 39.
While Harding’s presidential qualities were lacking, his sexual escapades made him one of the most promiscuous of all presidents. He carried on at least four long-term affairs (including one with Nan Britton that was consummated in a small conference room* next to the Oval Office), paying off the women involved to keep them secret. There were also several more cases of him paying money to women to keep an affair silent, and he seems to have fathered at least two children with his mistresses.
His wife Florence tried to steer him away, and was aware of some of the affairs, but stayed with him primarily because of her ambition to make him president. A divorce would have ruined his chances. Ironically, Florence was divorced – or maybe not, since there is no record she married her first husband in the first place.
*Sometimes referred to as a “closet.” Their baby was conceived while Hardin was still senator, in his Senate offices.
La The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore (English: Basilica of Saint Mary of the Flower), commonly called Il Duomo, is the main church of Florence, Italy. It is most notable for its Gothic dome, designed and engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi, who was patronized by Cosimo de Medici. It was the first’octagonal dome in history to be built without a temporary wooden supporting frame.
Almost any dish with the word “Florentine” (the adjectival form of Florence, Italy) in its name will contain spinach.
Popeye the Sailor Man espoused the benefits of eating spinach.
The words Sailor, Soldier, Marine and Airman (regardless of gender) are capitalized in most U.S. Department of Defense publications.