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North Carolina's Gold Discovery
1. In 1803, a 12-year-old boy discovered a 17-pound gold nugget on his father's farm in North Carolina, marking the beginning of the first U.S. gold rush. This discovery significantly impacted the region, supplying all the gold for the nation's mints until 1829. The find set off a series of events that would eventually lead to further gold rushes across the United States.
2. Actor Clark Gable served in World War II and once nearly lost his life. When MGM learned of the incident, studio executives began pressuring the Army Air Forces to reassign him to noncombat duty. Also, Hitler was a fan and offered a substantial reward to anyone who could capture and bring Gable to him unharmed.
3. After defeating rival tribes, Genghis Khan placed the conquered people under his protection and integrated them into his own tribe. He even had his mother adopt orphans from these tribes, welcoming them into his family.
4. Tsar Peter III of Russia had a rat court-martialed and hanged after it gnawed off the heads of his toy soldiers.
5. In the 1980s, the Naval Investigative Service carried out a huge but pointless search in the Chicago area for a woman named “Dorothy,” after hearing gay men call themselves “friends of Dorothy.” They believed that she was at the center of a ring of gay military personnel.
6. In 1954, the well-known rhythm-and-blues singer Johnny Ace died after he jokingly aimed a gun at himself and accidentally shot himself with it. His last words were "It’s okay! Gun’s not loaded… see?"
7. The Walther PPK, the handgun made famous by James Bond, was the same model Hitler used to kill himself.
8. Construction of an Irish motorway was delayed by ten years and then rerouted to preserve a tree believed to be inhabited by fairies.
9. As Clark Kent, Superman adopts a slouched posture to appear several inches shorter, intentionally wears loose clothing to hide his physique, uses glasses that change his eye color, and alters the pitch of his voice.
10. At Christmas in 2013, more than 250 passengers on Calgary-bound flights were part of a WestJet 'Christmas miracle.' Santa Claus appeared on life-size screens at boarding gates and asked passengers what they wanted for Christmas. When the planes landed, the gifts were on the baggage carousel.
