strange stuff

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

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Paralyzed Man's Hardship Began When Monkey Stole Hat

American man injured while chasing monkey in Bali

(Newser) - Friends and relatives of an American man paralyzed after falling from a roof in Indonesia have this explanation: A monkey stole his favorite hat. Jeff "Swede" Swedenhjelm had taken shelter from rain under a pavilion in Bali on Dec. 18 when he encountered several monkeys, one of which plucked...

Cause of Airport Evacuation: Over-Toasted Bagel

Hundreds of travelers sent out in freezing temperatures in St. Louis

(Newser) - Hundreds of holiday travelers had to evacuate Lambert International Airport in St. Louis Tuesday night for a reason worthy of a sitcom: Somebody burned a bagel. The over-toasting happened about 6pm inside a restaurant in Terminal 2, and the resulting smoke set off alarms, reports KMOV . One traveler estimates that...

Cops: Customers Waited in Church Lot for Unholy Delivery

California couple arrested for allegedly delivering drugs via drone

(Newser) - "Well it's new for us, at least." Such is the pronouncement of an officer with California's Riverside Police Department following the arrest of a couple who allegedly used a drone to transport drugs to waiting customers in a church parking lot. Neighbors say once the drugs...

Cops: Man Beat Up ATM That 'Gave Too Much Cash'

He told police he didn't know what to do

(Newser) - 'Tis the season to be generous—but not if you're an ATM, and especially not if you're dealing with Michael Joseph Oleksik. Police in Florida say the 23-year-old Merritt Island man was arrested and charged with criminal mischief over an attack that caused at least $5,000...

Amazon Pulls Product That May Promote 'Unnecessary Surgery'

British secular group complained about circumcision kits

(Newser) - British people hoping to order circumcision training kits from Amazon as bizarre last-minute Christmas gifts are out of luck. The retailer removed the kits from its British website after a complaint from the country's National Secular Society that it could "encourage unqualified practitioners to carry out unnecessary surgery...

Man Claims Father-in-Law Has Terrorized Him With a Toupee

Yes, that headline means what you think

(Newser) - A New York City man who says he has a fear of the Tasmanian Devil claims his father-in-law repeatedly scared him with a toupee that looks like the cartoon character. The New York Post reports Yunes Doleh was arrested in November for violating a restraining order filed by his son-in-law,...

At Theme Park, Eating a Cricket Gets You in

If that sort of thing doesn't bug you, they come in 5 different flavors

(Newser) - A Georgia theme park is offering guests a free ticket if they eat a cricket. The giveaway may bug some people, chortles the AP . But Wild Adventures Theme Park in Valdosta was giving away T-shirts and free admission Saturday to the first 100 guests to gobble up a roasted cricket....

Cow Ditches Nativity Scene, Wanders Philly Instead

The Hereford had an adventurous night, busting out twice

(Newser) - A slippery cow who escaped a Nativity scene in Philadelphia is back in place—again. The cow, named Stormy, wandered away from the Nativity scene at Old First United Church of Christ early Thursday and ended up on Interstate 95 around 2:20am, reports the AP . Philadelphia police eventually boxed...

British Surgeon Branded Initials on Transplant Livers

Simon Bramhall has pleaded guilty to assault

(Newser) - When you're an artist, it's considered customary to sign your work. When you're a surgeon, it's considered bizarre and illegal. Renowned British surgeon Simon Bramhall, who branded his initials on the livers of at least two transplant patients in 2013, pleaded guilty to assault Wednesday, the...

Cops: Wife's Wild Murder Cover-Up Foiled by Soup

India's Swati Reddy was allegedly inspired by a movie

(Newser) - It's a tale of murder fit for the movies—which is just where Swati Reddy allegedly got her inspiration. Police in southern India say the 27-year-old nurse killed her husband, then poured acid on the face of her lover in an effort to pass him off as her spouse....

Can We Really Blame a Dog for Freaking Out During Cats?

Service animal went after feline-dressed performer during Broadway play

(Newser) - A showing of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats almost went to the dogs this week, quite literally. Witnesses tell the New York Post that during a performance at New York City's Neil Simon Theatre, a service dog broke free from its owner during the opening number and rushed the...

Fliers Have to 'Go Really Bad,' Plane Diverts Hundreds of Miles

NYC to Seattle flight lands in Montana so passengers can answer call of nature

(Newser) - We've all been there: Needing to "go really bad," without a toilet in sight. The situation got a little more uncomfortable for passengers on a typically 6-hour Delta flight from New York City to Seattle Saturday night, who were forced to make an unscheduled pit stop—or...

Lava Kept Rolling. So Did His Camera

Erik Storm recalls his '$400 mistake' in Hawaii, but the footage is mesmerizing

(Newser) - Placed in a crevice at Hawaii's Volcanoes National Park, the camera recorded a lava flow drawing near, nearer, and then too near. In the video , sudden flames spout at the bottom of the screen before obstructing the view as the GoPro Hero4 is swallowed. A year after the video...

Opossum Breaks Into Liquor Store, Gets Drunk on Bourbon

She sobered up at a wildlife center

(Newser) - An opossum that apparently drank bourbon after breaking into a Florida liquor store sobered up at a wildlife rescue center and was released unharmed. Emerald Coast Wildlife Refuge officials say the opossum was brought in by a Fort Walton Beach, Fla., police officer on Nov. 24, the AP reports. A...

Where There's Smoke, There's ... Pregnant Women?

Women participating in incense therapy accidentally trigger emergency call

(Newser) - A reported fire in a Hamburg basement turned out to be a false alarm after firefighters determined that the smell of burning came from an alternative therapy being used at a neighboring gynecological clinic. The fire department said Thursday they received a call at lunchtime Wednesday about a strong burning...

Limo Driver Prepares to Fly a Mile in Homemade Rocket

'If you're not scared to death, you're an idiot'

(Newser) - The countdown to launch creeps closer and there's still plenty for self-taught rocket scientist "Mad" Mike Hughes to do: Last-second modifications to his vessel. Pick up his flight suit. Leave enough food for his four cats—just in case anything happens. Hughes is a 61-year-old limo driver who'...

Politician Looks to Revive Unusual Dish: Rat Soup

It's a traditional dish in Mexican state of Zacatecas

(Newser) - Typically, one would be unhappy to find rat in his or her soup. But caldo de rata, or rat soup, has been eaten in the Mexican state of Zacatecas since colonial times, and now a local politician is trying to promote it so it regains its popularity. It's currently...

Move Over, Firefighters: NYC Cabbies Put Out Own Calendar

Taxi drivers decide it's time to take a spin as pinups

(Newser) - New York City cabbies have been called a lot of things over the years ... courteous, reckless, sometimes rude. But sexy? That's the tongue-in-cheek goal of a quirky pinup calendar featuring a dozen New York City taxi drivers smirking and smoldering in provocative poses in and around their yellow cabs,...

Couple: Cops Detained Us After Mistaking Hibiscus for Pot Plant

They say an insurance agent alerted police to the flowering plant

(Newser) - A Pennsylvania couple is suing the police and an insurance company because they say they were handcuffed for hours in a patrol car after their hibiscus plants were confused for marijuana, the AP reports. Edward and Audrey Cramer say in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that a Nationwide Insurance Co. agent...

Guy Discovers KFC Secret, Gets Special KFC Painting

Um, wow

(Newser) - "Dreams DO come true." And for Mike Edgette, who tweeted just that on Saturday morning, his dream entailed receiving a painting depicting him riding piggyback on Colonel Sanders against a picturesque mountain landscape, all the while waving a KFC drumstick. Edgette tells Mashable he received the artwork, along...

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