During Desert Storm in 1991, Tony Orlando and Dawn's 1970s pop hit Tie a Yellow Ribbon (Round the Old Oak Tree) had a resurgence in popularity as the anthem for American families with loved ones overseas. As a result of the tremendous demand for yellow ribbon, one ribbon-maker shipped 30 million

The first known published crossword puzzle was created by a journalist named Arthur Wynne from Liverpool, and he is usually credited as the inventor of the popular word game. December 21, 1913 was the date and the 'word-cross' appeared in a Sunday newspaper, the New York World. Wynne's puzzle differed from today's crosswords in that it was ...Read more

In computer-ese, "wysiwyg" is an acronym for "what you see is what you get."

Since the Lego Group began manufacturing blocks in 1949, more than 189 billion pieces in 2,000 different shapes have been produced. This is enough for about 30 Lego pieces for every living person on Earth.

Although many food writers have translated the Italian "antipasto" as "before the pasta," its literal meaning is "before the meal."

Small-time gamblers who place small bet in order to prolong the excitement of a game are called "dead fish" by game operators because the longer the playing time, the greater the chances of losing.

In a stroke of irony, the maximum security prison in St. Albans, Vermont, was responsible in 1996 for sending out public relations brochures enticing tourists to visit Vermont.

More than one-third of the world's commercial supply of pineapples comes from Hawaii.

Migrating geese fly in a V-formation to save energy. A goose's wings churn the air and leave an air current behind. In the flying wedge, each bird is in position to get a lift from the current left by the bird ahead. It is easier going for all, except the leader. During a migration, geese are apt

Astronaut John Glenn ate the first meal in space when he ate pureed applesauce squeezed from a tube aboard Friendship 7 in 1962.

Babies are born with 300 bones, but by adulthood, we have only 206 in our bodies.

Nerve signals may travel through nerve or muscle fibers at speeds as high as 200 miles per hour.

Elvis Presley made only one television commercial -- an ad for "Southern Maid Doughnuts" that ran in 1954.

Barbara Jo Rubin became the first female jockey to win a horse race on February 22, 1969. She rode Cohesian to victory at Charlestown Racetrack in West Virginia.

The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History houses the world's largest shell collection, some 15 million specimens. A smaller museum in Sanibel, Florida owns a mere 2 million shells and claims to be the world's only museum devoted solely to mollusks.

On the TV sitcom Seinfeld, when Kramer moved to Hollywood to pursue an acting career, he landed the role of one of Murphy's short-term secretaries on Murphy Brown.

In addition to silversmithing, Paul Revere practiced dentistry in colonial Boston. He learned the craft from a surgeon dentist and advertised himself as being prepared to fix loose false teeth and to clean teeth.

A prolific and imaginative writer, Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote 26 Tarzan books without ever visiting Africa.

In 1992, Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon, better known to country music fans as singer/comedienne Minnie Pearl, was awarded a National Medal of Arts by President George Bush. In 1994, Minnie became the first woman to be inducted into the Comedy Hall of Fame. She was too frail and sick to attend the ceremony, and so good friend and comedian George ...Read more

On food, writer Barbara Costikyan notes, "In the childhood memories of every good cook, there's a large kitchen, a warm stove, a simmering pot, and a mom."