From The Archive

7 of the World's Craziest Roads

Pack the jerky, a few friends, and maybe a few extra hundreds for those hefty gas prices. ‘Tis the season for summer road trips! In the spirit of all things cruise control, here are just a few of the world’s craziest roads to either try out or actively av

Jesse James' First Train Robbery

Dek TK

Paul Castellano, boss of the Gambino Crime Family, in 1985.

7 Major Mafia Murders [Warning: Gruesome Photos]

Indulge your inner goodfella by reading about some of the most gruesome and infamous mafia-related murders of all time.

Let's Paint the Town!

The term "monochrome town" evokes an image of a dreary gray industrial area. It is not always so! There are places around the world where residents agree to brighten things up with one beautiful color for their community. And there are other places where

McDonald's Menu Items From Around The World

Knowing _flossers like I do, many if not most of you have experienced McDonald's outside the U.S. because, hey, you like to travel and see the world, right? Indubitably, you've got a story about that one time you were in X and looked up at the McDonald's

How the Original Donruss Rated Rookies Turned Out

In 1984, Donruss released what some collectors consider one of the greatest baseball card sets of all time. In addition to 26 Diamond Kings—a subset of cards depicting a star player from every team—the 660-card set included 20 Rated Rookies, a new subset

Color Photos of London From World War II

Yesterday was the 70th anniversary of the launch of Winston Churchill's WWII "V for Victory" campaign. To mark the occasion, LIFE.com gathered up color photos taken in London during the

Why Are Gossipy Newspapers Called "Tabloids"?

While the sensational fall of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire is chronicled this week by media outlets everywhere, we thought we’d get to the bottom of a less sensational question: Why are gossipy newspapers called “tabloids”

Cartman's Favorite Snack & Other Fictional Products That Became Real

In honor of South Park’s 15-year anniversary, the world will finally have the opportunity to watch the show while munching on their very own bag of Eric Cartman’s favorite snack – Cheesy Poofs. The orange, synthetic cheese-based treats will be handed ou

10 Other People Who've Been Pied

Image credit: @DanJHayes News Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch took a shaving cream pie to the face today during his hearing before a committee of the British Parliament on the phone-hacking scandal. Good thing we had this list handy. 1. Singer and activis

10 Cool and Creative Marriage Proposals

Whatever your opinion of flashy, big-production proposals, you have to admit that someone who puts that kind of effort into asking a simple question is someone who really cares about the answer. Personally, I still get all sentimental about the Hollywood

As American as Apple Pie Bombs

American institution or not, Nikita Khrushchev probably wasn’t impressed with the mysterious homemade apple pie he received during his first visit to the United States in 1959. Though the visit was historic, many Americans were less than thrilled that th

Yes, Virginia, There Was a Merlin

With all the hoopla about Harry Potter this week, it seems as if people have forgotten about the OG wizard: Merlin. The legendary spell-caster has been written about by no less than Mark Twain and C.S. Lewis (among others) and portrayed on film and televi

If you or someone you know collects postcards, there's a word for that.

20 Obscure Words to Describe Collectors

You probably know that numismatists study and collect coins and currency, and you may even know that philatelists study and collect stamps. But other groups of collectors have their own less-heralded nouns, too.

Dietribes: Spinach

• Spinach is far fancier than you might imagine upon first glance: in some cultures, greens like spinach and kale symbolize money. Beyond that, the “Florentine” moniker given to some French dishes is in honor of Catherine de’Medici, who is said to have ea

What It Takes to Be a Nation

© Eddie Gerald / Demotix/Demotix/Corbis Not to get all existential on you, but what does it mean to be a “real nation”? As it turns out, people have been trying to answer that question for the last 400 years. In 1648, a bunch of super powerful men—the

What Is the Iowa Straw Poll?

In a little over a month, Republican presidential hopefuls will meet in Ames to square off in the Iowa Straw Poll. What the heck is a straw poll, and what do the results mean? Let’s take a look at some questions about the event that’s going to start domin

The Nazi Sex Doll Initiative

It appears the Third Reich pioneered one of the weirder sides of human sexuality—catering to the need of lonely men to have intercourse with inflatable

Bikini Birthdays: Bathing Suits and Bombs

While many of us were busy celebrating the Fourth last week, an important milestone slipped by us: the birthday of the bikini. And while the swimwear itself may be itsy-bitsy, this birthday definitely wasn’t - the two-piece turned 65 on July 5. The conc

Food Lessons From the U.S. Government

On July 4, award-winning chef Jose Andres opened a pop-up restaurant in Washington, DC. America Eats Tavern pays homage to the culinary history of the U.S., with proceeds supporting the Foundation for the National Archives. The restaurant opened in conjun

How Many Raisins Are in "Two Scoops"?

Note: Mangesh and I have a daily (well, Monday through Thursday) newsletter called Watercooler Ammo. You might like it. Here's one from last month. Boxes of Kellogg's Raisin Bran promise to be chock-full of their signature ingredient. Two Scoops worth of

8 Candidates for the Next New Nation

On Saturday, South Sudan declared its independence, becoming the brand-spanking newest nation in the world. While peace and prosperity is still a good way off for this newborn, Texas-sized country—ethnic tensions are high, the economy is in shambles, and

6 Revolutionary Groups That Robbed Their Country's Banks

© ALI HAIDER/epa/Corbis Back in May, The Washington Post reported that Libyan rebels had obtained funds by “liberating” government assets worth $505 million in the Central Bank of Libya’s Benghazi branch. Ali Tarhouni (pictured), the rebels’ minister of

7 Video Game Controversies Not Involving Grand Theft Auto or Mortal Kombat

With the recent Supreme Court ruling that video games are a form of Free Speech protected by the First Amendment, it seems like a good time to look back at some of the controversies that led the nation's highest court to get involved in the debate. While

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