Latest Oddities News

Florida's convicted killer clown released from prison for the murder of her husband's then-wife

Nov. 02, 2024 15:12 PM EDT

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A woman who pleaded guilty to dressing as a clown and in 1990 murdering the wife of a man she later married was released from prison Saturday, ending a case that has been strange even by Florida standards. Sheila Keen-Warren, 61, was released 18 months...

Pets join Mexico's Day of the Dead celebrations, as Fido and Tiger get their own altars

Nov. 02, 2024 00:36 AM EDT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Pets are not forgotten during Mexico's famed Day of the Dead celebrations, when even Fido and Tiger get a place at the altars Mexican families set up to honor their deceased loved ones, complete with flowers, candles and photographs. Though the human dead usually...

Tourists toss coins over a makeshift pool as Rome’s Trevi Fountain undergoes maintenance

Nov. 01, 2024 12:42 PM EDT

ROME (AP) — Tourists eager to return to the Eternal City are being forced to toss coins over a plastic barrier and into a small makeshift pool in front of Rome’s Trevi Fountain while the attraction is being drained for maintenance. The rectangular box, unadorned and showing its...

A Bolivian artist carves faces of the departed onto Day of the Dead bread

Nov. 01, 2024 01:15 AM EDT

EL ALTO, Bolivia (AP) — During the Day of the Dead celebrations that take place in late October and early November, Latin Americans honor their departed loved ones by setting up altars adorned with food, flowers and photographs. But what about carving the actual face of your deceased spouse or...

He’s fast, feisty and could play Quidditch. Meet the bat that won a beauty contest

Oct. 31, 2024 19:00 PM EDT

ASHLAND, Ore. (AP) — A winged creature from Oregon was crowned this year’s winner Thursday in an annual bat beauty contest put on by the Bureau of Land Management. On Halloween, which was also the last day of International Bat Week, a hoary bat with a feisty personality named...

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear shows off his 'Ted Lasso' look on Halloween

Oct. 31, 2024 18:52 PM EDT

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear showed off his Halloween spirit Thursday, decked out as fictional soccer coach Ted Lasso at the start of his news conference. Only the mustache was missing. “Happy Halloween,” the Democratic governor said before delving into a...

Instagram-famous squirrel named Peanut seized by New York state authorities

Oct. 31, 2024 17:26 PM EDT

A New York man who turned a rescued squirrel into a social media star called Peanut is pleading with state authorities to return his beloved pet after they seized it during a raid that also yielded a raccoon named Fred. Multiple anonymous complaints about Peanut — also spelled...

A New Zealand city waves goodbye to its 'disturbing' giant hand sculpture that many came to love

Oct. 31, 2024 03:09 AM EDT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Perched on two fingers on the roof of an art gallery in Wellington, New Zealand, the giant sculpture of a hand has loomed over the city for five years. Named Quasi, the 16-foot — almost 5 meters — creation of Australia-based sculptor Ronnie van...

In a first since 1938, Des Moines, Iowa, kids will trick-or-treat on Halloween

Oct. 29, 2024 17:25 PM EDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — For the first time since 1938, children in Des Moines, Iowa, will go trick-or-treating on Halloween. Going door-to-door for candy on All Hallows' Eve has long been commonplace throughout the country. But not in Des Moines, where Iowa's capital city took a...

At 7 feet, 9 inches, Olivier Rioux is the world's tallest teen and an intriguing basketball project

Oct. 29, 2024 16:11 PM EDT

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Walking from his apartment to classes and then to the University of Florida’s basketball facility, Olivier Rioux poses for dozens — sometimes hundreds — of pictures a day. Vertical shots, of course. Rioux won’t fit in the frame any other way. ...