Latest Oddities News
329 years later, last Salem 'witch' who wasn't is pardoned
BOSTON (AP) — It took more than three centuries, but the last Salem “witch” who wasn’t has been officially pardoned. Massachusetts lawmakers on Thursday formally exonerated Elizabeth Johnson Jr., clearing her name 329 years after she was convicted of witchcraft in 1693 and...
Firefighters rescue 'Cinder' the elk calf from fire's ashes
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Firefighters have rescued an abandoned newborn elk calf found amid the ashes of the nation's largest wildfire as calving season approaches its peak in New Mexico and fires rage across the American West. Missoula, Montana-based firefighter Nate Sink said...
Life imitates art: 'Jaws' extra named police chief
OAK BLUFFS, Mass. (AP) — A man who as a child had a brief but key role in “Jaws” has been named police chief on the Massachusetts island on which the 1975 movie was partially filmed. Jonathan Searle was offered the job of police chief in Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard last...
Nearly 8,000-year-old skull found in Minnesota River
REDWOOD FALLS, Minn. (AP) — A partial skull that was discovered last summer by two kayakers in Minnesota will be returned to Native American officials after investigations determined it was about 8,000 years old. The kayakers found the skull in the drought-depleted Minnesota River...
Orphaned bear cubs settle into new home at wildlife facility
NEWTOWN, Conn. (AP) — Two black bear cubs are settling into their new home at a New Hampshire wildlife rehabilitation facility, after their mother was killed last week by an off-duty police officer. The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said Tuesday the...
Finland brewery launches NATO beer with 'taste of security'
HELSINKI (AP) — A small brewery in Finland has launched a NATO-themed beer to mark the Nordic country’s bid to join the Western military alliance. Olaf Brewing's OTAN lager features a blue label with a cartoon version of a beer-drinking medieval knight in metal armor emblazoned...
Man in Japan gambles COVID town funds mistakenly sent to him
TOKYO (AP) — The money was supposed to be COVID-19 assistance for low-income households in a small Japanese town, but it was mistakenly wired to a bank account of a resident who refused to return it and spent most of it on online gambling, police said. Sho Taguchi, a 24-year-old...
Happy is an Asian elephant. But is she also a person?
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — She has four limbs, expressive eyes and likes to stroll through greenery in New York City. Happy, by species, is an Asian elephant. But can she also be considered a person? That question was before New York's highest court Wednesday in a closely watched case...
Baron Cohen drops lawsuit over cannabis dispensary billboard
SOMERSET, Mass. (AP) — Actor Sacha Baron Cohen has dropped his lawsuit against a Massachusetts cannabis dispensary that used an image of his character Borat on a billboard without his permission. A document filed in Boston federal court on Tuesday said the two sides have agreed to...
168-year-old Peterboro Basket Co. closing, cites forest pest
PETERBOROUGH, N.H. (AP) — A 168-year-old company in New Hampshire known for its handwoven, hardwood baskets is closing its factory and stopping production, partly because of an insect pest that has been destroying ash trees. The Peterboro Basket Company has been in business since...
