ICE COLD SUNSHINE

Coca-Cola was sold in 1893 as “The Ideal Brain Tonic.” By 1908, the product was using a new slogan: “Good to the Last Drop.” The company tried out plenty of selling sayings over the years, including “Ice Cold Sunshine” (1932), “Americans Prefer Taste” (1955) and “I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke” (1971).

When “Amusement Business” released its list of the nation’s top 10 theme parks based on 2001 attendance figures, Disney owned and operated more than half of the destinations.

William Henry “Bill” Gates was born in 1955. His father was an attorney, and his mother was a teacher. Gates showed an early interest in computers, writing programs as early as age 13.

Uranus, the seventh planet from the sun and the third largest in the solar system, has at least 22 moons.

The Gottfried Krueger Brewing Company of Newark, NJ, was the country’s first brewer to sell canned beer. Krueger’s Finest Beer and Krueger’s Cream Ale both went on sale on January 24, 1935, in Richmond, Va.

At least 85 percent of all greeting cards sold in the United States are purchased by women. Even on Mother’s Day, 83 percent of all cards sent to Mom are selected and paid for by daughters.

SPINACH TOWNS REMEMBER CARTOON HERO

Chester, Ill., dedicated a Popeye statue in 1977 to honor hometown hero Elzie Segar, creator of the cartoon character. The town even has an annual Popeye picnic. But Alma, Ark., goes a step further, calling itself the “Spinach Capital to the World.” The town is home to Popeye Brand Spinach, and its Popeye statue stands in front of the Chamber of Commerce building. Not to be outdone, Crystal City, Tex., has two statues of Popeye.

Dr. Seuss’ first book for children, “And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street,” was rejected by almost 30 publishers before it finally found a home in 1937 at Random House.

The U.S. Nuclear Weapons Cost Study Project — completed in 1998 — reported that, from 1951 to the study’s release, the nation produced at least 67,500 nuclear missiles.

Almost 70 million U.S. citizens identify themselves as Roman Catholic.

Susan B. Anthony’s image was chosen for the one-dollar coin, minted in 1979, which made her the first woman, other than a mythical figure, to appear on U.S. currency.

The minting of each U.S. penny costs roughly 0.81 cent.

The Macadamia, an Australian native, was first introduced in Hawaii in 1881 as an ornamental plant and for reforestation of the islands.

ITALY’S MOST-BEAUTIFUL WOMAN

There once was a woman so beautiful that all of Italy’s most-eligible men desired her hand in marriage. But Vittoria’s choice, the Duke of Bracciano, was believed to have murdered his wife. Pope Gregory XIII intervened, confining Vittoria to Fort St. Angelo for a year in order to prevent the marriage. It seems, however, that these efforts to protect the maid were unnecessary. She could take care of herself. Vittoria married the Duke. He died a few months later.

If crowned king or queen in Great Britain, the only way to lawfully get out of the job is with the consent of both houses of Parliament.

Mythology makes the claim that the maritime town of Abdera was founded by Hercules. But historians give credit to Timesias Clazomenae.

In the late 19th century, it was considered common practice for wholesalers to grind up gypsum, mustard husks and starch, marketing the concoction as pepper.

In Ancient Greece, adultery was only considered a crime if a married woman was the offender.

North America’s geographic center lies in Osborne County, Kan. But the continental United States has its center in neighboring Smith County.

Barbie’s parents’ names are George and Margaret.

A single chocolate chip provides enough energy for a person to walk about 150 feet.

T-REX NOT SO BIG AFTER ALL

Early 20th century estimates placed the Tyrannosaurus Rex at more than 40 feet in length with a weight of up to 12 tons. But more recent discoveries of complete skeletons make it unlikely that the “Tyrant Lizard-King” ever reached lengths of much more than 38 feet.

Sundials use the shadow of an object, cast by the sun, to show the time. That center object is called a gnomon.

Elvis Presley left school to become a truck driver. He didn’t stick with it for long.

The National Weather Service issues a blizzard warning when a storm has sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 miles an hour or more and enough falling or blowing snow to cut visibility to under 1/4 mile for at least three hours.

The Hawaiian Islands may be the world’s most isolated population center. California is 2,390 miles away, Japan is more than 3,800 miles, and the Philippines lie 5,280 miles distant.

Nearly 1 billion Barbie dolls have been sold since 1959. Placed head to toe, they would circle the world 3-1/2 times.

The heaviest known living snake — tipping the scales at 403 pounds — is Baby, a Burmese Python, who resides at the Serpent Safari Park in Gurnee, Ill.

THE ENVELOPE, PLEASE

The confidential envelope was first introduced as a part of The Oscars ceremony in 1941. That was the year that “How Green Was My Valley” beat out “Citizen Kane” and “The Maltese Falcon” for Best Picture.

The elephant is the only animal with four knees.

The British Film Institute reports that more films were created in that country in 1936 — 192 in all — than in any other year.

At least two films used chocolate to simulate blood: “Night of the Living Dead” and “Psycho.”

To make the unique roar for giant film ape “King Kong,” sound experts blended the recorded roars of a lion and a tiger and then ran the recording backwards.

The Southern University Agricultural Research and Extension Center reports that the average tree in a metropolitan area survives for only about eight years.

An acre of trees gives off about 4,280 pounds of oxygen each year.

Although the exact total is unknown, Canada has at least 31,752 inland waters and lakes, more than any other country in the world.

Bernard Lavery holds the world record for growing history’s heaviest cabbage. The vegetable weighed 124 pounds when it was harvested in 1989.

Olive trees have a life expectancy of about 500 years.

CELEBRATING A NON-HOLIDAY

Journalist Harold Pullman Coffin created National Nothing Day in 1973 as an occasion when Americans can “just sit without celebrating, honoring or observing anything.” The non-holiday is generally observed on Jan. 16.

Nearly 3,800 “citizens” or “contrabands” are buried in Section 27 of the Arlington National Cemetery. Each of these former slaves once lived in Freedman’s Village on the Arlington Estate. Their headstones are inscribed “civilian” or “citizen.”

South Korea, with a population of just over 48 million, has more than twice as many residents as its neighbor, North Korea (22.9 million).

A gram of carbohydrates contains four calories while one gram of fat has about nine. A single gram of alcohol carries seven calories.

On November 9, 1960, Robert McNamara became the first Ford Motor Company president, who was not a member of the Ford family. But McNamara had a higher calling. After less than five weeks on the job, he accepted President John F. Kennedy’s invitation to a position as Secretary of Defense.

The average human heart beats about 100,000 times a day.

There are roughly 1 billion red blood cells in two or three drops of blood.

African Elephants have only four toenails on their front feet. But Indian Elephants have five.

EIFFEL TOWER LOST TITLE IN 1930

The Eiffel Tower held a 41-year reign as the world’s tallest building from 1889 until 1930, when the Chrysler Building was constructed in New York City.

The weather forecast on April 3, 1974, called for showers on the East Coast and thunderstorms across the Midwest. Instead, the century’s second-worst storm on record unleashed 148 tornadoes in 24 hours, killing 315 and injuring more than 5,000.

The cost of a first-class U.S. stamp doesn’t always go up. In 1919, Congress lowered the rate from 3 cents to 2. The price didn’t go back up to 3 cents until 1932.

On his last day in office, President Richard Nixon had a breakfast of corned beef hash and a poached egg.

The climb to the crown of the Statue of Liberty takes 354 steps, the equivalent of about 22 floors.

Being the world’s fastest roller coaster is a fleeting honor. The $25 million Top Thrill Dragster opened in May 2003 at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. It reaches a top speed of 120 miles per hour. But the Jackson, N.J., Six Flags Great Adventure stole Sandusky’s thunder this year with the opening of The Kindga Ka, a roller coaster that hits speeds of up to 128 mph.

SUICIDE OF A GOURMAND

The Roman Apicius is often credited with writing the oldest existing cookbook, “De re coquinaria.” And historians hold that Apicius’ love of food may have led to his suicide. Apicius decided life was no longer worth living when he realized that so much of his fortune had been spent on his kitchen that he would not be able to long continue his luxurious way of life.

Etymologists have theorized that the Italian lasagna may have started as the Greek lagana or lasanon. Of these two, lagana, meaning ribbon, seems more likely. The older lasanon isn’t often used as a reference to food. It means chamber pot.

In Greek mythology, night gave birth to two sons. Hypnos is the god of sleep. His brother, Thanatos, brings death.

Forty percent of the world’s almonds and 20 percent of all peanuts are used by chocolate manufacturers.

Ray Harroun, who may have been the first winner of the Indianapolis 500 auto race, averaged a speed of 74.602 miles per hour in the 1911 contest.

The world’s fastest flying insect is the dragonfly, which can hit speeds of up to 60 miles per hour.

In a normal year, anywhere from 25 to 50 million Americans contract influenza.

HOW TO PICK A HAM

Bartolomeo Sacchi, a well-known 15th-century author, offered his readers simple advice for choosing the best quality ham: “Stick a knife into the middle of a ham, and smell it. If it smells good, the ham will be good; if bad, it should be thrown away.”

Pigeons in captivity have been known to live for up to 30 years.

Data from the Polar Psychology Research Stations suggests that the average human probably needs about 10 hours of sleep for each 24-hour day.

The leotard was named after Julius Leotard, a 19th-century French gymnast.

Abraham Lincoln’s mother, Nancy Hanks Lincoln, died when she drank the milk of a cow that had grazed on white snakeroot.

A number of Winston Churchill’s radio speeches were read by 37-year-old actor Norman Shelley, who impersonated Churchill’s voice.

Escherichia coli are capable of astronomical reproduction rates. Researchers estimate that the rod-shaped bacteria could multiply in three days to a mass greater than the earth if enough food were available.

Measles is commonly labelled the most infectious disease. Medical experts claim that if it weren’t for immunizations, every person alive would have had the measles.

Roman soldiers were sometimes paid in salt, the origin of the word salary.