Don Deane

Have you ever really wanted a carnival prize but couldn’t win it no matter how hard you tried? Peter Drakos doesn’t have that problem. In fact, the 64 year old Detroit resident may just be the best carnival game player in the world.

Ever been told to “grin and bear it” during a rough time? According to a new study by researchers at the University of Kansas, that advice might be more than just an old cliché. In fact, the study says, smiling might just be good for your heart.

In a move destined to make you wish that J.K. Rowling was your mom, the author of the ‘Harry Potter’ series recently won permission to build two massive 40-foot high tree houses in her backyard at a cost of almost $395,000.

It’s been 35 years since Elvis Presley died, but the King is still very much a hot commodity. As proof, a pair of Presley’s used underwear will go up for auction in Manchester, England, next month and could fetch tens of thousands of dollars. Oh, and did we mention that the skivvies have visible stains? Eww!

Exactly one year ago Thursday, a 5.8 magnitude earthquake centered in Mineral, Virginia, rocked the Eastern seaboard, causing tremors from Georgia all the way to New England. Where were you when it happened?

In the U.K., a 40-year-old man recently had a plastic fork surgically removed from his stomach after swallowing it. That’s bad enough, but when you consider that he ingested the item a decade ago, the story reaches all new levels of weird. We’ll never look at cutlery the same way again.

Last Sunday, Chinese diver Wu Minxia took home gold in the 3m synchronized springboard and became the first woman in history to win three consecutive Olympic golds. But her remarkable accomplishment was marred somewhat when it was revealed that her family intentionally hid devastating secrets as she pursued her career.

Many of us could stand to lose a few pounds, but surely we’re not that overweight, right? Well, a new study from the University of Washington says that Americans — men especially — are in denial when it comes to their waistlines.

A 22-year-old Virginia woman performed a remarkable feat last Saturday when she reportedly lifted a car off her father who was pinned beneath, then saved his life with CPR.

This won’t come as a surprise to many Americans, but the problem of illegal robocalls — recorded messages which are used to sell everything from mortgage relief to extended car warranties — is getting worse, according to the Federal Trade Commission. In fact, complaints have more than doubled in the past two years.

Given that his city is currently hosting the Olympics, London mayor Boris Johnson is riding high … literally. On Wednesday, the eccentric public official rode a zip line in Victoria Park to promote the summer games. There’s just one problem — he got stuck. No, this isn’t an episode of ‘The Benny Hill Show.’ This is for real.

A Chicago Cubs fan named Greg wanted to give his girlfriend a marriage proposal that she’d never forget. So he popped the question via the video scoreboard during a game on Monday night at Wrigley Field. There was just one problem — she wasn’t in her seat at the time.