The Odd Truth, Oct. 11, 2002
The Odd Truth is a collection of strange but factual news stories from around the world compiled by CBSNews.com's Brian Bernbaum. A new collection of stories is published each weekday. On weekends, you can read a week's worth of The Odd Truth.
Virgin Mary Panty Raid
BUCHAREST, Romania — Authorities impounded a shipment of women's panties imprinted with an image of the Virgin Mary holding baby Jesus and plan to fine its owners for illegally selling goods with religious motifs, officials said.
Consumer protection agency officers cleared shelves of the panties during a raid in a Bucharest shopping mall Wednesday, Stefan cel Mare said.
The head of the Consumers Protection Association, Rovana Plumb, was quoted by the daily National as saying the panties represented "a breach of moral guidelines and a lack of proper respect for the Christian faith."
A priest from the Romanian Orthodox Church criticized the underwear Thursday in an interview aired on private television station Pro-TV, calling it "blasphemous."
The Turkish-manufactured white bikini briefs imprinted on the front with the image sold for about $2.
By law, only religious organizations are allowed to produce and sell images of Jesus and other Christian symbols.
Almost 90 percent of Romanians belong to the Orthodox Church, and most of the rest are members of other Christian denominations. (AP)
Mr. Spock Dropped Over Nude Photo Shock
SEATTLE - The man who played Mr. Spock is out of favor with the federation.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle is dropping Leonard Nimoy from its fundraiser later this month, citing concerns over images that appear in the former "Star Trek" star's art photography book.
The book contains images of naked and partially dressed women, some with Jewish ritual items.
Federation head Barry Goren says he got "some expressions of concern" about the book. Although Nimoy wasn't asked to talk about his book at the fundraiser, copies of it were to have been available for sale.
Nimoy tells The Seattle Times he was shocked, adding he hasn't gotten such a reaction from other Jewish groups.
Goren says comedian Al Franken has been booked as a replacement. Franken is the author of "Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot: And Other Observations." (AP)
Wallet Recovered 27 Years Late
LOS ANGELES - Roy Huff has his wallet back, 27 years after he lost it. It was spotted by a sharp-eyed backpacker in the Sierra mountains of California. Huff lost the wallet after taking a fall while climbing University Peak in 1975. He suffered some minor scrapes and bruises, but the wallet didn't survive nearly as well. Huff says it's not much to look at after all those years exposed to the elements. Hiker Glenn Rasmuson of San Diego not only returned the wallet, but the tattered 37 bucks that were inside. He managed to track down Huff thanks to a faded membership card and the Internet. (AP)
300 Dozen Eggs Confiscated En Route To Homecoming
GRAND CHUTE, Wis. — A food pantry got a windfall of 3,600 eggs this week after police confiscated them from high school students about to celebrate homecoming with an egg fight.
Police seized the 300 dozen eggs late Wednesday as the junior and senior classes of Appleton North High School gathered at a park for the annual, unofficial homecoming event.
"We knew it was coming through our grapevine, and we let the police know," Appleton North Principal Barry O'Connor said. "It's not a part of homecoming that we endorse by any means."
Police officers made no arrests. They donated the eggs to the St. Joseph Food Program.
"We see 200 families a day, so everybody will get a dozen eggs today," pantry manager Joann Johnson said. (AP)
'Frat Boy' Duct-taped Over Highway Exit
CARTERET, N.J. — What's so funny about a radio personality duct-taping himself to a utility pole to create a "human billboard"?
Apparently nothing.
A judge slapped Gregory Tyndorf with a $500 fine and cited him for disorderly conduct, saying the Aug. 14 stunt could have caused an accident.
Tyndorf, 30, known to listeners of WHTZ-FM in Secaucus as "Greg T The Frat Boy," staged the event in Carteret in a parking lot near Exit 12 of the New Jersey Turnpike.
"He picked one of the busiest intersections in Central Jersey, if not the state," Municipal Court Judge Allen Comba said during sentencing Wednesday.
Tyndorf, who lives about 15 miles away in East Brunswick, said he did not know the site was so heavily traveled.
He said the stunt was meant to show support for Ira Joe Fisher, a WCBS-TV weatherman whose contract was not renewed.
Tyndorf was suspended on the pole for about 20 minutes before police cut him down and handcuffed him. (AP)
Latest Marketing Craze Really Stinks
LONDON - Something smells on London buses -- and it's not the riders. Procter and Gamble is running an ad campaign with posters that smell. The bus-shelter ads promote the new Head and Shoulders Citrus Fresh shampoo. The posters spray a fruity fragrance when a button is pushed. Ad consultant Rita Clifton tells The Wall Street Journal the assault on the senses is part of an escalating war of trying to be noticed. But the smell-o-vision can have drawbacks. At one bus stop, the wind was blowing away the citrus smell before anyone notice it. (AP)
'Londiniensium' Plaque Unearthed
LONDON — A 2,000-year-old stone plaque engraved with the oldest Roman naming of London has been unearthed on a building site, archaeologists said Friday.
Experts believe that the 12 by 16 inches stone plaque, cut with the Latin letters "Londiniensium," is the earliest known physical proof of the capital's original Roman name.
Dated to around A.D. 150 in the time of either the Antonine or Severan dynasty, the remarkably preserved stone was discovered on a building site for new homes in Southwark, south London.
A translation of the inscription on the plaque reads: "To the spirits of the emperors (and) the God Mars Camulos, Tiberinius Celerianus, ranking moritex of the (traders) of London, (set this up)."
Experts believe it is a dedication from Tiberinius Celerianus, the chief trade negotiator from the area, who was based in London.
The plaque was discovered on Oct. 3 and will go on show at the Museum of London.
Gary Brown, an archaeology expert with building developer Berkeley Homes, said the company had been stunned by the rich history of the south London site.
"We have had a remarkable post-medieval phase and could be uncovering a significant prehistoric landscape also," he said.
"This site has been fantastic and we have only excavated around 15 percent so far." (AP)