The hard-riding cowboys of the Wild West have left a deep and lasting impression on American folklore. Burned by the sun, driven by train and snow, surviving attacks by hostile Indians, the cowboy presents an ideal of physical courage, and fair play.

Octavian, the count of Tusculum, was barely 18 when he was consecrated pope on December 16, 955. His reign as Pope John XII was one of the worst in history.

In October 1986 a beach in Reykjavik, Iceland, was the scene of an apparent massacre: 148 pilot whales lay dead on the shore. They died because in following their leader, or pilot, they swam onto the beach could or would not escape back into the sea.