Superman first appeared in 1938

The first comic strip appeared in American newspapers in 1895

This video traces the evolution of the comic book from early newspaper strips to the Golden, Silver, and Modern Ages—highlighting milestones such as the debut of Superman in 1938 and Marvel’s humanized heroes of the 1960s and marking their rise as cultural icons.

Why Captain America sparked outrage in 1940

In 1940, Captain America’s debut showed him punching Hitler months before the US entered WWII. The bold cover sparked backlash and even threats.

The original 'Star Wars' was quietly showcased at Comic‑Con in 1976 to little fanfare

In a bold pre‑release move on July 22, 1976, Lucasfilm set up an eight-foot booth and slideshow at San Diego Comic‑Con, introducing the then‑titled "The Star Wars"—with no premiere buzz, just intrigue among a few hundred early fans.

Superman's fictional hometown of Metropolis is likely based off Delaware

Each film version of "Superman" imagines the town along the lines of existing cities: from New York City and Chicago all the way to the coast of Delaware Bay, where the original writers suggested the town was based. James Gunn's 2025 reboot doubles down on the Delaware connection.

One of Apple's first computers sold for $375K at an auction

An operational Apple I, the first model of personal computer made by Apple, sold for $375K at an auction. The machine was first sold in 1976 and has a handwritten serial number by Steve Jobs himself. The auction, provided rare insight into the beginnings of the influential tech company.

The first Super Bowl didn't sell out—and the Packers won in a rout

Played on January 15, 1967, as the AFL-NFL World Championship Game, Super Bowl I failed to sell out the Los Angeles Coliseum as Vince Lombardi's Green Bay defeated Kansas City 35-10.

Rockwell's 'Saying Grace' sold for $46M in 2013

The 1951 painting is classic Rockwell: an image designed for the cover of the Saturday Evening Post featuring a humble American family engaging in a traditional value. To date, it's the highest-grossing work in Rockwell's catalog. Its buyer? "Star Wars" director George Lucas.

Catching up with hobby icon Sy Berger

In 1952 baseball card company Topps printed two series of cards. The first series sold well, but the late-season series, numbered 311-407 and included Mickey Mantle, didn’t. Read the first-hand account of how Topps couldn't’ even give the late-season series cards away and dumped an estimated 500 cases into the Atlantic Ocean in 1959. Decades later, it created a scarcity that drove the price of that Mantle card to $12.6 million.

A 30-second Super Bowl 2026 ad is expected to cost $8M

By 2026, a single 30-second Super Bowl ad is projected to cost $8M. Advertisements for Super Bowl I in 1967 cost from $37,500 to $42,500 for a 30-second spot.

'I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.'

- "Superman" actor Christopher Reeve (1952 - 2004)

George Washington spent thousands of dollars on ice cream in a single summer

Records show that America's first president purchased a "cream machine for ice" as early as 1784. An accounting record from 1790 reveals that Washington spent $200—roughly equivalent to $6,300 today—on ice cream.

Monsanto got its start in the early 1900s producing saccharin

The company was originally called Monsanto Chemical Works and was founded in 1901 by John Francis Queeny who was then a wholesale drug buyer. He named the company Monsanto for his wife's maiden name. At first, the company began producing saccharin with borrowed equipment and secondhand machines, aiming to produce domestically what was then being imported from Germany. (Some users may encounter a paywall.)

Twain didn’t start wearing his iconic white suit until later in life

The writer first wore the white suit in 1906, at the Library of Congress. “I have reached the age where dark clothes have a depressing effect on me,” Twain told the Washington Post. “I prefer light clothing, colors, like those worn by the ladies at the opera.”

New Yorker John D. Sweeney Jr. was the first to receive a Social Security number

However, Sweeney died in 1974 having never received any benefits. Social Security numbers were first created to help track workers' earnings so Social Security benefits could be correctly administered.

'Harry Potter’ became the first kids' book to top the New York Times list since 1952

After its 1998 US release, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone" reached No. 1 on The New York Times Best Seller list—the first children’s book to do so since "Charlotte’s Web." By September 1999, the first three books held the top three spots on the list.

The first rooftop solar panels were installed in 1883

In 1883, New York inventor Charles Fritts created the first solar cell by coating selenium with a thin layer of gold. The cell achieved energy conversion rates of 1 to 2% compared to the 15 to 20% of modern photovoltaics.

Benjamin Franklin donated the books that became the first true public library in the US

In 1778, the town of Franklin, Massachusetts—named in his honor—asked Benjamin Franklin for a bell, but he donated a book collection instead, saying "sense" was more important than "sound." Residents voted in 1790 to make the books freely available to all, creating the nation's first public library.

The original article revealing Machu Picchu to the world

After first coming upon the ruins of Machu Picchu in 1911, Hiram Bingham’s subsequent expeditions were funded by Yale University, the Peruvian government, and $10,000 from a then-young National Geographic Society—in fact, it was the first archaeological grant that NatGeo ever issued. The magazine devoted its entire April 1913 issue, all 192 pages, to Bingham and his findings. You can read that issue in its entirety here.

In 1882, American Express began offering money orders to compete with the US Postal Service

Money orders were American Express' first move into financial services. USPS launched its money order service in 1864 as a way for Civil War soldiers to send money back home. Between the 1880s and 1920s, immigration into the United States surged;the American Express money order service gave immigrants a way to send money to family members living in other countries.

Mort Sahl released the first stand-up album

There were comedy records that came before “The Future Lies Ahead,” but Sahl’s 1958 album, released by jazz imprint Verve, was the first official recording that captured a complete stand-up set.

Today, the rapper 50 Cent would be 109 Cent

While the rapper 50 Cent got his name decades ago, adjusted for inflation, 50 Cent would be 109 Cent as of 2025.

Minimum wage laws are a relatively new phenomenon in the US

Today, the federal minimum wage in the US is $7.25 per hour. But the country wasn’t founded with minimum wage laws in its DNA. The first federal minimum wage wasn’t set until 1938, when it was 25 cents per hour.

'The Wizard of Oz' flopped in theaters but exploded on TV

The film cost $2.7M to make—$1M more than the average production in 1939, but didn’t recoup it for almost two decades. Its success is mainly due to television. It aired annually from 1956 to 1965 and was watched by more than 49% of all television viewers.

Sears sold DIY house kits starting at $600 in its famous catalog from 1908 through the 1940s, resulting in roughly 10,000 'Sears and Roebuck houses' being built.

The first official World Chess Championship was held in 1886

The inaugural world championship took place across New York, St. Louis and New Orleans in 1886, where Wilhelm Steinitz defeated Johannes Zukertort. Steinitz became the first recognized world champion, establishing the modern era of organized competitive chess.

View the most expensive materials on Earth, led by those forged in particle accelerators

Californium-252—valued at $27.8M per gram, as of 2025—is far rarer and more valuable than gold, silver, or diamonds due to production and transportation costs. The most expensive substance ever found or created is antimatter, costing approximately $62.5T per gram.

The first robot in literature may have been a 'mechanical man' in 1907's 'Ozma of Oz,' a book in L Frank Baum's 'Wizard of Oz' series.

The 1987 Nintendo video game 'Stadium Events' isn't known for being particularly fun, but its scarcity has made it a highly sought-after item that has sold for up to $35K at auction.

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

The first horror movie is believed to be George Méliès' 1986 short 'The Haunted Castle,' which pioneered the use of special effects

The most expensive ad of all time was for Chanel No. 5 perfume and cost roughly $33M to produce in 2004—about $57M in today's dollars.

The original copy of the Declaration of Independence is not a pristine document, and even features a smudged anonymous handprint in the bottom left corner.

SpaceX's S-1 or 'prospectus' revealed many previously unknown details about the company, including its unprofitability despite doing $18.7B in revenue in 2025, exactly how many voting shares Elon Musk will have in the company (roughly 85%), and more.

Mid-century modern graphic designers, known for their bright colors and bold lines in advertising, also found success with children's books.

The USPS spent $3.97B in 2024, accounting for .058% of the federal budget.

One disco producer saw 'Star Wars' four times on its opening weekend and was so inspired that he recorded the album 'Star Wars and Other Intergalactic Funk,' which produced a chart-topping single.

Watch a 1934 short film starring jazz legend Cab Calloway, a major figure in the Harlem Renaissance's music scene

US housing costs have risen by roughly 175% between 1991 and 2026—but a growing number of Gen Zers are becoming homeowners anyway. In 2025, 4% of homebuyers were Gen Z, up from 3% the year before.

The US first hosted the World Cup in 1994, a tournament that lives in soccer infamy for its poor planning and the murder of Colombian player Andres Escobar, who'd accidentally scored on his own net.

In 1939, baseball star Lou Gehrig delivered his inspirational 'Luckiest Man' speech after retiring due to the health condition that now bears his name.

Learn more about the history of fireworks, which dates back to an accidental invention during an alchemist's quest for information about immortality.

Clever Hans was a 1900s horse that was believed to be able to solve math equations, tell time, and read and comprehend German, until a psychology student discovered how he got his answers.

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

Budweiser stores yeast derived from the original 1800s strain in a secret bunker, which only the Head of Yeast Management can access—not even the CEO

Warren Buffett's former professor Benjamin Graham is known as the 'father of value investing,' a strategy in which investors seek to buy stocks trading below their intrinsic worth.

As of 2025, the most cited papers in science include a review of graphene, methods to improve image recognition, streamlining electron density calculations, and optimizing protein studies.

20,000 letters to the advice columnist 'Dear Abby' provide insight into prevailing sex, religion, and LGBTQ fears, anxieties, and concerns from the 1950s onward.

View the ten deadliest tornadoes in US history.

The tragic Pulitzer Prize-winning image 'The Vulture and the Little Girl' (1993) generated controversy, raised concerns about ethics in photography, and eventually led to the photographer's death.

While atoms are normally made of protons, neutrons, and electrons, exotic ones have been built with antimatter—alternate versions of normal matter that live for fractions of a second and are about a billion times as rare.