10 of the Unluckiest People in History

[@MentalFloss]

Go to curiositystream.com/MentalFloss to get Curiosity Stream for only $14.99 for the whole year. Thanks to Curiosity Stream for sponsoring this episode!

[@gabiausten8774]

THIS SUMMER!!! A small town in Alabama, a family…living their lives…and a threat as old as time. This meteor…HAS YOUR NAME ON IT!

[@RainAngel111]

It's possible that being struck by lightning actually makes you more likely to be struck again. There's the fact that if you were struck once, you probably frequent places and times that are more prone to lightning strikes, but this doesn't explain 7 strikes. After the second, or even the first strike, you'd think you'd never go outside during a lightning storm again in your life.

[@joanhoffman3702]

He was a park ranger. Kind of hard to do his job from inside a building. And I heard that after he died, his tombstone was struck by lightning. Some folks just can’t catch a break.

[@Darxide23]

You might think that if you don't know how lightning works. The guy was in one of the best positions to be struck multiple times by being a park ranger for his entire life.

[@VoidHalo]

That's a correlation, not a fact.

[@Nikki0417]

I read that he was kind of paranoid after the first few strikes. To the point where he didn't want to be outside if it was raining.

[@terrafirma5327]

Here in Salt Lake City there is the most unlucky incident I know of. A man was riding his bike in the parking lot of the Frontrunner Station (our train) in Layton. He was struck by a truck, which launched him over the fence, onto the rails, in front of the now-arriving Frontrunner train. He was struck by both a truck and a train in just a few seconds.

[@RoxasLov3r4Ev3r]

Holy shit. Was he okay?! O_O

[@terrafirma5327]

@@RoxasLov3r4Ev3r definitely not. I think he was unconscious when he hit the tracks at least. You can Google the incident

[@UniqueornBacon]

The weird thing about people who are struck by lightning is that it increases their chances of being struck again. It's like they get a charge from it.

[@fireaza]

I'm surprised there was no mention of Tsutomu Yamaguchi, who went on a business trip in Hiroshima. On August 6th, 1945. Luckily, he survived the world's first use of an atomic bomb and made it safely back home. To Nagasaki. He was right in the middle of telling his supervisor about what had happened in Hiroshima, with his supervisor calling him crazy, when he was delivered the proof he needed! It seems Death decided to cut him a break though, and he not only survived the world's second use of an atomic bomb, but he lived until the ripe old age of 93!

[@MentalFloss]

We would've included that story had we not just covered it in another video about historical coincidences: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bJOuYqBojdeMqc0

[@thehun1234]

I would consider him the luckiest person, how many people can claim that they survived two nuclear attacks?

[@route2070]

A few notes on Bartman. I believe he said it was his first game despite being a lifetime fan. He was listening to the game on the radio through headphones while he was there. You can get extra details especially while listening to Pay Hughes and the late great former cub, Ron Santo. That said, of course when watching/listening to any broadcast there is a delay. So while watching the ball he never saw Aloud running, and he assumed the ball was moving to fast for Alou to try a play. But the delay also made it so he didn't hear that Aloud had an attempt to catch the ball until the ball was already in the stands after it hit someone's hands. Not only was he one of nine fans reaching for the ball, but on ESPN'S docuseries 30 for 30, in the episode "Catching Hell" it was shown he wasn't the one who touched the ball. But with him being very noticable wearing glasses, a hoodie under his jersey, and headphones he was noticable. The game was being aired live on large projection screens outside the ball park so people who couldn't get in but wanted to be there could see the game as it happened. On top of the people watching from the area sports bars. From outside the ballpark people shouted his description so people inside heard it. This was as the Cubs poor play in the 8th inning turned a near certain win into a deviating loss. For his safety, Bartman was escorted to the security office, escorted out of the ballpark after the crowd left, and kept in an area away from his residence over night with drunken scapegoating going on. I am extremely sorry for how the guy was treated, and thankfully from what I have heard he has found peace. As an apology, I hope he never has to pay for a drink again, that said he seems to be the guy to not say anything, so unless he has a reason to tell you his name, you wouldn't know who is sitting next to you.

[@willhouse]

Bartman is widely acknowledged to be a genuinely respectable guy. Instead of promoting himself (like most of us would surely do these days,) he quietly volunteered his time as a little league coach and helped to keep the game he loves a safe & enjoyable option for kids in his community. 💙⚾️

[@teemusid]

I will never be convinced that Alou could have held on to the ball, if he had caught it in the first place. Alou was adamant that he would have caught it, which made the things worse. The Cubs utter collapse showed they weren't deserving of a championship.

[@willhouse]

@@teemusid The 2016 Cubs are a kinda' perfect example of a team genuinely deserving of the "World Champs" title.

[@leighpowell1062]

For the battles episode: The battle of Bach Dang in 1288 where a Vietnamese force defeated the Mongles Also the Battle of Orewin Bridge in Builth Wells where the Llewellyn the Last died and the English conquered Wales

[@letitiajeavons6333]

Mongols.

[@LarryPhischman]

The Battle of Salamis: The Athenian Navy beat the much larger Persian Navy, denying the Persian army access to their supply chain. The battle was fought a few days after Thermopylae ("300").

[@jaybingham3711]

Tsutomu Yamaguchi deserves a spot on this list notwithstanding being on another list of yours.

[@cheeseisgreat24]

Alesia, one of the battles that made Caesar, well, Caesar. It was this battle that secured him the undying respect of Roman Soldiers, allowing him to defeat Pompey and become Dictator. And then, well, you know the rest.

[@YeeSoest]

I'm just here to let you know that around 11:40 when you said a big toe nail is nice to have... I checked mine, audibly asked "is it??" and started laughing. That's what weed at 7am before going to bed can do to you

[@Apophis324]

And here I thought I was unlucky for not pulling good things on a virtual Gacha game..

[@Schnarf82]

So cool. Great flying!

[@frankydman]

For battles that changed the world: If we are talking about World War II, then I’m going to go past the “usual suspects” of Stalingrad, El Alamein and Midway in order to focus on a couple lesser known ones: Battle of the Coral Sea: a prequel of sorts to Midway, the Battle of the Coral Sea was fought in May 1942, between the American and Japanese navies. Now, the battle itself was tactically a Japanese victory, as their losses were fewer by comparison (the light carrier Shoho plus some support ships, while the Americans lost the carrier USS Lexington, a destroyer and an oil tanker) Strategically though, it was an American victory, because the loss of Shoho forced the Japanese to call off their invasion of Port Moresby. The world changing effects of this battle, however, is that it fundamentally changed Naval warfare forever: for the first time in history the opposing navies never came within visual range of each other, as carrier-born aircraft did all the fighting in this conflict. It was the dawn of the age of the aircraft carrier as the primary ship navies would be built around, replacing the battleship. The lessons learned here would go on to play a role in the decisive Battle of Midway one month later, and then, in June 1944- (the other battle I will mention) The Battle of the Philippine Sea. The largest aircraft carrier battle in history, Japan would lose 3 aircraft carriers in this battle along with about 450 planes lost, and about 3,000 personnel dead The Americans on the other hand, only lost 123 aircraft and about 100 personnel. Part of the reason for such differences in losses was that by this point- most of Japan’s experienced naval air arm crew had been lost in prior engagements. Japan couldn’t replace its experienced pilots fast enough while America’s pool of experienced pilots only got bigger Couple that with America’s advantages in technological advancement and sheer production capability, this lopsided battle’s result is all the more understandable. Hence its nickname- “The Great Marianas Turkey Shoot” What makes this battle world changing is that it was the death blow to Japan’s naval air arm; it was never able to recover from these losses and the loss here was arguably a contributing factor to why Japan would also go on to lose the largest Naval Battle in history months later- the Battle of Leyte Gulf. The naval air arm had been so thoroughly destroyed at Philippine Sea, that at Leyte Gulf the only purpose the Japanese carriers Zuikaku, Chiyoda, Chitose and Zuiho served was as a distraction for the Americans so they wouldn’t go after the Main Japanese fleet which included most of the Japanese Navy’s surviving battleships. In the end, Philippine Sea was the death of the Japanese Naval air arm, which eventually lead to the destruction of the key units in the Japanese Navy, rendering It ineffective as a fighting force for the rest of the Pacific War.

[@sam8204]

Oh you should talk about the battle of Milvian Bridge if it isn’t already on the list! That’s the one where Roman Emperor Constantine allegedly had a divine vision that either lead to or affirmed his conversion to Christianity (I forget which) and paved the way for Christianity to spread across the empire, Europe, and so on…

[@KingsleyIII]

No mention of the Japanese man who survived the bombings of Hiroshima AND Nagasaki? That is some class A bad luck.

[@l00k4tstuff]

That's good luck - he survived them both!

[@ImaFreakinUnicorn]

He survived tho... I'd say that's pretty lucky....

[@MentalFloss]

We actually covered that story recently in our episode about amazing coincidences: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bJOuYqBojdeMqc0

[@Thunderwalker87]

I think I am pretty unlucky... its like a persistent streak of casual and complex unluck.

[@LA6NPA]

Lijar, a small village in Andalucia, Spain, declared war on France in 1883 and remained at war until 1983, when they declared peace. No shots fired, no casualties, no prisoners taken. Lijar is so small, I was unable to find any shops on street view, the bank that's supposed to be there isn't, the pharmacy either doesn't exist or is just a nondescript white building. Weird. But there are three bars, a church and a two-story tower, so there's that... :D

[@Scheater5]

Battle of the Milvian Bridge. Full stop. It may be well known among historians, but rarely have I heard it mentioned outside that realm.

[@dinosk7744]

Mitsotakis the guy from the village has the same surname as greek pm who is firstly known to have and hand out bad fortune to everyone he meets and then as being the greek pm.makes absolutely sense that he didnt win

[@anttibjorklund1869]

For the battles episode: Battles of Bun'ei and Koan - Japanese victories over Mongol invaders, gave us the word "kamikaze". Battle of Tours, 732 - major defeat of the Umayyad caliphate by the Frankish kingdom.

[@fredflintstoner596]

Mrs Richards: "I paid for a room with a view !" Basil: (pointing to the lovely view) "That is Torquay, Madam." Mrs Richards: "It's not good enough!" Basil: "May I ask what you were expecting to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? the Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically past?..." Mrs Richards: "Don't be silly! I expect to be able to see the sea!" Basil: "You can see the sea, it's over there between the land and the sky." Mrs Richards: "I'm not satisfied. But I shall stay. But I expect a reduction." Basil: "Why?! Because Krakatoa's not erupting at the moment ?

[@frankydman]

I'm surprised there was no mention of Arthur John Priest He was a ship's stoker; a man who shoveled coal into boilers in the days of steam power In 1908, he survived when the RMS Asturias endured a collision on its maiden voyage In 1911, was on the RMS Olympic when it collided with the HMS Hawke In 1912, he survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic In 1916, he survived the sinking of the HMS Alcantara In 1916, he survived the sinking of the HMHS Britannic In 1917, he survived the sinking of the SS Donegal Despite all this, he would live another 20 years

[@NeonVisual]

Lightning odds are strange for me. I've been within single digit metres of a lightning strike 3 times in my life. The first was in school when I was 8 years old. It hit the bushes right next to the window I was sat by Orange sparks jumped from the bush like a firework and bounced off the window. The second time I was 21 ish. On a plane flying out of Madrid into a thunder storm and it hit the wing outside of my window seat. The dimmed lights in the cabin went off for a moment and there was a child somewhere seated in front of me who burst out into screaming and crying, then the lights all came back on again. The third time was more recent, 2018. It hit an oncoming truck which was safely separated by a barrier in the middle of the road. The same orange sparks jumped off the truck that I saw in the first 1989 strike at school. The odds must be crazy high. Also I don't know if it is related, but I get shocked with static electricity by everything. My home, my bed covers, my cat, getting out of cars I don't own, door handles. I literally try to earth myself on something metallic before petting my cat (especially rubbing noses) otherwise we'll both be shocked. This has happened no matter where I live.

[@Thunderwalker87]

The closest I have been to a lightning strike is about 4-5 meters... it was so close it temporarily blinded me and I to wait a very long few minutes for my vision to return.

[@AmberWool]

I had a friend who I refused to touch in the Winter. She also destroyed a few computers with just normal use. Before my son and I moved in with her she had to replace the light bulbs in her house every one to two weeks. Jer and I grounded her enough so she got normal life out of light bulbs.

[@TetraSky]

Imagine a slumlord thinking a meteorite that fall on his property, is rightfully his, when he's leasing that property to someone... Sorry but if you didn't put it there, it ain't yours. Otherwise you could claim someone's car is yours just because it's parked in the driveway. For all intent and purpose, if you're leasing a property, that property is "yours" in title only as long as the tenant pays the rent. You are legally not allowed inside the property without prior notice.

[@gregnelson6065]

REALLY stretching for 8 and 9.

[@mantunes339]

the battle of Alcácer Quibir is super important to portuguese history. in it, the 20 year old portuguese king was killed, leading spain to eventually take over the country for 60 years and effectively ending Portuguese expansion.

[@mantunes339]

its also a bonkers battle that saw two moroccan kings also die

[@ColinRichards1]

I live 4 miles straight down the road from McLeans house.

[@Probly_a_sweet_potato]

I know of a military engagement that probably didn’t change the world but it’s funny anyway. It’s 1313 (or 1314) at Roxburgh Castle, Scotland (this is the Scottish wars of independence). The English occupy the castle. Sir James “The Black” Douglas, the right hand to King Robert the Bruce, had 60 of his men dress in black cloaks and then move slowly towards the castle on their hands and feet to look like cows in the low light of sunset. The trick WORKED and the castle was ambushed via rope ladders attached to extra log spears so they could climb the walls. The castle was quickly secured. The English Governor, heavily wounded, locked himself in a donjeon tower until he surrendered and was allowed to leave the castle and return to England. If this ain’t the most D&D scenario… As a side note, I am an actual descendent of James Douglas, I have the family tree and the ancestry DNA to prove it.

[@artkincell]

I know Manassas because my parents eloped out of Connecticut in 1957. In March! I was born that December. It is a family story that I was conceived in a historical site. Tgat house? Perhaps. I can't prove anything and my parents always bragged about this.... I have no clue why. Edit- PS I love the green screen wipes. Kudos to the editors!

[@claudearchary8600]

Hi guys, I’m fascinated by the battle fought between the British and the South African Boer soldiers over the span of one day, and it took place at Spioenkop. A young Ghandi and Winston Churchill were involved, with Churchill being taken prisoner by the South Africans ...

[@froregon]

Elizabeth Jessop survived the crash of the RMS Olympic and the sinkings of the Titanic and Britannic. Arthur John Priest was on the Titanic and Britannic, as well as two other ships that sank. Lucky or unlucky?

[@antirealist]

Ever heard of the "Luckless Captain Ratcliffe?" - he was posthumously given that title after the Powhatan people tricked him and his group into an ambush and... well just look up how he died...

[@matthewdrummond1340]

I just googled him. Ouch 😬

[@LA6NPA]

Don't know how well known this is, but the Boer war is the reason we have boy scouts.

[@DrMichaelCote]

The pig war is lesser known, but it did shape the US-Canada border.

[@SalvatoreRizzo-qs8xx]

The Battle of Mt Holly, NJ the day before Washington crossed the Delaware slowed reinforcements getting to Trenton to turn the tide of the battle against Washington's Continental Army.

[@derekfnord]

The Battle of the Milvian Bridge. According to contemporary accounts, Constantine had a vision from the Christian God before this battle, and his victory over Maxentius began Constantine's conversion to Christianity. Had the battle gone the other way, Constantine might never have become emperor, or might never have converted to Christianity. Either of those outcomes would have massively affected the last 1700 years...

[@ghost_curse]

Curiosity Stream has moved outside of the RealLifeLore/Wendover Productions/Half as Interesting (who is definitely not the same as Wendover Productions) bubble

[@danielm.1441]

The Battle of Tours marked a turning point for Christian Europe vs Islamic expansion into Europe.

[@nickgov66]

When the National Lottery began in the UK so many people played it that top prize was regularly into several millions of pounds even more with rollovers. With on such rollover reaching £20,000,000, I purchased two six number lines at £1 each when the numbers were drawn I had all six winning numbers on my ticket but I did not become a multimillionaire because the first three numbers were on my first line and the other three on my second, thus all I got was £20, £10 for each set of three.

[@kookookookookookookoo]

His grave was struck by lightning too, so posthumously struck an 8th time. Did he wrong Zeus in a past life or something?

[@tessat338]

McLean is pronounced "Mc Lane."

[@StephanieElizabethMann]

The battle of long tan. Vietnam War. Australia vs North Vietnamese army.

[@TheKrinkled1]

Roy Sullivan's wife was nearly struck by lightning herself. you could say he rubbed off on her!

[@nikkigriffin6441]

Was hoping Ibn Battuta would be on the list.

[@geoffroi-le-Hook]

I had a neighbor who fought in Hitler's army before he came to the US. Uncle Sam sent him to fight in Korea.

[@russellcannon9194]

Little Round Top.

[@zvuho]

America is a continent, not a war criminal country

[@aaronstanley6914]

What happend to the channel logo?

[@MentalFloss]

Dealing with an issue on the backend, hopefully will be resolved asap!

[@aaronstanley6914]

@@MentalFloss so long as you guys weren't hacked it's all good.

[@leegoddard2618]

Holy crap. These people should have stayed in a bubble. 😳

[@davidj8658]

Actually actually actually actually actually…….

[@jliller]

Getting struck by lightning seven times isn't the most remarkable part. It's that someone could be struck seven times and survive all of them. There is some debate whether Sullivan was actually struck seven times or it was really only three or four. He might have embellished his telling over the years, or perhaps his brain is just a bit scrambled by multiple lightning strikes and he remembers things that didn't actually happen.

[@kiritosenpai250]

I’m a unlucky person

[@thomaswillard6267]

Why do I feel like Mr Rogers would have laughed?

[@bunnygirl2448]

What about the only person to survive two nuclear blasts. This unlucky guy was in Hiroshima and later Nagasaki when they were bombed

[@ImaFreakinUnicorn]

He survived. I'd call that pretty lucky. Hella sad but lucky.

[@RainAngel111]

Jeanne never got Rabies?

[@AmberWool]

McClEn? It's pronounced McClAn. Long a, not long e.

[@leegoddard2618]

Steve Bartman should know better than to interfere with a ball in play. 🤦 D.A.

[@seanbaugh3239]

*The Unluckiest Person in History :* The guy who bent down to pick up a quarter right after I asked my nephew to pull my finger. 🤔... 👉😜😖💨🎶💩... 😳🤧 *"NUFF SAID"™️*

[@bigheavyshoe]

I miss John Greene

[@rathenslog8490]

The Bartman scenario... Still burns 19 years later

[@willhouse]

No, it doesn't. Steve Bartman complicated one play. The Cubs did the rest all by themselves.

[@rathenslog8490]

Yes I know Alex Gonzalez dropped a double play ball

[@amalta5h]

Hahaha tantalizing tales

[@YeeSoest]

I know a guy who got the girl pregnant with whom he had his very first intercourse, supposed to be a one off affair after a traditional german village festival, neither of them enjoyed the night, neither fell in love or anything close...but *A FEW WEEKS LATERRR* ... Imagine being dealt THAT hand for your very first sex...i don't know if he's okay these days, haven't heard anything... Oh yeah, they BOTH used protection! It's not like they were asking for ... this

[@Darxide23]

The Cubs should also give a ring to Trevor Bauer because he basically handed them that World Series win on a little red ribbon on it. Rumor has it that the ribbon was white, but turned red after an unfortunate drone incident.

[@troydavis705]

I think you are adorable but I can't stop staring at the little gap at the top of your front teeth. Sorry.

[@ConradSpoke]

The Roy Sullivan story is complete nonsense. The man was a nut. This really eats into your channel's credibility.