Ever wondered which animal can hold its breath longer than dolphins? Or what happened when Napoleon faced an unexpected enemy? Prepare for a whirlwind tour of the gloriously useless as we unpack history's oddest moments and nature's strangest adaptations.

Today marks the anniversary of YouTube's humble beginnings. Back in 2005, the first video ever uploaded wasn't a slick production but simply "Me at the Zoo" - just a guy talking about elephants. From those unassuming 18 seconds grew an empire of content that would forever change how we consume media. Speaking of historic debuts, this date also saw France introduce the guillotine in 1792 - the air fryer of public decapitation, if you will.

We celebrate birthdays of legends Al Pacino and Tim Duncan before diving into a "Did You Know" segment packed with mind-bending facts. Discover how sloths are secretly breath-holding champions, why Napoleon retreated from an army of rabbits, and the shocking truth that turtles can breathe through their posteriors during hibernation. Our "Crazy But True" stories feature a tortoise that survived 30 years in an attic, a cat that served as mayor for two decades, and the luckiest fast food mix-up in history.

Facts don't need to make sense; they just need to be true. Join me for more surprising knowledge next week as we explore squirrels on meth, baby-stealing penguins, and medieval toothpaste. Email your weirdest thoughts or follow us on social media @philsfruitlessfacts. Stay loud, stay weird, and remember - sometimes the most entertaining facts are completely fruitless.

Send Phil a message! He’d love to hear your thoughts, questions, or topic ideas. Who knows? It could be featured on the show!

fruit·less
/ˈfro͞otləs/
1. unproductive or useless.
Ex. Phil's facts sure are fruitless!

Instagram, YouTube & TikTok @philsfruitlessfacts
Twitter @FruitlessPhil
philsfruitlessfacts.com

We journey through entertaining but useless knowledge, from bizarre tax facts to NCAA basketball origins and Lady Gaga's remarkable rise to fame.

• The first federal income tax from 1913 started at just 1% for incomes over $3,000 and 6% for incomes above $500,000
• Early tax forms were only one page long, compared to today's complex documents
• The first IRS audit target was a farmer who claimed 14 cows as dependents
• Al Capone avoided taxes by bribing politicians with spaghetti
• The IRS once seized someone's pet goldfish for unpaid taxes
• The first NCAA basketball tournament had only 8 teams and was played at Northwestern University
• Teams in the first tournament had to pay their own travel expenses
• The Oregon Webfoots (now Ducks) won the first championship 46-33 against Ohio State
• Lady Gaga's real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta
• Before fame, Gaga played in dive bars and once set hairspray on fire onstage after being booed
• In 2019, she became the first woman to win an Oscar, Grammy, BAFTA and Golden Globe in the same year
• Dandelions have nutritional and medicinal properties, containing vitamins A, C, calcium, iron, and fiber
• Bananas are technically berries while strawberries aren't
• The inventor of the Pringles can is buried in one

So no, this day is not talking about mops or brooms, but celebrating foods that people eat on a stick.

Send Phil a message! He’d love to hear your thoughts, questions, or topic ideas. Who knows? It could be featured on the show!

fruit·less
/ˈfro͞otləs/
1. unproductive or useless.
Ex. Phil's facts sure are fruitless!

Instagram, YouTube & TikTok @philsfruitlessfacts
Twitter @FruitlessPhil
philsfruitlessfacts.com

Send Phil a message! He’d love to hear your thoughts, questions, or topic ideas. Who knows? It could be featured on the show!

fruit·less
/ˈfro͞otləs/
1. unproductive or useless.
Ex. Phil's facts sure are fruitless!

Instagram, YouTube & TikTok @philsfruitlessfacts
Twitter @FruitlessPhil
philsfruitlessfacts.com