• Slide 1 of 25: <p>The most shoplifted book in America is <a href='http://money.cnn.com/gallery/pf/2013/06/07/bizarre-stolen-items/'>The Bible</a>. (If you want more laughs, check out these <a href='https://www.rd.com/funny-stuff/vacation-stories/1'>hilarious family vacation stories</a> that everyone can relate to.)</p>
  • Slide 2 of 25: <p>The founder of AA asked for whiskey on his deathbed. (<a href='http://paulgarrigan.com/if-i-ask-for-whiskey-on-my-deathbed-please-just-give-it-to-me/'>The nurse refused</a>.)</p>
  • Slide 3 of 25: <p>In a hilarious example of irony, McDonalds' employee health page, which is now shut down, once <a href='https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2013/12/26/257381730/mcdonalds-shuts-website-that-told-employees-to-avoid-fast-food'>warned against</a> eating McDonald's burgers and fries. Another fun fact: This is the <a href='https://www.rd.com/food/fun/mcdonalds-fries-ingredients/'>secret ingredient behind the addictive flavor</a> of McDonald's fries.</p>
  • Slide 4 of 25: <p>Every year ABC cuts down A Charlie Brown Christmas—a movie about the over-commercialization of the holidays—to <a href='https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/comic-riffs/post/a-christmas-wish-dont-cut-down-my-charlie-brown-christmas/2011/12/06/gIQAcZ4fcO_blog.html'>make room for more commercials</a>.</p>
  • Slide 5 of 25: <p>He once entered a 'Charlie Chaplin walk' contest… <a href='http://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/9423/did-charlie-chaplin-lose-a-charlie-chaplin-look-alike-contest'>and came in 20th</a>. (These <a href='https://www.rd.com/funny-stuff/funny-school-stories/1'>hilarious classroom stories</a> are guaranteed to give you a laugh.)</p>
  • Slide 6 of 25: <p>'Father of Traffic Safety' William Eno invented the stop sign, crosswalk, traffic circle, one-way street, and taxi stand—<a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Phelps_Eno'>but never learned how to drive</a>. The example of irony: He never got the chance to benefit from his own invention.</p>
  • Slide 7 of 25: <p>The Cult Awareness Network (CAN), once a leading anti-cult hotline, is <a href='http://www.xenu-directory.net/can.htm'>now owned by the Church of Scientology</a>.</p>
  • Slide 8 of 25: <p>Al Capone's older brother was <a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Vincenzo_Capone'>a federal Prohibition agent</a>.</p>
  • Slide 9 of 25: <p>The only losing basketball coach in University of Kansas history is James Naismith—<a href='http://www.hoopszone.net/Kansas/Kansas/Coaches/history_of_kansas_coaches.htm'>the man who invented basketball</a> in 1891. This hilarious example of irony proves that just because you thought of the idea doesn't always mean you'll be the best at executing it.</p>
  • Slide 10 of 25: Before 2012, the largest purchaser of kale in America was Pizza Hut. They <a href='http://www.npr.org/2015/03/19/393823329/the-best-piece-of-trivia-you-learned-this-week-pizza-hut-edition'>used it as garnish</a> around their salad bars. (These <a href='https://www.rd.com/funny-stuff/funny-dads/1'>funny dad stories</a> sound all too familiar.)
  • Slide 11 of 25: <p>The site where Julius Caesar was murdered in 44 BC is now a <a href='https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Largo_di_Torre_Argentina'>no-kill animal shelter</a> for homeless cats.</p>
  • Slide 12 of 25: <p>Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, but <a href='http://www.history.com/topics/inventions/alexander-graham-bell'>refused to keep one in his study</a>. He feared it would distract him from his work.</p>
  • Slide 13 of 25: <p>According to researchers, duct tape should <a href='https://servicechampions.com/why-duct-tape-should-never-be-used-to-seal-air-ducts/'>never be used for sealing ducts</a>. But you can use duct tape in <a href='https://www.rd.com/home/improvement/duct-tape-ideas/'>these other extraordinary ways</a>.</p>
  • Slide 14 of 25: <p>Another funny example of irony, Sweden's famous Ice Hotel <a href='http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/world-famous-swedish-ice-hotel-is-ordered-to-install-smoke-alarms-8942890.html'>has a smoke detector.</a></p>
  • Slide 15 of 25: <p>The first man to survive going over Niagara Falls in a barrel died after <a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Leach'>slipping on an orange peel</a>.</p>
  • Slide 16 of 25: <p>She was fired from her secretarial job <a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid_Paper'>for failing to white-out a mistake</a>.</p>
  • Slide 17 of 25: <p>The condition of not being able to pronounce the letter R is called… '<a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhotacism'>rhotacism</a>.' (These are the <a href='https://www.rd.com/funny/funny-celebrity-commencement-speeches/1'>funniest lines from celebrity commencement speeches</a>.)</p>
  • Slide 18 of 25: <p>Q-tips, which are bought primarily to clean inside ears, are sold in boxes that expressly warn: '<a href='https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/01/20/we-have-a-q-tips-problem/?'>Do not insert inside the ear canal</a>.'</p>
  • Slide 19 of 25: Bill Hillman, a bullfighting enthusiast, wrote a book called How to Survive the Bulls of Pamplona, all about how to avoid being gored by bulls. Three weeks after the release of the book, <a href='http://people.com/books/man-who-wrote-a-book-about-surviving-bull-running-is-gored-by-a-bull/'>he was gored by a bull</a>.
  • Slide 20 of 25: In 2011, the winners of an elementary school spelling bee in Utah <a href='https://www.ksl.com/?sid=14112650&nid=148'>received a trophy</a> reading 'Viewmont Spellling Bee, 1st Place.' Quite the example of irony—not only that the trophy contained a misspelling, but that it was the word 'spelling.'
  • Slide 21 of 25: In 2002, a tree was planted in a park in Los Angeles in memory of Beatles guitarist George Harrison. The tree later died <a href='http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/posts/la-et-ms-george-harrison-tree-beetles-replant-20150225-story.html'>after being infested by beetles</a>.
  • Slide 22 of 25: Before he became a star, Pharrell Williams <a href='http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3032585/Pharrell-Williams-reveals-fired-McDonald-s-THREE-TIMES-lazy-years-writing-company-s-famous-jingle.html'>was fired from McDonald's three different times</a>. Years later, he would help write and produce the company's iconic 'I'm Lovin' It' jingle. We bet you never knew these <a href='https://www.rd.com/culture/mcdonalds-facts-trivia/'>amazing facts about McDonald's</a>.
  • Slide 23 of 25: Gary Kremen, the founder of Match.com, encouraged everyone he knew to join it, including his girlfriend. She eventually left him for a man she met on Match.com.
  • Slide 24 of 25: When crossword puzzles debuted in the early twentieth century, the New York Times was very critical of them, <a href='https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/02/14/crosswords/new-york-times-crossword-timeline.html'>calling them</a> 'a primitive sort of mental exercise.' In 1942, the Times published its first crossword puzzle, and today, the New York Times crossword is the most famous one in America. <a href='https://www.rd.com/culture/solve-first-crossword-puzzle/'>Can you solve the world's first crossword puzzle?</a>
  • Slide 25 of 25: <p>None of the song lyrics in Alanis Morissette’s song 'Ironic' are examples of irony. As Morissette herself allegedly said, '<a href='http://www.isitironic.com/alanis-morissette.htm'>the irony of 'Ironic' is that it's not an ironic song at all.</a>'</p>
Slide 1 of 25: The most shoplifted book in America is The Bible. (If you want more laughs, check out these hilarious family vacation stories that everyone can relate to.)
1/25 SLIDES © iStock/Arrangements-Photography

What's ironic about The Bible?

The most shoplifted book in America is The Bible. (If you want more laughs, check out these hilarious family vacation stories that everyone can relate to.)