Refresh for new random facts
1. Dr. Pepper founder Charles Alderton named his drink after the father of a girl he was dating, Dr. Charles Kenneth Pepper.
2. William Randolph Hearst's father struck it rich mining silver and gold in Nevada in 1859 and had the largest private mining firm in the U.S. The HBO show Deadwood was based on one of his mines.
3. The only original Dow Jones Industrial listed company still in existence is General Electric.
4. Xerox inventor Chestor Carlson, named his product for the dry copying technique that he invented. The Greek root `xer' means dry.
5. Sara Lee is named for the daughter of Chicago bakery owner Charles Lubvin. He first named a cheesecake after his daughter, then in 1951 his company.
6. The Bank of New York was the first listed company on the New York Stock Exchange, in 1792.
7. Citibank adopted its cable address as its official name. It was originally known as the "City Bank of New York."
8. Starbucks was named after Starbuck, a character (the Quaker first mate on the ship) in Herman Melville's novel, Moby-Dick.
9. The refrigerator won first prize at the Paris International Exposition in 1937. It was designed for Sears, Roebuck and Company by visionary engineer Raymond Loewy.
10. The first vending machines were installed on New York City elevated subway platforms in 1888 and dispensed Tutti-Fruiti gum.
When me and old Abe used to sit by the fire he would tell me the darndest tales about this great land of ours.
