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David Mikkelson

David Mikkelson founded the site now known as snopes.com back in 1994 as a creative outgrowth of his wide-ranging interests in a variety of subjects (particularly folklore) and his professional expertise in the computer industry. Handling everything from researching and writing articles about urban legends to managing the site’s technical infrastructure, David saw snopes.com (which antedated the development of automated search engines) quickly become the go-to place for Internet users to query about anything questionable they encountered online, establishing it as the oldest and best known online fact-checking outlet operating today. David’s educational background includes a B.S. in Computer Science from the University of Texas (San Antonio) and about a zillion course hours of post-graduate classes at California State University Northridge taken with no particular degree program in mind. His previous employment encompassed stints with the News-Chronicle (newspaper), Teledyne Electronics, USPS, JPL, Digital Equipment Corporation, Rocketdyne, and Health Net (HMO).

Smithsonian Barbie

Written by: Barbara Mikkelson David Mikkelson

Nov. 16, 1999

A humorous rejection letter was purportedly sent by the Smithsonian in response to an amateur pa ...

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Debt Payment in Pennies

Written by: David Mikkelson

Nov. 12, 1999

Does U.S. law specify that merchants do not have to accept more than 100 pennies as payment?

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Grandma's Cooking Secret

Written by: Barbara Mikkelson David Mikkelson

Nov. 9, 1999

A bride finally questions why her mother cuts the ends off of roasts before cooking them.

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Justin Mallory

Written by: David Mikkelson

Nov. 7, 1999

Are McDonald's and Pizza Hut donating $1 per e-mail forward towards the medical care of Justin M ...

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Harlan Ellison

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 31, 1999

Was Harlan Ellison rebuffed after making a crude remark to a tall blonde woman?

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Can Turkeys Drown in the Rain?

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 31, 1999

Are domesticated turkeys really that stupid?

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Does a Female Praying Mantis Always Eat Her Mate's Head?

Written by: David Mikkelson Alex Kasprak

Oct. 30, 1999

It’s far from guaranteed to happen, but the risk of decapitation for copulating male mantids wou ...

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Is Killing a Praying Mantis Illegal?

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 30, 1999

Since praying mantises are not humans or on the endangered species list, you can kill them witho ...

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What Happens When Your License Plate Says 'NO PLATE'?

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 30, 1999

Motorists with personalized license plates reading 'NO PLATE' or 'NO TAG' have received a pletho ...

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newspaper headline from 1978 showing dan white charged

The Twinkie Defense: Debunking the Myths and Misinformation

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 30, 1999 (Updated: April 22, 2021)

Did Dan White, Harvey Milk's killer, successfully argue in court that his judgement had been imp ...

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Were Dr. Seuss and Kurt Vonnegut College Classmates?

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 23, 1999

It might be difficult to think of two more renowned but dissimilar American authors than Kurt Vo ...

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Was Jesus born on Dec. 25?

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 23, 1999

The biblical narrative of Jesus' birth gives no date for the event, though it more likely occurr ...

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Santa Stuck in Chimney

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 23, 1999

Man dressed as Santa Claus gets stuck in chimney and dies?

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Clem McCarthy

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 23, 1999

Did Clem McCarthy get the chance to broadcast the first network airing of the Kentucky Derby bec ...

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santa claus

Santa Hung on a Cross in Japan?

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 22, 1999

Did a Japanese department store once display Santa Claus nailed to a cross?

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World Currency Cartel

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 22, 1999

Can you make money by joining the 'World Currency Cartel'?

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“Still the Queen” and its variants are told about members of the British royal family or will in some other way involve Britain.

'Still the Queen': Here's the Decades-Old Story About Forgetting Someone's Name

Written by: Barbara Mikkelson David Mikkelson

Oct. 15, 1999 (Updated: Sept. 20, 2022)

Versions of the legend involving two people — one of whom can't recall the other's name — date t ...

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Mountain Dew Shrinks Testicles

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 14, 1999

Does drinking Mountain Dew cause one's testicles to shrink?

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Swearing Child

Written by: David Mikkelson

Oct. 11, 1999

Child earns present from radio's Uncle Don by giving up swearing?

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Did a Cursed Mummy Sink with the Titanic?

Written by: Barbara Mikkelson David Mikkelson

Oct. 9, 1999

The ancient artifact that inspired this ghost story can still be seen at the British Museum.

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