logo
Besty Ross Probably Didn't Design the American Flag. History Points to This Founding Father Instead

Besty Ross Probably Didn't Design the American Flag. History Points to This Founding Father Instead

Yahooa day ago

Welcome back for a simply patriotic episode of I Never Knew That!
You know the American flag by its plethora of nicknames: Old Glory; the Star-Spangled Banner; and the Red, White, and Blue, to cover the basic ones. But do you know who designed the flag in the first place?
While folklore points to Philadelphia seamstress Betsy Ross, historians say a lesser-known Founding Father is most likely responsible. Allow Biography.com editor Tyler to introduce you to lawyer, musician, and statesman Francis Hopkinson.
If you enjoyed the video, let us know at editor@biography.com. Be sure to catch up with our previous surprising true stories, including Jackie Mitchell's showdown with baseball legends Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig and a fateful crossroads for pop star Chappell Roan.
You Might Also Like
Nicole Richie's Surprising Adoption Story
The Story of Gypsy Rose Blanchard and Her Mother
Queen Camilla's Life in Photos

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Brad Pitt Raises Eyebrows With Perplexing Answer When Asked What Keeps Him Grounded
Brad Pitt Raises Eyebrows With Perplexing Answer When Asked What Keeps Him Grounded

Yahoo

time12 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Brad Pitt Raises Eyebrows With Perplexing Answer When Asked What Keeps Him Grounded

Brad Pitt had an interesting answer when asked what keeps him grounded. During the F1 premiere in Mexico City on June 9, a reporter for Entertainment Tonight referred to Pitt's May 28 GQ interview — in which he declared that his life currently feels 'fairly contained', 'pretty warm' and 'secure' — and asked him what makes him feel 'so grounded.' While some would assume his immediate response would involve family, the six children he shares with ex-wife Angelina Jolie or his girlfriend of two years Ines de Ramon, he opted instead to share some words of wisdom that he has seemingly followed himself. 'No matter the mistake, you know, you just learn from [it] and move on,' the actor shared. 'It'll lead to the next success.' 'I think [when] you get to my age, you really see how important it is to surround yourself with the people you love, the people that love you back,' he continued. 'Friends, family, and that's it.' 'From there, we get to go make things,' he added. 'So it's a pretty simple, I think, equation.' During Pitt's trek to Mexico City to promote his new action film – in which he plays Sonny Hayes, a former Formula One driver who returns to racing following a career-ending crash — fans couldn't help but rejoice in his decision to rock a buzz cut, reminiscent of his iconic early 2000s look. Pitt, however, waved off a compliment about the nostalgic 'do, seeming more eager to discuss the adrenaline rush he felt from getting behind the wheel while filming the movie, in theaters June 27. 'It's so sublime,' he told ET. 'It's a feeling I've never had.' As Pitt continues to make his rounds to promote F1, his children are keeping busy, too. As Star previously reported, Shiloh, 19, recently debuted a new name — 'Shi Joli', a nod to her famous mother — Zahara, 20, sparked speculation that she's engaged and Pax, 21, was spotted in Los Angeles following a night out at Chateau Marmont. (Pitt and Jolie, 50, also share Maddox, 23, and 16-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne.) It's unclear whether Pitt's relationship with his children following the 2016 incident on a private jet that led to his divorce from Jolie has improved, but an insider told People in June 2024, 'The reminders that he's lost his children is, of course, not easy for Brad. He loves his children and misses them. It's very sad.' Meanwhile, an insider told Star in May that Pitt's romance with de Ramon, 32, is only getting stronger by the day. 'They're an extremely calm couple and not overly intense or high-strung,' the insider said at the time. 'Brad's very happy with Ines, and this even-keeled, go-with-the-flow-type vibe is so refreshing.'

I created my own funeral photo montage — so I know I'll be remembered at my hottest
I created my own funeral photo montage — so I know I'll be remembered at my hottest

Yahoo

time22 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

I created my own funeral photo montage — so I know I'll be remembered at my hottest

What was meant to be a low-key night of snacks and laughs took an unexpectedly emotional turn for two best friends. Instead of their usual catch-up routine, Alexis arrived at Jasmine's home with a laptop and a surprise: a fully edited 24-minute funeral montage of herself, complete with dramatic music, touching tributes, and heartfelt messages. 'I made my funeral montage,' Alexis told People she said as she casually as she connected her computer to the TV. Jasmine was in shock. 'Girl, get this out of my house!' she said. The moment, captured in a now-viral TikTok video, resonated with thousands online. 'Having a morbid best friend who works in funeral and cemetery services is not for the weak,' Jasmine captioned the video. Alexis has spent over six years working in the funeral industry, and for her, confronting mortality isn't unusual. She says her Mexican-American background, which embraces death as a natural part of life, influenced her perspective. 'I've always been a little morbid and creepy,' she admits with a laugh. The idea for the montage stemmed from recent personal events. A motorcycle accident involving Jasmine's cousin left the family scrambling due to a lack of legal or end-of-life plans. 'He's a young man, so he had no will, he had no nothing,' Alexis said. 'That was one of the questions I was asking: does he have anything like a power of attorney? Who's making the decisions here?' Fortunately, he survived, but the incident made her realize how important it was to plan ahead and inspired her to take control of her own legacy. Alexis didn't stop at just the video. She's written her will, assigned power of attorney and even designated who will inherit her favorite Star Wars t-shirts. 'I'm really particular, and I don't trust anybody to do things the way that I want to do it,' she said. 'If this happens to me, you make sure I'm right. Don't have me looking all crazy with two different-shaped eyebrows. I got to have my nails done. I want a specific color of flowers.' Though Jasmine initially reacted with humor and disbelief, the montage soon had both women in tears. 'By pre-planning and getting your affairs in order and even doing stuff like this, you're unburdening your family from having to do this,' Alexis explained. 'I've been in this situation where I've had to put this together at the time of somebody's passing, and you're just miserable.' Going viral caught them by surprise. Jasmine originally shared it privately on Instagram, thinking it was just another funny moment between friends. But viewers were captivated by the blend of dark humor and genuine love between the two women. 'It just so happened to go viral,' Jasmine said. 'At the time, I wasn't thinking about that. But I was like, let me show all the people that follow me what this dummy's up to today. Because it's always something with her.' Some commenters expressed concern that Alexis was 'manifesting' her death, but both women dismiss that. 'Planning your funeral is no different from writing a will,' Jasmine said. 'It's not about expecting the worst. It's about being prepared.' For Alexis, laughter is a key part of her approach to life and death. 'I just want everyone to be miserable without me,' she joked. But she also wants them to smile and laugh, too. Her perspective has influenced Jasmine as well. 'I used to be super afraid of death. Like, don't even talk about it,' Jasmine admitted. 'But being friends with her, going through my own medical traumas and things, I've learned to cope with it through comedy, laughing, and accepting it. We all know we're going to pay taxes, and we're all going to die. None of us know when.' Their friendship, built on honesty, laughter and shared experience, has helped both women embrace difficult conversations and find joy in the unexpected. 'Nothing in life is ever that serious,' Alexis said. 'Even death.'

R. Kelly Seeks Trump Pardon, Attorney Says Singer Has Been ‘Punished' to Solitary Confinement and ‘Has Spiders Crawling All Over Him'
R. Kelly Seeks Trump Pardon, Attorney Says Singer Has Been ‘Punished' to Solitary Confinement and ‘Has Spiders Crawling All Over Him'

Yahoo

time35 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

R. Kelly Seeks Trump Pardon, Attorney Says Singer Has Been ‘Punished' to Solitary Confinement and ‘Has Spiders Crawling All Over Him'

After R. Kelly filed an emergency motion seeking home confinement for fears for his safety in prison earlier this week, the singer's lawyer is claiming that he is now currently being 'punished' with solitary confinement for taking the action. Attorney Beau Brindley filed the motion on Tuesday claiming that officials solicited an inmate to murder Kelly, who has since been placed in solitary confinement. Brindley says that Kelly has been cut off from communicating with his family, and that he's sleeping in poor conditions without food. More from Variety R. Kelly's Attorneys File for Immediate Release From Custody, Alleging Officials Solicited Inmate to Murder Him 'SNL' Star Michael Che Drinks on Air After Trump Victory, Shouts Out R. Kelly: 'If White People Can Elect Their Felon, I Can Dance to Mine' Lifetime Finds Success With True, Sensitive Stories That Become Watercooler Sensations 'Where he's sleeping now, he has spiders crawling all over him,' Brindley tells Variety. 'This isn't protection — it's punishment for pursuing this. So he remains in solitary, he has not eaten for three days because he's been only offered food that's coming directly from the chow halls that's prepared by the inmates, which he was warned not to eat by one of the officials at the prison who we left anonymous for his own security.' Kelly is currently in a North Carolina facility serving a 30-year sentence for violating the Mann Act and racketeering that involved the sexual exploitation of children. In Tuesday's filing, Brindley alleged that government officials violated attorney-client privilege by intercepting his communications to convict him, and subsequently solicited an inmate to murder him in retaliation for attempting to expose their actions. Brindley says that he was able to speak with Kelly on Thursday morning and intends to file a supplement to his motion that alleges further cruel and unusual punishment in the form of solitary confinement. 'He was very emotional, he's very upset at how he's being treated and the conditions he's having to live with,' he says. 'He's begging me to find a way to help him, because this isn't right. And I'm going to do everything in my power to do it.' That includes seeking a pardon from President Donald Trump, a course of action that Kelly's legal team considered while investigating the government's alleged misconduct over the past year, but has become a priority with the threats on his life. Brindley has spoken with Trump associates as recently as yesterday, with hopes of reaching the President to get his urgent attention. 'I think it's a particular interest to President Trump because, unlike most people who come to this with an air of skepticism, [he] has a personal unique understanding of what it's like to be victimized by prosecution teams and put through that experience through corrupt and criminal hacks,' he says. 'He understands what that's like, and when he knows that it's being escalated to the point of a death threat to hide the corruption that we're trying to put out there, he's perhaps the only person that there is who is going to have the courage to pull the trigger and say I want to stop it now.' Brindley explains that there have been further consequences of filing Tuesday's emergency motion. Mikeal Glenn Stine, a terminally ill inmate who is a leader of the Aryan Brotherhood, gave a sworn declaration in the motion claiming that officials offered him freedom in his final days in exchange for Kelly's murder. Stine says that he was transferred to the North Carolina facility to kill Kelly but had a change of heart at the last minute, instead informing him of what he had been instructed to do. After the filing, Brindley says that he was planning to meet with Stine next week, but that it was canceled this morning. He says that Stine's current whereabouts are unknown. Following the filing, which argued that Kelly remains in danger from other incarcerated members of the Aryan Brotherhood, Judge Martha Pacold set a June 20 hearing to determine the issue of jurisdiction in filing the motion in North Carolina instead of Chicago. Brindley is hopeful that an accelerated briefing schedule will not just address immediate concerns but forge a path to vacating the conviction. 'Ultimately, we're seeing a great deal of interest in what's going to happen next and how this is all going to turn out,' he says, 'because it's been a rollercoaster of facts and occurrences that have brought us to this place.' Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts? 25 Hollywood Legends Who Deserve an Honorary Oscar

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store