Ripley: Believe It or Not

Robert Ripley mesmerized the nation with his blend of homespun Americana, colorful exotica and freakish oddities. His “Believe It or Not!” franchise grew into an entertainment empire, expanding from newspapers to every form of “new media” in the 20th century: radio, film and, ultimately, television. "Ripley Believe It Or Not" premieres January 6, 2014 on PBS American Experience.

Robert Ripley built a vast multimedia empire by showcasing the bizarre, strange, and downright grotesque from all over the globe. The public was fascinated by his "curioddities," but also by the man himself. Part globetrotter, part "hayseed," Ripley would become an international superstar... "Believe It or Not!" Premieres January 6, 2015 on American Experience PBS.

From shrunken heads to chewing gum statues to woolly mammoth hair, the Ripley's Warehouse in Florida contains 10,000 bizarre artifacts that grew from Robert Ripley's original collection.

Cartoonist Robert Ripley gets a contract with Hearst for $100,000 a year, increasing his income ten fold, and calling for one cartoon per day year-round. "Believe It or Not" enters the American lexicon. Ripley: Believe It or Not premieres on PBS American Experience January 6, 2015 at 9/8c.

In this silent film clip, Robert Ripley rides rickshaws ‘round the world. The first is during his trip to Thailand in 1932. Next up is his trip to China in 1932, where he takes a speedy ride on a village street, followed by a more leisurely one on the Great Wall of China. Two years later he hitches a ride in Durban, South Africa in 1934.

In this silent film clip from his trip to Kenya in 1934, Robert Ripley joins a local man in bouncing on the springy land near Kenya’s “Underground Lake.” Ripley also tries a sample of a Kigelia tree, also known as the “sausage tree” due to its sausage-shaped fruit.

In his early days as a sports cartoonist in San Francisco, Ripley spent hours exploring nearby Chinatown, developing a life-long love of Chinese culture. This silent film clip is from his 1932 trip to China.

In 1922, Ripley made his first trip to India in his “Ramble ‘Round the World” for the New York "Globe." This silent film clip is from his 1936 trip. It features Indian street scenes, followed by a leisurely boat ride along the Ganges.

This silent film clip shows Robert Ripley's 1932 trip to Bangkok, Thailand where he visited the Wat Arun temple. Ripley referred to it as “The Temple of Broken Dishes” as it is decorated with fragments of porcelain dishware.

In 1932, Robert Ripley and his entourage got stuck in the snowy Caucasus mountains on the border of Russia. This silent clip shows oxen pulling Ripley's hired car through the deep snow. For the rest of the trip, Ripley ditched the car and took a train.

Ripley traveled to Papua New Guinea in 1934. In this silent film Ripley observes tribal dances, meets warriors and visits homes. The local man wearing a belt was later featured in Ripley's "Believe It or Not!" cartoon, in which Ripley explains: "The Tanobada tribe of New Guinea wear tight belts to show that they eat little in order to obtain wives more easily. It is a disgrace to be fat in Papua."

Archivist Edward Meyer highlights the most amazing thing he's seen out of the 10,000 bizarre artifacts housed in the Ripley's Warehouse in Florida: miniature sculptures by artist Willard Wigan.