11 Of The Most Eccentric People On Wikipedia

Who says you have to be sane to be important?

Thanks to the jolly old Internet, anyone can be a 'person of note' with a little help from the right site. People you wouldn't normally sit next to on a bus are calling themselves Instagram celebrities and apparently we should all give a damn. YouTube has launched a rag-tag community of 'stars' who are able to make a living opening toys or yelling into a microphone while they play Mario Cart. Anyone can have a Wikipedia page, regardless of cultural worth or even significance. Want people searching Lincoln for a class project to stumble across your life story? Just create an account and let your self-importance shine.

In truth, the best collection of the unworthy elite online can be easily unearthed on Wikipedia. This amazing pseudo encyclopedia of shared knowledge is a rabbit hole worth falling into – leading the reader to an online wonderland of useless facts peopled with some of the most surreal individuals you'll have the dubious pleasure to uncover.

Who said you have to contribute to society to be important? Not Wikipedia apparently. This following collection of insignificant significant folks is just the tip of the weirdo iceberg…

David Johnson- The Well-paid Terror of Fisherman’s Wharf

Via yelp.com

Known as the 'bushman', this motivated individual had the confidence to turn his sadistic pastime into a lucrative career. For more than 30 years, Johnson has hidden behind a fan of scrawny eucalyptus bushes and leaped out at tourists along the Fisherman's wharf. Rather than packing him safely in an asylum however, the San Francisco public has grown to enjoy his distinctly anti –social behavior. Crowds of locals have been known to gather to watch him emotionally scar unsuspecting tourists.

The strangest part of Johnson's habit, beyond his distinctive 'ugga bugga' call of course, is the fact that his victims pay him. He is officially classified as an entertainer and even has a class 7 business license. In fact, the bush business was booming so much that in 1999, Johnson was in the position to hire staff. Gregory Jacobs, a former short order cook, was taken on to help Johnson choose his marks and then demand payment once the leaves and the tourists had been properly rattled. " Hey, the bushman got you fair and square" Jacobs was often heard to say, " Pay up."

Sir George Sitwell – Unsung Hero of the Ongoing War against Wasps

Via concealednation.org

If you were to visit Lord Sitwell at one of his sprawling English estates, you would be greeted by one of the best welcome signs in history. " I must ask anyone entering the house never to contradict me in any way," The plaque states, " As it interferes with the functioning of my gastric juices and prevents my sleeping at night."

An odd duck to the core, Sitwell filled all seven studies in his home with research on his collection of unpublished books. Sadly, " The History of the Fork", " Acorns as an Article of Medieval Diet" and "Lepers' Squints" were never published, lost to history, leaving society bereft of their no doubt considerable wisdom.

A trained horticulturalist and landscape artist, Sitwell was also deeply involved in the care of his property. By care, we mean moving lakes and rivers around his property and the relocation of hundreds of fully-grown trees on a whim. Bored of your white cows? Why not follow Sitwell's lead and paint them blue and white to match your favorite china pattern?

Obviously not one to lie about, Sitwell turned his unbalanced attentions to inventing as well. He was the proud creator of a number of intriguing objects including a musical toothbrush, an egg made of smoked meat and rice stuffed in a fake shell and the greatest of them all, a tiny pistol designed specifically for shooting wasps. Unfortunately the wasp pistol never caught on, giving those bastards the upper hand yet again…

Mike the Headless Chicken - A clucking icon for the ages

Via cultofweird.com

The time? The early 1940's. The place? Fruita, Colorado. With his mother in law and wife impatiently awaiting a plump chicken to cook, Lloyd Olsen saunters out and chooses a five and a half month old cockerel from his flock. Olsen places the chicken on the chopping block and gets ready to end its short life.

He misses.

Our farmer slips and cuts off only the 'face' of the bird, leaving most of the brain stem untouched. The result is a hideous, headless mockery of a chicken that continued to preen, perch, and walk despite the fact that it's face lay in the dust behind it. It even tried to peck and crow, managing only to bang its stump on the ground and emit a painful, gurgling noise.

Like any red-blooded human, Lloyd immediately saw dollar signs and took his monster on the road. The country embraced Mike the headless chicken immediately. Mike became the main draw at sideshows, the crowds watching in amazement as Lloyd fed the thing through its scabby neck hole.

Mike lived for an astounding (and unsettling) 18 months. During that time he was photographed by both Time and Life magazines and brought in approximately 4,500 dollars a month. Today, that sum would total over 47,000 a month for Lloyd and his family. Not bad for a sloppy slaughtering job.

Sadly, Mike passed away in the middle of the night at a motel in Phoenix. Not drug overdose or alcohol poisoning as many readers would suspect. Rather, the neck hole became clogged and the poor thing choked to death. A sobering loss for the entertainment industry indeed…

William John Cavendish – Taking Introverted to a Whole Other Level

Via commons.wikimedia.org

Parliamentary MP and British army official William John Cavendish was such a sensitive soul. An introvert like many of us, he was easily overwhelmed and sought privacy for comfort. However, an evening under a blanket or a day in bed just didn't do it for him. Apparently, he needed to dig a bit deeper for comfort.

15 miles deeper to be exact.

Cavendish is famous for the fact that over the span of his lifetime, this respected member of British society built an entire underground palace beneath his estate. Comprised of over 10 miles of chambers, tunnels and ballrooms, his secret 'lair' cost him millions of dollars and employed local craftsmen by the thousands.

Every room in his private underground kingdom was painted the same sickly shade of pink. He had a library, a billiards room and even a giant ballroom/picture gallery complete with a hydraulic life capable of carrying up to 20 people. Not surprisingly that ballroom was never used.

How could it have been when William Cavendish was terrified of people? His employees were instructed to avoid eye contact and pretend he wasn't there should he be in the same room with him. If anyone approached him, they were immediately dismissed. He spoke to no one except his valet and even then, he communicated mostly through mail, which he left in a slot outside his bedroom.

The sprinkles on Cavendish's crazy cupcake? He demanded a chicken be continually roasting and only ventured out at night, dressed in two overcoats, a tall hat, collar tall enough to obscure his face and of course, a large black umbrella.

And you feel guilty for ignoring texts?

Matayoski Mitsuo – The Japanese Jesus

Via reddit.com

The self-titled " Only God Jesus Christ", Matayoshi Mitsuo is one of Japan's most prominent eccentrics. A highly intelligent man, Mitsuo was educated at Chuo University where he studied education. After graduation, the man managed to hold it together enough to run his own private school for a while. Unfortunately, the 'pinch o' crazy' that he carried with him his entire life blossomed when he immersed himself in theology and began to train as a Protestant preacher.

And blossom it did. Mitsuo concocted his own concept of Christianity – a fine mix of end times rhetoric mixed with his genuine belief that he was Jesus.

In 1997, he began what he dubbed the World Economic Community party – a political movement founded on the notion that every immigrant should be deported and all the borders closed. Once all nations were cut off from each other Judgment day would finally roll along and it will be up to…you guessed it, Mitsou to decide who gets tossed into the hell fire.

Not surprisingly, he has never won an election. Not for lack of trying however. He has campaigned for over 16 years, shouting out his rhetoric in a Kabuki-style voice from a dodgy mini van.

Did we mention the Japanese people have a highly developed sense of humor?

Gerald Tyrwhitt – The Magic Intersection between Success and Nonsense

Via pinterest.com

Tyrwhitt's history of extremely eccentric behavior began at an alarming early age. As a child he decided to throw his mother's precious lap dog out the window to see if it would fly. Not surprisingly, it did not. If that little experiment wasn't enough to send him off to boarding school, he managed to seal the deal a few years later when he began setting elaborate booby traps all throughout his parent's estate.

Away from his parents however, Tyrwhitt blossomed creatively. He grew to become one of England's most prolific creative forces and was welcomed into the highest society circles of his time. Dali, Stravinsky and H.G Wells were just some of the memorable folks that embraced his behavior and spent time with him at his estate over the years.

And what an estate.

Tyrwhitt created his own universe out there in the British Country side. He filled his garden with paper flowers, entertained horses with elaborate teas and hung warnings such as ' prepare to meet thy god' and "mangling done here' wherever the urge struck him. He had his collection of carrier pigeons died in different, unnatural shades and insisted that his dogs wear pearl necklaces rather than collars. When a guest noticed that one of the necklaces were gone, Tyrwhitt merely sighed, " Oh dear, I'll have to get another from the safe"

When he wasn't surrounding himself with fuchsia birds, Tyrwhitt enjoyed donning a pig mask and driving around his estate with the express purpose of frightening people. The Rolls Royce he drove in? It was equipped with a miniature clavichord under the seat incase he felt a need for a little background music and he terrorized his staff.

It's important to set a mood -nothing better than clavichord music to accompany a pig mask

Superbarrio Gomez – Champion of the People, Unabashed Lycra lover.

Via chilecomparte.cl

One humid Mexico City morning, an everyday middle-aged man found his true calling. " I opened my eyes. " the vigilante said in regards to his transformation, " and found myself as you see me with a voice telling me I can't stop a plane or train singlehandedly, but I can keep a family from being evicted."

With a fire in his belly and a dream in his heart, the man who would be known forever as Superbarrio Gomez did what any of us would do. He pulled a Mexican wrestling mask over his head and stuffed his out of shape body into a Lycra body suit.

It is believed that Superbarrio (Super neighborhood in Spanish) was a humble street merchant by day that transformed himself into a non-violent superhero by night. No, this does not mean that he solved crime with hugs – rather, Superbarrio became well known nation wide for his protests, civil disobedience and political action. Dressed in his shiny gold underpants, Superbarrio filed petitions and made daring phone calls to organize labor rallies. He risked life and limb helping evicted families move boxes. What a guy.

Although Superbarrio has not been seen or heard from since 2007, there are still those that believe that he is somewhere out there, on hold with government agency info lines for the good of the people.

Daniel Van Meter – Historically Useless

Via sanfernandovalleyblog.blogspot.com

There are national historical monuments that touch the heart and souls of many. Symbols of a greater cause or insurmountable struggle, these living pieces of history serve to remind us of the past that we've all built todays successes upon.

Daniel Van Meter's tower of pallets is nothing like those.

More of a local nuisance than a hero, Van Meter was the son of a successful chemist who lived in what was essentially a junkyard. Surrounded by farm animals, deconstructed buses, broken gas pumps and tires, he was an oddity that many people steered clear of. Was it because he claimed to be a relative of John Quincy Adams and the Wright Brothers or was it his ties to a pro-Nazi group? Really, take your pick.

In 1951, scrawny old Van Meter stumbled across thousands of discarded 3x3 pallets from the Schlitz brewing company. Apparently inspired by his find, Van Meter proceeded to build an enormous honeycomb shaped tower in his back yard. Inside, he stored a few no doubt pristine pieces of patio furniture, which he had to climb up the 20" tower and through a 13" hole to get to.

Over twenty years later, the Los Angeles Fire department finally decided that this tower was a fire hazard and prepared to destroy it. Van Meter, more fearing for the intrusion on his property that anything else, decided to campaign to have it declared a historic monument.

Strangely enough, the city agreed.

Years later, the commission at the time who agreed to have the beer pallet tower deemed culturally significant, Robert Winter stated that they "Must have been drunk" when they agreed. Winter is also on record as saying that it was the 'funniest thing we ever did."

Apparently they took their job seriously back in the 70's.

Sir Tatton Sykes – Give Me Rice Pudding or Give Me Death

Via anthonybalducci.blogspot.com

Sir Tatton Sykes, like the majority of our collection of mad Englishmen, was an extraordinarily wealthy and powerful man. He was descended from a long line of successful racehorse breeders and held the title of 5th Baronet of Sledmore – a fine example aristocratic estates that still stands today.

However, he also hated flowers with a passion. Despised them. So much so that as he wandered his property or went about his business in town, he took to flogging them to mush with his cane. He refused to have any flowers planted on his land or brought into his home. Should he be visiting people, which understandably was rare, he demanded that any flowers in their homes be removed as well.

On top of this, he was obsessed with his own body temperature. He was continually struggling to keep it on an even keel and was known to suddenly remove articles of clothing if he felt too warm. Yes, even his trousers and underpants, regardless of who happened to be near him at the time. A little too cold Sir Sykes? Why not bundle up in up to 8 jackets at a time? His tendency to dress and undress in public became such that the village children would follow him on his walks in hopes of picking up a shirt or two and earning some quick change when they returned them.

Another of Sykes obsessions was milk puddings of all varieties. The man loved them. Perhaps love isn't the proper word…devotion is more fitting. After all, as his house caught fire and his staff vacated around him, Sykes refused to leave until he'd finished his rice pudding. He sat among the flames and finished every last spoonful.

Nothing like having your priorities straight.

David Icke – Keeping us safe from Reptilian Pedophiles for over 20 years.

Via allmystery.de

Mr. Icke was a celebrated English footballer, TV sports reporter and Green Party spokesman for years in the mid to late eighties. He appeared regularly on television and very active in the political sphere. To the world at large, he seemed to have it all together – the kind of jolly, reliable personality the public allowed into their homes daily.

That is until a random psychic passed along 'important' information to him in 1990. She told him he was going to receive messages from the spirit world and was on the earth for a very special reason. Essentially? She threw a match on a whole headful of crazy kindling that took no time at all to turn into a blaze.

One year later, Icke was on national television insisting he was the "Son of the God Head". As Brits sipped their tea and stared in wonder, he claimed that through automatic writing, spirits had told him a host of ominous prophesies including that the world would finally come to an end in 1997.

Needless to say, he was publically humiliated and lost all of his creditability overnight.

Did this stop Icke? Heavens no. He proceeded to publish a total of 7 New Age/Spiritualist conspiracy books outlining what he calls the Babylonian Brotherhood. The gist of his theory is that reptilian humanoids control the earth. The moon is in fact a hollowed- out planetoid from which they project a false reality into our minds, Matrix style. These reptilians have infiltrated the ranks of the world most powerful such as George Bush, Queen Elizabeth and those major worldwide power players, Kris Kristofferson and Box Car Willie.

Still active to this day, you can find Mr. Icke dressed in turquoise preparing for the Babylonian Apocalypse with his wife (who claims to be the archangel Michael) and Canadian lover. Dinner conversation should be interesting.

Le Petomane – Forever Celebrated in the ‘Anals’ of Time

Via mundieart.com

Joseph Pujol discovered his special talent one scorching summer day as he swam in the ocean. Only a child, he decided to be brave and dive deep into the sea to see how long he could hold his breath. As he did, he experienced a singular cold sensation in his nether regions. Panicked, he swam to the surface and scuttled onto land. He watched, horrified, as cup after cup of seawater gushed from his rectum.

After the doctor pronounced him perfectly healthy, Pujol did what any boy would do. He perfected his skills. By the time that he was a young man in the army Pujol amused his entire regime by sucking water up through is anus and launching it several feet.

Unsatisfied, he pushed his craft further. After returning to civilian society, Pujol became a baker but it wasn't the quality of his goods that had his customers returning. Pujol would hide behind the counter and suck in air into his intestines in order to create musical instrument sounds or the crash of thunder for the delight of his clients.

Obviously, such important talent couldn't go to waste. It wasn't long before Pujol took to the stage, calling himself a professional farter or 'fartist' if you will. By contracting his exceptional abdominal muscles, Pujol hit the road playing instruments with his anus and even mimicking animal sounds to go along with a sweet little poem he wrote about life in the barnyard.

At the height of his long career he was known as 'Le Petomane', which translates to 'fartomaniac' in English and played for royalty and celebrities alike.

Just when you thought no one could make money by making an ass of themselves.

Back in the day, and by back in the day we mean pre-internet, you had to work for fame. The percentage of those in the public eye was exceedingly small and if you were exceptional enough to get there, you had to have a 'certain set of skills' to stay there.

My how times have changed. And they don't appear to be changing back anytime soon.

Perhaps it's time to apply that tried and true 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em' philosophy to your own ventures. Start a narcissistic empire with Instagram or YouTube – why not? Why not join the ranks of people including themselves among the famous and infamous on Wikipedia? With an expertly crafted page singing your praises (or exposing your eccentricities) there's no reason why you shouldn't get the attention that you deserve. That's why you should hire Wiki experts from the professional Wikipedia writing service, Get Your Wiki. After all, if a dude that can make cow noises from his ass can find fame, why can't you?