Dateline: CaliforniaA California State Senator has vowed to discontinue his practice of giving noogies to members of the public. The Sacramento Bee reports a formal complaint was lodged against State Sen. John Moorlach, accusing him of putting a woman in a headlock and giving her a noogie during a photo op at a Republican caucus reception. The Senate Rules Committee reportedly investigated the matter and found the claim was not only true, but similar instances with others seemed to have frequently taken place. The complainant said she’d never met the state senator before the reception and was unaware of his noogie practice before the incident. Investigators cocluded that her complaints were valid. Although the noogies were not deemed sexual in nature, the committee sent Moorlach a letter recommending he discontinue the practice. Moorlach told investigators that he often gives people noogies during photo sessions “for fun,” and that the photos almost always go viral. He agreed to stop, however. In a statement given by Moorlach, the state senator apologized for having made someone feel uncomfortable. “I am a fun-loving individual who is guilty of occasional playfulness,” he said.Dateline: MinnesotaA pair of sequined “ruby slippers” used in the film The Wizard of Oz were recovered after being stolen 13 years ago. According to CNN, investigators with the FBI found the slippers in near-perfect condition during an undercover operation in Minneapolis. The priceless shoes were one of four known pairs worn by Judy Garland in her role as Dorothy. They were on display at the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota until they were mysteriously stolen in 2005, when a thief was able to break into the museum through a back door and smash the shoes’ display case without setting off any alarms or leaving any fingerprints. Only a single sequin was reportedly left at the scene. Some theories about the slippers have persisted over the last 13 years, including one that the theft was carried out by museum staff. At one point, authorities reportedly sent divers to the bottom of Tioga Mine Pit lake after it was suggested that the thief might have thrown the slippers into the lake during the 40th annual “Wizard of Oz” Festival. The FBI said a person approached the company who had insured the shoes claiming they had information as to their whereabouts. Investigators say the man was involved in the theft and was attempting to extort money. The FBI did not explain how the slippers were recovered. The investigation into the theft is ongoing.Dateline: FloridaA man was arrested after allegedly giving his girlfriend a “wet willy.” Fox News reports police were called to the home of Joseph Sireci last month where they arrested him on a battery charge. According to his girlfriend, he’d been behaving belligerently since she’d returned home from work and found him intoxicated on the living room floor. According to Sireci’s girlfriend’s testimony, the couple went to visit friends and brought her daughter along with them. At their friends’ house, Sireci allegedly continued to drink and become more aggressive. The woman claims that as they drove home, Sireci began to pull on her arm and grab her hand. He then gave her what is referred to as a “wet willy”—a practice whereby one licks one’s own finger and inserts it into another person’s ear canal. The woman’s daughter, who was in the car at the time, corroborated her story. Sireci claims that he wasn’t intoxicated at the time of his arrest.Dateline: ChinaA kindergarten principal was fired for starting the new school year with a pole dancing performance. According to CNN, a kindergarten’s opening day ceremony included a performance by a young pole dancer utilizing a flagpole bearing the Chinese flag. The performance was seen by some students’ parents as sexually suggestive, including journalist Michael Standaert, whose children attend the school. Standaert took to social media to criticize school principal Lai Rong, tweeting a photo of the event with the caption: “So before our kids got out of kindergarten for the summer, there was 10 days of military ‘activities’ and displays of machine guns and mortars at the door; now the principal has welcomed them back with a strip pole dance on the flagpole bearing the PRC flag.” Standaert would later comment that he had seen advertisements for a pole dancing school, suggesting that the principal had been paid to host the performance. He also posted a video of some of the performance. It was captioned: The principal hung up on my wife when she called after saying it was ‘international and good exercise.’ ” The incident was investigated by the local education bureau, who promptly fired the principal and issued a social media post warning other schools against similar practices.
Compiled by Joshua Lee. Email your weird news to josh@alibi.com.
