Community Corner

Weird Iowa: No. 1 Party School, King for President, Governor Resurrects Floppy, The Onion Spoofs State Fair

Iowa has no shortage of weird news. Here is some of it from around our Iowa Patches.

Turkey legs, funnel cakes, food on a stick -- all part of the weird, quirky fun that is the Iowa State Fair.

Some Iowans have sniped on social media that it's weird -- perhaps even cynically campaigning -- for Gov. Terry Branstad to have Floppy, the puppet known to central Iowa kids for years as the host of cartoons on WHO-TV, on display at the Iowa State Fair. The beloved beagle was on TV from 1957- 1987, and can be found at the governor's booth in the Varied Industries Building during the fair. 

Also tied to the State Fair, the satirical magazine The Onion has posted a spoof article about police setting up a perimeter around the State Fairgrounds in Des Moines with instructions to shoot any non-residents who approach. Funny or rude?

It's weird to Patch that three-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart would get in some drive time between big races by jumping in a winged spring car at the track in Oskalooa. But race he did last weekend, only to crash and break his right leg in two places, requiring surgery at a Des Moines hospital. Not weird: Stewart was leading the race when a car he'd lapped crashed in front of him. 

Gary Sinise and the Lt. Dan Band performed in concert in Cedar Falls last weekend to raise money to build a smart home for injured soldier Taylor Morris. But an amazing thing happened offstage, too.

Artist Scott LoBaido did a speed painting of the American flag. He started and finished the painting while Daniel Rodriguez, aka "The singing policeman," sang "America the Beautiful." The painting was then auctioned, on the spot, to an audience member for a whopping $5,000.

Steve King in 2016? Several media outlets, including Salon.com, are reporting that Iowa Congressman Steve King is well, maybe running for president. The rumor comes from an Aug. 26 meeting of power players that King plans on having in the conservative state of South Carolina. Do you think he might run or continue to represent Ames in Congress?

Late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel had fun with the University of Iowa's recent naming as the No. 1 party school in the land. While leaders in Iowa City said drinking has gone down in recent years, Kimmel urged the Hawkeyes to embrace the label.

A rap video from the Collins Community Credit Union, which has a location in Marion, is a unique, if not weird, way to reach out to potential customers. "We're Collins Community Credit Union. If you haven't heard of us, I don't know what you're doing," the rap begins. The rap touts IRAs, student loan options and saving for college. 

Spooky weird: Chris Majors, a 2002 Urbandale High School graduate, is directing a feature horror sci-fi film called “Lake Eerie.” During pre-production work at an old lake house, Majors had some close encounters with meddlesome ghosts that apparently made sport of draining fully charged batteries. Paranormal investigators reportedly backed up local legend that the house was haunted, and additional paranormal activity encountered during the film will be included in the final product.

This week's weird police blotter item is from West Des Moines, where a man was charged with child endangerment after his 5-year-old son was missing for about an hour before he reported it to authorities, police said. Adults at a Kum & Go store fed the child cereal and milk after he reportedly ran across four lanes of traffic to reach the store. As witnesses searched for the boy’s parents, his father – Kenneth David Crowe, 26, – reported his son had run away. Crowe told police his son had left the apartment without his knowledge while he was asleep. 

Read more weirdness from Iowa:

Weird Iowa: Teacher Charged with Sexual Abuse, Walmart Worker Arrested, and Walmart Employees Mistakenly Help Alleged Thief

Weird Iowa: Captain Save a Ho Arrested, Purse-Snatching Romeo, and 500 Pot Plants Means Prison

Weird Iowa: Married in a Hole, Fire-Ravaged House Sells for $750K, $5 Left by Polite Intruder, Naked Car Vandal

Weird Iowa: Slipknot Theft, Rusty Comes Home, Human Skull Puzzle Solved, Trail of Pigs, 'Floury' F Bomb

Weird Iowa: Penny Pinching Leads to Arrest, Clerk Says No to Robbers, Pro Bowler, Should Biker Be Beheaded?

Weird Iowa: Colbert Mocks Rep. King, Baby Born in Bathroom, and Kid Reportedly Left in Park

Weird Iowa: 13-Year-Old Driver Crashes Grandma's Car, Deer Breaks Into Mall, Toddler Left Home Alone

Weird Iowa: 'Twilight Zone' Workers, Samurai Swordsman at Kum & Go, Search for Bra Turns Up Pot, Keep Childhood Icon Floppy

Weird Iowa: Weird Powder Scare, Magnetic Zeros Shoutout to Iowa, and Ducklings Cause Car Crash

Weird Iowa: Pot-Growing Rodeo Clown, Drought-Busting Weather, Michele Bachmann Faces Court Date

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