1906: San Francisco Earthquake Fire
When a magnitude 7.8 quake rumbled from the San Andreas Fault to the working-class center of town, continuous explosions formed a lurid tower of smoke throughout the city. But the first of our 10 Worst Disasters of the Century teaches the lessons of reconstruction—and set the foundation for a century of earthquake research to come.

1910: The Big Burn
A rainless summer, bizarre winds and sudden lightning merged hundreds of fires into a great inferno, leaving firefighters to fend off the Big Blowup with buckets of water and their bare hands. By the time the second of our 10 Worst Disasters of the Century was put out, the wildfires had claimed 85 lives, but also sparked a debate that burns to this day.
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10) Dick Butkus
This Dick sullied his hallowed NFL career by taking the job of Director of Competition for the ill-fated XFL (what the hell is a Director of Competition anyway?). Thank goodness it only lasted one season, but this Dick’s work was enough to leave a bad taste in every football fan’s mouth.

9) Dick Van Dyke
This beloved TV Land fixture is on this list for his god-awful Cockney accent in Mary Poppins. It takes a real Dick to speak with a shitty Australian accent and pretend it’s British to Julie Andrews’ face. Plus, his name is one of the few times “dick” and “dyke” ever appear in the same sentence. Neat! (more…)

1. Lyrics to Soul Coughing’s Song “Is Chicago, Is Not Chicago”

In the early and mid 90s, jazzy indy rockers Soul Coughing served up dadaesque, funky jams to New York City’s smoky clubs. They were darlings of the hip and ironic. In the critically lauded 1994 album Ruby Vroom, frontman (and now successful solo artist) Mike Doughty’s lyrics were often thoughtful and witty, if absurdist.

In a verse that now seems haunting and prophetic, Doughty begins “Is Chicago, Is Not Chicago” with the following lines:

A man
Drives a plane
Into the
Chrysler building …
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