AMC's The Walking Dead has been the chief exporter of zombie-themed small screen drama, but several cast members have had to endure lots of setbacks.

Santa Claus at the top of the world in a winter wonderland. His workshop bustles in the Arctic Circle while his helpers pump out toys for billions of kids. But the North Pole at the top of the world isn't the only place that Santa calls home. You can find the jolly saint in several different places.

In a common sense way, it's understandable why ancient people would have used snow to craft a human figure, or even just play with (if they weren't trying to avoid freezing to death, that is). After all, cave paintings, tribal figurines, and hand-hewn statues all depict the human form.

Thousands of old men would impersonate our altered vision of what St. Nick looked like and sit in shopping malls to let countless children sit in their laps to ask if they're real. That last one is a Christmas staple these days, but exactly how did it get its start?

The National Confectioners Association reports that candy canes are the most popular non-chocolate candy during December, with 90 percent of them sold between Thanksgiving and Christmas. This comes to 1.76 billion candy canes produced in the United States each year. But where did they originate?

Where did these staunch Christmas helpers come from? Why exactly does an immortal, bearded man with a magic, toy-spawning bag of holding need slave elves to manufacture said toys before the toys are teleported into said bag? This (and other yuletide mysteries of the ages) clearly needs unraveling.

The Library of Congress is the largest library in the world, holding more than 162 million assets in its collections. Here are some of its secrets.

When we see the cartons of eggnog on grocery store shelves or the bottles of Very Olde Saint Nick at the liquor store, it might trick us into thinking the drink is a modern beverage, but, in truth, eggnog has several centuries worth of history. Check it out.

Today, Hawaii celebrates most holidays like the rest of the U.S., but there are differences. Here's what it's really like to celebrate Christmas in Hawaii.

In 1863, Nast drew a popular advertisement for Harper's Weekly magazine that depicted Santa Claus delivering gifts (and copies of Harper's) to Union Army soldiers. Nast later produced annual Christmas drawings, one of which indicated that Santa could be reached via mail addressed to the North Pole.

Imagine being stuck under a parasitic plant with someone, and the only way out is to kiss them. It honestly sounds like a nightmare, and yet it's a Christmas tradition some people somehow enjoy -- mistletoe, the hemiparasitic plant in question, is an essential part of the holiday.

Game shows since 2000 have been more and more about performing physical stunts. But with more dangerous stunts comes the opportunity for more things to go wrong, and now appearing on a game show can mean serious injury or even death. These are the most traumatic experiences in game show history.

At 6'10', the towering Texas native combined gigantic size with agile athleticism and a killer gimmick to truly dominate the sport for longer than most could ever dream of. He almost ended up stomping around the basketball court, rather than the ring, before deciding to wrestle professionally.

Despite most of modern communication taking place via texts, messaging via apps, and, for some old-fashioned traditionalists, e-mail, mailing physical Christmas cards remains a popular and beloved custom that continues to stand the test of time. Where and when did this tradition originate?

As one of the first all-female rock bands, The Runaways proved to the world that women could rock as hard as men could.

Starr married his first wife, Maureen Starkey, in 1965 after Maureen found out she was pregnant, and the two remained together for a decade. But what happened?

There was one accomplishment that Armstrong's biographers believed he never achieved: fatherhood. But in 2012, a woman from Florida put that belief in doubt.

A staple of Christmas, gingerbread houses can be as simple as two rectangles leaning on each other, to mansions recreating some of the world's most famous palaces. Gingerbread houses are a tradition for a reason. But why do we make houses out of gingerbread, instead of just eating it as a cookie?

Right before her 1987 Academy Award for Moonstruck (which The Guardian called "hopelessly romantic"), before she "turned back time," Cher aimed her sights at becoming a rock star and formed Black Rose with her boyfriend of the moment, Led Dudek, in 1980.

Where and when did the tale originate? Santa Claus, leaving lumps of coal instead of Christmas presents for naughty children? According to Mental Floss, the tradition predates Santa and is found in tales of several individuals.

The 1980s saw the rise of the video vixen, coinciding with the launch of MTV. Tawny Kitaen rose to fame in rock videos. Here's what happened to her.

The winter solstice is, for many, a good excuse to celebrate. Though the individual celebration can vary, they often include feasts, art, and processions.

In 2020, The Undertaker announced his retirement (for real this time). "My time has come," he said.

Following the death of Garcia in 1995, the surviving members had made a point of retiring the name The Grateful Dead in their band mate's honor, according to CNN, with the group performing under names such as The Other Ones in the years after, until deciding in 2003 to bill themselves as The Dead.

In all of his in-ring iterations, Nelson Frazier Jr. was an undeniably larger-than-life presence in professional wrestling. Whether he was rocking a spandex onesie or silk pajamas, the formidable 6'9" WWE Superstar struck fear in the hearts of his opponents and excited his throngs of loyal fans.

The pair put out hit song after hit song, including "It's Gonna Work Out" and "Poor Fool." Tina and Ike worked with record producer Phil Spector. The duo covered "Proud Mary," announcing their entrance into the pop world. But underneath all that success was a marriage that was becoming a nightmare.

Bacon's Rebellion is considered one of the main events that ushered in racial enslavement in the American colonies and later the U.S.