The Chicago Bears are one of the most recognizable football organizations in all of sports so, it's only right that their biggest celebrity fan is the most popular and recognizable comedians on the face of the earth in Bill Murray. Bill Murray is never afraid to show off his love for the city of Chicago. He was in attendance throughout the Chicago Cubs World Series run during 2016 and has been a long-time fan of the Chicago Bears. The Evanston native is most known for his roles in Caddyshack, Stripes, Ghostbusters and Groundhog Day.
He has won two Primetime Emmy awards and was nominated for Best Actor for his work in Lost in Translation by the Academy Awards. He and his brothers were spotted at a Bears game in 2018 singing their own version of "Bear Down, Chicago Bears" before the contest began. As a youth, Bill Murray was able to witness what is arguably the greatest football team ever assembled in the '85 Chicago Bears win Super Bowl XX. And he might be able to watch the franchise scoop up another Lombardi Trophy in the near future if the team continues to get better as they made a semi-decent run in this year's NFL Playoffs.
When we think of inventors, the image that comes to mind is usually that of a frazzled scientist toiling away in a lab, not celebrities pulled from the pages of Us Weekly. However, a number of well-known public figures hold patents for various innovations. Some are related to the work that made them famous, while others are offshoots of hobbies or just a single great idea.
Part of guitar wizard Eddie Van Halen's signature sound was his two-handed tapping technique, but letting all ten fingers fly while simultaneously holding up the guitar's neck could get a bit tricky. Van Halen came up with a novel way to get around this problem, though; he invented a support (top) that could flip out of the back of his axe's body to raise and stabilize the fretboard so he could tap out searing songs like "Eruption." While Van Halen was obviously interested in improving his guitar work, the patent application he filed in 1985 notes that the device would work with any stringed instrument. Want to tap out a scorching mandolin solo? Find someone selling Eddie's device.
It’s probably not surprising that James Cameron—who designed a submersible to take him to the deepest known part of the ocean—will often invent technology to make his films if what he needs doesn’t exist. He holds a number of patents, including US Patent No. 4996938, “apparatus for propelling a user in an underwater environment,” that he and his brother, Michael, created to film The Abyss and patented in 1989. The device is basically an underwater dolly equipped with propellers that makes it easy for a camera operator to maneuver in the water—and allowed Cameron to capture the shots he wanted for the 1989 film, part of which was filmed in an abandoned nuclear reactor.
In 1987 Jamie Lee Curtis designed and patented a disposable diaper that included a waterproof pocket that held baby wipes. She hasn't profited from her idea yet, though, since she refuses to license the patent until diaper companies make biodegradable products.
You know him as a rock legend, but Neil Young also loves trains—so much that he owns a stake in a model train manufacturing company and has an extensive collection. He also holds seven patents related to model trains, including Patent No. US5441223, "Model train controller using electromagnetic field between track and ground."