Believe It or Not: Robert Ripley...

Today's history lesson was found at the Odd Fellows Cemetery (1885) in Santa Rosa, a non-sectarian cemetery for all families in the community.

Believe it or not, I came to visit the final resting place of Robert LeRoy Ripley. Considered one of Santa Rosa's most famous natives, he was born here in 1890. Ripley grew up the son of a carpenter. Here he survived the 1906 earthquake, scampered the streets of Chinatown and was described as shy, poor and something of a misfit.

For those who do not know who Robert Ripley is, he was a cartoonist, author, and radio broadcaster, best remembered for creating the cartoon series, Ripley's Believe It or Not. What began as a sports cartoon, odd facts from every possible category were eventually showcased: human, scientific, political, historical, animal, or whatever. The weekly cartoon became an instant success. Quickly he began to travel to other countries to gather odd facts, and during his career, he traveled to 198 countries, making the equivalent distance of 18 trips around the world.

He was at the peak of his career during the 1930s and 1940s, and his phrase, "Believe it or not!" became a common icon of America. He collected cars, but never learned to drive. A non-swimmer, he owned a number of boats. He was married from 1919 to 1926, to Beatrice Roberts, but the marriage ended in divorce. Many of the items he collected are still being shown today in amusement museums under his trademarked "Ripley's Believe It or Not." Like Peter Pan, his entire life was a kind of extended childhood, and he never grew tired of going places and discovering new things. He had a limitless fascination with the entire world. He was also the first cartoonist to become a millionaire. He died in New York City in 1949, after a heart attack and was returned home.