11. Slipped on a Banana

The “slipping on a banana” gag actually did not come out of left field. There were actual court cases where people sued after slipping on banana peels, although the slipping was probably far less comical than an animated cartoon.

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In 1911, the world was a less litigious place by all accounts. The plaintiff in the case of Anjou vs Boston Elevated Railway Company actually slipped on a banana peel that was left on the ground and sued. The slipping on the banana peel was not the only funny part of the case. A major issue in the case was the color of the peel. The peel had turned black and the plaintiff argued that it had been there for awhile.

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