If you have the taste for something strange, you might try the Mutter Museum that is located at The College of Physicians of Philadelphia. The museum was founded in 1858, when Dr. Thomas Mutter, retired Professor of Surgery at Jefferson Medical college, donated his collection of anatomic and pathological materials. The collection now has over 20,000 objects including antique medical equipment, skeletal and dried specimens, plaster models and memorabilia from famous scientists.

One of a kind objects include:

* The plaster cast of the torso of world-famous Siamese Twins, Chang & Eng, and their conjoined livers
* Joseph Hyrtl’s collection of skulls
* Preserved body of the “Soap Lady”
* Collection of 2,000 objects extracted from people’s throats
* Cancerous growth removed from President Grover Cleveland
* Tallest skeleton on display in North America

TLC was running a series entitled Half Ton Mom. Renee Williams was over 900 pounds. She was heavy as a child and then had a car accident as an adult that caused her to gain more weight since her mobility was limited. I don’t think any amount of diet products would have helped at this point. Instead, Renee opted to have gastric bypass surgery to help her lose weight. Unfortunately, she died 12 days later of a heart attack and left behind two small children.

It is too bad that she didn’t get help before she reached 900 pounds.

You might not recognize the name, but you may remember the face. Alison plays the Austrian Nazi sympathizer in Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade. Alison was born November 11, 1966 in Dublin, Ireland. She was discovered by a photographer and started a modeling and acting career. She appeared in the 1985 James Bond film “A View to a Kill” and then in The Last Crusade as Dr. Elsa Schneider in 1989. She turned down the lead role in Basic Instinct due to the sexual content and nudity. She was offered the role of Eowyn in the second two installments of Lord of the Rings, but was pregnant at the time. The offer would have involved filming for 18 months and no amount of progesterone or other hormonal therapies could have made life on a film set enjoyable.

Alison put acting on the back burner while raising her two daughters. She has recently returned to acting in a short film called “Benjamin’s Struggle.”