Las Vegas hotels are booked solid with gamblers betting that 11/11/11 on Friday will bring good luck. So are multiplexes set to premiere the apocalyptic chiller "11-11-11," which many horror fans are betting will be so bad it'll be good.
Fans of the 1984 rock ‘n' roll parody flick "This Is Spinal Tap" are planning to celebrate Nigel Tufnel Day in honor of the guitarist proud of having amps that went up to 11 instead of stopping at the standard 10. (The yearlong campaign, in true Spinal Tap dunderhead fashion, is called "The Nigel Tufnel Day Appreciation Society and Quilting Bee in Favor of Declaring & Observing November 11, 2011 as Nigel Tufnel Day [in Recognition of Its Maximum Elevenness].")
The Atlanta-based website Mother Nature Network reports that everyone from metaphysicists to conspiracy theorists will be watching Friday "for signs of some broad humanistic awakening -- a harmonic convergence, even a portal opening into a new dimension."
We would absolutely poke fun at this except we're just superstitious enough to be afraid we'd upset some ominous power in the universe and trigger an early doomsday.
Instead, we'll simply note some of the serious and silly 11's prominent in history:
- One of the greatest American tragedies occurred on 9/11, as two World Trade Center buildings, each shaped like the number 1, collapsed after being struck by hijacked airplanes. The first was American Airlines Flight 11.
- Apollo 11 was the first manned spacecraft to land on the moon.
- World War I ended with an armistice on Nov. 11, 1918, that went into effect at 11 a.m. -- the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month. It's now observed as Veterans Day, which this year falls on 11/11/11.
- Nov. 11 is Corduroy Appreciation Day (who decides these things?) by enthusiasts who believe that 11/11 is the date that most resembles the fabric's vertical lines.
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