AJ Lee born, April Jeanette Mendez, is known for her 'crazy chick' persona throughout her stint in the WWE. However, what many didn't know about Mendez is that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and considered herself hiding in plain sight while portraying her character AJ Lee. While mainly known as a heel throughout her pro-wrestling career, her athleticism and aggressive style of fighting drew fans towards her. Standing at only 5'2 and weighing 115lbs, Lee was able to attach herself to other wrestler's bodies with ease and execute moves like the Shiranui, Guillotine Chokehold, and her finisher, the Black Widow.
Lee began her professional wrestling career under the Women Superstars Uncensored (WSU) promotion in 2007 where she won the WSU/National Wrestling Superstars Queen of the Ring tournament and WSU Tag Team Championship alongside partner Brooke Carter. In May 2009, Lee made the jump to the WWE where she wrestled under the Florida Championship Wrestling and NXT subdivisions of the platform. In 2011, Mendez became a mainstay act in the WWE and served as general manager of RAW for time. Throughout Lee's six-year stint in the WWE, AJ Lee held the WWE Divas Championship a record-tying three times and held the title for a record 406 days total. In 2015, Mendez retired from wrestling and became New York Times Best Seller for her 2017 memoir, Crazy Is My Superpower.
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."