Tennessee is one of those states that keeps a nice collective of collegiate football programs worthy of keeping an eye on. They've also had some praise-worthy NFL alumni come from the Volunteer State including the likes of Jason Witeen and Patrick Willis. While those two prominent individuals are great, Reggie White holds the NFL GOAT status for the state of Tennessee. The 6'0, 300lbs defensive end from Chattanooga, Tennessee played his college ball in his home state at the University of Tennessee where he set the single-season record for sacks registering 15 in 1983.
Prior to going to the NFL, White was selected by the Memphis Showboats in the 1984 USFL Territorial Draft where he played two seasons. After the USFL collapsed, White took his talents to the Philadelphia Eagles where he would begin his fifteen-year career. Of those fifteen seasons, White was selected for the Pro Bowl thirteen times and selected All-Pro First Team a total of ten times. White terrorized offensive lines, running backs, and quarterbacks notching 198 tackles and 33 sacks throughout his NFL tenure. He also helped the Green Bay Packers obtain the Lombardi Trophy in 1996. These days White has taken his talents to the church and is known as 'The Minister of Defense.'
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."