Asuka has everything you want in a wrestler, a captivating personality, athleticism, and an arsenal of different moves to keep viewers interested. Strangely, Asuka born, Kanako Urai, was almost forced out of a career in pro-wrestling after developing nephritis, a rare disease that inflames the tissue in the kidneys. While working both as a graphic designer and occasionally making appearances in independent promotions in Japan, she quickly became a highly-popularized act for her in-ring antics. Asuka became known for her striking ability, particular in kickboxing utilizing moves like the Missile Dropkick and Roundhouse kick that would send her opponents flying across the ring.
In 2004, Asuka made her in-ring debut under the all-women promotion, AtoZ. From there she would wrestle for several different Japanese organizations including Ice Ribbon, Pro Wrestling Wave, NEO Japan Ladies Pro-Wrestling, Smash and more before finally signing a contract with the WWE. Asuka became the NXT Women's Champion for a total of 510 days, the longest reign in the belt's history. When she was promoted to the main WWE roster, Asuka was billed as having the longest undefeated streak in WWE history" at 914 days. In January 2018, Asuka became the inaugural winner of the Women's Royal Rumble match. Asuka has held nine different championship titles across all of the other platforms she's wrestled for and claimed the Smackdown Women's Championship once and is the current WWE Women's Tag Team Champion alongside her partner Kairi Sane.
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."