“Tom Thumb is a character of English folklore. The History of Tom Thumb was published in 1621, and has the distinction of being the first fairy tale printed in English. Tom is no bigger than his father's thumb, and his adventures include being swallowed by a cow, tangling with giants, and becoming a favourite of King Arthur. The earliest allusions to Tom occur in various 16th century works such as Reginald Scot's Discovery of Witchcraft (1584) where Tom is cited as one of the supernatural folk employed by servant maids to frighten children”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Portrait of the dwarf, Tom Thumb standing on the hand of a Guardsman. Charles Sherwood Stratton (1838 – 1883) was nicknamed General Tom Thumb by P T Barnum, the circus owner. (Photo by London Stereoscopic Company/Getty Images). Circa 1875

“The pygmy hippopotamus (Choeropsis liberiensis or Hexaprotodon liberiensis) is a large mammal native to the forests and swamps of western Africa (the specific name liberiensis means “of Liberia”, as this is where the vast majority live). The pygmy hippo is reclusive and nocturnal. It is one of only two extant species in the Hippopotamidae family, the other being its much larger cousin the common hippopotamus”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Monifa, a one month old baby Pygmy Hippopotamus takes a morning bath at Taronga Zoo on November 7, 2008 in Sydney, Australia. Monifa is the first Pygmy Hippopotamus to be born at Taronga Zoo in the past twenty three years. (Photo by Sergio Dionisio/Getty Images)

“Lafayette Ronald Hubbard (March 13, 1911 – January 24, 1986), better known as L. Ron Hubbard (and often referred to by his initials, LRH), was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology. After establishing a career as a writer, becoming best known for his science fiction and fantasy stories, he developed a self-help system called Dianetics which was first published in May 1950. He subsequently developed his ideas into a wide-ranging set of doctrines and rituals as part of a new religious movement that he called Scientology. His writings became the guiding texts for the Church of Scientology and a number of affiliated organizations that address such diverse topics as business administration, literacy and drug rehabilitation”. – Wikipedia

Photo: American science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the Church of Scientology, uses his Hubbard Electrometer (patent pending) to determine whether tomatoes experience pain, 1959. His work led him to the conclusion that tomatoes “scream when sliced”. (Photo by Scott Lauder/Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

A surfer heads out at Coldingham Bay an inlet in the North Sea on February 15, 2012 in Coldingham, Scotland. (Photo by Jeff J. Mitchell/Getty Images)

Zimbabwe University students run away from police during a protest outside the magistrates courts in Harare, Monday, September 14, 2020. Police broke up the protest and arrested some students demonstrating in support of a university union leader who was making a court appearance following his arrest for protesting against human rights abuses in the country. (Photo by Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi/AP Photo)

Sweden's Mikael Ymer slips and falls in the first round match of the French Open tennis tournament against Serbia's Novak Djokovic at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, France, Tuesday, September 29, 2020. (Photo by Alessandra Tarantino/AP Photo)

A gust of wind took Archbishop Bernard Hebda's cap off while he and Auxiliary Bishop Andrew Cozzens offered a special Easter Blessings from the Bishops Sunday afternoon on April 12, 2020. (Photo by Jeff Wheeler/Star Tribune via Getty Images)

An Orangutan named Elze walks in the Biopark of Rio during a media tour in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Thursday, March 18, 2021. The park was closed to the public for renovations to convert the city zoo into a center for biodiversity conservation and will reopen to the general public at the end of March. (Photo by Bruna Prado/AP Photo)