by Claudine Zap

Paul the Octopus may have predicted the World Cup winner. But he never could have seen this coming: Being denounced by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The president of Iran blasted the cephalopod for spreading "western propaganda and superstition."

If anyone should get the blame for spreading the word to the world about the sea creature's mad skills, it should be Paul's PR team from the German Oberhausen Sea Life Center, where Paul resides. Paul simply predicted the winner of the German games correctly. 

The octopus did this by pointing to the flag of the winning country when both teams were presented to him. He became the beloved mascot for Spain when one of his arms accurately predicted that country as the winner of the World Cup.

Paul made a splash with football fans and the Web. A wave of Yahoo! searches for "paul the octopus" surged over 60,000% in the month of June. Still, all the cheers for the soccer-loving sea creature seem to have left the head of Iran cold.

We're not sure what led the Iranian leader to finger the 8-armed mollusk as enemy number one, but the sea animal better not have plans to travel to Iran anytime soon. According to the Telegraph, Ahmadinejad mentioned Paul "on various occasions during a speech in Tehran" over the weekend. He called the soccer soothsayer a symbol of "decadence and decay."

The octopus oracle has yet to comment ? or predict the future of the Iranian president. Outlook: Not so good.

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by Mike Krumboltz

Napoleon Dynamite made ligers famous. Your yuppie neighbors helped turn labradoodles into the gotta have dog breed. But a zedonk? That's a new one.

ABC News reports that an animal preserve in Georgia is home to a newly born (and very rare) zebra-donkey hybrid. The zedonk's legs are striped like a zebra's, but its body resembles a brown-furred donkey. So far, it doesn't have a name, but officials have reported that "Pippi," after Pippi Longstocking, who loved to wear stripped socks, is a frontrunner.

Following news of the zedonk's existence, Web searches on "zedonk" and "zedonk pictures" both roared. We were a bit surprised to see a 1,300% search surge on "zedonk for sale." For some, pictures just ain't enough.

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by Claudine Zap

Our top picks from the day's hottest searches.

1. Gwyneth Paltrow (Searches increased by 7,166%). The Oscar-winning actress has gone country for her upcoming movie ? and sings the title song to prove it.
2. Dennis Hopper (+5,292%). The late actor left behind a Venice compound going for $6 million.
3. Guns N' Roses (+1,945%). Steven Adler, the band's former drummer, has a memoir called, what else: "Sex & Drugs & Guns N' Roses."
4. Rachel Zoe (+325%). Gearing up for her reality show's upcoming season 3, stylist Zoe admitted to wanting to style "Mad Men."
5. Snooki (+304%). Here's "the Situation": The TV show "Jersey Shore" lets you enjoy Snooki and friends with a new online game.

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by Claudine Zap

Everyone knows the image: Celebrating V-J Day in Times Square back in 1945, a sailor dips a nurse into a passionate kiss and is snapped into icon status by Life Magazine. But the identity of the sailor has remained a mystery.

Over the years, several men have claimed the mantle of the man in question. Now, there's one more who says he's the one.

The vet is one Glenn McDuffie. The 88-year-old has photos of himself in his sailor suit, can ID the other people in the famed photo, and has even submitted to multiple lie-detector tests. One woman who believes him told his story to CNN.

Whether he's the real deal or not, he sure is one adorable guy. Check out pictures of him here.

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