10 Things That Happened 10 Years Ago: July 27-Aug 2

Deflategate, lion hunters, and robot murder. Here’s what was in the news 10 years ago this week.

A lion-hunting dentist from Minnesota became the most-hated man in America

Americans heard that earlier in July, a Minneapolis dentist named Walter Palmer had paid a guide in Zimbabwe $50,000 to help him hunt and kill a lion. The University of Oxford had been tracking Cecil the lion – one of the most famous lions in Africa – since 2008 as part of a research program. Palmer and his guides lured Cecil out of a protected area onto private property in order to make the hunt legal. He never faced charges in Zimbabwe or the U.S.


Tom Brady’s Deflategate suspension was upheld

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell upheld a decision to suspend the Patriots QB for four games, and revealed Brady had destroyed a cell phone that may have held evidence about the incident. Brady was accused of having footballs under-inflated for the AFC Championship Game earlier that year. The Patriots also lost two draft picks and had to pay a $1 million fine.


Philadelphia murdered a hitchhiking robot

Researchers at Ryerson University in Toronto wanted to see if a robot could hitchhike from Boston to San Francisco. (It had already made similar trips across Canada and Germany.) The robot – named hitchBOT – was able to answer simple questions, and they scrawled “San Francisco or Bust” on him. The hope was that random people would shuttle him across the country. But two weeks in, he was found stripped of his parts and decapitated in Philadelphia.

R.I.P., hitchBOT.


“Rowdy” Roddy Piper Died at 61

The brash, kilt-wearing wrestler – real name, Roderick Toombs – played the ultimate foil to WWF hero Hulk Hogan in the ‘80s and ‘90s. TMZ reported Toombs died in his sleep of cardiac arrest on July 31, 2015. Hogan would pass away (also from cardiac arrest) almost exactly 10 years later on July 24, 2025.


“Rowdy” Ronda Rousey was dominating women’s UFC

She won her fight against Bethe Correia on August 3, 2015 in 34 seconds after winning her previous two fights in under 20 seconds. But it would prove to be her last UFC win. She lost her next fight later that year (the first loss of her career), then lost again in 2016 before retiring due to concussion concerns.


“Left Shark” made a cameo at a Taylor Swift concert

A dancer in a shark costume popped up behind Taylor at a show in Massachusetts six months after the infamous Katy Perry Super Bowl performance. Katy and Taylor were feuding, so fans saw it as some sort of dig. But others said it was an innocent prank by one of Taylor’s dancers and had nothing to do with Katy or Left Shark.


Billy Corgan was sad at Disneyland

A photo of the Smashing Pumpkins frontman went viral, showing him on Disney’s Big Thunder Mountain looking less than thrilled.


“Key & Peele” pulled the plug

Season 5 had just started when Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key announced there wouldn’t be a Season 6. Comedy Central aired 53 episodes between 2012 and 2015. Peele went on to win the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for his horror movie “Get Out” in 2019.


Jose Canseco came up with a weird way to support Caitlyn Jenner

He vowed to spend a full week living as a woman – including wearing dresses and makeup – as a way of “supporting” Caityln Jenner’s transition. To many people, it seemed more like an ill-conceived publicity stunt. Canseco was in the midst of launching an internet reality show called “Spend a Day with Jose” that never materialized.


The teaser for “Zoolander 2” hit YouTube

The original had become a cult classic, and writer/director/star Ben Stiller had high hopes for the sequel. But critics panned it, and audiences were underwhelmed. It earned $57 million worldwide, but cost $50 million to make.

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