1. You can read Marilyn Monroe's file online, as well as your own...
The FBI has a room in its headquarters called the Vault, where over 6,700 documents containing details of investigations into Marilyn Monroe, Dick Clark, Joe Paterno, and Steve Jobs can all be found. You can even see if the FBI has anything on you by requesting your file under the Freedom of Information Act.
2. They probably have your fingerprints on file, even if you were never arrested
If you've ever had your fingerprints taken as part of a background check, then they're likely to be on file at the FBI too. This is thanks to its Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System, which is a database of more than 100 million fingerprints. They're kept in a huge "data campus" in Clarksburg, West Virginia. Apparently, it takes the FBI just 12 minutes to match a set of fingerprints.
3. Recreational drug use isn't necessarily a deal-breaker for a would-be agent
To become an FBI special agent, you mustn't have smoked pot in the last three years, or have used any other illegal drugs during the past 10. You must be aged between 23 and 37, and be able to complete a series of physical tests successfully. Furthermore, those with any of 12 "critical skills", including accounting, finance or law, will swiftly see their applications moved to the top of the pile.
4. The criminals on the FBI's Most Wanted list are often chosen based on looks.
The FBI's Most Wanted list was created by J. Edgar Hoover in 1950. Bureau officials admit that the FBI tries to select dangerous fugitives with recognizable features such as a scar, multiple tattoos or a strangely-shaped face to go on the list due to the public being able to identify them more easily.
5. Computer coding problems meant that the FBI only went digital in 2012.
It's almost unbelievable to think that one of the world's foremost national security bureaus didn't start using computers for logging cases until 2012. The FBI's electronic system went into service in August 2012 - two-and-a-half years later, and some $26 million over its projected $425 million budget.
6. They spent more than two years investigating Louie Louie - as in, the record...
Louie Louie is a song written by Richard Berry in 1955 which was popularized by The Kingsmen, as well as a couple of other features in movies. The FBI investigated the song for more than two years during the mid-1960s to see whether the lyrics were dirty and pornographic. After spending far too much time and money on the investigation, it concluded that the lyrics were unintelligible.
7. John Lennon was a suspect
John Lennon was placed under surveillance by the FBI in 1971 - all because he was writing anti-war songs such as Give Peace a Chance. In fact, they were highly suspicious of his activities and watched him closely.
8. Walt Disney was an informant...
Not many people know this, but Walt Disney was an FBI informant for more than 25 years between 1940 and 1966. His information pertained to "un-American activities", and following the passing for the Freedom of Information Act, it emerged that Disney had handed over several names of Hollywood people suspected of being communists.
9. ...and so was Ronald Reagan
Back in 1947, Ronald Reagan was the president of the Screen Actor's Guild. He had an FBI codename too, being known as "Source T-10". Documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act showed that Reagan and his first wife, Jane Wyman, gave names of Hollywood actors believed to be communist sympathizers.
10. It took them no less than a decade to find Dorothy's slippers
Just four pairs of shoes that were used in the original version of The Wizard of Oz are known to be in existence. A pair worn by Judy Garland was stolen from the Judy Garland Museum in Minnesota back in 2005, and the FBI actually investigated the theft for more than a decade before the shoes were located.
11. The CIA doesn't always play nice with them
There's no denying that the 9/11 attacks are mired in controversy to this very day, but what you might not know is that the CIA isn't always keen on sharing intelligence with the FBI. An FBI counter-terrorism agent recently went on record to lament the fact that FBI agents still don't know exactly what happened that day.
12. They once looked into extra-sensory perception
Extra-sensory perception is the perception of information that may be discerned through the five physical senses or deduced from past experiences or knowledge. The FBI investigated it on the basis of concerns that it could be used for international spying. They concluded that there was "no scientific support" for their concerns and concluded the investigation after three years.
