Hetherington: Mad as a Hatter?

Johnny Depp made a memorable and totally jiggy Mad Hatter in Tim Burton's 2010 film reimagining of the classic Lewis Carroll tale Alice in Wonderland.

However, it was a Hetherington who purportedly frst went wiggy with a top hat. John Hetherington was an English haberdasher who supposedly modified a riding hat into a top hat, widening the brim and lengthening it.

In 1797, Hetherington and his top hat caused a riot in the streets of London. People are said to have run in terror, with dogs barking and women fainting. The crowd broke the arm of an errand boy as they ran like Tokyo citizens fleeing Godzilla.

Hetherington was charged in court with wearing "a tall structure having a shining luster calculated to frighten timid people" and was fined £50.

Sounds like a great premise for a Zatanna story: "Mood fo tah pot ehT!!!"