Here's a safety tip: don't try to break your window if you're on the 24th floor.
(From 6 People Who Died in Order to Prove a Retarded Point (
http://www.cracked.com/article_16760_6-people-who-died-in-order-to-prove-retarded-point.html))
Garry Hoy
What He Tried to Prove:
That high rise glass is unbreakable, and that the universe has no sense of irony.
The Method:
Garry Hoy was a lawyer from Toronto, Canada, whose claim to fame is being the punch-line for every single "famous last words" joke ever made. Those last words pertained to how the glass windows of his 24th storey office in the Toronto-Dominion Centre were "unbreakable."
You can see where this is going.
What He Actually Proved:
As you may have guessed (you veritable Sherlock Holmes, you!), Garry tested his little theory by slamming his body up against the glass. He burst through the window and plunged to his death, leaving a group of nervous interns either freaking the hell out, or fervently writing down a "famous last words" joke, depending on how much of a callous asshole they were.
What is shocking about this story is that the window gave way on his second attempt. Apparently Garry was unable to rest after having risked his life just one time. We can imagine how the scene went down:
Garry: "These windows are unbreakable, kids!"
[General laughter.]
Garry: "No really, check this out. Don't try this at home, kids."
[Garry hurls himself at the glass to shocked cries. The glass holds, and raucous applause erupts from the interns.]
Garry: "Hold your applause. I'm not satisfied with having proved the strength of this glass just once."
[Garry's face turns dark.]
Garry: "Let's see what you're really made of, glass."
[Garry gets a 30 foot running start and launches himself, Superman style, through the glass. This time, the window gives way and sends him plunging to his death.]
"Ha ha! Take that, glass! Oh wait. Shit!"
Perhaps the best (or worst, if you value human life) part about this story is that it wasn't actually the glass that broke - the window pane popped out, and is the reason he fell to his death.
So, in a way, Garry actually did prove his point, though we figure it won't be much consolation to his family. Still, wherever he is right now, he's probably fist-pumping and saying something along the lines of "in your face!"