The $10 Million Yellow Pages Typo

If you weren't alive in the 1980s, you might not be aware that finding phone numbers for businesses required paging through a massive book known as the Yellow Pages. Because they provided no other method to reach clients if they weren't listed or were placed improperly, those pages had a significant impact on the survival of a firm. That is what took place with the Banner Travel Company. They were expected to run an advertisement informing people that they provided exotic trips. The Yellow Pages misspelled "erotic vacations" in their listing.

The owner sued Pacific Bell, which publishes the Yellow Pages, for $10 million. She claimed to have lost a significant portion of her profitable business and to frequently receive harassing obscene phone calls. As a result of having to make restitution, Pacific Bell almost went out of business. Nothing is as challenging, chaotic, mayhem-filled, and occasionally filled with pure delight as a family trip with kids.

• Cost: $10 million