Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 14:49

TIL in the original 1977 Star Wars the Death Star countdown for destroying Yavin 4 (the big threat in the trench run scene) was not in the shooting script, but was created during an edit by Marcia Lucas to add more tension. It was achieved using voiceovers, re-purposed shots, and inserts. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 10:49

TIL in 2014, the daughter of the chairman of Korean Air flew into a rage when she was served macadamia nuts in a packet instead of a plate while on a Korean Air flight. She forced the flight attendant who served her the nuts to apologise on his knees, ejected him from the flight, and demoted him. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 06:49

TIL that the 1954 animated adaptation of George Orwell’s “Animal Farm” was funded in part by American intelligence agencies as an anti-communist hit piece [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 04:49

TIL that IRA internal security member Freddie Scappaticci, responsible for interigating and torturing suspects, was British intelligence' highest ranking mole to have infiltrated the Irish. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 02:49

TIL Many of Benny Blanco's early tracks are at 120 BPM, the default tempo in Pro Tools, and he didn't realize he could adjust it, so he ended up using that tempo for many of his initial projects. This included hits like Kesha's "Tik Tok," Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream," and Taio Cruz's "Dynamite” [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 00:49

TIL the first author to be named in all recorded history was a Mesopotamian poet, princess, and priestess called Enheduanna. She was born in 2285BCE and was the daughter of Sargon the Great. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 22:49

TIL there are an estimated 3 million plus undiscovered shipwrecks in the worlds oceans. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 17:50

TIL that after defending a priest who was accused of covering up child abuse, Pope Francis commissioned an investigation, realized he was wrong and changed course. He apologized to victims, and made the entire chilean leadership resign. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 15:49

TIL that a cat named Tommy called 911 to help its owner, Gary, who had fallen from his wheelchair and couldn't get up. Gary had tried to train Tommy to call 911, but never expected it to work. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 12:49

TIL the president of NBC at the time tried to persuade the creator of Family Ties to replace Michael J. Fox. He said "that’s not a face you’re going to see on a lunchbox". Fox later had a lunchbox made with his picture on it and sent it to the exec with a note, "this is for you to put your crow in". [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 10:49

TIL In 1857, Archduke Maximilian of Austria married Princess Charlotte of Belgium. Napoleon III later urged them to rule Mexico, where monarchists sought a crown. It ended badly—Maximilian died by firing squad and Charlotte suffered a mental breakdown. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 07:49

TIL a Sheffield man killed his neighbor using a bag of Pokémon cards after an argument. Suffering from psychosis worsened by cannabis, he bludgeoned, stamped, and beat the victim, later saying it was “an act of mercy.” He got life with 17 years minimum. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 06:49

TIL alcohol is the leading global risk factor for premature death and disability among people aged 15–49, causing more deaths than malaria, tuberculosis, and violence combined. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 05:49

TIL Jazz musician, Fats Waller, was kidnapped by 4 men and “given” to Al Capone as a birthday gift. He performed for 3 days and was found drunk with thousands of dollars in cash stuffed in his pockets. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 04:49

TIL Napoleon had planned an invasion of the UK but it was never carried out. Preparations were financed by the sale of the Louisiana territory to the US which the US financed with a loan from a British bank, so Britain was indirectly funding an invasion of itself. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 14:49

TIL “the average person consumes roughly 20 lbs of (onions) per year” [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 09:49

TIL in 2021, Lady Gaga's dogs were stolen in a violent robbery. Jennifer McBride got the dogs from the thieves and returned them, hoping for Gaga's $500,000 reward. A judge ruled she can't claim it, as handling stolen property is a crime. McBride's role in the crime barred her from profiting. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 05:49

TIL that Arthur MacArthur IV, the only child of Douglas MacArthur of WWII fame, has been living a private life since his father’s death in 1964, living under an assumed name and residing in the Mayflower Hotel until 2004. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 04:49

TIL 1 In 200 People On Earth Live In Tokyo ( 43 Million Tokyo Metro ÷ 8 Billion World Pop) [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

26 April 2025 00:49

TIL that the idea for the original Final Destination (2000) film came after its co-writer, Jeffrey Reddick, read a story about a mother of a passenger who had a premonition for her daughter's flight, convincing her to switch flights and avoid her initial plane, which ended up crashing. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 23:49

TIL about Empedocles, the 5th-century BC philosopher, who reportedly jumped into Mount Etna to prove his immortality. However, his plan failed when the volcano spat out one of his bronze sandals, revealing he had perished. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 18:49

TIL that in the early 20th century it was believed that submerging yourself for 30 hours inside a decomposing whale would releave rheumatism arthritis for up to a year. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 17:50

TIL Steven Spielberg offered Tom Sizemore a role in Saving Private Ryan (1998) under the condition that he would be given a drug test at the end of every day of filming, and if he failed even one time, all his scenes would be re-shot with someone else. He stayed clean and completed the movie. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 13:49

TIL a father (5 years) & son (4 years) were sentenced to prison after they cashed in 14,000 winning lottery tickets over a 10-year period, laundered more than $20m, & then failed to pay the IRS $6m. They bought the tickets at a discount from people who wanted to avoid being identified by the state. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 11:49

TIL that the British royal family owns a stamp collection worth over £100 million. In 1904, The Prince of Wales paid £1,450 for a rare stamp. A courtier asked the prince if he had seen "that some damned fool had paid as much as £1,400 for one stamp". "Yes," George replied. "I was that damned fool!" [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 08:49

TIL: Alexander Hamilton was six months younger than Elizabeth Schuyler when they married in 1780. Their marriage lasted 24 years—until he was killed in a duel by Aaron Burr. Elizabeth lived nearly 50 more years, fiercely protecting his legacy [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 06:49

TIL Western Union was involved in the recovery of bodies after the Titanic sank. The CS Minia, a cable laying ship owned by Western Union was one of 4 ships sent to recover the dead. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 05:49

TIL about Bishnu Shrestha, a Nepalese-Ghurka soldier who went up against 30+ train robbers after they tried SAing an 18yo near him. He refused money offered by her family, saying "Fighting the enemy in battle is my duty as a soldier. Taking on the thugs on the train was my duty as a human being". [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 04:49

TIL of Henry "Hang-On Hank" Dempsey, who accidentally ended outside of a plane and hung on until his co-pilot landed the plane. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

25 April 2025 02:49

TIL the Ancient Roman structure known as a 'vomitorium' was not designed to facilitate people's vomiting, as is commonly misunderstood; it was a type of doorway intended to accommodate crowds as they exited [Source]