› added 4 years ago

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TIL Ernest Gallo created Thunderbird Wine after seeing wine in the inner city sold next to koolaid. Salesman dropped empty bottles in skid row neighborhoods to promote brand awareness. It worked so well when Gallo greeted a bum with, "What's the word?', he shouted, "Thunderbird." Both laughed.

eQXL TIL in 2010 a UK man had chronic hiccups for 2 ½ years, and was told by doctors it was probably heartburn. A Japanese variety show picked up the story, and in the course of filming, discovered a brain tumor. The tumor was removed, his hiccups went away, and this possibly saved his life.
8aVN8 TIL a Grateful Dead concert from 43 years ago still remains the largest ticketed concert in the United States. September 3, 1977, Englishtown, New Jersey 107,019 people
O8Va TIL when the French king Jean II was prisoner of the English, he was allowed to return to France to raise money for his ransom, leaving his son as a replacement hostage. When his son escaped, he voluntarily returned to England, citing reasons of “good faith and honor”.
xKR1 TIL that in 2008, a woman’s 4 year old child was struck and killed by a drunk driver while they were crossing the street. Because she hadn’t been in a crosswalk, the Police charged the woman for 2nd degree vehicular homicide, and Jaywalking.
XEOyX TIL the kilogram is currently defined as the mass of a platinum-iridium cylinder called the International Prototype Kilogram, which was made in 1879 and is stored in a special vault in France. There exist several dozen official replicas, also called prototypes.