› added 5 years ago

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TIL during filming of the chestburster scene in Alien, Ridley Scott wasn't getting the reaction he wanted from the cast, so he privately told the SFX team to spray them with an enormous amount of blood during the next take, which caused some of the cast to become physically ill. They used that take.

kkYd TIL that a Nixon White House official who was jailed for directing the Watergate burglary team is now a scholar on ethics in government.
16X14 TIL that the reason why Tim Nordwind lipsyncs the lyrics in some of OK Go's earlier music videos instead of Damian Kulash (the actual singer) singing is a reference to a song on their debut album called "C-C-C-Cinnamon Lips (On Chica-go-go)" which Tim does the lead vocals on.
x6oOg TIL that Swiss Balloonist, Auguste Piccard, was the inspiration for both Professor Calculus, in the Tintin comics, and that Gene Roddenberry named Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek after him.
D15XJ TIL In 1948, a man pinned under a tractor used his pocketknife to scratch the words "In case I die in this mess I leave all to the wife. Cecil Geo Harris" onto the fender. He did die and the message was accepted in court. It has served as a precedent ever since for cases of holographic wills.
xVnjb TIL about Salps - a jellyfish relative. They asexually reproduce chains of clones who are all female, which then detach and breed sexually. After giving birth to a single asexual offspring they become male, while the offspring starts the cycle over.