› added 1 year ago

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TIL that the 'franca' in "lingua franca" isn't a reference to French but instead to 'the Franks', or western Europeans. The term comes from from a pidgin language used in the eastern Mediterranean, comprised of words from Italian, Occitan, Greek, Turkish, Arabic, and Slavic

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5Yn6B TIL you'll be executed if you watch porn in North Korea.
1aB4P TIL of the Somerton Man Mystery, a case in which a man was found dead on an Australian beach, with a piece of paper that lead to a book with indentations of a ciphered text. Cause of death unknown, and despite international assistance, he was never identified.
yVL9X TIL former Disney head Jeffrey Katzenberg attempted to dissuade Robin Williams from playing Batty Koda in the film FernGully: The Last Rainforest, as Katzenberg only wanted Williams to voice the Genie in the movie Aladdin
16w5W TIL that Nike’s famous “Just Do It” slogan was inspired by murderer Gary Gilmore’s last words, moments before he was executed by a firing squad in 1977.
JMJv TIL that when ZZ Top reconvened after a 2-year hiatus in the late 70s, vocalist Billy Gibbons and bassist Dusty Hill had both grown their now-iconic chest-length beards – without each other’s knowledge. Meanwhile, drummer Frank Beard had shaved off all of his facial hair.