› added 1 year ago

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TIL that William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke, served five English kings, was once held hostage as a child, and later became regent for a young King Henry III. He was also a legendary knight who won over 500 tournaments and joined the Knights Templar on his deathbed.

6EYwZ TIL that Alan Smithee was an official pseudonym used by film directors who wished to disown a film. In order to use the pseudonym, directors were required to prove that they were not able to exercise creative control over the project.
AGVa TIL the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade originally featured live animals from the Central Park Zoo, but they occasionally roared and scared children, so they were replaced with balloons.
awWAy TIL Canadian researchers developed an implant which restores the movement of patients with advanced Parkinson's disease who have trouble walking, freezing on the spot and falling. By electrical stimulation to the spine via the implant, the signal reawakens the feedback from legs to brain.
0ZA5 TIL after Fidel Castro’s health was reported to be “almost recovered”, President Bush said, “One day the Lord will take Castro away.” In response, Castro: “Now I understand why I survived Bush’s plans and the plans of other presidents who ordered my assassination: the Lord protected me.”
J1rmV TIL about Richard Henry Boyd, a successful business owner who also developed beautiful black dolls in 1908, made to be dolls for black girls to play with without being caricatures