› added 3 years ago

108

TIL Johnny Otis, a seminal influence on American R&B and rock and roll, lived his professional and personal life as a Black man despite the fact he was ethnically Greek. He wrote, "As a kid I decided that if our society dictated that one had to be black or white, I would be black."

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

R7da9 TIL that during the cold war, the Soviets fired a machine gun in space. It was a defensive weapon on a secret space-spy-lab and was fired remotely after all personnel departed. The results have not been released.
nWlb TIL that in 1860 when Julia Pastrana, a woman who was very hairy and had ape like facial features, died, her husband mummified her and their dead baby’s remains to further exploit them at “freak shows.” Julia’s corpse was buried just this year and the baby’s corpse was eaten by mice in 1976.
epeQ5 Til that the actor who played Mr Bean and Blackadder, Rowas Atkinson fist studied engineering
wLmMY TIL that Jeopardy announcer Johnny Gilbert is 95 years old and still going strong.
kJ0a1 TIL that Duluth, Minnesota is the world's farthest inland port accessible to oceangoing ships. It’s accessible to the Atlantic Ocean 2,300 miles (3,700 km) away via the Great Lakes Waterway and St. Lawrence Seaway.