› added 5 years ago

270

TIL Quentin Blake, probably best known for Roald Dahl illustrations, also illustrated books written by Dr. Seuss and William Steig

Read more quentinblake.com

via reddit.com

R7jJQ TIL Fran Drescher’s stalker changed how sitcoms were made. To stop him from sneaking into the studio audience of The Nanny, they began to cast the audience from extras. Good/loud laughers were picked in casting, making the show feel funnier to home audiences. This became an industry standard.
1a968 TIL in 1869, three days into his new presidency, President Grant revoked two pardons given by President Johnson. The two unpardoned men challenged it in federal court and lost.
XYQD TIL J.R.R. Tolkien taught himself Finnish at 18, just so he could read one book, the Kalevala–which he used as a basis for Middle Earth legendarium.
gMwRW TIL the President of the United States technically has the right to shut off the internet for all US citizens in case of a "national emergency" – also known as the presidential internet kill switch.
xpyw TIL the guy who optimized web traffic so that sites didn’t crash displaying The Phantom Menace trailer was the first guy killed in 9/11.