› added 9 years ago

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TIL Pope Francis used to be a nightclub bouncer

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WkMZo TIL during the bombing of Koriyama, Japan in April 1945, a white phosphorus bomb prematurely ignited in a B-29 plane. Crewman Henry Erwin picked up the bomb and threw it out the window, saving the plane and crew while suffering severe burns as a result. He was given a Medal of Honor for this action.
obpo TIL: Hatra, the capital of the “first Arab Empire” known as the Kingdom of Araba (in modern day Iraq) was one of the most diverse cities in the ancient world. It had temples (pantheons) to five major religions: Greek, Mesopotamian, Caananite, Aramean, & Arabian.
nWlVr TIL that Steven Spielberg has been thanked in more Oscar speeches than God
yQLm8 TIL of Walraven van Hall, a Dutch banker who during WW2 set up a shadow bank to finance the Dutch resistance movement.
Wk8rL TIL that ELO's first album, which was titled 'The Electric Light Orchestra', was released in the USA under the name 'No Answer'; someone had called a United Artists Records executive to ask about the album name, and after failing to reach a contact, wrote 'no answer' in his notes