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TIL that the parachute was invented before the airplane

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via reddit.com

v1PeL TIL the Belgian national dish "les frites" was wrongly given the name "French Fries" by World War One American servicemen moving through Wallonia, a French-speaking region of Belgium, creating confusion with the invention’s nationality.
EGRx TIL Dreamworks’ Antz was made by former Disney employee who was told the story for Pixar’s A Bug’s Life years in advance. When he left Disney, he co-founded Dreamworks and used the story to make Antz, rushed production and released it a month before Pixar did. Pixar still grossed $70 million more.
W4G8 TIL Warner Bros. threatened movie theaters with blockage of future posters if they showed a parody movie of Harry Potter
1a0L8 TIL the Aussie word Esky (for cooler box or chilly bin) comes from the word Eskimo
ow0R TIL that according to Tolkien, Sam Gamgee is the “chief hero” of the Lord of the Rings. The quest to destroy the Ring only succeeds because of Sam, who repeatedly saves Frodo from disaster, and he is the only character strong enough to surrender the Ring voluntarily and easily.