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TIL that the Bayanzi tribe of the Congo would execute via decapitation with a twist. While alive, the head of the condemned would be connected to a springy sapling so that when it was cut off, it would be thrown through the air “With the force of a bomb”.

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a8A1y TIL When you look into a Hadza mouth there's 20 back teeth while the rest of us tend to have 16 erupted and working. Hadza also typically have a tip-to-tip bite between the upper and lower front teeth, the edges of their lowers align to form a flawless arch. The size of Hadza teeth match perfectly.
6mr7 TIL that The Shawshank Redemption’s director and writer, Frank Darabont, was offered $2.5 million from Rob Reiner to let him write and direct it instead, and cast Tom Cruise as Andy and Harrison Ford as Red. Darabont refused, saying that this was his “chance to do something really great.”
Bene TIL Robert Moses, the extremely powerful New York City urban planner, hated the idea of poor people lowering the tone at the seaside, so he built low bridges over his parkways to ensure that only cars, not buses, could make the trip.
a8PB0 TIL Rob Lowe was uncredited in Tommy Boy (1995) despite having a major speaking role because at the time he was contractually obligated to a miniseries of The Stand. Instead of going through legal hoops to get out of it, he essentially agreed to be in the film as a favor to his friend, Chris Farley.
JjG4 TIL a British POW in WWI was released by the Germans so he could visit his dying mother, and then returned because of a promise he had made the Kaiser.