› added 1 year ago

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TIL that the famous “I’ll have what she’s having” line from the film "When Harry Met Sally” wasn't in the original script. Billy Crystal suggested it after he and Meg Ryan improvised the entire orgasm scene. The two were originally supposed to discuss "faking it" without an actual demonstration.

BgOGe TIL General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck led 14,000 troops (3,000 Germans and 11,000 Africans) in WWI, holding off 300,000 Allied forces in East Africa for four years using guerilla warfare. He was never defeated or captured, making him the only German commander to successfully invade British territory.
Ej57 TIL that 2 people in Greenland died of botulism after eating poorly prepared Kiviak, a delicacy in which a seal is stuffed full of birds then left to ferment. The family of the first victim - not knowing that the meal caused his death - served it at his funeral, leading to the death of his daughter.
1LP TIL that as recently as 2000 years ago Madagascar was home to gorilla-sized lemurs … humans encountered them and they quickly died out [middle of first paragraph]
8b9K TIL that the Nazis forged British pounds at a total value of £134,610,810. The notes are considered to be among the most perfect counterfeits ever produced, being almost impossible to distinguish from the real currency.
Eg5Zw TIL that in 2004, 1/3 of the men in the Pitcairn Islands were accused of assault. Their defense rested on the fact that British sovereignty of the islands was illegitimate, as the colonists were descended from Royal Navy mutineers. A new Court had to be created specifically to have jurisdiction.