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TIL it is not known who wrote "Twas the Night Before Christmas (A Visit from St Nicholas)" with Clement Clarke Moore claiming authorship but many contending that Henry Livingstone Jr was the actual author. The poem is largely responsible for the modern conceptions of Santa Claus.

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ANY4d TIL in 1903 Japan operated "human zoos" of their colonies. These lasted until they mistakenly put a schoolteacher on exhibit who confused spectators by making eloquent speeches & fundraising for his school while wearing traditional dress, embarrassing the organizers
dxKZ TIL thirty Afghan interpreters and their 64 family members were granted a resettlement package in New Zealand amid fears they would be killed by the Taliban once Kiwi soldiers left Afghanistan. The Police Commissioner stated: “It’s now our turn to return the favour and be mates to you.”
4kOM6 TIL The Scarlet Pimpernel is the first character to have a secret identity, being first published in 1905. Everyone believes Sir Percy Blakeney is a wealthy fop, but in reality he is a daring adventurer who saving people from execution during the Terror of the French Revolution.
9YeP6 TIL Freddie and Truus Oversteegen are two sisters who spent their teenage years luring Nazis to their death by seducing them. They were finally honoured for their role in the resistance with the Mobilistatie-Oorlogskruis (War Mobilisation Cross) in 2014
N7RWe TIL: Emmitt Till’s murderers were acquitted in the face of overwhelming evidence and publicly admitted and detailed how they committed murder a year after their acquittal in an interview with Look magazine.