› added 12 years ago

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TIL that there was a Polish King nicknamed “the Strong” because he could break horseshoes with his bare hands and loved fox tossing, a sport where you throw foxes with a sling, one event had 1235 foxes, hares, badgers, and wildcats. He had several mistresses and fathered as many as 382 children.

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0LOM TIL that in 1589 John Stubbs was sentenced by Queen Elizabeth to have his hand severed for seditious writing, and before the axe fell, he cried out, “My calamity is at hand!” - thus becoming the only known victim of Elizabeth to incorporate a pun at his dismemberment. He then fainted.
YpmKZ TIL A boy dying of an incurable illness wanted to meet Luke Skywalker (in character). His mental state devolved to the point where he did not realise Luke was fictional. Mark Hamill agreed to dress up in character and meet the boy. He spent hours answering questions.
0wPRy TIL Queen Elizabeth has been married to her 3rd cousin for over 70 years.
KPEQ TIL that James Gandolfini was supposed to play the attorney role of James Stone in the HBO mini series, The Night Of, before he passed away. There is even footage somewhere of the scene he shot with the closing arguments against Naz, the alleged murderer of the site.
MeY9A TIL in WWII, weather reports were censored to prevent enemy submarines from learning about conditions. A football game in Chicago was so covered in fog that the radio announcer couldn't see the field, but afterwards he was officially thanked for never using the word "fog" or mentioning the weather.