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TIL The first native to greet the settlers at Plymouth colony not only spoke English, he boldly walked into their camp to say hello and ask if they had beer. His name was Samoset, and along with Squanto, he spent several years teaching the colonists to farm, hunt and survive in the New World.

yQkx8 TIL Chinese American Tyrus Wong was the lead artist for Disney's Bambi. His background paintings for Bambi were inspired by Song dynasty classical Chinese paintings. He was fired from Disney studio due to a strike and his full contribution to the film was largely unknown for several decades
9YwoG TIL John Barrowman, who is gay, auditioned to play Will on "Will & Grace" but was turned down for being "too straight". The role went instead to Eric McCormack, who actually is straight.
pYWLe TIL W. E. B. Du Bois attended the Friedrich Wilhelm University in Berlin, Germany, where he met many well-known social scientists, among them, Max Weber. He would later return to Harvard University (where he already earned his bachelor's in 1890) and earn his PhD in 1895.
D148P TIL that a single Wolverine crossed the ice of Lake Huron into Michigan, where it lived out its days as the only one in the entire state. A local science teacher followed and studied her closely for years until her death. Upon finding her dead he said, "I feel like I lost a member of my family."
KYonJ TIL the US Department of Agriculture published guidance on how to dispose of horses with explosives [PDF]