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TIL that the seemingly altruistic “Keep America Beautiful” anti-littering campaign was actually started so companies like Coca Cola and Dixie could produce MORE waste, to prevent bans on single-use containers, and make Americans feel like trash was the burden of individuals, not corporations.

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via reddit.com

Oo4l6 TIL Matthew Wood, the sound director for the Star Wars sequel trilogy, decided to stop using the iconic Wilhelm Scream, made famous in the original trilogy, and introduced a different iconic scream that has been used in films but kept a secret.
jaBE TIL that in 356 BC, Herostratus burned down the Temple of Artemis so that he could become famous. A law was passed forbidding anyone to mention his name.
lo7jN TIL Shavarsh Karapetyan, a retired Professional Swimmer, saved 20 people that got trapped in frigid, sewage infested waters. His career as a professional swimmer ended after this heroic act due to 2 sided pneumonia and blood contamination that put him in a coma. Now he sells shoes for a living.
VOkp TIL it was a Somali president, Aden Abdullah Osman Daar, who was the first leader in Africa to peacefully hand over power to a democratically elected successor. He lived another 40 years after the handover to 2 days short of 100 years-old
OojAg Today I learned that the family name of Monty Python veteran, John Cleese, was actually Cheese, which his father felt was embarrassing, and changed it to Cleese when he enlisted during WWI. He later made it official by a deed poll in 1923.