› added 11 years ago

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TIL that the British play “The Madness of George III” had its name changed to “The Madness of King George” when it went to the US. Producers added “King” because they thought Americans wouldn’t know who George III was and dropped “III” assuming Americans would think it was the 3rd movie in a series.

NXbKJ TIL that it's possible to to be libel-proof on the basis that your documented behavior has been so awful you're legally foreclosed from suing anyone for what they write about you. In the U.S. it's informally named the Dykstra defense.
MeRjV TIL about the early history of American souvenir shops. Prior to specialized gift shops, visitors often removed random aritifacts as mementos leading to decay. In an effort to combat this activity, George Washington's MT Vernon estate began making items for sale from select trees on site.
OLYg TIL the American Humane Association withheld its “no animals were harmed…” disclaimer for “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” because the filmmakers accidentally killed several tropical fish while making the movie
R8Ra TIL in 1997, the pilot of an A-10 attack jet turned off his radio and transponder for no apparent reason and flew hundreds of miles off course during a training mission, later crashing into a mountainside in Colorado. No explanation for the pilot’s actions was ever found.
0wlPA TIL that March was the medieval term for the borderlands where territories overlapped. Just as Counts ruled counties, Marches gave rise to titles like Marquis.