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TIL The ghost town of Picher, Oklahoma was evacuated in 2009. The town was the center of a massive lead and zinc mining complex; the Army Corps of Engineers declared in 2006 that 86% of the town's structures were so undermined that they were in imminent danger of collapse.

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xxoD TIL of Tim Jenison. A dude from TX who may have rediscovered a lost, elegant technique that might explain how the 17th century painter, Vermeer, was able to paint with incredible realism.
nv8b TIL The majority of creepy metallic noises in sci-fi or horror movies are made by an instrument called a Waterphone. - [1:00]
kJAY7 TIL cigarettes were invented by Spanish beggars in Seville in the 16th century, who gathered cigar stubs and rolled the leftover tobacco in paper (papeletes) into cigarettes (cigarrillos). Cigarettes acquired respectability by the late 18th century and their use spread by Portugese traders
O0RX TIL when Stanley Kubrick took over the production of Spartacus cinematographer Russell Metty complained to producers that Kubrick was taking over his job. Kubrick’s response was to tell him to sit there and do nothing. Metty complied, and was awarded the Academy Award for his cinematography.
awZWN TIL that during a 26-year affair with Katherine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy did not divorce his wife. Publicists kept the affair secret outside of Hollywood. Even after he died in Hepburn's presence, they said Tracy had been alone. Out of respect for his family, Hepburn did not attend his funeral.