› added 12 years ago

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TIL that gunnery sergeant R. Lee Ermey was originally meant to be the technical supervisor for Full Metal Jacket. He pretended to be gunnery sergeant Hartman while interviewing extras and had the interviews filmed. When Stanley Kubrick saw the video he gave Ermey the part.

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awxpo TIL during the San Francisco plague of 1900-1904, the governor of California denied the existence of the place for two years for business reasons, to protect the reputations of San Francisco and to prevent the loss of revenue due to quarantine, allowing the disease to spread unchecked.
9W6M TIL that between 1947 & 1948 the ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax recorded prison and chain gang songs in Mississippi and Louisiana State Penitentiaries. They are incredible.
pYvy4 TIL the reason that farmers flood rice fields isn't to water the plants, as you might expect. It's done to keep away pests and weeds, and to protect against uneven rainfall.
XvvR TIL that in 2010 George Lucas said “I am dedicating the majority of my wealth to improving education. It is the key to the survival of the human race.“ Two years later, Lucas sold Lucasfilm Ltd. to Disney for 4.05 billion dollars and donated the proceeds to a charity that focuses on education.
0AVv TIL that Ming-Na Wen, who portrays The Cavalry on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., was also the voice of Mulan. And she’s 50 years old.