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TIL of Andras Toma, a Hungarian POW capturer near Krakow by Russians in 1945. None of the Russian doctors understood Hungarian, believing Andras to be speaking gibberish. It wasn't until 2000, when a Slovakian came around and understood he was speaking a real language. He was released after 55 years

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6MvJ TIL that during the filming of Taxi Driver, De Niro asked Cybill Shepherd out on a date. She turned him down, and he did not speak to her, except in character, for the rest of the filming. She later said that she regretted turning him down.
rNNOw TIL The original John Madden Football (1988) took 3 years to develop due to John Madden insisting that each team have 11 players while EA was entangled in a legal battle with Bethesda Softworks. The game was known internally as "Trip's Folly" in reference to Trip Hawkins, the founder and CEO of EA.
gr00b TIL Paschal Beverly Randolph, considered the first to introduce erotic alchemy to North America, promoted sex magic to improve health, love, women’s empowerment, and intelligent offspring. He referred God as both male and female and also believed bodies ran on electric currents, moved by magnetism.
9WKr TIL South Korea was one of the poorest countries in the world and a basket case economy in 1960, with a GDP Per capita of $79 (poorer than some African countries). 50 years later, the GDP per capita was over $20,000 and the country is a major world economy.
XEaX8 TIL Xinghai Square, Dalian, China covers a total area of 110 ha (270 acres), making it the largest city square in the world. China's tallest huabiao (19.97 meters high) was once located at the center of the square but it was demolished secretly in 2016 at midnight without explanation