› added 7 years ago

117

TIL the “Q” in Q-tip stands for “quality”.

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P5NV TIL Hunter S. Thompson shaved his head bald so he could refer to the Republican candidate as his “long-haired opponent” in the 1970 Pitken County, CO sheriff’s election. His opponent had a crew cut.
BwRx TIL Eamon de Valera was imprisoned for leading the Easter Rising. While inside, he took the chaplain’s key and melted candles to make a copy and sent it to his friends. They made a real key and put it in a cake. Valera was able to walk out scot-free. He went on to serve as the President of Ireland.
4JWR TIL in 1974 USA created the M14 Anti Personnel mine nicknamed the Toe Popper because it was designed to only maim rather than kill as it mostly just destroyed a majority of one foot. It was small, cheap and easily deployed. USA still has 1.5 million in reserve for deployment in Korea.
pWB4 TIL in the 1960s. The CIA created several fake cover-up companies to purchase Titanium from the Soviet Union. Titanium being a crucial element in the production of SR-71 Blackbirds. Subsequently helping Lockheed Martin’s Secret Black Project called “Skunk Works”. The SR-71 served from 1964 to 1998.
PYNpw TIL I learned about the Trans-Atlantic Accent which was cultivated Hollywood in the 1920's-40's to blend prestigious American and British accents for broader appeal, which is why people sound so different in older tv, films and radio back then.