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TIL that when it became apparent that Israel was going to win the 1978 Eurovision Song Contest, most of the Arabic countries ended their transmission of the contest. This includes Jordan, who replaced the live broadcast with a picture of daffodils and later announced that Belgium had won.

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0wYNR TIL that the astronautical term “Black Holes” are coined from a completely irrelevant event in 1756, which entails the death of POWs from suffocation and heat exhaustion from being overpacked into a dungeon overnight.
9wLwX TIL in 1973 a British couple survived 117 days lost at sea on an inflatable raft after their boat sank when it was struck by a whale. They survived by "almost continually" bailing water out of their raft, while collecting rainwater & killing turtles, birds and fish with their bare hands for food.
1axWP TIL that director William Friedkin first approached Audrey Hepburn for the role of Chris MacNeil in "The Exorcist" but she was only willing to take the role if it was shot in Rome, as she had recently moved to Italy. Also considered, ahead of Ellen Burstyn, were Anne Bancroft and Jane Fonda.
KO6K9 TIL Sharon Osbourne introduced Black Sabbath to Ronnie James Dio, the man who would go on to replace her husband Ozzy in the band.
9wxjm TIL: Prior to 2005, Catholic cardinals participating in papal conclaves were housed in the Apostolic Palace, sleeping on cots in makeshift bedrooms in hallways or offices. Pope John II changed the rules for future conclaves, allowing participants to room in a nearby guest house.