› added 5 years ago

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TIL Charlie from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was originally written as "a little black boy." Roald Dahl's agent pushed changing the character to white as he thought a black Charlie would not appeal to readers.

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KOYAw TIL that in California, stripclubs are not allowed to serve alcohol if they display fully nude dancers.
4kaDJ TIL That the only 18" gun the US Navy developed, was used as ballast on a hospital ship (USS Repose), but never deployed on a battleship.
Meoa7 TIL Titanium was in such short supply, that when Lockheed built the A-12 and later SR-71, the CIA had to set up dummy companies to buy the raw materials from the Soviet Union.
D1pJY TIL that for Elton Johns wedding, Eminem gave him 2 diamond-encrusted cock rings on a velvet cushion.
loKdA TIL the crew of 'Return of the Jedi' mocked the character design of Admiral Ackbar, deeming it too ugly. Director Richard Marquand refused to alter it, saying, "I think it's good to tell kids that good people aren't necessarily good looking people and that bad people aren't necessarily ugly people."