/f/todayilearned
TIL that Michael Cain only changed his name LEGALLY by deed poll in 2016 from his birth name of Maurice Joseph Micklewhite becasue he was tired of being stopped at passport control. Everyone knew him by his showbiz name but his legal documents had his bith name.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by ajfromuk t3_123igvw
TIL that Hawaii was a sovereign self-governing kingdom all the way up until 1893, totally unassociated with the U.S., until a coup d'état that year by 13 businessmen and 162 U.S. troops, with the openly stated goal of annexing the islands. (They succeeded.)
nvlchawaii.orgSubmitted by DramaGuy23 t3_1281rqj
TIL in 2016 a man ate a ghost pepper in an eating contest and drank 6 glasses of water to cool off. He vomited so much he tore a hole in his esophagus and was rushed to a hospital where doctors found his left lung collapsed. He spent 23 days in the hospital and was sent home with a gastric tube.
health.howstuffworks.comSubmitted by LurkmasterGeneral t3_xvh0op
TIL of Laura Secord who walked 20 miles through American lands to inform the British-Canadian military about an American attack during the War of 1812. The alerted British-Canadian forces were able to repel the attack and capture 500 American soldiers.
wikipedia.orgSubmitted by NotAGoodDayAhead t3_xzjpye
TIL the Roman Emperor was on good terms with Attila the Hun until his sister sent Attila her engagement ring and asked for help to escape betrothal to a senator. Attila took this as a marriage proposal and demanded half the western empire as dowry. When the Emperor refused, Attila invaded.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by shallowblue t3_y0ylxv
TIL in an effort to protect her son and daughter from falling under the sinister charms of Charles Manson, Angela Lansbury relocated her family from LA to Ireland. Describing Ireland as “free from bad influences”, she then refused work to better support their recovery from heroin addiction.
grunge.comSubmitted by Unlucky-Pomegranate3 t3_y252sa
TIL in the 2006 documentary "This Film is Not Yet Rated" the director hired detectives to uncover the identities of the MPAA ratings & appeal boards, revealing that the former received very little training for rating films, and the latter consisted of studio/theater execs - as well as two clergymen
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by CaptainJZH t3_y2nn0f
TIL General Hancock chose to sacrifice an entire regiment to save the Union Army during the Civil War. The 1st Minnesota Infantry Regiment, 250 men, was ordered to charge a brigade of roughly 1200 men. They suffered a staggering 82% casualties; the largest loss by any surviving U.S unit in a day.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by ChronosBlitz t3_y5q6ka
Submitted by amazem t3_y6gkl7
TIL that in the 1960s, the US roasted a 1440-acre swath of Wisconsin forest with ~10,000 curies of radiation for 6 months in order to determine how it affected the area. Most of the damage was confined to the area directly adjacent to the source, and the area is completely non-hazardous today.
orangebeanindiana.comSubmitted by BeeIsBack t3_yb10hh