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33 Random Bits of Trivia We Smuggled Into a Listicle in the Dead of Night

Every fact is on a ‘need-to-know’ basis

33 Random Bits of Trivia We Smuggled Into a Listicle in the Dead of Night

June 16, 2024

Don’t tell the higher-ups, but there were only supposed to be 25 facts on this list. But in good conscience, we couldn’t disappoint you like that. To beef things up a bit, we threw in some more of our own facts while they weren’t looking. Just get them up in your brain and keep movin’. Thanking us in the comments will only help tip them off.

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33

GRACKED.COM VI A lot of the Scots-language Wikipedia is written in English with a Scottish accent. A teen from North Carolina has been a major contributor to the Scots Wikipedia for years - even though he doesn't speak the language. Of course, Scots speakers realized something weird was going on- but no one listened to them. A Reddit post blew the whole thing open in 2020. — Source

32

CRACKED.COM Jordan Peele quit acting because of The Emoji Movie. Being offered the role of the Poop Emoji gave Peele serious pause-and it got worse when Sir Patrick Stewart snatched the shitty part before Peele could make any decision. His reaction was, F*ck this, and has stuck to working mostly behind the cameras since. — Source

31

Ramen was controlled by the Yakuza. Japan was a mess when World War II ended. In the face of food shortages and restrictions, the black market rushed in to feed the populace. Imported wheat was secretly diverted and turned into ramen, which was then sold out of illegal stalls- most of which were under Yakuza control. CRACKED.COM — Source

30

Cobra commander was a used cars salesman. The identity of G.I. Joe's arch nemesis was always a mystery... except that it wasn't. The original comics reveal his past as a used cars salesman who got the money to start Cobra through pyramid schemes. THINGS ARE GOING ID as BETTER JUST BIG BURINESS AND YOU HAIT AND FEE - GOVERNMENT WANT TO STAMP OUT THE LITTLE GUYS LIKE ME! BUT I'LL SHOW THEM I'LL SHOW THEM ALL! CRACKED.COM — Source

29

The DEA enabled Joe Mccarthy's drug habit. McCarthy was addicted to patriotism - and morphine. This was discovered by the head of the National Bureau of Narcotics (DEA's predecessor), who decided to cover for him and secretly supply him with the drug himself, so that no scandal would hamper his commie- fighting efforts. CRACKED.COM — Source

28

CRACKED.COM The X-Files kept dumping on Gillian Anderson. Fox apparently saw Scully as Mulder's sidekick rather than his partner. For the first few seasons, Anderson was paid less money than David Duchovny, and also made to always walk behind him, never side by side. They tried to underpay her even for the show's revival in 2016. — Source

27

A bunch of vietnam mines were set off by the sun. A solar flare in 1972 had unusual effects all over the Earth-satellites malfunctioned, power grids went nuts, auroras appeared bright enough to cast shadows... and a couple dozens of mines laid on a bay in Vietnam went off. This sun-triggered detonation wasn't declassified until 1990. CRACKED.COM — Source

26

CRACKED.COM James Galdolfini threatened to kick Harvey weinstein's ass once. And it wasn't for the obvious reasons. Weinstein kept pestering the publicity-averse Gandolfini to appear on David Letterman's show to promote a movie-and he was such a douchebag about it that Gandolfini went, Не f**king calls me again, I will beat the f**k out of him! Sadly, he never went through with it. — Source

25

conspiracies about crisis actors are an old thing. Long before Alex Jones started spouting his bullcrap about Sandy Hook, these conspiracy theories were used to fight integration. Right after the Civil War, black victims were accused of faking the racist abuse they got- and talk of paid protesters was common during the civil rights movement. CRACKED.COM — Source

24

CRACKED.COM Old-timey science fiction imagined space floozies. Back in the '50s, writer and astronomer Robert S. Richardson proposed that women should go into space... so that the astronauts could get laid. Some writers took this and worked it into their science fiction. The idea that women could be astronauts themselves, not just living sex dolls, didn't seem to occur to anyone. — Source

23

CRACKED.COM The pandemic is making the weather forecast less reliable. Atmospheric data picked up by airplanes during their normal operation is later used, along with satellite data, for the forecast you get on your phone. Grounding planes because of COVID-19 has caused this info to take a big drop worldwide. — Source

22

Geronimo was used as a tourist attraction. After the Apache leader surrendered in 1886, people would come to his prison and pay to take a look at the wild indian who had given the U.S. Army so much trouble. Instead of being eventually freed, as was the deal, he spent the rest of his life having to perform at fairs and shows. CRACKED.COM — Source

21

An old-timey movie featured the real death of a stuntman. Daredevil Ormer Locklear crashed while performing aerial stunts for the 1920 movie The Skywayman. In a move that makes today's tabloids seem respectful, the film didn't just include Locklear's death, but used it as a selling point. CRACKED.COM — Source

20

CRACKED.COM Macy's refused to let Elf say that their santa wasn't real. The department store was happy to let the filmmakers shoot at their premises-but they drew the line at the movie saying that their Santa Claus was just a guy in a costume. That scene had to be shot somewhere else, and the film couldn't use the name Macy's. — Source

19

ventriloquism used to be considered a supernatural thing. It wasn't just because dummies look like they could come alive and murder you. Long before ventriloquism was entertainment, it was widely believed that the belly talkers were channeling the words of gods, spirits, or demons. This belief didn't die out until the 18th century. CRACKED.COM — Source

18

33 Random Bits of Trivia We Smuggled Into a Listicle in the Dead of Night — Source

17

CRACKED.COM NO, Lorena Bobbitt wasn't some knife- happy crazy woman. Bobbitt became a punchline in the '90s as someone who randomly chopped off her husband's dick. No one bothered to point out at the time that he had horribly abused her for years, a fact acknowledged by both the prosecution and the defense. Не keeps sending her love letters-but sure, let's call her crazy. — Source

16

Led zeppelin kept stealing from black artists. Led Zeppelin loved blues so much that they repeatedly swiped songs by black II blues artists, and just shrugged when they got hit by lawsuits. Willie Dixon won two separate suits against them over different songs-both of them in the same album. CRACKED.COM — Source

15

Transformers could have been Muffy the volkswagen. When Hasbro approached Marvel about creating a story for their new toyline, one of Marvel's pitches was about Muffy (short for Muffler), a transforming VW who hanged out with three kids and their dog. Luckily, Hasbro went with the (slightly) less silly proposal about alien robots. CRACKED.COM — Source

14

coca-cola's Tab clear was made crappy on purpose. The colorless, caffeine-free NEW FROM Coca-Cola Crystal Pepsi was selling well in the early '90s-and Соса- TaB TRADE - Cola wanted to stop that. So they launched Tab Clear, a product that was similar but much worse, so that its bad - reputation would tarnish the CLEAR very idea of a clear cola and sink Crystal Pepsi. And guess what-it worked. lathorized by The Coca-Cola Company CRACKED.COM — Source

13

CRACKED.COM Fake dating profiles were already a thing in the 1880s. A gazette in the U.K. promised high-class matches to men and women (mostly men). For a fee, you could contact one of the wealthy ladies who placed ads-who then suddenly stopped being available. This early catfishing scam went on for a solid decade. — Source

12

Warner Bros. wanted a Batman musical. In the late '90s, Warner Bros. approached songwriter Jim Steinman to create, of all things, an official Batman musical for Broadway. It was never produced, but some of the songs (sung by Batman, Joker, and Catwoman) can be heard on YouTube, while another song ended up in a Meat Loaf album. CRACKED.COM — Source

11

Neckties were originally worn by Croatian mercenaries. During the Thirty Years' War, in the 1600s, France hired Croatian mercenaries who wore cravats as a kind of neck armor. After the war, French noblemen took a fancy to these scarves, which were then further adopted by the English, and progressively evolved into the strangling symbol of office drudgery. CRACKED.COM — Source

10

CRACKED.COM Amelio Robles Ávila was a transgender badass. Despite what some would have you believe, trans people have always existed-and even kicked ass in the battlefield. Robles Ávila rose to the rank of colonel during the Mexican Revolution. Не was a respected, courageous commander- and would shoot anyone who tried to expose him. — Source

9

Mindfulness can cause depression. Mindfulness is the latest fad touted as an easy fix for your mental health, but researchers say that, while it can be helpful, it has been overhyped. Data compiled from dozens of studies show mindfulness can occasionally worsen anxiety and depression- or even outright cause these conditions. CRACKED.COM — Source

8

The 1918 flu pandemic caused a lemon boom. During the Spanish flu, lemons became the most popular home remedy for the illness that was ravaging the world. It started with an official-looking health campaign by lemon growers - and soon enough, lemons were being touted as a miracle cure, with prices skyrocketing. CRACKED.COM — Source

7

Paul Verhoeven thought RoboCop would make a stupid movie. Verhoeven called the script stupid garbage and American nonsense after reading just a few pages. His wife Martine, though, convinced him to give the story a shot-so Verhoeven read the script more carefully, and saw a layer of philosophy or theology under the gory sci-fi action. GRACKED COM — Source

6

Solar panels are less eco-friendly than you think. Photovoltaic cells get cheaper every day - but they have a limited lifespan. As recycling isn't widespread, lots of panels wind up in landfills, with all the potentially toxic stuff they contain. Even clean energy can't help being dirty. CRACKED.COM — Source

5

Chuck Jones hated Space Jam. As a huge part of Looney Tune's success, Jones knew Bugs Bunny better than anyone else- and according to him, Bugs wouldn't need help from Michael Jordan (or anyone) to deal with any basketball aliens. (Also, Porky would never say, I think I wet myself.) CRACKED.COM — Source

4

The Bee Gees' Stayin' Alive is about what a dump NYC was. The Gibb brothers have explained that the group's most emblematic song is not about disco dancing at all, but about how hard it was to survive in 1977 New York City. They didn't even know the plot of Saturday Night Fever when they wrote the song. CRACKED.COM — Source

3

Mickey Rourke spent some time in a Russian prison for Iron Man 2. Without telling anyone, Rourke took a plane to бло Moscow and paid a prison an extended visit, the better to play ex-con Ivan Vanko. Не also put a ОСВО РОДАТ me lot of effort into learning the language. In the end, Marvel Studios cut most of his performance, which Rourke was furious about. CRACKED.COM — Source

2

Whipping Tom was London's serial spanker. 200 years before Jack the Ripper, London's Fleet Street was stalked by Whipping Tom-not a serial killer, but a serial spanker. Tom would lift women's dresses and spank them on the buttocks, yelling Spanko! Another, more violent Whipping Tom started assaulting women years later. CRACKED.COM — Source

1

Nintendo ran a M price-fixing cartel for years. In the '90s, getting a Nintendo game in Spain cost you three times as much as it did in Britain or Germany. The European Commission fined the company 149 million euro in 2002 for rigging the market. In 1991, they had been found guilty of the same racket in the U.S. CRACKED.COM — Source

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