40 Random Bits of Pop-Culture Trivia That Were Standing Right Behind You When You Were Talking About Them

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36 Random Bits of Trivia the Coinstar Machine Didn’t Know What to Do With

Facts in, facts out — because you’re sharing them, not because you're forgetting them

36 Random Bits of Trivia the Coinstar Machine Didn’t Know What to Do With

October 17, 2024

We recently had a friend excitedly share a fun fact with us. It was nice, but we quickly realized that he learned it from us moments earlier. Which got us thinking: How fast is the turnaround time of the average fact share?

With no hard data to study, you’ll have to be our first test subject. If you have time, please read these, start a timer, then stop it the moment you’ve shared them. Thank you in advance!

36

A German politician had been married to a Stasi informant that was spying on her. CRACKED COM Vera Lengsfeld divorced her second husband in 1992 after finding out that, for most of their marriage, the mathema- tician and poet Knud Wollen- berger had been an infor- mant since 1972.

35

In the '60s, McDonald's was going to abandon their famous arches but... McDonald's Restaurant McDonald's McDonald's DER KURLE WITH THE a design consultant told them to keep them as Freudian symbol of a pair of nourishing breasts. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

34

Citibank played a huge role in destabilizing Haiti. VIDEO DER GBR citibank aticanx EADS - Citibank ENER MOTT STREET to BEY 2 PENSKE ENTER GRACKED COM Citibank took over the na- tional bank of Haiti in 1910, which also served as Haiti's treasury. Citibank paid rebels to destabilize the county and pressued the US to occupy Haiti in 1915. — Source

33

The Dark Knight

The infamous Batman growl in The Dark Knight was not Christian Bale's fault. CRACKED.COM The real voice during film- ing was more toned down and then heightened to a rougher, grittier vibe during post-production un- der the decision of director Christopher Nolan. — Source

32

Beer Hops naturally produce an acid that can kill off a parasitic mite known to annihilate entire colonies of bees. CRACKED.COM Hops have shown such promise in helping Colony Collapse Disor- der, that the EPA has even approved their use as a biochemical miticide. — Source

31

Harry Potter 7 filmed in a German town Rothenburg ob der Tauber retains the look of a fairy tale because many of its buildings date back to medieval times. In 1945, the Nazis agreed to surrender it to ensure the town wouldn't be attacked, because they valued its beauty that much. CRACKED.COM — Source

30

Nutella

MYTH Nutella is as healthy for x you as peanut butter. FACT Nutella is actually less healthy than chocolate frosting. Nutella pushed the healthy myth so far that they were actually ordered to pay out a class action lawsuit for deceptive advertising. nutella FERRERO ge der - CRACKED — Source

29

Marcel’s Monstrous Modernist Masterpiece

CRACKED - en PROUST mill - um - PROUST OUST PROUST Asf Auf ALT Auf Auf Aut M der Suche der Such der Suche Soche der Suche - nach der nach der : IS der nack des verlaneces foreven verlorenen verbaccoen Zeis Ze Zeit Zn' . 2 MY antes verinteses Zeit GEI veriorenes Zeit form HO Die Entflohene Axi des Suche Back and sestorazes Lest Auf des Serha aach des Auf des Suche mach der vestorenen Zeit AUF des Suche nach der verlorenes Zeit Die wiedergefundene Zeit Aut Die Gefangene Sodom und Gomorra KY MARCEL PROUST MARCEL PROUST MARCEL PROUST MARCEL — Source

28

Officer injured during fight at Mesa doughnut shop.

A police officer was injured after trying to stop a fight at a donut shop. CRACKED.COM Police received a call about a person trying to fight customers inside a Dunkin' Donuts, and one officer injured his shoul- der trying to subdue the pastry perturber. — AZ Family / Wikipedia

27

A lost city with more buildings than Manhattan was discovered in Mexico.

In 2012, a lost ancient city in Mexico named Angamuco was uncovered. CRACKED.COM It was built by a civilization that was rival to the Aztecs and it remained buried un- der vegetation for centu- ries, with more buildings than Manhattan in a small- er area of land. — AU News

26

There is no such thing as pear cider. CRACKED.COM Perry is the alcoholic drink made from pears, which was popular in England un- til the 20th century and then revived as pear ci- der. Cider, however, is ex- clusively made from fer- mented apples. — NPR

25

PepsiCo Made a Hyper-Caffeinated Drink Called Pepsi A.M.

In 1989, PepsiCo offered a breakfast beverage called Pepsi A.M. PEPSI DIE WELK DER PEPSI RIXIUS Areco - - Tel 1523 CRACKED.COM The caffeine content was 25% more than a cup of coffee. Turns out, Pepsi drinkers didn't want to mix soda with breakfast. — Mental Floss

24

Snails can hibernate for three years when the weather isn’t cooperating.

A snail can sleep for three years during hibernation or estivation (summer sleep). CRACKED.COM They do this when weather conditions are poor and it's better to just nap through it un- der a blanket of secret- ed mucus. — AZPetVet

23

STARCRAFT During development Blizzard had trouble keeping the harvesting units from bunching up together like L.A. traffic because of their pathfinding. 0 of 100 Oas 22/26 counter Decivated Terran Refinery NU Veapene der 4992 700/750 Their good enough fix was to make harvesters the only units in the game that can walk through other units. CRACKED COM — Source: 29 Video Game Features With Just Bonkers Backstories

22

Germany's title for Forgetting Sarah Marshall is pretty direct. NIE WIEDER SEX MIT DER EX ABSERVIERT... NA WND? It's Nie wieder Sex mit der Ex, or No — Source: IMDB, Google Translate

21

The severed head of a sea slug can grow a whole new body. Ecologists at Nara Wom- en's University in Japan found that, a few hours af- ter having their heads sev- ered from their bodies, the slugs' heads were already eating algae. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

20

Ohio DUI offenders have. to use yellow license plates. Since 1967, Ohio has is- sued special scarlet let- ter plates for repeat DUI offenders, and whenever a driver's blood-alcohol level is twice the legal limit. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

19

2 million people in Russia were killed in a volcanic winter in 1600. CRACKED.COM An eruption in Peru from Huaynaputina created a worldwide volcanic win- ter, causing Russia's worst famine, killing 30% of the population be- tween 1601 and 1603. — Source

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18

People need the equivalent of 8 glasses of water a day, but that's only half the story. CRACKED.COM When the 1945 Food and Nutrition Board said hu- man's need 2.5 liters of wa- ter a day, they went on to clarify that we get most of the fluid we need from food and other beverages. — Source

17

One of the first advocates for human rights was a 16th-century Spanish priest. GRAGKED.COM Bartolomé de las Casas, af- ter witnessing the atroci- ties of the Spanish against the indigenous peoples, came to oppose their abuses. Не would go on to spend 50 years actively fighting slavery. — Source

16

Leighton Meester

Leighton Meester CRACKED.COM Oh, yeah? says Leighton Meester, in our minds, because she was actually born in jail af- ter her parents were convicted of smuggling over 1,200 lbs. of weed from Jamaica. She said her family history made her very nonjudgmental and open-minded, a trait she had to suppress on Gossip Girl. — Fox News

15

Reported toad in distress in airport parking lot was monitor lizard.

A distressed toad in an airport parking lot turned out to be a monitor lizard. GRACKED.COM Rescuers were dispatched on a report of a toad wan- dering loose in the Guern- sey Airport's parking lot, but they arrived to find a very different animal, most likely a loose pet wa- ter dragon. — UPI

14

Cats

Cats don't like to drink water if food is nearby. CRACKED.COM Moving your cat's wa- ter away from its food will help prevent kid- ney disease, which is a very common condi- tion in older cats. — Chestnut Vets

13

Special Lego figurines made of metal are in a space probe.

Specially made, aluminum Lego figures are inside NASA's Juno probe. CRACKED.COM The 3 Lego mini fig- ures represent Galileo, the Roman god Jupi- ter, and his sister and wife, the goddess Juno, specially made by the Lego Company. — Space

12

France bans use of 'steak,' 'sausage' to describe vegetarian products.

Words like steak and sausage are no longer allowed to describe vegetarian products in France. GRAGKED.COM Some terms, such as but- ter, milk, and cheese are already protected on the Eu- ropean level and cannot be applied to plant-based prod- ucts. Words like burger are, however, allowed to be used on meat alternatives. — DW

11

Motorcyclist clocked at 144 mph said he was going fast 'because it was hot.'

A motorcyclist claims he was going 144mph because it was hot. RST LXR CRACKED.COM The 22-year-old motorcyclist is facing multiple charges af- ter being clocked going near- ly 150 mph. The motorist said he was driving that fast to cool down on the sweltering hot day. — MPR News

10

Steve Irwin named his daughter after two animals he liked.

Steve Irwin's daughter is named after a crocodile and a dog he really liked. GRACKED.COM Bindi Sue is jointly named after two of Steve's favorite ani- mals: Bindi, a saltwater crocodile, and Sui, a Staffordshire Bull Ter- rier. — Tulsa World

9

1994 U.S. Air Force Friendly-Fire Incident

2 USAF F-15s shot down 2 US Army Black Hawk helicopters in 1994. FF 026 GRAGKED.COM The friendly-fire incident, which killed all 26 helicop- ter passengers, is attribut- ed to a chain of errors, from the general heading up the Operation Provide Comfort Task Force all the way down. — National Interest

8

P.T. Barnum was a P(retty) T(errible) person.

P.T. Barnum got his start by buying an enslaved 70-year-old woman. Не claimed the woman, Joice Heth, was 161 years old and had been George Washington's nanny. Af- ter her death, he charged the public 50 cents to view her autopsy. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Lost Museum

7

Bavarian Beer Riots

A tax on beer decreed by King Ludwig I of Bavaria in 1844 led to the beer riots. CRACKED.COM Crowds of urban workers beat up police while the Ва- varian army showed reluc- tance to get involved. Civil order was restored only af- ter the King decreed a ten percent reduction in the price of beer. — Good Beer Hunting

6

Fulgurites are “fossilized lightning.”

Fossilized lightning happens when lightning discharges into the ground and creates glass. CRACKED.COM Glass tubes called ful- gurites form in sedi- ment, such as sand, af- ter the intense heat from a lightning strike fuses the grains to- gether. — Museum of Natural History

5

The Office in Saudi Arabia

The Office Is Being Remade in Saudi Arabia. CRACKED.COM The series will star Saleh Abuamrh as Malik Al-Tumai- fi, the David Brent/Michael Scott character at the cen- ter of the show, with the comedy shifting from a ра- per merchant to a courier services company. — Hollywood Reporter

4

A killer died hiding the body of the person he killed.

A man died of a heart attack as he dug a grave to bury the woman he killed. GRAGKED.COM The 60-year-old man strangled the woman, who he lived with, and dropped dead on his lawn af- ter placing her in a freshly dug pit. — Tri-City Herald

3

Oscars during WWII were made of painted plaster.

Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of plaster. CRACKED.COM Following the war, the Academy invited recipi- ents to redeem the plas- ter figures for the real thing, made from solid bronze and plated in 24-karat gold. — Oscars

2

Nivea made another racist ad. THE IMPORTANT DI - KOREA C NIVEA name mp KIDS STORY WT ... - - - - NIVEA - - - - - - - I - I I أ - - - - - - I - - - and CHANGE with - - - - - - - D+ - the ....... delivery - un - you and I - me PAR - - ZUZ - - und HACK NET - - 24 - - - ter - MIDE - RE-CIVILIZE YOURSELF RIVEA - NIVEA KOREA CRACKED.COM The 2011 magazine ad states that — Source: 13 Brands That Addressed Sensitive Issues In Cringeworthy Ways

1

Airborne Viagara

Ter 100 OO A VIAGRA FACTORY IS LR100 CAUSING AIRBORNE HARD-ONS. VGR 10 zazija ٨ولا 001 fizer VGR zer 100 1100 Most of the world's Viagra supply is manufactured in Pfizer's factory at Ringaskiddy, Ireland. Neighbors claim that fumes from the plant are causing them to stand at attention at all times. Pfizer laughs off the claims, calling them an amusing myth. Still, locals stand outside the factory to inhale deeply. CRACKED.COM — Source: 18 Amazingly Interesting Facts To Stick In Your Brain

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