History
Discover facts about history. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
History
Composers often heavily reused their own musical themes
Even musical geniuses had lazy days. Great composers like Handel and Bach frequently engaged in aggressive self-plagiarism. If they had a tight deadline, they…
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The world’s oldest operating university is over 1,000 years old
Long before Ivy League institutions were gatekeeping education, the University of al-Qarawiyyin in Morocco was churning out scholars. Founded in 859, it has…
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First modern athletic champion was a triple jumper
When the modern Olympic games kicked off in 1896, the very first person to win an event was an American named James Connolly. He dropped out of college just…
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The composer who plunged opera houses into darkness
Before Richard Wagner came along, attending an opera meant keeping the house lights entirely on so wealthy patrons could gossip and show off their outfits.…
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Many early silent films are entirely lost to history
Because early film stock was highly unstable and studios literally didn't care about preserving their history, an estimated seventy-five percent of all silent…
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Why October is named for the number eight
If you've ever wondered why 'October' means eight, 'November' means nine, and 'December' means ten despite being the 10th, 11th, and 12th months, blame the…
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Actors performed dangerous physical feats without protection
During the silent film era, physical comedy wasn't faked. Performers like Buster Keaton would literally drop massive building facades on themselves, fall off…
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Academic grading systems were heavily debated for decades
The alphabet grading system (A, B, C, D, F) wasn't handed down by the universe; it was a highly contested, completely arbitrary invention. Early educators…
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Marathons once ended at wildly different distances
The highly specific modern marathon distance of 26.2 miles was a completely arbitrary historical accident. Before it was standardized in 1921, the race…
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M&M's copied the candy that inspired them
Observing soldiers eating a rival brand of candy-coated chocolate spheres that bypassed melting, the visionary simply copied the exact concept, aggressively…
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A Nirvana hit was inspired by deodorant
The gritty, defining anthem of an entire cynical generation was accidentally inspired by an aggressively marketed anti-perspirant. A friend literally wrote…
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The feud that created Puma and Adidas
Two brothers operating a single shoe factory had a falling out so spectacularly petty that they split the business, divided their hometown, and launched two…
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How avoiding TV helped create music videos
Too lazy to appear on a live promotional broadcast, the band hastily slapped together a moody, lip-synced visual recording. Their sheer desire to avoid a…
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The cookie inventor traded rights for chocolate
Instead of demanding a massive royalty for inventing the greatest cookie in existence, the creator casually surrendered the rights to a major corporation in…
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Darth Vader voice actor went completely uncredited
Providing the terrifying, iconic baritone for cinema's greatest villain resulted in absolutely zero on-screen recognition upon initial release. The studio…
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Why tennis balls turned yellow
Traditionally pristine white, the balls blended perfectly into the chalk lines on grainy broadcast monitors. A legendary documentarian lobbied for 'optic…
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The Disney gamble that started with a mortgaged house
Industry insiders gleefully dubbed it a catastrophic folly, utterly convinced that nobody would sit through eighty minutes of a brightly colored cartoon. The…
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Spam is named after spiced ham
An entire legacy of mystery meat boils down to a lazy portmanteau. They didn't bother crafting a compelling narrative for their canned pork product; they just…
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Under Pressure was nearly lost during a pizza break
The iconic, pulsating rhythm of 'Under Pressure' was spontaneously composed, but the bassist entirely forgot the riff after taking a break to grab some food.…
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Ben and Jerry planned a bagel company first
The duo fully intended to dominate the baked dough market, but realized specialized baking equipment was ridiculously expensive. Pivoting entirely based on…
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Skittles colors taste the same—until scent gets involved
You’ve been tasting the rainbow of deception. Blindfolded, you cannot tell the difference between the colors because the foundational flavor profile is…
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Michael Jackson learned the moonwalk from a TV dancer
The seemingly gravity-defying backwards glide wasn't summoned from the ether; it was learned through private lessons with a television dancer. The superstar…
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Color film existed long before The Wizard of Oz
Despite the collective cultural delusion that the world transitioned from black-and-white to technicolor right when Dorothy opened that farmhouse door, tinted…
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Elvis once failed music class
The undisputed pioneer of rock and roll was explicitly told by an uninspired teacher that he possessed zero aptitude for singing. He received a failing grade,…
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