History
Discover facts about history. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
History
Why first place got silver at the first modern Olympics
When the grand tradition was finally revived in 1896, the organizing committee decided that giving away actual gold was financially reckless. First-place…
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The classical piece that calls for real cannon fire
Because violins and cellos simply didn't possess enough raw destructive power, the Russian composer explicitly wrote literal cannon fire into the sheet music…
Discover moreDarth Vader barely appears in Star Wars
Despite being arguably the most iconic and recognizable cinematic villain in the history of human entertainment, the heavy-breathing Sith Lord barely actually…
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First full length animated feature took three years to make
When Walt Disney proposed a feature-length cartoon about Snow White, critics completely mocked it as absolute financial suicide. He stubbornly forced hundreds…
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Hitchcock appeared in 39 of his 52 major films
The Master of Suspense apparently suffered from a serious case of FOMO, making sure he physically appeared in thirty-nine of his fifty-two major motion…
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Norman Rockwell built paintings from photographs
The incredibly famous illustrator who defined the wholesome American aesthetic was basically tracing for most of his career. Instead of painting purely from…
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Buzz Aldrin took the first space selfie
Decades before influencers were blocking sidewalks with ring lights, astronauts were out there pioneering the art of the selfie in zero gravity. During the…
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Before drip paintings, Pollock struggled to draw
Before he revolutionized the modern art world by violently throwing paint at canvases on his floor, he desperately struggled with standard painting…
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Elvis bought Graceland at just 22
While most people at that age are eating instant noodles and begging their landlord to fix a leaky faucet, the King of Rock and Roll casually dropped a…
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When Jimi Hendrix opened for The Monkees
In one of the most hilariously mismatched booking decisions in music history, the psychedelic guitar god was hired to open for a manufactured pop band…
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The high five didn't catch on until 1977
The universal gesture for casual triumph did not actually exist until 1977, when two Los Angeles Dodgers players awkwardly collided hands after a home run.…
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Frida Kahlo painted exactly fifty-five unique self portraits
Long before the front-facing camera gave everyone a complex, the legendary Mexican artist dedicated roughly a third of her entire creative output to painting…
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The Beatles' last concert was on a rooftop
Instead of booking a massive stadium for a grand farewell tour, the biggest band in the world dragged heavy amplifiers up the stairs of their office building.…
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The famous composition with no notes
The highly experimental piece titled '4"33"' genuinely consists of a pianist sitting perfectly still at a piano for exactly four minutes and thirty-three…
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The first Grammy winners went home without trophies
The inaugural night celebrating the absolute peak of musical achievement completely failed to prepare the actual awards. When winners like Frank Sinatra and…
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Jackson Pollock painted with a kitchen baster
When traditional brushes proved too boring for his chaotic vision, the famed abstract expressionist resorted to raiding his kitchen drawers. Pollock famously…
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Johnny Cash performed a legendary music concert in a prison
While most popular musicians were playing standard theaters or stadiums, the Man in Black deliberately chose to perform for a crowd of hardened felons at…
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Einstein's safer refrigerator never caught on
Even a genius makes terrible home appliances. After reading about a family killed by toxic fridge fumes, Einstein and a colleague patented a safer…
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Paul Revere identified a body by its teeth
The guy screaming about the British was also identifying corpses by their teeth. As a skilled silversmith, Revere wired false teeth for the elite. After the…
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Ancient Greeks thought trousers were unmanly
Ancient toxic masculinity dictated that real men wore skirts. The ancient Greeks proudly fought their wars in tunics and mocked Persian soldiers for wearing…
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Ancient Egyptians believed lettuce was an aphrodisiac
Because nothing gets the blood pumping quite like leafy greens. Ancient Egyptians worshipped Min, a fertility god whose absolute favorite offering was…
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Pompeii had ancient fast-food counters
Getting a quick greasy meal on the go is a timeless human need. Archaeologists excavating Pompeii have uncovered around 80 'thermopolia,' which were literal…
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Lafayette was buried under soil from America
True patriotism means importing your own dirt. The French aristocrat hero of the American Revolution loved the United States so much that when he died in…
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Diogenes the Cynic completely humiliated Plato in front of his prestigious students by barging into a lecture holding a plucked chicken and sarcastically declaring it to be a…
Diogenes the Cynic completely humiliated Plato in front of his prestigious students by barging into a lecture holding a plucked chicken and sarcastically…
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