Culture & entertainment
Discover facts about culture & entertainment. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Culture & entertainment
Why keeping a straight face takes real control
Dry-humor performers have to suppress involuntary facial twitches so they don't give away a punchline.
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How sword swallowers train their throats
Sword swallowers spend years desensitizing their throats and suppressing the body's urge to vomit while performing.
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A fire performer's fuel can injure the lungs without catching fire
Breathing liquid hydrocarbon fuel into the lungs can cause chemical pneumonitis, a serious inflammatory injury sometimes called fire-eater's pneumonia. The…
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When bad performances were pelted with vegetables
In the 19th century, street audiences sometimes pelted bad acts with rotting vegetables—a cheap, highly visible way to show their displeasure.
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The Fiji mermaid was a monkey sewn to a fish
The sideshow “mermaid” was a hoax: its body was made by stitching the mummified upper half of a young primate to a fish tail.
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Why stand-up comedians pace the stage
They often pace to burn off nervous energy rather than stand frozen in one spot for an hour.
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Crowd work lets a comedian publish clips without giving away the set
An exchange with one audience produces a moment tied to that particular room. Sharing it can advertise the performer's style while leaving prepared jokes…
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Why Rome punished mimes for mocking power
Roman mimes could be exiled or executed because their performances openly mocked the empire and its rulers.
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The stadium wave has more than one origin story
Krazy George Henderson helped popularize a coordinated crowd wave at an Oakland baseball game in 1981, while other accounts credit separate developments. Its…
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Why hot-dog champions dunk buns in water
Competitors soak buns in warm liquid so they can swallow them quickly; dry bread can be a choking hazard when eaten at speed.
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The Batman creator who went uncredited for decades
Bill Finger’s writing and ideas helped shape Batman and his world, but the familiar creator credit long named Bob Kane alone. DC’s 2015 agreement brought…
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The Exorcist’s demon screams came from terrified pigs
Sound designers recorded pigs at a slaughterhouse and used their terrified squeals for the demon’s cries. The unsettling sound helped make the 1973 film’s…
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Film sets use deafening fans that erase dialogue and force actors to dub lines later
The jet-engine-sized fans used to whip a hero’s cape into the air can drown out every line during filming.
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Why movie sets turn tropical for reptiles
Because reptiles rely on external heat to stay active, crews sometimes raise studio temperatures so a snake will keep moving during a scene.
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Why film crews wrap rented shoes in plastic
Productions often rent designer shoes, so costumers wrap the soles in clear tape to prevent scuffs before returning them.
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Sourcing a massive catering tent solely for insects
Productions that need thousands of live insects may keep them in separate, temperature-controlled tents, along with the food needed to keep the swarm alive.
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Sinking a massive boat replica in a giant bathtub
Studios use enormous water tanks to sink and raise large set pieces repeatedly, without having to contend with ocean currents.
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Some film crews hire pigeon wranglers
For scenes that need a flock to take off on cue, film crews hire specialists to release trained pigeons at just the right moment.
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Sourcing thousands of vintage uniforms for war films
For a large historical film, buying authentic uniforms from overseas surplus stores can cost less than having convincing replicas made by hand.
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Movie chainmail can be made from plastic pipes
Costume departments cut PVC plumbing pipes into thousands of small rings and paint them silver, creating lightweight chain mail for actors.
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Spending eight hours applying full-body silicone
Some fantasy-creature performers spend eight hours in makeup, sitting still from 2 a.m. as artists glue rubber pieces over their bodies.
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Why every movie gets its own company
Studios often create a separate LLC for a film to contain its debts and legal risks, keeping them from affecting the parent company.
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Why filmmakers shipped black sand to white beaches
To match historical reference photos, some war epics have brought hundreds of tons of crushed black volcanic rock to white beaches.
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Submerging entire living room sets in swimming pools
To film a flooding room, productions build fully furnished sets inside indoor pools and use industrial cranes to lower them into the water.
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