Culture & entertainment
Discover facts about culture & entertainment. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Culture & entertainment
Why the Jaws shark was named Bruce
Spielberg named the notoriously troublesome animatronic shark after his real-life attorney, Bruce Ramer.
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How a tabloid bought scandals to bury them
In a practice called “catch and kill,” the tabloid bought exclusive rights to damaging stories so it could keep them from being published.
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How mirror mazes hide their glass edges
A grid of 60-degree triangles lets support pillars conceal the glass edges, making reflections look like open corridors.
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Reader's Digest was founded in a basement in New York
DeWitt and Lila Wallace launched the pocket-sized magazine in 1922 by condensing articles from other publications.
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First public aquarium was established in Victorian London
The London Zoo opened its Fish House in 1853. Before then, keeping live aquatic creatures in glass tanks was considered too difficult to maintain.
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The three-acre maze hidden in a Hawaiian plantation
The Dole Plantation's labyrinth winds through thousands of tropical plants.
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Guinness turned pub arguments into a reference-book business
Managing director Hugh Beaver wanted a source that could settle questions like which game bird was fastest. The record book supplied answers people could…
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The first Forbes rich list was meant to shame the wealthy
B.C. Forbes published the first list of wealthy Americans in 1918 to spotlight their fortunes and criticize them for not contributing their fair share to…
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Planetariums project stars using heavy optical spheres
Traditional projectors use bright lamps and drilled optical plates mounted in a heavy, dumbbell-shaped assembly of metal spheres and gears to create the star…
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Madame Tussaud made revolutionary death part of her story
Tussaud's account described making death masks during the French Revolution, including those of prominent victims. Those claims became part of the identity of…
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Vogue began as a weekly guide to society
The first issue appeared in 1892, covering fashionable social life for readers including both men and women. It was closer to a record of elite manners and…
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Ripley's bizarre empire began with a sports cartoon
In 1918, sports illustrator Robert Ripley filled a slow news day by sketching obscure athletic trivia for a feature called “Champs and Chumps.” Editors liked…
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Why Playboy’s first issue had no date
Hugh Hefner left the date off the 1953 debut because he wasn't sure he could afford a second issue. Marilyn Monroe's cover helped make it a collectible.
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How farmers draw corn mazes without high-tech tools
Before high-tech tools, farmers mapped designs on graph paper, planted the field densely, then removed selected stalks while the corn was knee-high to carve…
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Yellow journalism began with a comic strip
The name came from a 1890s newspaper feud over the rights to print The Yellow Kid, a comic-strip character whose shirt was colored with yellow ink.
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Adult coloring books caused a colored-pencil shortage
When adult coloring books surged in popularity, manufacturers struggled to meet demand, causing documented global shortages of premium colored pencils.
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A magazine cover made news for what it didn't erase
Lena Dunham thanked Glamour for leaving her cellulite visible on its February 2017 cover. The photograph became a talking point because a normal feature of…
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Thick comic collections use flexible glue so their pages do not tear
Thick comic collections use PUR binding, a flexible adhesive method that helps keep their heavy, glossy pages attached when the book is opened wide.
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That bestseller sticker may be printed on the cover
The metallic-looking badge is often printed as part of the cover art, not stuck on; integrating it saves publishers a fraction of a cent.
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Tabloids pay sources for celebrity dirt
Tabloids may pay thousands of dollars to assistants, exes, or waitstaff for celebrity information—a practice mainstream journalism generally avoids to…
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How cliffhangers sell the next chapter
A cliffhanger cuts off a chapter at a tense moment or just before a revelation, leaving readers eager to buy the next installment to find out what happens.
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Why paparazzi provoke celebrities
Angry celebrity photos can sell for more than calm ones, so some paparazzi provoke confrontations with insults, blocked paths, and bright flashes—then sell…
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Why hardcover books wear paper jackets
Dust jackets let publishers print colorful artwork on a removable paper cover while keeping the hardcover boards plain, a cheaper alternative to decorating…
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Mainstream bookstores return nearly half of their inventory
Bookstores can return unsold hardcovers to publishers for full credit, and up to 40 percent of printed books are shipped back.
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