Culture & entertainment
Discover facts about culture & entertainment. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Culture & entertainment
The cellphone's inventor wanted a Dick Tracy wrist radio.
The cellphone's inventor wanted a Dick Tracy wrist radio. Martin Cooper has pointed to the comic-strip detective's wrist communicator when discussing the…
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Pumbaa from the Lion King holds the distinguished cinematic honor of being the first character to fart on screen in a Disney animated feature.
Pumbaa from the Lion King holds the distinguished cinematic honor of being the first character to fart on screen in a Disney animated feature. The moment came…
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Michael Jackson's Simpsons character had someone else's singing voice.
Michael Jackson's Simpsons character had someone else's singing voice. Jackson supplied the spoken voice of Leon Kompowsky in Stark Raving Dad, credited under…
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Ewan McGregor couldn't resist supplying his own lightsaber noises.
Ewan McGregor couldn't resist supplying his own lightsaber noises. Asked about making the sounds during rehearsals and fights, he described the habit as…
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Stephen King directed a movie about trucks turning murderous.
Stephen King directed a movie about trucks turning murderous. Maximum Overdrive, released in 1986, adapted his story Trucks and remains his only feature as…
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Star Trek made television history in 1968 by airing the first scripted interracial kiss between Captain Kirk and Lieutenant Uhura, but network executives were so terrified of…
Star Trek made television history in 1968 by airing the first scripted interracial kiss between Captain Kirk and Lieutenant Uhura, but network executives were…
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Evil Dead's fake blood made Bruce Campbell stick to his clothes.
Evil Dead's fake blood made Bruce Campbell stick to his clothes. Campbell recalled filming covered in a corn-syrup mixture that became sticky and miserable to…
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A nerd appeared in Dr.
A nerd appeared in Dr. Seuss before the word's modern career took off. If I Ran the Zoo, published in 1950, names a creature called a Nerd. It is one of the…
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Disney's hyper-successful teen franchise High School Musical originally started development in the late nineties as a script for Grease 3, heavily focusing on the children of…
Disney's hyper-successful teen franchise High School Musical originally started development in the late nineties as a script for Grease 3, heavily focusing on…
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Barbie creator Ruth Handler was originally inspired to design the iconic American children's doll after discovering a risqué, adult-oriented gag gift in Europe called the Bild Lilli doll.
Barbie creator Ruth Handler was originally inspired to design the iconic American children's doll after discovering a risqué, adult-oriented gag gift in…
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Marilyn Monroe required forty-seven separate takes just to deliver the simple three-word line 'It's me, Sugar' while filming the comedy classic Some Like It Hot.
Marilyn Monroe required forty-seven separate takes just to deliver the simple three-word line 'It's me, Sugar' while filming the comedy classic Some Like It…
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The TARDIS is a spaceship with a broken disguise.
The TARDIS is a spaceship with a broken disguise. Doctor Who's time machine has a chameleon circuit meant to make its exterior blend into its surroundings.…
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Bugs Bunny's carrot crunch came with a spit bucket.
Bugs Bunny's carrot crunch came with a spit bucket. Mel Blanc chewed real carrots for the sound, then spat them out before delivering his lines. According to…
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Miss Piggy and Yoda were both voiced and puppeted by the exact same man, legendary entertainer Frank Oz, meaning the galaxy's wisest Jedi and television's most narcissistic swine share a soul.
Miss Piggy and Yoda were both voiced and puppeted by the exact same man, legendary entertainer Frank Oz, meaning the galaxy's wisest Jedi and television's…
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Waylon Smithers was actually animated as a Black man in his very first appearance on The Simpsons, due to a colorist making a mistake during the rushed production of the early…
Waylon Smithers was actually animated as a Black man in his very first appearance on The Simpsons, due to a colorist making a mistake during the rushed…
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Pulp Fiction keeps making Vincent's bathroom breaks badly timed.
Pulp Fiction keeps making Vincent's bathroom breaks badly timed. While Vincent is away, Mia overdoses; a diner robbery also unfolds during another absence.…
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Game of Thrones editors accidentally left a modern disposable coffee cup on a table during a crucial banquet scene in the final season, sparking massive internet outrage, because…
Game of Thrones editors accidentally left a modern disposable coffee cup on a table during a crucial banquet scene in the final season, sparking massive…
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Fifteen seconds of Demogorgon action took about a month to plan.
Fifteen seconds of Demogorgon action took about a month to plan. The Duffer brothers described that timescale while explaining a Stranger Things season-four…
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Paul Rudd warned Steve Carell not to try The Office.
Paul Rudd warned Steve Carell not to try The Office. Carell recalled Rudd advising him against auditioning for the American remake of a beloved British show.…
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Chris Pratt improvised a diagnosis of a computer problem.
Chris Pratt improvised a diagnosis of a computer problem. In Parks and Recreation's Flu Season, Andy mistakes a computer's connection error for an explanation…
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The Simpsons' couch gag can rescue an episode that runs short.
The Simpsons' couch gag can rescue an episode that runs short. A longer opening gag fills extra seconds without forcing another scene into the story. That…
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John Krasinski proved Jim's wig worked by wearing it to ask permission.
John Krasinski proved Jim's wig worked by wearing it to ask permission. He needed a short haircut for Leatherheads while filming The Office. Hairstylist Kim…
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Casablanca's refugee story was performed by people who had fled Europe.
Casablanca's refugee story was performed by people who had fled Europe. Several cast members had escaped Nazi persecution or occupation, including Helmut…
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Harry Potter's flying car had to exist in several forms.
Harry Potter's flying car had to exist in several forms. The Ford Anglia was a road car, a flying machine, and a victim of the Whomping Willow within the same…
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