Culture & entertainment
Discover facts about culture & entertainment. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Culture & entertainment
The studio wanted the John Wick puppy to live
The financiers feared the puppy’s death would hurt ticket sales and urged directors Chad Stahelski and David Leitch to change the script. They kept it,…
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Steven Spielberg only invented the modern blockbuster suspense thriller because the mechanical shark he built for Jaws kept sinking to the bottom of the ocean; the prop,…
Steven Spielberg only invented the modern blockbuster suspense thriller because the mechanical shark he built for Jaws kept sinking to the bottom of the…
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George Lucas completely outsmarted Fox executives in the nineteen-seventies by accepting a lower salary for directing Star Wars in exchange for keeping the merchandising rights,…
George Lucas completely outsmarted Fox executives in the nineteen-seventies by accepting a lower salary for directing Star Wars in exchange for keeping the…
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Ace Ventura turns rewinding into a physical gag
In the second film, Carrey performs a sequence that imitates being rewound, reversing gestures and speech-like sounds. The joke makes a person behave like a…
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Toto's performer needed a stand-in after an on-set injury
Terry, the terrier in The Wizard of Oz, hurt a paw when a performer stepped on her during rehearsal. Another dog filled in while she recovered. The animal…
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Why Tarantino misspelled Inglourious Basterds
Tarantino deliberately misspelled the title *Inglourious Basterds*, but refused to explain the choice, telling reporters, “I’m never going to explain that.”
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Bazinga reached Sheldon through a writer's prank
Stephen Engel would reassemble an emptied grapefruit and offer it to colleagues, then deliver 'bazinga' as the joke was revealed, according to the show's…
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Doctor Who's terrifying angels were actors in foam
The Weeping Angels in “Blink” were actors in foam costumes, sculpted and painted to look like stone—not CGI or marble.
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Under Pressure's bassline nearly vanished during a pizza break
Roger Taylor recalled John Deacon coming up with the riff, then forgetting it after the musicians went out for food. Taylor remembered it when they returned.…
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James Bond's famous look included a hairpiece.
James Bond's famous look included a hairpiece. Sean Connery wore a toupee as Bond, including in Dr. No. Alongside tailored clothes and carefully controlled…
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Psycho turned a toilet flush into a plot point.
Psycho turned a toilet flush into a plot point. Marion tears up her calculations and flushes the pieces before entering the shower. The mundane act destroys…
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Pokémon has printed over 85 billion trading cards.
Pokémon has printed over 85 billion trading cards. By March 2026, the Pokémon Company reported that production milestone alongside more than 515 million…
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Will Smith said the IRS took 70% of his early Fresh Prince pay.
Will Smith said the IRS took 70% of his early Fresh Prince pay. Smith described a huge tax debt after his first success as a rapper. For the sitcom's first…
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The Beatles nearly voiced The Jungle Book's vultures
Disney designed the vultures with mop-top haircuts and hoped the Beatles would voice them. John Lennon allegedly turned down the offer, suggesting Disney hire…
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Qui-Gon Jinn's comlink was made from a women's razor
For The Phantom Menace, the prop team cast a Gillette Sensor Excel women's razor in resin and painted it into a communicator. Its familiar handle became…
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Hollywood made a King Kong sequel in nine months
The sequel, Son of Kong, arrived less than nine months after the 1933 original and featured a smaller albino ape.
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Voldemort was 71 when Harry Potter defeated him
Despite splitting his soul into seven pieces to evade death, Voldemort was 71 when Harry defeated him.
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Why Superman keeps appearing in Seinfeld
Seinfeld was a Superman fan, so the hero appears throughout the show—in an apartment statue or magnet, or in conversation.
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R2-D2's voice is part machine, part baby
Sound editor Ben Burtt combined his own baby-like coos with beeps from an ARP 2600 synthesizer to give the droid an expressive voice.
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You've probably been saying Voldemort wrong
J.K. Rowling has said the final “t” in Voldemort is silent, reflecting the French phrase “flight of death.” But Ralph Fiennes pronounced it, and that version…
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Friends moved upstairs by changing the numbers on its doors
Early episodes labeled Monica's apartment 5 and the apartment opposite 4; later they became 20 and 19. The sets did not need to move. A pair of new numbers…
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Chuck E. Cheese began as an Atari strategy
Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell wanted restaurants to buy his arcade games, but many were reluctant to purchase bulky cabinets. So he opened a family pizza…
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The Alien costume that used part of a human skull
The dome at the front of the original Xenomorph costume’s elongated head was made by sawing a human skull in half and casting it into the design.
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Doom’s chainsaw sound came from a real chainsaw
Developer Bobby Prince borrowed his girlfriend's chainsaw and recorded its sound for the game's weapon.
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