TIL the first Nepalese woman to summit Mt Everest was Pasang Lhamu, in 1993 at age 31. She died on the same day during the descent and became a national icon. [source, comments]
TIL the famous painting "Napoleon Crossing the Alps" where he's depicited staying calm while on a lively white horse is just propaganda. In reality he was on a mule and was led through the Alps by a guide. [source, comments]
TIL in 1990, LA morning radio Kevin and Bean did a "Confess your Crime" as part of their show. The hosts secretly hired a friend to call in and "confess" to killing their girlfriend as a hoax. It took 10 months for the hoax to be exposed. [source, comments]
TIL the CIA had a secret hacking arsenal called “Vault 7” capable of turning phones, TVs, and even cars into surveillance tools which was leaked back in 2017 [source, comments]
TIL that a 90-year-old woman in Japan became the world’s oldest office manager. Yasuko Tamaki has worked at the same company since 1956 and still manages her team every day with no plans to retire. [source, comments]
TIL that shorter men actually live longer. A major U.S. study found men under 5'8" lived almost 5 years longer, and those 5'5" or shorter lived over 7 years longer than men 6 feet or taller. [source, comments]
TIL Christopher Lee has played the role of Count Dracula a total of 10 times, for 4 different studios. This includes Dracula and Son, a parody of his other Dracula movies. For most of the original Hammer films he was basically blackmailed into playing the role [source, comments]
TIL Despite the porno "Debbie Does Dallas" being in the public domain, the Dallas Cowboys still hold veto power on commercial publication because of unauthorized use of their trademarks in the film. [source, comments]
TIL that the Wichita language, once spoken by the Wichita people of Oklahoma, went extinct in 2016 when its last fluent speaker, Doris McLemore, passed away. [source, comments]
TIL that in 2009, a cabin burglar in New Mexico died during a gun battle with police, after which it was discovered that he was one of Canada's most wanted criminals, having been on the run for 37 years. [source, comments]
TIL John D. Rockefeller's estimated $1.4 billion net worth in 1937 was equivalent to 1.5% of U.S. GDP. According to this metric he was (and still is) the richest individual in American business and economic history. [source, comments]
TIL that Tom & Jerry: The Movie, released in 1992, was the first and only time the famous duo had full conversations. This choice was so unpopular that later films brought them back to silence. [source, comments]
TIL in 2002 McDonald's launched a sandwich called McAfrika in Norway and Denmark. While the name attracted significant criticism among public opinion, it was praised by the organization African Youth in Norway [source, comments]
