The Fun Facts thread

Share a fun fact or 2!

The word "twelve" is worth twelve points in Scrabble.

The words "ace, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, jack, queen, king" contain 52 letters.

The smell of freshly cut grass is a plant distress call.


The visible fissure up the side of the Liberty Bell is not the crack that stopped it from ringing;  it’s the repair job on an earlier crack. (Drilling along the crack so the edges no longer touch allowed the bell to ring again, though not for long.)

What silenced the bell is a hairline crack that extends from the top of the repair, too far to be fixed.


The Houston Astros were a national League team for 51 years. In 2013 they moved to the American league. 


In France a quarter pounder with cheese is called a Royale with Cheese, because of the metric system.


drummerboy said:

In France a quarter pounder with cheese is called a Royale with Cheese, because of the metric system.

 What do they call a Big Mac?   smile


Vancouver banned door knobs from all new construction.

https://slate.com/human-interest/2013/11/vancouver-doorknob-ban-new-law-encourages-universally-accessible-building-starting-in-2014.html

In a move to make housing more universally accessible, the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, has banned doorknobs in private homes and apartment buildings. Starting in March 2014, the doors of new buildings will be equipped instead with more ergonomically friendly, easier-to-use lever handles.


“Wherefore” means “why.”

Why do you have to be a Montague, Romeo? Not: Where the heck did you go, Romeo?


Cookie monster's real name is Sid.


In the United States, October 26th is National Mule Day.  (October 29th is National Cat Day and August 26th is National Dog Day)


jamie said:

Vancouver banned door knobs from all new construction.

https://slate.com/human-interest/2013/11/vancouver-doorknob-ban-new-law-encourages-universally-accessible-building-starting-in-2014.html

In a move to make housing more universally accessible, the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, has banned doorknobs in private homes and apartment buildings. Starting in March 2014, the doors of new buildings will be equipped instead with more ergonomically friendly, easier-to-use lever handles.

 If the Jurassic Park compound had been constructed with doorknobs instead of the lever handles it would have solved many problems.


Tabasco sauce is fermented for 3 years in used Jack Daniels barrels before bottling.

Interesting. Not a fun fact for me, but Tobasco gives me a mildly upset stomach (not sure if it's that brand in particular, or if any hot pepper sauce does it). As BBQ sauce often includes a small to moderate amount of Tobasco, I generally can't have BBQ sauce either.


Okay, maybe these will be seem more fun.

After hearing the album "This Is It" by The Strokes, The Killers threw out every song they were working on for their debut album except for the first song they wrote together: Mr. Brightside.

Mr. Brightside was their first released single in 2005 and it reached reached number 10 in the Billboard top 100 and number 10 in the Official UK Singles Top 100 Chart.

As of June 2019, Mr. Brightside has been so popular in the UK that it has bounced in and out of the Official UK Singles Top 100 Chart racking up 209 weeks in the top 100, and has become the song that refuses to go away no matter what the musical flavor of the month is.


ridski said:

Okay, maybe these will be seem more fun.

After hearing the album "This Is It" by The Strokes, The Killers threw out every song they were working on for their debut album except for the first song they wrote together: Mr. Brightside.

Mr. Brightside was their first released single in 2005 and it reached reached number 10 in the Billboard top 100 and number 10 in the Official UK Singles Top 100 Chart.

As of June 2019, Mr. Brightside has been so popular in the UK that it has bounced in and out of the Official UK Singles Top 100 Chart racking up 209 weeks in the top 100, and has become the song that refuses to go away no matter what the musical flavor of the month is.

It's on my shortlist for "Most Awesome Song Ever."

Also on my Top 10 Songs I Can't Resist Singing Along With At The Top of My Lungs In The Car (I Don't Care If You Kids Stare At Me), or SICRSAWATTOMLITC(IDCIYKSAM).


FUN FACT:

I don't think I've ever heard Mr. Brightside before. Before today, that is. I just listened to it, or, rather, I watched the video. The one with Eric Roberts. Pretty cool song. Don't know why I didn't hear it in 2004 when it came out. I'll listen to it again.

Oh, and just found this:


Today Jennifer Aniston is exactly as many days old as Wilford Brimley was on the opening day of Cocoon.


Clarence Carter's tune, Strokin, was considered too bawdy for radio play when it was released in 1985.   See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5GhAGb5rY0

PS However, Strokin was a hit on many jukeboxes of the era (especially in Philly and NJ).


The Northwest Angle (which includes Angle Township) is part of Minnesota and is the northernmost portion of the lower 48 states (only part of the lower 48 that is north of the 49th parallel).  The Northwest Angle has land that borders Manitoba and Ontario.  In order to drive back to Minnesota from Northwest Angle, it is necessary to first drive through a portion of Manitoba, CANADA.


David Bowie was an excellent sax player


rhw said:

David Bowie was an excellent sax player

 Adolphe Sax, inventor of the Saxophone, was born 205 years ago today.


RealityForAll said:

Clarence Carter's tune, Strokin, was considered too bawdy for radio play when it was released in 1985.   See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5GhAGb5rY0

PS However, Strokin was a hit on many jukeboxes of the era (especially in Philly and NJ).

 It was a big hit in the clubs in the early 80s. When it came on people went nuts. I remember it well.

Fun Fact: Clarence Carter also was well known for PATCHES, a very different kind of song.


A French Horn consists of 18 feet of tubing.


Reno Nevada is farther west than Los Angeles California. 


Michelangelo gained his initial fame by selling what he claimed was an antique sculpture to the Medici family, but was actually his own (now lost) work Sleeping Cupid.


RealityForAll said:

The Northwest Angle (which includes Angle Township) is part of Minnesota and is the northernmost portion of the lower 48 states (only part of the lower 48 that is north of the 49th parallel).  The Northwest Angle has land that borders Manitoba and Ontario.  In order to drive back to Minnesota from Northwest Angle, it is necessary to first drive through a portion of Manitoba, CANADA.

Point Roberts, WA has the same geographic feature, only with Vancouver, Canada.


The easternmost part of the isthmus of Panama is on the Pacific, and the westernmost part is on the Atlantic.


drummerboy said:

The easternmost part of the isthmus of Panama is on the Pacific, and the westernmost part is on the Atlantic.

 Actually Panama is on the Pacific and the Caribbean, not the Atlantic. And they're connected by some sort of canal, as I recall.


The_Soulful_Mr_T said:

drummerboy said:

The easternmost part of the isthmus of Panama is on the Pacific, and the westernmost part is on the Atlantic.

 Actually Panama is on the Pacific and the Caribbean, not the Atlantic. And they're connected by some sort of canal, as I recall.

 Damn, Ripley's lied to me.


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