Trivia

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5 Things You Didn't Know About FDR_2

On April 12, 1945, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt passed away after four terms in office, leaving Vice President Harry S. Truman in charge of a country. Here are 5 surprising facts about the only U.S. president to be elected four times…

His Handicap Was Largely Hidden From the Public

Roosevelt was 39 in 1921 when he contracted polio, which paralyzed him from the waist down. With extensive physical rehabilitation, he was finally able to use leg braces and a cane to get on his feet. For the most part, however, he used a wheelchair to get around. The media over the years was cooperative by showing Roosevelt only standing or seated, so the public was unaware of the extent of his disability until after his death.

Roosevelt Had a Special Car Designed so He Could Drive

Roosevelt owned a 1936 Ford Phaeton convertible that was specially equipped so he could drive it without using his legs. It also included an automatic cigarette dispenser that would have made NASA proud. Roosevelt preferred a convertible because it made it easier for him to interact with the public without having to stand up. After FDR died, his wife, Eleanor, drove the car until 1946 and then donated it to a museum with only 19,143 miles on the speedometer.

Roosevelt Won in Landslides Every Time He Ran for President

Roosevelt was elected four times as president, appealing to diverse voting groups such as members of labor unions, Southern whites, Jews, Catholics, small farmers, and blacks. In his first election in 1932, as the Great Depression was in full swing, he defeated Herbert Hoover by an electoral vote of 472 to 59.  He then vanquished Kansas Governor Alf Landon in 1936 (523 electoral votes to eight), businessman Wendell Willkie in 1940 (449 electoral votes to 82) and New York Governor Thomas Dewey in 1944 (432 electoral votes to 99), winning at least 53.4 percent of the popular vote each time.

He Appointed 8 Supreme Court Justices

Fed up with the U.S. Supreme Court for striking down several New Deal laws, Roosevelt in early 1937 proposed expanding it from nine to as many as 15 justices. Roosevelt attempted to “pack the bench” and bring more liberals onto the Supreme Court, but lost this power struggle against the other branches of government. Apart from former President George Washington, Roosevelt appointed the most justices to the Supreme Court. During his twelve years in office, Roosevelt appointed eight new members of the Supreme Court, and elevated Justice Harlan Fiske Stone to Chief Justice. 

FDR Showed His Gratitude Through Cufflinks

If you were a man on FDR's good side, you were likely to walk away with a set of cufflinks – a tradition that began during his 1920 bid for the vice-presidency. As a way of saying thank you, he gave each man on the campaign a set from Tiffany's, then the tradition continued, and soon anyone who'd earned their accessories met up every year for FDR's birthday.

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5 Things You Didn't Know About Tiger Woods

On April 13, 1997, a 21-year old Tiger Woods won the prestigious Masters Tournament for the first time. Here are five interesting facts you probably didn’t know about Tiger Woods...

Tiger Is Not His Real Name

Though the golfer uses Tiger in his tournaments, his birth name is Eldrick.  Eldrick, was coined by his mother because it began with "E" (for Earl) and ended with "K" (for Kultida). His middle name Tont is a traditional Thai name. When Woods was a child, he was given the nickname Tiger by his father in honor of a friend, Col. Vuong Dang Phong, who had also been known as Tiger.

He Was Considered A Child Prodigy

Tiger could putt into a hole and swing a golf club correctly at age two and was invited to appear on “The Mike Douglas Show” in 1978 to demonstrate his talent. During that episode, he outputted Bob Hope, the comedian and entertainer. By the age of only 5, Tiger Woods was featured on the popular television show "That's Incredible!" At the age of only 8, he won his first formal golf competition.

He Has A Thing For Red

It is not uncommon for athletes to wear something special they believe will bring them luck. Tiger’s item is a red shirt which he always wears on the last  round of his golf tournaments. The reason for this? His mother had told him to. “I wear red on Sundays because my mom thinks that that’s my power color,” Woods said. “And you know you should always listen to your mom.”

He Is A Buddhist

It’s safe to say that Woods is quite a religious athlete. In fact, he turns to Buddhism especially during times of need. Back in 2010, when Woods issued a public apology for misgivings, he issued a statement saying, “Buddhism teaches that a creation of things outside ourselves causes an unhappy and pointless search for security. It teaches me to stop following every impulse and to learn restraint. Obviously, I lost track of what I was taught.”

Tiger Woods Holds 17 Guinness World Records

Woods holds 17 spots in the Guinness World Records, including a tie with golf great Sam Snead for winning the PGA tour 82 times. He won the most-watched record for the number of viewers in 1997 with 15.8 million people watching the tournament. In addition, Woods has amassed the most career earnings of any player in PGA Tour history (even after inflation is considered).  He has won 18 major tournaments (second only to Jack Nicklaus) and has scored an astounding 20 holes in one during his career, with three occurring during PGA tours.

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5 Facts About The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln_2

On the night of April 14, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln was shot and mortally wounded by John Wilkes Booth at Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C. Here are five lesser-known facts you didn't know about the Lincoln assassination…

Booth Originally Intended to Kidnap Lincoln

John Wilkes Booth met with spies for the Confederacy, and a plot was developed to kidnap the president, take him to Richmond, Virginia, which was the capital of the state, and use him to bargain for the release of their prisoners being held by the Union. Booth and other conspirators went so far as to hide on a Washington, D.C. road on March 17, 1865, to try and take over the president’s carriage and whisk him away. However, once Richmond fell to Union troops and General Robert E. Lee surrendered, Booth changed his plan and decided to kill President Lincoln instead.

General Grant Was Supposed to Attend the Theater Performance With Lincoln

President Lincoln invited Union General Ulysses S. Grant to attend the play at Ford’s theater with him. However, Grant’s wife had been insulted by Mary Todd Lincoln and refused to go, so Grant told Lincoln that he and his wife were traveling to visit their children in New Jersey. Finding a replacement for Grant proved to be difficult, but the couple that ultimately accompanied the president and his wife was Major Henry Rathbone, a military officer and diplomat along with his fiancée Clara Harris.

Lincoln’s Assassination Was a Small Part of the Plot

Booth and the other conspirators intended to murder Lincoln, General Grant, Vice President Andrew Johnson and William Seward, the Secretary of State. However, Grant had gone to New Jersey, and the man who was supposed to kill the vice president lost his nerve. Another conspirator did enter William Seward’s home and stab him repeatedly, but the Secretary of State survived the attack.

The Secret Service Had Just Been Established

On the very day of Lincoln’s assassination, he had signed legislation into law that created the U.S. Secret Service. It wouldn’t have helped him anyway. The Secret Service was originally founded to combat counterfeiting and wasn’t assigned as protection for the president until 1901. Though the Secret Service was originally under the Department of the Treasury, in 2003 it became part of the Department of Homeland Security.

Lincoln’s Guests That Night Suffered Tragedies of Their Own

Major Rathbone and his fiancée Clara Harris were the couple that accepted an invitation to join the Lincolns at Ford's Theater. After the assassination they were married and had three children. However, Henry was never able to get over what happened at Ford’s Theater. He felt guilty for surviving the assassination and believed he should have done more to prevent the tragedy from happening.  On Christmas Eve in 1883, he murdered his wife Clara in an attempted murder-suicide. He survived his own stab wounds and lived for another 30 years at an asylum for the criminally insane. Mary Todd Lincoln, who suffered from depression after the loss of three of her sons and her husband was institutionalized herself in 1875.

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5 Things You Didn't Know About Charlie Chaplin_2

On April 16, 1889, future Hollywood legend Charlie Chaplin was born Charles Spencer Chaplin in London, England. Here are 5 things you didn't know about one of the most successful stars of early Hollywood...

Chaplin Once Made an Actress Say the Same Two Words 342 Times.

Chaplin had a well-deserved reputation as a perfectionist, and his dedication to getting things right showed in his films. His methods could raise some eyebrows, however. For example, he once made an actress repeat two words, "Flower sir?" an astounding 342 times when directing City Lights. Keep in mind that City Lights was a silent film, and Chaplin wasn't concerned about her actual tone of voice. All those takes were to get the actress' facial expression and physical actions right.

He Didn't Make a Talkie Until 1940.

Sound had become a part of movies long before Charlie Chaplin agreed to speak on screen. In fact, when sound first made inroads after 1927, Chaplin continued to make movies that were essentially silent save for a musical score and some spoken gibberish that was supposed to be fake Italian. His first "talkie" wasn't made until 1940, when he made The Great Dictator. Luckily, Chaplin's voice was well suited to talkies. Poor vocal skills had knocked several famous silent stars out of pictures once sound became an expected part of a film and their voices didn't prove to be up to the task.

He Has a Minor Planet Named After Him.

3623 Chaplin is a minor planet -- a fancy way of saying it's an asteroid -- that orbits our sun. It was discovered and named in 1981 by a Soviet astronomer named Lyudmila Georgievna Karachkina. She was an expert at finding these smaller celestial bodies and decided to name this one after Charlie Chaplin.

He Married Three Separate Teenagers

Chaplin didn't have the best track record in terms of marriage, and he tended to marry young -- as in, his first wife was 17 and his second wife was only 16. In 1943, Chaplin, who was 54 at the time, married Oona O’Neill, 18, who was the daughter of playwright Eugene O’Neill. Their marriage lasted until Chaplin died, and they had eight children together. The marriage came at a cost, however;  Eugene O'Neill was so opposed to his daughter's marriage that he disowned Oona.

Chaplin’s Body Was Stolen Two Months After His Death

In 1978, several months following his death, Chaplin’s body was stolen from a cemetery in Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland, and held for ransom. The robbers wanted $600,000 for the remains. Two auto mechanics, one from Bulgaria and the other from Poland were arrested, and Chaplin’s body was discovered in Corsair, around one mile from his family home, buried in a cornfield. Roman Wardas, was sentenced to 4 ½ years at hard labor, while his cohort, Gantscho Ganev, received a suspended sentence of 18 months. The two apologized in writing just before they were sent to jail. 

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5 Things You Might Not Know About The Ford Mustang

On this day in 1964, the Ford Mustang was officially unveiled by Henry Ford II at the World’s Fair in Flushing Meadows, New York.  That same day, the new car also debuted in Ford showrooms across America.  Here are 5 things you probably didn't know about the Ford Mustang.

22,000 Were Sold on The First Day

To say people were excited about the Ford Mustang would be an understatement, as 22,000 units were sold on the first day. When the pony car made its debut on April 17, 1964, the base price was just $2,368. Ford’s original sales forecast for the Mustang in the first year was about 100,000. Instead, Ford sold 400,000 within the first 12 months of production and more than 1 million units were sold by March 1966. Since its debut, this iconic car has sold more than 9 million.

The Mustang Wasn’t Named After a Horse

Although many people started calling the Mustang “Pony,” it might have actually been named after the P-51 Mustang, which was a World War II fighter plane. Lee Iacocca, who helped design the Mustang, said it was popular to name vehicles after animals, but John Najjar, the designer, said he was the one who suggested the new Ford car be named for the fighter plane. Other names that were under consideration for the car were Torino, Avventura, Allegro, and Cougar.

The First Mustang Off the Production Line Ended Up in Canada

The Mustang designated with serial number 1 was a convertible in Wimbledon White that was never intended to be for sale. However, Stanley Tucker, a pilot for Eastern Airlines, talked a Newfoundland car dealer into selling him the car. It took two years before Ford talked Tucker into selling them the car with a promise of the 1 millionth Mustang to roll off the assembly line in exchange, which was produced in 1966. Today, that first Mustang is prominently displayed in the Henry Ford Museum. It still has Tucker’s license plate on it, too.

The Most Expensive Mustang Sold for $1.3 Million

The most expensive Mustang ever sold went for a whopping $1.3 million in 2013 at the Mecum Auction in Indianapolis. It was the rare 1967 Shelby GT500 Super Snake. Not only was it the first Mustang to be called a Super Snake, but it was the only one of its kind. Originally, only 50 were supposed to be made, but its $8,000 price tag didn’t sit well with potential buyers and thus only one was made. In addition to its one-of-a-kind status, this pony car also had a 427-cubic-inch V8 engine from a Ford GT40 race car under its hood.

Ford Put a Mustang on Top of The Empire State Building

In 2014, Ford put a Mustang GT convertible on the observation deck of the Empire State Building. It was in commemoration of the pony car’s 50th anniversary and its public debut at the New York World’s Fair in 1964. It took a team of engineers weeks to figure out how to take apart the Mustang GT and take it up in pieces on service elevators, since cranes and even a helicopter wouldn’t work with the building’s design. They even practiced taking the car apart and reassembling it in the early morning, so everything would be ready and presentable on time. Ford took full advantage of the press surrounding the event, splashing photos of the gleaming vehicle with the Big Apple spread out behind it.

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5 Things You Didn't Know About Paul Revere_2

On April 18, 1775, Paul Revere made history with his midnight ride to warn colonists that the British were coming. The Trivia Today team has put together these five shocking facts you probably didn't know about Paul Revere and his midnight ride! 

Revere Was Captured Before He Completed His Ride

Although Paul Revere did ride to warn colonists the British were coming, he wasn’t the only one warning colonists. Nor did he ride alone. Revere was accompanied by Samuel Prescott and William Dawes, and they split up later, going in different directions. Around halfway through their ride, Revere was captured by a British patrol, and Dawes lost his horse, but Prescott made it to Concord in time to spread the news that the British were on their way.

He Had to Borrow a Horse to Make His Ride

After Revere crossed the Charles River under cover of darkness, he needed a worthy steed to carry him the 20 or so miles to Concord. He borrowed one from John Larkin, a Charlestown patriot, who got it from his father, Deacon John Larkin. The horse, a mare named Brown Beauty, was captured and Larkin would never see Brown Beauty again.  Revere did, however, refer to the beast as "a very good horse."

Revere Never Said, "The British Are Coming!"

Though it certainly makes the story more exciting, the statement would have made no sense in 1775 considering the fact that colonialists were...well...all British. That'd be a bit like running through Massachusetts today saying, "Americans are coming this way!" Actual accounts of Revere's midnight ride reveal he and his riding pals actually said: "The Regulars are coming out." Admittedly, that's a lot less catchy than "The British are coming," but people are rarely considering how they'll sound in the history books.  

However, He Did Introduce the Famous Phrase "One If by Land, Two If by Sea."

Fearing he may not even make it across the Charles River without getting caught by British troops, Revere made a "Plan B." He coordinated a signal with Christ's Church in Boston's North End (which is right on the river) to notify colonists in Charlestown when the British troops were coming. One lantern in the bell tower meant troops were coming by land, two in the tower indicated a naval attack.

He Went on to Become a Successful Businessman.

After the American Revolution, Revere opened a hardware store, a foundry and eventually the first rolling copper mill in the United States. He provided materials for the historic frigate USS Constitution, which played an important role in the War of 1812 and is the world’s oldest floating commissioned naval vessel. He also produced more than 900 church bells, one of which still rings every Sunday in Boston’s King’s Chapel. Revere Copper Products, Inc., is still in operation today.

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5 Lesser Known Facts About The American Revolution_3

On April 19, 1775, the American Revolution began when American and British soldiers exchanged fire at Concord and Lexington. Here are 5 things you probably never heard about the American Revolutionary War…

The Colonists Were Not Originally Seeking Independence

When the American Revolution began in 1775, colonialists were more interested in greater self-government than they were with separating from the British Empire. In fact, in the petition to King George III, the Continental Congress appealed to him for protection and assured him that independence was not an objective of the colonists. The colonists’ attitude changed when the king and ministers of Britain rebuffed them, so many thought their only option was to strive for independence.

The Boston Tea Party Had a Sequel

We all know about the initial incident on December 16, 1773, when Boston’s Sons of Liberty dressed as Mohawk Indians and tossed 342 chests of tea from three ships into the Boston Harbor to protest the taxes imposed in the Tea Act. But we forget that they felt the need to hammer the point home with a second party, on March 7, 1774 — probably because they grabbed only 16 chests of tea.

George Washington Returned British General Howe's Dog to Him After A Battle

At the Battle of Germantown, 150 of Washington’s men were killed, 500 wounded, and 400 taken prisoner.  But George Washington didn’t lose his sense of good manners with the battle. A fox terrier appeared in the American’s camp that was wearing a tag with British General Howe’s name as the owner. Washington promptly returned the dog back to Howe along with the following polite note (likely written by Alexander Hamilton):

To General William Howe

General Washington’s compliments to General Howe. He does himself the pleasure to return [to] him a dog, which accidentally fell into his hands, and by the inscription on the collar appears to belong to General Howe.

The Secretary of War Trained Himself by Reading

Henry Knox was a bookstore apprentice and opened his own store in 1771, where he read books on fortification construction, military tactics and even how to target artillery. He joined the local militia in Boston in 1772, and after the harbor was shut off for trade by the Boston Port Act, he and his spouse sneaked over to the other side of the river where he joined the revolutionary forces. Washington was impressed with his knowledge of homemade fortifications, and Knox became his chief artillery officer and was later appointed as the country’s first Secretary of War.

A Woman Disguised Herself as a Man and Served During the War

Massachusetts born Deborah Sampson, who was taller than most men at the time, was one of a few women who saw military combat during the War of Independence and proved to be an excellent soldier. Using the name Robert Shurtliff, she enlisted in the army with the 4th Massachusetts Regiment and was wounded in the leg by two musket balls at a battle in Tarrytown before she was discovered after having served for about three years. She was honorably discharged on October 25, 1783, after a physician discovered she wasn’t a male when he treated her for an illness.

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5 Radioactive Facts About Marie Curie_2

On April 20, 1902, scientist Marie Curie successfully isolated the element radium while researching pitchblende from her laboratory in Paris. Here are 5 things you never knew about Marie Curie…

She Won Nobel Prizes in Two Different Sciences

Curie won a Nobel Prize for physics in 1903, along with her French physicist husband, Pierre, and physicist Henri Becquerel for the advances they had made in the subject of radioactivity. In 1911, Curie won a second Nobel Prize in the category of chemistry for her discovery of the elements polonium and radium. Madam Curie is the only person to have ever received Nobel Prizes in two different sciences.

Her Daughter Also Won The Nobel Prize

In the case of Marie and Pierre Curie’s eldest daughter, Irène, it can safely be said that the apple did not fall far from the tree.  Irene grew up to marry Frederic Joliot-Curie, and the two were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the breakthroughs they had made in the synthesis of new radioactive elements. Though it had been Curie's pleasure to have witnessed her daughter and son-in-law’s successful research, she did not live to see them win the award.

She Worked Out of a Shack

It may come as a surprise to know that Curie and Pierre conducted the bulk of the research and experimentation which led to the discovery of the elements Radium and Polonium in what was described by the respected German chemist, Wilhelm Ostwald, as “a cross between a stable and a potato shed.” In fact, when he was first shown the premises, he assumed that it was “a practical joke.” Even after the couple had won the Nobel Prize for their discoveries, Pierre died never having set foot in the new laboratory that the University of Paris had promised to build them.

Curie’s Study of Radium Is What Killed Her

Curie died of aplastic anemia on July 4, 1934, which is believed to have been caused by her long-term exposure to radiation during her career. Safety measures had not yet been developed to improve safety while working near or with radium, but scientists now use protective clothing, gloves, and other protective gear and keep the element in boxes lined with lead. Her husband, Pierre, had died in 1906 at age 46 when he slipped and fell under the wheels of a vehicle being pulled by horses.

Her Laboratory Notes Are Still Radioactive

Though Marie and Pierre were at the forefront of research into radioactivity, the duo had no idea how harmful the elements they studied were to the human body. Both scientists handled radium with zero protection. Pierre supposedly kept a chunk of uranium in his pocket for the curious to observe its heating and glowing properties while Marie kept some by her bedside as a night-light. It wasn't until well after Marie's death that the effects of radioactivity on the human body were thoroughly understood. Given their reckless handling of the elements, many of the Curies' possessions remain so radioactive today that researchers cannot safely handle them.

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5 Things You Didn't Know About Mark Twain

April 21, 1910 marked the death of Samuel Clemens, or, as he's better known today, Mark Twain. Here are 5 things you probably didn't know about the author of the novels 'Adventures of Tom Sawyer' and 'Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’...

The Name Mark Twain Is Boating Jargon

Twain’s real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens, but he decided to write under an alias. He tried a few, such as Sergeant Fathom and Thomas Jefferson Snodgrass, before settling on Mark Twain. The name in boating language means two fathoms, which equals water that is 12-feet deep. It’s been rumored that he came up with the name because he was a steamboat pilot, but another theory is he used to yell “Mark Twain” when he went into a bar, which meant he wanted two drinks.

Twain Invented a Memory Game

While Twain was procrastinating about working on “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” he was busily inventing a new game. He intended it to be a game to play outdoors, but it ended up a board game because that was more marketable. Unfortunately, it was complex and players had to be brainiacs to play it, so the game was patented but never produced. One critic compared the game to a mash-up of an income tax form and a logarithm table.

Mark Twain Was Captured on Film

Thomas Edison, a good friend of Mark Twain, captured him on film footage shot in 1909, which was only a year before the famous author died. Twain is seen sporting his walrus mustache and dressed in a light-colored suit, and appears with his two daughters in one scene. At another time, Edison made a recording of Twain reading stories, but those were lost in a fire. Twain was also friends with Nikola Tesla, and he even patented some things of his own, including detachable clothing straps.

Twain Loved Cats So Much He Rented Them

If Twain had been a woman, he certainly would have been called a “cat lady” because he owned 19 of the furry felines and had a high opinion of them compared to humans. He missed his pets when he was traveling, so he would actually pay to rent a few when he was out of town. The names he came up for his cats were, as one might expect, imaginative and included Blatherskite, Sour Mash, Soapy Sal, Satan, and Buffalo Bill.

Twain Accurately Predicted When He Would Die

The author was born in 1835 on the day Halley’s Comet passed by our planet on November 30. The comet only passes approximately every 75 years, and Twain predicted that he came into the world when Halley's Comet arrived and would leave the world when it passed by again. He was right and died of an apparent heart attack on April 21, 1910, the day after the comet made its next appearance.

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5 Facts You Didn't Know About Earth Day

April 22 is Earth Day, when people from all corners of the world unite to support environmental reform.  Earth Day is intended as a moment to reflect on and help preserve the health of the planet – but here are 5 things that you might not have known about the annual event. 

Senator Gaylord Nelson Was The Founder of Earth Day

In 1970, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson was looking for a way to promote the environmental movement. He proposed the idea of "Earth Day." His plan included classes and projects that would help the public understand what they could do to protect the environment. The first Earth Day was held on April 22, 1970. The holiday has been celebrated on this day every year since.

April 22 Was Chosen as Earth Day Because It Was Also Arbor Day

April 22 is Earth Day not because that's when college students are most likely to be on campus, despite some claims. April 22, 1970, was Arbor Day, the day celebrating trees and planting trees. It seemed like an appropriate day to spotlight how the planet was doing. Granted, April 22 is usually too late for spring break and too early for finals, so it is a good day if you want to involve college students. But Earth Day itself was given that date just because of the connection to Arbor Day.

Earth Day Went Global in 1990

Earth Day may have originated in the U.S., but today it is a global phenomenon celebrated in almost every country around the world.Earth Day's international status owes its thanks to Denis Hayes. He is the national organizer of Earth Day events in the U.S. In 1990, he coordinated similar Earth Day events in 141 countries. More than 200 million people around the world took part in these events.

A Number of Trees Have an Astronomical Link to Earth Day

Back in 1971, an astronaut on the Apollo 14 mission brought some tree seeds with him as he orbited the moon. The point was partly to see how lowered gravity would affect the seeds and partly to pay tribute to the Forest Service, for which the astronaut used to work. The container holding the seeds broke open prematurely, making the gravity experiment pointless, but many of the seeds were still planted around national monuments, and they still grew normally, forming a select group of trees that have been called "Moon Trees."

Earth Day Has Its Own Flag

The Earth Day flag is fairly obvious: it’s an image of the planet (the famous “Blue Marble” picture that was taken by the Apollo 17 spacecraft as they travelled towards the Moon) placed on a dark blue background. It was created by John McConnell and has caught on perhaps because it is such a neat way of realizing what Earth is about: the entire planet, and its health.

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5 Things You Didn't Know About William Shakespeare_3

April 23, 1564, is considered to be William Shakespeare's birthday. Often called England's national poet, Shakespeare is considered to be the greatest dramatist of all time. Here are 5 things you didn't know about William Shakespeare.

Shakespeare Likely Died on His Birthday

According to tradition, William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon on April 23, 1564. It is impossible to be certain the exact day on which he was born, but church records show that he was baptized on April 26, and three days was a customary amount of time to wait before baptizing a newborn. Shakespeare’s date of death is conclusively known, however: it was April 23, 1616. That would make his birth and death days the same. 

We Probably Don’t Spell His Name Correctly—But, Then Neither Did He.

Sources from William Shakespeare’s lifetime spell his last name in more than 80 different ways, ranging from “Shappere” to “Shaxberd.” Only six signatures exist, and they are found on legal documents. Shakespeare spelled his name differently on each one, and on two, he neglected to write his entire last name, abbreviating it instead. However it’s spelled, Shakespeare is thought to derive from the Old English words “schakken” (“to brandish”) and “speer” (“spear”), and probably referred to a confrontational or argumentative person.

Shakespeare Wore an Earring.

Only one portrait of the many painted of William Shakespeare can be traced as being done during his lifetime. In the painting, believed to have been done by John Taylor, Shakespeare is bearded and has a receding hairline, but he is also wearing a gold hoop earring in his left ear. During this period of the English Renaissance, both courtiers and sailors wore an earring, although those worn by sailors were intended to pay for their funeral expenses if they died.

He Made up Words.

Are you feeling lonely as a result of social distancing? Has your productivity dwindled? Are your attempts at work producing lackluster results? If so, you can thank Shakespeare for your ability to describe what's going on. Shakespeare was known to have created many words for his plays, but the list is more extensive -- and common -- than a lot of people realize. Lonely, lackluster, dwindle, critic, uncomfortable, and surprisingly, skim milk, are among the many words that Shakespeare pulled out of thin air. The Oxford English Dictionary credits Shakespeare with adding nearly 3,000 new words to the language.

The Moons of Uranus Are Named After Shakespearean Characters

While most of the satellites orbiting other planets take their names from various mythologies, Uranus' moons are unique in being named for Shakespearean characters, along with a couple of the moons being named for characters from the works of Alexander Pope. To date 27 moons have been discovered around Uranus, those named after characters from Shakespeare include Titania (A Midsummer Night's Dream), Oberon (A Midsummer Night's Dream), Ariel (The Tempest), Miranda (The Tempest) and Puck (A Midsummer Night's Dream).

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5 Interesting Facts About The Library of Congress_2

The Library of Congress is celebrating its 220th birthday today, and the Trivia Today team is ready to party! On April 24, 1800, President John Adams approved a $5,000 budget for Congress to purchase over 700 books in what would become the first entries in the Library of Congress. Here are 5 cool facts you didn’t know about the Library of Congress…

Thomas Jefferson "Donated" His Books to Help Rebuild The Library

In 1814, British troops burned the Capitol Building—where the Library of Congress was housed at the time—to the ground as part of their siege on Washington during the War of 1812. Most of the library's 3,000 volumes were incinerated. Soon after, President Thomas Jefferson volunteered to donate his collection of over 6,000 books to build a new foundation for the library. Despite some controversy around the idea, Congress eventually agreed, and Jefferson was paid $24,000 for his books. Fortunately, Jefferson was interested in a lot of subjects, so the new books included subjects such as philosophy, science, and art, but many were lost in a second fire in 1851.

The Library Contains Over 164 Million Entries

The $5,000 budget approved by President Adams on April 24, 1800, was enough to get Congress 740 books and three maps. Today, that number has risen pretty significantly. In addition to over 30 million books and nearly 70 million manuscripts, the library contains over 13 million photographs, 6.5 million pieces of music, 5 million maps, and 3 million miscellaneous recordings spread across 883 miles of shelving.  

The Library Contains a Lot More Than Just Books

The books held by the Library of Congress are impressive on their own and range from a giant 5’ by 7’ book containing photos of Bhutan to a Gutenberg Bible. In addition, it houses the piano that belonged to composer George Gershwin and the joke collection of comedian Bob Hope. One of the more unusual items in the library’s possession includes the items that were in President Abraham Lincoln’s pockets that fateful night when he was assassinated at Ford’s Theater on April 14, 1865, which included a $5 Confederate note and two pairs of spectacles.

Employees at the Library Do the Research for Congressional Members

Members of the House of Representatives and the Senate don’t have to handle the research when drafting new legislation. They can turn to the team of scientists, librarians, lawyers and economists who are employed by the Library of Congress, which was set up in 1914 to do just that. The current 600 employees with the Congressional Research Service supply members of the Senate and House with briefings, reports, presentations and even seminars to help them out.

It Also Has Over 120,000 Comic Books.

If you thought it was all law books and old Bibles, you're wrong: the Library of Congress also houses the world's largest collection of comic books. There are 6,000 titles in all, including comics from Japan, France, Spain, and Germany dating back as early as the 1930s. As far as American comics go, the library owns the first appearance comics of Spider-Man, Batman, the Fantastic Four, and the Incredible Hulk, as well as Famous Funnies No. 1 which many consider to be the first American comic book.  

[dgrimm60]

PHKRAUSE

I did  not  know  that over 120,000 comic books  are in the  Library of Congress  ====also  I did  not  know  

that  these  comics  are  not  just from the  UNITED  STATES  but from  other  countries====

dgrimm60

[phkrause]

5 Things We've Learned From The Hubble Space Telescope

On April 25, 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope was deployed into orbit from the payload bay of the Space Shuttle Discovery. On the anniversary of this milestone in space exploration, here are five things we’ve learned from the Hubble Space Telescope...

The Hubble Provided Baby Pictures of the Universe

The universe is huge, and it takes a long time for light to reach where we humans live, so scientists were astonished when the Hubble Telescope captured images of 3,000 distant galaxies. But none of the 3000 galaxies pictured in the "Hubble Deep Field" were recent. Hubble had photographed galaxies from billions of years in the past—that's how long it took the light to reach us. These baby pictures of distant galaxies from billions of years ago were from the beginning of time.

Scientists Discovered the Universe Isn’t Slowing Down

After the Big Bang, it made sense that the expansion of the universe would eventually slow down. However, the Hubble Space Telescope showed just the opposite and that its speed was increasing. It is believed that this expansion is because of the dark energy, which is a force that repels and counteracts gravity. Scientists have said that entirely new types of physics may be required to explain these exciting developments. 

It Proved the Existence of Enormous Black Holes

The theory of relativity proved by Albert Einstein predicted the existence of black holes, but it was a problem for scientists to prove this theory. Although a black hole dubbed Cygnus X-1 was discovered in 1971, it hadn’t been proven that the centers of galaxies contained black holes that were supermassive. Enter the Hubble Space Telescope, which proved it was true by photographing a supermassive black hole centered in the M87 galaxy in 2019. It is one of the most astonishing discoveries in the telescope's three decades.

Ganymede Has an Ocean

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope provided evidence of an underground saltwater ocean on Ganymede, Jupiter’s largest moon. The subterranean ocean is believed to have more water than all the water on Earth's surface. “This discovery marks a significant milestone, highlighting what only Hubble can accomplish,” said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. “In its 25 years in orbit, Hubble has made many scientific discoveries in our own solar system. A deep ocean under the icy crust of Ganymede opens up further exciting possibilities for life beyond Earth."

Shoemaker-Levy 9

The comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collided spectacularly with Jupiter in 1994, an impact Hubble captured in all its startling glory. The giant planet's gravitational pull ripped the comet apart into fragments, resulting in 21 visible impacts. The largest collision created a fireball that rose about 1,800 miles above the Jovian cloud tops as well as a giant dark spot more than 7,460 miles across — about the size of the Earth — and was estimated to have exploded with the force of 6,000 gigatons of TNT. Not only did Hubble's observations heighten public interest in the effects of cosmic impacts, they also shed light on Jupiter's atmosphere.