The Oscar Award of the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts was conceived by the boss of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio, Louis B. Mayer. The first award ceremony was held on May 16, 1929 in the Blossom Room of the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood. The event was modest, only 270 guests were invited to it. Tickets for the first Oscar cost $5, and the ceremony lasted 15 minutes.
Pistachios can self-heat and self-ignite when stacked, stored or transported in large quantities. Therefore, pistachio nuts should not be placed near combustible or fibrous materials. The causes of ignition are high oil content, friction during transportation and the fact that after harvesting, metabolic processes continue in pistachios, while the process of fat splitting leads to heating.
Eugene Cernan is the last man to set foot on the moon. He did this as part of the crew of the Apollo 17 spacecraft in 1972, and it is he who is depicted in the legendary series of lunar photographs. Until today, after Eugene, only robots walked on the surface of the Moon, but very soon this may change — space tourism becomes a reality. We are waiting for news from Elon Musk and his Starship.
Russian the artist Ilya Repin did not consider his paintings completed and often came to the Tretyakov Gallery, where they were exhibited, to put the finishing touches on them. In the end, the owner of the gallery Pavel Tretyakov got tired of it, and he ordered Ilya Efimovich not to be allowed into the gallery if he had an easel and brushes in his hands.
According to legend, the dying Louis XIV told his secret wife Francoise: «With our upcoming separation, I am comforted only by the thought that it will not be long and we will meet soon...». The spouse replied: «A very kind consolation! He lived as an egoist, and he dies as an egoist.»
On September 3, 1967, Sweden switched from left-hand traffic to right-hand traffic. In Stockholm buses, it was necessary to cut out the doors on the right side and move the driver to the left. Tram lines were particularly affected — they were decided to remove them almost everywhere, except for Gothenburg, Norrkoping and a couple of lines in the Stockholm region. They switched traffic lights, changed road signs, adjusted headlights. The transition logo was found even on women's underwear… And the right-hand traffic has its own anthem «Keep to the right, Svensson». You can see the significant day itself on the cover of this article.
In 2020, scientists from the Japanese research Institute Showa found a box in Antarctica with the inscription «Emergency food supply», which had been lying there for more than 50 years. The box contained a can of Coca-Cola and several packs of Lotte gum. Scientists brought the find to Japan and handed it over to manufacturing companies. A Coca Cola representative said that such an old jar is not even in the collection of the company itself.
Sloths can hold their breath underwater for up to 40 minutes. This is more than any other animals can do. Such a delay in breathing is possible due to the very slow metabolism of sloths, in fact, they do not need so much oxygen.
There is a reason why Krusty the clown from The Simpsons is depicted looking like Homer. According to the original idea of the creators, the clown was supposed to be the secret identity of Homer, but later this idea was abandoned. Nevertheless, according to Matt Groening, they retained the satirical idea that Bart completely disrespects his father, but at the same time idolizes a television clown who looks exactly like Homer.
At an early stage of the production of The Matrix, Neo almost became a woman: the filmmakers offered this role to Sandra Bullock, but she refused. Subsequently, in 2009, the actress said that she was offered the role of Trinity. Perhaps then there was a misunderstanding between Bullock and the producers, as a result of which the gender of Neo remained unchanged.
