Groucho's Fact Hunt

[degsy]

I tip my hat at your capacity to keep this going.

My battery is flat. The frequency of puns has reached a negative, I fear this condition is terminal

 

[Black Belt Jones]

George Orwell was taught French by Aldous Huxley when he was at Eton for a couple of years - prior to each of them going on to write the twin colossi of 20th century dystopia.

Huxley wrote to Orwell after 1984 was published and was generous with his praise, but insisted his vision was the more likely one:

The philosophy of the ruling minority in Nineteen Eighty-Four is a sadism which has been carried to its logical conclusion by going beyond sex and denying it. Whether in actual fact the policy of the boot-on-the-face can go on indefinitely seems doubtful. My own belief is that the ruling oligarchy will find less arduous and wasteful ways of governing and of satisfying its lust for power, and these ways will resemble those which I described in Brave New World.

 

[Groucho]

Chicago means ‘onion’

 

[wm02]

The world’s longest burning lightbulb has been going since 1901

Centennial Light - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

I don’t know if there’s a specific reason that these type bulbs weren’t in widespread commercial use other than to make more money ...

There was a great 99% Invisible podcast about this

 

[summerisle]

 

[deipnosophist]

I tip my hat at your capacity to keep this going.

yes, he appears pretty amped about the subject

 

[deipnosophist]

nitrocellulose is the propellant used in many ballistic 'missiles'...including bullets

 

[chrismpw]

yes, he appears pretty amped about the subject

This pun-off was stone cold. You should be charged for trying to resurrect it.

 

[PhilM]

Hiroshima was bombed seventy-five years ago today when the 'Enola Gay', named after Col. Tibbit's mother, alongside The Necessary Evil' and 'The Great Artiste'.

The city was the home to the HQ of the Second Army and was a major hub for the defence of the Japanese homeland, so was chosen as a military target.

 

[JimmyJeffers]

Hiroshima was bombed seventy-five years ago today when the 'Enola Gay', named after Col. Tibbit's mother, alongside The Necessary Evil' and 'The Great Artiste'.

The city was the home to the HQ of the Second Army and was a major hub for the defence of the Japanese homeland, so was chosen as a military target.

You and @tsubaki might know about this. I understand why the first bomb was dropped after the fierce defence of the Japanese islands but why was the second bomb dropped on Nagasaki?

 

[tsubaki]

You and @tsubaki might know about this. I understand why the first bomb was dropped after the fierce defence of the Japanese islands but why was the second bomb dropped on Nagasaki?

They hadn’t surrendered.

 

[JimmyJeffers]

They hadn’t surrendered.

Mentalists

 

[tsubaki]

Mentalists

even after the second one there was a proper go at a coup to keep fighting

edit: a wiki article on it:

Kyūjō incident - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

as you say, mentalists; though the postwar fight back against that lunacy did lead to many of Japanese cinemas greatest films

 

[chrismpw]

nitrocellulose is the propellant used in many ballistic 'missiles'...including bullets

An early use of nitrocellulose was to make snooker and pool balls. You can imagine the scenes in a wild West saloon when the balls became old and unstable and exploded if struck hard with another ball.

 

[Mildredblues]

even after the second one there was a proper go at a coup to keep fighting

edit: a wiki article on it:

Kyūjō incident - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

as you say, mentalists; though the postwar fight back against that lunacy did lead to many of Japanese cinemas greatest films

Some sections of the army were even planning a coup to take over from the Emperor after he had the 'temerity' to surrender. He only did so because of threats to nuking Tokyo.