JPHutchy01
JPHutchy01 t1_j5zjc55 wrote
Reply to TIL about Wenceslao Moguel (nicknamed "The executed one"), a Mexican soldier under Pancho Villa who was sentenced to death after being captured but survived the execution by firing squad after being shot 8 times, and then once in the head as a coup de grâce. by TheMadhopper
His boss was better at avoiding the firing squad, at least Villa's reprieve arrived before the shots started flying..
JPHutchy01 t1_j52nqdg wrote
Reply to comment by AReluctantEssayist in TIL that George "Washington" Carver never formally used Washington as a middle name. He originally chose the middle initial W at random to ensure accurate mail delivery. Someone once asked if the "W" stood for Washington and Carver said "Why not?" He signed his name as George or George W. Carver. by AspireAgain
Not to be confused with Harry S. Truman who's parents could agree whether it should be "Solomon" or "Shipp" so in the end it was just left as "S."
JPHutchy01 t1_j1l52yh wrote
Reply to comment by joncgde2 in Today I learned that Druids gathered Mistletoe using Golden Sickles by darth_nadoma
That's very true. I remembered after writing that, it's Jules Verne that had the bad translations and that Goscinny worked in the US so of course they'd be fine. There's no excuse for that mistake beyond tiredness and them both being French icons I need to read.
JPHutchy01 t1_j1ipah9 wrote
Reply to comment by storxian in Today I learned that Druids gathered Mistletoe using Golden Sickles by darth_nadoma
I still desperately need to read Asterix, from what I've heard the English translations are good now which is for the best because my French is horrific and by this point probably nonexistent.
JPHutchy01 t1_j19xd2x wrote
Reply to TIL of Jeanne de-Valois-Saint-Rémy, a frenchwoman con-artist who tricked a Cardinal into buying a $15.1m diamond necklace pretending to be a confident of Marie Antoinette. This led to irreparable reputational harm to the Crown, bringing further support to the French Revolution. by DoctorKynes
The podcaster Mike Duncan covered this in an episode of the brilliant and sadly ending podcast Revolutions. https://thehistoryofrome.typepad.com/revolutions_podcast/2014/08/34-necker-and-the-necklace.html
JPHutchy01 t1_jdwdtvq wrote
Reply to TIL: A family of 12 performers, 7 of whom were dwarves, all survived Auschwitz after being separated by Mengele. Several prisoners who survived claimed they believed they were hallucinating when they saw seven well-dressed dwarves passing by. by 0verlyAnxious
Who learns both the cello and the accordion, that's not the most obvious pairing but then again I suppose every other accordionist I can think of also plays the guitar and being Romanian, a cello was probably more relevant.