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How Leonard Nimoy Came Up With “Live Long and Prosper” and the Associated Hand Gesture
Today I found out the iconic “live long and prosper” hand gesture was originally a Jewish sign. The hand gesture itself is a slight modification of the Hebrew gesture forming the letter “Shin”, which
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The Surprisingly Poor Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air
Prior to his role as Will Smith in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Willard Smith (yes, Willard) enjoyed a successful career as a rapper under the pseudonym, “The Fresh Prince” as part of a
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When Dean Martin Called His Shot
Ricci Martin, son of the world-famous singer Dean, was just like most any other teenager in the early months of 1964. Ricci was totally crazy about and obsessed with the Beatles. Ever since the
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The United States v. Paramount and How Movie Theater Concessions Got So Expensive
Walter K. asks: Why are movie theaters allowed to make their concessions so expensive? In 1948, the Supreme Court ended the stranglehold Hollywood studios and distributors had on the U.S. movie market. Declaring the
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Child Actors and Coogan’s Bill
Born into acting, by the age of five Jackie Coogan, Jr. was a veteran stage performer when Charlie Chaplin first spotted him in 1919. Immediately cast in Chaplin’s A Day’s Pleasure, the hard-working Coogan
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Interesting Facts About the Beatles and the Monkees
The Beatles vs. “The Monkees”… Well, that’s really no contest, is it? Isn’t that rather like comparing Marilyn Monroe to J. Lo? Jim Carrey to Pauly Shore? As we all well know and readily
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The Day the Beatles Ran a Relay Race
It was May 11, 1965. The Beatles were on location, wrapping up filming their second movie “Help!” The “Help!” director, Richard Lester, was to film a few atmosphere and scenery shots in London the
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Harpo Marx and His Habit of Shedding His Clothing at Random Times
Adolph Arthur “Harpo” Marx was a brilliant, delightful, completely original comedian. Any fan of the Marx brothers and the wonderful movies (as I am) knows this. In the Marx brothers movies, Harpo played a
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Paul McCartney’s “Scrambled Eggs,” which Evolved Into One of the Most Recorded Songs of All Time
“I reckon ‘Yesterday’ is probably my best song. I like it not only because it was a big success, but because it was one of the most instinctive songs I’ve ever written. I was
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The #1 Song the Beatles Turned Down
The Beatles had more number one hit records than anyone in the history of music. Elvis, Frank Sinatra, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Madonna, the Supremes and every other music legend takes a backseat
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The Day the Beatles Were Awarded MBE Medals
It was early May of 1965, the Beatles were busy in Twickenham studios in London, working on their second movie “Help!” During a break in filming, their manager, Brian Epstein, showed up in a
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Al Jolson- Misunderstood Hero or Villain?
Ask most movie fans, “What was the first ‘talkie’?” The most frequent reply tends to be “The Jazz Singer” starring Al Jolson. This is a “sort of” correct answer, but not really. The earliest
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A Brief History of the “Happiest Place on Earth”
On November 15, 1965, at approximately 2:00 pm in the Grand Ballroom of the Cherry Plaza Hotel in Orlando, Florida, Governor Haydon Burns sat between the brothers Disney, Walt and Roy during a press
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What Was Wrong With Tiny Tim?
Masen G. asks: Given the symptoms in the story, what was Tiny Tim sick with that a little money for 19th century medical care was able to fix? In Charles Dickens’ holiday classic, A
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The High School Dropout Who Co-Created Trivial Pursuit
In December 1979, in the depths of a Montreal winter, two Canadian newspapermen created one of the most popular board games the world has ever known. High school dropout Chris Haney was the photo
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Why Michael Jackson’s Skin Turned White as He Got Older
Scott L. asks: Is it true that Michael Jackson bleached his skin to turn himself white? Many scandals marred Michael Jackson’s personal life, overshadowing his otherwise remarkable musical career. One such scandal was the
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“She Loves You” and The Start of Beatlemania
This is where Beatlemania begins. Along with the then “shocking” Beatle haircuts, this song is “the” symbol, “the signature tune” of the early Beatles- the four happy, cheerful, chipper, and harmless moptops. This is
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The Time the K Foundation Burned a Million British Pounds for No Apparent Reason
On August 23, 1994, Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty set fire to, and completely destroyed, £1 million. What makes the story even weirder is that nobody, not even the burners, seems to really know
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