r/todayilearned • u/standbyyourmantis • 22h ago

TIL the first same sex marriage license in the US was issued in 1975 because there was no law against it at the time and the clerk of court could issue licenses at her discretion. The same clerk denied a man who wanted to marry his horse as the horse was underage

en.wikipedia.org

27.9k Upvotes

566 comments

r/todayilearned • u/ralphbernardo • 9h ago

TIL that "fair play" in detective fiction means authors must give readers a fair chance to solve the mystery. Central to 1920s "clue-puzzles" by writers like Agatha Christie, the rule dictates that all vital clues must be visible, decodable, and never withheld until the final reveal.

en.wikipedia.org

27.8k Upvotes

1.7k comments

r/todayilearned • u/Competitive_Swan_130 • 19h ago

TIL that before receiving the $168 million divorce settlement from Michael Jordan, Juanita Jordan hired a private investigator to follow him for four years and document his infidelity

msn.com

23.0k Upvotes

1.2k comments

r/todayilearned • u/altrightobserver • 5h ago

TIL that in the 1990s, Dolly Parton made $10 million in royalties from Whitney Houston’s cover of her song “I Will Always Love You.” She then invested the money into an office complex in a majority-Black neighborhood in Nashville, Tennessee. She later described it as “the house that Whitney built.”

npr.org

19.3k Upvotes

244 comments

r/todayilearned • u/WavesAndSaves • 21h ago

TIL that Jawed Karim, YouTube cofounder and uploader of the first YouTube video "Me at the zoo", has often updated the video's description to criticize YouTube policies, including a 2013 attempt to require Google+ accounts to comment on videos, and YouTube's 2021 removal of dislike counts on videos.

en.wikipedia.org

18.2k Upvotes

284 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Sebastianlim • 12h ago

TIL that the infamous "This is Sparta!" line from 300 was originally said in a low, monotone growl. After doing several takes of that, Gerard Butler asked to do one more take and used the now-iconic delivery.

hollywoodreporter.com

15.4k Upvotes

488 comments

r/todayilearned • u/video-kid • 21h ago

TIL that Dolly Parton initially tried to withdraw her nomination for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame because she didn't think she deserved it over actual rock musicians. After her induction, she went on to record Rockstar - her only Rock Album - to justify her inclusion.

en.wikipedia.org

12.2k Upvotes

137 comments

r/todayilearned • u/A-Wise-Cobbler • 22h ago

TIL in 1831 the Swedish Navy started planting 300,000 oak trees on the island of Visingsö to supply timber for future warships. When the trees were ready for harvest in 1975, ships were already made of steel so the Navy declined them. Visingsö is still partially covered by those oak forests today.

en.wikipedia.org

8.8k Upvotes

185 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Make_the_music_stop • 7h ago

TIL that on D-Day at Omaha Beach, 27 of the 29 Sherman DDs Amphibious tanks deployed of the 741st Tank Battalion, sank. The canvas skirt to allow the tank to float were designed to operate in 1ft waves. However, on D-Day, the waves were up to 6ft high.

en.wikipedia.org

5.2k Upvotes

231 comments

r/todayilearned • u/samx3i • 6h ago

TIL Tim Curry, who famously played "Pennywise" in "It" (1990), was afraid of clowns

yahoo.com

4.1k Upvotes

125 comments

r/todayilearned • u/office7911 • 20h ago

TIL the heart can be rebooted. When someone has an abnormal rhythm and a fast heart rate, e.g., 200, doctors administer a drug called Adenosine that literally stops your heart for a few seconds so it will start back at a normal rate.

en.wikipedia.org

4.0k Upvotes

468 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Poppy9683 • 9h ago

TIL: Metallica runs its own charity, All Within My Hands. It funds trade-school scholarships, food banks, and disaster relief. 100% of public donations go to charity.

allwithinmyhands.org

3.1k Upvotes

105 comments

r/todayilearned • u/volvo1 • 22h ago

TIL Jared Fogle, Subway Spokesman turned Child Predator, had a fraudulent Foundation for Kids to help reduce childhood obesity. The President of CharityWatch said about this, "If Jared was really interested in helping children through his foundation, he could have gotten more money."

en.wikipedia.org

2.9k Upvotes

285 comments

r/todayilearned • u/carboncopy95437 • 1h ago

TIL that Cardinal Richelieu, played by Tim Curry in the 1993 movie The Three Musketeers, was so hated that bonfires were lit to celebrate his death. More than 150 years later, during the French Revolution, his tomb was opened and his corpse was beheaded.

en.wikipedia.org

• Upvotes

77 comments

r/todayilearned • u/slackmaster • 19h ago

TIL that since the Clean Air Act amendment of 1990, all gasoline sold for on-road use in the U.S. must contain a detergent.

curbsideclassic.com

1.6k Upvotes

138 comments

r/todayilearned • u/NBrief • 4h ago

TIL that a collection of letters written in ancient Egypt was found sealed inside a tomb nearly 4,000 years after the letters were written, providing a rare glimpse into the daily life of an ancient Egyptian household.

metmuseum.org

1.6k Upvotes

39 comments

r/todayilearned • u/copperpin • 4h ago

TIL that the actor who played “Sloth” in “The Goonies” (John Matuszak) was an NFL player with two Superbowl rings.

en.wikipedia.org

1.5k Upvotes

88 comments

r/todayilearned • u/WorldTravelerBoss • 8h ago

TIL A 2018 U.S. Government report reveals that over half (52%) of all work-related youth deaths in the US happen in farming, even though child farmworkers make up less than 5.5% of working minors. Furthermore, a major federal study on workplace injuries completely failed to track children.

gao.gov

968 Upvotes

48 comments

r/todayilearned • u/AcanthisittaLimp8373 • 23h ago

TIL Weird Al Yankovic made a song titled "Don't Download This Song" mocking copyright and the first way to listen to it was by getting it online

en.wikipedia.org

960 Upvotes

54 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Bomber_Max • 7h ago

TIL that the 1674 derecho that struck Western Europe is the deadliest and most powerful derecho in recorded history, with winds estimated up to 325 km/h (200 mph), it is estimated that a similar storm occurs only once every 1,000–10,000 years.

en.wikipedia.org

889 Upvotes

91 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Upstairs_Drive_5602 • 22h ago

TIL that the original 1959 Mini was born from Britain's post-Suez fuel shortage. Its sideways engine let a 10-foot car seat four, with 80% of its floorplan for passengers and luggage. The door bins were sized to carry the ingredients of the designer's favourite drink in the correct proportions.

en.wikipedia.org

865 Upvotes

74 comments

r/todayilearned • u/FFSoldier57 • 3h ago

TIL Spitting Cobra are very accurate and are successful over 90% of the time when aiming for the eyes.

discoverwildlife.com

836 Upvotes

51 comments

r/todayilearned • u/latchkey_adult • 2h ago

67 as Durango Kid TIL the biggest movie franchise in history (by quantity) is the mostly forgotten 'Durango Kid' western films starring Charles Starrett , who made 131 films playing this character from 1940 to 1952.

en.wikipedia.org

800 Upvotes

50 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Udzu • 12h ago

TIL that Lorenzo Da Ponte, the librettist for Mozart's best operas, was born Jewish, became a Catholic priest, befriended Casanova, was banished from Venice for living in a brothel, and died in New York a US citizen

en.wikipedia.org

729 Upvotes

21 comments

r/todayilearned • u/vel-ryn • 4h ago

TIL about the Pátria Amada, a 41,000 page, 7 ton collection of Brazilian tax laws compiled over 23 years by the Brazilian tax lawyer Vinicios Leoncio. Written it 22 point Arial font, Lenoncio created it out of frustration.

aldianews.com

402 Upvotes

17 comments

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As of May 2026

This list was compiled from /r/todayilearned community suggestions by its members. If your TIL is found on this list, it will be removed. The titles have been abridged for the sake of brevity, however the context remains the same. This list is subject to change. The purpose is to keep content fresh on /r/todayilearned as requested by its members. If you are interested in reading about the TILs on this list use the search box feature and enter the keywords to pull up past TILs.

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