I've decided to start a Twitter thread of weird esoterica and random trivia that I've picked up over the years. It'll hopefully keep everyone amused. I'll add to it periodically as our collective cloistering continues.
1. On the island of Sark (where feudalism was only abolished in 2008!) Norman Law remains. If someone is wronged, they may recite the Lord's Prayer and cry "Haro, Haro, Haro! À mon aide mon Prince, on me fait tort!" Everyone must stop until the grievance can be heard by a court.
More on that: independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-b…
What! Important update! Good job, Sark.
2. The long-gone job of hotel detective (or, more informally, "house dick") used to be an illustrious one. It was their job to catch conmen and thieves staying in the hotel. One mid-century Quebec City house dick had a habit of dressing up as Adolf Hitler to break up parties.
2a. Nerdrock band They Might Be Giants release new songs via their answering machine. Fans could call in, hear it, then leave a message. When they released the single for (She Was A) Hotel Detective in 1988, they included one bizarre message that an unwitting someone had left.
A fun Maclean's profile of one of Quebec's last hotel detectives archive.macleans.ca/article/1950/2…
TMBG explain the weird message on side A of (She Was A) Hotel Detective: tmbg.org/band-info/faq/…
TMBG explain the weird message on side A of (She Was A) Hotel Detective: tmbg.org/band-info/faq/…
3. In WWI, luxury cruise ships were being requisitioned for war. The German SMS Cap Trafalgar was tasked with sinking commercial ships. To camouflage, it was painted as the British cruise liner RMS Carmania. On Sep 14, 1914 it was ambushed and sunk — by the real RMS Carmania.
Read about it here warhistoryonline.com/instant-articl… or listen to that episode of the very fun podcast Omnibus omnibusproject.com/234
4. Part of Ottawa's 'fruit machine' test to catch queer bureaucrats involved saying "queer" and control words to gauge responses. They included: circus, bagpipe, bell, blind, bull, camp, coo, cruise, drag, fish, flute, sew, swing, trade, velvet, wolf, prowl, house, and tea room.
This comes from the brilliant Canadian War On Queers, which documents that whole history. ubcpress.ca/the-canadian-w…
5a. Film classic Dr. Strangelove had stiff competition. While in production, director Stanley Kubrick discovered a nearly-identical film by Sidney Lumet was in production. Dr. Strangelove was rushed out, and its competitor, the Henry Fonda-fronted Fail-Safe, was largely forgotten
5b. An iconic Strangelove scene has Major Kong (a role Peter Sellers faked a broken leg to avoid) opening his ration kit. You hear: "a fella could have a pretty good time in *Vegas* with all that stuff." He dubbed over "Dallas," as JFK had been shot there shortly after filming.
5c. Speaking of overshadowing: Robyn S' absolute staple of house music, Show Me Love, and its iconic synth (added in post!) While it's been sampled endlessly since 1990, it was eclipsed just years after it rocketed up the charts by Swedish singer Robyn's own hit: Show Me Love.
On Fail-Safe: slate.com/technology/201…
On a good time in Dallas: imdb.com/title/tt005701…
On Sellers' broken leg: flashbak.com/too-pinko-for-…
On Robyn v. Robin: popdust.com/whoa-the-90s-h…
On a good time in Dallas: imdb.com/title/tt005701…
On Sellers' broken leg: flashbak.com/too-pinko-for-…
On Robyn v. Robin: popdust.com/whoa-the-90s-h…
