The "Did You Know" Thread

[Guest]

All the planets in the solar system rotate counter-clockwise except one, Venus.

[MagPie]

A pig's orgasm lasts for 30 minutes........

An average boar ejaculates between 5 - 10 minutes. The total volume of semen ejaculated is typically around 4 deciliters (yes, almost a half of liter) so you can imagine it can't be completed in few seconds.

The 30 minute (various veterinary literature mentions even 40 minutes) ejaculations are edge cases

[DC Amp]

A duck's quack doesn't echo, and no one knows why.

[mmmbeans]

There are only eight planets in our solar system, and two of them actually have rings.

4 have rings.

[Captroop]

The scene from The Shining where Shelley Duvall waves a baseball bat in front of Jack Nicholson's face holds the record for most takes of a single scene. Kubrick shot the scene a total of 127 times.

[FurdTurgason]

Bill Paxton is the only actor to be killed by a Predator, Alien, and Terminator. Lance Henriksen was offed by an Alien and a Terminator, but no Predator, and Michael Biehn was killed by a Terminator and appeared in Aliens, but didn't die by way of an Alien.

Game over! How did Michael Biehn die in Aliens?

[PhillyB]

the iconic scene in raiders of the lost ark where indiana jones ends up facing a guy whipping around a sword, rolls his eyes, pulls out a pistol and shoots him?

there was originally supposed to be a whip vs. sword fight there, but the entire cast was wracked with cholera and harrison ford suddenly had to take a poo, rolled his eyes in disgust, shot the guy and ran off to the bathroom. spielberg liked it so much he kept it.

[FurdTurgason]

Spielberg actually wanted to do a James Bond movie. He was talking about it with George Lucas, who said "we have something else we'd like you to look at, it's kind of like James Bond." He then explained the Indiana Jones character and the rest is history.

[mmmbeans]

the iconic scene in raiders of the lost ark where indiana jones ends up facing a guy whipping around a sword, rolls his eyes, pulls out a pistol and shoots him?

there was originally supposed to be a whip vs. sword fight there, but the entire cast was wracked with cholera and harrison ford suddenly had to take a poo, rolled his eyes in disgust, shot the guy and ran off to the bathroom. spielberg liked it so much he kept it.

cholera? I'd heard he was just tired of shiatloads of takes of a very detailed fight choreography and did it for a laugh.

[PhillyB]

cholera? I'd heard he was just tired of shiatloads of takes of a very detailed fight choreography and did it for a laugh.

my understanding is pretty much the entire set was sick as balls when they were filming that scene. the heavyset arab guy with the beard actually poo his pants on set

[FurdTurgason]

Spielberg was almost removed from the set of Jaws a couple of times because it was taking so long and wasting so much money.

[mmmbeans]

my understanding is pretty much the entire set was sick as balls when they were filming that scene. the heavyset arab guy with the beard actually poo his pants on set

apparently we're both wrong.

The scene where Indy shoots the sword wielding bad guy wasn't in the original script. Three months' shooting had resulted in Harrison Ford having a nasty case of dysentery, and the choreographed fight would have taken three and a half days to shoot. Harrison Ford really didn't want to stay on set that long, so suggested that it would be a good alternative if he just shot him. Who actually suggested the change isn't certain, but it wasn't a spur of the moment decision, contrary to some thoughts - it was a planned alternative.

though you're right about davies having cholera.

[h0llywood]

"Ring Around the Rosie" and the words "God Bless You" were rhymes and prayers for victims of the (bubonic) plague

[mmmbeans]

"Ring Around the Rosie" and the words "God Bless You" were rhymes and prayers for victims of the (bubonic) plague

i don't think ring around the rosie actually was... i think that's an urban legend.