Huh, I Never Knew That: True Facts That I Learned From Watching TV

[legaleagle53]

On 4/21/2017 at 4:22 PM, BooksRule said:

I first learned about Schroedinger's Cat from an early episode of 'Stargate: SG1', although if I hadn't learned about it then, I would have eventually learned about it on 'The Big Bang Theory'. 

Or not.  ;-)

[MaryPatShelby]

Sorry, wrong thread

Edited April 29, 2017 by MaryPatShelby

[Sandman87]

Something I learned today about Enrico Caruso from a documentary segment: Not only was he the big star of opera during his lifetime and one of the first global media stars, he was also a highly gifted cartoonist. He would frequently crank out a drawing for a friend or a fan on the spur of the moment.

[paulvdb]

I learned English in school, but tv has helped me expand my vocabulary. I learned what a joey is thanks to Baby Kangooroo Tribbiani. Of course there are more words that I learned from tv, but I just rewatched that episode of Friends so this is fresh in my mind.

[roamyn]

On 1/27/2016 at 6:49 PM, shapeshifter said:

On 1/27/2016 at 2:13 PM, dalek said:

If I drop acid, I will inevitably jump out a closed window.

Yeah. Never anything as cathartic as lying in a hammock and sobbing while listening to Janis Joplin songs wailing from a nearby window.

Actually I did drop acid several times during my youth (hey it was the early 80s!).  It was a controlled environment (i.e. My boyfriend stayed sober both times).

And all I did was lay around watching the dancing paneling and playing w/my fingers.  Not everyone wants to jump out a window or off a bridge.  That, to me is the TV trope.

[ChromaKelly]

I learned that Kate and Rooney Mara are part of both the families that own the Giants and the Steelers from Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.

[NutMeg]

How lame I feel when, reading "I dropped acid", I remember that time in chemistry class when I actually dropped (a drop of) acid on my brand new jeans that I had just had altered so for once they fit perfectly.

[Sandman87]

Today a nature show on PBS taught me that the Bikini Atoll has radioactive mutant sharks lurking in the water. If that can't be turned into a bad sci-fi movie, then I don't know what can.

[lianau]

On 3.7.2017 at 6:44 AM, Sandman87 said:

Today a nature show on PBS taught me that the Bikini Atoll has radioactive mutant sharks lurking in the water. If that can't be turned into a bad sci-fi movie, then I don't know what can.

Radioactive Teenage Mutant Ninja Sharknado

[ratgirlagogo]

15 hours ago, lianau said:

Radioactive Teenage Mutant Ninja Sharknado

Radioactive Teenage Mutant Ninja Bikini Girlsharknados with Machine Guns - On Ice!

[ABay]

Radioactive Teenage Mutant Ninja Bikini Girlsharknados with Machine Guns - On Ice! II: This Time It's Personal

[shapeshifter]

Or just sharks in bikinis from Bikini.
(The radioactivity made their brains on par with certain humans who would think sharks from Bikini should wear bikinis.)

[legaleagle53]

12 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Or just sharks in bikinis from Bikini.
(The radioactivity made their brains on par with certain humans who would think sharks from Bikini should wear bikinis.)

Never mind that the bikini was actually named after the atoll, not the other way around.

Edited July 5, 2017 by legaleagle53

[Haleth]

They must make this movie.

[ratgirlagogo]

13 hours ago, legaleagle53 said:

Never mind that the bikini was actually named after the atoll, not the other way around.

Just like the old Gang of Four song said:

The worst thing in 1954 was the bikini
See the girl on the TV dressed in a bikini
She doesn't think so but she's dressed for the H-bomb
(For the H-bomb)

still want to see that bikinigirlsharknado movie.

[shapeshifter]

[Anela]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

LMAO!

Thank you for that. I've been reading about horrifying things that happened in the past, and was just saying I needed to cleanse my brain. 

[SVNBob]

On 7/4/2017 at 5:20 PM, ABay said:

Radioactive Teenage Mutant Ninja Bikini Girlsharknados with Machine Guns - On Ice! II: This Time It's Personal

No, that's the third movie.

The second one is Radioactive Teenage Mutant Ninja Bikini Girlsharknados with Machine Guns - On Ice! II: Electric Boogaloo.

[Cobalt Stargazer]

5 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

"Candygram...."

[Haleth]

 Radioactive Teenage Mutant Ninja Bikini Girlsharknados-- the Musical.

And they must be 3-D.

Edited July 6, 2017 by Haleth

[ABay]

The original Broadway version of the musical was either Shark! or Sunday in the Shark with George. 

[meep.meep]

I think you guys are ruining the solemn annual TV event that is Shark Week.  Is nothing sacred?

Plus, you didn't mention Jersey Shore Shark Attack, an actual existing movie that features most of the things, well, teenagers, sharks, and bikinis, that seem to interest you.  And, a friend of my daughter's was in it with lines and everything.

To be on topic - one of the things that I have learned from TV:  if attacked by a shark, punch it in the nose.

[SVNBob]

3 hours ago, meep.meep said:

one of the things that I have learned from TV:  if attacked by a shark, punch it in the nose.

All that'll do is get your arm bitten off faster.  Go for the gills.

[meep.meep]

What!  Shark Week has lied to me!

I just avoid surfing.  Most of the shark attacks near me are great whites mistaking surfboards for seals.

[Chaos Theory]

1 hour ago, meep.meep said:

What!  Shark Week has lied to me!

I just avoid surfing.  Most of the shark attacks near me are great whites mistaking surfboards for seals.

Shark week is sacred.  The Sharknado movies have taught me that a chainsaw will solve all life's problems.  

[Mulva]

On 7/3/2017 at 0:44 AM, Sandman87 said:

Today a nature show on PBS taught me that the Bikini Atoll has radioactive mutant sharks lurking in the water. If that can't be turned into a bad sci-fi movie, then I don't know what can.

That's the plot of the next Sharknado!  Starring Wil Wheaton, Jensen Ackles and Charisma Carpenter along with Ian Ziering.

 

TV has taught me that brick must be removed from a house before its transported to another location. What I'll do with this information is anybody's guess.

Edited July 8, 2017 by Mulva

[Drogo]

I've learned from House Hunters that you will never sell your home unless it has stainless steel appliances.  Even if the home is $2M and the existing appliances can be replaced for $5000. 

[Shannon L.]

1 hour ago, Drogo said:

I've learned from House Hunters that you will never sell your home unless it has stainless steel appliances.  Even if the home is $2M and the existing appliances can be replaced for $5000. 

Which I guess is good for us, since when we got our new house I insisted that I wanted stainless steel, so if we ever decide to sell we're good.  But, after about a month of living with it, I absolutely hated it and swore to never, ever get it again.  It's been 10 years now that I've been dealing with it.  Maybe some day we'll be able to afford to replace everything.  Until then, though.......ugh. 

[meep.meep]

5 hours ago, Drogo said:

I've learned from House Hunters that you will never sell your home unless it has stainless steel appliances.  Even if the home is $2M and the existing appliances can be replaced for $5000. 

You don't want to be subjected to the horror that is the buyers declaring that your appliances are "dated!" 

I'm no fan of harvest gold or avocado green, but stainless steel appliances are hell to keep clean.  White or black, that's all I'm putting in.

[Anela]

17 hours ago, Drogo said:

I've learned from House Hunters that you will never sell your home unless it has stainless steel appliances.  Even if the home is $2M and the existing appliances can be replaced for $5000. 

Mum watched House Hunters, and was always annoyed by people insisting on granite counter tops. She emphasized the "grey" part of it, because that annoyed her, too (we pronounce it gran-it). :) I don't like the look of it. 

We have a few nice appliances, but they'd be leaving with us, if we ever sell this place. Which I suppose is a good thing, since they aren't stainless steel. 

Edited July 12, 2017 by Anela

[lianau]

On 11.7.2017 at 2:56 PM, Drogo said:

I've learned from House Hunters that you will never sell your home unless it has stainless steel appliances.  Even if the home is $2M and the existing appliances can be replaced for $5000. 

But they look pretty and go so well with your kitchen-dining-living room hybrid which was designed so you can entertain your weekly (daily?) dinner guest .

[Mulva]

HGTV has taught me that everyone wants to cook dinner in their living room.  No separate kitchen for you!

[methodwriter85]

Family really does bug the shit out of you when you are over your early/mid-20's and are still under-employed or in an otherwise unsuitable profession.

[HunterHunted]

Ancient Greeks and Romans treated migraines and epilepsy by placing electric eels and rays on a person's head. I think I saw that on Bones.

Edited July 24, 2017 by HunterHunted

[shapeshifter]

4 hours ago, HunterHunted said:

Ancient Greeks and Romans treated migraines and epilepsy by placing electric eels and rays on a person's head. I think I saw that on Bones.

Hey, I'd be willing to try it!

[meep.meep]

I'd rather be the placee than the placer.

[slf]

Stargate SG1 taught me that in ancient times people would drill a hole into the skull of someone with a mental disorder to release the evil spirits trapped inside. It sounded true so I looked it up and apparently it's called trepanning and some people do this to themselves.

[roamyn]

Hawaii 50 taught me that when a brain is autopsied, the remnants are stuffed into the abdomen cavity.  Apparently it's too difficult to stuff back in the skull because it can fall apart easily.

[Sandman87]

Remember how we were talking about the radioactive shark movies? Behold!

 

It's going to be on SyFy later today.

[Sandman87]

From a documentary short on TCM tonight (along with looking it up afterward on Wikipedia) I learned that the West African nation of Benin was named Dahomey until 1975. And yes, it's pronounced exactly like "da homie."

[ZaldamoWilder]

Drogo you took mine! Lol.  I was going to say that I've learned that no matter how much I like a home because it's in the perfect school district, under budget and has an ideal layout, I cannot make an offer on it if there isn't a $1700 PC Richard stainless steel 4 piece package in the kitchen.

I've learned that black people don't live in Manhattan.  Or run their own companies.

I've learned that people (in real life) still believe pregnancy is a maximum 9 months long.  

On 1/4/2017 at 11:02 AM, shapeshifter said:

I learned from TV: Never enter your home if the door is ajar, unless you have a license to carry a gun permit, in which case you must first draw your weapon. There will likely be a dead body, a trashed room, or a villain with a weapon.
Last week I returned to a hotel room to find my door ajar. I immediately went back to the front desk and did not enter alone. I tried to convince the maintenance guy who accompanied me not to touch anything because of fingerprints, but he too watches too many crime shows and pointed out that they would have to exclude his anyway.

Fact.   This happened to me 10 or so years back.  No dead bodies or weapon brandishers were waiting but we'd been robbed so someone was there, we just missed them or they missed us.

On 6/7/2017 at 11:15 PM, ChromaKelly said:

I learned that Kate and Rooney Mara are part of both the families that own the Giants and the Steelers from Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.

I learned that on TV too!!  I'd just finished reading and seeing the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo so this was kind of cool to find out.  Rooney is the granddaughter of each gentleman/owner.

and full circle back to Conjunction Junction, I learned the story of Juneteenth. 

[NutMeg]

On 6/10/2017 at 7:36 PM, NutMeg said:

How lame I feel when, reading "I dropped acid", I remember that time in chemistry class when I actually dropped (a drop of) acid on my brand new jeans that I had just had altered so for once they fit perfectly.

Happy end regarding those jeans: my mum put some diamond shaped pad on them, that made me cringe at the time, but in time they became "iconic" :) 

[shapeshifter]

On another thread, it's been pointed out that Burn Notice is a wealth of "True Facts . . .Learned From Watching TV," such as:

On April 3, 2019 at 9:04 PM, selkie said:

On March 28, 2019 at 8:48 PM, andromeda331 said:

I remember Michael pointing that out on Burn Notice! When getting rid of his drug dealing neighbor. He knocks on the door to get him to come to the door. He points out many criminals have bulletproof doors but forget that walls are plaster. Then demonstrates it by moving to the side of the door and shoots through the wall hitting him in the leg with his second shot.

I've only seen about four episodes of Burn Notice and now find myself wondering if he ever brought up how hard it can be to break a window in the Miami  to West Palm Beach area due to local building codes strongly encouraging laminated impact-resistant glass as a way of protecting a structure against hurricanes. 

Edited April 6, 2019 by shapeshifter

[catlover79]

I learned about the concept of kissing and making up from a rerun of Mork & Mindy when I was in my single digits. Pick a fight with someone you have it bad for, sweeten them up, and then...you know the rest. I honestly have never done this, because I am the most non-confrontational person on the planet!!! 😂

[Sandman87]

One of the commercial break bumps on [Adult Swim] taught me something so bizarre that I had to look it up to verify it: Parts of nineteenth century Austria had a festive courtship ritual in which the eligible ladies would dance while holding a slice of apple in their armpit, and then, after they were done dancing, would offer it the eligible gentleman that they were interested in. The gentleman would indicate that he was interested in the lady by accepting the apple slice, and possibly eating it.

Mmmm...sweaty armpit apples!

Edited August 29, 2019 by Sandman87

[Brandi Maxxxx]

On 7/3/2017 at 2:44 PM, Sandman87 said:

Today a nature show on PBS taught me that the Bikini Atoll has radioactive mutant sharks lurking in the water. If that can't be turned into a bad sci-fi movie, then I don't know what can.

There's a popular theory that the characters from SpongeBob SquarePants are mutants because they live in a place called Bikini Bottom.

[piccadilly83]

Something I thought about yesterday was a scene of The Good Wife. I can't remember how it goes exactly, but basically Alicia's in a deportation hearing or is handling some sort of case related to immigration.  The thing is, the judge handling the case is not in the room with her. The hearing takes place over a live video feed. And if I remember it correctly it was a pretty pressing issue with a lot of nuance, but the judge didn't really have time to deal with all of that. They had like 100 other cases to do by video that day, so they just needed her to plea, or to give a verdict and move on. I may not be remembering that last part correctly.  The thing that stuck with me was the video feed. I guess I understand the need for it, but it seemed so strange. Deportation proceedings apparently do occur over video though.

Reuters News

[theredhead77]

On 4/21/2017 at 7:22 PM, BooksRule said:

I first learned about Schroedinger's Cat from an early episode of 'Stargate: SG1', although if I hadn't learned about it then, I would have eventually learned about it on 'The Big Bang Theory'. 

Quoting a 2 year old post to say I named my cat Schrodinger after the cat on Stargate. Most people assume it's from BBT. It's an extra nerdy deep dive that makes me extra happy when people get the reference.

[ratgirlagogo]

8 hours ago, theredhead77 said:

when people get the reference.

You mean to Schrodinger's original 1935 article? Okay, of course you're right, me neither.  My introduction to the idea was Robert Anton Wilson's Schrodinger's Cat trilogy circa roughly 1980?

Edited September 25, 2019 by ratgirlagogo

[theredhead77]

6 hours ago, ratgirlagogo said:

You mean to Schrodinger's original 1935 article? Okay, of course you're right, me neither. 

No, when they get the reference to the Schrodinger on Stargate. It's no secret that it's one of my favorite shows and it makes me profoundly happy when someone reveals their SG1 fandom by asking if I named my orange cat after the orange cat Schrodinger on Stargate instead of assuming it was from TBBT. Of course someone who knows who Schrodinger is and the Schrodinger's cat experiment also makes me happy because knowledge is important.

I knew about Schrodinger's cat from school; however, it wasn't something I gave a lot of thought to until SG1.