Ten Things I Learned in March
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More U.S. troops died in the Civil War than in World Wars I and II combined. (Silver Bulletin)
Argentina has the world’s highest concentration of psychotherapists per capita. (The Week)
The printing press bankrupted Gutenberg, and his creditors seized control of his workshop and equipment. He never personally profited from his invention. (Dwarkesh Podcast)
In 2007, Curb Your Enthusiasm director Larry Charles shot a Curb-style pilot for HBO with Kanye West in the lead role, but HBO passed. (WTF with Marc Maron)
Because of prolonged strikes by bank employees, Irish banks were closed 10 percent of the time between 1966 and 1976. (David Oks)
James Patterson is the largest financial supporter of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. (Businessweek)
Mel Brooks produced David Lynch’s The Elephant Man, but declined a credit because he was worried that audiences wouldn’t take the film seriously if they saw his name attached to it. (Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!)
Maxwell House coffee is (coincidentally) named after the hotel where the KKK held its first official meeting. (The Rest Is History)
The creators of Barbie and Hot Wheels are husband and wife. (Forget where I heard this one…)
Cabbage, bok choy, collard greens, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower are all descendants of the same wild plant. (Works in Progress)