Weekend Open Thread

… novelist Stephen King (born 1947) has written books under three other names as well? King, famous for his horror novels, also writes under the pseudonyms of Richard Bachman, John Swithen, and Beryl Evans. The reason he used pseudonyms is interesting – he was trying to get around his publisher insisting that the market could only handle one King novel a year. After a bookstore clerk figured out that Bachman, Swithen and Evans were all Stephen King, he stopped using the pseudonyms (except for Bachman occasionally), as he had proven his point to the publisher. (Way to go, Steve!)

… the concrete in Hoover Dam is not yet fully cured? The dam, located in Nevada, was constructed between 1931 and 1936 and was built to last 2,000 years. But the concrete used in its construction won’t be fully cured until the year 2430 or so. (Cured? I didn’t even know it was sick.)

… the name of one of the most popular characters in one of the most popular movie series came about thanks to another movie? When George Lucas (born 1944) was mixing the soundtrack for his 1973 film, American Graffiti, he numbered film reels starting with an R, and dialog reels with a D. The sound director asked Lucas for Film Reel 2, Dialog Reel 2, by saying he wanted, “R2D2.” Lucas liked the sound of that so much that he integrated it into the little science fiction project he was working on – Star Wars. (Yeah, but I’d love to hear the explanation for C3PO, myself.)

… you should always check your tickets at a race track? An estimated $1 million is lost each year at race tracks when people either lose or carelessly throw away their winning tickets. (Or just don’t bet on races.)

… you most definitely do not want your cholesterol count to reach 0? First, it’s impossible to do that. But even if it were, you don’t want it, because cholesterol protects the integrity of cell membranes in your body. If you totally eliminated all cholesterol, your cells would have dry, cracked membranes and all the contents would leak out. (Now get that picture out of your mind.)

… almost three million people in the world die each year due to obesity? (Uh oh.)

… a man charged with stealing from vending machines tried to pay his bail with quarters? Gregory Rosa (born 1965) of Dracut, Massachusetts, was charged in 1990 with stealing money from numerous vending machines in Smithfield, Mass. After being arrested, Rosa asked for his backpack so he could pay his $400 bail. Police searched the backpack and found that much and more in quarters, along with the tools used to get into the machines. (You have to admire the chutzpah, though.)

… gambling for money is illegal in Japan? The Japanese people have developed a pretty ingenious way of getting around that law, however. Instead of winning cash, people win prizes. The winner can then sell the prizes back to the establishment for the cash they would’ve otherwise won outright. (Where there’s a will …)

Now … you know!