# Tell us an interesting random fact you stumbled across (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 13, 2020, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674 "2020-04-13T03:19:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 137
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2021, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2728 "2021-09-27T18:47:25Z")
Sedona, Arizona is the only place on the planet McDonalds uses teal instead of Golden Arches. The city wouldn’t let McDs open a restaurant in town unless they complied with the city’s “aesthetic.” ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2021, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2729 "2021-09-27T18:51:32Z")
Just found this out yesterday. We know Mons Olympus is the tallest mountain in the solar system. The thing is it’s very broad too. The slope is only about 5 degrees. That when combined with the curvature of Mars means you cannot see the summit from the base. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2021, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2730 "2021-09-27T18:53:04Z")
The McDonald’s in Mattituck, NY, also doesn’t conform to the official color scheme. It was required to be painted white and to look like a house. https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=%213m2%212sen%214v0%216m8%211m7%211ssW4c8t9W1sXFthfrXrDseg%212m2%211d40.9801354%212d-72.543971%213f106.33%214f8.618%215f0.511 ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2021, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2731 "2021-09-27T19:36:36Z")
Similarly with a McDonald’s in Freeport, Maine > [@](#): > > The company had previously done a similar project in 1984 when it built a restaurant in a [historical landmark](https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-the-mcdonalds-in-a-maine-colonial-home-2016-1) in [Freeport, Maine](https://www.insider.com/mcdonalds-freeport-maine-colonial-mansion-photos-tour-2020-9#-but-through-a-closed-door-i-did-see-a-room-with-sconces-and-cozy-fireplaces-that-looked-more-like-a-pub-than-any-mcdonalds-ive-been-to-i-imagine-eating-a-big-mac-in-this-environment-would-make-it-feel-less-like-fast-food-and-more-like-fine-dining-17), which allowed the chain to move in provided it retained the small seaside town’s aesthetic. Complete with fireplaces and mahogany booths, [that 170-year-old colonial mansion](https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-the-mcdonalds-in-a-maine-colonial-home-2016-1#in-1984-the-historic-gore-house-was-converted-into-freeports-only-mcdonalds-2) still houses the Maine town’s only McDonald’s today. > **[The most beautiful McDonald's in America is in a former mansion on Long Island](https://www.businessinsider.com/most-beautiful-mcdonalds-photo-tour-new-york)** > > One of the fanciest McDonald's franchises in the US is in a historic mansion in New Hyde Park on Long Island. Here's what it's like inside. Is yours the same as Denton House on Long Island? > **[Denton House (New Hyde Park, New York)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denton_House_(New_Hyde_Park,_New_York))** > > .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct,.mw-parser-output .geo-inline-hidden{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}40°44′12″N 73°40′24″W / 40.736592°N 73.673333°W / 40.736592; -73.673333 > The Denton House is a historic building in New Hyde Park, New York, within the Town of North Hempstead. Built in 1795 as a farmhou... ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2021, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2732 "2021-09-27T20:34:59Z")
Dogs enjoy eating pears. I’ve got a bunch that fell off the tree, and at first Teddy would play with it like a ball, but then all four started eating them. I looked out the other day and Hickory is standing up, trying to reach the low hanging ones. I pick them for the Crew now. They will enjoy them more than me, I reckon. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2021, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2733 "2021-09-27T20:44:53Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Is yours the same as Denton House on Long Island? No. It’s on the North Fork, in Mattituck. ---
**Author:** ![motu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/motu/32/259_2.png) [@motu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/motu)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2021, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2734 "2021-09-28T23:59:41Z")
Gerald/Jerry Casales from Devo was at the Kent State shootings. Two of the four killed were friends of his. This was the catalyst for Devolution. ---
**Author:** ![Mark\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2021, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2735 "2021-09-29T11:42:11Z")
The longest continuous international border in the world is not between Canada and the US. You have to exclude the Alaska-Canada segment (1,538 miles, 2,475 km), leaving the southern border of 3,987 miles/6,416 km. The longest is the Russia/Kazakhstan border of 4,778 miles/7,644 km, followed by the Argentina-Chile border of 4182 miles/6,691 km. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2021, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2736 "2021-09-29T16:47:15Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Dogs enjoy eating pears. I’ve got a bunch that fell off the tree, and at first Teddy would play with it like a ball, but then all four started eating them. I looked out the other day and Hickory is standing up, trying to reach the low hanging ones. I fed my dog some serviceberries (saskatoon berries) and she quickly learned to chew them off of low-hanging branches. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2737 "2021-10-01T05:32:57Z")
I give you The Battle of Castle Itter. In the waning days of WW 2, a combined group of American soldiers, VIP French prisoners, including De Gaulle’s sister, and Wehrmacht soldiers who knew it was over and were trying to protect local civilians from Nazi reprisals, defended the castle where the French political prisoners where being held from the remnants of an SS unit that indended to put all the prisoners to death. This was 5 days after the death of Hitler. [Battle of Castle Itter - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Castle_Itter) ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2738 "2021-10-01T05:43:12Z")
Where’s the movie, Hollywood? ☹ ~Max ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2739 "2021-10-01T07:11:58Z")
> [@Max\_S](#): > > Where’s the movie, Hollywood? ☹ Well, they’d probably screw it up, but you’ve got all the elements for a great story. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2740 "2021-10-01T12:37:16Z")
Wow. That’s too cool. And yes, would make a great movie. ---
**Author:** ![cytop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f17d59/32.png) [@cytop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cytop)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2741 "2021-10-01T16:02:51Z")
… and then there’ was [Operation Cowboy](https://www.austrianinformation.org/winter-2015-16/q9tmol70rthidza2tsnq21x19ve77u) which ‘rescued’ the Lipizzaner horses of the Spanish Riding school in Vienna from both the Germans and Russians. There seems to be a couple of versions of this story so the link above is to a ‘more formal’ piece describing German/US co-operation, but other accounts ([example](https://militaryhistorynow.com/2018/11/25/operation-cowboy-how-american-gis-german-soldiers-joined-forces-to-save-the-legendary-lipizzaner-horses-in-the-final-hours-of-ww2/)) describe Germans agreeing to serve/fight under US commanders. As in the Castle Itter episode, the common enemy was the Waffen-SS. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2742 "2021-10-01T16:38:25Z")
> [@cytop](#): > > … and then there’ was [Operation Cowboy](https://www.austrianinformation.org/winter-2015-16/q9tmol70rthidza2tsnq21x19ve77u) which ‘rescued’ the Lipizzaner horses of the Spanish Riding school in Vienna from both the Germans and Russians. And this one WAS made into a movie – by Disney, no less. > **[Miracle of the White Stallions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miracle_of_the_White_Stallions)** > > Miracle of the White Stallions is a 1963 American adventure war film released by Walt Disney starring Robert Taylor (playing Alois Podhajsky), Lilli Palmer, and Eddie Albert. It is based on the story of Operation Cowboy which was the evacuation of the Lipizzaner horses from the Spanish Riding School in Vienna during World War II. Major parts of the movie were shot at the Hermesvilla palace in the Lainzer Tiergarten of Vienna, a former hunting area for the Habsburg nobility. The music for the ... Of course, Disney wasn’t noted for their historical or technical accuracy – look at the lemming story, or the life of Tchaikovsky they did on their 1950s TV show. (Although they did a decent job on the Man in Space series) ---
**Author:** ![Mark\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2743 "2021-10-01T23:31:58Z")
Baseball - on August 10, 1944, “Red” Barrett of the Boston Braves needed only 58 pitches to beat the Cincinnati Reds 2-0 in 1 hour and 15 minutes. (the average today is 146 pitches) He faced 29 batters, allowing two hits, no walks, and had no strikeouts. No MLB pitcher has pitched a 9-inning, complete game, with less than 80 pitches since 2008. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2744 "2021-10-02T00:22:40Z")
Probably because he was a semi-crappy pitcher with an excellent set of fielders to back him up. Lots of ground balls. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2745 "2021-10-02T00:58:18Z")
> [@Mark\_Finn](#): > > Baseball - on August 10, 1944, “Red” Barrett of the Boston Braves needed only 58 pitches to beat the Cincinnati Reds 2-0 in 1 hour and 15 minutes. (the average today is 146 pitches) > > He faced 29 batters, allowing two hits, no walks, and had no strikeouts. Man, that’s impressive. > [@silenus](#): > > Probably because he was a semi-crappy pitcher with an excellent set of fielders to back him up. Lots of ground balls. Not sure what’s wrong with that, if it’s true. It’s still very impressive IMO—he had his mojo working, they couldn’t overcome it, and he triumphed. Wikipedia says: | Win–loss record | 69–69 | | --- | --- | | Earned run average | 3.53 | | Strikeouts | 333 | Good enough to keep a pro athlete job for 11 years. Also says Wikipedia: > In 1945, he led the Cardinals to second place in the National League, posting a team best 21 wins and 9 losses.[[3]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Barrett#cite_note-3) While we’re talking baseball, how about those Oakland (previously KC, Philadelphia)? What’s with the elephant? > In 1902 New York Giants Manager John McGraw dismissed the A’s with contempt, by calling them “The White Elephants.” He meant to imply that Mack **shouldn’t be allowed to spend money without supervision**. Connie Mack took up the gauntlet and defiantly adopted the White Elephant as the team insignia. [Source](https://sportslogohistory.com/oakland-athletics-primary-logo#:~:text=In%201902%20New%20York%20Giants,Elephant%20as%20the%20team%20insignia.) ---
**Author:** ![Mark\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2746 "2021-10-02T11:43:35Z")
Are Oakland baseball fans Athletics supporters? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2021, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/2747 "2021-10-02T16:10:46Z")
ok, now i know how frasier crane feels ! (i haven’t got a clue what you are talking about !) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=136) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=138)