# Things you know about HISTORY from movies, TV, and bad novels **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 8, 2011, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686 "2011-02-08T20:37:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/21 "2011-02-08T23:12:42Z")
Dying of disease is a neat and sanitary proceeding, especially for women. > [@Sampiro](#): > > Washboard abs have always been fashionable for both men and women, for example. (In _Gangs of New York_ Cameron Diaz’s character even manages to have well toned abs in spite of a botched C-section years before.) Well, yeah. Only men have the capability of developing scar tissue. Women always heal flawlessly, no matter how extreme their injuries are in their backstory. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2011, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/22 "2011-02-08T23:15:57Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > Dying of disease is a neat and sanitary proceeding, especially for women. As is poisoning- just a “something’s wrong” comment and maybe a “you poisoned me!” look and then keel over dead. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/23 "2011-02-09T03:37:23Z")
All Southern men were bigoted, corrupt and cruel. Except for the start of the Civil War when they proudly marched off to defend their honor and fight nobly in a lost cause. All Southern women fanned themselves and said things like “fiddle-dee-dee.” ---
**Author:** ![postcards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8e8cbc/32.png) [@postcards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/postcards)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/24 "2011-02-09T04:55:27Z")
The Declaration of Independence was signed by all 56 men on July 4, 1776. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/25 "2011-02-09T05:01:11Z")
If angered, any waifish noble woman could dawn full plate mail and fight hordes with a longsword. I heard this nasty rumor that Russia was somehow involved in WWII or something, what nonsense. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/26 "2011-02-09T05:04:33Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > It is only since the 60s that tooth decay has been around. From prehistoric times through the 50s, everybody had perfect teeth. Actually they dug up the Mary Rose and even the grunts had nicer teeth than modern Brits (yeah…har, har). Sugar hadn’t arrived on the Continent yet in bulk. ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/27 "2011-02-09T05:57:06Z")
> [@Morbo](#): > > World War II was won by the Allies due to the contributions of Americans, with only cursory assistance from people from other countries. For example, Americans captured every Enigma machine Of course the English were doing such a great job until then. Kicked out of Norway. Kicked out of Belgium. Kicked out of France. Kicked out of Greece. Kicked out of Libya. But as the Delta House rep told Dear Wormer, they were really expecting their midterms to bring up their grades. Gunfights in the Old West were always at high noon in streets between a bad guy in black and a good guy in white. Baseball games such as in “The winning Team” or “Eight Men Out” always end with strikeouts. Frederick Douglass (“Glory”) was an old man with white hair during the Civil War (he was 43 when it started. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/28 "2011-02-09T06:24:10Z")
[QUOTE=Jim’s Son] Frederick Douglass (“Glory”) was an old man with white hair during the Civil War (he was 43 when it started. [/QUOTE] Ditto Robert E. Lee plus full beard (first scene of _Gods & Generals_). [QUOTE=kunilou] All Southern men were bigoted, corrupt and cruel. [/QUOTE] And chewed straw for some reason. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/29 "2011-02-09T06:31:51Z")
The whole world was black and white until around 1950. Black and white pictures are color photos of a black and white world. (apologies to bill watterson) Moses and Jesus were Caucasian. Everybody in the Bible spoke English, some with a Jersey accent. Everybody in the South was victimized by the cruel Yankees, just like today. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/30 "2011-02-09T09:42:53Z")
In the 1950’s, to the early 60’s there was a fad where married couples slept in separate beds. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 9:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/31 "2011-02-09T09:51:37Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > Moses and Jesus were Caucasian. Everybody in the Bible spoke English, some with a Jersey accent. That ones actually true. More accurately they were not North European looking though the Middle East has enough variations in looks that well they might have been. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/32 "2011-02-09T10:01:03Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Actually Russell Crowe supposedly had screaming fits during the filming of _Gladiator_ because he wanted to do a Spanish accent as his family is in Lusitania. He was told this was wrong for several reasons- there was no Spanish accent at the time and the fact he owned estates in Lusitania doesn’t mean his character was culturally Spanish- but only gave up after a struggle. Uh… I figure the accents of Hispania would be different from current ones, but I’d also bet my computer that there were such things as “provincial” accents. People from The Capital have been making fun of country bumpkins since the concept of “capital” got invented. People traveling by horse-drawn carriage or riding never used to get sore butts, backs or thighs, but that’s because those body parts are a recent invention (c. 1965). ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/33 "2011-02-09T13:41:55Z")
Braveheart. I don’t even know where to begin. ---
**Author:** ![Capitaine\_Zombie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@Capitaine\_Zombie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capitaine_Zombie)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/34 "2011-02-09T14:19:03Z")
> [@soulmurk](#): > > Cowboys were the good guys. Unless they were the bad guys. Either way, they weren’t mindless savages like the Native Americans. Unless they were savage Cowboy bad guys, in which case they still weren’t as bad as the Native Americans. > > Necessity is the mother of all invention. And a means to bypass the laws of the universe. > > All you need to start a revolution is a reluctant leader; preferably a farmer or shepherd with no military or political background. If you revolt, they will come. My fav post of this thread. Great thread, by the way. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/35 "2011-02-09T15:04:26Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Russian Migs look just like Northrup T-38 Trainers. Unless they look like F-4 Phantoms. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/36 "2011-02-09T15:07:59Z")
Homosexuals were invented in the 1970’s. Before then, even looking a little like a member of the opposite sex was sure early death. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/37 "2011-02-09T15:40:26Z")
Except for Edward II. But his dad chucked his boyfriend out of the window. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/38 "2011-02-09T15:50:37Z")
Well, and the Greeks. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/39 "2011-02-09T16:18:00Z")
The Spartans were not gay! Just very, very, very, very, very, very manly! ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2011, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686/40 "2011-02-09T16:23:59Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Actually Russell Crowe supposedly had screaming fits during the filming of _Gladiator_ because he wanted to do a Spanish accent as his family is in Lusitania. Sounds like the director torpedoed that idea. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-about-history-from-movies-tv-and-bad-novels/570686.md?page=3)