“Chinese water torture” probably didn’t originate in China. It was first described by Italian doctor Hippolytus de Marsiliis in the 15th or 16th century.

Adolf Hitler required all his SS officers (the Schutzstaffel) to watch the 1939 film Gunga Din. It’s believed he was fascinated that the film showed how a relatively small number of the British army officers controlled India’s population.

Pastrami is a navel cut and corned beef is made with brisket. Both are brined, but pastrami is smoked and corned beef is boiled. Pastrami is dry-rubbed and corned beef is “corned,” which means “salt-cured.”

Simon, Theodore, and Alvin, the chipmunks of Alvin and the Chipmunks, were named after Liberty Records executives Simon Waronker, Theodore Keep, and Alvin Bennett.

No one knows why the cartoon character Snagglepuss used the catchphrase, “Heavens to Murgatroyd!” to be melodramatic. “Murgatroyd” is an English aristocratic surname.

This article appears in April 29 • 2022.

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