12 Surprising True Facts That Challenge Common Beliefs

NEW YORK — A recent compilation of surprising facts reveals lesser-known truths about popular culture, literature, and media, challenging common assumptions.

One notable example involves the video game The Sims, which was nearly canceled during its development. According to reports, Electronic Arts (EA) initially showed little enthusiasm for the game at the 1999 E3 event, where it failed to attract much attention compared to flashier titles. The game featured a same-sex interaction between two female Sims, a feature that was not officially approved by EA executives at the time. However, due to a miscommunication, the feature remained in the game. A journalist witnessing this interaction became intrigued and wrote about the game’s realistic character behavior, sparking media interest that helped convince EA to continue the project.

In film, the character Aunt Gladys from the movie Weapons originated from an earlier, unused screenplay. Writer-director Zach Cregger revealed that the character was inspired by a story involving a woman who takes a child after subsuming his parents. Cregger also noted that Aunt Gladys’s character reflects his personal experience with a parent struggling with alcoholism.

The iconic green Versace dress, often associated with Jennifer Lopez, was actually first worn by Donatella Versace at the Met Gala in December 1999. Geri Halliwell wore the dress next at the NRJ Music Awards in January 2000, followed by Lopez at the Grammys in February 2000. Lopez later shared that she almost did not wear the dress because her stylist informed her another celebrity had already worn it, but she chose to wear it anyway, which generated significant attention.

Regarding literature, L. Frank Baum, author of The Wizard of Oz, initially did not intend to write sequels. After the success of the first book, he wrote a sequel but declared the story finished. However, due to fan demand and the poor sales of his other works, Baum returned to the Oz series and eventually wrote more than a dozen additional novels.

Gregory Maguire, author of the novel Wicked, drew inspiration from real-life events, including the 1990s murder of toddler James Bulger in the UK. This tragedy prompted Maguire to explore themes of good and evil, societal judgment, and the impact of fear and politics on reputation, using the familiar world of Oz as a backdrop.

In 1992, Sesame Street created an episode addressing divorce, titled “Snuffy’s Parents Get a Divorce,” aiming to help children understand family changes. Despite careful script review and intentions to normalize the experience, the episode was never aired after receiving negative reactions from children during preschool screenings, who associated parental conflict with divorce.

These facts, among others, highlight unexpected stories behind well-known cultural phenomena, illustrating how reality can sometimes be stranger than fiction.