Trending badgeTrendingPosted 55 minutes agoSubscribe to BuzzFeed Daily NewsletterCaret DownMy Mind Is Absolutely Blown From These 12 Facts That Sound Fake But Are Actually 100% RealI am sure you'll be googling a few of these just to be sure.by Brian GalindoBuzzFeed StaffFacebookPinterestLink 1. The wreckage of the Titanic was only discovered because of a top-secret US Navy mission. (C)Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection In 1985, a team led by oceanographer Robert Ballard was on a secret mission for the US Navy to locate two nuclear submarines, the USS Thresher and the USS Scorpion, that had sunk during the 1960s in the Atlantic in the same area where the Titanic sank. The US used the search for the Titanic as a cover story so that the Soviet Union wouldn't suspect anything. Ballard had led a failed expedition to find the wreckage of the Titanic in 1977, so he had a general idea where the wreckage was. He convinced the Navy to let him use the remaining expedition time to look for the ship once the sub hunt was done, though he knew the odds of finding it were very slim because there wasn't a lot of time. However, he discovered while mapping the debris fields of one of the subs how objects sank in that depth and how the debris would have been swept around, which allowed him to narrow down the area they would search. Using a remote-controlled camera, the team spotted one of Titanic's boilers, confirming the discovery. 2. Coca-Cola was created as a tonic for common ailments. Bettmann / Bettmann Archive / Getty Images Coca-Cola was invented in 1886 by Atlanta pharmacist John Pemberton. He was trying to create a tonic that could help with things like headaches and low energy. Pemberton claimed that it was a "valuable Brain Tonic, and a cure for all nervous affections." The tonic was a syrup that was mixed with soda water and first sold at Jacobs' Pharmacy in downtown Atlanta. However, people liked the taste of it and began drinking it as a refreshing soda rather than for medicinal purposes.
Pemberton sold off the rights to his Coca-Cola not long after inventing it. In fact, he died in 1888 and never saw his invention become as popular as it would become. 3. The Beatles wanted to star in a film adaptation of The Lord of the Rings, with Stanley Kubrick as the director. Icon And Image / Getty Images Yes, you read that right, there is an alternate world where we could have gotten a Lord of the Rings film starring the Beatles. By the mid-'60s, the Beatles had starred in two films where they played themselves, so they wanted to play fictional characters. The head of their film production company, Denis O'Dell, suggested The Lord of the Rings, which John Lennon reportedly loved the idea of doing. They even envisioned themselves in the main roles, with Paul McCartney as Frodo and Ringo Starr as Sam. Lennon reportedly wanted to play Gollum, while George Harrison was set on being Gandalf. The idea was to have Stanley Kubrick direct, but he wasn't interested, as he thought an adaptation would be "unfilmable."However, the nail in the coffin on the project came from the book's author, J.R.R. Tolkien, who wasn't thrilled about a "pop group" doing the adaptation of his story, so he turned down granting the rights to the Beatles. 4. In the '80s, Freddie Mercury dressed Princess Diana up as a guy and snuck her into a gay bar. Phil Dent / Redferns, Tim Graham / Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images According to actor Cleo Rocos, who befriended Princess Diana in the '80s, she and Diana were hanging out at the home of comedian Kenny Everett, along with Freddie Mercury. At some point, Diana asked everyone what they were doing later that night, to which Rocos, Everett, and Mercury said they had plans to go down to the London gay bar Royal Vauxhall Tavern.
Diana asked them if she could join them. Rocos, Everett, and Mercury initially hesitated because they were concerned about what could happen if the press found out the then-future queen of England was partying at a gay bar. Mercury gave in and reportedly said, "Go on, let the girl have some fun," and dressed her up in an army jacket, aviator sunglasses, and a leather cap (the clothes Everett had planned to wear out that night). They were able to sneak her into the club, and nobody noticed it was her. 5. The Berlin Wall fell because of a mistake. Robert Wallis / Corbis via Getty Images On Nov. 9, 1989, East German officials held a televised press conference to announce new travel rules. The plan was to allow people to apply for visas to travel to West Germany in an organized way, starting the next day. But spokesman Günter Schabowski mistakenly told reporters the changes were effective "immediately, without delay." News spread fast, and East Berliners rushed to the border crossings that night. Confused guards, with no orders to stop them, eventually let people through. By the end of the evening, crowds were crossing freely, and the Berlin Wall had effectively fallen. 6. The Spi