New York City’s Metropolitan Opera House is the leading US opera company. It opened in 1883 after having been founded by a group of millionaires who had failed to get boxes at the prestigious and exclusive Academy of Music. The “Met” soon outshined its rival and is now considered one of the world’s premier opera stages. Originally located at Broadway and 39th Street, it moved into the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in 1966. Who were among the Met’s founding millionaires? Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary
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The illegitimate child of a courtesan, Bernhardt was encouraged to pursue a theatrical career by one of her mother’s lovers. Her acting teachers did not consider her a particularly promising student, but they turned out to be sorely mistaken; Bernhardt went on to become the premier romantic and tragic actress of her day, touring all over the world during her six-decade career on stage and screen. What morbid possession may have helped “the Divine Sarah” reach her potential as a tragedienne? 
Named for their explosive defense mechanism, bombardier beetles forcefully expel an acrid, volatile fluid from their abdomens when threatened. The ejection of this fluid, a mixture of two chemicals that boil upon contact and vaporize into a jet of gas that can kill insects and small creatures, is accompanied by a loud cracking sound. Where can bombardier beetles be found? 
On October 21, 1978, 20-year-old Frederick Valentich disappeared while piloting a Cessna light aircraft over Australia. He was supposed to land at King Island, pick up a few friends, and return to Moorabbin Airport, but during his flight, he reported to air traffic control that a strange aircraft was flying close above him. No trace of Valentich or his aircraft was ever found, prompting some to speculate that he had been captured by a UFO. What was the last thing he told flight controllers? 
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A nationally recognized US physicist, accomplished saxophonist, and black belt in karate, McNair was selected to join NASA’s astronaut training program in 1978. Six years later, aboard the space shuttle Challenger, he became the second African American in space. His next trip into orbit was to take place on the same shuttle on January 28, 1986, and McNair brought his sax along for the ride, intending to be the first to record an original piece of music in space. Why did this never happen? 
Knowth is the site of a Neolithic passage grave in the valley of Ireland’s River Boyne. Built approximately 5,000 years ago, the site consists of a large mound containing two passages leading to burial chambers. This is surrounded by 17 smaller satellite tombs. Knowth contains more than a third of all the megalithic art in Western Europe, including hundreds of stones decorated with spirals, crescents, and other shapes. Why do some believe that Knowth exhibits evidence of astronomical alignment?