10 facts about Harry Potter

1. The actress who played Moaning Myrtle was 37 years old at the time “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” was filmed. She is the oldest actress to ever portray a Hogwarts student.

2. Rowling’s publisher suggested she use initials rather than her real name, “Joanne Rowling,” in order to appeal to male readers. She chose J.K., borrowing the “K” from her grandmother’s name, Kathleen. However, neither “Kathleen” nor “K” is part of her legal name.
3. Contrary to popular belief, the ‘t’ at the end of Voldemort is silent. The name comes from the French words meaning “flight of death.”
4. Six actors have played as Voldemort over the course of the movies.
5. Over 400 million Harry Potter books in 67 languages have been sold worldwide as of 2008.
6. "Dumbledore" is an early modern English word for "Bumblebee".
7. The least successful Harry Potter film, “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,” made $90 million more than the most successful Twilight movie.
8. J.K. Rowling is the first person to become a billionaire (U.S. dollars) by writing books.
9. Harry’s birthday is July 31, 1980. Rowling’s birthday is also July 31 – but in 1966.


10. People had trouble pronouncing Hermione’s name, so Rowling had her sound it out for Viktor Krum in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.”