With the Internet about to 'splode with talk of the Hunger Games, I thought I'd offer my two cents on the film/books. I'll say it right now: I haven't read the books and don't plan on it. But then again, I haven't read Harry Potter or the Twilight "books" and that hasn't stopped me from having strong opinions on those either.

As it is my job to know what the Internet is up to, I did some research into the books/movie and came up with a list of 15 things you didn't know about the Hunger Games. Hunger Games trivia is all the rage, so hopefully if I repeat Hunger Games facts a few times this article will get some of that sweet Google traffic. By the way please like/tweet/digg or whatever your social media of choice is (Sorry about that, it's just we're having a Hunger Games of our own here at Live Toast, whoever gets the most likes this month gets a free cheeseburger.)

The eagerly awaited film The Hunger Games opens tonight, here are some little known facts about the Hunger Games from Live Toast.

In case you have even less of a clue about the Hunger Games than I do, here's a quick Hunger Games summary before we get to facts you don't know about the Hunger Games:

The Hunger Games is the next marketing driven phenomenon from the people who brought you Harry Potter and the Twilight Series. It's all the rage with kids as well as adults who read kids books (Hey don't look at me, here's the first line from the Book of Knowledge, AKA Wikipedia: "The Hunger Games is a young adult novel written by Suzanne Collins.") The movie was written and directed by Gary Ross and stars Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson. The books are what's known as a dystopian novel, "the idea of a society in a repressive and controlled state, often under the guise of being utopian" (thanks again Wikipedia!) The dystopian novel has a proud tradition that dates back to the original dystopian novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley* in 1931 and includes novels like George Orwell's 1984 and The Giver. For the movie goers out there think V for Vendetta, Soylent Green or if you like crappy movies with hot babes, The Island with Scarlett Johansson, and if you like genius movies, Mike Judge's Idiocracy.

So apparently the novel/movie takes place in the future where things aren't going so hot. The US has broken into a bunch of individual states (probably because of Obamacare) and each state has to send two kids to fight in the Hunger Games. The games are like the only fun stuff that happens and takes the masses' mind of the fact they don't have any food. The winner gets to live and brings great honor to their state, and then the losers are eaten by the hungry villagers or something. The story centers around some chick that is entered into the games and has to fight the other people that got picked. You'll never guess, but the heroine of the story actually takes the place of her sister in the games (or at least she does in the commercial). She has to kill all the blokes from the other states en-route to winning the Hunger Games and getting a nifty trophy. Like I say, I haven't read the books but I'm pretty sure I just covered the trilogy.

As you can probably tell, there's been a fair bit of research Live Toast has done on the Hunger Games, so without further ado, here are the top ten things you didn't know about the Hunger Games. (Thanks to Ian for helping to research this ambitious project.)

1. The Hunger Games were inspired by Thanksgiving at author Suzanne Collins' house.

2. Taco Bell is the official sponsor of the Hunger Games, and if it wasn't for Collins's urging, Lionsgate Films was going to call the film the Taco Bell Games.

3. Oprah was the first person to win the Hunger Games.

4. The Hunger Games film was originally to be called The Hungover Games and was going to star Zach Galifianakis, but he was too fat to make a believable hungry person so instead they made two movies. (Anyone want to bet which franchise will have more sequels?)

5. The original plot of the series involved an Easter egg hunt that went horribly wrong.

6. The runner up has to eat a gallon of pink slime (pictured, right), which is also their last meal because they are then eaten after they are done.

You don't want to come in second in the Hunger Games or you will have to eat pink slime, and then get eaten.

7. Soylent Green is people!

8. Competitors with a BMI (Body Mass Index) higher than 30 are automatically disqualified from the Hunger Games and you are eaten.

9. The final challenge of the Hunger Games is finishing an entire Denny's Grand Slam.

10. If you watch it with the sound turned down while listening to an audio of Lord of the Flies you'll discover they are the exact same story.

11. A tie in the Hunger Games is broken by the deadliest of all games, lawn darts.

12. The games take place at a futuristic version of Coney Island that has robots and lasers.

13. The spork has been outlawed by the Hunger Games governing body because of its unfair advantage. Contestants found in possession of a spork are automatically eaten.

The spork is considered contraband at the Hunger Games due to the unfair advantage it presents, so don't even think about using one, or you will be eaten.

14. The movie ends when the protagonist finds a long lost shipment of Ramen Noodles and has enough food to feed all the states forever.

15. Anorexia and bulimia groups plan to stage ultra-violent protests outside all theaters where the movie is screened, so don't forget to bring mace.

Do you have any unknown facts about the Hunger Games? Sound off in the comments section with other facts you think our readers might enjoy.

So anyway, if you're planning on watching the Hunger Games I hope these little known facts about the Hunger Games will further your appreciation for the film. Make you sure tell everyone about what you don't know about the Hunger Games, because this blockbuster is gonna be a big one. And if you learned something here, please like, digg, Stumble, tweet, reddit etc. (Pretty PLEASSEE, with sugar on the top!!!)

Enjoy the Hunger Games!!