There is a joke that says that in France, French bread is just called "bread". However, as much as he has nationality in his name, he is totally Brazilian, coming from recipes that tried to copy a type of bread made in France but eventually created something quite different. This kind of language problem is common, but it does not mean that all the examples are wrong: Russian roulette, for example, seems to have originated in Russia.

Still, the term was coined by a Swiss writer named George Surdez, who in 1937 wrote a tale called "Russian Roulette" in which he chronicles a "joke" made by the Russian army during the occupation in Romania in 1917 during World War I. We know from the story: One officer put a single bullet into a revolver with a capacity of up to 6 and then fired at his own temple, trying his luck not to be hit by the projectile.

This practice, however, dates back to a century earlier, with several Russian soldiers participating in the "joke, " according to Russian poet and novelist Mikhail Lérmontov, who had lived in the early 19th century. Still, the term was only popularized. in the rest of the world with the release of the film "The Sniper" in 1978: in it, three soldiers are captured during the Vietnam War and begin headshots until only 1 remains alive.

"The Sniper Franco" ended up popularizing the practice, especially among young people and teenagers, and causing many people to die

But while apparently the macabre practice has sprung up in Russia, it is in the United States that it makes the most casualties: one of the most famous cases happened in 1954, when musician Johnny Ace died on Christmas Eve during the break of a concert. Years earlier, a teenager allegedly killed a colleague with a variation of Russian roulette: in Russian poker, instead of shooting yourself in the head, you aim at someone else. Another victim of his own luck was Finnish magician Aimo Leikas, who ended his life in 1976 after a failed trick involving the deadly "prank".

In Brazil, there is no specific law against Russian roulette, but the survivor of such a game can be framed in article 122 of the Penal Code, which talks about induction, instigation or assistance in the event of suicide, with the penalty of up to 6 years if the other person dies. If the loser only gets injured, the other participant can get up to 3 years in jail for serious personal injury.

Aimo Leikas lost his life in a trick attempt involving Russian roulette

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