Droodles (Entry 382.AC0212)
In which we remember Frank Zappa's favorite 1950s fad, brought to you by the inventor of Mad Libs, and John remembers why people actually thought a Sasquatch lived on top of the Space Needle back in foggier times. Certificate #48261.
1hr 5m Jul 02, 2019
1hr 5m
Furries (Entry 508.GN2716)
In which hundreds of thousands of people dress in big plush animal suits as a hobby, identity, or fetish, and Ken explains the secret Family Feud notebooks of his childhood. Certificate #26505
56m Jun 27, 2019
56m
Town Line, New York (Entry 1323.2C0617)
In which a tiny village secedes from the United States to join the Confederacy and forgets to rejoin for almost a century--even though it's in upstate New York just miles from the Canadian border. Certificate #42052.
53m Jun 25, 2019
53m
Cold Fusion (Entry 242.PR2004)
In which two of the world's smartest electrochemists get fooled by a botched experiment and the promise of fame, and John reveals that GPS mysticism is his pseudoscience. Certificate #19668.
1hr 1m Jun 21, 2019
1hr 1m
The Kamehameha Colonists (Entry 681.IS4204)
In which over a hundred of Honolulu's elite private school students are shipped off to some of the world's most remote islands on a top-secret government mission, and Ken wonders if sea turtles can feel dread. Certificate #22194.
51m Jun 19, 2019
51m
Maraschino Cherries (Entry 758.PR0819)
In which we learn how a historical delicacy of Croatia got bastardized into a staple of American cocktails and sundaes, and John is upset when his third grade teacher pays him in ice cream instead of cash. Certificate #28197.
54m Jun 13, 2019
54m
Cursive (Entry 307.DA0508)
In which we trace script handwriting from ancient Egypt all the way up to the modern culture wars, and John and Ken argue over the ugliest cursive capital letter: is it J or Q? Certificate #32892.
56m Jun 11, 2019
56m
Lilly Pulitzer (Entry 1007.LK1227)
In which the messy orange-eating of a runaway heiress creates a colorful new summer look for American women, and Ken goes way too far with his Kennedy assassination theories. Certificate #12306.
43m Jun 06, 2019
43m
Bone Wars (Entry 141.PS14107)
In which America's two greatest dinosaur hunters ruin their lives in an unhinged battle of spite and revenge, which John finds extremely romantic. Certificate #24269.
48m Jun 04, 2019
48m
Pattie Boyd (Entry 148.DE2402)
In which two of the greatest rock guitarists of all time pine after the same woman, each marry her in turn, and somehow stay friends. Certificate #42401.
55m May 30, 2019
55m
The Reindeer Wizards (Entry 1049.DE1811)
In which we remember the 1950s charity drive to raise reindeer funds for a tribe of Scandinavian telepaths--a problem they really should have seen coming. Certificate #37239.
46m May 28, 2019
46m
Trapper Keepers (Entry 1331.IS0816)
In which a re-designed school binder becomes a mandatory school accessory and one of the great marketing successes of the 1980s, and Ken spends hours looking at erasers shaped like sushi. Certificate #31310.
51m May 23, 2019
51m
Winifred Sackville Stoner Jr. (Entry 1229.MT1125)
In which an Esperanto-loving stage mom raises America's first celebrity child prodigy, who writes one of history's most famous poems before vanishing into a cloud of bigamy and scandal. Certificate #35551.
55m May 21, 2019
55m
Plymouth Rock (Entry 955.EX3321)
In which John visits one of the most underwhelming (and breakable) landmarks in American history, and explains why its entire history is almost certainly made up. Certificate #33004.
47m May 16, 2019
47m
Tortilla Chips (Entry 1320.GN4226)
In which America discovers Tex-Mex food at Disneyland, leading to the invention of Doritos and "extreme" snack foods, and Ken has clam chowder in his car. Certificate #42729.
51m May 14, 2019
51m
Private Wojtek the Bear (Entry 988.HO1308)
In which we follow an army of exiled Polish soldiers from Siberia to Iran to Scotland, and learn why they taught a Syrian brown bear to carry ammo and eat cigarettes. Certificate #41871.
37m May 09, 2019
37m
Hotel Detectives (Entry 601.GN4321)
In which we learn about palming doorknobs, spotting bunco artists and fornicators, and other old tricks of the "hotel dick" trade, and John steals some room service pizza. Certificate #51720.
41m May 07, 2019
41m
The Charge of the Light Brigade (Entry 208.GN5009)
In which a series of underqualified officers and vague, sweeping gestures lead to a terrible military debacle, a good sweater, and a catchy poem, and Ken expresses some skepticism about Captain von Trapp. Certificate #38694.
1hr 1m May 02, 2019
1hr 1m
The French Revolutionary Calendar (Entry 500.EX1202)
In which the freethinkers of the Enlightenment take a stab at designing a 100% secular timekeeping system from the ground up, and John wants to be called "Goldenrod." Certificate #44270.
59m Apr 30, 2019
59m
Killer Rabbit (Entry 686.LV1106)
In which we go through the weird list of things glimpsed by noted paranormal researcher Jimmy Carter, including a hissing marsh rabbit and a UFO that the Air Force wants you to think is barium. Certificate #21432.
52m Apr 25, 2019
52m
Ted Danson in Blackface (Entry 1283.JB2317)
In which one of the most beloved sitcom stars in America tries out the worst comedy idea of all time, and John has a theory about anti-Semitism in the Aliens movies. Certificate #22400.
1hr 4m Apr 23, 2019
1hr 4m
Breastaurants (Entry 152.IS1321)
In which we explain the squeaky-clean tawdriness of casual dining chains that put all the servers in tank tops, and Ken wonders if you can eat hot wings ironically. Certificate #37739.
1hr 1m Apr 18, 2019
1hr 1m
Mussolini's Nose (Entry 819.PR3033)
In which a chronically ill British woman decides that God wants her to kill a fascist dictator, and Ken and John argue over whether or not an assassination plot needs a chalkboard. Certificate #16114.
54m Apr 16, 2019
54m
Wide Skis (Entry 1431.LK0429)
In which, after centuries of stagnation, the sport of skiing is revolutionized in a matter of three years, and John is forced to sign a hand-written waiver. Certificate #34056.
1hr 5m Apr 11, 2019
1hr 5m
Cocaine Hippos (Entry 238.JB4021)
In which the rivers of Colombia teem with African hippos due to the excesses of a long-dead drug lord, and Ken suggests introducing Welsh corgis to the Amazon rainforest. Certificate #37768.
45m Apr 09, 2019
45m
The Smoot (Entry 1178.1K0626)
In which an MIT fraternity prank creates a new unit of measurement and annoys Boston police, and John wins a million dollars on an imaginary quiz show about Maine. Certificate #50326.
46m Apr 04, 2019
46m
The Garden of Earthly Delights (Entry 515.SS0611)
In which a Dutch painter creates surreal hellscapes so mysterious and full of butts that no one knows what he was even thinking, and Ken explains why bagpipes are very, very erotic. Certificate #17086.
56m Apr 02, 2019
56m
Breezewood, Pennsylvania (Entry 153.JG0506)
In which a funding impasse and clever fast food franchises put a one-of-a-kind stoplight right in the middle of a Pennsylvania interstate, and Ken misremembers who built the Lincoln Highway. Certificate #31424.
1hr 7m Mar 28, 2019
1hr 7m
Indigo (Entry 634.GE0913)
In which Sir Isaac Newton adds an extra color to the rainbow to make his mystical, musical math come out right, and John has strong feelings about Satan's marital status. Certificate #26015.
1hr 9m Mar 26, 2019
1hr 9m
Egg-Cracking Machines (Entry 398.JE1711)
In which John goes to the Caribbean, learns how cruise ships crack 20,000 eggs in a week, and begins to comparison-shop the amazing Rube Goldberg inventions involved. Certificate #27021.
55m Mar 21, 2019
55m
Jeanne Calment (Entry 176.2C0416)
In which an indomitable woman from Provence defies actuaries by living to be 122 years old, shadowy Russian forces try to discredit her, and Ken predicts which Saturday Night Live cast members will be centenarians. Certificate #43762.
1hr 11m Mar 19, 2019
1hr 11m
Anything Into Oil (Entry 056.EX3729)
In which one tech company's fondest dream—to turn Butterball turkey offal into light crude oil—remains tantalizingly out of reach, and John and Ken worry about whether they're recycling waxed paper correctly. Certificate #26207.
1hr 7m Mar 14, 2019
1hr 7m
Tippi Hedren's Fingernails (Entry 1311.DE2112)
In which a Hollywood ingenue survives her encounters with birds, angry lions, and creepy directors, and survives to become the godmother of one of America's great immigrant business empires. Certificate #28046.
1hr 5m Mar 12, 2019
1hr 5m
The Cheesesteak War (Entry 211.PR2306)
In which a hot dog vendor and an anonymous cabbie invent one of the all-time great American foods, giving Philadelphians classic choices like "Whiz or provolone," "wit' onions or wit'out," and "xenophobia or not." Certificate #6594.
1hr 9m Mar 07, 2019
1hr 9m
Geomagnetic Reversal (Entry 524.JB3709)
In which the Earth's magnetic field turns the North Pole into the South Pole every few hundred thousand years, and John and Ken discuss what effect this might have on the aurora borealis, ski-bum turtles, and North Dakota tourism. Certificate #41220.
55m Mar 05, 2019
55m
Mike the Headless Chicken (Entry 787.MK0616)
In which one seemingly doomed Colorado rooster lucks into a kind of zombie Charlotte's Web scenario, and Ken and John disagree over whether a "meat puppet" is a kind of food. Certificate #21086.
1hr 5m Feb 28, 2019
1hr 5m
Honest Dick (Entry 596.EX2208)
In which the most trusted man in the state of Kentucky disappears with tobacco sacks full of the state treasury, and John and Ken discover which prominent U.S. government official is almost always a Latina. Certificate #23421.
1hr 8m Feb 26, 2019
1hr 8m
Freighthopping (Entry 500.AM0812)
In which the American railroad provides a semi-legal travel network for millions of migrant laborers, and John explains how a sufficiently blond mustache on a young hobo can ward off evil. Certificate #14946.
1hr 4m Feb 21, 2019
1hr 4m
The Foreign Legion (Entry 490.2S1519)
In which the French army accepts thousands of rogues and ne'er-do-wells from all over the world, giving them white helmets and a whole lot of wine, and Ken suggests a new method for reheating Hot Pockets. Certificate #36749.
1hr 6m Feb 19, 2019
1hr 6m
Jacqueline Cochran (Entry 238.RV1214)
In which one driven girl from the backwoods of Georgia changes the face of aviation, Ken roasts astronaut Scott Carpenter, and John skips class to judge an essay contest. Certificate #39584.
1hr 8m Feb 14, 2019
1hr 8m
The Bodies of Mount Everest (Entry 138.JE1316)
In which travelers to one of the most dangerous places on earth leave so many casualties behind in the "Death Zone" that they literally become part of the map. Certificate #7505.
57m Feb 12, 2019
57m
(LIVE) Yngwie Malmsteen (Entry 753.JE1022)
In which a skilled but self-absorbed Swedish musician leaves his homeland to become a guitar god, and John explains his theory about how neoclassicism ruined rock. Certificate #26394.
33m Feb 07, 2019
33m
(LIVE) Extremely Overdue Library Books (Entry 445.2T0413)
In which countless scofflaws, including George Washington, rack up hundreds of thousands of dollars in library fines, and Ken takes home a "spite book." Certificate #29342.
40m Feb 05, 2019
40m
Flagpole Sitters (Entry 474.1S1013)
In which Syrian ascetics and American steeplejacks alike enjoy the weirdest fad of all time, and Ken angers marathon runners. Certificate #45561.
1hr 11m Jan 31, 2019
1hr 11m
Samantha Smith (Entry 1178.IS1106)
In which a fifth-grader from Maine becomes a diplomatic sensation after writing a nervous letter to Moscow, and John remembers the only fan letter he ever wrote. Certificate #35519.
1hr 7m Jan 29, 2019
1hr 7m
The Twins of Benin (Entry 1353.GN2524)
In which we learn that one very specific region of West Africa produces more twins than anywhere else on earth, which could be due to heredity, yams, or, in Ken's mind, a mysterious glowing meteorite. Certificate #29437.
1hr 9m Jan 24, 2019
1hr 9m
The Kilogram (Entry 686.DE2513)
In which the dreams of the French Revolution are finally fulfilled by modern physicists eager to re-define science itself from scratch, which probably triggered the alien landing in May 2019. Certificate #37545.
1hr 8m Jan 22, 2019
1hr 8m
Trucker Culture (Entry 1343.MT2514)
In which a gas crisis and an early social media network conspire to make long-haul truck drivers national heroes, and Ken gives a big 10-4 to a heroic trucker named "Fuzzy." Certificate #25007.
1hr 4m Jan 17, 2019
1hr 4m
Vice Versa (Entry 1393.EP0423)
In which we read the Victorian novel that, a century later, would start an avalanche of body-swapping movie comedies, and John tries to debunk the blind prophet Tiresias. Certificate #30972.
1hr 13m Jan 15, 2019
1hr 13m
Queen Victoria's Grandchildren (Entry 1020.IS1418)
In which we follow up on the forty-two offspring of the "grandmother of Europe," including the one who led Germany into World War I and the one who might have been Jack the Ripper. Certificate #26374.
59m Jan 10, 2019
59m