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
Cumberland vs. Georgia Tech (Entry 305.RM1219)
In which a revenge-crazed football coach runs up a 222-0 score against a squad of random law students and townies, and John explains why his go-to comedy move is dropping his pants. Certificate #26347.
1hr 10m Jan 08, 2019
1hr 10m
Track 61 (Entry 1324.EZ0808)
In which Franklin Roosevelt builds a secret, private train station under the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, and John almost defects to East Germany in a gaily colored ski jacket. Certificate #33725.
1hr 2m Jan 03, 2019
1hr 2m
Snowflakes (Entry 1181.PS14716)
In which a Vermont farmer unveils to the world a natural beauty of crystalline perfection that's been hiding in plain sight, and Ken and John decide to slander Buzz Aldrin for some reason. Certificate #16919.
49m Jan 01, 2019
49m
The Turboencabulator (Entry 1348.IS2811)
In which we study the spurving bearings and hydrocoptic marzlevanes of the made-up machine that brought technobabble to the masses, and John actually encourages Ken to talk about Star Trek for a change. Certificate #45305.
1hr 8m Dec 27, 2018
1hr 8m
Thomas Nast (Entry 825.JB1534)
In which one Gilded Age influencer puts Santa at the North Pole because he hates slavery so much and runs New York's most powerful man out of town on a rail because he hates the Irish so much. Certificate #33423.
1hr 9m Dec 25, 2018
1hr 9m
The Christmas Truce (Entry 220.LK0214)
In which peace and holiday good will break out on the western front in 1914, partly due to the work of suffragettes, and it changes the tourism industry forever. Also, Ken defends fruitcake. Certificate #31405.
1hr 2m Dec 20, 2018
1hr 2m
Telling the Bees (Entry 1285.PR2413)
In which we explore one of the weirdest funeral superstitions of pagan Europe, and John explains why he likes to retell Aesop's Fables from the bad guys' point of view. Certificate #44411.
59m Dec 18, 2018
59m
Patrick Nagel (Entry 823.SS0115)
In which one artist redefines eroticism for the MTV generation, and John gets stuck with a very overpriced piece of Duran Duran memorabilia. Certificate #31513.
1hr 8m Dec 13, 2018
1hr 8m
Robert Smalls (Entry 1176.DE2315)
In which a South Carolina slave seizes a heavily armed Confederate ship and sails it to freedom and instant celebrity, whereas Ken doesn't even own a hatchet. Certificate #38760.
1hr 4m Dec 11, 2018
1hr 4m
Marmorated Stink Bugs (Entry 761.LV1120)
In which a hard-to-kill Asian insect arrives in America and discovers a delightful new predator-free life eating our produce, hiding behind our picture frames, and making everything smell like cilantro-infused sewage. Certificate #30979.
1hr 1m Dec 06, 2018
1hr 1m
Ghost Forests (Entry 527.EZ1724)
In which Ken accidentally goes on vacation to a long submerged, 2,000-year-old forest, and John explains the value he can add to a rugby game or campfire. Certificate #1751.
55m Dec 04, 2018
55m
Scrappy Doo (Entry 1115.PP0302)
In which 1970s and 1980s TV is overrun by an avalanche of orphans, runaways, and other wisecracking moppets, and John reveals that Oscar the Grouch is a witch in a "fursuit." Certificate #37500.
1hr 10m Nov 29, 2018
1hr 10m
The Qibla (Entry 1016.PS5517)
In which the Islamic practice of facing Mecca in prayer becomes a thorny theological and geographical question, particularly for Muslims in Alaska, French Polynesia, or low-earth orbit. Certificate #2405.
1hr 15m Nov 27, 2018
1hr 15m
Pumpkin Pie (Entry 1008.JH0406)
In which we consider America's favorite gourd as a botanical mystery, a symbol of autumn, a Civil War flashpoint, an Illinois monoculture, a delivery vehicle for condensed milk, and an instrument of Starbucks-related misogyny and class warfare. Certificate #36525.
1hr 6m Nov 22, 2018
1hr 6m
Deep-Fried Turkeys (Entry 325.JN0432)
In which the Cajun cooking fad of the 1980s spawns a hazardous new holiday favorite, and Ken's wife flips us the bird. Certificate #30269.
1hr 9m Nov 20, 2018
1hr 9m
The Cagot (Entry 173.2K0527)
In which a tiny French minority in the Pyrenees is shunned and hated for reasons no one can quite remember, and John pronounces the words "goose foot" more capably than Ken. Certificate #28287.
49m Nov 15, 2018
49m
Jennens v. Jennens (Entry 671.NU2711)
In which the notorious "Miser of Acton" forgets to sign his will, and for over a century thousands of people--including Ken's family--become convinced they are rightful heirs to his $300 million fortune. Certificate #23502.
56m Nov 13, 2018
56m
Wild Man Fischer (Entry 472.GE1612)
In which a troubled street performer becomes a beloved musician and helps found a landmark record label, Ken buys a booby-trapped painting, and John critiques the storytelling of celebrity children. Certificate #49895.
1hr 21m Nov 08, 2018
1hr 21m
The Doomsday Flight (Entry 372.AM0214)
In which the U.S. government tries to ban a Rod Serling TV movie for inspiring too many mid-air extortions, all of which can be foiled by knowing the right trivia fact about Denver. Certificate #41961.
1hr 18m Nov 06, 2018
1hr 18m
Albert Pierrepoint (Entry 938.ES0914)
In which a Lancashire grocer and pub landlord becomes the most skilled executioner of all time, and John explains the best part of being guillotined. Certificate #21776.
1hr 1m Nov 01, 2018
1hr 1m
Bridey Murphy (Entry 818.JB1414)
In which a Colorado housewife and her tractor dealer friend jump-start the 1950s "reincarnation" fad, and Ken ponders whether or not he was "Endora" in a past life. Certificate #29314.
1hr 9m Oct 30, 2018
1hr 9m
The Letter J (Entry 714.1CH0910)
In which a 16th-century jack-of-all-trades judiciously joins a jaunty new Johnny-come-lately to our jargon because he's just so jazzed about Jesus. Juxtaposed with John's jumbled jeremiads and Jennings's juvenile jokes. Certificate #23082.
44m Oct 25, 2018
44m
The Ballads of Ossian (Entry 094.PR2017)
In which Thomas Jefferson, Napoleon, and Goethe go nuts about a best-selling blind Celtic bard who might not even exist, and John writes his first Tolkien fanfic. Certificate #28002
1hr 12m Oct 23, 2018
1hr 12m
Brown Sound (Entry 158.MT1517)
In which military scientists, flush from their success annoying Manuel Noriega with Doors music, try to find that one elusive noise that will liquefy their enemies' bowels. Certificate #42964.
56m Oct 18, 2018
56m
Second Sleep (Entry 1122.ZC0401)
In which John and Ken learn that they share a "chronotype," but disagree over whether it's natural to spend an hour or two every night sitting naked in a chair. Certificate #38846.
1hr 9m Oct 16, 2018
1hr 9m
The Hollow Earth (Entry 593.JB2607)
In which we ponder two questions: are we living on the inside of a concave sphere? Or is someone else down there, possibly with skimpy outfits and pet dinosaurs? Certificate #19429.
1hr 1m Oct 11, 2018
1hr 1m
Pokemon Go (Entry 958.GE0702)
In which the biggest media franchise and the biggest augmented reality game of all time cause us to consider Zionist trading cards, the allure of wooden boats, and the feng shui of construction workers. Certificate #41843.
1hr 17m Oct 09, 2018
1hr 17m
Tsar Bomba (Entry 1345.MI0104)
In which the Soviet Union detonates the biggest bomb in human history, and Ken imagines Nikita Khrushchev as a pro wrestler and a Bond villain. Certificate #20568.
53m Oct 04, 2018
53m
The Blue Men of the Sahara (Entry 136.PS10704)
In which we meet one of the last nomadic people on the planet and admire their dress code, and John identifies strongly with a camel that roars when loaded heavily. Certificate #42973
1hr 12m Oct 02, 2018
1hr 12m
Dancing Mania (Entry 315.LA0515)
In which mass hysteria strikes the town squares of medieval Europe, John imagines the rigors of jute underwear, and Ken wonders if aliens ever start orgies. Certificate #21161.
50m Sep 27, 2018
50m
Mail Trucks (Entry 749.2S1114)
In which the world's largest, boxiest truck fleet ages into its fourth decade, and John hunts for an elusive postal mascot from his childhood.  Certificate #35752
52m Sep 25, 2018
52m
Albanian Bunkers (Entry 029.RV0615)
In which we learn why one of Europe's most isolated countries is dotted with hundreds of thousands of domed concrete pillboxes, and also why zombie movies are thinly veiled racism. Certificate #46673
1hr 5m Sep 20, 2018
1hr 5m
(LIVE) Disco Demolition Night (Entry 356.AC1919)
In which the war between album-oriented rock and its mortal enemy disco boils over into the worst baseball promotion in history, and Ken reveals what 1970s music they play in heaven. Certificate #25815.
57m Sep 18, 2018
57m
Jefferson, State of (Entry 671.NU2655)
In which a huckster and meteorite-hunter, facing a business disaster, starts a still-brewing secession movement on the Oregon-California border, and also we contemplate who all the Looney Tunes characters voted for. Certificate #26085.
1hr 4m Sep 13, 2018
1hr 4m
The Hilbert Hotel (Entry 587.LK0207)
In which we learn what happens when an infinite number of tour buses arrive at an infinite hotel with no vacancies, and decide whether or not this is worse than the guest services at the Eagles' Hotel California. Certificate #44261.
1hr 5m Sep 11, 2018
1hr 5m
Anita Bryant (Entry 159.PR0913)
In which a minor 1950s celebrity births America's modern cultural war, and Ken gets to complain about his two least favorite things: bigotry, and orange juice. Certificate #31531
1hr 1m Sep 06, 2018
1hr 1m
The Fourth Crusade (Entry 495.2T0203)
In which a medieval crusade to Jerusalem goes off the rails and ends up sacking the world's greatest Christian city instead. Certificate #11758.
1hr 10m Sep 04, 2018
1hr 10m
The Anarchist Cookbook (Entry 045.RV2210)
In which an angry teenager in his local library produces a counterculture classic of booby-trap design, leading to John being suspended from junior high for anarcho-capitalism. Certificate #33047.
53m Aug 30, 2018
53m
The Saint Helena Submarine Plot (Entry 1096.PS7719)
In which Napoleon Bonaparte is disrespected by John's mom, but almost rescued by an English smuggler in a steampunk submarine. Certificate #37796.
45m Aug 28, 2018
45m
The Berkeley Pit (Entry 115.PS8806)
In which John welcomes the microbes from a Montana copper sludge pit who will surely inherit the earth, and Ken announces how many syllables a dog's name should have. Certificate #50365.
48m Aug 23, 2018
48m
Inversion Goggles (Entry 659.IS2916)
In which we study the human brain's terrifying capacity for adaptation, via upside-down cigarette lighting, weird-smelling houses, and "stoner" voice. Certificate #37104.
52m Aug 21, 2018
52m
The '59 Les Paul Standard (Entry 466.PS3302)
In which John explains why there are only 643 of the greatest guitar ever made, and Kirk Hammett of Metallica pays $2 million for a Fleetwood Mac hand-me-down. Certificate #30784.
1hr 2m Aug 16, 2018
1hr 2m
Ea-Nasir (Entry 390.LV1913)
In which Sumeria's shiftiest businessman keeps all his hate mail around for four thousand years, and Ken gets accused of counterfeiting by a local bookstore. Certificate #27107.
48m Aug 14, 2018
48m
Michael Rockefeller (Entry 1078.MI0303)
In which one of America's richest young men gets really into New Guinean tribal art, and ends up getting really into a New Guinean tribe. Certificate #7628.
50m Aug 09, 2018
50m
The D-Day Crosswords (Entry 318.PR2019)
In which a British newspaper mysteriously spends June 1944 printing top-secret World War II spoilers, and Ken fails to amuse John with a lengthy anagram about a sex scandal. Certificate #29294.
58m Aug 07, 2018
58m
The Barefoot Bandit (Entry 098.DE2510)
In which John runs down the history of serial burglary, beginning with gentleman jewel thieves and ending with a plane crash in the Bahamas. Certificate #39409.
1hr Aug 02, 2018
1hr
Greek Fire (Entry 548.IS6402)
In which the Byzantines save their empire by inventing the flamethrower, John clears up a misconception re: how many roads go to Rome, and Ken clears up a misconception re: how many herbs and spices are in KFC. Certificate #10403.
50m Jul 31, 2018
50m