Gordon Lish (Entry 726.2C0113)
In which Raymond Carver becomes a literary superstar largely thanks to one brilliant, heavy-handed editor, and Ken and John share a very controversial Blade Runner take. Certificate #24875.
1hr 6m May 22, 2018
1hr 6m
Spanish Fly (Entry 1195.SS0713)
In which a poison made from dried beetles becomes a schoolyard legend as an alleged aphrodisiac, foreshadowing our modern age of creepy predator celebrities and erectile dysfunction infomercials. Certificate #31327.
52m May 17, 2018
52m
The Moon Illusion (Entry 806.JB3126)
In which we learn why the moon looks so much larger at the horizon, whether your fingernails can out-race Portugal, and whether Ken or John has the better Axl Rose impression. Certificate #18042.
50m May 15, 2018
50m
Tylenol Murders (Entry 1354.IS2915)
In which John runs down the disturbing history of product tampering, from Bromo-Seltzer to baby food, and listeners are strongly discouraged from committing murder. Certificate #27765.
1hr May 10, 2018
1hr
William Rufus King (Entry 688.LK1734)
In which a U.S. vice-president spends his entire six-week term dying in Cuba, and Ken reads some fun, flirty letters from future president James Buchanan. Certificate #39087.
54m May 08, 2018
54m
Backyard Blast Furnaces (Entry 091.EZ2220)
In which John explains why it's a bad idea to smelt iron on your deck or patio, a seemingly obvious life tip that seems to have escaped Chairman Mao. Certificate #30148.
54m May 03, 2018
54m
The Washington Generals (Entry 1411.HE1212)
In which we celebrate a basketball team that never gets to celebrate, because they've lost to their rivals 17,000 times. Certificate #46102.
54m May 01, 2018
54m
Checkerboarding (Entry 210.NU2653)
In which the U.S. government pixelates the American West with land grants to railroads. Certificate #6798.
43m Apr 26, 2018
43m
Bir Tawil (Entry 126.EZ2010)
In which Ken confesses that he might have caused a land grab in the middle of the Nubian Desert. Certificate #50204.
48m Apr 24, 2018
48m
Hypercolor (Entry 611.GE3703)
In which we revisit 1991's briefest, brightest fashion fad, and John ponders what to do with our nation's biggest problem: awkward middle-schoolers. Certificate #26275.
51m Apr 19, 2018
51m
The Angels of Mons (Entry 047.PS9111)
In which an unsuccessful horror writer accidentally rewrites the history of the Western Front, and Ken is clearly annoyed at having to learn the history of the Western Front. Certificate #21873.
52m Apr 17, 2018
52m
Canadian Floating Feet (Entry 178.RV2013)
In which sneakers keep washing onto the beaches of British Columbia with the feet of mystery people still inside, may God rest their soles. Certificate #27174.
32m Apr 12, 2018
32m
Vending Machines (Entry 1387.DE0228)
In which Ken runs down the list of everything that could ever be bought by putting coins in slots, from religious awe to banned books to pancake mix. Certificate #16697.
48m Apr 10, 2018
48m
Call Signs (Entry 176.1S1007)
In which we learn why US radio stations start with a K or a W, and how to get hold of Ken's dad in case of a national emergency. Certificate #28337.
38m Apr 05, 2018
38m
Hachiko (Entry 559.PR2006)
In which a Scottish policeman, a Tokyo professor, and Mary Queen of Scots have very loyal dogs, but a young John Roderick does not. Certificate #24139.
46m Apr 03, 2018
46m
(LIVE) Lake Missoula (Entry 697.GN0710)
In which a prehistoric ice dam breaks and 500 cubic miles of water reshape the Pacific Northwest. Certificate #17528
27m Mar 29, 2018
27m
(LIVE) Tuvan Throat Singers (Entry 1351.PS13704)
In which Ken attempts to teach a new superpower--Central Asian overtone singing--to John and a live audience. Certificate #40632.
37m Mar 27, 2018
37m
Milli Vanilli (Entry 789.JB2704)
In which a German record producer hires two male models to lip-sync his hits, leading to--girl, you know it's true!--one Grammy, one class-action lawsuit, and one tragic death. Certificate #35145.
57m Mar 22, 2018
57m
Mary Anning (Entry 050.PS3420)
In which a working-class woman becomes one of the greatest scientists of her age, discovers dinosaur poop, and sells seashells by the seashore. Certificate #36073.
41m Mar 20, 2018
41m
S.S. United States (Entry 1213.JB0926)
In which an aluminum-heavy cruise liner falls on hard times, and John and Ken can't decide if "Blue Riband" is actually French or not. Certificate #39390.
47m Mar 15, 2018
47m
Rubber Barons (Entry 1087.EZ1613)
In which Ken describes the nouveau riche of the Amazon rainforest, and John has a conspiracy theory about scarecrows. Certificate #25284.
43m Mar 13, 2018
43m
Father Coughlin (Entry 284.MT2309)
In which a fiery Canadian gets 30 million Depression-era listeners for his little fascist radio show, and Ken and John pledge fealty to Martian invaders. Certificate #29423
48m Mar 08, 2018
48m
The Noid (Entry 840.PR0415)
In which a claymation terrorist with inexplicable bunny ears disrupts pizza, takes hostages, and wins America's heart. Certificate #29250
49m Mar 06, 2018
49m
The Zuider Zee (Entry 1458.NA0104)
In which the Dutch battle their oldest enemy: the Waterwolf. Almost certainly the Omnibus's last entry (alphabetically). Certificate #31078.
46m Mar 01, 2018
46m
London Bridge Is Down (Entry 733.2K0934)
In which we make plans for the longest-awaited death in human history, and wonder how many Welsh corgis it takes to pull a gun carriage. Certificate #34884.
51m Feb 27, 2018
51m
Back Masking (Entry 091.EP0427)
In which John investigates whether or not segassem terces naitnoc sgnos kcor, and Ken wonders why Satan would own a toolshed. Certificate #30148.
44m Feb 22, 2018
44m
Megafauna (Entry 772.JB4015)
In which we learn which Ice Age animal is named after the human nipple, and which modern animal fills John's soul with bloodlust. Certificate #47448.
43m Feb 20, 2018
43m
Oneida (Entry 866.MT2230)
In which a socialist preacher invents a tricky birth control technique he calls "male continence," leading directly to the lazy Susan and the assassination of an American president. Certificate #34322.
42m Feb 15, 2018
42m
The Bellamy Salute (Entry 112.HE0616)
In which Ken blames a crucial bit of fascist iconography on the most successful magazine premium in American history, and John knows the lyrics to "Alaska's Flag" but refuses to sing it. Certificate #37863.
39m Feb 13, 2018
39m
Hat Etiquette (Entry 571.1C1104)
In which John strongly admonishes future listeners not to get sloppy with their headwear, if they have heads. Certificate #25200.
37m Feb 08, 2018
37m
Death Discs (Entry 319.MK1610)
In which the gruesome deaths in early 1960s teen ballads are variously blamed on capitalism, Marlon Brando, chastity, and giant clams. Certificate #34312.
50m Feb 06, 2018
50m
Mutual Assured Destruction (Entry 820.JE5022)
In which the human race barely survives the 20th century. (Well, not all of it, obviously. Picasso didn't, for example.) Certificate #27008
45m Feb 01, 2018
45m
Mummy Brown (Entry 817.PR0716)
In which the bodies of ancient kings are ground up to fertilize lawns, power locomotives, and paint portraits. Certificate #37891
43m Jan 30, 2018
43m
Thomas Midgley (Entry 786.ZC0508)
In which the world's worst chemist gives everyone lead poisoning, and then puts a hole in the ozone layer as an encore. Certificate #25185
46m Jan 25, 2018
46m
Paris Syndrome (Entry 901.JS1002)
In which twenty tourists a year have a psychological breakdown because the most magical city in the world is a little disappointing. Certificate #507
45m Jan 23, 2018
45m
The Sentinelese (Entry 1134.LV2024)
In which John introduces us to the world's last uncontacted tribeā€”but not literally, because that would be illegal. Certificate #13568
39m Jan 18, 2018
39m
Kohoutek (Entry 692.JU0113)
In which a Czech astronomer is hailed as the hero of 1973, only to have his discovery flame out by not flaming out. Then he gets very seasick on a cruise. Certificate #31644
39m Jan 16, 2018
39m
Monrovia, Moravia, Moldova, Moldavia (Entry 805.GN1032)
In which John shares the soothing geographic mantra that has got him where he is today: sitting in a bunker teaching 30th-century cockroach-people how to tell medieval Central European principalities apart. Certificate #18088.
54m Jan 11, 2018
54m
Heil Honey I'm Home! (Entry 577.PR1413)
In which an upstart British television producer finally answers that age-old question: why don't more classic sitcoms star Adolf Hitler? Certificate #42615.
38m Jan 09, 2018
38m
The Darien Gap (Entry 315.EZ3328)
In which a single highway is paved all the way from Alaska to Argentina--except for one pesky 66-mile gap right in the middle. Certificate #14458.
32m Jan 04, 2018
32m
Secret Order of the Double Sunrise (Entry 1122.EC0105)
In which QANTAS begins a top-secret 33-hour nonstop flight between Australia and Ceylon at the height of World War II, right under the noses of the Empire of Japan. Certificate #12248.
40m Jan 02, 2018
40m
Newton's Cradle (Entry 835.1C1311)
In which thousands of soulless corporate executives put little steel toys on their desks but still feel dead inside, and Ken finally learns how those little drinking birds work. Certificate #31932.
42m Dec 28, 2017
42m
Gadsby (Entry 511.PS6928)
In which our two hosts study a book that runs fifty thousand words without a solitary display of our writing plan's fifth symbol. Certificate #6442.
51m Dec 26, 2017
51m
Water Wars (Entry 1414.PS6301)
In which Los Angeles stands revealed in all its unquenchable thirst, and is pronounced by John and Ken several times the fun, old-timey way, with a hard 'g'. Certificate #33935.
59m Dec 21, 2017
59m
The Tesseract (Entry 1291.EP0318)
In which Ken and John struggle to imagine four-dimensional space with the same ease that the inventor of the pitching machine once could. Certificate #28910.
48m Dec 19, 2017
48m
The Rachel (Entry 1024.GN2917)
In which John opines that Jennifer Aniston's ubiquitous 1990s-era cut was America's "last hairstyle." Certificate #24193.
56m Dec 14, 2017
56m
Smell-O-Vision (Entry 1177.AM0521)
In which the aromas of tobacco, coffee, and lavender, meant to revolutionize the motion picture industry, end up nauseating audiences instead, and Ken spoils a 57-year-old surprise cameo. Certificate #18585.
59m Dec 12, 2017
59m
The Pig War (Entry 939.MK0511)
In which the United States and Britain take up arms over one potato-hungry pig. Certificate #43259.
53m Dec 08, 2017
53m
The Olympic Marathon of 1904 (Entry 865.1C0924)
In which the world's most prestigious sporting event goes disastrously wrong, and a Cuban mailman takes a nap. Certificate #28924.
57m Dec 07, 2017
57m
Defenestration (Entry 326.2K0933)
In which throwing people out of windows is strongly endorsed by many hot-headed Czechs, but opposed in no uncertain terms by Ken's great-great-great-great-grandfather. Certificate #32146.
36m Dec 07, 2017
36m