Rasputin (Entry 1031.MT2411)
In which a Siberian mystic gets so cozy with Russian royals that he ensures the success of the Bolshevik Revolution, and Ken wonders if he blinks the normal amount of times. Certificate #38899.
Apr 08, 2021•1 hr 1 min
Omnibus
Every week, Ken Jennings and John Roderick add a new entry to the OMNIBUS, an encyclopedic reference work of strange-but-true stories that they are compiling as a time capsule for future generations.
Episodes
The Crash at Crush (Entry 292.ZP0110)
In which the American love affair with demolition-based entertainment is born near Waco, Texas in an explosion of iron and steam, and John believes some flight attendants are aliens. Certificate #34659.
Apr 06, 2021•51 min
Figwit (Entry 467.JE2402)
In which we follow the arc of nerd culture to the Council of Elrond where a certain kind of fan service is born, and Ken explains why people fight about Frodo and Jesus. Certificate #40170.
Apr 01, 2021•1 hr 12 min
The Cadaver Synod (Entry 172.HE0927)
In which a zombie pope is forced to stand trial in 9th-century Rome, and Ken discovers a generation of people with strong opinions about the word "zoology." Certificate #28349.
Mar 30, 2021•1 hr 9 min
Roady Bill and Tony the Pony (Entry 1077.PR0719)
In which an online covered wagon auction unearths an almost-forgotten genre of itinerant performer, and John refuses to identify the Tijuana of Europe. Certificate #46962.
Mar 25, 2021•1 hr 8 min
The Underarm Bowling Incident (Entry 1363.JB2602)
In which an Australian cricket team creates an international controversy with an unorthodox but legal strategy, and Ken accidentally does a Boston accent. Certificate #30080.
Mar 23, 2021•1 hr
The Lost Spitfires of Burma (Entry 736.AC0219)
In which a modern-day treasure hunter becomes convinced that a priceless trove of British fighter jets is buried at the end of an airport runway, and John becomes a realtor for Myanmar. Certificate #34112.
Mar 18, 2021•1 hr
The Memex (Entry 774.EX3607)
In which the Internet is born in 1945 when a radar technician in a bamboo hut reads a Life magazine article about a futuristic desk, and Ken wonders if anyone smoked weed at Los Alamos. Certificate #18461.
Mar 16, 2021•1 hr 9 min
English as She Is Spoke (Entry 414.GE1107)
In which an inept attempt at a Portuguese-English phrasebook becomes an enduring comedy classic, and John celebrates the invention of the stirrup. Certificate #29469.
Mar 11, 2021•1 hr 17 min
Rosa Luxemburg's Body (Entry 1082.NU1911)
In which the most famous socialist rabble-rouser of her time returns from her 1919 execution (maybe) as a headless mummy, and Ken wonders if ancient Irish peasants had combination skin. Certificate #27337.
Mar 09, 2021•1 hr 5 min
Mobile Jubilees (Entry 797.LV2512)
In which a set of rare ocean and weather conditions in Alabama can lead to periodic seafood explosions, and Ken and John agree that Muscle Shoals must be in the wrong place. Certificate #38099.
Mar 04, 2021•56 min
Henry Cavendish (Entry 197.JB2825)
In which the wealthiest and most socially awkward British thinker of his time revolutionizes science, mostly in secret, and John wants to harvest clones at Packers games. Certificate #47447.
Mar 02, 2021•1 hr 9 min
The Beatles' Lord of the Rings (Entry 107.EX2512)
In which we consider an alternate timeline where the Beatles' third movie was a psychedelic Tolkien adaptation instead of a bummer documentary, and Ken sticks up for sanitation. Certificate #51290.
Feb 25, 2021•1 hr 10 min
Sergeant Stubby (Entry 1136.PS1848)
In which a mutt from the mean streets of Connecticut becomes a decorated hero in the trenches of World War I, and John is only good at half of rugby. Certificate #26161.
Feb 23, 2021•1 hr 9 min
Beaver Castoreum (Entry 108.EX3035)
In which the gross gunk from the back end of a rodent is discovered to be an invaluable perfume ingredient and even flavor enhancer, and Ken's Sunday school teacher does not want a high-five. Certificate #36682.
Feb 18, 2021•1 hr 1 min
Flying Through the Gateway Arch (Entry 484.EZ4030)
In which Midwestern pilots are unable to resist the gaping maw of the St. Louis skyline, and John watches a Wim Wenders movie fourteen times without ever seeing the beginning. Certificate #30320.
Feb 16, 2021•1 hr 19 min
The Whole Earth Catalog (Entry 1430.IS1426)
In which an acid trip and a NASA space photo inspire a new guide of counterculture "tools" for living, and Ken helps John get his Nixon back. Certificate #51410.
Feb 11, 2021•1 hr 11 min
Lego Minifigures (Entry 711.EX0508)
In which we learn how a "system" of Scandinavian minimalism put on a happy face and became the most popular toy in the world, and John tries the art of the deal with Ken's kids. Certificate #50469.
Feb 09, 2021•1 hr 23 min
The Universal Studios Fire (Entry 1370.PS10618)
In which a series of corporate mergers and one amusement park fire conspire to rob the world of a priceless musical heritage, and Ken regrets renting a fancy car. Certificate #43485.
Feb 04, 2021•1 hr 16 min
The Great Tea Race (Entry 548.JM0304)
In which four clipper ships race to London in the most exciting contest of the 19th century, and John thinks race cars should deliver cocaine. Certificate #38646.
Feb 02, 2021•1 hr 1 min
Bigfoot Hoaxers (Entry 120.2K0108)
In which southwest Washington State becomes the epicenter for lazy Sasquatch fakes, and Ken explains how the Jersey Devil probably reproduces. Certificate #17742.
Jan 28, 2021•1 hr 20 min
Operation Ajax (Entry 869.PR2904)
In which a presidential grandchild with a reasonable CIA departmental budget is all it takes to overthrow Iran, and John reveals the only downside of firing a howitzer. Certificate #39131.
Jan 26, 2021•1 hr 10 min
The River of Doubt (Entry 1076.PS7208)
In which Teddy Roosevelt and his son celebrate the end of his manly presidency by almost dying in South America, and Ken is tricked into discussing Mato Grosso. Certificate #27531.
Jan 21, 2021•1 hr 9 min
Allegheny Time (Entry 032.MT2436)
In which a series of traumatic train accidents and a broke astronomer conspire to re-invent time as a flat circle, and John accidentally attends a clock unveiling. Certificate #13818.
Jan 19, 2021•59 min
Otokichi (Entry 879.2C1125)
In which a freak Pacific storm in 1832 makes one young castaway an unusual ambassador for the Empire of Japan, and Ken is unable to justify the Gospel of John. Certificate #37850.
Dec 31, 2020•1 hr 5 min
Woodstock '99 (Entry 1441.IS2808)
In which a fiery apocalypse outside Rome, New York marks the cultural endpoint of the 1990s, and John spends his whole childhood reading about armaments in Janes publications. Certificate #27287.
Dec 29, 2020•1 hr 19 min
Kon-Tiki (Entry 692.MT1424)
In which a Norwegian amateur anthropologist sails a raft from Peru to Polynesia to push a pet theory, and Ken covets ink and gold. Certificate #18688.
Dec 24, 2020•1 hr 18 min
The War Before This One (Entry 1409.NH0109)
In which we follow the long, strange journey that finally got World War I and World War II their names, and John goes for drinks with his high school principal. Certificate #24737.
Dec 22, 2020•1 hr 18 min
Slab City (Entry 1170.IS3501)
In which itinerant snowbirds turn an abandoned desert naval base into a trash-mountain utopia, and Ken hopes a nuke lands on his head. Certificate #33204.
Dec 17, 2020•1 hr 10 min
Carlo Gesualdo (Entry 526.HE1304)
In which modernity discovers a late Renaissance composer with a history of ahead-of-his-time harmonies and lurid murder, and John scats like Cab Calloway after midnight. Certificate #39859.
Dec 15, 2020•1 hr 17 min