Emperor Norton (Entry 408.MT2221)
In which a colorful newcomer to San Francisco loses a fortune on Peruvian rice and declares himself American royalty, and Ken would have pixelized Kiss. Certificate #42631.
Dec 29, 2022•1 hr 12 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 Grey Album (Entry 550.MT1906)
In which a future music megastar bridges the gap between rock and hip-hop with one ambitious, illegal remix album, and John is such a good ally that he listened to Suzanne Vega. Certificate #19205.
Dec 27, 2022•1 hr 20 min
Christmas KFC (Entry 220.DE1411)
In which a western religious holiday becomes a romantic poultry-eating occasion in modern Japan, and Ken destroys all his Hard Rock Cafe t-shirts. Certificate #24940.
Dec 22, 2022•1 hr 11 min
The First Council of Nicaea (Entry 472.AC1502)
In which an emperor convenes the first ever ecumenical council to figure out just whom Christians have been worshiping all this time, and John thinks the invention of the wheel led to mass depravity. Certificate #23027.
Dec 20, 2022•1 hr 24 min
Custer the Wolf (Entry 308.JN1012)
In which a national campaign to eradicate a misunderstood predator from the United States very nearly succeeds, and Ken would like to see John James Audubon burning in a pit. Certificate #52363.
Dec 15, 2022•1 hr 11 min
The Phone Book (Entry 931.RV2015)
In which utility companies take it upon themselves to provide the informational staple of every 20th-century household, and John is looking for a missing Jordanian. Certificate #48730.
Dec 13, 2022•2 hr 35 min
The Futuro House (Entry 510.1K0609)
In which a Finnish architect upgrades the prefab, modular homes of the 1960s by turning them into flying saucers, and Ken wants to know his table's name. Certificate #49729.
Dec 08, 2022•1 hr 6 min
The Red Ghost (Entry 1042.LV1104)
In which southeastern Arizona is menaced by a giant, murderous cryptid with a macabre rider, and John conjures up Mr. Clickety-Clack. Certificate #45334.
Dec 06, 2022•1 hr 8 min
The Quadro Tracker (Entry 1016.LK1202)
In which a man who can't find his golf balls solves every law enforcement problem known to man, and Ken has some bad news about parking tickets. Certificate #21137.
Dec 01, 2022•1 hr 13 min
The Johnstown Flood (Entry 674.NA0108)
In which an earthenwork dam enjoyed by millionaires fails and a town of steelworkers disppears from the map, and John is terrified by the menace of West Virginia. Certificate #33180.
Nov 29, 2022•1 hr 7 min
The Last Solviet Citizen (Entry 702.LA0417)
In which one lonely cosmonaut is left in space while his nation disappears from under him, and Ken thinks couples therapy should be about Mars. Certificate #35916.
Nov 24, 2022•55 min
Twilight (Entry 1352.DE1223)
In which a bored Phoenix mom has a sparkly dream that ends up changing both teen literature and Washington State tourism, and John explains that his virginity had little to do with vampires. Certificate #18573.
Nov 22, 2022•1 hr 19 min
Mother Trees (Entry 810.LK2129)
In which forests and their fungi form such close relationships that they essentially become a giant leafy brain, and Ken is excited about pre-Wil Wheaton science. Certificate #46162.
Nov 17, 2022•55 min
The Goodwill Moon Rocks (Entry 539.JB1804)
In which a space detective learns that hundreds of Richard Nixon's tiny gifts to the world have gone missing over the years, and John wonders if religious sacraments are more effective in space. Certificate #25614.
Nov 15, 2022•1 hr 10 min
Up with People (Entry 1376.MT0715)
In which the counterculture of the 1960s encourages powerful institutions to create a square but multiracial song-and-dance troupe that takes the world by storm, and Ken imagines President Eisenhower as a stern ad executive. Certificate #53773
Nov 10, 2022•1 hr 15 min
Loyalists (Entry 738.1S0819)
In which half a million colonists decide the American Revolution isn't really their thing, and John needs to know how many lanterns there were, just in case. Certificate #13747.
Nov 08, 2022•1 hr 16 min
The Stone of Scone (Entry 1229.PS11822)
In which a medieval legend about a chunk of sandstone means that Scottish cooperation is necessary for Charles III to be crowned king, and Ken passes a Bible quiz. Certificate #42504.
Nov 03, 2022•1 hr 9 min
The Popemobile (Entry 965.JE4615)
In which the history of papal transportation is traced from sedan chairs to Hyundai sedans, and John has been researching the care and upkeep of Catholic moms. Certificate #15163.
Nov 01, 2022•1 hr 11 min
The Dempster Dumpster (Entry 332.LA0345)
In which cities, over the centuries, gradually discover the most efficient way to collect garbage for disposal, and Ken hasn't looked in his pocket since Christmas. Certificate #28712.
Oct 27, 2022•1 hr 6 min
Modernist Cuisine (Entry 798.PR2303)
In which a computer millionaire takes early retirement to self-publish a 50-pound reference work about the chemistry of food, and John discovers a surprise cherry tomato. Certificate #24537.
Oct 25, 2022•1 hr 12 min
The Batavia (Entry 103.AC2741)
In which one eventful Dutch voyage to Indonesia leads to a mutiny, a shipwreck, and a massacre off the coast of Australia, and Ken claims he has a bed in a port somewhere. Certificate #20229.
Oct 20, 2022•1 hr 15 min
The Last Train Robbery (Entry 702.EZ0722)
In which two Depression-era "drugstore cowboys" let their Wild West outlaw fantasies lead them into a life of crime, and John breaks the news to Ken about pirates. Certificate #26056.
Oct 18, 2022•1 hr 1 min
The Thanh Hoa Bridge (Entry 1293.2C0409)
In which the "Dragon's Jaw" across the Song Ma River in North Vietnam proves a challenge for the most advanced air weaponry on earth, and Ken thinks teens should be in parking lots. Certificate #22691.
Oct 13, 2022•1 hr 3 min
Dissociative Fugues (Entry 363.HE1017)
In which human memory and identity are so fragile that a series of people simply walk away from them, and John wishes more things were the movie Tron. Certificate #28975.
Oct 11, 2022•1 hr 14 min
Lem Billings (Entry 121.PR2705)
In which a high school Kennedy confidante becomes an influential White House voice while hiding a delicate secret, and Ken wants to blur some of John Lithgow's wrinkles. Certificate #36906.
Oct 06, 2022•1 hr 1 min
The Murder of Herbert Lee (Entry 817.EX2307)
In which a racist Mississippi state legislator kills his childhood friend, a civil rights organizer, in broad daylight with no consequences whatsoever, and John thinks Ken pronounces "Montgomery" like a Southern belle. Certificate #34239.
Oct 04, 2022•58 min
Adbusters (Entry 014.HG0105)
In which a pair of outraged Canadians, kept off the TV airwaves, change the world with their anti-consumerist art magazine instead, and Ken thinks Mr. Ed should have had pop-up ads. Certificate #29414.
Sep 29, 2022•1 hr 11 min
Luke and Laura (Entry 739.MT2210)
In which the first daytime "supercouple" briefly makes soap operas a part of 1980s mass culture, and John wonders if a bride is "zaftig." Certificate #32511.
Sep 27, 2022•1 hr 20 min
Bitcoin Pizza Day (Entry 126.JB1304)
In which $300 million in 2022 money is unwisely spent on the world's first real-world cryptocurrency transaction, and Ken explains why a bro should not have an army. Certificate #11904.
Sep 22, 2022•1 hr 25 min
Exclaves (Entry 436.NU2021)
In which we explore life in parts of the map that are bizarrely separated from the rest of their nations, and John thinks Alaska looks like a very fertile octopus. Certificate #51829.
Sep 20, 2022•1 hr 23 min