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PODCAST

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.

history

All Episodes

57:48

Episode 242: Chinook Jargon (Entry 215.1C1413)

Omnibus ·

2020/03/19

In which a very old Native American trading pidgin becomes a regional language and 20th-century slang, and Ken goes to a movie theater that basically confessed to genocide. Certificate #5725.

en

54:44

Episode 241: Patagonian Giants (Entry 907.MT0627)

Omnibus ·

2020/03/17

In which the world's tallest tribe, if they even exist, are enslaved by Ferdinand Magellan and downsized by subsequent visitors, and John reminds us of the importance of good posture. Certificate #33392.

en

1:29:48

Episode 240: Bill W. (Entry 122.NU0603)

Omnibus ·

2020/03/12

In which one rough night for a traveling salesman in Akron, Ohio births a new spiritual approach to addiction recovery, and Ken suggests some interesting anagrams for post-human Presbyterian listeners. Certificate #19544.

en

1:08:27

Episode 239: Hikikomori (Entry 587.1K2225)

Omnibus ·

2020/03/10

In which a generation of traumatized Japanese young people increasingly decide never to come out of their bedrooms, whereas John insists on dying alone. Certificate #50644.

en

1:03:33

Episode 238: Cow Magnets (Entry 289.JL0118)

Omnibus ·

2020/03/05

In which we learn that ruminants are eating a lot more metal nowadays than they used to, and that Ken would like to have a gravel spoon at dinner. Certificate #28929

en

1:19:27

Episode 237: Longitudinal Film (Entry 734.PS9010)

Omnibus ·

2020/03/03

In which British documentarians and Austin slackers alike use the movies to unveil the mysteries of aging and mortality, and John leaves a series of women waiting for him at train stations in Spain. Certificate #48149

en

1:13:30

Episode 236: Hands Across America (Entry 565.PR1121)

Omnibus ·

2020/02/27

In which the 1980s fad for charity pop singles inspires an ambitious geographic stunt, and Ken plans a foolproof way to assassinate Jamie Farr. Certificate #26004

en

52:19

Episode 235: Operation Just Cause (Entry 869.EZ4510)

Omnibus ·

2020/02/25

In which the bizarre 1989 American invasion of Panama kicks off our modern era of on-the-nose Pentagon naming conventions, and John is reminded of a dominatrix, as usual. Certificate #19345.

en

1:07:32

Episode 234: Trafalgar vs. Carmania (Entry 1325.IS2314)

Omnibus ·

2020/02/20

In which the First World War begins in an unexpected fashion, with two ocean liners blowing holes in each other off the coast of Brazil, and Ken gets gaslit into buying a tuxedo. Certificate #32056.

en

58:12

Episode 233: The Dogon (Entry 369.DE0419)

Omnibus ·

2020/02/18

In which an African tribe proves so eager to please that they convince generations of ethnographers that alien visitors from Sirius are real, and John gets annoyed that ancient astronauts never invented baseball. Certificate #26731.

en

49:04

Episode 232: Cincinnati Chili (Entry 223.2K0440)

Omnibus ·

2020/02/13

In which an early fast food boom, Greek immigration, and (of course) the World's Fair conspire to trick Ohioans into redefining "chili," and John gets justifiably upset about bananas on spaghetti. Certificate #24598.

en

1:12:35

Episode 231: Snow Valley, Oklahoma (Entry 1182.JB2419)

Omnibus ·

2020/02/11

In which a Vermonter with an ill-conceived dream brings skiiing very briefly to the Sooner State, and Ken attempts to secure his family some very rare Pokemon cards. Certificate #17398.

en

1:09:43

Episode 230: The Tootsie Pop Indian (Entry 1317.LA0312)

Omnibus ·

2020/02/06

In which an American candy company refuses to honor a longstanding bit of playground lollipop lore, and Ken tries to calculate the homeopathic healing power of Tootsie Rolls. Certificate #33486.

en

55:19

Episode 229: Chastity Belts (Entry 209.LV2113)

Omnibus ·

2020/02/04

In which Renaissance satirists and modern amateur historians accidentally create a physiologically impossible medieval device, and John has a theory about locksmiths and cocaine. Certificate #49406.

en

49:29

Episode 228: Coppicing (Entry 276.PS8015)

Omnibus ·

2020/01/30

In which a forgotten medieval art of tree-harvesting is revived by the sustainability movement, and Ken blames the coming environmental catastrophe on "sugar energy." Certificate #22560.

en

1:12:39

Episode 227: Harry Dexter White (Entry 1428.LK0817)

Omnibus ·

2020/01/28

In which the American architect of post-World War II global capitalism turns out to have a dark and traitorous secret, and John imagines he would be a huge hassle for his spy handlers. Certificate #25923.

en

1:01:41

Episode 226: The Death of Trolleys (Entry 320.GN4519)

Omnibus ·

2020/01/23

In which we find General Motors and its corporate co-conspirators not guilty on the charge of killing American streetcar lines, and Ken gets very excited about funicular railways. Certificate #14871.

en

56:09

Episode 225: George Bush's Crack Dealer (Entry...

Omnibus ·

2020/01/21

In which the president of the United States lies to the nation about how he got three ounces of crack cocaine into the Oval Office, and John is asked to leave a crime scene. Certificate #34620.

en

1:07:10

Episode 224: Backgammon (Entry 090.EX2816)

Omnibus ·

2020/01/16

In which an ancient Mesopotamian board game briefly becomes a 1970s signifier for glamour and sophistication, and Ken's life is changed by an intense childhood game of Clue. Certificate #31179.

en

1:08:29

Episode 223: Masquerade (Entry 763.PS10424)

Omnibus ·

2020/01/14

In which an outsider artist hides a rabbit by a statue and thereby gets a million people to start digging up the English countryside, and John "man-solves" a Satanic temple. Certificate #14162.

en

704 results

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