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No Brains, No Lightbulbs: A Trivia Podcast

Trivia Mafia co-founders Chuck Terhark and Sean McPherson have lived and breathed trivia for 19+ years as the leaders of one of the biggest trivia companies in the country. Join them as they hang out with amazing writers/players and personalities from the Trivia Mafia universe and play trivia, ask random questions and generally bring a little bit of the trivia night into your earbuds.

Latest Episodes:

What About Soups With Chicken? Nov 08, 2025

Show notes

No guest today! Just Chuck and Sean and a pinch of Davis, bringing you plenty of great trivia and a little banter. Chuck gets the trivia work started with "-Men at Work" (02:10). Sean exposes Chuck's weak spots in "European Geography" (15:33), and Chuck finds one of Sean's Achilles heels: Trivia about books! (19:47). Sean finishes up with a great round about Latin names flora and fauna called "Binomial Means Necessary" (29:57).

No Brains, No Lightbulbs is a trivia podcast produced by Trivia Mafia in the great state of Minnesota. Click the link to find a Trivia Mafia trivia night near you!

Our Spookiest Episode Yet Oct 31, 2025

Show notes

Boo! We're coming to you early this week with a special Halloween edition of No Brains, No Lightbulbs! Trivia Mafia editor and writer Ira Brooker joins the No Brains, No Lightbulbs crew to talk up his idyllic/haunting upbringing and flex his tremendous cinematic knowledge. Chuck celebrates some of the dignified individuals who perished on All Hallow's Eve (02:56). Then he quizzes Ira on some classic movie monsters (15:38), and Sean keeps it simple with a round called "Scary Ass Movies" (19:01). Chuck turns things around with a round about watching scary movies in reverse (21:04). And Sean lives to tell the tell with a round called "Accidentally Scary" (35:19).

No Brains, No Lightbulbs is a trivia podcast produced by Trivia Mafia in the great state of Minnesota. Click the link to find a Trivia Mafia trivia night near you!

I Hope Your Mother Listens To This Oct 25, 2025

Show notes

Esteemed awesome person Amy Woo joins the No Brains, No Lightbulbs crew to dish on Tinder dates and flex her knowledge of the stage and screen. Chuck starts us off with a cool wordplay round called "X Marks the Stop" (02:04). Then we head to Broadway for some musicals trivia (16:40), and Chuck and Amy speedrace a round about fast-talking TV shows (23:00). Sean wraps things up with a recital of trivia about children's songs (34:50).

No Brains, No Lightbulbs is a trivia podcast produced by Trivia Mafia in the great state of Minnesota. Click the link to find a Trivia Mafia trivia night near you!

And more info about Amy’s cheese witch can be found here.

How to Fart in Public Oct 18, 2025

Show notes

St. Paul singer-songwriter, former trivia host, and Sean's best friend Martin Devaney stops by the pod to talk sandwiches, great album covers, books, and baseball. Chuck branches out with a wordplay round called "The Trees Are Changing" (4:35). Then we crack open a few "Banned Books" (16:42) before Sean grabs the ball and pitches a tough round of baseball trivia called "Know a Team" (23:20). We finish up with a trivia trip to the great north with "Alaska" (34:21).

No Brains, No Lightbulbs is a trivia podcast produced by Trivia Mafia in the great state of Minnesota. Click the link to find a Trivia Mafia trivia night near you!

Liberate the Testes Oct 11, 2025

Show notes

One of the elite hosts of the Trivia Mafia family joins Chuck and Sean on the pod today. First, Chuck gets the trivia started with a round that puts Sean in a “State of Confusion” (03:04). Then Ida-Ellen Dabruzzi swings by to flex her knowledge of famous cemeteries for “Grave Concerns” (12:37), and Sean brings a classic Sean round about classic movies (19:00). We finish the episode with a nod to Libra seasons by seeing how Chuck measures up in a trivia round about scales (31:41).

We Do Personal Rebounding Oct 04, 2025

Show notes

Improv comedy legend Lauren Anderson pays a visit to play a little trivia and talk a lot about elephants. Lauren has starred in more consecutive shows at the Brave New Workshop than any other actor, she hosts a YouTube children's show called "Noodle Pie Island," and she is a wildly dedicated trampoline evangelist. Chuck kicks the trivia off with a trip to "Title Town" (01:54). Then we pose a panoply of pachyderm problems with a trivia round called "Let's Address the Elephant" (18:28). Sean sweetens the pot with a round about candy names (24:30), and then closes the episode with the return of "Alpha-Bets" (34:51).

The 311 Video That Changed My Life Sep 27, 2025

Show notes

This week the crew asked Cory Cove, of Initials Game and KFAN fame, to join the podcast and testify his love of chicken tenders, the band 311, “The Office,” and little else. Chuck gets things started with a round of trivia combining Shakespeare and ornithology (02:55). Cory schools us all on The Initials Game and runs the crew through a round of "CS" (15:30). Sean serves up a movie-themed “Before and After" round (22:35), and Chuck tests Cory’s knowledge of “The Office” with a round called “That’s What She Said” (26:51). Sean wraps things up with an initials game of his own called “Alpha-Bets” (39:21).

Nooks v Crannies Sep 20, 2025

Show notes

This week the crew welcomes music booker, cooking enthusiast, and former Trivia Mafia host Cecilia Johnson into the studio to discuss serial-killer-worthy breakfast, penicillin you can drink, and her illustrious career as a QuizBang champion. First they play a quick round of which-is-older: the fictional animals edition (01:52). Then Chuck blows off some steam with a round about train-related idioms (18:01). Sean gets behind the bar to serve up "Lady Drinks" (22:07), and then caps the episode with a rapid-fire round about the Cannes Film Festival.

Batman Is Police Propaganda Sep 13, 2025

Show notes

This week the crew is joined by artist, musician, writer, and actor Toussaint Morrison to discuss which gas station items he can’t travel without, why comic book villains always have the best stories, and where his love of Michael Douglas movies comes from. Chuck sets the trivia table with a serving of wordplay questions called “Word Sandwiches” (02:39). Toussaint tackles a round about Marvel villains called “We’re Not All Bad” (16:38), and then dives deep into one of his favorite actors for “The Many Faces of Michael Douglas” (23:36). Sean rounds out the episode with the return of “Stick to the Subject” (35:23).

Does Your Mom Know Your Wife Is a Witch? Sep 06, 2025

Show notes

This week, the No Brains, No Lightbulbs crew brings in Trivia Mafia's Davis Steen to learn about fall league baseball, witchcraft, and cryptids. Chuck gets things started with a round called “Final ‘E’ Made It” (02:19). We usher in spooky season with “Trivia Golf: The Witch Edition” (13:43). Sean tests Davis's knowledge of cryptid identification (and Chuck questions Sean's definition of "cryptid") with “Cryptid ID” (22:24). Sean closes it out with a rapid-fire round of wordplay trivia called "Ball Sports" (35:10).

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