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.
Dollar Princesses (Entry 370.NU3603)
Aug 14, 2025
Show notes
In which a generation of English peers and their sons look to fix their leaky castle roofs by marrying wealthy American "buccaneers," and John has never kidnapped anyone in Bulgaria. Certificate #33143.
Teddy Girls (Entry 1283.PR3122)
Aug 07, 2025
Show notes
In which the dandyish vintage finds of postwar British teens set a blueprint for the rest of 20th-century youth fashion, and Ken keeps getting hit in the head by nose flutes on the bus. Certificate #13953.
The Integratron (Entry 650.SS0117)
Jul 31, 2025
Show notes
In which a 700-year-old Venusian designs a mysterious whitewashed dome in the Mojave Desert, and John would like to change history at the mutiny on the Bounty. Certificate #13181.
Chemtrails (Entry 212.AM0407)
Jul 24, 2025
Show notes
In which internet-era conspiracy theorists become convinced that jet contrails are weather control masterminded from Fairbanks, Alaska, and Ken thinks John sounds like a Muppet for exactly one syllable. Certificate #52946.
Ex-Millionaires (Entry 438.EC0514)
Jul 17, 2025
Show notes
In which some of the bankers who lost their shirts in the Great Depression find a cushy retirement in the Bronx instead of jumping out windows, and John will never say anyone isn't gay. Certificate #35727.
Margarine (Entry 759.JU0525)
Jul 10, 2025
Show notes
In which butter substitutes have to overcome scientific hurdles, dairy-friendly laws, and bad news about trans fats, and Ken thinks Germany is trying to control olive oil. Certificate #34384.
Chopin's Heart (Entry 218.JB4124)
Jul 03, 2025
Show notes
In which Poland's most famous exile partially returns to Warsaw to posthumously annoy both tsars and Nazis, and John's restaurant idea has some light cannibalism. Certificate #31277.
Hostile Architecture (Entry 601.PR2907)
Jun 26, 2025
Show notes
In which today's cities face tough choices on how to guide urban behavior with incredibly uncomfortable-looking design features, and Ken would pee on a fly but not a bee. Certificate #19421.
The War Between the States (Entry 1409.IS1902)
Jun 19, 2025
Show notes
In which it takes decades for America to decide whether its civil war was an insurrection or an invasion, nomenclature-wise, and John walks very erratically on his orange shag carpet. Certificate #26478.
The Dreadnought Hoax (Entry 380.PS6831)
Jun 12, 2025
Show notes
In which six bored, Cambridge-connected bohemians con their way onto the British Empire's naval flagship by dressing as African royalty, and Ken thinks John is either Batman or a Karen. Certificate #19722.
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