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The Box of Oddities — Comedy
The Box of Oddities

The Webby Award-winning “Box of Oddities” is a podcast that delves into the strange and mysterious aspects of our world, exploring topics ranging from bizarre medical conditions to unsolved mysteries, and from paranormal phenomena to strange cultural practices from around the world. With a focus on oddities, curiosities, and the macabre, each episode is a journey into the unknown, where hosts Kat and Jethro Gilligan Toth share their love for unusual stories and inject their humor and commentary. From the strange history of medical practices to chilling true crime stories, to natural (and unnatural) events, “The Box of Oddities” satisfies your thirst for the weird and the unusual, offering an informative and entertaining look into the dark and mysterious corners of our world.
JIMMY KIMMEL, ABC-TV says, “Should you be the type who has an interest in weird stuff, this is a fun thing to allow in your head!”

“Truth is stranger than fiction, and the Box of Oddities is the strangest of all!” -SLUGGO, SIRIUS XM LITHIUM

“Kat & Jethro wring humor from bizarre, macabre and perplexing places.” -BOSTON MAGAZINE

Copyright: © 2023 Eleven Eleven llc

Latest Episodes:

Bat People, Lunar Beavers & Human Skin Books Jul 31, 2026

Show notes

Freak Family Favorites: Bat People, Moon Hoaxes, and Museums That Shouldn't Exist

This Freak Family Favorites episode comes straight from the recommendations of the Freak Family, and it's packed with the kind of stories that remind us why history is often stranger than fiction.

First, Kat unpacks one of the greatest media hoaxes ever printed: The Great Moon Hoax of 1835. Newspapers convinced thousands of readers that a giant telescope had discovered life on the Moon—including winged bat people, intelligent beavers that built villages, strange temples, and an entire lunar civilization. It spread across America and Europe before anyone stopped to ask whether any of it was actually true.

Then Jethro takes a tour through some of the world's most bizarre museum exhibits. From Galileo's preserved middle finger and Thomas Edison's supposed last breath to necropants, human-skin books, serial killer relics, and anatomical displays that blur the line between science and the macabre, these are museums unlike any you've ever visited.

If you've ever wondered how easily people can be fooled—or why museums sometimes keep the strangest souvenirs imaginable—this Freak Family favorite belongs at the top of your playlist.

In this episode:

The Great Moon Hoax of 1835
Bat people, lunar beavers, and the newspaper story that fooled the world
Sir John Herschel's unwitting role in history's most famous astronomy hoax
Edgar Allan Poe's unexpected connection to the scandal
The world's strangest museum exhibits
Galileo's middle finger, Thomas Edison's last breath, necropants, human-skin books, and more
Weird history, oddities, curiosities, and unbelievable true stories

Perfect for fans of: Weird history, historical hoaxes, Edgar Allan Poe, astronomy, museums, macabre history, curiosities, folklore, and the strange true stories that make the world wonderfully weird.

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The Silence Between the Signals Jul 29, 2026

Show notes

Long before smartphones and satellites filled the sky with signals, early radio experimenters were hearing something they couldn't explain. Giant antennas stretched across fields captured strange repeating pulses, mysterious buzzing, and what some believed sounded almost like language. Even Nikola Tesla and Guglielmo Marconi wondered if the transmissions might be coming from Mars. In this episode, JG shares a remarkable story from his grandfather's homemade crystal radio in rural Maine and explores the forgotten mystery that convinced some of the world's greatest inventors they might not be alone.

Then, discover the incredible story of the Gallaudet Eleven—the deaf volunteers whose unique physiology helped NASA solve one of the biggest problems of human spaceflight. While everyone else became violently motion sick, these remarkable men endured spinning rooms, brutal centrifuges, hurricane-force seas, and bizarre experiments that paved the way for astronauts to survive in space. Their contributions changed aerospace medicine, yet their story remains largely unknown.

Also: terrible business names, radio nostalgia, and the strange ways overlooked people sometimes make history.

If you love mysterious science, forgotten history, Nikola Tesla, early radio, NASA, space exploration, and the wonderfully weird stories history forgot, this episode is for you.

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Echoes in the Clay, Monsters in the Water Jul 27, 2026

Show notes

Could an ordinary clay pot be the oldest recording device in human history?

On this episode of The Box of Oddities, JG explores one of archaeology's most captivating ideas: the theory that ancient pottery may have accidentally preserved microscopic traces of sound while spinning on a potter's wheel. From the birth of "acoustic archaeology" to modern AI-assisted research, discover why scientists still haven't completely ruled out the possibility that a vessel thousands of years old could one day reveal echoes of the distant past.

Then Kat ventures into the tannin-dark waters of Florida's St. Johns River to investigate a cryptid that has been reported for more than 175 years. Witnesses have described a massive serpent-like creature, a pink dinosaur, a horned beast, and something that "swims like a fish and walks like a dog." Is the St. Johns Monster simply mistaken identity... or does something unexplained still glide beneath the river's surface?

It's an episode about forgotten sounds, enduring legends, and why the most fascinating mysteries often begin with a question that seems impossible.

In this episode:

Could ancient pottery accidentally record sound?

The surprising science behind archaeoacoustics

Why researchers are still investigating the "pottery recordings" hypothesis

The legend of Florida's mysterious St. Johns River Monster

Cryptid sightings, folklore, and unexplained encounters

#BoxOfOddities #AncientMysteries #Archaeology #Archaeoacoustics #AncientHistory #Cryptids #SeaMonster #Florida #StJohnsRiver #WeirdHistory #Unexplained #Podcast

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Inbox of Oddities #94 Jul 24, 2026

Show notes

Inbox of Oddities: Lettuce Lotion, Florida Organ Recitals & Envelopes Full of Crap

It's time to open the Inbox of Oddities, where the Freak Family always delivers the unexpected.

This week, Kat explains the surprisingly heartfelt tradition of sending an "envelope full of crap," while listeners share stories that are equal parts hilarious, touching, and gloriously strange. There's the mystery of disappearing podcast subscriptions, the linguistic adventures of perimenopause (including the unforgettable phrase "lettuce lotion"), a child's perfectly executed two-sentence ghost story, and a voicemail transcription that turns "ashes" into something considerably more awkward.

Along the way, you'll discover what a Florida organ recital really is, hear from a listener who traveled to Armenia after our recent episode, learn about bizarre narwhal facts that may have inspired the legend of unicorn horns, meet the internet's favorite oddly-shaped raccoon, Jimothy, and enjoy one of the greatest pieces of unintentionally translated game packaging ever written.

As always, it's a celebration of curious minds, wonderfully weird stories, and the incredible community that keeps the Box of Oddities overflowing with surprises.

In this episode: listener stories, Inbox of Oddities, perimenopause humor, Armenia travel, unicorn myths, narwhals, funny voicemail transcripts, bizarre internet discoveries, odd history, strange facts, and the world's greatest collection of beautiful freaks.

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The Strange Birth of the Jesus Machine Jul 22, 2026

Show notes

When Benjamin Franklin's Ghost Designed a Machine and the strange story of The Underwater Orchestra.

What happens when people become convinced they can build a messiah out of magnets, copper, and electricity? In this episode of *The Box of Oddities, Kat and JG dive into one of the strangest forgotten chapters in American history: the bizarre true story of John Murray Spear's "New Motive Power," an electrical machine that followers believed would be born* rather than switched on. Guided by séances, messages from the spirits of Benjamin Franklin and other historical figures, and a ceremony that mimicked childbirth, Spear attempted to create a living mechanical redeemer decades before robots, computers, or artificial intelligence existed. It's an astonishing tale of Spiritualism, Victorian science, religious belief, and humanity's enduring obsession with creating life.

Then the conversation heads beneath the waves to one of the world's most unusual festivals. Every year, divers descend on *Looe Key Reef in the Florida Keys for the Lower Keys Underwater Music Festival*, where ocean-themed music is broadcast underwater while mermaids, pirates, and "fish musicians" celebrate one of North America's most important coral reefs. Beneath the quirky spectacle lies an inspiring story about coral conservation, marine biology, and the creative ways people are fighting to protect one of Earth's most fragile ecosystems.

From electrical messiahs and nineteenth-century spiritualists to underwater concerts and living coral cities, this episode explores two extraordinary stories that prove reality is often stranger than fiction.

If you love weird history, forgotten mysteries, unusual science, bizarre true stories, eccentric inventors, and curious facts from around the world, subscribe to *The Box of Oddities* and keep flying your freak flag.

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Dinosaurs,Viagra, & Bubble Wrap Jul 20, 2026

Show notes

What do dinosaur fossils, Bubble Wrap, Super Soakers, Viagra, and Bob Ross have in common? More than you'd think.

In this episode of The Box of Oddities, Jethro introduces the astonishing true story of Baron Franz Nopcsa—the eccentric Hungarian aristocrat who transformed himself into one of history's most visionary paleontologists. Decades before mainstream science caught up, he proposed that some dinosaurs were warm-blooded, cared for their young, and evolved through island dwarfism. But his remarkable life didn't stop there. Nopcsa also became an explorer, linguist, spy, and even launched a serious bid to become King of Albania. His extraordinary achievements, however, are overshadowed by one of the most tragic endings imaginable.

Then Kat lightens the mood with a celebration of history's greatest happy accidents. Discover how forgotten experiments and unexpected mistakes gave us saccharin, Bubble Wrap, the Super Soaker, and even Viagra—proving that some of humanity's biggest breakthroughs happened because someone was curious enough to ask, "What else could this be?"

It's an episode filled with brilliant minds, bizarre history, accidental inventions, dark twists, and the wonderfully unexpected.

In this episode:

* Baron Franz Nopcsa and the dinosaurs that changed science

* The scientist who wanted to become King of Albania

* Paleontology, espionage, and eccentric genius

* The tragic final chapter of Franz Nopcsa's life

* The accidental invention of saccharin

* How Bubble Wrap went from failed wallpaper to shipping legend

* The surprising origin of the Super Soaker

* Why Viagra was originally developed for heart disease

* Bob Ross, happy accidents, and the value of unexpected discoveries

If you love strange history, forgotten inventors, scientific oddities, accidental discoveries, and true stories that are stranger than fiction, this episode belongs in your queue.

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Inbox Of Oddities #93 Jul 17, 2026

Show notes

A stranger vanishes into a dead-end Savannah alley, leaving behind a lesson that will last a lifetime. A grieving listener receives possible signs from both her grandmother and beloved dog, while JG recalls the mysterious cab driver who appeared during his family’s desperate trip to Boston Children’s Hospital—and disappeared before he could be thanked. Also: Ghost the Great Dane and his “trotting farts,” an unexpectedly controversial use for A.1. Sauce, a nature trail shaped like an air freshener, and a listener suggestion involving the horrifying Byford Dolphin decompression accident. Plus, Kat and Jethro prepare for Halloween Quarter and invite the Freak Family to submit their own recorded stories for the annual Halloween special. It’s another Inbox of Oddities filled with strange encounters, heartfelt connections, peculiar pets, and the lingering question of whether the signs we ask for may already be all around us.

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Copper Age Cobblers & College Con Artists Jul 15, 2026

Show notes

The Mysterious Cave of Ancient Shoes & Georgia Tech's Imaginary Graduate

This week on The Box of Oddities, Kat and Jethro uncover one of archaeology's most baffling discoveries: a 5,500-year-old leather shoe found inside Armenia's Areni Cave—along with hundreds of other ancient shoes, a ritual site, and the world's oldest known winery. Why were prehistoric people leaving their footwear behind? Was it practical storage, sacred ritual, or something we've yet to understand?

Then, meet George P. Burdell, the fictional Georgia Tech student whose college prank became one of the longest-running hoaxes in American history. For nearly a century, this imaginary engineering student has earned degrees, joined organizations, appeared in official records, and become one of the university's most beloved alumni... without ever attending a single class.

Along the way: ancient wine, sheep dung that accidentally preserved history, Sid's inexplicable shoe obsession, and a reminder that some of history's greatest mysteries—and funniest traditions—begin with the smallest, strangest ideas.

In this episode:

The 5,500-year-old shoe discovered in Armenia's Areni Cave

Hundreds of mysterious Copper Age shoes and the theories behind them

The world's oldest known winery and its possible ritual significance

The incredible legend of George P. Burdell, Georgia Tech's most famous fictional graduate

Weird Facts About Eyes

If you love archaeology, unsolved mysteries, forgotten history, elaborate practical jokes, and the wonderfully weird, this episode belongs in your ears.

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Time Eats Everything Jul 13, 2026

Show notes

What if an advanced industrial civilization existed on Earth millions of years before humans... and every trace of it has been erased?

In this episode of The Box of Oddities, Kat and Jethro explore the fascinating Silurian Hypothesis—a real scientific thought experiment that asks whether an ancient technological civilization could have risen, fallen, and disappeared so completely that only faint chemical fingerprints remain in the geological record. From plate tectonics and fossilization to the Anthropocene and mysterious Libyan Desert Glass, it's a mind-bending look at deep time and the unsettling possibility that Earth may have forgotten entire chapters of its own history.

Then the conversation takes a delightfully strange turn into the forgotten world of tyromancy—fortune telling with cheese. Discover how people once searched for signs of love, luck, and the future in wheels of cheese, melted fondue, mold patterns, and even hungry mice. Along the way, Kat uncovers other surprisingly common forms of food divination involving eggs, onions, flour, tea leaves, and more.

Also included: eerie hospital stories that blur the line between coincidence and the supernatural, plenty of offbeat humor, and the wonderfully bizarre conversations that make The Box of Oddities unlike any other podcast.

In this episode:

The Silurian Hypothesis explained
Could ancient industrial civilizations have existed before humans?
Why cities and civilizations disappear over geological time
Libyan Desert Glass and ancient mystery
Tyromancy: the forgotten art of cheese fortune telling
Historic food-based divination traditions
Creepy hospital encounters and unexplained stories

If you love weird history, unsolved mysteries, strange science, folklore, archaeology, and the delightfully bizarre, welcome to The Box of Oddities.

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Inbox Of Oddities #92 Jul 10, 2026

Show notes

The inbox of Oddities is overflowing with unforgettable listener stories this week. A terrifying real-life child abduction that ended in a miraculous rescue, eerie Boo Effects that blur the line between coincidence and the unexplained, a ghostly Roman legion mystery solved decades later, and one listener's emotional account of how the Box of Oddities community helped rebuild a life after abuse.

Along the way, Kat discovers that nutmeg isn't what most of us think it is, an enormous toad claims ownership of a dog's toy, DNA testing uncovers an astonishing family connection, listeners share strange animal encounters, and Jethro somehow turns kidnapping prevention into a discussion about budget-conscious kidnappers.

It's funny, heartfelt, occasionally unsettling, and filled with the wonderfully weird stories that only the Inbox of Oddities can deliver.

In this episode:

A chilling attempted child kidnapping and dramatic rescue
Boo Effects and impossible coincidences
The Roman ghost soldiers of York
DNA surprises and unexpected family history
Nutmeg, rambutan, jackfruit, and international food adventures
Giant toads, adorable animals, and listener photos
Messages about healing, hope, and finding your own "freak village"

If you love true stories, strange coincidences, paranormal mysteries, weird history, and the incredible community behind the Box of Oddities, you'll feel right at home.

#InboxOfOddities #BoxOfOddities #TrueStories #Paranormal #GhostStories #WeirdHistory #BooEffect #Unexplained #Podcast #ListenerStories

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