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 chart
- #147
- Episodes
- 703
- Releases
- Weekly
- Typical length
- 1 hr 13 min
- On air since
- 2018
- Latest episode
- 9 hours ago
Episodes
703 episodes, newest first
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58 min
Root Beer (Entry 1082.MA1321)
Show notes
In which Futureling LD Kelley traces the evolution of an American favorite, from Native American roots-and-bark brews to Charles Hires’ 1876 World’s Fair unveiling, a 1960s sassafras ban, and the corporate mergers that followed, and John decries the cancer in lab rats movement. Certificate #26097.
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1 hr 16 min
Tower of Babel, 1957 (Entry 1322.GE1109)
Show notes
In which Futureling TJ Onadi unpacks Hannah Arendt, C.S. Lewis, and the forgotten mid-century idea of spaceflight as a dangerous and profane act of hubris, while John dunks on ska once again. Certificate #42677.
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1 hr 25 min
The Winchester Mystery House (Entry 1434.IS4107)
Show notes
In which Futureling Ashleigh Early explores a fortune, the rifle that built it, and a famously baffling house, while John wonders if civilization itself is at risk from a beer explosion. Certificate #18867.
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1 hr
The Fan Man (Entry 452.ZE0501)
Show notes
In which Futureling John Arbenz bemuses us with another eccentric Alaskan who dove into a 1993 heavyweight championship fight, dropped in at Buckingham Palace and made pop culture history. Certificate #31102.
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1 hr 21 min
The Berlin Wall (Entry 115.HO0206)
Show notes
In which Futureling Andrew von Nordenflycht discusses Checkpoint Charlie, renting hammers and chisels to tourists, and the rise and fall of a Cold War monument, while John discovers a new style in Hugo Boss dystopia. Certificate #29207.
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1 hr 10 min
The Black Footed Ferret (Entry 128.PR2725)
Show notes
In which Futureling Katie Nieland explores drones, peanut butter, the bubonic plague, and a delightful animal previously believed to be extinct, while John recounts his experience as a railroad hobo. Certificate #16802.
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1 hr 17 min
Vasa (Entry 1384.1K.2248)
Show notes
In which Futureling Dan Hope relays the tale of a military vanity, a less-than-a-mile voyage, and John relays his success rate in righting overturned canoes. Certificate #30911.
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1 hr 2 min
Paul Winchell (Entry 1433.LU.0506)
Show notes
In which Bohuš Blahut (http://RetroThing.com, Tech Hunters) and John discuss ventriloquist, the inventor of the artificial heart and the voice of Tigger too. Certificate #25379.
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1 min
ANNOUNCEMENT: Omnibus Live at the Portland Book Festival - November 4th Bonus
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1 hr 16 min
(Live at the Library of Congress) Paper Prints (Entry 897.IS3404)
Show notes
In which John and Ken record an entry at Library of Congress before a live audience, and Ken pitches the next hit reboot starring John Cena. Certificate #24597
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1 hr 13 min
Project Habakkuk (Entry 993.HA0105)
Show notes
In which Futureling Faris Alikhan reveals an Allied plan to stop U-boats with a mix of ice and wood pulp, and John asks why everyone at SFO wears quarter-zip sweaters. Certificate #45325.
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1 hr 6 min
West Edmonton Mall (Entry 1422.JO0502)
Show notes
In which Futureling Adam Wonderly discusses how a rug empire ended up creating a Canadian landmark, and John learns that Anchorage could have done better than an indoor ice rink. Certificate #43923.
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1 hr 25 min
The Carnegie Libraries (Entry 188.LU2101)
Show notes
In which Futureling Jon Hannah discusses the origins of public libraries, labor exploitation and the uneasy bargain between wealth and the common good. Certificate #39770.
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1 hr 5 min
The Maury Island Incident (767.EZ0104)
Show notes
In which Futureling Loren Skaggs and John discuss Tacoma, Cold War paranoia, the birth of flying saucer mythology, and the Katuga boat trote. Certificate #31561.
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1 hr 3 min
Jugglers, The Internet (Entry 667.EX0722)
Show notes
In which Futureling Luke Burrage and John discuss the early history of the internet, Claude Shannon, information theory, and one of the least likely professions ever to be called "Sir". Certificate #28099.
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1 hr 16 min
The Bosnian War Camaro (Entry 144.MA0718)
Show notes
In which Brendan McAleer explains how a 1979 Chevrolet Camaro became a lightly armored, smoke-blowing, night-vision-equipped humanitarian savior, which John insists is the coolest car an eleven-year-old could imagine. Certificate #21628.
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1 hr
Free to Be You & Me (Entry 499.1C1111)
Show notes
In which we finally get a John show about growing up Gen X in front of the TV console watching Alan Alda, Rosey Grier, Cicely Tyson, Carol Channing, and Michael Jackson and Ken reminisces about what a stone-cold fox Marlo Thomas was. Certificate #36926.
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1 hr
The Bulldozing of Meigs Field (Entry 163.PS3508)
Show notes
In which Futureling Rebecca unpacks the story of a mayor, a demolished airport, and the battle over who really gets to claim a city's waterfront, while John recalls discovering Chicago through a PC flight simulator. Certificate #32575.
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1 hr 47 min
The Ukrainian Interviews (Entry 1356.EC0918)
Show notes
In which John travels to Ukraine and interviews Alisa Demina (Senior Lecturer in the Department of Archaeology at National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy), Kateryna Chuyeva (a Ukrainian cultural heritage expert and former Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine) and Oleksandra Ivanova (PhD student of Archaeology at NaUKMA and co-founder the NGO Scientific and Research lab Archaic). Certificate #25380.
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49 min
Carob (Entry 188.MA0106)
Show notes
In which Futureling Christa Dahlstrom and John enjoy a virtual taste test and discuss the lifelong trauma of discovering that what you were promised was, in fact, not chocolate. Certificate #22095.
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