Commute | The Podcast

 Easter season has come and gone and, with it, the slightly stale marshmallow juggernaut known as the peep. But every single peep has something uniquely in common… In a plot straight out of the TV show that made it all happen, an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm literally saved one man’s life. Bad news for Dave. If you’re playing a character with that name in a movie, you might want start looking f...

Scientists have resurrected an ancient, extinct wolf. Is there any reason to be concerned? Minecraft has been one the most popular games in the world for a decade and a half. What’s its secret? A Goofy Movie just turned 30. How did it unexpectedly resonate beyond its, well, goofy leading character to become a beloved cult classic?  Sources: https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/rs-gaming/what-is-mi...

The NCAA basketball tournament is one of the most significant of all sporting events and, if you consider its impact beyond just the games, that’s an understatement.  The children’s horror series Goosebumps has been keeping kids up at night since the 1990s. How does author R.L. Stine, now in his 80s, keep cranking out books? Burger King is a fast-food giant with 20,000 locations worldwide. You won...

You may remember when buying cereal was as much about the toy inside the box as the cereal. Then it just stopped.  There’s a unique island that’s less than 10 miles long, has under 1,000 permanent residents, and speaks its own language. And it’s part of North Carolina. This week, we set sail for Ocrcoke.  We all know how to play Marco Polo, but no one knows where it came from - until now. Sources:...

It transformed arcades into performance halls by asking people to dance in public. We’ll explore the cultural impact of Dance Dance Revolution. Just because you’re an astronaut doesn’t mean you still don’t need to shower - so how does one do it outside the Earth’s atmosphere? Little Caesars is the go-to meal for social gatherings everywhere. This week how a small Michigan pizza parlor rose to fame...

A good movie preview should show just enough to excite us about the upcoming film. What about if the previews show a scene that doesn’t end up in the movie? Professional drivers are very good at what they do - but NASCAR’s origins are as much about spirits as they are about skills.  Typos are embarrassing. Sometimes they can be costly.   Sources: https://www.rd.com/list/expensive-typos/ https://va...

The basket of bread often appears before you even place your order and is never listed on the final bill. How did restaurants get started giving away free food? The Surgeon General’s recent New York Times op-ed, warning of the potential harm social media can have on young people, provocatively equated internet risks to smoking cigarettes. This isn’t the first time the Surgeon General has had a pro...

Kate Winslet owns the record for the longest breathhold in cinematic history. No matter how long you think it is, it’s longer than that.  Every parent must face the dreaded question - “Where do babies come from?” How did the poor stork get involved? Weight Watchers has been synonymous with weight loss for decades. That all may be coming to an end.  Sources: https://variety.com/2022/film/news/kate-...

Fast-food chain Rax filed bankruptcy in the early 1990s. Could a short-lived, ill-timed mascot be partly to blame? Your favorite author may have some help, thanks to the world’s best-kept open secret: a ghostwriter.  Advances in DNA testing finally tell us who Jack the Ripper really was. Maybe.  Sources: https://www.newsnationnow.com/crime/jack-the-ripper-real-identity-discovered-historian-claims/...

For decades the Super Bowl MVP has been telling the world they’re going to Disney World. How did it get started? In Super Bowl commercials you rarely hear the words "Super" or "Bowl." Why?  Scratch-off lottery tickets are cheap but promise life-changing wealth. They have brought changes, both good and bad.  Sources: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/91272/how-did-super-bowls-...

The first night in an unfamiliar place is usually not great for sleep. We look to the research to tell us why.  Many dog owners leave the TV on to entertain their pet when they go out. Does the dog actually care? It wasn’t that long ago that Pluto was our 9th planet. How did it lose that status?  Could it ever regain its place in our solar system? Sources: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots...

We’re very close to something that hasn’t occurred in a decade and a half.  Just don’t blink or you might miss it.  Celebrities ask for some strange things in contracts. We’ll tell you about some of the best requests. Instead of cryogenic chambers or infrared lights, here are seven affordable and attainable ways to increase your life span. Sources: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvgpnqe91j1o ht...

The Wizard of Oz is a beloved cinematic classic. What happened behind the scenes was far from lovely. The board game Guess Who has been a best seller for nearly 45 years. It’s the way that happened you’ll want to tell your friends about at your next social gathering. Today, Donald Trump will be sworn in (for the 2nd time) as President of the United States of America. Like those before him, he’ll d...

Did it take a cartoon mascot to convince the public to include five-digit codes on mailing addresses?  When natural disasters strike, most people look to established news outlets for the latest updates. Others look to … Waffle House. First Winnie the Pooh, then Mickey Mouse, and now our favorite sailor man enters the public domain. Why does this keep happening? Sources: https://zipcodes.org/blog/f...

Some reviewers have called the recent remake of the horror classic Nosferatu “the perfect horror film.” However, its source material, a silent film from the 1920s, almost didn’t exist. This week, that complicated history and the story it tells us about the challenges of preserving films from the silent era. We know a product or service can be trademarked, but can a smell? A toy from your past deci...

It’s that time of year—Christmas trees, twinkling lights, too many sweets… and endless holiday movies! An update on one of our most popular segments tells how (and why) original holiday films are made. Why are we supposed to kiss if we meet under mistletoe? Here’s everything you could want to know about the festive berries.  Which U.S. state has the most holiday spirit? How about the least? You kn...

Judges surely get hangry in the afternoons, like the rest of us. Does that impact their job? Banana candy, you’ve probably noticed, tastes nothing like banana. That’s intentional. A collection of never-before-heard Michael Jackson songs were found in a storage unit. That doesn’t mean you’ll ever hear them.  Sources: https://www.randomactsofmedicine.com/p/are-hungry-judges-and-tardy-doctors https:/...

Helium, that we use to blow up parade floats and birthday balloons, is a uniquely one-of-a-kind element. That’s not necessarily a good thing. What if we lived in a world where we wanted for nothing, where our every wish and need was cared for? Scientists ran an experiment and, as always, things did not go as expected.  Ever tried to sneak a drink into the movies or some candy to a ballgame? There’...

More than three decades ago, the New Yorker Magazine printed a cartoon about the internet that is just as accurate today as it was then, setting records for reprints. It’s still setting records. It’s after Halloween. What happens to all the pumpkins? Porta potties - everyone uses them; no one wants to. We’ll tell you more than you ever expected to know, including how often, if ever, they’re cleane...

The film Sideways, about male bonding in wine country, was released in 2004. Twenty years later, it’s still has an impact on one industry.  A scientific experiment taught rats to drive. That’s not even the most amazing part. In the 1950s, Roger Bannister did what was previously thought impossible - run a mile in under 4 minutes. Why did multiple runners suddenly do the same just days later? Source...

Some corporate programs really do work. One has convinced millions of kids to read millions of books for more than 40 years by promising them the perfect incentive - free pizza. Have you ever set out to buy one thing but ended up with something else? That’s what happened to Cecil Chubb, though his unintended purchase was a little bigger than typical. If it seems the McDonald’s McFlurry ice cream m...

You may hear these days of unfair or too close-to-call elections, but this isn’t a recent development.  It’s not the national anthem, but God Bless the USA sure feels like it could be … until you hear this segment.  Everyone hates changing their clocks twice per year. More than 80% of Americans say we should stop. Why don’t we? Sources: https://www.historytoday.com/archive/feature/presidential-ele...

The dark web is a largely unregulated version of the internet where many kinds of questionable things go on. Much like Amazon, the dark web even has its own marketplace. The similarities end there.  Political campaigns have likely been texting you for months; asking for your money, your time and, of course, your vote. How did they get your number?  For the last 140 years, Dr. Pepper has been popul...

We wear wedding rings on the left-hand ring finger. Would another finger work? Magazines are losing subscribers at an alarming rate. You’ll never guess which one is an exception.  It’s time to get your Halloween costume!  Many come from a pop-up store named “Spirit of Halloween.”  Where do these stores come from and, maybe more importantly, where do they go? (From the archives) http://www.commutet...

The first Tuesday in November we head to the polls to vote. Why that day, in that month? Could it ever change? Pitt bulls are the meanest, nastiest, most dangerous of dogs … aren’t they? Have you tried to hold in a sneeze? You might want to rethink that. Sources: https://www.history.com/news/why-is-election-day-a-tuesday-in-november https://www.vox.com/videos/367080/how-pit-bulls-got-a-bad-reputat...