Cool Weird Awesome with Brady Carlson

Watching TV on the last night of the year? That's fine; in fact, there’s a tradition on German TV of showing a classic comedy sketch every December 31. Plus: today in 2023, a Connecticut family has a baby a minute before midnight... and another shortly after. How An Obscure British Comedy Sketch Became The World’s Most Repeated TV Program (Mental Floss) Twins born in different years at Yale New Ha...

Today in 1952, a double decker bus driver in London had to make a split second decision to protect his passengers… and realized the safest option was to gun it and jump a city landmark. Plus: today in 1999, the passing of Sarah Knauss, who at age 119 was the longest-lived American ever. The day a bus jumped Tower Bridge (TowerBridge.org) World's oldest person misses millennium (BBC) Jump on over t...

There’s a tradition around this time of year in Wales called Mari Lwyd. It starts with a knock at the door in the winter night, and it only gets spookier from there. Plus: feeling harried after the holidays? Tree.fm features the sounds of forests from around the world so you can commune with nature wherever you are. The midwinter majesty of the Mari Lwyd (Wales.com) Tree.fm Knock knock, Cool Weird...

Happy Hanukkah! The eight day Festival of Lights takes place toward the end of each year, but due to some unusual circumstances, there won't be a Hanukkah at all in 3031 (!) Plus: Untapped New York has some recommendations for NYC menorahs you might want to check out. This Year's Dates for Celebrating Hanukkah are Odd—Here's Why (Newsweek) 9 GIANT MENORAHS THAT WILL LIGHT UP FOR HANUKKAH IN NYC (U...

Merry Christmas! On this day of giving, you deserve a treat: a holiday favorite in Caribbean countries known as black cake. Plus: Christmastime in Budapest, Hungary means a chance to ride the Light Tram. In the Caribbean, It's Not Christmas Without Black Cake (HowStuffWorks) Long Exposure Photos of Budapest Trams Lit Up with 30,000 LED Lights (Colossal)

There are lots of different kinds of celebrations on Christmas Eve. In Iceland, book lovers take part in Jólabókaflóð , which means "the Christmas flood of books." And they're not exaggerating. Plus: Iceland may have a flood of books at Christmas, but New York City’s got a whole lot of unique outdoor Christmas trees. Jólabókaflóð: the Christmas flood of books (Iceland Air) Alternatives to the Rock...

Today in 1814, the incorporation of the city of Cleveland, Ohio. There’s a famous sign on top of a building so that people flying in airplanes can see the message “Welcome to Cleveland," though that sign’s not actually anywhere near Cleveland. Plus: Today in 2021, an acrobat from Vietnam set a world record for most consecutive stairs climbed while balancing a person - his brother and fellow acroba...

Today in 1988, a report in the New York Times noted that restaurant chain Denny's was shutting its doors for Christmas Day, only to run into a little hiccup around those doors. Plus: Kazumasa Yamashita’s Face House was an attraction in Kyoto that looked exactly like what its name suggested. Diner Chain Has to Buy Locks for First Holiday Closing (New York Times) Face House in Kyoto, Japan by Kazuma...

Cuetlaxochitl, flor de Noche Buena, poinsettia, estrella federal… here’s the story of a plant with a lot of names. Plus: today in 1997, the US release of the movie “Titanic,” and there’s a guy in Florida who’s trying to collect a titanic number of VHS copies of the film. The checkered history of the poinsettia’s namesake and the flower’s origins get new attention (Seattle Times) A ‘Titanic’ Megafa...

Today in 1966 CBS first broadcast a holiday classic, “Dr. Seuss’s How The Grinch Stole Christmas.” It came to the small screen largely because a giant in the cartoon industry happened to be an old friend of the author. Plus: today in 1998, rocker Alice Cooper opened a rock and sports-themed restaurant and club in Phoenix, Arizona he called Coopers’town, How Dr. Seuss Stole Christmas (Saturday Even...

Today in 1960, Chas Newby of Liverpool got a temp job that would give him a story he could dine out on for the rest of his life: for two weeks, he played bass for the Beatles. Plus: today in 1985, a radio DJ in Iowa tried to ward off the holiday blues in an extremely repetitive way. When Chas Newby Was With the Beatles for Two Weeks (Ultimate Classic Rock)  DJ`S RECORD EFFORT PULLS HIM OFF AIR (Ch...

Today in 1901, a newspaper article proclaimed 16 year old May Kaarlus as perhaps the greatest trick shot billiard player in the whole world. And she really could play that well, though the career of this pool table prodigy went on to take a surprise turn. Plus: around this time in 2020, a baker sent a friend some hot chocolate bombs as gifts, though the friend didn't quite understand how to use th...

If you’re doing an Advent calendar this month, you’re just over halfway finished opening up those little windows to see what’s inside. So let’s open up a few windows into where they came from. Plus: engineering students at ETH Zurich are trying to build robots that can drop little presents down scale model chimneys. Advent calendars, explained: Where they came from and why they're everywhere now (...

Today in 1986, a newspaper column by film critic Gene Siskel helped to turn a local snack favorite in Chicago into a signature of the city. Plus: if you like holiday displays, there’s a pretty unusual one in Hatfield, Pennsylvania, a family of plywood moose. Chicago’s love affair with popcorn goes back 150 years, from Cracker Jack to Garrett Mix (Chicago Tribune) Hatfield Landmark ‘Nacho the Woode...

Today in 1972, Apollo 17 landed on the moon. So far, it’s the last mission that put human beings on the lunar surface.  And it was the only Apollo mission where the dust all over that surface gave an astronaut a strong allergic reaction. Plus: around this time in 2011, a cat in Italy named Tommasso kind of inherited a multi-million dollar estate. The Apollo Astronaut Who Was Allergic To The Moon (...

Kids have been writing letters to Santa for well over a century. Those letters are a fascinating, hilarious and sometimes jaw-dropping window into our own history. Plus: iIf you’re looking for an attraction worthy of the holiday season, you might head to Williams Bay, Wisconsin, to see the World’s Tallest Glass Tree. A Brief History of Sending a Letter to Santa (Smithsonian) WORLD’S TALLEST GLASS...

Today in 1965, CBS broadcast “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” It's one of the iconic TV holiday specials today, but pretty much everyone who put the TV special together thought it was going to be a failure. Plus: today in 2004, a basketball comeback for the books, courtesy of Houston Rockets star Tracy McGrady. Life After Snoopy (Stanford Magazine via Archive.org)  The Christmas classic that almost wa...

Nothing says the holidays like a creepy devil creature hitting you with sticks! In some European countries, there are parades focused on Father Christmas's evil counterpart, Krampus. Plus: starting tomorrow in Oklahoma, it’s the Minco Honey Festival.  Austria's Krampus Parades, Where Santa's 'Evil Twin' Will Beat You With a Broom (Travel + Leisure)  Minco Honey Festival   Backing Cool Weird Awesom...

This month in 1893, the formal start of an effort to build a new kind of seagoing vessel: a ship with rolling wheels. Plus: now underway in Louisiana, it’s the Natchitoches Christmas Festival. Across the Ocean in One Hundred Hours (The Illustrated American via Google Books)  98th Annual Natchitoches Christmas Festival Roll on over to our Patreon page and back this show

Today in 2023, a news report on the end of an era: a pastry chef in Anchorage, Alaska was, for the last time, building his massive and renowned holiday village out of gingerbread. Also on this day in 2023: a diner in China posted a photo of their food on social media, and ended up with a lot more entrees than anybody could eat. ‘I had a good run’: Pastry Chef Joe Hickel on his final Hotel Captain...

Today in 1976, Pink Floyd was trying to take a photo of an inflatable pig flying over a power plant for one of its iconic album covers… only the situation literally got out of hand. Plus: today in 1971, the release of the debut album by the Electric Light Orchestra, which accidentally got released with the wrong album title because of a phone call gone wrong. Pink Floyd's Pig Gets Loose (Songfacts...

During National Car Donation Month, some drivers may trade out gas-powered cars and trucks for electric ones. But EVs aren't the only alternative: for decades, people have built and driven cars powered by firewood. Plus: this Saturday in Milwaukee, it’s the Santa Cycle Rampage. Wood Gas Vehicles: Cars That Run on Firewood (Amusing Planet) Santa Cycle Rampage in Milwaukee (Wisconsin Bike Fed) Power...

This week we’re replaying some of our past episodes about the holiday and its traditions. In this episode from November 2022, we look at how the sitcom "WKRP In Cincinnati" put together its absolutely legendary Thanksgiving episode. Turkeys Away: An Oral History (Classic TV History) We give thanks today (and every day) for our Patreon backers, and for all our listeners and fans! 

This week we’re replaying some of our past episodes about the holiday and its traditions. In this episode from November 2021, the story of the woman who accidentally invited a stranger to Thanksgiving, and then she and her new dinner guest became friends. Plus: in 1957, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade went ahead despite the rain, which led to an odd problem. Young man who was accidentally invit...

This week we’re replaying some of our past episodes about the holiday and its traditions. In this episode from November 2019, we look at how Thanksgiving leftovers once changed the entire way we eat. Plus: a big moment for (literally) underground music, the Holiday Cave Sing at Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. The Rise and Fall of the TV Dinner (Cheddar on YouTube) Mammoth Cave hosts 40th annual holiday...