Cool Weird Awesome with Brady Carlson

Today in 1934, Leonard Cohen was born. His music and poetry have influenced other songwriters and poets for decades, but today we’re talking about another part of his career, and maybe the weirdest part: the time he guest starred on the 80s action series “Miami Vice.” Plus: today in 1997, Dunkin gave out free donuts to mark the last hurrah for their longtime TV pitchman, Fred the Baker.  Revi...

Today in 1934, Paramount Pictures released the movie “Belle of the Nineties,” starring Mae West. And, for some reason, the studio trained several dozen parrots to learn to say the title of the movie so they could appear at theaters and wow the moviegoing public. There was just one problem with the plan, though. Plus: on this World Peace Day, the guy who tried to make the world a more peaceful plac...

The famous cover of The Clash's landmark album "London Calling" was taken on September 21, 1979, according to the liner notes. Except that Dave Marin, a concertgoer who was there when the photo was taken, has a concert stub that says September 20th. And he's spent decades trying to get the world to notice that the album credits are a day off. Plus: today in 1940, a bomb explodes in London, and the...

This weekend is National Cheeseburger Day, and there's only one such holiday. But if you ask where the cheeseburger came from, there are a couple answers. Plus: for National Pet Bird Day, a story from 2017 in which researchers found wild birds in Australia swearing. Who Invented the All-American Cheeseburger? (The Spruce Eats) Plaque commemorating invention of the cheeseburger in Pasadena dedicate...

Today in 1979, a story that sounds like it came straight out of a movie: two families in Communist East Germany escaped to the West by making and flying a hot air balloon. Plus: Today in 2018, Denise Mueller-Korenek broke the world record for “fastest bicycle speed in slipstream": 183.9 mph.  Freedom Balloon (Popular Mechanics) With hot air to freedom (Der Spiegel) A history of cycling speed...

Today's the birthday of Agatha Christie, the novelist and playwright who gave us some of the most popular mysteries of all time. But when she wasn't sending Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot out to crack cases, she was often found surfing. Plus: it's the birthday of playwright Jerry Sterner, best known for “Other People’s Money," and for being buried under a headstone that was perfect for someone in...

Apollo 8 brought the first human astronauts to lunar orbit in late 1968, but a few months beforehand, the Soviet Zond 5 mission sent two tortoises (and a few other living things) for a trip around the moon. Here's what happened. Plus: today in 1890, Mexican singing and songwriting great Maria Grever was born. Whether or not you know her songs, you know a phrase that comes from one. The Time Two Ru...

These days, with everything moving further and further online, it's not a surprise that many of us can see our doctors through remote appointments. But a century ago, a radio enthusiast called Hugo Gernsback predicted a way that doctors could examine patients remotely, using radio waves. Plus: a giant blob of old pizza dough has become an odd kind of celebrity in New Orleans.  Telemedicine Pr...

If you’ve ever been around a baby you probably heard some cooing, gurgling and babbling, as the babies try to make the sounds adults make. Some new research finds if you spend time with baby bats, you might hear them doing essentially the same thing. Plus: the YouTube channel Steadycraftin finds a pretty cool way to reuse some of those old orange plastic prescription bottles.  Baby Bats Babbl...

Social distancing is a thing in the octopus world. According to new research out of the University of Sydney, some females will tell males to back off by throwing stuff at them. Plus: it was this week in 2019 that a drunk feral pig in western Australia picked a fight with a cow, which is probably one of the weirdest sentences of the week.  Female Octopuses Throw Things at Irritating Males, An...

Boston's Skinny House went up for sale recently. It's a four-story house with rooms only 10 feet wide, and was reportedly built just to block another house's view of the harbor. "Spite houses" have been regularly built for these kinds of reasons, it turns out. Plus: today in in 1504 Michelangelo completed David. We've got a fun fact about this iconic sculpture for you.  Five Spite Houses in N...

Yuan Longping, born today in 1930, was known as the Father of Hybrid Rice, and his work saved countless people from famine and starvation. Here's more of his story. Plus: a school in New Zealand has an unusual crossing guard: a chicken in a safety vest named Henry!  Yuan Longping, whose hybrid rice helped feed the world, dies at 90 (Washington Post) This New Zealand School Is Using a Chicken...

Sputnik IV, to be specific, had some trouble getting back to Earth as planned. Today in 1962, pieces of the Soviet spacecraft ended up crashing into a street in Manitowoc, Wisconsin - so the town started holding a SputnikFest to celebrate their place in space history. Plus: today in 1870, Louisa Swaim made herstory by casting a ballot in Laramie, Wyoming. 'Sputnikfest': How Wisconsin Celebrates Hi...

Today in 2019, a woman in Sweden rose to an unthinkable occasion: she rescued all six of her children, including three under 5 years old, while their house burned down. Plus: did you know hummingbirds can see some ultraviolet colors that humans can't?  Emma, ​​30: I saved my six children from the flames (Expressen.se) Hummingbirds Can See Colors We Can’t Even Imagine (Wired) Thanks to our Pat...

Nike and biotech company NewLight have started developing a shoe made from a polymer derived from carbon, bringing some greenness to an often carbon-intensive industry. Plus: Victoria Rose Richards embroiders overhead views of moors and other parts of the UK's countryside. Nike Is Designing Biodegradable Sneakers Out of Carbon (Interesting Engineering) Landscapes (Futility Closet) You can make mor...

Research from 2018 at Princeton University found that male fruit flies use their wings to improvise musical sounds to win the attention of females. I just wish they didn't try to do all of it in my house. Plus: a teen in the UK makes friends with a bee!  How Fruit Flies Woo a Mate (Simons Foundation) Teenager keeps bumble bee as pet after it followed her home (Cornwall Live) Keep building the...

Web developer/creator/artist Lynn Fisher's new project is NestFlix, a website that looks like a streaming service but features the fictional shows and movies that are within real world ones. Plus: the Potato Photographer of the Year gives us some unforgettable images. No small fries in this group.  Nestflix – movies and TV shows that exist solely inside real movies and TV shows (Boing Boing)...

Stott Hall Farm is an unusual place; on either side of the place, there's the UK's M62 highway. We'll explain how it happened. Plus: a couple in Texas bought a plot of land, spent years building a house there, and then got a knock on the door from the actual landowners, explaining that there'd been a mix-up.  Mystery of the M62 farm is solved: Newly rediscovered footage reveals the REAL reaso...

Paralympic athletes are in Tokyo to compete and maybe to win a gold medal, if they can. The benchmark for Paralympic gold, by the way: 55 medals by a single athlete, swimmer Trischa Zorn. Plus: today in 1936, a newspaper ran a short piece about inventor Isabella Gilbert and her dimple-making machine.  Swimmer Trischa Zorn’s Paralympic Legacy Goes Beyond Her Staggering 55-Medal Haul (Team USA)...

It's National Cherry Popsicle Day, so obviously, we have to tell the story of the popsicle, and Frank Epperson, the 11 year old you invented it. Plus: today in 1969, Elvis Presley sees a bald guy in the audience while onstage in Las Vegas and sings the best version of "Are You Lonesome Tonight" ever.  The Surprisingly Fun Story of How the Popsicle Was Invented by an 11-Year-Old Boy (My Modern...

Darwin, Minnesota is where you find a 17,400 pound ball of twine that one guy made over the course of 30 years. Here's the twine ball's story. Plus: to no one's surprise, researchers find that cats prefer to get food for free instead of having to work for it.  Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota (Roadside America) Darwin, Minnesota names ‘Weird Alley’ in honor of twine ball troubadour ‘Weird A...

On this anniversary of the release of Windows 95, we look at the origin story of the Comic Sans typeface, which has more haters than most fonts ever get (and a few lovers, too). Plus: engineering students help a dad who uses a wheelchair take his new baby for walks in a stroller.  How we made the typeface Comic Sans (The Guardian) The Story Behind Comic Sans (Fonts.com) Students adapt wheelch...

It's a complicated story, but part of what is now eastern Tennessee was once part of western North Carolina - and today in 1784, they tried to break away and form their own state, called Franklin. Plus: a visit to a unique art museum off the coast of Cyprus. State of Franklin (Tennessee Encyclopedia) On this day, the state of Franklin starts its brief existence (National Constitution Center) This...

Today is National Radio Day, so it's a good day to talk about one of the legends of old-time radio: sound effects virtuoso Ora Nichols. Plus: researchers at The Ohio State University say they’ve found a weed commonly grown on farms that could help make a greener, more sustainable jet fuel, only its name isn't the most inspiring.  Female Pioneer Credited With Bringing Sound Effects To Radio (K...

It’s National Aviation Day and National Potato Day, and amazingly, there's a story that brings them both together. Boeing used sacks of potatoes in place of humans when it began testing in-flight WiFi. Plus: in 1994, American Airlines released an 18 page book of its in-flight recipes, for anyone looking to recreate airline food at home.  Boeing uses potatoes to improve Wi-Fi signals (USA Toda...