Midnight Facts for Insomniacs

Although many of you Insomniacs have probably been naughty this year, MFFI is releasing a full After Midnight episode to the regular feed just in time for the holidays. It's a Christmas miracle! From historical classics to modern classics to Die Hard 2, Shane and Duncan debate the best holiday movies of all time. What's in your top 5? Tell us in the MFFI Discord... ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the...

Who wrote the first ever science fiction novel? Why is Isaac Asimov hiding his middle initial? And which psychedelic author attempted to murder the most wives?   In the latest MFFI episode, Shane and Duncan answer all of the burning sci-fi-history questions that you never cared enough to ask. ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bon...

Some inventions are commercial failures (see episode 45), and some are failures of such moral and/or epic proportions that the repercussions reverberate throughout history. These are those failures.  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via...

In the wake of Shane's recent nuptials, Duncan takes the reins to explore the unsettling history and traditions of weddings. What was the original, sinister purpose of the "Best Man"? How are evil spirits related to Bridesmaid's dresses? And in what way is a honeymoon similar to fleeing a crime scene? Listen to find out... ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on P...

Who was the first explorer to reach the North Pole? How about the South? It turns out that at least one of those answers is complicated, and although the controversy may never be laid to rest, plenty of would-be arctic conquerors were themselves laid to rest during the golden age of polar exploration. Join MFFI for the fascinating, brutal, bloody, pony-packed tale of the race for polar glory.  ~ B...

Why do we wear costumes on Halloween? When did pumpkins and candy get involved? And how the heck do you pronounce "Samhain"? Listen to find out... ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD ~ Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnight...

After a series of deep-dive episodes chock full of useful information, the boys are back to form with an entirely off-the-rails and nonsensical romp through the history of some of the world's most famous, celebrated lost treasures. Pointless, silly fun. Enjoy! ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community,...

Are personality tests accurate? How were they developed, how reliable is the science behind them, and which are most respected? Most importantly: which developers of personality tests were sexy MFers and which of them wrote erotic fiction about old men? Follow along to discover the strange history behind personality tests.  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on...

Ross Ulbricht created the most notorious website in history when he launched the The Silk Road in 2011. An online marketplace for drugs, guns, poisons, and explosives, the Silk Road would become synonymous with the Internet's lawless new frontier: the so-called "Dark Web." But what really IS the Dark Web? And how did a middle-class suburban kid become the notorious criminal kingpin known as the "D...

Ten episodes away from the big 1-0-0, the boys are hunting for the true origin story of the elusive video-game Easter egg. (Hint: Ready Player One got it wrong.) Follow along as Shane guides Duncan through some of the most famous, interesting, or pathetically failed examples of hidden content from movies and games.  PS: is there an Easter Egg in episode 90? Guess you'll have to keep listening to f...

Do bears really hibernate? What does the color green look like to a cat? And most importantly, is ice cream flavored with beaver butts? Find the answers to these and other essential animal-related questions in this week's episode of MFFI.  In this episode:   Do Bears Hibernate? Are Bats Blind? Can Dogs and Cats See Color? Can Owls Spin Their Heads Around? Are Penguins Monogamous? Is Ice Cream Flav...

The word of the week is “tangent.“ This host-swap episode is supposedly about slang (like, for instance, “off the rails”), but it’s also about bees and legs and wives and Snoop D-O-Double-G. If you enjoy listening to the guys talk smack and ramble, enjoy.  In this episode:   Definition of Slang History Gig Lit 23 Skidoo Dumpster Fire Salty California Slang Monkey's Uncle The Bechdel Test Inspo Guc...

Never say never. Shane swore that MFFI would never address the dreaded "K" family, but fate (and the Discord crew) had other plans. Join the boys for a fascinating dive into the putrid swamps of television history to learn how the scourge that is Reality TV conquered the entertainment world.  In this episode:   Reality Television VS Documentary Series The Finances SAG-AFTRA Networks VS Production...

You can’t win them all. In 1961, America experienced the sting of its first truly humiliating public defeat, a debacle that played out in real time on the international stage. The bungled and bloody Bay of Pigs Invasion would mark the first major misstep of the Kennedy administration, and as “Operation Zapata” began to unravel in Cuba, the resulting scandal would undermine America’s carefully craf...

Why have only a few particular murders and heists and scandals been immortalized in popular culture? Join Shane and Duncan for a dive into three famous capers of the 1900s to help uncover the x-factors that elevate a garden-variety crime to legend status.  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community, cha...

The largest cult on earth has over 25 million followers, the 4th largest army in the world, and a nuclear arsenal. It also has bowling alleys and karaoke bars, and regularly hosts international marathons. Under three generations of iron-fisted dictators, the so-called Hermit Nation disconnected from the rest of the world, but with the rise of western-educated Kim Jong-un, North Korea is rapidly mo...

From paper dresses to giant metal erections, MFFI explores some of the weirdest historical fashion trends.  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD ~ Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com ~ Rep the...

Only a sucker would believe that P.T. Barnum said, "There's a sucker born every minute." In the latest episode of MFFI, the boys once again undermine their own faith in humanity by exposing the inventors, scientists, authors, and orators who deserve none of the credit they've been given.  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus c...

Is it reasonable to believe that ghosts actually exist? From a scientific standpoint, are there any credible explanations for ghost sightings? In the latest MFFI host-swap episode, Duncan debunks his own sketchy theories and then regales Shane with some of the world's earliest ghost stories.  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bon...

The boys take a break from espionage to explore bitcoin, the blockchain, and all things cryptocurrency. What even IS a Bitcoin, and how does it work? Is cryptocurrency a solid investment? Is Bitcoin really anonymous? And who the heck is Satoshi Nakomoto?  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community, chat...

In the second installment of MFFI's espionage series, the boys investigate spying technology, from cryptography to microdots to The Thing.  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD ~ Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsfo...

In the first installment of MFFI's espionage series, Shane gives Duncan an overview of the spy game, from its origins in postiquity through the Cold War and all the way to the modern intelligence industry.  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topi...

One traveler’s dream vacation is another’s nightmare. This week, Shane shares his personal picks for some of the least appealing tourist destinations on earth, and a couple that are just plain bizarre. ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics vi...

In the second MFFI host-swap episode, Duncan teaches Shane  about a bevvy of baffling and little-known cryptids from around the globe.  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD ~ Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforins...

In the latest "what the hell were they thinking" edition of MFFI, the boys trace the history of advertising and then call out the worst marketing blunders of all time.  ~ Become an Insomniac! Join the Midnight Masses by supporting the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content. ~ Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD ~ Send Shane and Duncan...