Omnibus

Omnibus

History EN ↓ 715 episodes

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.

Be sure to visit the podcast's website and support the creator: www.omnibusproject.com

Author

Omnibus

Category

History

Podcast website

www.omnibusproject.com

Latest episode

Oct 14, 2026

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Episodes

The Cheapside Hoard (Entry 210.MT0620) 14.10.2021

In which a mysterious treasure is founded in a central London basement, and Ken has a question about the various beads and bangles of Aerosmith. Certificate #7089.

Potsdam Giants (Entry 972.1S1704) 12.10.2021

In which the "soldier king" of Prussia recruits and kidnaps Europe's tallest men to serve as his grenadiers, and John admires "merry" people of every height. Certificate #10109.

Merkins (Entry 777.1C1115) 07.10.2021

In which we trace the surprisingly long and eventful history of body hair grooming, and Ken wonders if Brad Pitt will be hot forever. Certificate #33732.

Laetrile (Entry 696.MK1618) 05.10.2021

In which apricot pits are discovered to be a cause of cyanide toxicicity rather than a cure for cancer, and John wanders Europe under the protection of a United States Senator. Certificate #527.

Cape Hatteras Lighthouse (Entry 182.PS4303) 30.09.2021

In which erosion on North Carolina's Outer Banks prompts the government to move a twelve-story lighthouse half a mile inland, and Ken is in favor of shipwrecks when the ships are bad. Certificate #6374.

The Cotsworth Calendar (Entry 283.JB0306) 28.09.2021

In which a gifted Yorkshire boy fails to talk the League of Nations into a thirteen-month year, and John thinks autumn gets short shrift. Certificate #25901.

The Erie War (Entry 424.PR2822) 23.09.2021

In which America's richest men invent many, many types of securities fraud while tussling over a New York State railroad, and Ken imagines a zoo full of cows. Certificate #32641.

Kennewick Man (Entry 683.GN2304) 21.09.2021

In which a prehistoric nomad becomes the center of a heated legal battle nine thousand years after his death, and John announces a hydroplane race. Certificate #17567.

The Town of Bent Necks (Entry 1323.SS0701) 16.09.2021

In which two Nazi brothers divide a German town into rival athletic shoe factions, and Ken plans a hotel heist. Certificate #31961.

The Prince Philip Movement (Entry 987.PS8207) 14.09.2021

In which one Melanesian village decides, sight unseen, to worship the Duke of Edinburgh, and the gods imprison John in a small ravine. Certificate #50227.

The Wave (Entry 1415.1K0814) 09.09.2021

In which the invention of a Bay Area cheerleader becomes science's most exhaustively studied stadium ritual, and Ken doesn't think harbor seals come in different colors. Certificate #4418.

Middle Initials (Entry 786.LK0161) 07.09.2021

In which twentieth-century America becomes the only time and place in history when people drop letters into their names, and John renames himself in the phone book. Certificate #21831.

The Great Diamond Hoax (Entry 548.MT1344) 02.09.2021

In which a clever drillbit company accountant cons banking bigwigs into believing an acre of Wyoming is covered in precious gems, and Ken suggests a touching tribute to Paul Anka. Certificate #52348.

The Chicago Seekers (Entry 213.RV0103) 31.08.2021

In which a failed Chicago flying saucer cult leads to a landmark study in social psychology, and John blames religious fervor on diet pills. Certificate #17854.

The Fresnel Lens (Entry 501.1C1312) 26.08.2021

In which an efficient new piece of French glassware changes the history of lighthouses, and Ken learns the exact age of Discovery. Certificate #52246.

Goodnight Moon (Entry 539.PR0324) 24.08.2021

In which a modernist Manhattan bohemian accidentally writes the great American bedtime story, and John regrets making his professor voice Austrian. Certificate #44141.

The Mpemba Effect (Entry 813.JB3829) 19.08.2021

In which scientists from Aristotle up to modern-day Tanzania try to understand the paradoxical way water seems to freeze, and Ken thinks baseball should have cheerleaders. Certificate #25481.

The Mafeking Cadet Corps (Entry 746.IS2903) 17.08.2021

In which a hero of the Second Boer War turns an ill-advised siege into a worldwide youth movement, and John isn't sure if one can tell time with a cannon. Certificate #31247.

The Cuyahoga River Fire(s) (Entry 309.IS4302) 12.08.2021

In which the American government only gets serious about environmental cleanup after a river in Cleveland bursts into flame well over a dozen times, and Ken believes he could manufacture gravel. Certificate #12398.

Fiji's Declaration of Independence (Entry 467.EC0306) 10.08.2021

In which a Pacific nation loses its founding document and has to ask nicely for a photocopy replacement, and John missed his chance at an assumed identity. Certificate #23621.

The Oosik (Entry 868.GN0223) 05.08.2021

In which walrus genitals supply an important element to Alaskan folk art, and Ken will not inspect the underside of a wallaby. Certificate #45999.

The Next Dalai Lama (Entry 836.MT0208) 03.08.2021

In which the uninterrupted 600-year succession of Tibetan Buddhist leadership is threatened by political oppression, and John admires a hat that looks like a banana. Certificate #32762.

The Fulda Gap (Entry 505.2K0316) 29.07.2021

In which a series of valleys in central Germany become the focus of Cold War military strategy for generals "fighting the last war," and Ken orders a baby online. Certificate #51668.

Lieutenant Nun (Entry 718.2C1102) 27.07.2021

In which a "Basque transvestite" leaves her San Sebastian convent in 1607 to become one of the most dangerous men in South America, and John thinks an Italian pope would be a little naughtier than a Spanish one. Certificate #11658.

Games Buddha Wouldn't Play (Entry 514.PP0203) 22.07.2021

In which a great spiritual leader lists all the kinds of dice and pick-up sticks and toy windmills that are off-limits to the enlightened, and Ken wants to lick a tetherball pole. Certificate #25968.

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