Omnibus

An encyclopedic reference of strange-but-true stories compiled as a time capsule for future generations.

About the show

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.

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Episodes

  • Episode 590: Vanity Plates (Entry 1383.EC1208)

    March 7th, 2024  |  1 hr 30 mins

    In which car registration numbers become modes for personalized creative expression and eventually a multimillion-dollar commodity, and Ken does not say "auto." Certificate #37808.

  • Episode 589: The Earth from Space (Entry 391.GN0115)

    February 29th, 2024  |  1 hr 15 mins

    In which centuries of inaccurate illustrations of our planet are abruptly upended by satellites and awestruck astronauts, and John never drew spaceships, just Japanese fighter planes. Certificate #35817.

  • Episode 588: The Food Pyramid (Entry 487.MT0611)

    February 22nd, 2024  |  1 hr 21 mins

    In which budget-conscious Swedes rearrange American ideas about nutritious eating, and Ken is pretty sure M&Ms are not getting smaller. Certificate #54063.

  • Episode 587: The Guano Islands Act (Entry 554.PS10407)

    February 15th, 2024  |  1 hr 6 mins

    In which we celebrate 167 years of Americans being able to claim any island they like as long as it has enough bird poop on it, and John thinks you can dip a pole in liberty. Certificate #39867.

  • Episode 586: The Great Idaho Beaver Drop (Entry 548.JL0202)

    February 8th, 2024  |  1 hr 20 mins

    In which a remote part of Idaho solves its beaver dam problem with some surplus parachutes and an even more remote part of Idaho, and Ken applies the transitive property to mules and culverts. Certificate #31297.

  • Episode 585: Naturism (Entry 827.GE0225)

    February 1st, 2024  |  1 hr 19 mins

    In which German health nuts give the world the idea of social nude recreation before the Nazis can tell them not to, and John thinks of something that is better than itching. Certificate #53668.

  • Episode 584: The Ice Trade (Entry 615.PS14717)

    January 25th, 2024  |  1 hr 11 mins

    In which the ponds of New England become the wellspring of a new worldwide web of perishable foods, and Ken learns that gum is a forest treat. Certificate #23725.

  • Episode 583: Einstein's Brain (Entry 399.JB1909)

    January 18th, 2024  |  1 hr 17 mins

    In which the estate of the century's greatest scientist becomes a $200 million enterprise even as his brain tissue languishes in a cider box, and John compares it to pastrami. Certificate #21917.

  • Episode 582: Warren Miller (Entry 789.IS5707)

    January 11th, 2024  |  1 hr 18 mins

    In which a ski bum with dad jokes explores new frontiers of film distribution and extreme sports, and Ken is a water machine. Certificate #48941.

  • Episode 581: Yu-Mex (Entry 1455.1C1408)

    January 4th, 2024  |  1 hr 9 mins

    In which the rift between two Communist dictators leads to a blooming of mariachi culture in the fertile soil of the Balkans, and John is baffled by Vietnamese karaoke. Certificate #46465.

  • Episode 580: Prodigies, Failed (Entry 990.LK0240)

    December 28th, 2023  |  1 hr 20 mins

    In which the smartest people in the world bloom early but often struggle to live up that promise later in life, and Ken's phone thinks he lives at the zoo. Certificate #50285.

  • Episode 579: The Eggnog Riot (Entry 398.RO1313)

    December 21st, 2023  |  1 hr 21 mins

    In which a late-night Christmas party in a West Point barracks gets out of hand, almost changing the course of the Civil War, and John is not anti-Julius. Certificate #32683.