Happy 35th Birthday Part Three, Uncle John!
Uncle John’s Awesome 35th Anniversary Bathroom Reader is on bookshelves today! We’re bringing it home for this auspicious book birthday with fun facts from 2011-present. Facts, don’t fail us now!
Blog Posts
Happy 35th Birthday Part Two, Uncle John!
We’re keeping the party going for Uncle John’s birthday—and the brand-new Uncle John’s Awesome 35th Anniversary Bathroom Reader—with more fun facts from the 2000s Facts, don’t fail us now!
Happy 35th Birthday, Uncle John!
We’re celebrating 35 years of Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader—and the brand-new Uncle John’s Awesome 35th Anniversary Bathroom Reader—by looking back at the last three-and-a-half-decades with amazing facts or stories from the new book from the years since Uncle John made reading in the bathroom a cultural phenomenon. We’ve got so much to share, this is […]
It’s Back to School Time. Any Questions?
The kids are headed back to school for another year of learning, while the rest of us can hang out here and learn about the origins and purposes behind some of the most fundamental elements of the classroom.
Why is Susan B. Anthony So Famous?
You probably know that Susan B. Anthony had something to do with getting women the right to vote in the United States—the 19th Amendment guaranteeing such was ratified in August 1920—but do you know how she did it and what, exactly, she did? See below and take a look at her Show Me History biography, Susan […]
Everything You Didn’t Know You Didn’t Know About Gandhi
Globally, he’s one of the best known, most revered, and important historical figures of the 20th century. However, some misinformation persists in the legacy of Gandhi, regarded as “the father of the country” of India, helping his homeland attain independence from U.K. control on August 15, 1947. Learn more below, and check out a copy […]
Why is Amelia Earhart Famous?
The name is familiar, and it looms large in American history books. Here’s specifically what Amelia Earhart did, and why she’s so important and notable.
Busting the Myths About Sacagawea
In May 1804— 218 years ago this month — Sacagawea departed with the expedition headed by William Clark and Meriweather Lewis, a great trek to explore the Louisiana Purchase, which would become the western United States. Those are the facts — here are some other well-known things about Sacagawea that just aren’t true, no matter […]
NFL Teams That Almost Moved (But Didn’t)
In the last few years, the St. Louis Rams and San Diego Chargers moved to Los Angeles, while the Oakland Raiders headed to Las Vegas. Those are some team moves that worked out — unlike these proposed franchise relocations that didn’t quite work out. St. Louis Patriots About a decade before quarterback Tom Brady arrived […]
More Than Four Fab Facts About the Fab Four
It’s Beatlemania all over again around here, both in this article filled with little-known facts about the Beatles, and in our publishing sibling Thunder Bay Press’s new book, The Beatles: Illustrated Lyrics,So get back, come together, drag a comb across your head, and get ready to love eight days worth of facts. The Beatles’ “White […]
Gandhi: The Myths About the Mahatma
Mahatma Gandhi is a towering, larger-than-life historical figure who changed the geopolitical makeup of the world of the 20th century. But how much do you really know about Gandhi, what he did, and why it’s important? As we prepare to release a book about the man, here’s a look at some of the misconceptions about […]
Imagine Ghosts Are Real
John Lennon was tragically assassinated in 1980. But according to some people, the Beatle never completely left the earthly realm. And your bird can sing In 1995, the three surviving Beatles at the time — George Harrison, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr — reunited for the first Beatles recording in decades. They added their vocals […]
Death at Disneyland
Disneyland: It’s the happiest place on Earth! Well, not if you die there, it’s not. In 1984, a California woman named Dolly Regena Young boarded the Matterhorn Bobsleds. Sometime during the ride, her seatbelt came undone and she was thrown from the ride and onto the tracks. As she was riding in the back of […]
History’s Greatest Potheads
And now, a sober, haze-free look at some noble and venerable historical figures who (somewhat surprisingly) partook in cannabis, the favorite pastime of Cheech, Chong, Snoop Dogg, and Willie Nelson. Queen Victoria. The monarch who reigned over the British empire from 1837 to 1901 was highly influential on many aspects of British life, from food […]
Billionaires…in…SPAAAAAAACE!
In July 2021, Amazon founder and multibillionaire Jeff Bezos launched himself into space. What’s more surprising about this? He’s hardly the first non-government-agency-affiliated person to reach the edge of the cosmos. Here’s a brief history of private spaceflight. 1961: Just four years after the Soviet Union launched two Sputnik satellites, the first manmade objects to […]
They Put a Man on the Moon (And His Name Was Neil Armstrong)
Neil Armstrong will never fall out of the history books — in July 1969, the astronaut became the first human being to ever step foot on the moon. Here are some little-known facts about the man and his work, which are also the subjects of a new book from Portable Press. Neil Armstrong got into […]
Fun Facts About the 2021 NBA Playoffs
This year’s NBA Playoffs are a little bit different than usual. Not only did they start a lot later than in years past, owing to delays caused by coronavirus shutdowns, but they’re also full of quirks and monumental firsts. The fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks upset the Eastern Conference’s #1 team, the Philadelphia 76ers, in the conference […]
Join Gordon “Uncle John” Javna for a Father’s Day Radio Tour!
Based on the author’s love of things weird, bizarre, and strange, Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader Greatest Know on Earth is an all-new collection of curiosities and oddities throughout the ages. A nonfiction book with dazzling facts, jaw-dropping blunders, and astounding lists of trivia, this impeccably-researched compendium includes a range of single-page articles to extended page-turners. Tune in […]
