3 Novelty Songs From the ’80s…That Don’t Make Sense Outside of the ’80s
Novelty songs are the product of their times, responding humorously to the concerns of the day…and then they’re quickly forgotten, like these.
Daily Dispatch
Jellies and Jams and Marmalades and Preserves and Butters and…
It’s almost time for the fall harvest here at BRI headquarters, and there is so much fruit around these parts that there’s only one way to keep it all: make it into jam! Or jelly. Or preserves. Or fruit butters. Now we’re confused. What’s the difference between all of those anyway?
Fake-or-Fact Friday: Are These ‘60 Minutes’ Spinoffs Real or Not?
Every Friday we give you three news stories and ask you to pick which two or true and which one was made up. This time, we’re doing it a little differently. Below are a bunch of spinoffs of CBS’s venerable news magazine “60 Minutes.” Can you guess which ones aired and which ones are pure fiction?
ROBOTICA Invasion: Cruising With the Booze Bots
This November, the maiden voyage of the Quantum of the Seas will revolutionize the way that vacationers journey across the oceans. The ship features a sleek lounge with robotic bartenders.
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Hello Kitty (But Were Afraid to Ask)
You’ve probably heard by now the bizarre news that Hello Kitty isn’t, you know, a kitty. Here’s a look at the “scandal,” and some more interesting stuff about the cartoon character.
In the Beginning: Two Early Drafts of Famous Stories
A lot can change between the first draft and the final product.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
A “long lost” chapter from the classic children’s novel recently appeared in The Guardian. It was accompanied by a lengthy article about author Roald Dahl and a rundown on his even crazier original version. In one of his earliest drafts, Charlie was accompanied by four additional ill-fated kids while he toured Willy Wonka’s very dangerous factory.
Impossible Questions: Classic Rock Edition (The Answer)
Think you’ve got the answer? Keep reading to see if you nailed it.
What odd, but very specific, distinction is shared by Cheap Trick and Van Halen?
Need more impossible questions? Check out Uncle John’s Impossible Questions.
6 Totally Awesome ‘Saved By the Bell’ Facts
Mere weeks after it was announced, last weekend Lifetime aired The Unauthorized Saved By the Bell Story, a TV-movie about the behind the scenes action of NBC’s 1989-1993 Saturday morning sitcom Saved By the Bell. Here are some Saved By the Bell facts you might not have known.
Impossible Questions: Classic Rock Edition
Think you know the answer to this question? Think you can get it? Good luck…and come back tomorrow to see if you’re right.
What odd, but very specific, distinction is shared by Cheap Trick and Van Halen?
The Topography of Tears
Micro-photographer Rose-Lynn Fisher is best known for her book Bee, a compilation of photographs of bees magnified anywhere from 10 times to 500 times. Among the remarkable things Fisher captured: that bees’ eyes are hexagonal, just like a honeycomb.
Fake-or-Fact Friday: Giraffe Laughs Edition
Here are three very strange news reports involving giraffes. Two are real, but one is fake. Can you guess which one we made up? The answer is at the end of the post.
(Almost) One Night Only: Bands That Played Lived Extremely Rarely
In 1966, the Beatles decided to quit touring and playing live in favor of crafting intricate albums in the studio. They’d played hundreds of concerts by then—way more than these other bands that probably won’t be coming to your town anytime soon.
3 Ways to Hack Your Coffee
As the temperatures start dropping and the stresses of the season start to rise, you’re going to need all the energy you can get. When the line at Starbucks is too long and a cup of Folgers just isn’t going to do the trick, keep these handy-dandy coffee hacks at the ready.
The Amazing Tale of the North Pond Hermit
Who was breaking into homes in a small town in northern Maine. Teenagers? Animals?
ROBOTICA Invasion: hitchBOT, the Hitchhiking Robot
We’ve got a new book coming out in September called ROBOTICA: Mechanical Marvels and Mind-Melting Machines of the Past, Present, and Future. Yep—it’s a book all about awesome robots. Here’s a little taste of the strange and wonderful robots you’ll find in that book.
Ask Uncle John Anything: The Greatest Thing Since the Greatest Thing
Before the invention of sliced bread, what did people say was “the best thing ever”? Sliced bread has been around since bread, of course, but pre-sliced bread wasn’t sold commercially in the United States until 1928. What took people so long to figure out how to slice bread?
6 Interesting Emmy Post-Game Stats
Pop culture is like sports for Uncle John, so here are some fun facts and figures from last night’s Emmy Awards.
- There were absolutely no first-time winners in the major Comedy and Drama acting categories. Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep), Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory), Ty Burrell (Modern Family), Allison Janney (Mom), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife), Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad), and Anna Gunn (Breaking Bad) have all previously won Emmys.
Mmmm….Trivia
Just in case you aren’t getting enough Simpsons via FXX’s two-week-long “Every Simpsons Ever” marathon, here is some Simpsons trivia you might not have known about the longest-running comedy in TV history.
