The Spooktacular Origin of Halloween (And Everything About It)
It isn’t Halloween if you don’t carve a pumpkin, hand out candy, or bob for apples. Here’s a look at why we celebrate Halloween the way we do.
Tag: History
Back to School with Uncle John
Learn more about popular objects and phrases associated with school, like chalkboard erasers and “The dog ate my homework.”
Paperback Writers and Paperback Makers
From Shakespeare to penny dreadfuls and pulp fiction, celebrate International Paperback Day with this history of the affordable format.
Four Facts About the Real Hemingway
We at Uncle John’s like an efficient read, so it’s no surprise that Ernest Hemingway is a favorite at the Bathroom Readers’ Institute. He’s a titan of American literature who wrote about big things like love, war, and manliness. He did it all with famous economy and precision — but how much of it was […]
Lewis’s Adventures in Wonderland
On July 4, 1862, Alice first encountered the White Rabbit, The Mad Hatter, and Queen of Hearts, and all the other residents of Wonderland. But did you know she was dreamed up by a math professor telling a story at a summer picnic? Read all about how Lewis Caroll concocted a fantasy classic. Charles Dodgson was […]
It Was the Best of Summers, It Was the Worst of Summers
Summer is here again, but only time will tell if it will be a good or a bad one — or go down in history for some reason. Let’s go with Uncle John on a time-traveling trip through some of the most notable summers of all time (for better or for worse). The Summer of […]
Six Bizarre Basketball Records
The 2023 NBA finals are finally here, so Uncle John thought he’d pull together some of his most bizarre basketball records. Here are some of the greatest—and weirdest—things to ever happen in hoops. Least dribbles with the most points: In December 2016, the Golden State Warriors beat the Indiana Pacers 142 to 106 thanks to […]
Sneak Peek at Strange USA
If you’re a fan of Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader, you’ll find all sorts of interesting facts in the Strange series that’ll keep your trip to the john just as exciting. Don’t believe us? Take a look at this sneak peek of Strange USA below. Introduction God bless the strange USA! The editors of Portable Press […]
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 […]
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 […]
Buy Me Some Candy Clouds and Grasshoppers
After a coronavirus-shortened, largely live spectator-free season in 2020, Major League Baseball is back in 2021, and so are the fans. And so is the ballpark food available in the concession stands at the big ballpark and stadiums. But it’s not exactly hot dogs and soda anymore. Lumberjack Slammie (Toronto) This baseball glove-size monster is […]
Back Home Again in Indiana(polis 500)
Today we’re going “indy” with these interesting facts about auto-racing’s annual Memorial Day weekend event, the Indianapolis 500. Perhaps the Indy 500 is so big because it’s contested in a place that is literally huge. You could fit the entirety of Vatican City inside of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway… and Yankee Stadium… and the Rose […]
