

Omnibus
Omnibus
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.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Oct 27, 2022 • 1h 6min
The Dempster Dumpster (Entry 332.LA0345)
In which cities, over the centuries, gradually discover the most efficient way to collect garbage for disposal, and Ken hasn't looked in his pocket since Christmas. Certificate #28712.

Oct 25, 2022 • 1h 12min
Modernist Cuisine (Entry 798.PR2303)
In which a computer millionaire takes early retirement to self-publish a 50-pound reference work about the chemistry of food, and John discovers a surprise cherry tomato. Certificate #24537.

Oct 20, 2022 • 1h 15min
The Batavia (Entry 103.AC2741)
In which one eventful Dutch voyage to Indonesia leads to a mutiny, a shipwreck, and a massacre off the coast of Australia, and Ken claims he has a bed in a port somewhere. Certificate #20229.

Oct 18, 2022 • 1h 1min
The Last Train Robbery (Entry 702.EZ0722)
In which two Depression-era "drugstore cowboys" let their Wild West outlaw fantasies lead them into a life of crime, and John breaks the news to Ken about pirates. Certificate #26056.

Oct 13, 2022 • 1h 3min
The Thanh Hoa Bridge (Entry 1293.2C0409)
In which the "Dragon's Jaw" across the Song Ma River in North Vietnam proves a challenge for the most advanced air weaponry on earth, and Ken thinks teens should be in parking lots. Certificate #22691.

Oct 11, 2022 • 1h 14min
Dissociative Fugues (Entry 363.HE1017)
In which human memory and identity are so fragile that a series of people simply walk away from them, and John wishes more things were the movie Tron. Certificate #28975.

Oct 6, 2022 • 1h 1min
Lem Billings (Entry 121.PR2705)
In which a high school Kennedy confidante becomes an influential White House voice while hiding a delicate secret, and Ken wants to blur some of John Lithgow's wrinkles. Certificate #36906.

Oct 4, 2022 • 58min
The Murder of Herbert Lee (Entry 817.EX2307)
In which a racist Mississippi state legislator kills his childhood friend, a civil rights organizer, in broad daylight with no consequences whatsoever, and John thinks Ken pronounces "Montgomery" like a Southern belle. Certificate #34239.

Sep 29, 2022 • 1h 11min
Adbusters (Entry 014.HG0105)
In which a pair of outraged Canadians, kept off the TV airwaves, change the world with their anti-consumerist art magazine instead, and Ken thinks Mr. Ed should have had pop-up ads. Certificate #29414.

Sep 27, 2022 • 1h 20min
Luke and Laura (Entry 739.MT2210)
In which the first daytime "supercouple" briefly makes soap operas a part of 1980s mass culture, and John wonders if a bride is "zaftig." Certificate #32511.


