There have been four assassinations of U.S. Presidents to date. Two are very famous and two not as well-known. The first assassination of a President is both well-known and well-documented. On April 14, 1865, actor and southern advocate John Wilkes Booth shot the 16th U.S. President Abraham Lincoln at Ford’s theater. Lincoln died from his wounds the next day. (Incidentally, […]
Read more
Today in History: December 27, 1900 Carry Nation’s vendetta against alcohol was personal. In 1867 at the age of 22, she married a physician by the name of Charles Gloyd, who, like so many of that era, turned out to have a serious drinking problem. Their marriage produced a child, but Charles’s alcoholism made him unable to provide for his […]
Read more
The script for this video is an excerpt from our new book, The Wise Book of Whys available now: Print | Kindle | Nook | Audiobook If you liked this video, you might also enjoy: Our Book: The Wise Book of Whys The Superhero Who Powers Up By Smoking, and Other Bizarre Comic Characters The Soviet Superman: Red Son Why […]
Read more
In today’s episode, you’re going to learn just what exactly the difference is between the United Kingdom, Great Britain, and England. [TRANSCRIPT] Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes | RSS/XML You can also find more episodes by going here: Daily Knowledge Podcast
Read more
Robert Osbourne David Denver was born in new Rochelle, New York, on January 9, 1935 (that is exactly one day after the birth of Elvis Presley.) Just as his “distinguished-sounding” real name seems a bit incongruous for the actor who was to achieve worldwide fame playing a perennial goofball named “Gilligan”, so the real-life Bob Denver was almost a direct […]
Read more
Dorothy “Dot” Rhone, a quiet girl from Liverpool, England, was abused by her heavy drinker father. She also had a very emotionally distant mother. She grew up terribly shy, introverted and withdrawn and didn’t think she was at all pretty. As she said, I never thought I was pretty at school because my sister always said my nose would spread […]
Read more
On a cold, late November Wednesday in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a crowd of 7,021 arrived to the Minneapolis Auditorium to watch an NBA game between the Fort Wayne Pistons and the Minneapolis Lakers. This was a new experience for many of the fans in the stands. The NBA had formed due to a merger between rival leagues, the Basketball Association of […]
Read more
Today in History: December 26, 1610 If contemporary accounts are to be believed, the Countess Elizabeth Bathory is one of the most prolific serial killers of all time. She makes Ted Bundy look like a chump, and Jeffrey Dahmer a mere dabbler in torture and perversion. In a word, this lady was a real whack-job, and on this day in […]
Read more
In this episode, you’re going to learn the humorously unromantic origin of the name “Mistletoe” and the origin of the practice of kissing under this parasitic plant. [TRANSCRIPT] Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes | RSS/XML You can also find more episodes by going here: Daily Knowledge Podcast
Read more
Today I found out that the British once planned to construct a massive aircraft carrier during World War II… made of ice. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as crazy as it sounds at first glance. Britain was taking a beating from the German ships and submarines and were looking for something to build a ship out of that couldn’t be destroyed by […]
Read more
Today in History: December 25, 1941 “White Christmas,” one of the most instantly recognizable songs in history, was introduced to the world on Christmas Day 1941. Composed by famed songwriter Irving Berlin, the song was performed on NBC radio during Bing Crosby’s weekly radio program. It went on to become the top-selling single of all time, with an estimated 50 […]
Read more
For four hot, humid July days, 56 delegates of the Second Continental Congress gathered in Philadelphia with one purpose – to ratify the Declaration of Independence. The document, originally drafted by Thomas Jefferson with the help of Ben Franklin, John Adams, Roger Sherman, ad Robert Livingston, declared that the thirteen American colonies were now independent and free of the tyranny […]
Read more
When most of us think of secret groups, religious societies that flourished in the Middle Ages, like the Illuminati and Knights Templar, often come to mind. We shouldn’t forget that secret societies live among us today. Anonymous Back in 2008, without any clear central direction or control, individuals from across the globe, each vehemently against the idea of internet censorship, […]
Read more
In today’s episode, you’ll learn about one of the most remarkable events in WWI- when soldiers on both sides decided to defy orders and, instead of continuing to try to kill one another, got up out of the trenches and threw a spontaneous Christmas party together. [TRANSCRIPT] Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes | RSS/XML You […]
Read more
Today in History: December 24, 1923 The first national Christmas tree lighting occurred on Christmas Eve 1923, the result of an idea first put forth by President Woodrow Wilson ten years earlier. In part, the president lighting a national Christmas tree was also a way for the electrical industry trade group The Society for Electrical Development to coax consumers into […]
Read more
Recently I’ve been getting emails from people saying the ad unit to the left of the content is sometimes covering part of the content (as seen in the picture there to your right). Despite my sincerest efforts, I’ve not been able to replicate this issue on any computer / device and browser combination I’ve tried (and I’ve tried many). From […]
Read more
In this episode, you’ll learn about an amazing tiny creature that can survive incredible environmental circumstances all across the spectrum, including for a time in the near vacuum of space. Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes | RSS/XML You can also find more episodes by going here: Daily Knowledge Podcast
Read more
When younger generations hear the word ‘dominoes,’ they usually associate it with the famous board game, while others–especially food lovers–might connect it with a delicious pizza. For those who are more politically aware, the word probably brings thoughts of the Cold War and the threat of the spread of communism. In addition, most economists today love to use the word […]
Read more