The Internet Says it’s True

Knock knock jokes feel like they’ve always existed - but the truth is they exploded almost overnight during the 1930s and became one of the biggest joke crazes in American history. In this episode, Michael Kent explores the surprising origins of the knock knock joke, how a Broadway song helped spark the fad, why newspapers complained about them, and how the format survived nearly a century of comedy trends. Then we chat with Comedi...

In the late 1980s, Domino’s introduced a red-suited villain called the Noid to represent everything that could ruin your pizza. The campaign was a hit - until a real man with the same last name walked into a store and took hostages. This episode explores the rise, fall, and strange real-world consequences of one of advertising’s most infamous mascots. Then we chat with Comedian Natasha Samreny!

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Originally released February 20, 2023. Through a strange misunderstanding, a small town in France maintained the grave of a fallen American soldier for several decades. It wasn't a soldier's grave at all, but a spot where General George Patton had marked an abandoned latrine pit. In this episode, we learn a little about Patton and how this story came to be. Then we chat with Comedian, Magician and Author Nick Paul.

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China is as wide as the United States - so why does the entire country share just one time zone? From dark 9 a.m. mornings in Xinjiang to midnight sunsets and the quiet politics of "Beijing time," this episode explores how something as simple as a clock can become a tool of unity, control, and resistance. Then we chat with Comedian Dan Wilbur. 

Did you know The Internet Says It's True is now a book? Get it here: https://amzn.to/4mi...

In this week's Mid-Week Mini Episode, we talk about the first alarm clock, why it only rang at an unmentionable hour and why the snooze button standard became 9 minutes. 

Did you know The Internet Says It's True is now a book? Get it here: https://amzn.to/4miqLNy

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Bonus episodes and content available at http://Patreon.com/MichaelKen...

In this episode we unpack the true story of how ten small lizards smuggled home by a ten year old on a family trip to Italy became a thriving reptile population in Cincinnati Ohio. From their journey in a sock to the remarkable adaptation and spread of Podarcis muralis in the Midwest, this is the strange and true tale of the Lazarus lizards. Then we chat with Comedian Tanya Vora!

Did you know The Internet Says It's True is now a bo...

In the 1930s, the United States quietly expelled over a million people during the Great Depression - and more than half of them were American citizens. This episode explores how fear, economics, and bureaucracy combined to erase a chapter of history that sounds impossible but is tragically real. Then we chat with Natalie Keller Pariano of Natterdoodle! 

Did you know The Internet Says It's True is now a book? Get it here: https://am...

There is a lightbulb in California that has been glowing since 1901, and it is still on today. In this episode, we explore the true story of the Centennial Light, how it survived a century of technological change, and why its endurance has less to do with lost engineering secrets and more to do with the tradeoffs we choose. Then we chat with Comedian Jay Black!

Did you know The Internet Says It's True is now a book? Get it here: ht...

At some point, presidential food stopped being private and started becoming a message. In Part Two of this two-part series, we follow the shift from quiet meals to cultural flashpoints, from jelly beans and broccoli to fast food and ice cream, and explore how what presidents eat becomes shorthand for personality, politics, and power. It sounds like trivia, but it tells you exactly how America learned to watch itself eat. Then we ch...

Before presidential meals became photo ops, they were shaped by survival, region, and habit. In Part One of this two-part series, we trace the favorite foods of America’s earliest presidents and discover how corn, salt fish, macaroni, and cherries reveal a young country still figuring out how to feed itself. These aren’t cute trivia facts. They’re clues to how power looked before anyone was watching. Then we chat with Speaker and A...

This week we explore the bizarre true story of an invisible barrier inside a 3M manufacturing plant that workers could feel as they walked through a doorway. It sounds like science fiction, but it was actually caused by massive static electricity fields generated during high speed film production. We dig into the physics, the engineers who investigated it and the other strange static related stories that make this one of the most s...