Midnight Facts for Insomniacs

Mysterious Cases of Lost and Found Media

From Nixon's infamous Smoking Gun audiotape to the OJ Simpson "lost confession,” cases of missing and recovered media have commanded public attention and left a lasting impact on the cultural zeitgeist. In this week's muckraking episode of MFFI, Shane and Duncan unearth the most fascinating and bizarre cases of lost-and-found media in history.
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In this episode:  
Christine Chubbuck and the First On-Air Suicide
Fritz Lang's Metropolis
O.J. Simpson, The Lost Confession
The Nixon White House Tapes
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Ghosts of Christmases Past: The Pagan Origins of Christmas

How is Santa Claus connected to cannibalism? Which Christmastide holiday commemorates the slaughter of children? How should you decode the cryptic numerology message 20+C+M+B+22? And what's with all of those airborne reindeer? Welcome to Ghosts of Christmases Past, in which Shane and Duncan explore how tree-worship and animal sacrifice evolved into the bizarre, festive, highly commercialized holiday we know today. So whether you're feeling the Christmas spirit or just feeling jaded and grinchy, grab a cup of heavily-spiked eggnog, get cozy by the yule-log, and join the boys as they unpack the fascinating pagan history of Christmas.
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In this episode:  
Christmastide
Christmas Eve
The Feast of Saint Stephen, Protomartyr
Childermas, The Feast of the Holy Innocents
Herod the Great
The Feast of the Circumcision of Christ, Octave of the Nativity, Solemnity of Mary
The Feast of the Holy Family
12th Night, Epiphany Eve
Chalking the Door
Saturnalia
The Holiday of Yule
Yule Boar, Yule Goat, Yule Log
Anglican Revelers vs. Puritan Grinches
The Story of the Nativity
December 25th Becomes the Arbitrary DOB
Christenmas, Christ Mass, and Xmas
Christmas Trees
Saint Nicholas of Myra, aka Saint Nick, aka Nicholas the Wonderworker
Sinterklaas 
Christmases Around the World
Reindeer
Thomas Nast
Haddon Sundblom and Coca-Cola
 
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Public Executions and Capital Punishment

Which countries have abolished the death penalty, and which countries execute the largest number of convicts? What are the most popular methods of dispensing capital punishment? Who was the last person executed publicly in Europe, and America? Has anyone survived a public execution? Find out the answers to all of these disturbing questions and more in this week's punitive, vengeful, and relentlessly morbid episode of MFFI. 
**Note: this episode includes all of the graphic details you'd expect based on the topic. If dark humor isn't your jam, there's no shame in skipping this one.**
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In this episode:  
The Most Popular Methods of Execution: Guillotine, Firing Squad, Gallows, Gas Chamber, Lethal Injection, Electrocution
Jamestown and The First American Execution: Captain George Kendall
The Current State of the Death Penalty in the States
Virginia and Texas Vie for Capital Punishment Supremacy
Furman v. Georgia and the 4-Year Pause (1972-1976)
Unitary Trials
Capital Punishment Resumes
The Supreme Court Chips Away at the Death Penalty
Federal Versus State Charges
TFG Reinstitutes Executions
Federal Executions: The Worst of the Worst
Lethal Injection and Julius Mount Bleyer
Death-Cocktail Shortages
Current State of Capital Punishment Worldwide
The Rationale for Public Executions
The Last Public Executions: Rainey Bethea (Kentucky 1936) and Hamida Djandoubi (France 1977)
The Death Penalty as a Deterrent
Capital Punishment for Lesser Offenses (Drug Dealing, Blasphemy, Apostasy) 
Failed and Botched Executions
Antonio Franks, 1872, Fiji
Arguments for and Against the Death Penalty
Exonerated Death-Row Inmates
Conclusions
 
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The Weird, Uncomfortable, Creepy History of Clowns

Few characters from pop culture are as divisive as clowns. Simultaneously endearing and terrifying, the archetype of the clown has persevered throughout the ages despite being reviled by a significant portion of the world’s population. There’s even a word for the fear of clowns: coulrophobia.
So how did ancient jesters and tricksters evolve into the unsettling, white-faced, crazy-haired clowns of today? And what makes the figure of the clown so durable? Find out in this week’s buffoonish, pratfalling, skin-crawling episode of MFFI.
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In this episode:  
Ancient Egypt and the "Dangas"
Ancient Greece
Ancient Rome and the “Stupidus” 
Court Jesters and Fools
Loki
The Hayuka
Carl Jung's "Trickster" Archetype
Commedia dell'arte
The Pierrot
The Harlequin
Joseph Grimaldi ("Joey")
Philip Astley and the Circus
The Whiteface, the Auguste, the Character and the Hobo
Emmett Kelly’s “Weary Willie”
Charlie Chaplin (Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr.)
Music Hall and Vaudeville
Marcel Marceau, Michael Jackson, and the Art of Mime
Bozo the Clown
Fear of Clowns: Coulrophobia
The Joker
Stephen King's It
The Clown Panic of 2016
Insane Clown Posse and the Jugallos 
Terrifier 2 and "Art the Clown"
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Animals with Superpowers

Super strength, super hearing, the ability to fly; many of the standard superpowers from comic books are commonplace in the animal kingdom. But those abilities barely scratch the surface when it comes to the awesome potential of evolutionary adaptation. In this latest episode, Shane schools Duncan on the most unique and powerful critters in the animal kingdom.
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In this episode:  
The Ninja Slug (Ibycus rachelae)
Wood Frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus)
Mimic Octopus and Wunderpus photogenicus
Lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae)
Axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum)
Flea (Siphonaptera)
Frog Hopper (Cercopoidea)
Red Kangaroo (Macropus rufus)
Immortal Jellyfish (Turritopsis dohrnii)
Electric Eel (Electrophorus Electricus)
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Mummies and Death Rituals

Every society faces an inevitable dilemma: what to do with dead bodies? Join Shane and Duncan as they travel across the globe and throughout history to explore Sky Burial, plastination, "Dancing with the Dead," and the most famous death ritual of all: mummification. 
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In this episode:  
The World's Oldest Known Burial Site: Qafzeh
Death Rituals Around the World
Famidihana: Dancing With the Dead (Turning of the Bones)
Buddhism and "Sky Burial"
Viking Funerals
South Korean "Death Beads"
Western Funerals
Mummification
Autolysis and Decomposition
Putrefaction
Intentional vs Unintentional Mummies
Otzi the Iceman
Juanita, the Peruvian Sacrifice
Egyptian Mummies
The Book of the Dead
The Ka, the Ba, and the Akh
The Journey Through Duat
The Hall of Maat
The Judgment of Anubis
Heart-Weighing
Ammit
The "Most Perfect Method" 
King Tut (Tutankhamun) 
Howard Carter and the Discovery of King Tut's Tomb
The Death Mask
The Legacy of Mummification
Plastination
Vladimir Ilyach Ulyanov Lenin
Summum: The Mummy Cult
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Filth and Fury: The History and Legacy of Punk Music

Which famous foursome is considered the first punk band? What did CBGB stand for? In what city did punk originate? What was the wild television moment that made The Sex Pistols a household name? 
From the first on-stage snarls to punk's final wheezing gasps, follow along with Shane and Duncan as they trace the rise and fall of punk music.
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In this episode:  
Redefining Rebellion
The Evolution of Punk
60s Garage Rock: MC5 and the Kinks
Iggy Pop and the Stooges, The New York Dolls
1970s Socioeconomics
Hilly Kristal and CBGB
Hillbilly Poetry
Wayne County/Wayne Richards/Jane County
The Revalons, Television, Patti Smith
PUNK Magazine 
The Ramones
Danny Fields and His Mom
Malcolm McLaren, Vivian Westwood and SEX
The Sex Pistols are Assembled
Johnny Rotten and Sid Vicious
The Infamous Bill Grundy Show Meltdown
The Sex Pistols Tour the American South
The Demise of the Pistols
Sid and Nancy
Punk Factions: Hardcore, Political, Pop
Political: The Dead Kennedys
Hardcore: The Bad Brains, Black Flag, Minor Threat, the Germs
Horror Punk: The Misfits
Pop Punk: The Stiff Little Fingers, The Descendants, Bad Religion
The Rise of Skate/Surf Punk: Offspring, NOFX, Green Day, Rancid
Riot Grrrls: Bikini Kill, Buggy Bear, Slant 6, Bratmobile
The Warped Tour and the Death of Rebellion
Punk Goes Full Pop: Blink 182, Sum 41, Good Charlotte, Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance etc 
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The Skeptic’s Guide to Astrology

Join two lifelong skeptics as they attempt to set aside their cynicism and immerse themselves in the mystical universe of Astrology and the Zodiac. (“Attempt” being the operative word. If you're a huge fan of Astrology, please take note: there will be some respectful debunking.)
Whether you're a fixed feminine water sign or a masculine cardinal air sign, whether your 8th house is in Pluto or Mars, you'll find something to enjoy in this week's cosmic, celestial, prognosticating installment of MFFI. 
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In this episode:  
Mesopotamia and the Babylonians
The "How" Problem
Constellations and the Zodiac
Mayan Astrology
Chinese Astrology
Sun Sign
The Elements: Earth, Wind, Air, and Fire
Fixed, Cardinal, and Mutable Signs
Rising Sign
Moon Sign 
Planets
Houses
The Infamous NASA blog
Ophiuchus: The 13th Sign
Joan Quigley and Nancy Reagan
Mercury in Retrograde
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Gladiators and the History of Human Combat

Did gladiators always battle to the death? Who was the most famous gladiator of all time, and why did he never step foot in the Colosseum? Were any gladiators women? What would a day at the Colosseum look and sound like? (Spoiler alert: music accompanied the fights.) Were all gladiators slaves, or could free citizens compete in the arena? 
Join Shane and Duncan as they explore the history and legacy of human combat in this week’s hacking and slashing, rough-and-tumble episode of MFFI.
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In this episode:  
How Combat Became Entertainment
Cultural Universals: Wrestling, Boxing, etc
The Etruscans and Campanians
Ludus/Ludi
The Gladius (Sword)
Funeral Ceremonies (Munus/Munera)
Female Fighters
Brutus Pera and Decimus Junius Brutus Scaeva
Caesar's Munus
Venatio (Beast Shows/Animal Hunts)
Augustus Regulates the Munera
Trajan's Games
Marcus Aurelius
Commodus
Russel Crowe's Maximus
Myth Busting
Lucius Cassius Dio
The Colosseum
Gladiator Pairs
Gladiator Types: Retiaruus, Murmillo, Andabata, Thraex
Mimus (Horn-Blowing Chickens and Flute-Playing Bears)
Spartacus and the Third Servile War
Honorius and the End of the Games
 
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The Most-Frequently Misused Words in the English Language

What are the most consistently misused words and phrases in the English language? Find out in this week's nitpicking, pedantic, gloriously sesquipedalian episode of MFFI. 
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In this episode:  
Terrific
Queer
Ironic
Literally
Meretricious 
Irregardless
Disinterested
Electrocute
Refute
Fewer vs Less
Nauseous 
Nonplussed
Eggcorns
I Could Care Less
Shoo-In
For All Intents and Purposes
Piqued
Hunger Pangs
You've Got Another Think Coming
Dog Eat Dog World
Coleslaw
Buck Naked
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