People are constantly asking me, “Where do you get all those amazing facts for the mental_floss Twitter account?” Many come from old mental_floss books. Charlotte helps curate.
OK, maybe not “constantly.” It’s never even happened once. But I bet somewhere, someone was wondering.
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Well this just about made my month. This morning, Al Roker, Ann Curry & Natalie Morales spent a Today Show segment discussing Stacy Conradt’s blockbuster story on secret menu items at fast food restaurants. I’m going to celebrate with a Neapolitan shake.
I’ve probably seen every episode of Seinfeld at least two-dozen times. So whenever I can use some of the useless knowledge I’ve accumulated, I feel like that was TV time well spent.
Take the Quiz: George Costanza’s Resume
Here are a handful of quizzes I’ve posted recently at mentalfloss.com:
The good people at CNN.com Live had me back today to discuss songs used by military interrogators and law enforcement officers to torture and intimidate. We had some laughs.
Here’s my latest CNN segment, about the history of MTV. I skipped over most of the good parts, so you can read the whole story here.
Here’s yesterday’s CNN segment. And if you click on the picture below, you can watch a young Jerry Seinfeld on Benson. The episode, “Benson’s Groupie,” originally aired on December 19, 1980 (fast forward to the 7:00 mark).
I need to learn to look at the camera and not the little window with the CNN anchors that’s on my screen. I should also lose 8 pounds in my face.
While you’re waiting for the next batch of Charlotte videos to upload, try your hand at the latest mental_floss Lunchtime Quiz.
Take the Quiz: For Dummies. For Real?
Charlotte got her little hands on a (non-hardcover) promotional edition of The Mental Floss History of the World.
She couldn’t put it down. (To be fair, she couldn’t pick it up, either.)
Some parts were scary.
Others were downright horrifying.
But if she could talk, she’d be telling everyone she knows to pre-order their copy from Amazon before October 27th (if you do, you get six free months of mental_floss magazine). For a time last week, the book was in the Top 20 of Amazon’s bestseller list. Now it’s back in the triple digits.
Let’s see if there’s a Baby Charlie Bounce.
I get the question all the time. “Jason, is there a way I can learn more about history while simultaneously helping raise the profile of your employer?”
I would be thrilled to hear that you headed over to Amazon.com and pre-ordered The Mental Floss History of the World. It’s our first hardcover book, and if it does well (like “bestseller list” well), it could really open up a lot of doors. That History of Dogs book that Bailey and I want to co-write? It could happen.
Order now and you’ll also get six free months of mental_floss magazine, which you can either send to a magazine-enthusiast friend or enjoy yourself (or tack on to your existing subscription).
Plus I’ll owe you a medium-sized favor. Think it over. And be sure to let me know if you do choose to purchase. I need to know to whom those favors are owed.
Ethan Trex had a great idea for a mental_floss quiz last week, which was inspired by that Seinfeld episode where George challenged people to identify candy bars in a candy lineup full of Twix. He picked out the candy and I bought it, placed it on Ellen’s fine china and photographed each bar. I’ll admit that I ate the Milky Way and, the following day, the 3 Musketeers. The rest remains in my fridge. If you’re in the neighborhood and dying for a PayDay, stop on over.
Oh, and if you want to test your candy-identification skills, take the quiz.
Charlotte was born two months ago today. (You can re-live those first few hours here.) Being truly mean parents, we celebrated by letting a nurse practitioner stick Charlie’s thighs with pointy, disease-filled needles. But she’ll thank us when she’s the only Livingston kid without diphtheria.
Let’s see what else she’s been up to…
