The Omnibus is an independent podcast, co-hosted by John Roderick and Ken Jennings. The first 176 episodes were released on the How Stuff Works podcast network (press release) that was bought by iHeart Media in September of 2018. From August of 2019 on the hosts took the show independent. Together, Ken and John pick a couple of topics each week for a mind-blowing deep dive into obscure stories they fear might be lost to history.

"We are Ken Jennings and John Roderick. We speak to you from our present which we can only assume is your distant past, the turbulent time that was the early 21st century. Fearing the great cataclysm that will surely befall our civilization, we began this monumental reference of strange and obscure human knowledge. These recordings represent our attempt to compile and preserve wonders and esoterica that would otherwise be lost. Whether you are listening from an advanced civilization or have just reinvented the technology to decrypt our transmissions, this is our legacy to you. This is our time capsule, this is The Omnibus."

* = Episode has its own wiki-page with relevant stories. Remaining episodes link directly to the official website.

LIVE episodes: 35, 36 Live from SF Sketchfest 2018, 85 Live from Bumbershoot 2018, 125 and 126 Live from SF Sketchfest 2019, 253 from JoCoCruise 2020 (guest-starring Aimee Mann at the end of the episode, reading a poem)

Until episode 176 the show was edited by their friend Chandler Mays who was only allowed to take out the many bloopers and helicopter sounds and executive producer was Chuck Bryant. From episode 177 on the show left the iHeart Radio network and is now hosted on Fireside and edited by freelance editor Mark Miles.

After episode 324 the show took a hiatus following John being cancelled on Twitter for his #BeanDad story.

Since 2023 the show is only published weekly instead of twice a week, following scheduling limitations, among others Ken's new position as the host of Jeopardy!.

The theme music was composed by Noel Brown, host of Stuff They Don't Want You to Know and Ridiculous History.

Support the show on Patreon! All supporters from the $5 level and up get access to a bonus feed called Omnibus Addenda.

Contact information and communities

"In the unlikely event social media still exists in your era, our tweets are archived @omnibusproject. Our handles were @kenjennings and @johnroderick in the olden times. John also maintained an Instagram account under the same name which Ken felt was beneath his dignity. Our address for email, which was a popular form of electronic communication, was moc.liamg|tcejorpsubinmoeht#moc.liamg|tcejorpsubinmoeht. From our vantage point in your distant past, we have no idea how long our civilization survived. We hope and pray that the catastrophe we fear may never come. If the worst comes soon, this recording, like all our recordings, may have been our final word, but if providence allows, we hope to be back with you soon for another entry in The Omnibus!"

Official website: https://www.omnibusproject.com/

Official Facebook group: Omnibus Futurelings

Subreddits: Omnibus_Futurelings and OmnibusProject

Discord: There is an Omnibus channel on the Gary's Van Discord Server (invite-link)

Discourse Forum: Futurelings Community

PO-Box for physical goods: Omnibus Project, PO-Box 55744, Shoreline, WA 98155. Try "North City Post Office, 18336 Aurora Ave N, Suite 105, Apt 55744" if the sender doesn't allow a PO-Box.

Play the Omnibus Bingo

There is a fan site maintained by Greg Ullman collecting a lot of facts about the different entries called Omnibus Organizer.

A Google Spreadsheet maintained by Fred Bremmer that can be found here contains a second version of the episode index with all bible-verses inline.

There is a playlist on Letterboxd maintained by Brad Eatherly (original post) with all related movies from Omnibus entries.

The Twitter account @omnibusstamps collects commemorative stamps related to Omnibus entries.

The Twitter account @OmnibusOOC posts quotes from the show taken out of context.

Entry codes and certificate numbers

• The first part of the entry code is the page in Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition that this title would be on. Given names have to be reordered Last, First and the word ”The” has to be added last as ”, The”
• The second part of the entry code is a link to a bible verse that relates to this entry
• The certificate number is the MPAA certificate number of a movie that relates to the topic (see here or here, or official site)

Credit for solving the puzzle: first part 2018-07-28, second part 2018-12-19 (links require membership in Omnibus Futurelings Facebook group)

Behind the scenes

The show is recorded in person at John's house: Recording setup until mid-2019. Now it is recorded in John's daughter's mother's basement.

There were some interesting quotes by Ken and John in this Facebook thread in the group Omnibus Futurelings

John’s personal stories

John tells some personal stories on this podcast that are relevant for this Wiki. The can be found on this separate page because of Wiki page size limitations.