Episodes

Ever go into a doctor’s office and get treated for the wrong thing? Or have an embarrassing moment in front of your doctor because of your ailment, the procedure done, or the drugs that were administered? Jon and Kurt recall a few of these while also meandering into discussions on acting, travel, and life as we know it. In other words, some stereotypical Smart Drivel.

The earth, it’s inhabitants, and it’s natural resources are pretty amazing. Beautiful. Practical. Functional. And then there are the mistakes; things that are just not right...limburger cheese, oceans filled with water you can’t drink, first rows in movie theaters, Q-tips that you aren’t supposed to put in your ear. Well, you get the idea. This episode showcases some of these “God’s Mistakes” in all their un-wonderment.

Jon and Kurt decide to throw another “dinner party for the ages''. This time it is to celebrate the podcast's 50th episode. So take a(nother) listen to see how they create the ultimate guest list for this exclusive affair. The party is limited to ten guests chosen from anywhere and anytime in history. The nominated diners can be living, dead, famous, unknown, or figures from fiction...the only restriction is whether they will contribute to making it a truly memorable meal.

We all know these people. The ones who sing along with the radio at the top of their lungs, yet completely botch the lyrics. Jon and Kurt laugh at some classic misunderstood lyrics. Really...how can people blow the words that are in the title of the song? Crazy. But funny.

There are a lot of wonderful, poignant sayings that have, rightfully, gained fame over the years and have passed into everyday lore. Then there are others--like “here’s mud in your eye” or “slept like a baby”--that are completely inane and nonsensical. Jon and Kurt seek to uncover a bunch of these everyday sayings and expose them for the impostors they are.

Ahhh, cocktails. The beacon of light at the end of the day. The social equivalent of a group hug. We love our cocktails, but do we know their provenance? Ever wonder where the Bloody Mary was first concocted? How the martini gots its name? The story behind the Tom Collins? Why we call it a Negroni? What the difference is between a Boilermaker and an Irish Car Bomb? Well, Jon and Kurt are here to help in this episode as they provide the details, the stories, the backstories of your favorite cockt...

The world has gone crazy for wordle. People set their alarms just to get up early enough to solve the wordle before their friends. There is a “sharing” er “competing” culture of proving one’s intelligence by getting the word in fewer guesses than others. And, with the boom, it has spawned quordle, octurdle, worldle, hurdle, nerdle, etc. Jon and Kurt delve into this phenomenon and try to explain or dissect it in their own smart drivel way.

Following up on last week's "Underrated Inventions Part 1" comes the expected "part 2". In this classic episode, Jon and Kurt continue waxing poetic about seemingly mundane inventions that have had outsized impact on society. Some you would expect, some are interesting interpretations by our opinionated co-hosts.

Dipping into the vast repository of Smart Drivel content, Jon and Kurt offer up a classic two part series. From toilet paper to Neil Diamond and lots in between, they discuss the advances in civilization we can’t live without. They may not get the headlines as say the wheel or penicillin, but these underrated inventions punch way above their weight.

Tune in to another classic episode as Jon and Kurt spend a full episode discussing fun phrases and how they came to be. “Mind your Bees Wax,” “One for the road”, and “Freezing the balls off a brass monkey” are just a few sayings they take on, masticate over, and share.

Enjoy a classic Smart Drivel episode as Jon and Kurt set out to find the truth behind certain “givens” that we have always been told: is it safe to swim right after eating? Is the earth round? Did Vikings have horns on their helmets? Was there an apple in the Garden of Eden? Were the pyramids of Egypt built by slaves? Is Everest the tallest mountain on earth? And what the hell does Chuck Yeager have to do with all of this?

Stretching their word retrieval abilities, Jon and Kurt have fun in this episode by coming up with words that have ‘art’ embedded within them. Art means one thing on its own (the beautiful category of expressionism–be it paintings, sculptures, poetry, novels, music, dance, etc.), but take that word and stuff it into another, and it takes on a whole new life.

Finding humor, joy, and moral intrigue in select words, Jon and Kurt play a little game. One of the co-hosts comes up with a favorite or interesting word and explains the reasoning behind his choice. The other co-host then has to come up with a compelling entry of his own – but it has to start with the last letter of the other’s word. Of course, this being Smart Drivel, they seldom stay on task or on topic. The conversation that ensues is entertaining, if nothing else. Jonathan Ellenthal: I li...

You are moving to a foreign country. You don’t know where. You don’t know for how long. All you are told is that you can bring 5 things with you. Jon and Kurt share what they would take along as they go far afield from home. Not surprisingly, they have quite different answers and rationales for their choices. Which leads to some fun back and forth. What would you bring?

Jon and Kurt re-release an all-time favorite as they wax poetic about places they would love to visit for vacation. However, the twist is that they can go anywhere in any time in history. They discuss being in ancient Greece for the invention of the shower, ancient Alexandria for the books, England during King Arthur’s reign, seeing Jackie Robinson score his first MLB run, and other smart-drivelly places.

Throughout history, humankind’s competitive spirit has led to inventing and mastering a wide array of sports. Basketball, Soccer, Football, Baseball, Hockey, Tennis, etc. get all the air time and all the headlines, but what about the outrageous and bizarre sports? The ones like toe wrestling or bog snorkeling or eel peeling or….yup, Jon & Kurt in their 101st episode explore some of the more ridiculous sports that have attracted committed athletes over the years. We’ll see you in the dung spittin...

That’s right, a milestone in smart drivelry has been attained…Jon and Kurt have recorded their 100th episode. That means they have given listeners over 40 hours of content over which to laugh, yell, sneer, learn, and, mostly, shake their heads at the ridiculous conversation they are hearing. The two hosts use the centennial episode to give us new thoughts on previous topics: they celebrate their 100th with a new origin of a fun phrase, more pet peeves, a new God’s mistake, a cool oxymoron, anoth...

The boys are at it for a second week in a row…they just can’t get enough of trying to stump one another with esoteric, tantalizing, and thought provoking facts. If you ever find yourself in the midst of boring folks with nothing to say, you will be happy you listened to this episode to give you conversation starters. You are welcome; we hope.

In this episode, Jon and Kurt try to stump one another with arcane, bizarre, weirdly fascinating trivia questions. Some are down right funny while others are great fodder for your next dinner conversation. Listen, remember, and then be seen as an icon of knowledge.

We all did it. We all went to school with open minds, excited to learn new things. We, here in the U.S., learned a lot about our country’s history. Interestingly, with the lens of current knowledge, we now know that a lot of what we learned was not exactly correct. In this episode, Jon and Kurt unearth some of these discrepancies and attempt to set the record straight.

Office life has changed so much in the last thirty years–we saw the coming and going of the fax machine, the thumb drive, the inter-office memo, to name just a few–and now, with remote working, the office doesn’t even have people. In this episode, Jon and Kurt take a look at how the office has changed and they even wax poetic about some of the lost objects (name plates) and lost traditions (the office prank).

Ben Franklin is deeply embedded in the American ethos. He was a Founding Father, an inventor, a printer, an author, a diplomat, a man about town, to name just a few of his talents. He was prolific to say the least and was a true Renaissance man. In this episode, Jon and Kurt marvel at his successes and share some of his lesser known accomplishments.

Medicine and medical treatments have, thankfully, evolved over the years as these procedures and cures always aim to stay on the cutting edge. WIth the luxury of being able to look backwards in time, we can safely laugh at some of the more questionable healing practices of the past. From looking to tame the wandering womb to blistering the skull to farting in a jar and many others, Jon and Kurt open the metaphoric medical textbook and share some of the craziest ways we tried to heal people.

In the development of the English language, we have created some words that are just plain funny. A word, when heard, elicits snickers, laughter, and general bemusement. Jon and Kurt can’t contain themselves from their childish glee as they share some of the words they find most humorous. Most times, of course, these words are far more benign than they sound. But, oh man, there are many that will tickle and amuse. Like winklepicker, for example. Gardyloo!