Kara Kovalchik
Joined: Nov 21, 2012
Kara Kovalchik was born in Detroit and currently lives in the leafy suburb of Birmingham, Michigan, where she and her husband Sandy Wood spend their days ferreting out fun, fascinating trivial facts. After more than 20 years of blissful togetherness, Sandy has learned to tolerate and even indulge Kara’s love of '70s music, classic TV sitcoms, kitschy collectibles, The Walking Dead, Lifetime movies, Mystery Science Theater 3000, sparkly silver spoon rings, true crime stories, and her “unequalled ability to be fascinated by absolutely nothing.”
The Real People and Events Mentioned in 11 Hit Songs
Why Do Some Birds Sing, While Others Caw?
10 Things About Old Telephones That Might Confuse Young People
How Did ‘Bunny’ Become a Word for ‘Rabbit’?
When it comes to abbreviations for animal names, doggy for dog makes sense, as does kitty for cat, when you think about it: Kitty comes from the word kitten. But where does bunny for rabbit come from?
What Are Pimentos, And How Do They Get Inside Olives?
Until the early 1960s, pimentos were sliced and then stuffed into olives by hand.
10 Musicians Who Made Cameos on 1980s TV Shows
A handful of hitmakers took a shot at the small screen (with varying degrees of success).
The Possible Origins of 7 Odd Visual Clichés
Why do we expect bankrupt people to wear barrels, or bank robbers to carry money bags marked with dollar signs? Discover the origins of these odd visual clichés.
Why Are the First Notes of a Tonal Scale Called ‘Do, Re, Mi’?
Solmization, or the practice of assigning syllables to the different “steps” of the scale, originated in ancient India.
Why Is an Informant Called a ‘Stool Pigeon‘?
Pigeons aren’t known to be particularly talkative birds.
Why Do Hearses Have Metal S-Shaped Scrolls Where the Back Windows Should Be?
A brief history of landau bars.
How Did ‘Jones’ Come to Mean ‘Craving’?
Nowadays, we use jones to express an intense craving for something. But it used to refer specifically to drugs.
Why Do We Sometimes Call Aluminum Foil “Tin Foil”?
Tin foil and aluminum foil are not the same thing.
10 Operatic Facts About Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”
Nearly a half-century after its release, Queen’s classic “mock opera”—a favorite of Wayne and Garth’s—is still regularly cited as one of the greatest songs ever recorded.
11 Sounds Today’s Kids Have Probably Never Heard
Who knew that certain noises would eventually become as extinct as the dodo or the flash cube some day?
What’s the Difference Between Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr.?
The signs and menus look exactly alike, down to that cheery little star. Are they the same restaurant?