Before it was a popular book, 'A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' began as a radio series

Listen to the audiobook version of 'A Brief History of Time'

First published in 1988, Stephen Hawking's most famous novel has sold more than 25 million copies in 40 languages. Through non-technical terminology, Hawking discusses the nature of space and time, general relativity, quantum mechanics, gravity, black holes, and cosmology.

'Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators' featured 'Hitch' as a character

The young adult detective novels, which ran from 1964 to 1987, prominently featured Hitchcock's name on their covers and included introductions supposedly written by the author. Hitchcock was also a character in the books, working with the young detectives. His name was removed after the 30th book was released.

A blend of brilliance and humor made Stephen Hawking's cameos unforgettable

Throughout his life, he appeared in numerous pop culture moments—from "The Simpsons" to "The Big Bang Theory"—showing his talent for comedy and his love of science outreach. He was the only person to play himself on "Star Trek: The Next Generation," even writing some of his own lines.

Spinal Tap began as a sketch on a short-lived TV show

The fake band might be best known for "This is Spinal Tap," 1984 movie that effectively created the comedy mockumentary, but the premise began with an appearance on a short-lived ABC show called "The TV Show."

Many believe modern fan fiction began with 'Star Trek'

While people have always reinterpreted preexisting stories, fanfiction is often noted for its communal, interactive element, which many believe started with the TV show "Star Trek." Fans were so passionate about the show that they began creating stories set in the show's universe and sharing them with fellow superfans through conventions and self-published fanzines, like 1968's "Spockanalia."

In 1938, 1.7 million people were fooled into believing a Martian invasion was underway because of a radio play

Orson Welles' realistic radio dramatization of a Martian invasion of Earth, called "The War of the Worlds," caused quite a stir with audiences. The broadcast resulted in panic, with some people in the area where the story took place attempting to flee. It also helped Welles secure a contract with a Hollywood studio, leading to the creation of "Citizen Kane."

The history of 'Black Mirror,' according to its stars

"Black Mirror" began as a modest anthology show on Britain's Channel 4, offering bleak satire about contemporary technology. It quickly became a hit and attracted stars like Daniel Kaluuya, Jon Hamm, Rashida Jones, and Jesse Armstrong (who'd go on to show run HBO's "Succession"). This oral history of the show details its evolution to an international Netflix hit, providing insights into creator Charlie Brooker's approach to storytelling.

‘Guiding Light’ was the longest-running scripted drama in broadcast history

The show ran for 72 years, starting as a radio program in 1937, and eventually transitioning to television in 1952. Along the way, it launched several Hollywood stars, like Kevin Bacon, James Earl Jones, and Christopher Walken. CBS canceled the show in 2009.

In 1974, 'Dungeons and Dragons' turned fantasy into a game

Inspired by the fantasy paperback explosion of the late 1960s and early 1970s, Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson published the original incarnation of the game, which immersed players in worlds similar to fantasy fiction. Since then, several newer editions have been released. In recent years, podcasts and livestreams featuring individuals playing the game have gained popularity.

The story behind David Bowie's failed '1984' musical

The musician hoped to adapt Orwell's dystopian novel for the stage, though the project floundered after Orwell's widow—who found Bowie's vision in poor taste—refused to grant him the rights. Several of the project's songs—including "Big Brother" and "1984"—eventually appeared on Bowie's 1974 album "Diamond Dogs."

BBC Radio 4 tackles the history of Stonehenge

On this podcast, host Greg Jenner humorously unpacks Stonehenge’s biggest myths and mysteries—from what a “henge” actually is, to how alien theories emerged, and why the monument was once sold for just £6,000.

Memos detailing the shows David Attenborough commissioned, including Monty Python

From 1965 to 1972, Attenborough was on a trajectory to become the BBC's next director-general while serving as Controller and Director of Programs, overseeing what would air on television. "Monty Python's Flying Circus" and "Pot Black," which popularized the cue sport of snooker in the UK, were among the eclectic mix of shows he commissioned.

The 'Star Wars' series begins where George Lucas believed the story was most accessible

The director originally conceived 'Star Wars' as a single long story, but recognized it was far too big for a single movie, so he split each act into its own film. He began with the fourth act, which would later be renamed "A New Hope."

Carl Sagan, the host of 'Cosmos,' gave Bill Nye advice on his future show

Originally wanting to lean into his engineering background to explain the workings of objects such as bicycles and bridges, Nye ran his idea past his former professor at a college reunion. Sagan told him that children resonated with pure science, not technology, altering the show's future topics.

The breakthrough that changed our perception of the universe

In the 1920s, the Hooker Telescope helped Edwin Hubble make a discovery that forever changed how we see the universe. Building on the work of astronomers like Henrietta Leavitt and Harlow Shapley, Hubble used the telescope to prove that galaxies exist beyond the Milky Way—revealing a vast and expanding universe.

'Vox Pop' gave ordinary contestants the chance to win quick cash

The radio show began in 1932 with man-on-the-street interviews in Houston, but soon began traveling to different locations around the country. The show became known for its quiz feature, which offered $1 for each question randomly picked people answered correctly. The show was a hit, not only because audiences could imagine themselves in the contestants’ shoes, but also because it was relatively inexpensive for the network to produce.

'I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.'

- Author Douglas Adams (1952-2001)

Dickens' first novel was a satire informed by his reporting

"The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club" was a series of illustrations and accompanying stories serialized in newspapers from 1836 to 1837. Dickens drew on his previous experiences as a Parliamentary reporter to flesh out the story of Samuel Slumkey, a politician running for office. He wins the election thanks to a well-timed bribe.

EL James' 'Fifty Shades of Grey' was originally 'Twilight' fan fiction

The first volume in the popular erotic romance series was originally called "Master of the Universe" and focused on the main characters of "Twilight," the popular vampire series by Stephanie Meyer. After it became a hit in fan fiction communities, James removed the references to "Twilight" and changed the title. It would go on to be the fastest-selling paperback of all time in the United Kingdom and lead to additional books and film adaptations.

Radiohead's chatbot was born over 20 years before ChatGPT

Looking for a novel way to promote their 2001 record "Amnesiac," Radiohead began working with ActiveBuddy, the people responsible for the popular SmarterChild chatbot, to create GooglyMinotaur, their own AOL chatbot based on a character based on the album. This oral history offers a deep dive on this fascinating piece of music and tech trivia, demonstrating the band's reliably forward-thinking perspective and providing a window into an early iteration of commercial artificial intelligence.

NASA designed the Golden Record using hydrogen to ensure it's universally readable

The Golden Record holds what is essentially a human "time capsule," featuring music, nature sounds, and greetings from around the world. NASA used the radiation period of hydrogen's simplest transition as a baseline to convey timing and structure. The first coded image is included on the cover as a test so aliens can check if they decoded it correctly.

How radio works

Antennae tune a radio to a particular frequency (determined by the listener on their radio's dial) while tuning out all the other stations being broadcast. AM, short for amplitude modulation, and FM, short for frequency modulation, decode audio signals differently, leading to differences in sound quality and the distance a station can travel.

Stephen King’s wife rescued his first hit from the trash

In 1972, King began working on a story about a telekinetic high school girl but abandoned the story just a few pages into the first draft. Luckily, his wife, Tabitha, found the manuscript in a trash bin and encouraged him to continue working on it. That story would become King’s first book, “Carrie,” which was published in 1974 and went on to sell millions of copies, establishing King as a household name following Brian De Palma’s 1976 film adaptation.

The Michelin Guide was intended to increase demand for tires

The first Michelin Guide was released in 1900 to increase demand for Michelin's tires by encouraging recreational travel. The guides included road maps and recommendations for mechanics, hotels, and restaurants. Nearly 35,000 copies of the first guide were distributed—at a time when there were fewer than 3,000 cars in France.

Voyager Station, the world's first space hotel, is planned for 2027

The structure spans 488 meters in diameter and will rotate to simulate one-sixth of Earth's gravity while circumnavigating the planet every 90 minutes. The Voyager Station is designed to accommodate 450 guests and 150 crew members, providing amenities such as restaurants, a sports hall, and a movie theater.

One disco producer saw 'Star Wars' four times on its opening weekend and was so inspired that he recorded the album 'Star Wars and Other Intergalactic Funk,' which produced a chart-topping single.

After NASA's Voyager 1 captured Earth as a single pixel as it left the solar system in 1990, astronomer Carl Sagan used the image to reflect on humanity's fragility and the responsibility to protect 'the only world we've ever known.'

The first image of a black hole was captured by creating an Earth-sized virtual observatory from a network of eight radio telescopes.

Walt Disney's early film 'Alice's Wonderland' was a groundbreaking innovation in the silent film era

The distributor behind 'Rocky Horror' pulled the film from its scheduled national release, believing it would be a failure, though it eventually amassed a dedicated fanbase through midnight showings, a trend that continues over 50 years later.

The first robot in literature may have been a 'mechanical man' in 1907's 'Ozma of Oz,' a book in L Frank Baum's 'Wizard of Oz' series.

Track the location of the Voyager probes, currently between 13 and 15 billion miles away from Earth.

How the most famous Ebola book, The Hot Zone, which sold 3.5 million copies and was translated into 30 languages, got aspects of the disease so wrong.

Explore a list of the 100 best novels of all time, compiled by some of the world's best living writers, including Salman Rushdie, Stephen King, and Jennifer Egan.

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

The history of many kitchen appliances involves unexpected discoveries and applications, including wartime radar turned hamster defroster and replacing an 'ice king' with heat-stealing boxes.

A researcher recently discovered an interview from 1967 between groundbreaking journalist Joan Didion and the Grateful Dead, years before the band became an institution.

Explore the history, structure, and species of Australia's Great Barrier Reef with this interactive journey narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

Stars appear to twinkle because turbulence in the motion of molecules in Earth's atmosphere causes light to bend and wiggle rapidly on its way to the surface—a phenomenon called scintillation.

Mid-century modern graphic designers, known for their bright colors and bold lines in advertising, also found success with children's books.

Famed poet TS Eliot rejected the manuscript for George Orwell's political fable 'Animal Farm,' writing that its criticism of authoritarianism was not 'the right point of view.'

Astronauts have repaired genetic damage in space using CRISPR—a molecular tool that can make precise changes to DNA and is used in single-celled organisms to attack invasive viruses.

Existentialist writer Jean-Paul Sartre coined the famous phrase 'Hell is—other people' in his play 'No Exit'

Comedy legend Catherine O'Hara, star of 'Schitt's Creek' and 'Home Alone,' quit 'Saturday Night Live' after just one week to return to her old job.

The American cockroach is actually from Africa, an apparent hitchhiker aboard ships carrying enslaved people, with evidence suggesting the bug may have arrived in the New World as early as the 1600s.

In 2009, the nation was gripped by the story of a missing young boy who was believed to be floating over Colorado in a homemade balloon, until it was revealed that he was at home the whole time.

Hear about the 250-year history of the United States Postal Service, complete with some of its strangest deliveries, important innovations, and the figures that made it an American institution.

An initial public offering or 'IPO' is the process of a private company becoming public by putting shares of the company on the stock market for purchase.

Search a massive database of over 4 decades of clues from the TV quiz show 'Jeopardy!'

Long before Major League Baseball began allowing instant replay for balls and strikes, an umpire reluctantly used the technology to determine whether a hit was a home run, a move that inadvertently ushered in a new era for the sport.