
The Weirdest Thing About Transformers: The Movie Was Its Soundtrack
Why was The Transformers: The Movie soundtrack so unusual? From Stan Bush and Weird Al to Orson Welles, its strange mix still works 40 years later.

Why was The Transformers: The Movie soundtrack so unusual? From Stan Bush and Weird Al to Orson Welles, its strange mix still works 40 years later.

Howie Noel, Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, Dick Tracy and Charles Schulz reveal how legendary comic strips keep going after their original creators are gone.

You know Nancy. You might know Sluggo. But do you know Ernie Bushmiller, the cartoonist whose deceptively simple creation became bigger than its creator?

The 8-track tape ruled car stereos before cassettes killed it, but its strange legacy lives on in mixtapes, video-game cartridges and collectors.

David Byrne’s Sleeping Beauties explores forgotten ideas, overlooked inventions and artists who waited decades or centuries to be rediscovered.

Martin Mull was more than a television actor. From comedy and music to painting, his unusual career made him impossible to put in one box.

Harvey Ball created the iconic smiley face in 10 minutes for $45. Here is how a simple insurance-company design became a global symbol and an Acid House icon.

What if evil isn’t a thing at all, but the word we invented for what happens when one person meets their own needs by dominating another person’s life?

Old cookbooks weren’t always harmless. Some mixed food, medicine and household chemistry in ways that can make Grandma’s apple pie look downright safe.

During the Siege of Paris, starving Parisians ate zoo animals. Here’s the bizarre story behind elephant, camel and kangaroo appearing on a Paris menu.

That stupid little pocket in your jeans has a long history, from pocket watches and the real 5th pocket to its cheeky modern reputation as the condom pocket.

Why did missing children’s faces appear on milk cartons? We look at the strange history behind the campaign, the kids who recognized themselves, Milk Carton 2.0 and Canada’s famous milk bags.

Harry Houdini died on Halloween in 1926, but he wasn’t alone. Explore the famous figures who died on October 31 and Houdini’s final escape pact.

When did 81 become young? A funny look at aging, retirement, baby boomers and how our idea of old age keeps changing.

Scratch-and-sniff was once everywhere, from Raspberries albums and MAD Magazine to John Waters’ Odorama. Now the strange little fad is making a comeback.

Matt Kirkland has a strange solution for giant books: chop them into smaller, manageable volumes. Chop the biggest books and why it might make sense.

A series of Gary Larsen’s “Far Side” gags are turned into short animated gags, such as a Frankenstein cow; an insect airline’s in-flight movie; deer, hunters, and UFOs; wolf home movies, and more.

Beloved Saturday Night Live alum Kevin Nealon shares original full-color caricatures and insightful personal essays about his famous friends.

Violent Night, featuring an ass-kicking Santa Claus, played here by David Harbour, from Stranger Things and “Black Widow.

Bono will embark on a fall book tour supporting his upcoming autobiography, Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story. The book will be released on November 1.

I Married a Witch is a bewitching movie just right for Halloween. No need for blood and gore! No man can resist Veronica Lake in this enchanted romantic movie.

They say you can’t control evil, but now you can grow evil with the Michael Myers Chia Pet! The stalking slasher is back, instead of stabbing, he is sprouting.

Paul Newman’s closing argument in the Verdict still rings true today. I cheered at the end! Paul Newman still had gas in the tank in his twilight years.

Sam Cox has balls! Also known as Mr. Doodles covered every square inch of his U.K. 12-room Kent $1.54 million mansion with doodles.

Instead of scaring the trashman this year, give him less trash as a treat. Be a bit more creative with your costumes. Go green for Halloween.

Night of the Living Dead, directed by horror master George A. Romero, is a great story of independent cinema: a midnight hit turned box-office smash.

Knowledge is power! Scale new heights with NYPL’s special, limited-edition Spider-Man library card, available in branches starting October 11.

The bio-doc Stephen King: A Necessary Evil debuts Thursday, October 6 on MagellanTV, and is also making the film available to Non-Subscribers through Halloween.