Believe It or Not (Second Series) #9: A weird little time capsule

Is it worth your time?

Honestly, only if you have a massive soft spot for early 20th-century curiosities. If you’re looking for a plot, you’re in the wrong place. If you like hearing someone talk really fast about people with two heads or strange local customs from 1930, you'll be fine.

I stumbled onto this one while falling down a rabbit hole of old, dusty reels. It’s not exactly The Phantom of the Opera, but it has this weird, frantic energy that I kinda dug. Ripley is barely in it, which is a choice.

Leo Donnelly takes the lead here, and man, he really wants you to believe him. He’s got that old-timey announcer voice that sounds like it’s being shouted through a megaphone at a state fair. It’s a bit grating after about three minutes, but it fits the vibe.

The "Facts"

They move so fast. You barely have time to process one weird story before they jump to the next one. It’s almost like they were trying to cram an entire encyclopedia into ten minutes of screen time. I caught myself rewinding just to make sure I heard the bit about the weird fish, but then I realized it didn't really matter.

There's a rhythm to it that feels like someone clicking through Wikipedia late at night. It’s imperfectly paced, for sure. Sometimes the jump between stories is so jarring it feels like a mistake in the editing bay. I think I liked that part the most.

• The lighting looks like it was done with a single, very angry lamp.
• Donnelly’s hand gestures are… aggressive.
• There’s a moment where he just stares into the camera for a second too long.

It reminded me a bit of the frantic storytelling style in Jungle Pals, just without the actual animals. It’s just a guy, a microphone, and a whole lot of weird sentences.

Is it educational? Maybe. Is it entertaining? If you’re bored enough. It’s just a strange little artifact that probably should have stayed in a box somewhere, but I’m glad I saw it. It’s a reminder that people have been obsessed with 'did you know' trivia way longer than the internet has existed. 📺