Naked Came the Stranger: The Fake Bestseller That Fooled the World | Mailbag 248

Welcome back to the This is True Really News Mailbag! In Episode 248, we dive into some of the most bizarre and questionable news headlines of the week, ranging from wild fast-food car hop encounters to incredibly blatant criminal usernames.We then step into the wayback machine to explore the hilarious 1966 literary hoax orchestrated by Newsday columnist Mike McGrady. Frustrated by the massive success of poorly written, sensationalist novels, McGrady and 24 fellow journalists set out to collaboratively write the worst, most gratuitous book imaginable—Naked Came the Stranger. The punchline? Their intentionally terrible novel, published under the fake persona of a demure housewife named Penelope Ashe, became a massive New York Times bestseller, ultimately proving his cynical point and making the authors a fortune.We also read your hilarious mailbag comments and share a quick story about the intense struggles of operating a modern stainless steel tea kettle.Chapter Breakdown0:00 – Intro & Casual Snooping1:16 – The Week's Weirdest & Most Bizarre Headlines6:10 – The Wayback Machine: 1960s Memories & Altar Boy Days10:15 – Mike McGrady's Cynical Literary Experiment11:56 – The Rise of Naked Came the Stranger & Penelope Ashe14:35 – Mailbag Comments: Mel Brooks, Cheese, & Voice-to-Text Fails17:34 – Defeated by a Smart Electronic KettleDon't forget to subscribe for more wild history, weird news, and weekly mailbag laughs. Drop a comment below if you remember Naked Came the Stranger or if you've ever been completely outsmarted by a kitchen appliance!