The Dread Pirate Fireball Roberts! (And Housekeeping)

2008-05-30 · announcement · John · 3:57 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Nerdfighteria (also: Projects, Books & writing) · mode: Announcements · tags: community lore, self promotion, punishment or challenge, civic or action cta

John's twelve-part housekeeping video alternates news with puppy Willy: Paper Towns advance-copy winners, the Blurbing Book Club's return, a November Tour de Nerdfighting, a T-shirt contest, a call for a Nerdfighter wiki, and a new challenge: pass Oprah in subscribers.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — How to make housekeeping funny (the puff, Willy); part 1: Paper Towns advance-copy winners

• ★★ John announces the five winners of Paper Towns advance copies from his punishment week, from the Ning and YouTube, and asks them to email their addresses. — 00:00:00 · Paper Towns, Nerdfighter Ning, YouTube, Punishment

00:00:48 — Willy sits; Blurbing Book Club to return; Willy and shoes; the 2008 Tour de Nerdfighting in November; librarians wanted

• ★ Willy has learned a new trick: sitting on command. — 00:00:48 · Willy
• ★★ John says the Nerdfighter Blurbing Book Club will return in the near future. — 00:00:48
• ★★ John asks viewers to say in the comments which book the Blurbing Book Club should pick next. — 00:00:48
• ★★★ John announces the 2008 Tour de Nerdfighting across America and hopefully a few places in Canada, telling Nerdfighters to mark their calendars for November. (hedged) — 00:00:48 · Tour de Nerdfighting, Hank Green, Katherine Green, Sarah Urist Green, United States, Canada
• ★★ John says they believe what happened in Grand Rapids can happen everywhere, and that they will hopefully go everywhere. (hedged) — 00:01:20
• ★★ John asks librarians interested in hosting or sponsoring a public event with the brothers to email him. — 00:01:20

00:01:49 — Willy's new cast with a heart; T-shirt design contest; Omnictionary and a wanted Nerdfighter encyclopedia

• ★★ Willy needed a new cast after eating the old one; the new one has a heart on it, which John finds unfit for a dread pirate, hoping for a skull and crossbones next. (playful) — 00:01:49 · Willy
• ★★ Because of the tour, the brothers are holding a T-shirt design contest; designs go to John's email and winners get prizes, though delivery will be slow. — 00:01:49
• ★★ John says Nerdfighters on Omnictionary are writing a novel wiki-style; the wished-for Nerdfighter encyclopedia is a good idea, but not for Omnictionary. (hedged) — 00:02:19
• ★★ John recalls an earlier encyclopedia-like site credited to Stuart Kitto and asks anyone who can make and host a wiki to email him. — 00:02:47

00:02:47 — Willy the 'little wolf'; the standing Helen Hunt challenge and a new one: pwn Oprah in subscribers

• ★★ John restates the standing challenge: proof that Helen Hunt has seen or heard Hank's Helen Hunt song lets Nerdfighters challenge the brothers, subject to their wives' veto. — 00:02:47
• ★★ John says Nerdfighters value quality over quantity in recruiting, so as not to dilute the awesome. (playful) — 00:02:47 · Nerdfighteria
• ★★★ John announces a second celebrity challenge: if and when the brothers pass Oprah on YouTube's most-subscribed list, Nerdfighters may challenge them any way they see fit. — 00:03:23 · YouTube, pwned, Nerdfighteria
• ★★ John says the brothers are 6,000 subscribers short of passing Oprah on the most-subscribed list. — 00:03:23 · YouTube

00:03:47 — Part 12: Willy's 'best wishes' and the joke he doesn't get

Humor (significant)

• John worries his housekeeping video won't be funny and considers his puff despite a recent haircut. — 00:00:00

  “People have seen the puff. They know the puff. They're tired of the puff.”

• Willy doesn't just enjoy chewing shoes. — 00:00:48

  “He wants his self to be annihilated into the bright, shining light of shooness.”

• The vet puts a heart on Willy's new cast. — 00:01:49

  “You can't be the Dread Pirate Fireball Wilson Roberts with a heart on your cast!”

• John admits the brothers are slow to deliver contest prizes. — 00:02:19

  “We're like the opposite of Ed McMahon.”

Threads in this video

• callback · John's 'the puff' stress habit (2007) — John says he has a lot of puff for someone with a haircut ten days ago, but the puff alone isn't funny enough any more. (00:00:00)
• milestone · Paper Towns advance-copy giveaways to Nerdfighters (2008) — John names the five winners of the Paper Towns advance copies given away during his punishment week and asks them to email their addresses. (00:00:00)
• proposed · Nerdfighter Blurbing Book Club (2008) — John says the Nerdfighter Blurbing Book Club will return in the near future. (00:00:48)
• asked · John asks viewers to suggest the next Blurbing Book Club book (2008) — John asks viewers to suggest in the comments the next Blurbing Book Club book. (00:00:48)
• announced · Tour de Nerdfighting 2008 edition — John announces the 2008 Hank and John Green Great American Tour de Nerdfighting for November, in America and hopefully some of Canada. (00:00:48)
• callback · John's wife Sarah as 'the Yeti' (2007) — John says the tour will occasionally feature the Yeti. (00:00:48)
• asked · John asks librarians to host or sponsor Tour de Nerdfighting events (2008) — John asks librarians who would host or sponsor a public event with the brothers to email him. (00:01:20)
• looked back · John, Hank and Maureen Johnson speak at a Grand Rapids library (2008) — John says they believe what happened at Grand Rapids can happen everywhere, the reason for the tour. (00:01:20)
• update · Willy's cast (2008) — Willy got a new cast after eating the last one; the new cast has a heart on it. (00:01:49)
• callback · Willy as the Dread Pirate Fireball Wilson Roberts (2008) — John objects that the Dread Pirate Fireball Wilson Roberts can't have a heart on his cast and hopes for a skull and crossbones next time. (00:01:49)
• launched · T-shirt design contest for the 2008 Tour de Nerdfighting (2008) — John announces a T-shirt design contest, held because of the tour; winners get prizes. (00:01:49)
• asked · John asks viewers to email T-shirt designs for the tour contest (2008) — John asks viewers to email their T-shirt designs. (00:01:49)
• result reported · John invites Nerdfighters to write and rewrite Omnictionary (2008) — John reports a lot of interesting activity on Omnictionary, where Nerdfighters are writing a novel in wiki form. (00:02:19)
• asked · John asks for someone to make and host a Nerdfighter encyclopedia wiki (2008) — John asks anyone who can make and host a wiki for a Nerdfighter encyclopedia to email him. (00:02:47)
• reminder · John asks Nerdfighters to prove Helen Hunt has seen Hank's song about her (2008) — John restates the standing challenge to prove Helen Hunt has seen or heard the Helen Hunt song; so far she has proved elusive. (00:02:47)
• rule change · Nerdfighter projects: complete a project to earn the right to punish the brothers (2008) — John adds a second celebrity challenge: if and when the brothers pass Oprah in YouTube subscribers, Nerdfighters may challenge them. (00:02:47)
• callback · John's 'Best wishes!' phone-call sign-off (2008) — John has Willy say 'best wishes' and says the puppy doesn't get the best wishes joke because he hasn't seen all the videos yet. (00:03:47)
• callback · Hank's crush on Helen Hunt (2007) — John restates the standing challenge: proof that Helen Hunt has seen or heard Hank's Helen Hunt song lets Nerdfighters challenge the brothers, subject to their wives' veto. (00:02:47)
• result reported · Hank asks John to put an eyepatch on Willy for tomorrow's video (2008) — Willy needed a new cast after eating the old one; the new one has a heart on it, which John finds unfit for a dread pirate, hoping for a skull and crossbones next. (00:01:49)

Where the stories that moved here went next

• John invites Nerdfighters to write and rewrite Omnictionary (2008) — reported back; last: reminder, 2008-06-19
• John asks viewers to suggest the next Blurbing Book Club book (2008) — reported back; last: result reported, 2008-06-26
• John asks viewers to email T-shirt designs for the tour contest (2008) — reported back; last: closed, 2008-08-18
• Hank asks John to put an eyepatch on Willy for tomorrow's video (2008) — reported back; last: result reported, 2008-05-30
• T-shirt design contest for the 2008 Tour de Nerdfighting (2008) — past edition (2008); last: milestone, 2008-08-18
• Nerdfighter Blurbing Book Club (2008) — last documented in 2011; last: milestone, 2008-10-28 (said on 2008-10-27, implied)
• Nerdfighter projects: complete a project to earn the right to punish the brothers (2008) — completed; last: looked back, 2008-10-08 (said on 2008-10-07, implied)
• Tour de Nerdfighting 2008 edition — completed; last: looked back, 2026-07-14

Mentioned

Central: Oprah Winfrey · Tour de Nerdfighting · Willy

Also: People: Ed McMahon · Helen Hunt (actor) · Katherine Green · Sarah Urist Green

Projects: Blurbing Book Club · Nerdfighter Ning · Omnictionary (website)

Works: Helen Hunt (song) · Paper Towns

Organizations: YouTube

Rituals: Punishment

Terms: best wishes · the Puff

Places: Canada · Grand Rapids, Michigan · United States

Memes: pwned

Only in the description or credits: Stuart Kitto

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