The year in weird Philly with Stephanie Farr
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Why so serious? This is about as straight-faced as you'll find The Inquirer journalist. Photo: Courtesy of Farr
Stephanie Farr took one college journalism class and "absolutely hated it."
- The creative nonfiction major thought to herself, "Why would anyone who writes want to get into this profession? They just suck the creativity out of your soul."
Plot twist: Truth is stranger than fiction. Now the must-follow culture "jawnalist" for the Inquirer, Farr has morphed into the city's ombudswoman of oddities.
- She pens many of the paper's quirkiest stories, along with the "We The People" series about everyday Philadelphians.
The backstory: Farr's first job was with her hometown paper, the Williamsport Sun-Gazette. Three years later, she joined the Philadelphia Daily News.
- When it merged with the Inky in 2016, Farr wondered where she'd fit in, but soon found her niche.
The upshot: Her author archive is now the zeitgeist of the zany, full of stories for readers looking for a break from the seriousness of the world.
We asked for Farr's help curating some of the curiosities of 2022. Here goes:
- The most Philly story ever: Phillies super fan Sean Hagan was rescued by fire officials after scaling a light pole and shotgunning beers thrown to him by the crowd after the team's clinching win over the San Diego Padres in the NLCS. Farr's take: "It was one of those only in Philly moments."
- Politicians Pop Quiz: Inundated by political ads, Farr found inspiration from a Gus the Groundhog lotto commercial and turned it into an offbeat way to gauge candidates' "Pennsylvania-ness." Farr's take: "If you don't know who the second-most famous groundhog in PA is, you probably shouldn't be running for office here."
- Elon Musk as Robin Hood: The former college girlfriend of the former richest – and perhaps most hated – man in the world made serious coin by auctioning off mementos of their time together and even said nice things about him during an interview. Farr's take: "I'm pretty sure some of my ex-boyfriends are still doing keg stands in Pittsburgh."
Honorable mentions: WallyGator the emotional support animal, Chicken Man, Avocado mania.
Wanting to end on the weirdest note ever, we asked Farr:
- Weirdest question she ever asked during an interview: "Can I use your bathroom?"
- Weirdest thing about her: "I am obsessed with terrible Hallmark holiday movies."
- Why she loves the word "weird": "It starts with we, and we are all weird."