Why It’s Okay For Movies To Keep Ripping Off ‘Rear Window’

We sure like to watch other people watch people.

Authors: By JM McNab
Published: July 25, 2021
Comments: 1

Benjamin Franklin Tried To Simplify The English Alphabet ... And Failed

The samples of writing that use Franklin’s alphabet are nightmarish.

Authors: By Ethan Tyrrell
Published: July 25, 2021
Comments: 4

Johnny Cash Was Once The Face of Canadian ATMs?

Canucks used to make withdrawals from Johnny Cash Machines

Authors: By JM McNab
Published: July 25, 2021
Comments: 4

PICTOFACT

You’re Not the King of Dirk: 13 Massive Behind-the-Scenes Facts From Boogie Nights

Everyone has one special thing (but this list has 13 of them.)

Authors: By Matt Solomon
Published: July 25, 2021
Comments: 5

PICTOFACT

13 Cool Facts To Show Off In Front Of Your Friends

Turns out, Bill Murray was telling the truth about why he’s in Space Jam.

Authors: By Andrea Meno
Published: July 25, 2021
Comments: 1

If Harry Potter Was More Realistic: An Alternate Timeline

By:: Michael Swaim; Abe Epperson; Cracked Writers

May 04, 2014

What if an 11-year-old Harry Potter had told Hagrid and Dumbledore they could fuck right off with all that wizard bullshit? And what if he and his pal Ron Weasley hopped a flight to Los Angeles and devoted the next 20 years to selling drugs and having wacky misadventures?

If Harry Potter Was More Realistic: An Alternate Timeline

That is the question this series sets out to answer.

Call us crazy, but we've thought about this a lot, and we're convinced that our version is actually more plausible. The adults in the Harry Potter stories don't exactly give the kid much of a choice: He can either stay in a horribly abusive household or be "rescued" by wizards who immediately saddle him with the responsibility of saving a world he didn't even know existed. It's the equivalent of a fifth grader getting drafted by the Navy SEALs and told that only he can kill bin Laden, because only he has the super soldier genes to pull off the mission (holy shit, it just occurred to us that the Harry Potter franchise is just a magical version of Ender's Game).

So in this Cracked series, we catch up with a 30-something Potter living under an assumed name in LA, running small-time scams, and getting incredibly stoned with "Don" Weasley.

When a wizard refugee who turns out to be a grown-up Hermione Granger (under the assumed muggle name Stacy Keach) shows up at his door, Harry remembers just how much he hated this wizarding shit. In the first episode, he does all he can to make sure a magical hero journey doesn't ensue:

Think about it: How would you use low-level magical abilities in a world where you can't let anyone know you have them? You're not gonna go heal the sick and fight crime -- the best case scenario is you'd get worshiped as a god by zealots; the worst case is you'd get magicked to death by Voldemort's henchmen. No, we say Harry would do just enough magic to avoid having to ever get a day job.

This is the first of a three-episode series, and you can watch the rest here.

Watch Other New Series from Cracked Studios!

If you liked that, you're almost certain to enjoy Adventures in Jedi School, which is our irreverent attempt to get sued by George Lucas ...

... and Rom.com, an exploration of the living hell that is online dating:

These are all the product of the newly formed Cracked Studios, and we will continue making additional seasons of those shows as long as you watch and share them. So tell your friends!