Jack Mingo (born 1952) is an American author, journalist and beekeeper. He has written ''Bees Make the Best Pets'', ''The Juicy Parts'', and ''The Couch Potato Handbook''. He and a small group of media hoaxers trademarked and popularized the term '' couch potato''. He has written for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'', and ''

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...

''. He and Erin Barrett were co-founders and co-writers of the

Ask Jeeves Ask.com (known originally as Ask Jeeves) is an answer engine, e-magazine, and former web search engine, operated by Ask Media Group. It was conceptualized and developed in 1996 by Garrett Gruener and David Warthen (based in Berkeley, Califo ...

series of trivia books, which published selected "questions as they flowed, unedited, into the well-known Web site".

Personal life

Mingo was born to Vera and Glen Mingo in

Wausau, Wisconsin Wausau ( ) is a city in Marathon County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is located along the Wisconsin River and had a population of 39,994 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the core city of the Wausau ...

. He lives in

Alameda, California Alameda ( ; ; Spanish for "Avenue (landscape), tree-lined path") is a city in Alameda County, California, United States, located in the East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), East Bay region of the Bay Area. The city is built on an informal archipe ...

. He has a daughter (Elana) from a former marriage and three grandsons, Acton, Oak, and Elm.

Works and publications

* ''Bees Make the Best Pets'' (2013) * ''Ben Franklin's Guide to Wealth'' (2004) * ''The Juicy Parts'' (1996) * ''How the Cadillac Got Its Fins'' (1995)

With Erin Barrett

* ''Cause of Death: A Perfect Little Guide to What Kills Us'' (2009) * ''Random Kinds Of Factness: 1001 (or So) Absolutely True Tidbits About (Mostly) Everything'' (2005) * ''Just Curious about Science, Jeeves'' (2003) * ''It Takes a Certain Type to be a Writer: Facts from the World of Writing and Publishing'' (2003) * ''Just Curious About History, Jeeves'' (2002) * ''Just Curious About Animals and Nature, Jeeves'' (2002) * ''Doctors Killed George Washington: Hundreds of Fascinating Facts from the World of Medicine'' (2002) * ''Not Another Apple for the Teacher: Hundreds of Fascinating Facts from the World of Education'' (2002) * ''Just Curious, Jeeves: What Are the 1001 Most Intriguing Questions Asked on the Internet?'' (2000)

With Warren Dotz

* ''Firecrackers!: An Eye-Popping Collection of Chinese Firework Art'' (2008) * ''Firecrackers: The Art and History'' (2000)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mingo, Jack 1953 births American male writers Living people People from Alameda, California