Did women’s rights protesters go so far as to burn their bras in public in the late 1960s and early 1970s, in the same way that anti-war protesters burned their draft cards? Well, no, Buzzkillers. They did throw them in “freedom trash cans,” along with girdles, high-heeled shoes, and cosmetics. Not as dramatic as burning them, but a whole more sensible, from a public safety point of view, wouldn’t you say?
Everyone loves the cowboy hat. Even if you don’t wear one, you want to see your cowboy movie heroes wearing one. Anything else would be un-American, right? Wrong. The classic, iconic cowboy hat design didn’t appear until 1865 and didn’t become popular until the end of the 19th century.
The U.S. Treasury has finally taken our advice, Buzzkillers! Harriet Tubman will be the new image on the $20 bill. It took a lot of work on our part to convince the old fuddy-duddies at Treasury to make the change, but it was worth it. You’re welcome, America. The Professor is now emboldened to make more quality suggestions for new portraits on the currency. As usual, he’s completely right, and it’s only a matter of time before the government submits to his superior thinking.
General George Patton was one of the most famous, colorful, and talked about US generals in World War II. He is also among the most misunderstood military men in history. Famously played by George C. Scott in a 1970 movie, Patton’s image is one of the most enduring in 20th century American history. He is frequently referred to as one of America’s great generals, and just as frequently referred to as one of the most arrogant, out-of-control, and over-rated.
It’s an American election year, Buzzkillers, and we can absolutely count on misquotes and other abuses of history. Join us on this Pre-Dawn Raid as we expose Sarah Palin’s mis-use of General George Patton during this year’s election. It’s a doozy!
Prof. Phil Nash joins us once again to bust US history myths. This time it’s about President Woodrow Wilson. How much of a progressive was he? What were his real attitudes towards race? How much idealism did he pump into his policies on foreign affairs? How effective was he in ending World War I and negotiating things at Versailles? And, finally, did his wife really take over after his stroke in late 1919.
Gregor Rasputin (1869-1916) is one of the most fascinating people in modern history. Who was he? Religious visionary? Mystic healer? Charlatan? Spiritual con man? Political snake? All of the above? The story that it took being drugged, poisoned, shot, beaten, and drowned for him to die is a myth, Buzzkillers. But the broader story is fascinating. Listen and learn.
Is the “west” locked in “conflicts unending” with Islam? Is it a “clash of civilizations”? Professor Karl Barbir from Siena College in New York shows us the problems with this overly general thinking. Things were much more subtle and complex in the long history of international relations between European cultures and Middle Eastern cultures.
Captain’s Quint’s story about the USS Indianapolis in the movie Jaws is only the beginning of an gut-wrenching piece of history, Buzzkillers. There’s a lot more to the Indianapolis sinking than most people know. Join me for a special episode prompted by the popularity of Episode 44 on the Atomic Bomb.
The painting Washington Crossing the Delaware by Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze is one of most iconic images in the American cultural consciousness. But how accurate a depiction is it? By standing up in the boat, did George risk tipping over and falling into the icy river? Would his soldiers have laughed or panicked? Find out, Buzzkillers!
Was there an actual decision whether or not to use atomic bombs in World War II? If not, what were the questions and issues about using the bomb? Why did the US choose Hiroshima and Nagasaki as targets? Did Truman do it to scare the Soviets? Did dropping the bomb actually save lives compared with how many would have died during an invasion of Japan? Professor Philip Nash enlightens us.
We call them “Levis,” no matter what brand they are. But maybe we should call them “Jacobs.” Blue jeans weren’t invented by Levi Strauss, but by Jacob Davis, a fellow European immigrant and tailor. Was it a story of expropriation and exploitation? Thankfully, no, Buzzkillers. Both men worked together to bring “Jacobs” to the world, and we are all grateful.
This episode looks at the dramatic combination of advancing industrialization, and the dirty business of coal mining both from the miners’ side and from the operators’ side. Specifically we’re going to talk about what happened when poor industrial relations, bigoted immigrant relations, and distrust between workers and bosses ignited violence, murder, undercover police work, and crime and punishment in the late 19th century coal fields of industrial America. In short, the Molly Maguires!
How did New Year’s Day end up in the middle of winter in the northern hemisphere (and the middle of summer in the southern hemisphere)? Wouldn’t a day in spring be more fitting? Find out how people celebrated New Years in past centuries and why things turned out the way they did.
Who was Santa Claus, Buzzkillers? The jolly old man from Miracle on 34th Street? The round-bellied man wearing a red costume, driving a sleigh pulled by 8 tiny reindeer? Was there a Rudolph involved?
The rule of thumb about history myths is that they’re persistent. Ever hear the one about an ancient law that allowed a man to beat his wife with a stick as long as it was not thicker than his thumb? Well, it’s a myth, Buzzkillers. But how it became a myth is fascinating!
Walt Disney is one of the most famous names in entertainment. But have you ever heard of Ub Iwerks? Good old Ub was the real artistic genius behind many of Disney’s most beloved characters, including Mickey Mouse. Yet there is no IwerksWorld, no Iwerks animation empire. Tune in to find out why, Buzzkillers!
How do you solve a problem like Sound of Music myths? When did The Captain and Maria get married? How anti-Nazi was he? How many dozens of kids did they have? How did the von Trapps escape the Nazis? Movie myths are always fund, Buzzkillers!
Everyone was killed at the Alamo. Right, Buzzkillers? That’s why “Remember the Alamo” is such a famous rallying cry in American history. But was everyone killed inside the Alamo? Civilians? Women and children? Was Santa Anna essentially a murderer? Find out, Buzzkillers, by listening to our latest MiniMyth!
Remember, remember, the Fifth of November,
The Gunpowder treason and plot….
Children’s rhymes make poor history. So do modern day movies, like V for Vendetta. Guy Fawkes and his co-conspirators weren’t radicals fighting for the working people. So why do we all wear that mask?
It’s time to go over the top, Buzzkillers! We interview Professor Richard Grayson about the wildly popular BBC television series, BlackAdder, and how close it was to historical reality. There are probably more myths about war than any other part of history, and BlackAdder addressed many of them. Let’s “go forth!” and see if they got their history right.
Halloween is a demonic holiday chock full of sin and endangered by razor blades in trick or treat candy, right? Wrong. Nothing about the origins of Halloween can be called demonic, satanic, or anti-Christian. And the adulterated candy thing is an urban legend. Get the full story from the Buzzkill Institute.
“Give me liberty or give me death,” Virginia patriot Patrick Henry was supposed to have said in a stirring speech before the American Revolution. We Buzzkill this quote and show that, like most “quotes,” it was written decades after the event. Download Professor Buzzkill and download death to history myths!
The Cold War was about more than nuclear missles and bomb shelters, Buzzkillers. Literature and art were weapons in the Cultural Cold War, according to Professor Greg Barnhisel. He overturns decades-old myths about Cold War era writers and artists who were sponsored by the US government. Duck and cover, Buzzkillers, it's quite a bombardment!
Burn the witch! Burn the witch! It makes for a dramatic story, with about as final an ending as you can imagine. Suspected witches were nabbed, put on trial, convicted, and burned at the stake in the 1690s in Massachusetts. But it’s just not true. The convicted witches faced a far more mundane fate. Listen and find out!