An Old Timey Podcast

Walter Jackson Freeman wanted to do something *big.* As a neurologist for the nation’s largest psychiatric hospital, he saw patients who desperately needed help. But, absent any major medical breakthroughs, Walter was powerless to do much of anything. So he spent years searching for *the thing* that separated people with mental illnesses from the normies. He studied brains. He measured them. He co...

America’s first Olympic games were bad. But just how bad were they??? The 1904 St. Louis Olympics were part of a World’s Fair that featured human zoos, a display of premature babies, a racist athletic event called “Anthropology Days,” and more! The actual Olympic competitions were disorganized and featured mostly American athletes. And for the turd on this poo sundae - a marathon event that almost...

Frenchman Pierre de Coubertin was embarrassed. He had just revived the Ancient Olympic Games on a global scale. But the 1900 Games in his hometown of Paris, France were a disaster. They were a sideshow at the World’s Fair! Many competitors weren’t even aware they were participating in the Olympics! Next time around, Coubertin vowed to find a host nation that would appreciate the Olympics. And that...

Wolfgang von Kempelen was unimpressed. Empress Maria Theresa had invited him to attend a magic show, hoping he’d tell her how the tricks worked. Instead, he told her – and everyone else in her court – that the tricks just plain sucked. He claimed he could do better. Stunned, Maria gave him six months off work to create something that would dazzle her court. So, six months later, Wolfgang von Kempe...

Picture it! 1932. Western Australia. Emus were taking over. They were gobbling up and trampling farmers’ wheat, and in turn, destroying their livelihoods. Something had to be done. So, the Australian government came up with a *novel* solution. They’d arm three members of the Royal Australian Artillery with machine guns. They figured those tall, flightless birds would be easy prey. They were wrong....

Lonnie Johnson was a smart guy — a very smart guy. As a NASA engineer, he spent his days coming up with solutions to complex problems. But when he went home, Lonnie’s brain kept whirring. So, he invented. He tinkered. He imagined. The vast majority of his creations had scientific, practical purposes. But his idea for a pressurized water gun? Well, that was just pure fun. Remember, kids, history ho...

In the finale of our Mount Rushmore series, Mount Rushmore National Memorial gets finished. But the final product isn’t quite what Gutzon Borglum envisioned. The presidents aren’t sculpted down to their waists. There is no entablature. There is no true hall of records. There isn’t a message, written in three languages, in the hope that it’ll one day become Rosetta Stone 2: Electric Boogaloo. And y...

There are so many reasons why Mount Rushmore National Monument *shouldn’t* exist. Right from the start, there was opposition. Environmentalists called the proposed monument a desecration. Native Americans rightly asserted that the Black Hills — and specifically the Six Grandfathers Mountain (aka Mount Rushmore) — was their property. But that didn’t stop Gutzon Borglum, or his circle of high-powere...

Before he set his sights on Mount Rushmore, sculptor Gutzon Borglum had a vision for a massive monument to the Confederacy. He figured that Stone Mountain, located just outside of Atlanta, would be the perfect spot for his magnum opus. The United Daughters of the Confederacy agreed. So did their BFFs, the KKK. For years, the project seemed to be going well. It ended in disaster. Remember, kids, hi...

In this series, we’re talking about something… pretty weird! It’s the fact that, roughly 100 years ago, a handful of people thought it’d be a really good idea to carve four gigantic faces into the side of a mountain. But why did they do it? Whose idea was it?? And finally, they were so busy asking if they could… DID THEY EVEN THINK TO ASK IF THEY SHOULD??? In this episode, we take a look at the ma...

In the History Channel’s “Hunting Hitler,” a group of experts embark on a disingenuous investigation into what became of Adolf Hitler. They consult unreliable witnesses. They make something out of nothing. They cherry pick evidence, and occasionally, they outright lie. Throughout the show, they ignore the forensic evidence, eyewitness accounts, and thorough investigations that showed what we alrea...

Put on your tin foil hats, kids! It’s time for “Hunting Hitler.” In previous episodes of this series, Norm covered Hitler’s final days, his suicide, and the subsequent investigations into his death. But the fine folks from the History Channel’s “Hunting Hitler” program want you to believe that Adolf Hitler truly might have escaped the bunker, unscathed. In this episode, we don our finest tin foil...

Reports of Adolf Hitler’s death filled newspapers around the globe, but was he *really* dead? Like, for real?? Misinformation from the Soviet Union left people all over the world fearing that Hitler might have escaped the bunker. Soon, British and American intelligence stepped in to conduct their own investigations. Over time, the truth emerged. (But Hitler didn’t, because he was super dead.) Reme...

In his final days, Adolf Hitler wallowed in self pity, sent children into war, and held tea parties into the wee hours of the morning. He also threw himself a birthday party. The guest list was a real who’s who of Most Evil Humans! Ultimately, Hitler decided to take his ball and go home. (And by that, we of course mean that he shot himself and went to hell.) Remember, kids, history hoes always cit...

The History Channel’s “Hunting Hitler” poses really stupid, already answered questions about the death of Adolf Hitler. Normie C is having none of it! In this series, Norm will cover Adolf Hitler’s final days, his suicide, and finally, Norm will address the conspiracy theories that Hitler made it out of that bunker alive. In this episode, we learn about Hitler’s smorgasbord of medications, his leg...

As Lucille Ball grew older, she struggled to keep her career going. She got back into movies. She started another sitcom. But critics were cruel. In addition to critiquing her work, they critiqued her – for looking her age. By the mid-80s, she found herself on the receiving end of countless accolades and lifetime achievement awards. But Lucy wasn’t ready to throw in the towel just yet. Remember, k...

After nearly 20 years of marriage, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz called it quits. Their divorce was quick, but it wasn’t simple. They’d grown Desilu into a major Hollywood studio, on par with MGM, Warner Brothers and Twentieth Century Fox. In order to keep the business going, they had to work together. And when that didn’t work out, Lucy had to figure out how to be the boss. Remember, kids, history...

Lucille Ball had everything she’d ever wanted. She had the #1 show on television. She had a family. She had money. But Lucy was waiting for the other shoe to drop. And in the spring of 1952, it did. FBI agents showed up at her door, wanting to know about her relationship to the communist party. Remember, kids, history hoes always cite their sources! For this episode, Kristin pulled from: “Love, Lu...

Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz had a goal – to star in a TV show as husband and wife. But there were about a million obstacles in their way. For one thing, CBS didn’t want to buy a TV show that featured an interracial couple. Major companies didn’t want to sponsor the show for that same reason. There was even a battle over where to film the show. In these negotiations, Desi proved himself to be a sav...

Lucille Ball wanted it all. She wanted to become an A-list actress. She wanted to have children. She wanted a happy marriage. But if the 1940s taught her anything, it was that she wasn’t in control. Her husband, Desi Arnaz, cheated on her constantly. They wanted children together, but suffered several miscarriages. By the end of the decade, Lucy’s only unequivocal professional success was a comedy...

Lucille Ball arrived in Hollywood ready to work. She honed her craft. She made powerful friends. She got bigger and bigger roles.  Soon, she became known as the queen of the b’s. As in, queen of b-movies. Critics spotted her talent, but noted that poorly written scripts and low budget films were holding her back. Nevertheless, Lucy persisted. And then, one day on set, Lucy met a handsome young mus...

Lucille Ball was a legendary comedian. She was a studio executive. Together with her real-life husband, Lucy created the modern sitcom. …but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. In this episode, we’ll focus on Lucy’s tumultuous childhood and the years she spent struggling to get into showbusiness. Remember, kids, history hoes always cite their sources! For this episode, Kristin pulled from: The book,...

He led a massacre. He led a raid. And now, in the final episode of this series, anti-slavery crusader John Brown goes on trial. His trial had everything – peanut shells, a cozy cot, and not a speck of justice in sight. In John Brown’s final act, he became a martyr.  Remember, kids, history hoes always cite their sources! For this episode, Norm pulled from: “Midnight Rising: John Brown and the Raid...

In part three of Norm’s coverage of John Brown, shit *officially* hits the fan. After years of planning, John Brown leads his men in a raid on the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. Things quickly go awry. They shoot an innocent man. They get outnumbered. But John Brown refuses to back down. Remember, kids, history hoes always cite their sources! For this episode, Norm pulled from: “Midnig...

Welcome back to part two of Norm’s coverage of famed anti-slavery crusader, John Brown. In this episode, John and his squad prepare for their infamous raid on Harpers Ferry. In the leadup to the attack, John dodges saboteurs, refuses to compromise, and bores the ever-loving shit out of Frederick Douglass. Plus, he comes up with a cool new invention - a knife on a stick! Remember, kids, history hoe...