Historically High

To say Ernest Hemingway was a complex individual would be like proclaiming that water is wet, dogs are great, and going to concerts stoned is fantastic. It's a bit of an understatement. Hemingway's life was somehow more interesting than any of the fiction he wrote. And the guy won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction along with a Noble in Literature. He seemed to believe he was in a story in which he wa...

A conflict started out of compromise. Fueled by the ego of a World War 2 hero. Douglas MacArthur was made the Supreme Commander of the UN forces sent to help repel the North Korean push to take the entire peninsula. 5 years removed from a victory in Japan, MacArthur was able to push the North back above the 38th parallel. It was against the advice of President Truman to continue the fight up into...

Hey People its Professor CK, I'm not even gonna try and be clever or subtle here folks, this one is for me, I love this shit. It's Star Wars, it needs no explanation or introduction. But this isn't your mammy's Star Wars, we're going back to the beginning, back the birth of the galaxy far far away. Where did the force come from, how did the Jedi and Sith come to be, how did intergalactic trade and...

Bullfighting is, was, and always will be, a part of Spanish culture. Whether the practice continues or it is relegated to the history books, it's legacy will never be forgotten. Join us on our journey to understanding why Spain is so Bull crazy, and the history of an activity that can't really be put in a category. Is it sport? Is it art? Is it animal cruelty? Listen in as we get Historically High...

In the Shinto religion a battle between Deities for control of Japan was settled with a wrestling match. That wrestling match was the first mention of Sumo in Japanese culture. Sumo is the national sport of Japan, but it is so much more than that. It's a culture. It's a lifestyle. Listen in as we get Historically High on Sumo! Support the show Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adsw...

The Blueprint, The Godfather, The O.G. of Sports Stadiums, The Flavian Amphitheater or as its more widely known The Roman Colosseum was built as the pinnacle of Roman Entertainment and Engineering. It was also a complete and total Death Factory, I mean seriously, some of the ways they devised killing people in this place are Chris Nolan level writing.  It wasn't just Gladiator on Gladiator action...

It's time to board Historically High's Dank Dingy because we are going Pirate chasing! The Golden Age of Piracy only lasted about 70ish years. The imprint that time left on pop culture feels much bigger. Back before Johnny Depp was marauding in court, he was Jack Sparrow! Jack Sparrow was cool, but he wasn't Jack Rackham cool. The image we get now is so much different than what Pirates actually we...

Andre Rene Roussimoff was born in a small farming villiage in France. The first 18 years of his life were pretty normal for a farmer's son. The next 28 were spent traveling the world captivating every person who laid eyes on him. Give a listen to the life, loves, legacy, and legend as we get historically high on Andre The Giant Support the show Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.ads...

Probably a lesser known fact today than in the past but the United States did not start out stretching from sea to shining sea. In 1800 the U.S. only extended from the East Coast to the Mississippi River. That all changed with the Louisiana Purchase, when the barely legal U.S. bought a chunk of land from good ol Napoleon doubling the size of out country over night. Well here's the rub, we didn't r...

Some would consider Howard Hughes a Godfather of sorts for American aviation.  Howard was a complex human being to say the very least. The man was a Movie Producer/Director, an Aircraft Designer, Test Pilot, Airline Owner, Record Setting Pilot, The Wealthiest Man in the World, Casino Owner, Congressional Asskicker, and more. Plus he survived 4 airplane crashes. But those things may pale in compari...

"To err is human" That should have been President Reagan's opening line while addressing the country after Iran-Contra came to light. Instead it was a lot of half apologies and half truths.  After repeated congressional amendments to stop the White House from funding the rebel Contra group trying to take power in Nicaragua, and negotiating the release of U.S. prisoners with back alley arms deals,...

During World War One, a British soldier name Thomas Edward Lawrence or T.E. Lawrence found himself in his dream position, smack dab in the middle of Arabia helping to lead the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Turks. Lawrence of Arabia as he came to be known fought not only the Ottomans but also for the independence of the Arab people, even to the chagrin of his British superiors. He seemed at times...

This is it!!! You're here, it's the definitive podcast of Napoleon Bonaparte. We here at Historically High take a soup to nuts approach to our dictators. There is so much to Napoleon that isn't widely known. He didn't come from a royal family nor was he even technically born in France, but by the time he was 30 yrs old he was the de facto ruler of France. He envisioned himself the heir to Alexande...

On June 6th, 1944, all the planning of Operation Overlord would be put to the test when over 120,000+ Allied soldiers stormed the beaches of Normandy, France. Their goal was to establish a foothold in occupied France that would allow them to begin pushing the Nazi's back. Standing in their way was Hitler's Atlantic Wall. What took place that day can only be described as the most pivotal point in W...

In 1944 the Axis powers of WW2 occupied nearly all of mainland Europe. With no army to fight on the ground in Europe, the Allies need a plan to take the fight to the Nazis. An operation the scale of which had never been seen and has yet to be seen since. To invade Europe would take more than soldiers putting their boots on French soil, you need tanks, vehicles, ammunition, food, medical supplies,...

 "Who ever loved that loved not at first sight?"- Bill Shakespeare  AG doesn't remember a lot of his childhood (probably for the better), but he will never forget his first pair of Air Jordans. Jordan III black and cements size 5, which he still has in the Shoedio to this day. Join us as AG takes us through the evolution of Nike Inc. From Phil Knight and his old college track coach starting Blue R...

You know we love mysterious ancient civilizations and this one is no exception. The Nabateans started as nomads roaming the Arabian desert. One day they decided to put down some roots and built what would come to be known as "The Rose City". A hidden city built into the red sandstone of the landscape. Their advancement in water management and architecture alone is incredible enough. But what happe...

21,719. That's a big number. What if we told you that was how many days it has been since John F. Kennedy was assainated? It's been 21,411 days since we found out Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone actor in the assaination of JFK. Did the Warren commission get it right, or have the last 59 years been full of half truths and dead end investigations. Listen in to hear what they said and what we think ac...

There have been a few times in history when a person finds themselves in the exact position they need to be at exactly the right time to alter, or in this case stay the course of human history. That time was World War 2 and that person was Winston Churchill. Coming to the position of Prime Minister of Great Britain at a time when their island stood alone against the onslaught of the Nazi Third Rei...

Sasquatch, Yeti, Yowie, The Skunk Ape, Wild Man...it goes by many names. Today he's almost more well known for his luxury cooler company, premium jerky sponsorship, and tv and film career, than for the legend he is. Where do our stories of Bigfoot or Sasquatch come from? Are they rooted in ancient cultures? Is it even possible for a civilization to stay hidden in our day and age? I'm not gonna lie...

You know them, you love them, but what do you know about them? For a very special 4/20 episode we're taking a look into history's favorite dope duo. You won't find a better way to start your special day, so wake, bake and take a listen.  Support the show Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

And with that Ladies and Gentlemen we have reached 1 year of bringing you the finest in marijuana fueled historical conversations. Make no mistake we're not even close to done yet, but we decided to celebrate this accomplishment by paying homage to our first episode. We're talking the progression of Marijuana Culture in recent history. From early musicians being inspired by lady Mary Jane to 90's...

OO7, licensed to kill, with a thirst for shaken Martinis and an apparent allergy to condoms. Created by Sir Ian Fleming, International Super Spy James Bond originally existed only in print, until his big screen debut in 1962's Dr. No. Since that time its been a constant stream of beautiful woman, exotic locations, Megalomaniac Villains, Deadly Henchmen, crazy gadgets, and some of the coolest cars...

160 years...thats not a long time. That's still relatively recent history. A four year long Civil War fought in the United States when the county was still trying to find its footing. A war that could have very easily and very nearly ripped the county apart. We're covering it from soup to nuts, What caused the secession? Why did the Union struggle so early despite the industrial and numerical adva...

Hello Highstorians. This week we are traveling to the Imperial Valley in California. Where there used to be something called The Salton Sea, there is now something called the Salton Sea.  Once dubbed and developed as The California Riviera, a place with resorts and celebrities galore has now changed into an environmental disaster. Then we're taking you to China to explore the most deadly damn fail...