The Missing Chapter Podcast

Happy April Fool's Day, everyone!  Some of us are doing what most people do on April 1st...nothing really out of the ordinary - while others, however, are using today’s date and continued tradition as an excuse to pull some of the most ridiculous, albeit clever pranks on everyone from family, friends, grandparents, teachers, classmates…no one is off limits on April 1st because hey, that’s wha...

Sung an estimated 10 million times each year, and recorded an estimated 7,000 times by various artists and churches, Amazing Grace is one of the most popular songs in history.  It has brought people to tears, myself included, it has inspired thousands to overcome adversity, it has motivated civil rights activists and encouraged those suffering from injustice and hatred, and has become a rally...

The year is 1947, Jackie Gleason is seated at a bar having a drink. Next to him, his good friend and fellow entertainment icon… Frank Sinatra. Gleason motions to the bartender. “Have you tried Jack Daniel’s?” he asks his rat pack associate. Sinatra shakes his head no and tries it that night, for the very first time. His introduction to the Tennessee distilled whiskey, in many ways, will be the cou...

The Bank of England is one of the oldest financial institutions in the world, tasked with maintaining monetary stability in the United Kingdom. Since 1734 it has occupied a 3.4-acre site in London’s Threadneedle Street, where the iconic building conceals eight subterranean vaults filled with precious gold. The bank prides itself on having never been robbed at any point in its 329-year history. How...

From the time I picked up my first basketball to the time I took off my uniform and sneakers for the last time, I dreamt of one thing - cutting down the nets.  The symbolism and emotion involved in that moment is just as the title suggests - it’s the dream!  Any basketball player knows what I’m talking about.  As my dad has always said, there’s only one team that ends their season w...

Welcome to today’s episode of the Missing Chapter.  Today we take a look at the life of a true pioneer.  But rather than carving new paths on the ground, this person carved the skies.  She overcame obstacles like discrimination against her African American background, the fact that she was a woman, and surviving an aviation accident.  She was incredibly talented in her field -...

Hey Missing Chapter fans, the Phils are back with another listener-favorite, the Top 5. It’s one of our favorite kinds of episodes, too, and today we got a great one!  Top 5 Historical Coincidences - the times in history that baffle the mind, the stories that make you say, “no way, how is that possible?” So hopefully you have your favorite coffee brewed and your volume turned up because it’s...

It was a dark night, October 10th, 1809, when an unassuming man stopped at a small, modest log cabin lodging house known as Grinder’s Stand. Differing versions of that night have this particular man arriving with several other associates – others, alone. Traveling to Washington, D.C., this mysterious individual had financial matters to settle and, by many accounts, reasons to be guarded and cautio...

The U.S. Civil War is one of the most intriguing, impactful events in not only our nation’s history, but consequently world history. Within these 4 years, one single occurrence could have altered the outcome of the struggle and ultimately the fate of the Union. In September of 1862, the war was still young and both sides were experiencing moral-lifting victories and crushing defeats. Confederate g...

I think it’s safe to assume that all of our listeners at some point have experienced the social contagion that is so memorable, you may even get a physical reaction to the thought of it - the cringy awkwardness of one of the facets of the early pre-teen and teenage years - the middle school dance.  The music is blasting, the lights are flashing, to a completely void, lonely, and awkward dance...

It's the moment we have been previewing and plugging for quite some time now - it's the Hometown History Episode - and we are proud to announce that today we have special guest and guests Dawn McKinney and her "fun 5th Period Class" from Lincoln, California!  We have some eager students ready to share their story and we are honored to have such a passionate educator with us today to share wha...

The history of the U.S. space program is the story of American pioneers; brave men and women who boldly went where no one before them had gone. Their names have become synonymous with bravery and courage – Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Jim Lovell.  We shared in their accomplishments – Apollo 11 - held our breath in their struggles – Apollo 13 – and wept in their disasters – Challenger. But som...

Have you ever truly paid attention to what is in the food that you eat? This isn’t just a case of counting calories, or watching your salt and sugar intake. Dating as far back as biblical times, people were unknowingly being poisoned just by doing something that was a necessity……eating. Today we welcome a colleague and friend of ours, Science teacher Melissa Fisher, as she shares a story, based in...

A great journalist is someone who can objectively bring a news story that not only catches the attention of the reader, but many times exposes some unknown truths that the masses don’t know.  This kind of journalism not only creates great talking points, but can sometimes be the best way to learn as lots of these stories spread like wildfire.  I immediately think of the works of Tom Brok...

Has anyone ever seen the Christmas classic, The Santa Clause?  It’s one of our family’s favorite go-to movies during the Christmas season and one of the parts of the movie that gets my kids to giggle every time is the part where Tim Allen is interrogated and asked, very firmly I might add, what his name is.  The interrogator is looking for him to say Scot Calvin, but his response instead...

Missing Chapter fans, we know you love history, and many times throughout our studies of the past, we recognize similarities between the past and present.  We’ve heard from presidents, generals, and historians about how often we need to look at history to repeat favorable actions as well as correct our former mistakes.  But how often do we notice history repeating itself while it’s happe...

I’m sure you’ve seen the movies, whether sci-fi or action, that encompass the power of nature.  Immediately, I think of the hit movie Twister and its scary depiction of how powerful tornadoes can be, or some other cinematic examples like the movie Armageddon, 2012, Dante’s Peak.  All extreme examples of natural disasters, but nonetheless terrifying.  And because of my affinity for t...

As a parent, a trip to the beach on a hot, summer day can be exactly what the family needs to complete the perfect vacation. However, as a diligent father, you always have to be aware of possible dangers – even on a remote, sandy beach reminiscent of a pristine paradise getaway. Crashing waves, strong undertows; did we apply enough sunscreen? Why is that one scene from ‘Jaws’ continually running t...

America’s pastime - I can vividly remember my first time ever going to a big league baseball game - my family drove through the insanity also known as Bronx traffic and made our way to a random parking garage.  As we paced our way through the enormous line, we start to approach this enormous stadium that looked more like a castle to my young self than a baseball arena.  The words Yankee...

I ask myself the same question every morning when I wake up and every afternoon I drive home. Our sons inquire about it when I pull in the drive way and my wife requests an answer when I walk in the house. “What’s for dinner?” The answer to this question can be an easy one or one that causes me to wrack my brain. It all depends on whether or not one of us has gone grocery shopping. Ahh! The magica...

Welcome to an impromptu episode of the Missing Chapter!  We've had multiple conversations, numerous questions, and many complaints about something we have questioned for many years - why in the world are we still participating in Daylight Saving Time?  Who was the crazy person who conjured up such an idea?  Didn't Ben Franklin realize we like our sleep?  Was it even Ben Frankli...

We ask a lot of questions on this podcast.  Where this originated, who did that, how did this invention take shape…this type of curiosity is what leads us to this episode.  Today on this episode of the Missing Chapter, we welcome author Chris Barton.  Author of more than 20 published books, including the focus of this episode, his book called Dazzle Ships.  These ships weren’t...

Hello Missing Chapter fans, welcome, and happy Halloween!  For today's episode we’re headed down the haunted rabbit hole of everything haunted and historic about some of our traditions and customs surrounding this national holiday.  Why not gather some great talking points about the history of this crazy holiday before you gather the kids to go trick or treating?  Let’s do it, a Mis...

In our 21st century model of advertising and brand recognition, everyone has a logo.  Logos represent what the business, enterprise, or team is all about.  We almost take them for granted actually, because we’re exposed to logos everywhere we look!  For today’s episode, yes we’re biased - Yankee fanatics through and through - we’re looking at the unknown history of one of the most i...

The United States Civil War ended on April 9th, 1865.  The Confederate States were officially dissolved, U.S. territorial integrity had been preserved, the institution of slavery abolished and the beginning of the Reconstruction Era was ushered in. In the subsequent years, the country would see the passage and ratification of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments to the Constitution of the Unite...