This Day (An America 250 History Show)

It’s March 6th. This day in 1948, New York City’s war on pinball was raging, with police smashing machines Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Harry Siegel of The Daily Beast and The Daily News to discuss why Mayor La Guardia was so concerned with pinball machines and the long history of vice policing in New York City. Listen to Harry’s podcast FAQ NYC for all things NYC! (Harry also recommended...

It’s March 3rd. This day in 1933, Frances Perkins is appointed Secretary of Labor, the first woman to hold a cabinet position. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Jenny Kaplan of Womanica to discuss Perkins’ role inside the FDR administration, the way she navigated both her person and professional worlds — and whether Perkins was the real architect of the New Deal. Be sure to subscribe to the Wom...

It’s March 1st, the first day of Mardi Gras in New Orleans. This day in 1992, a city ordinance mandating that all Mardi Gras krewes be integrated in order to march on city streets is in effect — making this a Mardi Gras unlike any in history. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by New Orleans city Councilman Oliver Thomas (also a poet, actor, and radio host) to talk about what the new law means for...

It’s February 27th. This day in 1860, Abraham Lincoln gave a speech at the Cooper Union in New York City. Before the speech, he was relatively unknown and not considered a viable candidate for president in that fall’s election. This speech changed everything. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss how the speech both boosted Lincoln as a candidate, but also laid out his intellectual vision — one that was...

All this week, shows across the Radiotopia network are doing special episodes around the theme of “making trouble.” It’s being done to celebrate the Radiotopia fundraiser. If you want to support our work, become a member today at https://on.prx.org/367yNHv For our contribution, we talk about how the word “trouble” has meant different things in different points in history. Then, we each nominate ou...

It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! We couldn’t make this show without your support. Become a member now at radiotopia.fm It’s February 22nd. This day in 1958, in advance of a massive nuclear disarmament protest in London, designer Gerald Holtom came up with a simple design that would go on to be the logo not just for the no-nukes movement, but come to be known as the peace symbol. Jody, Niki, and Kel...

It’s February 20th. This day in 1946, diplomat George Kennan, stationed in Moscow, sent a 5,000 word telegram to the State Department outlining his assessment of the Soviet Union and how the U.S. should approach its expansion efforts. It would set a template for decades to come. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss what was in the telegram, how it was interpreted — and misinterpreted. Sign up for our ne...

This week, we’re doing a number of episodes around the history of… Black History Month. In 1965, two of America’s leading intellectuals debated the question of race — first in front of a packed university audience, and then on national television. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Nick Buccola of Linfield University to talk about James Baldwin and William F. Buckley and their riveting debates o...

This week, we’re doing a number of episodes around the history of… Black History Month. Over the course of this country’s history, the terms we use to describe black Americans have shifted and signified different things — from “colored” to “negro” to “African-American” and “black.” There’s now a debate about whether to capitalize the “b” in black. Jody, NIki, and Kellie are joined by Jelani Cobb o...

This week, we’re doing a number of episodes around the history of… Black History Month. Today, February 13th — the roots of the celebration in 1924, when historian Carter G Woodson started Negro History Week. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why Woodson started the commemoration and how Black History Month has evolved in the century since. Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.com...

It’s February 10th. This day in 1916, at an event attended by much of Chicago’s political and religious elite, an anarchist cook poisoned a batch of soup in an attempt to kill all two hundred attendees. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why the plot failed, who the main suspect was, and whether any of the attendees ate soup again. Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.com And don’t...

It’s February 8th. This day in 1915, at Clune’s Auditorium in Los Angeles, “The Birth of a Nation” premiered. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Tyler Parry of UNLV to discuss D.W. Griffith’s film and some of the myths and truths about how the film portrayed the Civil War and led to a resurgence of the KKK around the country. This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia...

It’s February 6th. This day in 1987, federal regulations go into effect limiting where federal workers can smoke cigarettes. Smoking rooms, smoking couches, and the little designated smoking areas on sidewalks spring up as a result. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Sarah Milov of the University of Virginia to talk about the way non-smokers rights were regulated and negotiated, legally and cult...

It’s February 3rd. This day, 1986, the town of Austin, Minnesota is being torn apart by an ongoing strike at the Hormel meat-packing plant. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by podcast host Julia Longoria to talk about the strike and her larger reporting on the way in which SPAM can explain many of the larger forces in American history. Julia is the host of “The Experiment” from WNYC and The Atlan...

It’s February 1st. This day in 1990, the very first McDonald’s opened in Moscow, after 14 years of negotiations and a moment where the USSR was softening its economic policy — and heading towards its eventual collapse. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss what it meant for the most American of brands to land behind the iron curtain, and the role of cultural forces in ushering in the end of the Cold War....

It’s January 30th. This day in 1913, the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority was formally incorporated, five years after its founding in 1908 at Howard University. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the early days of the AKAs, the need for black women to create a space for themselves within HBCU’s, and the legacy of the group and its alumni network over the years. Plus: why Kellie never joined! This Day In Eso...

IT’s January 27th. This day in 1838, some 80 years before national prohibition, the country’s first liquor restriction was passed. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss how the temperance movement gained momentum alongside other moral crusades in the mid-19th century, and how we are still living with a weird patchwork of alcohol laws around the country. This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud m...

It’s December 25th. In 1961, on the night of January 23rd, a bomber carrying two massive nuclear weapons broke up in the sky over eastern North Carolina. The bombs came crashing to the ground and an investigation later revealed that they had gone through several of the steps required for detonation. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the near-disaster, how many times the U.S. has come close to this so...

It’s January 23rd. This day in 1977, on his first day in office, President Jimmy Carter pardoned Americans who had evaded service in the Vietnam War. Jody, Nicole, and Kellie discuss how Carter saw a difference between “pardon” and “amnesty” for draft dodgers, the various ways in which people got out of military service, and how much this decision set the tone for the entire Carter presidency. Thi...

It’s January 20th. This day in 1967, Lurleen Wallace took office as the Govenor of Alabama, only the third female governor in the United States history. She was the wife of segregationist governor George Wallace, who was unable to run because of term limits. Instead, he asked his wife to run and they campaigned on a thinly-disguised “two governors, one cause” platform. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discu...

It’s January 18th. This day in 1980, a group of Texas oil billionaires were in the middle of a scheme to drive up the worldwide price of silver. This would culminate in a few months later on what came to be known as “Silver Thursday,” when their speculation collapsed and sent worldwide markets into chaos. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Bijan Stephen, host of the podcast “Eclipsed,” which is...

It’s January 16th. This day in 1919, the North End neighborhood of Boston is digging out from under 2.3 million gallons of molasses, which flooded city streets after a storage tank burst. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by science and history writer Cara Giaimo to discuss how the flood has been reduced to a quirky tidbit of history, when in fact it should be taken serious as an industrial disast...

It’s January 13th. This day in 2018, at 8:07am, residents of Hawaii received a disturbing alert on their phones: BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the false alert, how the mistake was made, and how residents of Hawaii reacted in the almost 40 minutes before word got out that it was a false alarm. This Day In Eso...

It’s January 11th. This day in 1971, the federal government charged a group of anti-war activists, led by Catholic priest Father Phillip Berrigan, in a scheme to bomb tunnels in Washington DC and kidnap Henry Kissinger. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the details of the plot, Berrigan’s life of activism, and how it mixed with his religious pacifism. This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud...

It’s January 9th. In 1964, in his State of the Union speech, president Johnson declared “war on poverty.” It was part of his ambitious Great Society agenda to remake American lives from birth to death. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss the language that Johnson used in his speech, and how branding an effort as a “war” can help or hurt a cause. This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member...