Unhinged History

You want tough women?! This week, Angie and Theresa share some absolute baddies. Theresa kicks things off with Diane Nash, who led the Freedom Rides. You know, those integrated bus rides in the deep south, where a bus was firebombed, the victims were arrested (after getting beaten by angry mobs). Angie pivots the episode into a wildly different direction when she shares the story of Amelie Elie, t...

Angie steals the entire episode to share a story of friendship in a time of war that you are not prepared for. In 1967, John "Chickie" Donohue, a merchant marine and Marine veteran, took up the mission to leave the safety of New York City by himself, with a dufflebag of Pabst beer, and deliver it to friends fighting in the Vietnam War. This impossible tale is apparently now a movie starring Zac Ef...

This week, Angie and Theresa share some incredible stories. Angie kicks things off with the story of Stormé DeLarverie. She is credited with throwing the first punch at the Stonewall Uprising, but did she? Theresa pivots and takes us to South Africa to tell the story of Simon Nkoli, the gay activist who campaigned for gay rights and against Apartheid. This episode pairs well with: Stonewall The Pi...

Sometimes Theresa and Angie venture into the deep past. Today, Theresa tells us about Thomas(ine) Hall, the intersex individual from Colonial America who spent the majority of their life swapping between sexes to live life. Then, to remind us about Father’s Day, Angie shares the story of “Big Daddy Cnut,” the Viking ruler whose empire spanned England, Norway, and Denmark. And yes, Angie does indee...

We are in the middle of Pride Month and celebrating with some brilliant heroes. Angie kicks things off with the story of Dora Richter, a German woman who was the first known person to undergo a complete transformation from male to female via surgery. Theresa moves into more well-known territory by sharing the life and background of the historic Sylvia Rivera. You might have heard of her, as she wa...

Some members of the LGBTQIA+ community are more well-known than others. One proponent of equal rights in the movement was Marsha P. Johnson. This week, Theresa shares how Marsha was assigned male at birth and later moved to New York, where she could live into her full identity. There she was, present at the Stonewall Uprising, established a program to help homeless street youth, and tirelessly wor...

You are not prepared for this week’s mashup. Theresa tells us the story of the Compton Cafeteria Riot, that nearly forgotten time in San Francisco when a group of queens stood up against police discrimination. While this occurred three years before Stonewall, it isn’t well-known or credited with kicking off Pride Month. However, it was this event, and events like it, that paved the way for the tip...

It’s a wild week. Angie kicks things off by telling the story of D’Artagnan and really fleshes out the whole story. Come for this guy’s quick rise to power and his ability to stay one step ahead of all the palace intrigue. Listen for the point where Angie shatters Theresa’s thoughts when she tells her that D’Artagnan actually outranked Athos, Porthos, and Aramis. Theresa veers off in a different d...

Theresa celebrates a full-circle moment as she shares how a Frenchman, Jules Brunet, attempted to stop the fall of the Shogunate in Japan. Podcast favorite character, arms-dealing Matthew Perry, makes a cameo as Theresa connects many dots to previous episodes. Angie reminds us all to call our moms this Sunday as she regales us with the story of Atossa, Queen Mother of Persia. This woman made more...

Unhinged History strives to bring you the stories you’ve never heard of in your history class, and this week is no exception. Angie kicks off this week by exploring the Silk Road and the heist that liberated silkworms and opened the door for countries other than China to produce this incredibly luxurious textile. Theresa veers off in a wildly different direction as she shares the story of Nakahama...

Look at Unhinged History, we are known for a couple of things. A love of the National Parks Service content, stories you’ve never heard, and banter. This episode is basically more of the same. Theresa takes the entire episode to share the story of Paul Nobuo Tatsuguchi and the Battle of Attu. For most of us, we never realized that the Battle of Attu was the only time since the War of 1812 that the...

Angie and Theresa have quite a set of stories to share with you. Kicking things off, Angie shares the wild story of Saladin. This man held it down as the Sultan of Egypt and Syria during the Crusades. Getting his position after a ...ahem series of deaths, he proves to be an incredible ruler, who would give away his vast fortune throughout his life. Theresa veers wildly from this story, as she shar...

What a week where Angie and Theresa do exactly what they do best. Convinced she might run out of spies to cover, Theresa shares the story of Krystyna Skarbek, also known as Christine Granville. Born a literal Polish countess, Krystyna cycles through husbands and lovers before seeing her country invaded by Nazi Germany. Convinced she can fight for her homeland, she becomes the first female spy for...

Today we have a very special guest. The Unhinged History podcast welcomes Jenny Chan, author and podcaster, exploring the atrocities of the Pacific theater during World War II. In this episode, we explore her in-depth study of Chinese comfort women, Unit 731, and so much more. Website: https://www.pacificatrocities.org/ YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@PacificFrontUntold

Ever get stuck in front of the TV watching the bizarre shows labeled as history? This episode is just like that, but only for your ears. We offer nothing for your eyes. Angie kicks things off with the Beale Papers. This story takes us on a journey through history, where we attempt to crack codes and locate a large amount of buried gold, silver, and jewels in Bedford County, Virginia. Theresa is sk...

This week’s unhinged stories feature two women largely forgotten by history. Starting off strong, Theresa tells the story of Madame Montour, the interpreter who spoke English, German, and several Native American languages. Her work as an interpreter brokered several treaties. We have one small problem with Madame Montour – she is history’s most unreliable narrator. Follow along as Theresa lays out...

This week’s Unhinged History features two women with outrageous stories. Angie kicks things off with the story of Elizabeth Bathory, you know, the Blood Countess. She’s rumored to have murdered over 600 virgins to bathe in their blood in hopes of maintaining her youth and beauty. But what if all of that was created by the men in her life who owed her money? Angie pulls back the rumors and shares w...

Some stories just warm you up inside like a Hot Toddy. Today, Theresa starts us off with a story from her comfort era: World War II, as she shares the tale of Soviet sniper, Lyudmila Pavlichenko. This badass earns a sniper diploma before graduating from college, which proves beneficial as she ends up fighting as one of only 2,000 female snipers. While only 500 of these women would survive the war,...

Listen to this week’s episode as Angie tells a story about a man Theresa’s already learned about. She shares the story of Anders Lassen, the incredible Danish man who joined Colin Gubbins’ Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare and made the SOE what it was known for. This episode pairs well with: Paddy Mayne Colin Gubbins Odette Samson The SAS Train Raid You Never Heard of...

What a strange and wonderful mashup of unhinged history stories we have for you today. When we think of Tudor England, we often overlook the individuals of African descent who lived and worked there. Today, Angie corrects that. Come learn about the various people historians uncovered. Theresa takes a different route as she shares the story of Darius McCollum. Darius loves one thing more than anyth...

What an episode of two indomitable people! Today, Theresa kicks things off by telling the story of Dr. Daniel Hale Williams. Dr. Dan is credited with completing the first open-heart surgery. This was in the mid-1800s, before the creation of rib spreaders, bypass machines, or any other devices that would make his life easier. Even better, his patient survives. To further boost his creds, this incre...

Today’s mash-up of stories leads to some very unexpected places as Angie shares the story of Belle da Costa Greene. Belle ends up being the first Black female librarian of Mr. J. P. Morgan. This woman ends up being the Pepper Potts to Morgan, as she controls art and literature that gets bought and added to his personal collection. Then, surprising no one, Theresa takes us in a very different direc...

Few white dudes of history have ever earn so much respect from the Black community does, and for good reason. This week, Theresa takes over the entire episode and shares the unhinged life of John Brown. Starting with his early years, raised in a home that was both steeped in religion and abolitionism, John Brown’s path led him to campaign to end slavery. During his life, he would earn the respect...

The stories we tell here at Unhinged History are predictable, and today offers no variation from the trend. Theresa begins by telling the story of Elijah Parish Lovejoy. This abolitionist would believe two things in this life: that slavery is wrong, and as a journalist, he had the freedom of speech. These convictions would result in four printing presses getting destroyed by mobs and him getting s...

Sometimes the events covered in Unhinged History are as zany as they are unexpected. Other times, things get dark. This week, Theresa shares the life of Charles Sumner, the senator who was beaten for giving an abolitionist speech. This attack would polarize the country and start it on the path toward the Civil War. Angie apparently didn’t get the memo that Theresa was telling such a tale, because...