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London's Tiger King, Part Two: Charles Jamrach Becomes a Problematic Hero
By 1857, London's exotic animal trade was in full swing. Animals arrived at the city from across the world (often not surviving the journey), and Cha…
4 years, 3 months ago
London's Tiger King, Part One: When Exotic Animal's Were The Hottest Flex
Walking through London today, you'll doubtlessly hear cacophonous traffic, sirens, construction, countless languages -- all the noises familiar to bi…
4 years, 3 months ago
The Atlantropa Project, Part Two: What Happened to the Supercontinent?
While the idea of draining (most of) the Mediterranean sounds... ambitious, to say the least, Herman Sörgel's vision met with a surprising amount of …
4 years, 3 months ago
The Atlantropa Project, Part One: Saving Europe via Supercontinent
Like everyone in post-World War I Europe, Herman Sörgel was horrified by the devastation of a continent-wide conflict. He saw raging poverty, crippli…
4 years, 3 months ago
People Used Bed Bugs as Medicine for Thousands of Years
When you think of bed bugs, you probably think of dirty mattresses, irritating rashes and bites, and the dubious joy of calling an exterminator. Howe…
4 years, 4 months ago
The US Literally Threw Pianos From Planes During World War II
As musical instruments go, pianos are pretty amazing -- they're also not particularly easy to move. Clunkiness aside, pianos provide endless hours of…
4 years, 4 months ago
The Sinister Side of Little Orphan Annie, Part Two: Drink Your Ovaltine
Once the Little Orphan Annie comic strip was adapted to a radio program, it wasn't just a hit show -- it was a marketing coup for the good folks at O…
4 years, 4 months ago
The Sinister Side of Little Orphan Annie, Part One: Parents Were Terrified
These days, most folks think of Little Orphan Annie as a folksy, wholesome slice of nostalgia -- but during its heyday as a radio program, parents ac…
4 years, 4 months ago
CLASSIC: How White America Tried To Destroy Chinese Restaurants
Today Chinese restaurants serve some of the most popular cuisine in the United States, with more than 41,000 restaurants scattered around the country…
4 years, 4 months ago
Russia’s Real-life Ice Queen, Part 2: Weird, Brutal Flexes
As rulers go, Anna of Russia was considered pretty bad news. In the second part of this two-part series, the guys explore how Anna (aka Anna the Terr…
4 years, 4 months ago