SEA MONKEYS
American Hysteria18 Joulu 2023

SEA MONKEYS

The novelty pets known as Sea Monkeys have delighted and disappointed millions of American children since they were first marketed in the early 1960s, with the nostalgia-fueled craze returning decade after decade, even after the creator was linked to Neo-Nazi activities. Described in the highly exaggerated ad copy as the most lovable pets in America, these tiny, allegedly monkey-like aquatic creatures are actually nothing more than microscopic brine shrimp, usually used as fish food in pet stores. In this episode, we will look closely at the history of Sea Monkeys and their ingenious but controversial creator, and take you through the comic book ad copy that marketed junky novelty items directly to children using language both deeply misleading and hilariously hyperbolic. Get our Folk Devils United merch here Become a Patron or subscribe on Apple Podcasts to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus content Call our Urban Legends Hotline and share a teenage tale you heard growing up This episode was written, produced, and hosted by Chelsey Weber-Smith Sound design by Clear Commo Studios Research Assistant: Riley Swedelius-Smith Producer and Editor: Miranda Zickler Voice Acting by Will Rogers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jaksot(291)

DEAR ABBY AND ANN LANDERS

DEAR ABBY AND ANN LANDERS

Ann Landers and Abigail Van Buren, also known as Dear Abby, were newspaper advice columnists answering questions and printing statements from their 100 million readers from the 1950s to the early 2000...

18 Elo 20251h 13min

Titanic in Real Time with Riley Swedelius-Smith

Titanic in Real Time with Riley Swedelius-Smith

This is a bonus episode from our subscribers-only podcast Hysteria Home Companion. Our associate producer (and my brother) Riley Swedelius-Smith is here to tell us the absolutely wild and little-know...

11 Elo 20251h 2min

Polybius: The Arcade Conspiracy

Polybius: The Arcade Conspiracy

This is a bonus episode from our subscribers-only podcast Hysteria Home Companion. I share the history of an 80s urban legend with our producer Miranda Zickler, one about a dangerous video game that a...

4 Elo 202540min

Not Just a Phase: Goths Through History with Christine Laskowski

Not Just a Phase: Goths Through History with Christine Laskowski

Christine Laskowski shares her research into how an ancient barbarian people known as the Goths came to represent everything from edgy Hot Topic fashion and the band Joy Division to the Notre Dame cat...

28 Heinä 20251h 15min

The Imaginary Gods of ChatGPT with Journalist Miles Klee

The Imaginary Gods of ChatGPT with Journalist Miles Klee

Miles Klee is the author of a recent Rolling Stone article titled People Are Losing Loved Ones to AI-Fueled Spiritual Fantasies which tells the stories of ChatGPT users who have come to believe that t...

21 Heinä 20251h

The FBI's White Christian Nation with Lerone A. Martin

The FBI's White Christian Nation with Lerone A. Martin

Lerone A. Martin is the author of The Gospel of J. Edgar Hoover: How the FBI Aided and Abetted the Rise of White Christian Nationalism . For this episode, Lerone explains how the FBI, led by J. Edgar ...

14 Heinä 20251h 23min

Listen Now: American Scandal

Listen Now: American Scandal

Every scandal begins with a lie. But the truth will come out. And then comes the fallout and the outrage. Scandals have shaped America since its founding. From business and politics to sports and soc...

8 Heinä 20256min

STARING AT THE SUN ON LSD with Sarah Marshall of 'You're Wrong About'

STARING AT THE SUN ON LSD with Sarah Marshall of 'You're Wrong About'

Have you ever heard the urban legend about the group of hippie college students that went blind while staring at the sun during an LSD trip? This tale became a very powerful anecdote in the 1960s as p...

7 Heinä 20251h 22min

Suosittua kategoriassa Yhteiskunta

olipa-kerran-otsikko
siita-on-vaikea-puhua
kaksi-aitia
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
i-dont-like-mondays
uutiscast
poks
antin-palautepalvelu
kolme-kaannekohtaa
joku-tietaa-jotain-2
sita
mamma-mia
aikalisa
yopuolen-tarinoita-2
lahko
rss-murhan-anatomia
rss-palmujen-varjoissa
meidan-pitais-puhua
rss-nikotellen
taskula-trishin