57: Windshield Wipers! (Patreon Bonus)

57: Windshield Wipers! (Patreon Bonus)

Picture it. Ontario. 1953. It was Robert and Phyllis Kearns’ wedding night. Bob did his best to open the champagne, but the cork shot out and smacked him square in the eye. He screamed! Phyllis screamed! There was blood everywhere!

Bob ultimately went blind in that eye, but the experience got him thinking about eyes and how they work. So, years later, when he was driving in the rain and his one-speed windshield wipers went too fast for the sprinkle, he thought to himself, “I wish windshield wipers worked more like an eyelid.” And since Bob had a PhD in mechanical engineering, he immediately got to work on the first intermittent windshield wiper. Things went great for a minute! …and then they got terrible.

Remember, kids, history hoes always cite their sources! For this episode, Kristin pulled from:
“The flash of genius,” by John Seabrook for The New Yorker
“Inventor Winning Long Legal Battle With Auto Maker : Patents: Robert Kearns developed the intermittent windshield wiper more than 20 years ago. He claims the car companies stole his idea.” by James Risen for the Los Angeles Times
“An obsession with justice and auto parts,” by Michael Cieply for The New York Times
“Accomplished, frustrated inventor dies,” by Matt Schudel for the Washington Post
“The epic, decades-long battle between Ford and a small-time inventor,” by Zachary Crockett for The Hustle
“Wiper man Robert Kearns won his patent fight with Ford, but that didn’t mean he was out of the woods,” by Ken Gross for People.com
“Alabama woman stuck in NYC traffic in 1902 invented the windshield wiper,” by Joe Palca for NPR
“Who made that windshield wiper?” by Dashka Slater for The New York Times Magazine

Jaksot(89)

81: Blinded By The Spite: The Richardson Spite House

81: Blinded By The Spite: The Richardson Spite House

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80: Grandma Gatewood Keeps on Walking (Part 3)

80: Grandma Gatewood Keeps on Walking (Part 3)

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79: Grandma Gatewood Hikes the Appalachian Trail (Part 2)

79: Grandma Gatewood Hikes the Appalachian Trail (Part 2)

Emma Gatewood was embarrassed. Her first attempt at solo hiking the Appalachian Trail had been a disaster. But she was nothing if not determined. So, Emma tried again. On her second attempt, the 67-ye...

5 Marras 20251h 28min

78: Grandma Gatewood Takes One Hell of a Walk (Part 1)

78: Grandma Gatewood Takes One Hell of a Walk (Part 1)

When Emma Gatewood set off on the Appalachian Trail, she didn’t look like much of a hiker. She was 67 years old. She wore a pair of Keds. She had no training. But she figured that wouldn’t matter. An ...

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77: The Ann & Abby Feud Goes Intergenerational (Part 4)

77: The Ann & Abby Feud Goes Intergenerational (Part 4)

In the final episode of our series on Ann Landers and Dear Abby, the feud reached new heights when Abby fell victim to a “gotcha” moment on Charlie Rose. (Who woulda guessed?) Afterward, she agreed to...

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76: Bad Blood: Ann Landers, Dear Abby Feud Goes Public (Part 3)

76: Bad Blood: Ann Landers, Dear Abby Feud Goes Public (Part 3)

For a few years, the feud between twin sisters Ann Landers and Dear Abby was an industry secret. That changed in 1958, when Life Magazine printed a story that exposed the rivalry. In the article, Abby...

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75: Advice Column Rivals: Dear Abby and Ann Landers (Part 2)

75: Advice Column Rivals: Dear Abby and Ann Landers (Part 2)

Ann Landers was thrilled. She’d just landed a job as the new syndicated advice columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times. Her new role gave Ann something to call her own. Then, just three months later, her ...

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74: Family Feud: Dear Abby vs. Ann Landers (Part 1)

74: Family Feud: Dear Abby vs. Ann Landers (Part 1)

For decades, Dear Abby and Ann Landers were the undisputed queens of advice columns. They had millions of loyal readers. They were celebrated public figures. Their columns stood out for being sassy, s...

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