The Emperor of the United States
When San Franciscan businessman Joshua Norton lost his fortune in a Peruvian rice deal gone sour, he temporarily disappeared from the public eye. Not long after, he reemerged as Norton I, the self-pro...
13 Jan 202251min
The Trans-Saharan Ostrich Expedition of 1911
Most people haven't met an ostrich in person, but everyone knows what they are: the large, flightless birds have been around since before the rise of humanity, and throughout history people have admir...
12 Jan 202250min
That Time Everyone Tried To Outlaw War
War is ugly, horrific and, according to some, a necessary part of human civilization. Yet in the 1920s, world powers recovering from World War I sought to make the planet a safer (or, at least, less u...
7 Jan 202246min
CLASSIC: Who Solves Murders in Antarctica?
Antarctica is home to one of the most brutal climates on the planet, and the few humans living on this continent face profound isolation and cramped quarters. Often, tension rises as the months betwee...
4 Jan 202231min
The Lil Ice Age Was Way Less Cute Than It Sounds
You've probably heard of the Ice Ages -- long periods of reduction in Earth's temperature, triggering massive expansion of glaciers and so on -- but you may not have heard of the "Little Ice Age," a t...
30 Des 202136min
Nub City: Florida's Infamous Amputation Scam
As towns go, Vernon, Florida is pretty tiny -- it has a small population, has struggled with economic depression, and doesn't get a ton of tourists. But that all changed several decades ago, when Vern...
28 Des 202144min
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 Charles Jamrach was one of the most prominent animal d...
23 Des 202131min
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 big cities... but, not too long ago, it would also ha...
21 Des 202133min
