This Day

It’s the end of summer, and today we’re doing a special episode where we talk about some of the most interesting stories from history we discovered on our various summer travels. And we want to hear from you! If there was something you learned that has stuck with you, let us know and we’ll do a follow-up episode shortly. Email thisdaypod@gmail.com or find us on twitter or instagram. Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.com This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Our website is thisdaypod.com Follow us on social @thisdaypod Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

As we wrap up summer, we’re bringing you some of our favorite episodes from the archives. We’ll see you after Labor Day! /// It’s July 28th. This day in 1992, “Morris The Cat,” the feline spokesperson for Nine Lives cat food, is in the heart of a stunt presidential campaign. Jody and Niki are joined by director and writer Adam McKay (Don’t Look Up, Vice, Anchorman) to talk about the campaign and how Adam’s career changed as a result. Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.com And don’t forget about Oprahdemics, hosted by Kellie, out now from Radiotopia. This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Our website is thisdaypod.com Follow us on social @thisdaypod Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Thomas H “Boston” Corbett, the man who killed John Wilkes Booth, is discussed along with the circumstances of the assassination, his hero status, and the tragic spiral his life took afterwards.

On Sundays this summer, we’re bringing you some of our favorite episodes from the archives. We’ll continue to do new episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Happy summer! /// It’s August 31st. This day in 1942, a judge upholds the arrest of a Japanese-American man named Fred Korematsu. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how Korematsu tried to resist the detention of Japanese-Americans in the wake of Pearl Harbor, and the legal battles that broke out after the Roosevelt administration moved hundreds of thousands of people to concentration camps along the west coast. This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Our website is thisdaypod.com Follow us on social @thisdaypod Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Julie Shapiro, Executive Producer at Radiotopia Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Discussion of Missouri's early emancipation proclamation in 1861, the complicated stance on slavery in the state during the Civil War, Lincoln's persuasion tactics and evolving stance on emancipation

It’s August 22nd. In the summer of 2005, a proposed bridge in rural Alaska was becoming a hot-button controversy, as conservatives assailed its half-billion dollar price tag as emblematic of government overspending and pork-barrel politics. Jody, NIki, and Kellie look back at the “Bridget to Nowhere” controversy, what it says about how local and national politics intersect — and whether the bridge really was way too expensive after all. Sign up for our newsletter! We’ll be sending out links to all the stuff we recommended later this week. Find out more at thisdaypod.com This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Our website is thisdaypod.com Follow us on social @thisdaypod Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

On Sundays this summer, we’re bringing you some of our favorite episodes from the archives. We’ll continue to do new episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Happy summer! /// It’s August 22nd. This day in 1831, Nathaniel “Nat” Turner is leading a rebellion in Southampton, Virginia — what would become perhaps the most famous slave revolt in the Antebellum South. But there’s a hidden story. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Vanessa Holden of the University of Kentucky to discuss how it was the larger community in Southampton, particularly women, who made the rebellion possible. Vanessa is the author of Surviving Southampton: African American Women and Resistance in Nat Turner's Community — find it wherever you get your books! This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Our website is thisdaypod.com Follow us on social @thisdaypod Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Julie Shapiro, Executive Producer at Radiotopia Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Guest James Dallas Egber III, a troubled college student, disappeared in a steam tunnel. The podcast explores the media hysteria surrounding the incident and the sensationalization of his involvement with Dungeons & Dragons. It delves into the link between escapism, mental health, and parental concerns over the game. The moral panic of the evangelical right and their fear of influences on children is discussed. Investigator William Deere's focus on Dungeons & Dragons shifts the media's reporting. The tendency to blame the game for mental health issues and the satanic panic of the 1980s are highlighted.

James Smithson, Englishman who donated money to the United States for the establishment of the Smithsonian Institution, is the guest on this episode. The hosts discuss the controversies and congressional debates surrounding the establishment of the Smithsonian Institution and its museums. They also delve into the story of James Smithson and the challenges faced by the US in handling the funds. The chapter explores the concept of higher education and debates surrounding turning the Smithsonian into a library. Lastly, it examines the political implications and funding of the Smithsonian Institution.

On Sundays this summer, we’re bringing you some of our favorite episodes from the archives. We’ll continue to do new episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Happy summer! /// It’s August 10th. This day in 2006, Virginia Senator George Allen is caught on tape referring to S.R. Sidarth, a young man filming his event, as “macaca.” This video became an early viral moment and helped lead to Allen’s defeat later that fall — showing how viral video could transform politics. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Peter Hamby of Snapchat and Puck News to discuss the incident, how the internet was changing politics in the mid-2000s, and whether Allen’s comments would have been so controversial today. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Our website is thisdaypod.com Follow us on social @thisdaypod Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Julie Shapiro, Executive Producer at Radiotopia Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices