Ridiculous History

It takes a lot of skill -- and luck -- to become the President of the United States. We always hear about the folks who won elections... but what about the folks who lost, not once, but multiple times? In part one of this continuing series, Ben, Noel and Max dive into the strange stories of presidential candidates who ran and lost. Then ran again, and lost again. (And then sometimes ran, and lost, again.)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Out of all the weirdly specific inventions for your yard, the leaf blower remains the most controversial (by far). In today's long-overdue episode, Ben, Noel and Max cut past the noise to figure out just where these things came from, how they work -- and why critics argue "the devil's hairbrush" isn't just annoying... but also potentially dangerous.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the Mob clamps down on possible terrorists in the New York docks, the organization looks for new ways to expand their partnership with Uncle Sam -- as it turns out, they have a lot of connections in Sicily, and their assistance just may help the Allies win some decisive battles. Learn more in part two of this special two-part series.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After the suspicious destruction of the USS Lafayette in Manhattan, the Navy became convinced saboteurs may be at work on American soil. There was another problem -- try as they might, they couldn't infiltrate the notoriously shady dockworker culture, which was in large part run by organized crime. This conundrum led to one of the strangest partnerships in the history World War II: the US Navy, hat in hand, came to the Mafia and asked for help. Tune in for more in part one of this special two-part series.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 1422, King Charles VI died after ruling France for more than 40 years. He was also remembered as Charles the Mad, in part because he was convinced that his body was made of glass and would shatter upon contact with other people. In today's classic episode, we will revisit this condition, known as the glass delusion, which would continue to pop up through medieval Europe until the late 19th century, seemingly disappearing in the modern day.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Lord Victor Rothschild first heard the news, he was incredulous -- surely Nazi Germany wasn't seriously planning to assassinate Winston Churchill with an exploding chocolate bar. However, he learned the intelligence reports were solid. In today's classic episode, we will learn what Rothschild did to prevent this before the Prime Minister fell victim to a literal death by chocolate.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Throughout history, despite all their occasional arguments to the contrary, members of royal families have been just as human as everyone else. In part two of this continuing series, Ben, Noel and Max dive into more stories of ridiculous deaths, from plans to become immortal, to an obsession with testing the boundaries of food allergies, and more. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's no secret that the lives of historical royalty have often been filled with triumph and tragedy -- and, sadly, many royals have met strange, untimely ends. In today's episode, Ben, Noel and Max dive into some of history's strangest (and most ridiculous) deaths.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here in the modern day, most people don’t love going to the dentist — but we still have it much better than the dental patients of yesteryear! In today's classic episode, we join the guys as they dive into a strange, grisly story from the early days of dentistry.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mustard! Whether you like it, love it, or hate it, you've almost definitely tried it in one of many varieties. In this installment of their continuing series on the ridiculous history of condiments, Ben, Noel and Max explore mustard's ancient origins all the way up the modern day.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.