Our Fake History

The word "iconic" gets thrown around pretty loosely these days, but there are some figures who truly earn the descriptor. Micheal Jordan and Mohammed Ali are icons because they truly transcended their sport. In the same way Harry Houdini is bigger than magic. Houdini is easily the best remembered performer in the history of stage magic. Despite his enduring fame his life story remains clouded by myth. Houdini was a professional liar, but he also considered himself to be deeply moral. He took other performers to task for their deceptions, while also cultivating a rich tapestry of legend around his life and career. Was Houdini a hypocrite or is there such a thing as a "moral lie"? Tune-in and find out how raw meat injuries, bullet-catch catastrophes, and a rabbi-for-hire all play a role in the story.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In 1703 a curious character arrived in London claiming to be a native of the island of Formosa. These days Formosa is better known as Taiwan, but in early 18th century it was a place barely understood by most Europeans. The Formosan visitor, George Psalmanazar, was eager to teach his English hosts everything there was no to know about his home island. The only problem was that Psalmanazar was a fraud. He was a European who had never travelled east of Germany. He concocted elaborate tales about Formosa's history, politics, and religion. Psalmanazar even invented his own language, that was complex enough to pass as authentic. The oddest thing about this case was that Psalmanazar in no way disguised his appearance.He was a light-skinned, blond haired, European who was able to convince most people he encountered he was from East Asia. How did he get away with this? Tune-in and find out how naughty priests, Halley's comet, and the hearts of 20,000 sacrificed children all play a role in the story. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Some of the most legendary figures to emerge from the history of the American West were the rough-and-ready "mountain men". But, the most legendary mountain man of all had to be the cannibal, Liver Eating Johnson. Stories would have us believe that sometime in the mid-1800's Johnson waged a one-man war against the indigenous Crow tribe to avenge the killing of his pregnant wife. Along the way he developed a taste for human flesh and started eating the raw livers of those that he killed. It's a wild story. Could any of it be true? Sebastian is joined by history professor, author, and host of History on Fire, Daniele Bolelli who helps him unpack the strange tale of one of the Old West's most grisly characters. Tune-in and find out how videogame cannon fodder, Wild West shows, and a frozen severed leg, all play a role in the story. Check out History on Fire here: http://historyonfirepodcast.com/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

There is a story that as Galileo stood in front of the Inquisition and listened as they declared that the Earth did not revolve around the Sun, he whispered under his breath "and yet, it moves". This moment of defiance has been celebrated as Galileo's true "martyr" moment. But, there is no way that Galileo ever said that. While the official records produced by the Inquisition might make it seem like the "Galileo Affair" had been about the question of the Earth's motion, a closer look at the affair reveals that it was for more complicated (and personal) than that. Galileo did not valiantly defend his beliefs until he was threatened with torture. In fact, he argued to the end that he had been misunderstood and that he had never truly believed that the Earth circled the Sun. So why was Galileo "vehemently suspected of heresy"? Tune-in and find out how Pope poetry, cheeky character names, and the last great wrangle all play a role in the story. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Galileo is often credited with inventing the telescope, but he never made that claim. He simply whipped up his own take on the device and sold it to the Republic of Venice before his Dutch competitors could beat him to the punch. Galileo also gets credit for being the first person to point the telescope at the night sky. This is also untrue, but when he did start observing the moon, stars, and planets, his observations would turn astronomy on its head. In 1610 Galileo published Sidereus Nuncius, a short book outlining what had appeared to him through the lens of his telescope. The myth of Galileo would have us believe that these groundbreaking discoveries immediately put him in the crosshairs of Inquisition, but that wasn't really the case. Galileo's discoveries were celebrated by many clergymen, including the Pope, when they were first published. It would be more than two decades later when he found himself on trial for heresy. What changed? Tune-in and find out how angry Dutchmen, crystal spheres, and the Sages of the Order, all play a role in the story. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Pisan scientist Galileo Galilei has been remembered as the "father of modern science." The discoveries he made with his telescope led to a completely new understanding of Earth's place in the cosmos. The theory first put forward by the Polish mathematician Nicolaus Copernicus, that the Earth revolved around the Sun, was affirmed by Galileo. The works published by Galileo expounding on these findings eventually led to him accused of heresy by the Roman Catholic Church. Galileo has gone down as a "martyr of science", but is that really accurate? Has the father of modern science become a modern myth? Tune-in and find out how togas at the brothel, swinging lamps, and someone called "the wrangler" all play a role in the story. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Did you know that the Amazons once waged war on Atlantis? According to the ancient historian Diodorus of Sicily, the Amazons conquered Atlantis while carving out an empire in Northern Africa. This may have all been pure legend, but Diodorus, like most ancient historians, believed that the Amazons had been an historical people. Other historians believed that the Amazons eventually interbred with the nomadic Scythians were slowly integrated into their society on the Eurasian steppe. In fact, one modern author believes that archaeological evidence has demonstrated that female warriors were quite common among the Scythians. Could these Scythian warrior-women have been the "Historical Amazons". How seriously should we take this hypothesis? Tune-in and find out lovestruck Greeks, comic book nerds, and a brigade of young hunks all play a role in the story. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When the conquistador Francisco Orellana was attacked by a band of female warriors deep in the heart of South America, he thought immediately of the Amazons of Greek mythology. His encounter with this group would end up inspiring the name for the river he was navigating: the Amazon. The original Amazons were said to be society of ferocious female warriors who lived at the edge of the known world. In myth the Amazons tangled with many of greatest Greek heroes. Their all-female society stood in stark contrast to the deeply patriarchal ancient Greek city states. Were these fearsome women just a product of the ancient Greek imagination, or is there some truth to their story? Tune-in and find out how improvised brigantines, casual kidnappings, and the most slept-on epic battle in Greek myth all play a role in the story. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this OFH throwback episode Sebastian is throwing you back to Episode #61 - What's the Problem with Socrates? Socrates has been celebrated as the “father of western philosophy”. This is particularly remarkable when you consider the fact that we know almost nothing about him for sure. What we consider “Socratic Philosophy” is what has been reported to us by his students. Should we trust what they are telling us about him? Tune in and find out how ancient fart jokes, free lunch, and a wrestler-turned-playwright-turned-philosopher all play a role in the story. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this "throwback episode" we look back at episode #96. In the 1930’s a famous California history professor thought he had discovered a long lost historical treasure. It was a brass plate apparently inscribed by the famous English adventurer Sir. Francis Drake. The plate was heralded as an amazing discovery, but it was actually an elaborate hoax orchestrated by an irreverent secret society. The group behind the hoax is known as E Clampus Vitus and it may be America’s weirdest secret society. Tune in a find out how tin-can medallions, “widders”, and a Grand Noble Humbug all play a role in the story. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.