American Hysteria

This is a very special episode I did last year with the podcast You’re Wrong About in which Sarah Marshall and I swapped stories about some of our favorite historical hoaxes and pranks in honor of April Fools Day. Listen to You're Wrong About wherever you get your podcastsBecome a Patron to support our show and get ad-free early episodes and bonus contentOr subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple PodcastsLeave us a message on our Urban Legends HotlineCarolyn Kendrick produced this episode for YWAProducer and Editor: Miranda ZicklerAssociate Producer: Riley Swedelius-SmithHosted by Chelsey Weber-Smith Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Woody Shticks is a comic stripper and burlesque performer as well as the director, production manager, and co-star of our recent live stage show with You’re Wrong About. For this episode, Woody and I talk about our histories with and philosophies around modern burlesque, and I tell him about the drama surrounding the first burlesque troupe to make it big in the United States back in the 1860s. This sexier-than-usual episode will show that the radical joy of art forms like burlesque continue to speak hilarious truth to the boring ass powers that be.Check out Woody's websiteBecome a Patron to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus contentOr subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple PodcastsLeave us a message on our Urban Legends HotlineProducer and Editor: Miranda ZicklerAssociate Producer: Riley Swedelius-SmithHosted by Chelsey Weber-Smith Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Exposed thongs were all the rage in the early 2000s thanks to a handful of massive pop cultural moments, but as the craze reached the mainstream market and trickled down to teens and tweens, the skank-shaming heated up as did the moral panics and political backlash. Millennials, however, were far from the first generation to experience thong drama, and for this episode we will go back through the last ten decades to see how half of the time moral guardians have tried to legislate the thong out of existence and the other half of the time, the thong has been the thin black line that separated adventurous Americans from the long arm of the law.Become a Patron to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus contentOr subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple PodcastsLeave us a message on our Urban Legends Hotline at americanhysteria.comSound Designer and Associate Producer: Riley Swedelius-SmithProducer and Editor: Miranda ZicklerVoice Actor: Will RogersWritten, Produced, and Hosted by Chelsey Weber-Smith Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thongs and the battles waged on their backs will be the focus of our upcoming episode. This collection of excerpts from previous episodes will provide some extra context: Wardrobe Malfunction (2019), Teenage Sex (2019), and The Streaking Craze (2023).Become a Patron to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus contentOr subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple PodcastsSound design and Production by Riley Swedelius-SmithEdited by Miranda ZicklerHosted by Chelsey Weber-Smith Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jason Stanley, an American philosopher and Yale professor, delves into how authoritarian regimes manipulate historical narratives to gain power. He discusses the alarming trend of educational repression and the political risks teachers face today. From the rise of fascism to the complex relationship between historical representation and colonialism, Stanley emphasizes the importance of diverse perspectives in academia. He warns against complacency and encourages active resistance to harmful narratives that threaten democracy and educational integrity.

RIP David Lynch, beloved director and otherworldly weirdo. The You Are Good feelings podcast about movies graciously invited me to talk about one of the most influential films and artists of my lifetime. Talking all things Lynchian with Sarah Marshall and Alex Steed, I tried to summarize this famously baffling plot of this film, mused about the concept of Duende, and cried on mic about the Unified Field. Whether you are a fan of David Lynch or not, I hope you enjoy this conversation that was very meaningful to me.Listen to You Are GoodFind Magpie Cinema Club's cover of Crying and their other music hereGet a plot explanation for Mulholland Drive hereProduced by Miranda ZicklerCo-hosted by Chelsey Weber-SmithBecome a Patron to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus contentOr subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple PodcastsLeave us a message on our Urban Legends Hotline Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gabe Lenners is the host of the new podcast Obscurum: Invasion of the Drones, which explores a mysterious wave of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena that happened in Nebraska and Colorado back in 2019, an event that has a lot in common with the recent wave of supposed drones seen in New Jersey and surrounding states. For this episode, I don my flexible skeptic hat while Gabe tells me about his illuminating experience reporting from the ground, first seeing drones himself, and then interviewing locals about their bizarre and sometimes frightening encounters. We also discuss some of the explanations from different government officials about the 2019 phenomenon, what people believe these flying objects could be, and the similarities to our recent media circus in the sky. Subscribe to Obscurum: Invasion of the Drones Check out Gabe's website and connect!Instagram: @gabelennersX/Twitter: @gabelennersTikTok: @gabelennersBecome a Patron to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus contentOr subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple PodcastsLeave us a message on our Urban Legends HotlineProducer and Editor: Miranda ZicklerAssociate Producer: Riley Swedelius-SmithHosted by Chelsey Weber-Smith Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This Urban Legends Hotline episode features listener Brandon's inquiry about the legend of the Jersey Devil, a cryptid that has haunted the Pine Barrens of New Jersey for three hundred years. We will explore the various historical events that produced this creature's folklore: a dime museum's elaborate hoax, a radical Puritan woman said to have birthed a monster, a bitchy Quaker feud rife with satanic accusations, and the impoverished people of the Pine Barrens who helped cultivate the tale as a mode of protection. Become a Patron to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus contentOr subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple PodcastsLeave us a message on our Urban Legends Hotline at americanhysteria.comCheck out our main source for this episode: The Secret History of the Jersey DevilSound Designer and Associate Producer: Riley Swedelius-SmithProducer and Editor: Miranda ZicklerVoice Actor: Will RogersWritten, Produced, and Hosted by Chelsey Weber-Smith Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The famous cryptid known as the Jersey Devil will be the focus of our upcoming Urban Legends Hotline investigation. This episode will provide some context using excerpts from previous topics we have covered. Full episodes to check out:The Cannibal Pig People of Pig Hill (2023)Fake News (2020)Urban Legends (2021)Become a Patron to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus contentOr subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple PodcastsSound design and Production by Riley Swedelius-SmithEdited by Miranda ZicklerHosted by Chelsey Weber-Smith Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Julia Schifini and Amanda McLoughlin are the hosts of the podcast Spirits, a history and comedy show focused on mythology, folklore, and urban legends. Each week they pour a drink and deep dive into stories similar to the ones we cover here. On this episode, my new friends tell me the history of an early 2000s fad called The Game, one that you, dear listeners, have unfortunately already lost. Check out the Spirits podcast!Become a Patron to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus contentOr subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple PodcastsLeave us a message on our Urban Legends HotlineProducer and Editor: Miranda ZicklerAssociate Producer: Riley Swedelius-SmithHosted by Chelsey Weber-Smith Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices