Did That Really Happen?

Did That Really Happen?
  • 4.2 (18)
  • HISTORY
  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY

The movie podcast for history nerds. In every episode, historians Jamie and Sofia talk about a different historical film and take a deep dive into the parts that did and didn't really happen. In each episode, we try to answer the big questions: Is this good history? Is this a good movie? And are those the same thing? To get in touch, send us an email at DidThatReallyHappenPod@gmail.com, or follow us on Twitter @ReallyHappenPod. You can also support the show by visiting Patreon.com/DidThatReallyHappen Our theme music is "Allon Gay Gay", performed by Jon Sayles.

  1. MAY 18

    The Testament of Ann Lee

    This week we're traveling back to 18th century Manchester (and America!) with The Testament of Ann Lee! Join us as we learn about Ann Lee's life with her awful husband Abraham and fellow spiritual leader Jane Wardley, shaker spirituals, pacifism, and more! Sources: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pacifism/ Ngram for Pacifism: https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=pacifism&year_start=1800&year_end=2022&corpus=en&smoothing=3 George Fox on peace: https://quaker.org/legacy/minnfm/peace/fox_1651.htm Tolstoy, "The Law of Violence and the Law of Love", 1908, available at https://www.marxists.org/archive/tolstoy/1908/the-law-of-violence-and-the-law-of-love/chapter-8.html https://divinity.uchicago.edu/news/pop-religion-hunger-and-thirst-embodied-religion-testament-ann-lee https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_testament_of_ann_lee Guy Lodge, https://variety.com/2025/film/news/the-testament-of-ann-lee-review-amanda-seyfried-1236503769/ Peter Bradshaw, https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/sep/01/the-testament-of-ann-lee-review-shaker-venice-film-festival-amanda-seyfried-mona-fastvold  Peyton Robinson, https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-testament-of-ann-lee-amanda-seyfried-film-review-2025  https://shakermuseum.org/learn/school-programs/shaker-music/ Nardi Reeder Campion, Mother Ann Lee: Morning Star of the Shakers (Brandeis University Press, 2026). https://www.jstor.org/stable/jj.37730392  Linda Fujie, ""Draw the Chords of Union Stronger": The Musical Life of the American Shakers," The World of Music 35: 3 (1993): 51-79.  Daniel Patterson, The Shaker Spiritual (Dover, 1979, 2000) https://archive.org/details/shakerspiritual0000patt/page/2/mode/2up . https://www.shakermuseum.us/tis-gift-simple-things-arent-simple-seem/?nocache=1  https://home.shakerheritage.org/let-us-labor-the-evolution-of-shaker-dance/ https://fineartamerica.com/featured/1-shaker-dance-and-worship-18th-century-photo-researchers.html   https://daily.jstor.org/the-rhythms-of-shaker-dance-marked-the-shakers-as-other/  EP Thompson, Making of the English Working Class BS Youngs, "The Testimony of Christ's Second Appearing," 1823, Full text available on Google Books Nardi Reeder Campion, Mother Ann Lee (2026) https://www.jstor.org/stable/jj.37730392.11  A summary view of the Millennial Church, or United Society of Believers (commonly called Shakers) : comprising the rise, progress, and practical order of the society, together with the general principles of their faith and testimony (1823), https://archive.org/details/asummaryviewmil02wellgoog/page/n4/mode/2up

    1h 7m

  2. MAY 4

    The Terror (Season 1)

    This week we're cracking open the Patreon vault to deliver unto you a bonus episode on Season 1 of The Terror! Join us as we learn about the horrors of the Franklin expedition, including lead poisoning, proof of death, and creepy old diving gear.  Sources: https://www.divingheritage.com/deanekern.htm https://www.whitstablemuseum.org/exhibit/diving/ https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/~cmi/dive/diveHist.html https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/archaeologists-get-eerie-first-look-inside-arctic-shipwreck-franklin-hms-terror-180973011/ Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Terror_(TV_series) Indiewire: https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/the-terror-location-cgi-not-shot-outside-1201945793/ Keith Millar, Adrian W. Bowman, and William Battersby, "A re-analysis of the supposed role of lead poisoning in Sir John Franklin's last expedition, 1845-1848," Polar Record 51, no. 258 (2015): 224-38.  Anne Keenleyside, Margaret Bertuli, and Henry C. Fricke, "The Final Days of the Franklin Expedition: New Skeletal Evidence," Arctic 50, no.1 (1997): 36-46. https://www.jstor.org/stable/40512040  Douglas R. Stenton, "Finding the dead: bodies, bones and burials from the 1845 Franklin northwest passage Expedition," Polar Record (2018): 197-212.  Brian D. Powell, "The memorials on Beechey Island, Nunavut, Canada: an historical and pictorial survey," Polar Record 2, no.223 (2006): 325-33. https://parks.canada.ca/lhn-nhs/nu/epaveswrecks  Soup tin: https://www.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/rmgc-object-2033  Peglar Papers: https://www.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/rmgc-object-2113  https://arstechnica.com/science/2018/09/did-lead-poisoning-finish-off-a-doomed-arctic-expedition/

    59 min

  3. APR 20

    The Secret Agent

    This week we're traveling back to 1970s Brazil with The Secret Agent! Join us as we learn about deaths at Carnival, the legend of the Hairy Leg, indigenous servants, and more! Sources: Da-Silva, Elidiomar. (2025). A PERNA CABELUDA, DE RECIFE, PERNAMBUCO: POSSÍVEIS DIÁLOGOS COM A ZOOLOGIA CULTURAL - Barbante - Revista Literária (ISSN 2338-1414) (Da-Silva, Elidiomar. 2025). 13. 20-27. 10.5281/zenodo.17655754.  Diario de Pernambuco, Issue from 10 December 1975: https://memoria.bn.gov.br/docreader/DocReader.aspx?bib=029033_15&pagfis=78246 Diario de Pernambuco, Issue from 11 December 1975: https://memoria.bn.gov.br/docreader/DocReader.aspx?bib=029033_15&pagfis=78266 Wilson Chapman, Watch 'The Secret Agent' Director Kleber Mendonça Filho Tell Guillermo del Toro the Story Behind the Film's Hairy Leg," Indiewire: https://www.indiewire.com/features/craft/the-secret-agent-hairy-leg-making-of-1235182134/ Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Secret_Agent_(2025_film) Andy Crump, "How The Secret Agent Appeals to Brazilian Collective Memory," Time, available at https://time.com/7336528/the-secret-agent-brazilian-history-interview/ Erik Luers Interview with Kleber Mendonca Filho, Filmmaker, available at https://filmmakermagazine.com/132652-interview-kleber-mendonca-filho-the-secret-agent/ Christopher Dunn, "Afro-Bahian Carnival: A Stage for Protest," Afro-Hispanic Review 11, no. 1/3 (1992): 11-20. https://www.jstor.org/stable/41417220  Victoria Baena, "Favelas in the Spotlight: Transforming the Slums of Rio de Janeiro," Harvard International Review 33, no. 1 (2011): 34-37. https://www.jstor.org/stable/42763442  "AROUND THE WORLD Rio Celebrates 'Quiet' Carnival." 1979., Feb 28 The Globe and Mail. "March 3, 1976 (Page 4 of 56)." 1976., Mar 03 Detroit Free Press, General edition, 4.  "180 die in Brazil's carnival," (1971)  https://www.nytimes.com/1971/02/25/archives/180-die-in-brazils-carnival.html  Tom Murphy, "92 deaths reported as Rio Carnival ends," UPI Archives (Feb. 20, 1985). https://www.upi.com/Archives/1985/02/20/92-deaths-reported-as-Rio-Carnival-ends/5635477723600/  "164 Die in Rio During Carnival," Los Angeles Times (March 1, 1990), https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-03-01-mn-2198-story.html  US and Brazil: https://www.statista.com/statistics/187592/death-rate-from-homicide-in-the-us-since-1950/ and https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24027422/#&gid=article-figures&pid=fig-2-uid-1  Henrique Espada Lima, "Wages of Intimacy: Domestic Workers Disputing Wages in the Higher Courts of Nineteenth-Century Brazil," International Labor and Working-Class History 88 (2015): 11-29. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43956662  Peter Wade, "Blacks and Indigenous People in Latin America," Race and Ethnicity in Latin America, 24-40 (2010). https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt183p73f.7  Manuela Lavinas Picq, "Indigenous International Relations," Vernacular Sovereignties: Indigenous Women Challenging World Politics (2018): 97-125. https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt20krzcq.11  Merike Blofield, "Feudal Enclaves and Political Reforms: Domestic Workers in Latin America," Latin American Research Review 44, no.1 (2009): 158-90. https://www.jstor.org/stable/20488173

    51 min

  4. APR 6

    The Ghost Bride

    We don't have a new episode this week, so we're cracking open the Patreon vault and releasing one of our bonus episodes on The Ghost Bride! Join us on our journey to 1890s Malacca, and learn about the ghost bride custom, clothing, currency, and more! Sources: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-37103447 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-04-07/ghost-marriages-in-rural-china-continue-to-thrive/9608624 Wenzhang Zhou and Yang Feng, "When Religious Folk Practice Meets Karl Marx: Courts' Response to Ghost Marriage in Modern China," Religions, 14 (2023) Myron L. Cohen, "Souls and Salvation: Conflicting Themes in Chinese Popular Religion," in Death Ritual in Late Imperial and Modern China, ed. James L. Watson and Evelyn S. Rawski. University of California Press, 1990 Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ghost_Bride_(TV_series)  Patrick Brzeski, "Netflix Unveils Launch Dates for First Trio of Chinese-Language Originals," The Hollywood Reporter, 26 August 2019, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/netflix-sets-launch-dates-first-chinese-language-originals-1234398/  Mathew Scott, "Netflix Launches Mobile-Only Plan for Malysia," The Hollywood Reporter, 24 October 2019, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/netflix-launches-mobile-plan-malaysia-1249730/  https://decider.com/2020/01/23/the-ghost-bride-netflix-stream-it-or-skip-it/ Chiang Hai Ding, "The Origins of the Malaysian Currency System (1867-1906)," Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 39, no.1 (1966): 1-18. https://www.jstor.org/stable/41491873  The Kebaya: https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20230302-the-asian-blouse-that-tells-a-tale-of-many-cultures  Peranakan fashion: https://www.roots.gov.sg/stories-landing/stories/peranakan-fashion-and-its-international-sources/story  Singapore, Sarong Kebaya and Style: Peranakan Fashion (National Heritage Board), https://artsandculture.google.com/story/6AVxGAwa3F7DJA?hl=en

    45 min

  5. MAR 16

    Good Night, and Good Luck

    **Note: Due to technical difficulties, there were issues affecting Jamie's audio quality this week. We apologize and promise it will be fixed on our next episode.** This week we're traveling back to 1950s America with Good Night, and Good Luck! Join us as we learn about Red Scare-Era figurse like Annie Lee Moss, Joe and Shirley Wershba, Milo Radulovich, Don Hollenbeck, and more! Sources: Loren Ghiglione, Why Don Hollenbeck Fascinated Me Enough to Write His Biography. History News Network. Available at https://www.historynewsnetwork.org/article/why-don-hollenbeck-fascinated-me-enough-to-write-h Loren Ghiglione, Don Hollenbeck: An Honest Reporter in the Age of McCarthyism. New York: Columbian University Press CBS News: February 2nd 1951: https://youtu.be/F8DsMDzUpe4?si=2GNdaXsGlyIStfwI Interview with Loren Ghiglione: https://cupblog.org/2008/10/03/interview-with-loren-ghiglione-author-of-cbss-don-hollenbeck/ https://www.michbar.org/programs/milestone/milestones_miloradulovich "Joseph Wershba on the Milo Radulovich Story" https://youtu.be/MEBNxrIT8r0?si=EqheG_CZKDzzDvQP  https://findingaids.lib.umich.edu/catalog/umich-bhl-2008173  "The Wisconsin Magazine; 1329; Joe McCarty," 1987-05-08, PBS Wisconsin, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed February 27, 2026, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-29-42n5tgg7 Martin, Douglas, "OBITUARIES: MILO RADULOVICH, 81, DIES; SYMBOL OF '50S RED SCARE." New York Times (November 21, 2007), 1. THE RADULOVICH CASE. 1953. New York Times (1923-);30. ELAINE WOO "M. Radulovich, 81; airman's case played key role in helping to end McCarthy era." Los Angeles Times (2007);1. Holley J. "Milo radulovich; cast out of air force, he put face on 'ravages of McCarthyism'." The Washington Post (2007);1. Matthew Wills, "How Annie Lee Moss Survived McCarthyism," JSTOR Daily, https://daily.jstor.org/how-annie-lee-moss-survived-mccarthyism/  "Mrs. Moss is Sorry," NY Times (1957), https://nyti.ms/4kXSwf3  Andrea Friedman, "The Strange Career of Annie Lee Moss: Rethinking Race, Gender, and McCarthyism," JAH 94:2 (2007): 445-68. https://www.jstor.org/stable/25094960  Joseph Wershba, Remembered. WNYC Studios, available at https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/segments/140064-joseph-wershba-remembered?tab=transcript https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Night,_and_Good_Luck https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/good-night-and-good-luck-2005

    52 min

  6. MAR 2

    Blue Moon

    This week we're traveling back to 1940s New York with Blue Moon! Join us as we learn about the relationship between Rogers and Hart, air raid blackouts, EB White, going on the wagon, and more! Sources: https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=%22off+the+wagon%22&year_start=1800&year_end=2022&corpus=en&smoothing=3 https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=%22on+the+wagon%22&year_start=1800&year_end=2022&corpus=en&smoothing=3 Jellinek, Elvin Morton. Phases in the Drinking History of Alcoholics: Analysis of a Survey Conducted by the Grapevine, Official Organ of Alcoholics Anonymous. United States: Hillhouse Press, 1946. Coffey, Edward Hope. Manhattan Cocktail. United States: L. MacVeagh, The Dial Press, 1929. https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/37132/origin-of-the-idiom-falling-off-the-wagon Richard Goldstein, City Room Answers: https://archive.nytimes.com/cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/04/answers-about-world-war-ii-in-new-york-part-iii/ Siobhan McGirl, "Surprise Blackouts Sweep the East Coast," World War 2.0, available at https://blogs.shu.edu/ww2-0/1942/08/21/surprise-blackouts-sweep-the-east-coast/ "New Raid Signal Blacks Out City," New York Times, February 19 1943. Available at https://www.nytimes.com/1943/02/19/archives/new-raid-signal-blacks-out-city-public-response-encouraging-mayor.html?smid=url-share https://time.com/7325788/blue-moon-true-story-lorenz-hart/  Robert Gottlieb, "Rodgers and Hart's Dysfunctional Partnership," The Atlantic April 2013. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/04/words-and-music/309249/  https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1947/11/01/no-matter-what-the-skirt-length-is-every-prospect-pleases-me-because-i-am-vile https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1943/03/20/i-accept-with-widespread-pleasure  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Moon_(2025_film) Brian Tallerico review, RogerEbert.com: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/blue-moon-tiff-ethan-hawke-margaret-qualley-film-review-2025 Parade magazine video: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/T7NGAvrCXkQ

    49 min

  7. FEB 16

    Train Dreams

    This week we're covering the history of the Pacific Northwest from the late 19th century to 1968 with Train Dreams! Join us as we learn about boot memorials, Chinese and Chinese-American railroad workers, women working as fire lookouts, and more! Sources: Dina Gachman, "The History of Lady Lookouts," Smithsonian Magazine, available at https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/female-fire-lookouts-have-been-saving-wilderness-over-century-180977352/ Photo of Hallie Daggett and Her Dog, Fish and Wildlife: https://www.fws.gov/media/hallie-daggett https://www.facebook.com/ottawavalleywhereabouts/posts/loggers-memorial-griffith-on-45236783-77270483located-within-the-lower-madawaska/294395130019562/ https://www.google.com/books/edition/Canoe_Country/52-2DQAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=logging%20memorial%20boots%20nailed%20to%20tree&pg=PA66&printsec=frontcover https://www.facebook.com/100064525572391/posts/5518774848187361/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumoine_River https://www.imdb.com/title/tt29768334/ Bilge Ebiri, "Train Dreams Is a Staggering Work of Art," Vulture 21 November 2025, https://www.vulture.com/article/sundance-review-train-dreams-is-a-staggering-work-of-art.html  Bob Mondello, "The new film 'Train Dreams' is almost unbearably beautiful," NPR All Things Considered 7 November 2025. https://www.npr.org/2025/11/07/nx-s1-5598447/the-new-film-train-dreams-is-almost-unbearably-beautiful   Brian Tallerico, https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/train-dreams-film-review-2025  Justin Chang, https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-current-cinema/train-dreams-is-too-tidy-to-go-off-the-rails https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/train_dreams  Jennifer Fang, "Erasure and Reclamation: Centering Diasporic Chinese Populations in Oregon History," Oregon Historical Quarterly 122, no.4 (2021): 324-41. https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5403/oregonhistq.122.4.0324  Sarah M. Griffith, "Finding Chinese Immigrants in Unconventional Records," History News 58, no.1 (2003): 20-23.  John R. Wunder, "The Chinese and the Courts in the Pacific Northwest: Justice Denied?" Pacific Historical Review 52, no.2 (1983): 191-211. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3638795  Yukari Takai, "Asian Migrants, Exclusionary Laws, and Transborder Migration in North America, 1880-1940," OAH Magazine of History 23, No.4 (2009): 35-42. https://www.jstor.org/stable/40506013  Asian Workers in Kinsey Brothers Photographs of the Lumber Industry, 1890-1945, University of Washington Digital Libraries, https://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/digital/collection/clarkkinsey/search/searchterm/asian%20japanese/field/subjec/mode/any/conn/and/cosuppress/ https://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/digital/collection/clarkkinsey/id/416/rec/45 https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/the-bloody-history-of-anti-asian-violence-in-the-west https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynching_of_Asian_Americans

    50 min

  8. FEB 2

    Hedda

    This week we're traveling back to the 1950s with Hedda! Join us as we learn about pretty little things, 1950s fashion, sparklers, women working as professors, and more! Sources: "Celebrating the Legacy of England's First Female Professor," King's College, available at https://www.kcl.ac.uk/celebrating-legacy-of-englands-first-female-professor "Gender Breakdown for Teachers in History," Making History, available at https://archives.history.ac.uk/makinghistory/resources/statistics/gender.html Peter West, "Five Lessons on Bringing Truth Back to Politics from Britain's First Female Philosophy Professor," The Conversation, available at https://theconversation.com/five-lessons-on-bringing-truth-back-to-politics-from-britains-first-female-philosophy-professor-164191 https://www.creativescreenwriting.com/reinventing-hedda-nia-dacosta-tessa-thompson-and-nina-hoss-redefine-the-ibsen-classic-for-a-new-era/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedda_(2025_film) Google Ngram: https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=%22pretty+little+thing%22&year_start=1800&year_end=2022&corpus=en&smoothing=3 Ellen Glasgow, The Romantic Comedians, (1926), 38. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Romantic_Comedians/c6FAAAAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22pretty%20little%20thing%22&pg=PA39&printsec=frontcover  Martin Holt, Out of Bondage (1905), 80. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Out_of_Bondage/IvBEAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22pretty%20little%20thing%22&pg=PA80&printsec=frontcover  James Stephens, Light for Little Lanterns, (1886), 5. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Light_for_little_lanterns_a_series_of_mi/nZO4d4Up9ggC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22pretty%20little%20thing%22&pg=PA5&printsec=frontcover  https://www.directsparklers.com/inspiration/the-history-of-sparklers/ https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/technology-you-asked-general-science/how-do-sparklers-work http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/special_report/1998/11/98/e-cyclopedia/207791.stm https://www.sun-sentinel.com/1993/07/04/the-sparkling-history-of-a-fireworks-favorite/ https://www.si.edu/object/archives/sova-nmah-ac-0533 See "Custodial History" and "Provenance" Ogata Gekko 尾形月耕, Lighting Sparklers Over River, painting, 1891. https://asia.si.edu/explore-art-culture/collections/search/edanmdm:fsg_S2003.8.1699/  Image of Vintage Dress Pattern: https://thevintagepatternshop.com/shop/vintage-sewing-patterns/1950s-sewing-patterns/dresses-all-types-1950s-sewing-patterns/1950s-vintage-sewing-pattern-b34-halterneck-dress-bolero-r381/ Hedda For Your Consideration Flipbook: https://online.flippingbook.com/view/950039259/4-5/ Vintage Dancer, 10 1950s Dress Styles: https://vintagedancer.com/1950s/1950s-dress-styles/

    44 min
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About

The movie podcast for history nerds. In every episode, historians Jamie and Sofia talk about a different historical film and take a deep dive into the parts that did and didn't really happen. In each episode, we try to answer the big questions: Is this good history? Is this a good movie? And are those the same thing? To get in touch, send us an email at DidThatReallyHappenPod@gmail.com, or follow us on Twitter @ReallyHappenPod. You can also support the show by visiting Patreon.com/DidThatReallyHappen Our theme music is "Allon Gay Gay", performed by Jon Sayles.

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