Today In History with The Retrospectors

The Retrospectors
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Today In History with The Retrospectors Podcast
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Best Daily Podcast (British Podcast Awards 2023 nominee). Ten minute daily episodes bringing you curious moments from this day in history, with Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina and Arion McNicoll: The Retrospectors. It's history, but not as you know it! New eps Mon-Wed; reruns Thurs/Fri; Sunday exclusives at Patreon.com/Retrospectors and for Apple Subscribers.

  1. 8 HR AGO • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

    I'mma Let You Finish

    Rerun: Kanye West was ejected from Radio City Music Hall at the MTV VMAs on 13th September, 2009, after drunkenly interrupting Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech for Best Female Video. Distraught that the country star’s ‘You Belong To Me’ video has beaten Beyonce’s ‘Single Ladies’ to the trophy, he memorably proclaimed: “Yo Taylor, I’m really happy for you, I’mma let you finish, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time! One of the best videos of all time!” In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly examine whether this viral moment was ultimately harmful or beneficial to both stars’ careers; highlight how the fracas accelerated Twitter’s adoption by the mainstream media; and ask whether - after all these years - Kanye was right… Further Reading: • ‘How the Taylor Swift-Kanye West VMAs scandal became a perfect American morality tale’ (Vox, 2019): https://www.vox.com/culture/2019/8/26/20828559/taylor-swift-kanye-west-2009-mtv-vmas-explained • ‘2009 VMAs Oral History: What You Didn't See When Kanye West Rushed the Stage on Taylor Swift’ (Billboard, 2009): https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/television/8523549/2009-mtv-vmas-oral-history • Artisan News Service reports on the event in 2009: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1z8gCZ7zpsQ Thanks so much for supporting the show! We massively appreciate it. The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill. Edit producer: Ollie Peart Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2024.

    10 min

  2. 1 DAY AGO

    Meet The Monkees

    Rerun: NBC premiered ‘Royal Flush’ - the pilot episode of iconic Sixties pop-comedy show The Monkees - on 12th September, 1966. And the Daydream Believers quickly found their way into America’s heart… The Beatles-a-like actors had never met or worked with each other ever before answering an ad seeking ‘four insane boys, aged 18-21’, placed by‘Five Easy Pieces’ producer Bob Rafelson. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why each episode of the sitcom ended with a fourth wall-breaking discussion between the boys; explore how credible songwriters like Carole King and Neil Diamond ended up working on their singles; and discover why, despite the boyband’s enormous success, the series was cancelled in its second season…  Further Reading: • ‘The Untold Truth Of The Monkees’ (Grunge, 2019): https://www.grunge.com/146172/the-untold-truth-of-the-monkees/ • ‘Why 'The Monkees' Was a Perfect Meld of Television and Music (That Will Never Happen Again)’ (Huffington Post, 2016): https://www.huffpost.com/entry/why-the-monkees-was-a-per_b_10368468 • ‘The Monkees: Royal Flush’ (NBC, 1966): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JESo3dcRuo ‘Why am I hearing a rerun?’ Each Thursday and Friday we repeat stories from our archive of 800+ episodes, so we can maintain the quality of our independent podcast and bring you fresh, free content every Monday-Wednesday…  … But 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴members get an additional full-length episode each Sunday! Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    12 min

  3. 2 DAYS AGO

    The Real Lord of the Flies

    Captain Peter Warner and his crew made a startling discovery as they sailed past the uninhabited island of Atta in the Pacific on 11th September, 1966: six naked, shaggy-haired teenage boys, who had been stranded there for fifteen months. Sione, Stephen, Kolo, David, Luke, and Mano had escaped from their boarding school in Tonga's capital, Nuku'alofa, having "borrowed" a boat and embarked on a spontaneous adventure that went horribly wrong when a storm left them adrift at sea.  For eight days, they battled the elements, surviving on coconuts, bananas, and rainwater before they spotted Atta. With their boat breaking apart, they used makeshift buoyancy aids to swim to the island, beginning their remarkable tale of survival. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how the boys’ ingenuity, faith and resilience had kept them alive; reveal the extraordinary lives they went on to have afterwards; and marvel at their well-maintained muscles…  Further Reading: • ‘The Miraculous Survival of 6 Tongan Boys in 1965’ (People, 2020): https://people.com/human-interest/inside-real-life-lord-of-the-flies-survival-of-6-tongan-boys-54-years-ago/ • ’The real Lord of the Flies: what happened when six boys were shipwrecked for 15 months’ (The Guardian, 2020): https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/may/09/the-real-lord-of-the-flies-what-happened-when-six-boys-were-shipwrecked-for-15-months • ‘The real-life 'Lord of the Flies'’ (ABC News, 2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDz-331V-pY Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    12 min

  4. 3 DAYS AGO

    Leopold And Loeb: Life Plus 99 Years

    Chicagoans gathered around their radio sets on 10th September, 1924 - to hear Judge John R. Caverly sentence wealthy teenagers and lovers Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb to life in prison for the brutal murder of 14-year-old Bobby Franks. The couple showed no remorse, exhibited a complete lack of empathy, and said they had committed their crime "because we damn well wanted to", but were nonetheless spared the death penalty following the passionate defense submitted by their attorney, the celebrated campaigner Clarence Darrow. In this edition, The Retrospectors explore how classism intersected with blood-lust when it came to the public perception of the pair’s propsective punishment; explore how Nietzsche's concept of the Superman influenced their acts; and explain why their ill-conceived plan to extort ransom money failed so spectacularly… Content Warning: Descriptions of Violence/Murder. Further Reading: • ‘Leopold and Loeb: 90 Years Later, Finding the Truth’ (CrimeReads, 2018): https://crimereads.com/leopold-and-loeb-90-years-later-finding-the-truth/ • ‘Leopold and Loeb's Criminal Minds’ (Smithsonian Magazine, 2008): https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/leopold-and-loebs-criminal-minds-996498/ • ‘Darrow’ (Atlantis Films, 1991): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQzN9mtvLvM This episode first premiered in 2023, for members of 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴 - where you can also DITCH THE ADS and get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 100 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast. Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!   We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/retrospectors   The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill. Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Ollie Peart. Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2024. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    13 min

  5. 4 DAYS AGO

    OMG! From Churchill to Chatrooms

    The viral phrase ‘OMG’ has a much longer history than you might think… first being recorded on 9th September, 1917, in a letter from Lord John Fisher, a 75-year-old retired admiral, to Winston Churchill.  Fisher used it sarcastically, riffing on the idea of a new order of knighthood; playing off the similar-sounding "OM," the Order of Merit, which he himself had received. While his pun was witty, the abbreviation didn’t catch on at the time, and the acronym stayed buried in history until the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) uncovered it decades later, whilst preparing their 2011 edition. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how OMG resurfaced in 1994, in a soap opera message board; delve into a potted history of abbreviations, from Queen Victoria’s shorthand to Twitter; and reveal the meaning of another of Lord Fisher’s favourite phrases - "Buggin's Turn"…  Further Reading: • ‘The First Use of OMG Was in a 1917 Letter to Winston Churchill’ (Smithsonian Magazine, 2012): https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-first-use-of-omg-was-in-a-1917-letter-to-winston-churchill-145636383/ • ‘OMG: The creator of the abbreviation 'would have loved emojis'’ (BBC News, 2020): https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-norfolk-54893939 • ‘The Curious Origins of Popular Sayings’ (Hochelaga, 2021): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlin1W-qThs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    13 min

  6. 5 DAYS AGO • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

    EXTRA: David’s Controversial Genitalia

    In this week’s four minutes of bonus material, exclusively for our 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴supporters on Apple Podcasts and Patreon, The Retrospectors reveal why David’s penis has been covered up, but never circumcised…!

    4 min

  7. 5 DAYS AGO • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

    Making Michelangelo's David

    Now celebrated as the most famous statue in the world, Michelangelo's David was first unveiled in Florence's Piazza della Signoria on 8th September, 1504. Originally intended for the roofline of Florence's cathedral, David’s immense size and weight—over five meters tall and weighing more than five and a half tons—was relocated to the square. But its creation had been a tale of perseverance: the marble block Michelangelo used had been rejected by other sculptors for 35 years. In this week’s Sunday’s episode, exclusively for our 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴supporters on Apple Podcasts and Patreon, The Retrospectors reveal that contemporary critics weren’t all awed by the masterpiece; explain why David was finally moved indoors; and compare Michelangelo’s temperament with that of his Teenage Ninja Turtle namesake… Further Reading: • ’On this day 1504: Michaelangelo's David unveiled in Florence’ (The Independent, 2013): https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/features/on-this-day-1504-michaelangelo-s-david-unveiled-in-florence-8803221.html • ‘The story of Michelangelo's David’ (V&A Museum): https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/the-story-of-michelangelos-david • ‘Michelangelo's David, a Renaissance masterpiece’ (CBS Sunday Morning, 2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hukfocBvm0c Thanks so much for supporting the show! We massively appreciate it. The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill. Edit producer: Ollie Peart Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2024.

    11 min

  8. 6 SEPT

    The Self Service Revolution

    Rerun: Clarence Saunders opened the world’s first self-service supermarket, ‘Piggly Wiggly’, in Memphis, Tennessee on 6th September, 1916. Calculating that the revenues gained through impulse purchases would outweigh those lost from shoplifting, Saunders’ concept forever changed the world of shopping for groceries - but his business acumen did not last. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly review Saunders’ promotional hustles; weigh up the items in a shopping basket of the era; and reveal how ‘Piggly Wiggly’ (almost certainly) gained its distinctive name... Further Reading: • ‘The Untold Truth Of Piggly Wiggly’ (Mashed, 2021): https://www.mashed.com/426197/the-untold-truth-of-piggly-wiggly/ • ‘America's First Supermarket at 100: How It Changed the World’ (Time, 2016): https://time.com/4480303/supermarkets-history/ • ‘Piggly Wiggly, the first true grocery store - Life in America’ (Recollection Road, 2021): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVvgAd_5vpo 'Why am I hearing a rerun?’ Each Thursday and Friday we repeat stories from our archive of 800+ episodes, so we can maintain the quality of our independent podcast and bring you fresh, free content every Monday-Wednesday…  … But 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴members get an additional full-length episode each Sunday! Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    12 min
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Best Daily Podcast (British Podcast Awards 2023 nominee). Ten minute daily episodes bringing you curious moments from this day in history, with Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina and Arion McNicoll: The Retrospectors. It's history, but not as you know it! New eps Mon-Wed; reruns Thurs/Fri; Sunday exclusives at Patreon.com/Retrospectors and for Apple Subscribers.

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