Stuff You Missed in History Class

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Behind the Scenes Minis: Rose and Mamie Oct 21, 2022

Show notes

Holly and Tracy talk about the prediction of Houdini's death, and Rose Mackenberg's abundant bravado. They also discuss the long road the movie 'Till" took to get to the screen, and the film's careful handling of Mamie and Emmett's story.

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Interview: The Makers of 'Till' Oct 19, 2022

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The movie "Till" tells the story of Mamie Till-Mobley and her son Emmett. Actor Jalyn Hall and director Chinonye Chukwu talked with the podcast about the research and planning that went into bringing this important historical event to life.

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‘The Rev’ Rose Mackenberg Oct 17, 2022

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Rose Mackenberg spent decades working to uncover fraud taking place in the name of Spiritualism, first working for Houdini, and then on her own. In her work, she said she received messages from 1,000 dead husbands that never existed.

Research:

“Says Lawmakers Consult Mediums.” New York Times. Feb. 27, 1926. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1926/02/27/98846926.pdf?pdf_redirect=true&ip=0
“Houdini to Appear.” Evening Star. Feb. 21, 1926. https://www.newspapers.com/image/618515204/?fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjYxODUxNTIwNCwiaWF0IjoxNjYzNTk5MzU4LCJleHAiOjE2NjM2ODU3NTh9.B3_XUq4J-qd4aqWqqKe1SI5DVkQq6h7mOHCD_T8D-LY
Edwards, Gavin. “Overlooked No More: Rose Mackenberg, Houdini’s Secret ‘Ghost-Buster.’” New York Times. Dec. 6, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/06/obituaries/rose-mackenberg-overlooked.html
Williamson, E.W. “Spirit Fakers of City Fatten on War Grief.” Chicago Tribune. Aug. 5, 1945. https://www.newspapers.com/image/371848849
Mackenberg, Rose. “Her Business Is Exposing Spirit Fakers.” St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Sept. 12, 1937. https://www.newspapers.com/image/legacy/138984895/?clipping_id=81525804&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjEzODk4NDg5NSwiaWF0IjoxNjYzNTk4NjcxLCJleHAiOjE2NjM2ODUwNzF9.9dPqyrWvZ5eDs0bMQcmYOXPCMJwJQN1mN2tz1KdgctQ
“Houdini Urges Bill to Curb Mediums.” Evening Star. Feb. 26, 1926. https://www.newspapers.com/image/618515404/?clipping_id=81527215
Hartman, William C. “Hartmann’s Who’s Who in Occult, Psychic and Spiritual Realms.” 1925. http://www.ehbritten.org/docs/1925_hartmann_whos_who_in_occult_psychic_and_spiritual_realms_r.pdf
“Christ Coming in 2,000, Says Pastor.” Inidianapolis Star. Dec. 1, 1924. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/46052740/christ-coming-in-2000-says-pastor/
Lee, Karen. “The Astonishing Adventures of Houdini’s Favorite Detective.” Newspapers.com. July 20, 2021. https://blog.newspapers.com/astonishing-adventures-of-houdinis-favorite-detective/
Welshimer, Helen. “Made a Frump out of Herself to Expose the Fake Mediums.” Ogden Standard Examiner. Aug. 15, 1937. https://www.newspapers.com/image/596893320/?terms=Rose%20Mackenberg&match=1
“Pastor Defends Klan.” Indianapolis News. Oct. 2, 1922. https://www.newspapers.com/image/39565036/?
“HINTS OF SEANCES AT WHITE HOUSE.” New York Times. May 19, 1926. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1926/05/19/98379175.html?pageNumber=26
“Magician Pulls Local Minister Out of Audience.” Indianapolis Star. October 13, 1925. https://www.newspapers.com/image/104820857/?terms=%22Magician%20Pulls%20Local%20Minister%22&match=1
“’Not Interested,” Say Coolidges of Spiritualism.” Atlanta Constitution. May 19, 1926. https://www.newspapers.com/image/397965606
Mackenberg, Rose. “When Crime Poses as Spiritualism.” San Francisco Examiner. March 12, 1939. https://www.newspapers.com/image/458113189/
Polidoro, Massimo. “Final Seance: The Strange Friendship Between Houdini and Conan Doyle.” Prometheus Books. 2010.

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SYMHC Classics: Harry Houdini, Master Mystifier Oct 15, 2022

Show notes

This 2009 episode from previous hosts Katie and Sarah covers Harry Houdini, once known as the world's greatest magician. Houdini's reputation still resonates with modern fans of illusion and magic.

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Behind the Scenes Minis: Psychics and Serpents Oct 14, 2022

Show notes

Tracy and Holly discuss WWII submarine warfare as it related to Helen Duncan’s story. Tracy also shares her experience visiting the Mütter Museum when it was hosting an exhibit titled “Imperfecta.”

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Edward May's Strange Monster Oct 12, 2022

Show notes

In 1639, doctor Edward May published a 40-page text about a serpent he found in the heart of a 21-year-old man during a post-mortem examination. We don’t know exactly what it was, but there are plenty of theories.

Research:

Bush, Sargent Jr. “Bosom Serpents before Hawthorne: The Origins of a Symbol.” American Literature , May, 1971, Vol. 43, No. 2 (May, 1971). Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2924236
Church, William Selby. “The Rise of Physiology in England: The Harveian Oration Delivered Before the Royal College of Physicians, October 18th, 1895.” Adlard. 1896.
Denham, D.A. “A most certaine and true relation of a strange monster or serpent found in the left ventricle of the heart of John Pennant, gentleman, of the age of 21 years.” Transactions of The Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, Volume 71, Issue 5, 1977, Page 455, https://doi.org/10.1016/0035-9203(77)90066-9
Eades, Bentley Gerald. “The Jacobean and Caroline Stage Vol-ii.” The Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1941.
Healy, Simon. “KYNASTON, Sir Francis (1587-c.1649), of Oteley, Ellesmere, Salop; later of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Westminster and Covent Garden, Mdx.” he History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1604-1629, ed. Andrew Thrush and John P. Ferris, 2010. https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1604-1629/member/kynaston-sir-francis-1587-1649
May, Edward. “A most certaine and true relation of a strange monster or serpent found in the left ventricle of the heart of John Pennant, Gentleman, of the age of 21 yeares.” London : George Miller. 1639. https://archive.org/details/b3033973x
Morris, Thomas. “The man with a snake in his heart.” http://www.thomas-morris.uk/man-snake-heart/
Pender, Stephen. “Examples and Experience: On the Uncertainty of Medicine.” The British Journal for the History of Science , Mar., 2006, Vol. 39, No. 1. Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/4028546
Pennant, Thomas. “The History of the Parishes of Whiteford and Holywell.” B. and J. White. 1796.
Perella, Chrissie. “Teratology: ‘Monster’ as a medical term.” Historical Medical Library of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia. https://histmed.collegeofphysicians.org/for-students/teratology-monster-as-a-medical-term/
Richardson, Ruth. “Pennant's serpent.” The Lancet. Vol. 357, Issue 9260. 3/24/2001. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(05)71674-3/fulltext
Ross, Alexander. “Arcana microcosmi.” London : T. Newcomb. 1652. https://archive.org/details/b30329140/
Slights, William W.E. “The Narrative Heart of the Renaissance.” Renaissance and Reformation / Renaissance et Réforme. Winter/Hiver 2002. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43445471
The Public Domain Review. “A Monster in the Heart: Edward May’s A Most Certaine and True Relation (1639).” https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/heart-serpent
Woolley, Benjamin. “The herbalist : Nicholas Culpeper and the Fight for Medical Freedom.” HarperCollins, 2004.

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Helen Duncan, (Not) Scotland’s Last Witch Oct 10, 2022

Show notes

Helen Duncan is sometimes described as Scotland’s last witch, or the last person imprisoned for witchcraft in Britain, or the last person to be tried under the UK’s 1735 Witchcraft Act. None of those are quite accurate.

Research:

Undiscovered Scotland. “Helen Duncan.” https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/usbiography/d/helenduncan.html
“Scotland’s Last Witch.” Modern Scotland. https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/scottishhistory/modern/oddities_modern.shtml
“Britain's 'last witch': Campaign to pardon Helen Duncan.” 6/15/2012. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-18456106
Atkins, Harry. “Helen Duncan: Britain’s Last Witch.” History Hit. 6/10/2022. https://www.historyhit.com/helen-duncan-britains-last-witch/
Brown, Laura. “Helen Duncan.” The Scots Magazine. https://www.scotsmagazine.com/articles/series/a-z-of-great-scots-helen-duncan/
Price, Harry. “The Cheese-Cloth Worshippers by Harry Price.” Leaves from a Psychist's Case-Book (Victor Gollancz, 1933).
Meier, Allison C. “Ectoplasm and the Last British Woman Tried for Witchcraft.” JSTOR Daily. 9/13/2018. https://daily.jstor.org/ectoplasm-and-the-last-british-woman-tried-for-witchcraft/
Team Mighty. “A British Woman Was Convicted Under a Witchcraft Law During WWII.” The Archive. 9/7/2021. https://explorethearchive.com/helen-duncan
McPherson, Hamish. “The truth about the UK's last witch Helen Duncan.” The National. 5/8/2018. https://www.thenational.scot/news/16209915.truth-uks-last-witch-helen-duncan/
Schnuer, Jenna. "SPIRITED AWAY: After a devastating Royal Navy loss, military authorities felt duty bound to keep a careful eye on a famed Scottish mystic." World War II, vol. 34, no. 1, June 2019, pp. 64+. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A581176173/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=c973ec6a. Accessed 2 Sept. 2022.
Gaskill, Malcolm. "Britain's Last Witch." History Today, vol. 51, no. 5, May 2001, p. 6. Gale In Context: U.S. History, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A74483221/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=5c15ccbd. Accessed 2 Sept. 2022.
Gaskill, Malcolm. "Duncan [née MacFarlane], (Victoria) Helen McCrae (1897–1956), medium." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. Date of access 7 Sep. 2022, https://doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/66217
Collins, B. Abdy. “Spiritualism and the Law.” The Modern Law Review , July 1945, Vol. 8, No. 3 (Jul., 1945). https://www.jstor.org/stable/1090340
Old Bailey Trial Series. “The Trial of Mrs. Duncan.” C. E. Bechhofer Roberts, General Editor. 1945.
UK Parliament. “Witchcraft.” https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/private-lives/religion/overview/witchcraft/
UK Parliament. “Which Witch(Craft Act) Is Which?” 10/28/2020. https://archives.blog.parliament.uk/2020/10/28/which-witchcraft-act-is-which/
Vagrancy Act of 1824 https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1824/83/pdfs/ukpga_18240083_en.pdf
Fraudulent Mediums Act of 1951 https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1951/33/pdfs/ukpga_19510033_en.pdf
Earls, Averill and Marissa Rhodes. State Secrets: Helen Duncan’s Famous Witchcraft Trial.’ Dig: A History Podcast. 7/3/2022. https://digpodcast.org/2022/07/03/cheesecloth-spiritualism-and-state-secrets-helen-duncans-famous-witchcraft-trial/

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SYMHC Classics: Matthew Hopkins Oct 08, 2022

Show notes

This 2019 episode covers England’s largest and deadliest set of witch trials. They were largely influenced by one man, Matthew Hopkins, who was known as the Witchfinder General.

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Behind the Scenes Minis: Robeson and Schrepfer Oct 07, 2022

Show notes

Tracy and Holly talk about how racism stripped Paul Robeson of his career, and Robeson’s support of the communist Soviet Union. They also discuss whether Schrepfer may have accidentally poisoned himself.

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The Necromancy of Joann Georg Schrepfer Oct 05, 2022

Show notes

Johann George Schrepfer’s life story is clouded by his embellished and falsified tales of his necromancy and spiritualism. And both his followers and detractors also gave biased and incorrect accounts of their interactions with him.

Research:

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Seven Years’ War". Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Aug. 2022, https://www.britannica.com/event/Seven-Years-War
Andriopoulos, Stefan. “Kant’s Magic Lantern: Historical Epistemology and Media Archaeology.” Representations, vol. 115, no. 1, 2011, pp. 42–70. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.1525/rep.2011.115.1.42
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "necromancy". Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 May. 2011, https://www.britannica.com/topic/necromancy
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Freemasonry". Encyclopedia Britannica, 13 Aug. 2022, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Freemasonry
Geffarth, Renko. “The Masonic Necromancer: Shifting Identities In The Lives Of Johann Georg Schrepfer.” Brill. 2007. https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004162570.i-326.49
Museum - Naturalienkabinett Waldenburg. "Laterna magica" last modified 2021-11-26. https://global.museum-digital.org/object/1876368
Wustmann, Gustav, "Schrepfer, Johann Georg" in: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie 32 (1891), pp. 490-491 [online version]; URL: https://www.deutsche-biographie.de/pnd120914042
Museum - Naturalienkabinett Waldenburg. "Geisterkasten" last modified 2021-11-26. https://global.museum-digital.org/object/1876367
Rossel, Deac. “The Magic Lantern.” Ich Sehe was, was du nicht siehst! Sehmaschinen und Bilderwelten. 2002. https://www.academia.edu/345943

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