The Story Behind

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Speakeasies | Prohibition's Open Secret (TSB014) Dec 05, 2016

Show notes

There are lots of experiments that have come and gone. And not just experiments you'll find in science laboratories or chemistry classes.

For example, if you were around for the early days of Facebook, back when it was known as "THE Facebook," you might remember the slogan "a social experiment." But it wasn't the first social experiment, and it certain won't be the last. Prohibition, otherwise known as a constitutional ban on the making and selling of alcoholic beverages, was known as the Noble Experiment from 1920-1933.

It's safe to say the experiment failed, considering many lost their jobs, restaurants and clubs were put out of business, and prohibition gave way to corruption and an increase in underground crime, not to mention an exorbitant amount of power wielded to mobsters and bootleggers like Al Capone.

Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys once said, "For every prohibition you create, you also create an underground."

I'm your host, Emily Prokop, and this is The Story Behind Speakeasies.

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Check out #PodernFamily on Twitter to find other great indie podcasts like this one.

The role of Jello Biafra was played by Mark from the Unskippable podcast, and Eleanor Roosevelt was played by Tammy Terwelp, General Manager of 91.5 KRCC, Southern Colorado's NPR Station.

Click here to support this podcast on Patreon.

Media:

Music for Makers

Sources:

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/j/jello_biafra.html

http://www.history.com/news/hungry-history/prohibition-speakeasies-and-finger-foods

http://www.legendsofamerica.com/ah-prohibitionspeakeasy.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2268971/Inside-speakeasies-1920s-The-hidden-drinking-spots-transformed-New-York-Citys-night-life-prohibition-era-beyond.html

http://www.blackpast.org/aah/cotton-club-harlem-1923

https://www.thrillist.com/drink/nation/secret-bars-hard-to-find-speakeasies

http://www.legendsofamerica.com/20th-gangsters.html

https://parachute.mapquest.com/2016/03/16/five-hardest-speakeasies-to-get-into/

http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1085.html

Stenomasks | Shorthand Sweet (TSB013) Dec 01, 2016

Show notes

Many around my age remember talking to our friends on AOL Instant Messenger after school and using netspeak for things like LOL or JK or BRB for Laughing Out Loud, Just Kidding or Be Right Back, which no one really does anymore with the internet.

But every generation has a way of shortening their writing, it seems. Decades ago, high-schoolers took classes on a way of writing called shorthand, which was used in offices for dictation, for reporters taking notes at a quick pace and court reporters transcribing the proceedings. But, sometimes even court reporters couldn't write shorthand quickly enough to keep up with fast-talkers, and, as seen in all great infomercials, someone said, "There's Got To Be A Better Way!"

I'm your host, Emily Prokop, and this is The Story Behind Stenomasks.

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Check out #PodernFamily on Twitter to find other great indie podcasts like this one.

The role of Pappy Ward was played by Adam from Everyone has a Podcast.

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Media:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxVQ9rhjyTY

Music for Makers

Sources:

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34603886

https://talktech.com/history/

http://www.phillycourtreporters.com/the-stenomask-your-court-reporting-nighmares-realized/

http://www.lrb.co.uk/v30/n23/leah-price/diary

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/06/a-brief-history-of-shorthand/

http://pitmania.com/shorthand-deathmatch-pitman-v-gregg-2/

http://sixminutes.dlugan.com/speaking-rate/

Mount Rushmore | Stone-Faced Presidents (TSB012) Nov 28, 2016

Show notes

Yelp Review: 1 Star"If I could give zero to this collection of 'Merican phat pants ice cream zoo I would. This is a disgrace to the park system. Don't go here. Stay in the hills or badlands instead. I do not think it is patriotic to deface a mountain. Also the surrounding towns are horrible. I am pretty sure that the next gathering of the juggalos is taking place around here somewhere."

Yelp Review: 1 Star "Not to downplay the achievements of the monument ... but, it was really not that awesome. Seriously, you can only look at giant heads carved into the side of a mountain for so long. We drove across the country and through South Dakota for this?"

Yelp Review: 1 Star "not very good. kind of scary imo. my little sister cried. do NOT bring kids to this thing."

Despite the one-star Yelp reviews, this South Dakota monument attracts more than 2 million tourists per year, became a sought-after movie backdrop by Alfred Hitchcock, which caused rumors and controversy with the National Parks Service, and started off with a 14-year construction using nearly 400 men and women.

I'm your host, Emily Prokop, and this is The Story Behind Mount Rushmore.

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The One-Star Yelp Reviews were read by Adam and Bryon from Everyone has a Podcast and Porter from Porter's Podcast.

The role of Bill Challis was played byRich Grimshaw, a forensic engineer from Cumming, Georgia. Brandon from the Basement Condition Podcast played Gutzon Borglum, and Podcast Rob from The Something-Something Cast played Alfred Hitchcock.

Check out #PodernFamily on Twitter to find other great indie podcasts like this one.

Click here to support this podcast on Patreon.

Media:

Music for Makers

Sources:

http://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/mount-rushmore

http://www.rosyinn.com/1320a1.html

http://www-tc.pbs.org/nationalparks/media/pdfs/untold_stories_mount_rushmore.pdf

https://www.nps.gov/moru/learn/historyculture/carving-history.htm

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/primary-resources/rushmore-north-northwest/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Rushmore_in_popular_culture

http://ghostsnghouls.com/2013/10/04/mount-rushmore-haunted/

http://www.azquotes.com/author/50630-Gutzon_Borglum

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/biography/rushmore-borglum/

https://www.yelp.com/biz/mount-rushmore-national-memorial-keystone-2?

The Cornucopia | From Greek Mythology to the Hunger Games (TSB011) Nov 24, 2016

Show notes

Even though my family's dining room table is usually too full of food for any sort of decoration, there's one particular centerpiece associated with Thanksgiving. Whether you paid an exorbitant amount of money for one at Williams-Sonoma, or found one at a consignment shop, this symbol of abundance has been seen

In this episode, we'll be talking about Greek mythology involving the horn of plenty, how it came to grace Thanksgiving tables and still-life paintings, and even its appearance in The Hunger Games.

I'm your host Emily Prokop and this is The Story Behind The Cornucopia.

Follow The Story Behind: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Website

Check out #PodernFamily on Twitter to find other great indie podcasts like this one.

Click here to support this podcast on Patreon.

Media:

Music for Makers

Sources:

http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/from-zeus-to-williamssonoma-the-history-of-the-cornucopia

http://www.theoi.com/Ther/AixAmaltheia.html

http://www.mythphile.com/2010/11/the-cornucopia-horn-of-plenty-in-greek-myth/

http://www.brighthubeducation.com/history-homework-help/126590-what-is-a-cornucopia/

http://thehungergames.wikia.com/wiki/Cornucopia

http://www.thedailymeal.com/history-cornucopia

Comic Sans | The Font Choice of Batman and the Pope (TSB010) Nov 21, 2016

Show notes

As a parent of a kindergartener, I get a lot of notices home from my daughter's school. Bake sales, fundraisers, notices about upcoming events, all that fun stuff. And, I'm convinced public schools are only given access to one font for these flyers. And, as an editor for print publications for more than 10 years, it drives me absolutely bonkers.

In this episode, we'll talk about Batman's inspiration in the font world, designers who despise clients who ask for this particular font, and the man responsible for mountains of internet hate.

I'm Emily Prokop and this is The Story Behind Comic Sans.

Follow The Story Behind: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Website

Check out #PodernFamily on Twitter to find other great indie podcasts like this one.

Click here to support this podcast on Patreon.

Media:

MusicForMakers.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zq7Eki5EZ8o

Sources:

https://www.kidscodecs.com/why-designers-hate-comic-sans/

http://www.connare.com/whycomic.htm

http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/comic-sans?full=1

http://mashable.com/2012/10/03/comic-sans-history/#HVKEwcT9kkqU

http://comicsansproject.tumblr.com/

http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/weirdalyankovic/tacky.html

https://www.dyslexic.com/fonts/

Hoodies | For the Everyday Athlete, Rapper and CEO (TSB009) Nov 17, 2016

Show notes

As basic as the need for warmth and being covered is, fashion has taken a basic need to a completely different level at times. You could pick up any yearbook from the 1980s as proof of that. But sometimes the most simple articles of clothing create the biggest impact. Look at what James Dean accomplished with just a white T-shirt or the everlasting impact of Jackie Onassis' large sunglasses, or even being able to look at the backside of Bruce Springsteen in his iconic jeans and know exactly who it is.

In this episode, we're sticking with the basics and, as I'm from New England, you can't get much more basic than a sweatshirt this time of year. The warm and casual look has been tried and true and, even though what prompted this episode was a seeing a cropped version of this fashion that I still don't quite understand. I'm your host, Emily Prokop, and this is The Story Behind Hoodies.

Follow The Story Behind: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Website

Check out #PodernFamily on Twitter to find other great indie podcasts like this one.

Click here to support this podcast on Patreon.

Media:

Music for Makers

Sources:

http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/the-history-of-the-hoodie-20120403

https://youtu.be/zj7qEcD8R-8?t=20s

http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/18/justice/florida-teen-shooting-details/

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/trayvon-martin/article1953286.html

http://time.com/4192840/mark-zuckerberg-wardrobe-facebook-photo/

http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/27/living/history-hoodie-trayvon-martin/

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/23/opinion/23wilson.html?_r=0

http://www.npr.org/2012/03/24/149245834/tragedy-gives-the-hoodie-a-whole-new-meaning

https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/trayvon-martin-million-hoodie-march-a-short-history-of-the-hoodie/2012/03/22/gIQAeGCnTS_blog.html

Sadie Hawkins | Marry the Man Today (TSB008) Nov 14, 2016

Show notes

I loved dances in high school. As an adult, I think the closest we have to school dances are weddings, but it's still not the same excitement of the unexpected that came from school dances. Except for November of my sophomore year. There was one dance I did not look forward to: Sadie Hawkins Day Dance. I was lucky enough to have a girl who looked enough like me in passing who I got to ask for me. Thank god every girl at the time had the Rachel hair cut.

That, in and of itself, should indicate how times have changed since then. And now, it's common for girls to ask boys to any dance or boys to ask boys or girls to ask girls or to not have to ask anyone at all.

In this episode, we'll be talking about the fictional comic strip character; her creator, a misogynist; the Greek myth she may be based on, and and how she inspired women in the '50s to chase men around campuses in the '50s. I'm your host, Emily Prokop, and this is the story behind Sadie Hawkins.

Follow The Story Behind: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Website

Check out #PodernFamily on Twitter to find other great indie podcasts like this one.

The role of Al Capp was played by Nick from the Epic Film Guys podcast.

Click here to support this podcast on Patreon.

Media:

Music for Makers

Sources:

http://www.womenyoushouldknow.net/ugly-truth-behind-sadie-hawkins-day/

http://reason.com/archives/2013/02/26/the-wizard-of-dogpatch

http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/02/29/get-ready-ladies-leap-day-is-also-sadie-hawkins-day/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atalanta

http://www.greekmythology.com/Myths/Heroes/Atlanta/atlanta.html

https://www.romper.com/p/what-is-sadie-hawkins-day-its-outdated-tradition-that-just-wont-die-6428

http://mentalfloss.com/article/29084/who-sadie-hawkins-and-why-does-she-have-her-own-dance

https://books.google.com/books?id=SFUEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA108&lpg=PA108#v=onepage&q&f=false

http://daysgoneby.me/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/sadie-hawkins-day-1955.jpg

The Electoral College | A Post-Election Special Episode (TSB007) Nov 13, 2016

Show notes

Welcome to a special episode of The Story Behind. There will still be two regular episodes this week, but following the 2016 election results, I wanted to do a special episode on The Story Behind the Electoral College.

Many are wondering why do Electoral Votes matter and what do they mean; why, if Hillary Clinton won the popular vote, did she not win the presidency; and just what does the Electoral College really do?

In this episode, we'll discuss how this institution came to be, the impact of its decisions, and why some people are still saying Hillary Clinton could win the presidency.

I'm your host, Emily Prokop, and this is The Story Behind the Electoral College.

Click here to support this podcast on Patreon.

Media:

Music for Makers

Sources:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9H3gvnN468

http://time.com/4560682/faithless-electors/

http://people.howstuffworks.com/electoral-college1.htm

http://www.history.com/topics/electoral-college

http://www.ibtimes.com/can-hillary-clinton-still-win-electoral-college-vote-december-after-candidate-wins-2445319

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2016-11-10/the-electoral-college-what-is-it

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/09/us/politics/how-does-the-electoral-college-work.html?_r=0

http://www.snopes.com/2016/11/11/the-electoral-college-and-the-popular-vote/

http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/11/11/13588048/electoral-college-petition-clinton-trump

http://heavy.com/news/2016/11/faithless-electors-petition-change-org-fine-trump-hillary-clinton-by-state-crime-illegal-electoral-college-when-does-meet/

Peanut Butter | Cheap, Easy and Worth Fighting For (TSB006) Nov 10, 2016

Show notes

Before there were allergy-free tables in school cafeterias, it seemed every kid when I was growing up had a PB&J sandwich in their lunch at least once a week. It seems almost foreign to me now to make my daugher's lunch and have to move the household Jif aside to grab some allergy-friendly sunflower seed butter for her sandwiches -- and, no, she's not allergic, but I can't look like a terrible mom, taunting the kids with a peanut allergy with an amazing Fluffernutter in my daughter's lunch.

Beginning as a slave food, then a source of protein during World War 2, and, even though it's not as loved by our friends over in the UK, it's still an American staple and favorite.

I'm your host, Emily Prokop, and this is The Story Behind Peanut Butter

Check out #PodernFamily on Twitter to find other great indie podcasts like this one.

The role of Ruth Desmond was played by Lisa from Crime & Precedents, and Mark from the Unskippable Podcast played Lee Avera.

Click here if you'd like to support the podcast through Patreon.

Media:

Music for Makers

Sources:

http://peanutbutterlovers.com/pb-lovers/pb101/history/

http://www.beaconlearningcenter.com/documents/4182_3506.pdf

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/love-me-love-my-gunk-why-dont-brits-love-peanut-butter-as-much-as-americans-do-7622212.html

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2009/02/why_do_americans_love_peanut_butter.html

http://nationalpeanutboard.org/peanut-info/fun-facts.htm

http://nationalpeanutboard.org/peanut-info/who-invented-peanut-butter.htm

http://mentalfloss.com/article/32042/corn-flakes-were-invented-part-anti-masturbation-crusade

http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/why-midcentury-lawyers-spent-12-years-arguing-about-peanut-butter

https://books.google.com/books?id=0PQYBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA108&lpg=PA108&dq=The+Peanut+Butter+Hearings&source=bl&ots=YKvl5icrZB&sig=CqNbwlxHlPui51y6zWFkHiVjuzE&hl=en&sa=X&ei=llWPVKThG621sQS2rYC4Ag&ved=0CEIQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=The%2520Peanut%2520Butter%2520Hearings&f=false

Secret Ballots | A "No Duh" Solution to Election Day Violence (TSB005) Nov 07, 2016

Show notes

If you live in the United States and you're listening to this on the day it comes out, you may be feeling a number of different emotions about tomorrow's election. From anger to confidence, fear to even indifference, you know that casting your ballot means you realize that your voice has the right to be heard and that your opinions on how this country should be run matters.

And, as long as you're over the age of 18 and a citizen, you can walk into your local polling place and cast your ballot in complete secrecy, no matter what your family, friends or coworkers think of your candidate -- whoever you pick is known only to you. It's something we now take for granted and, in this episode, we'll talk about how public voting was influenced, how Australia set an international precedent, and just how recent the switch from public to personal voting was. I'm your host, Emily Prokop, and this is The Story Behind Secret Ballots.

Check out #PodernFamily on Twitter to find other great indie podcasts like this one.

Click here to support this podcast on Patreon.

Media:

Music for Makers

Sources:

http://www.history.com/topics/the-26th-amendment

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2008/10/13/rock-paper-scissors

http://inthepastlane.com/tag/australian-ballot-in-america/

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/boss-tweed-delivered-to-authorities

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/07/abolish-the-secret-ballot/309038/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/WryVwsknTr-aa4IQ-ID9iQ

https://www.theguardian.com/notesandqueries/query/0,,-1051,00.html