Today In History with The Retrospectors

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Becoming Princess Grace Apr 19, 2023

Show notes

Thirty million viewers watched Hollywood star Grace Kelly marry Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, on April 19th, 1956. The Royal wedding, at Saint Nicholas Cathedral, Monte Carlo, was filmed by MGM as a condition of releasing Kelly from her studio contract.

The couple had met after being put together for a magazine photoshoot at the Cannes Film Festival and were engaged within a few weeks of courting - despite the fact Kelly was already engaged to somebody else.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly unpick Kelly’s iconic gown, made of 274m of lace and 91m of silk; reveal why she had been forced to have a medical examination before the big day; and consider the cocktail menu that would have had the wedding guests feeling especially woozy…

Further Reading:

• ‘Grace Kelly’s Forever Look’ (Vanity Fair, 2010): https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2010/05/grace-kelly-201005

• ‘Why Grace Kelly, Hollywood icon, had to pay to become a princess’ (NY Post, 2021): https://nypost.com/2021/04/08/why-grace-kelly-hollywood-icon-had-to-pay-to-become-a-princess/

• ‘Grace Kelly Marries Prince Rainer III’ (MGM, 1956): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiOKFzRHm14

#France #Hollywood #50s #Royals #Fashion

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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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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It's Superman! Apr 18, 2023

Show notes

Action Comics #1, published on April 18th, 1938, featured the first ever appearance of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster’s iconic superhero, Superman.

The character already boasted invincibility, had a hopeless crush on Lois Lane, and an inexplicable penchant for wearing bright red underpants on the outside of his costume. But, as yet, he could not fly, did not live in Kansas, and did not work at the Daily Planet.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how Siegel and Shuster came to sell the rights to their creation for a paltry $130; reveal the Jewish subtexts of Krypton and Batman; and consider whether Superman’s liberal politics prevented DC from fully embracing the character they’d unleashed…

Further Reading:

• ‘Action Comics #1: Superman’ (DC, 1938): https://archive.org/details/superman-1938-issue-1/mode/2up

• ‘Superman at 80: The Jewish origins of the Man of Steel and the 'curse' that haunts the actors who play him’ (The Independent, 2018): https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/superman-jewish-origins-film-adaptations-curse-jerry-siegel-christopher-reeve-henry-cavill-a8344461.html

• ‘Superman’ (Columbia, 1948): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7soDPQUxpOk

#30s #Publishing #Jewish #Comics

Love the show? Join 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS 🌴 to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode every SUNDAY!

Plus, get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast.

Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Let's Buy London Bridge Apr 17, 2023

Show notes

Oil tycoon Robert P. McCulloch purchased London Bridge for $2,460,000 on 17th April, 1968. The Victorian structure, which had been sinking into the River Thames at a rate of one inch every eight years, was then dismantled stone by stone and shipped to the USA, where it now bestrides Lake Havasu City, Arizona.

The wheeze was the work of advertising executive-turned-London councilor Ivan Luckin, who convinced his colleagues that it might be possible to sell the bridge to pay for the costs of building a new one, and set about a marketing blitz including a press conference in New York in which he invoked the crossing’s illustrious Roman history.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly revisit the gaudy launch ceremony; debunk the myth that McCulloch thought he was buying Tower Bridge instead; and reveal that buying the bridge wasn’t even this eccentric entrepreneur’s wackiest idea…

Further Reading:

• ‘How London Bridge Ended Up In Arizona’ (HISTORY, 2016): https://www.history.com/news/how-london-bridge-ended-up-in-arizona

• Inside Arizona's London Bridge (BBC, 2018): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnHy4_P8SCE

• ‘London Bridge in America - The Tall Story of a Transatlantic Crossing, By Travis Elborough’ (Jonathan Cape, 2013):

https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/London_Bridge_in_America/n96uDvKN3ioC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Ivan+Luckin&pg=PA271&printsec=frontcover

Love the show? Join 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS 🌴 to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode every SUNDAY!

Plus, get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast.

Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Meet The Naked Chef Apr 14, 2023

Show notes

Jamie Oliver blasted on to British screens when his first TV series, ‘The Naked Chef’ premiered on BBC Two on 14th April, 1999.

Created by Pat Llewellyn for Optomen, the show was revolutionary for its use of jumpy, close-up camera work, and the presenter’s relaxed style and laddishness. The series and subsequent cookbook was credited with inspiring men to take to the kitchen, due to Oliver’s “blokey” approach and relatability - but also inspired a backlash against his ‘mockney’ delivery.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how fact met fiction when the TV set became Oliver’s real-life pad; reveal how the young chef was spotted in the background of another documentary entirely; and explore whether this phenomenon could have happened in any era other than Britpop Britain…

Further Reading:

• ‘The Oral History of Jamie Oliver's 'The Naked Chef'’ (VICE, 2019): https://www.vice.com/en/article/7xgpyb/the-oral-history-of-jamie-olivers-the-naked-chef

• ‘Jamie Oliver remembers incredibly special milestone with fans’ (HELLO!, 2019): https://www.hellomagazine.com/film/2019071875453/jamie-oliver-naked-chef-throwback-20th-anniversary/

• ‘The Naked Chef - Season 1, Episode 1 - Chefs' Night Off’ (BBC/Optomen, 1999): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_gXQvmHL3I

#UK #90s #TV #Food

We'll be back on Monday - unless you join 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴, where we give you ad-free listening AND a full-length Sunday episode every week!

Plus, weekly bonus content, unlock over 70 bonus bits, and support our independent podcast.

Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Crazy Queen of Spain Apr 13, 2023

Show notes

Joanna of Castile, was, as a young lady, remarked upon for her intellect and good companionship, and married off to prize catch Philip the Handsome - but by the time she died on 13th April, 1555 she was known colloquially by the name that’s stuck ever since: ‘Joanna The Mad’.

She had, by then, spent 45 years in prison at the hands of her own family, who had a political advantage in exaggerating her moments of instability to keep control of her territories.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly ask whether Joanna’s problems can be traced back to her troubling childhood; reveal her disturbing behaviour whilst she grieved for her philandering husband; and consider her legacy as a prototype for the ‘mad woman in the attic’ seen in so much Western literature…

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