Names Changed at Ellis Island
Do you remember the famous scene in the Godfather Part II, when the young Vito Andolini comes through the Ellis Island Immigration Processing Center and has his name changed to …
Myths
Nixon’s 1960 Southern Strategy
Historian Timothy Galsworthy explains the details and complications of the famous Republican “Southern Strategy” in the election of 1960. He tells us how this strategy was developed much earlier than …
Winston Churchill, Alexander Fleming, and Penicillin
It’s a Monday Myth day! A little extra credit to give you a Buzzkill boost for the start of your week! In the early days of email, a wonderfully-constructed tale …
Winston Churchill, Alexander Fleming, and Penicillin Listen Now
The Fashionable Politics of American Feminism
Dr. Einav Rabinovitch-Fox tells us how the rise of mass media culture made fashion a vehicle for women to assert claims over their bodies, femininity, and social roles. As women …
Mussolini Didn’t Make the Trains Run on Time
Ever been stuck on a train station platform, waiting and waiting for a train that was supposed to arrive half an hour ago? It’s a pain. What’s also a pain …
“History Disrupted” by Social Media and the Web
Jason Steinhauer joins us to talk over the brilliant ideas and analyses in his new book, “History Disrupted: How Social Media and the World Wide Web Have Changed the Past.” …
J. Edgar Hoover – Crossdresser? Monday Myth to Start the Week!
Imagine that you had helped build the largest and most sophisticated information-gathering agency in the history of the United States, turned it into the premier law-enforcement agency in the country, …
J. Edgar Hoover – Crossdresser? Monday Myth to Start the Week! Listen Now
Auld Lang Syne
28 December 2021 It’s that time of year, Buzzkillers, when we ring out the old and ring in the new. This is the end of another year of busting myths …
The 12 Days of Christmas – a Secret Song?
21 December 2021 Many of you Buzzkillers already know that most Christian churches celebrate Christmas over a period of 12 days. Depending upon the denomination, it lasts from December 25th …
Christmas: Commercialism, FDR, the Nazis, and Beyond!
Professor Philip Nash explains the complexities of the celebration and commercialism of Christmas — from the Roman holiday of Saturnalia to the Victorian era to the Nazi period and beyond! …
Christmas: Commercialism, FDR, the Nazis, and Beyond! Listen Now