America The Bizarre
85 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 3 years ago - ★★★★★ - 21 ratingsDive into the weirdness of American history each week with Jordan & Jeremy Rausch as they explore the crazy stories that shaped America into the beautiful weirdo she is today.
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Episodes
71 - Roe of Roe v. Wade
March 25, 2021 09:00 - 34 minutes - 34.3 MBWe discuss the life story of Norma McCorvey, the woman famously known as Jane Roe in the historic Roe v. Wade case, and her journey of becoming the face of the pro-choice movement and then her switch to becoming a prominent activist for pro-life groups.
70 - Rain, Rain, Bombs Away
March 18, 2021 09:00 - 38 minutes - 38.1 MBCongress passes legislation to bomb the sky in an effort to make some rain.
69 - Citizen Hirabayashi
March 11, 2021 10:00 - 45 minutes - 45.2 MBGordon Hirabayashi refused to comply with America's Japanese Relocation order to an internment camp. Instead, he fought all the way to the Supreme Court and when ordered to prison, hitchhiked all the way from Seattle to Tucson because the government didn't have the money to send him.
Special Presidential Trivia
February 25, 2021 10:00 - 1 minute - 5.14 MBAmerica the Bizarre will return with new episodes on March 11th. Until then, answer this week's presidential trivia for a chance to win a free t-shirt. Submit your answer to [email protected] or through the contact form at americathebizarre.com
68 - A History of Anti-Vaxxers
February 18, 2021 10:00 - 35 minutes - 37.2 MBAn enslaved man named Onesimus gave Cotton Mather information to create America's first smallpox inoculation, however, it was immediately met with push back and conspiracy theories.
67 - Amistad Rebellion
February 11, 2021 10:00 - 35 minutes - 39.5 MBIn 1839, a group of slave captives revolted against the slave ship's crew in an effort to secure their freedom which ultimately led to a fight in the Supreme Court.
66 - God Machine
February 04, 2021 08:10 - 43 minutes - 46.6 MBA 19th-century spiritualist believed that he could trap the second-coming of christ in a machine in order to save humanity.
65 - The Notorious Willie Dee
January 28, 2021 10:00 - 33 minutes - 34 MBThe Willie Dee had the worst luck of any battleship during WWII that led to them almost blowing up FDR.
64 - Human Guinea Pigs
January 21, 2021 10:00 - 44 minutes - 47.3 MBDuring World War II, some conscientious objectors chose to serve their country by signing up as human guinea pigs in scientific trials that starved them, infested them with lice, and gave them hepatitis.
63 - Fly Into The Hurricane
January 14, 2021 10:00 - 55 minutes - 57.1 MBColonel Duckworth bet a bunch of British pilots that he could fly his single-engine plane in and out of a hurricane. The loser had to buy the winner a cocktail.
62 - Killer Judge With A Bowie Knife
January 07, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 88.1 MBDavid S. Terry was a judge that had a reputation for having a hot temper and occasionally slashing at witnesses with his bowie knife. His second wife liked to do the same with a loaded pistol and they got into some trouble with US Supreme Court Justice Stephen Fields.
Holiday Re-Release: Bat Bombs
December 31, 2020 21:40 - 36 minutes - 37.7 MBWe discuss Dr. Lytle S. Adams, a dentist and part-time inventor that was inspired by his New Mexico vacation to use bats in his revenge plot against Japan for Pearl Harbor.
Holiday Re-Release: Moon Nukes
December 17, 2020 10:00 - 48 minutes - 43.1 MBIn this episode, we go back to the time that America tried to both bomb the moon and then store nuclear weapons on the moon.
Holiday Re-Release: Colter's Naked Run
December 10, 2020 10:00 - 38 minutes - 40.9 MBJohn Colter was a true American mountain man. One day he found himself caught by 800 Blackfeet warriors and had to run for his life. Oh, and he was completely naked.
61 - Lemurs and Quaaludes
December 03, 2020 10:00 - 40 minutes - 45.8 MBProfessor Buettner-Janusch was one of the first Americans to study lemurs and was very successful until he started using his research lab to make party drugs.
60 - The True Story of Squanto
November 26, 2020 10:00 - 38 minutes - 42.5 MBWe discuss the history of Squanto, why he spoke perfect English when the Pilgrims arrived at Plymouth, and his continuing relationship with the Pilgrims.
59 - Martha The Mouth
November 19, 2020 05:00 - 28 minutes - 33.4 MBMartha "Mouth of the South" Mitchell was taken hostage and drugged in order to keep her quiet about Nixon's involvement with Watergate.
58 - Psychic For President
November 12, 2020 10:00 - 43 minutes - 44.4 MBVictoria Woodhull was a clairvoyant and the first woman to run for president in the United States.
57 - Freedom Meters
November 05, 2020 10:00 - 47 minutes - 48.3 MBThe reason America doesn't use the metric system is a combination of pirates and the French snubbing us.
56 - Rathbone Murder
October 29, 2020 09:00 - 23 minutes - 26.8 MBMajor Rathbone failed to save Lincoln's life during his assassination. Rathbone carried the guilt with him until it took over with lethal consequences.
55 - The Pledge
October 22, 2020 09:00 - 45 minutes - 48.3 MBJoin us during our 1 year birthday to discuss how the pledge of allegiance was written by a socialist nationalist in order to sell flags to children.
54 - The Year Without A Summer
October 15, 2020 10:00 - 35 minutes - 41.8 MBIn April of 1815, the volcano Mount Tambora erupted and caused a massive ash cloud that cooled the entire Earth. Americans dealt with snowstorms that occured all throughout 1816 and struggled to grow crops and keep their animals alive.
53 - Government Poisoned Alcohol
October 08, 2020 09:00 - 35 minutes - 40.5 MBDuring prohibition, people still drank a lot. In order to combat this, the government began to poison industrial alcohol that ended up killing around 50,000 Americans.
52 - Surprise Guam, It's America
October 01, 2020 09:00 - 38 minutes - 46.8 MBGuam was never aware that the Spanish-American War was happening until America showed up to take over.
51 - Louisiana Hippo Farms
September 24, 2020 09:00 - 42 minutes - 50.3 MBAt the turn of the 20th century, America was facing a massive meat shortage. The solution? Hippo farms in Louisiana
50 - Wickedest City In America
September 17, 2020 09:00 - 49 minutes - 54.5 MBGeneral Patton once threatened to level Phenix City, Alabama which was once dubbed "The Wickedest City in America"
49 - Coney Island Babies
September 10, 2020 10:00 - 44 minutes - 50.1 MBPremature babies had extremely high mortality rates until a showman doctor opened up his incubator baby exhibit on Coney Island, attracting visitors and desperate parents from all over the world to marvel at this new technology.
48 - The President's Party Blew Up
September 03, 2020 10:00 - 44 minutes - 48.9 MBPresident John Tyler threw a huge party on the USS Princeton to celebrate the future annexation of Texas. Then tragedy struck.
47 - The Great Taxidermist
August 27, 2020 10:00 - 53 minutes - 63.7 MBCarl Akeley revolutionized taxidermy while also becoming a prolific inventor, hunter, and conservationist. There was also that time he killed a leopard with his bare hands.
46 - Ludlow Massacre
August 20, 2020 10:00 - 32 minutes - 35.9 MBIn 1914, Rockefeller ordered to have strikers in his mining company shot and their homes burned to the ground.
45 - Deadlier Than The Titanic
August 13, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 34 MBWhen the Sultana steamboat exploded on the Mississippi River, it killed around 1,800 people. In comparison, 1,500 people died when the Titanic sank 47 years later.
44 - Commie Congressman
August 06, 2020 10:00 - 35 minutes - 36.5 MBWe discuss the congressman that spied for the USSR, who they nicknamed "Crook"
43 - Boy Band Ponzi Scheme
July 30, 2020 06:57 - 57 minutes - 54.6 MBLou Pearlman created both Backstreet Boy and NSYNC, while also swindling hundreds out of their life savings.
42 - Reverse Underground Railroad
July 23, 2020 09:00 - 32 minutes - 33 MBPatty Cannon made a living kidnapping freed black Americans and selling them into slavery in the South, a system that is now known as the reverse underground railroad.
41 - The Last War Chief
July 16, 2020 10:00 - 35 minutes - 39.4 MBJoe Medicine Crow completed all four tasks to become a Crow War Chief during World War II, including stealing some Nazi's horses.
40 - Radioactive Oatmeal
July 09, 2020 10:00 - 35 minutes - 40.9 MBIn 1949, MIT fed students in a school for mentally-disabled children oatmeal covered in radioactive tracers.
39 - MacArthur's Secret Lady
July 02, 2020 10:00 - 41 minutes - 50.3 MBWhen MacArthur returned from the Phillippines to become the Army Chief of Staff, he brought home a mistress, 16-year-old Isabel "Dimples" Cooper.
38 - The Big Lazy
June 25, 2020 10:00 - 57 minutes - 68.3 MBThere is a stereotype that Southerners are dumb and lazy. One scientist went on a mission to discover why. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
37 - Bombing Naco
June 18, 2020 10:00 - 27 minutes - 33.5 MBPatrick Murphy was hired by Mexican rebels to bomb Mexican federal forces. The problem was he ended up bombing Arizona instead. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
36 - Kentucky Meat Shower
June 11, 2020 10:00 - 37 minutes - 39.8 MBWe discuss the day that a wagon-full of meat mysteriously rained down on a farm in Kentucky. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
35 - Buffalo Soldiers On Iron Steeds
June 04, 2020 10:00 - 1 hour - 69.6 MBIt's Jeremy's turn to tell the story this week and he chose the history of the black buffalo soldiers that formed the Army's first bicycle corps. America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
34 - The Dueling Abolitionist
May 28, 2020 10:00 - 32 minutes - 38.4 MBCassius M. Clay was an outspoken abolitionist and won several gunfights with a bowie knife. Learn about the man that Muhammad Ali was originally named after. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
33 - The Goat Nut Doctor Part 2
May 21, 2020 09:58 - 37 minutes - 37.1 MBIn the second part of this story, Dr. Brinkley starts the biggest radio station in the world and uses it to advertise his goat testicle surgery, speak about his love for Nazis, and make country music popular. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
32 - The Goat Nut Doctor Part 1
May 14, 2020 10:00 - 47 minutes - 43.4 MBDr. John R. Brinkley became famous and rich in the 1920's for sewing goat testicles into men's bodies. But was he even a real doctor? Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
31 - Riot For Your Right To Party
May 07, 2020 10:00 - 36 minutes - 42.1 MBIn 1969, 3,000 college students came to party in the tiny town of Zap, North Dakota. Then the town ran out of beer, the students rioted, and the National Guard had to be called in. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
30 - Glitter Space Cult
April 30, 2020 10:00 - 45 minutes - 45 MBWhen Ruth Norman's husband died, she took over his space cult and turned into a glittery fashion public access tv show. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
29 - Blind Bomber
April 23, 2020 10:00 - 38 minutes - 38.2 MBIn 1955, the largest department store in Portland, Oregon was bombed. The detectives only had one suspect, Clarence Peddicord. The only problem was that Clarence was blind. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
28 - A Graveyard of Revenge
April 16, 2020 10:00 - 41 minutes - 39.6 MBRobert E. Lee was Montgomery Meigs's friend and idol until Lee became a traitor to the Union. Meigs decided the best revenge was to bury a bunch of soldiers around Lee's house. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
27 - Layover in Havana
April 09, 2020 07:00 - 49 minutes - 50.6 MBFlying was way nicer in the 60's than it is now, the food was amazing and there was tons of legroom. There was also a lot of hijackings. Between 1968 and 1972, 130 American planes were hijacked and many of them ended up in Havana, Cuba. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/
26 - The Insane History of Jetpacks
April 02, 2020 08:32 - 45 minutes - 73.8 MBThis story has it all: jetpacks, Nazis, James Bond, Michael Jackson, murder, kidnapping and more. It doesn't get cooler or crazier than jetpacks. Support America The Bizarre: https://www.patreon.com/americathebizarre Sources & Merchandise: https://www.americathebizarre.com/