Useless Information Podcast

Should parents be held responsible for the crimes that their children commit? Listen to this story from 1947 detailing just what happened when New York City tried to do just that. Also learn about the countries that drink the most coffee, a ring-turning fad, sun lamp parties, and tattooed pantyhose. Retrosponsor: Fram Oil Filters Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Back in 1920, Newark, NJ was host to one of the most bizarre funerals ever.  An estimated 10,000 people lined the streets to witness the funeral procession of Jimmie the singing canary.  Also learn the name of the dog on Cracker Jack packaging, a snake that milked a cow, a raccoon that saved its owners' lives, and how a pack of dogs interfered with a sheep study.  Retrosponsor: Hartz Mountain Pet Products. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fun story from 1923.  Newspapers around the United States reported daily on the health of the Fever Girl - a woman with the highest temperature ever recorded to that date.  Would she live or die?  Listen to this episode to find out all of the details.  Also learn about the current high-fever record holder plus three tidbits about teachers. Retrosponsor: Velveeta. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You may have heard about the Californian couple that found five cans of gold coins on their property.  Two Baltimore boys made a similar discovery back in 1934, but this pot of gold proved to be anything but lucky.  Also learn about people that were paid to wake others up before alarm clocks, four daughters that could never marry, a lawsuit against Jackie Robinson, and an incident involving a minibike and a dog.  Retrosponsor: Tums Antacid Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever just had enough of your job and wanted to walk away from it?  Bus driver William Cimillo found himself in this position back in 1947 and his unique solution made him an instant celebrity.  Also learn how many men have ever walked on the moon and three different stories related to tsunamis.  Retrosponsor: Rio Grande Cracked Gasoline Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joseph Ellsworth Holmes was a career criminal serving a twenty-year sentence for being the "dinner-time burglar." His great escape in 1951 elevated him to celebrity status overnight. Also, learn about the origin of Pepsodent toothpaste, a man who waited 36 years to be reunited with his wife, a dying Navy officer's wish fulfilled after eighteen years, and a pastor who earned his medical degree after 45 years of part-time study.  Retrosponsor: Pepsodent Toothpaste Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/tunnel-joe-holmes/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A long-forgotten front page story from January of 1945 that involved the US military, the White House, a Hollywood actress, and one big dog.  Also, learn the full name of FDR's famous Scottie Fala, a man who was sucked out of his boots by a jet engine, a family that opted to do some gold mining in their home, and a woman who survived a half-mile fall without a parachute.  Retrosponsor: Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/the-blaze-incident/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alexander Ector Orr Munsell was an incredibly wealthy man during the Great Depression. He seemed to have it all until he suddenly gave it all away to live among the poor in a flophouse.  Find out why he chose to do so and what happened after that. Also, learn about Pantone colors, as well as three different people who used the wrong ingredients while cooking, resulting in the deaths of their loved ones.  Retrosponsor: Horlick's Malted Milk.   Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/munsell-mr-moneybags/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's absolutely true! When the United States started Parcel Post service in 1913, both babies and small children were mailed. Listen to this story to learn why it was done and how it ended. Also, learn about the first unsigned band to appear on Saturday Night Live, a new father who couldn't find the hospital door, a bizarre case of supposed illegal search and seizure, as well as the mother-in-law who didn't know how to drive. Retrosponsor: Penn-Daw Motor Hotel. Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/152/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A story of compassion and generosity as young Suzy Dewey navigated the final months of her life. Also, find out about the first athlete to ever appear on the front of a Wheaties cereal box, two brothers who split the driving responsibilities, a blind man who wanted to know what it was like to drive, and the 128 blind men in Kansas that once held driver's licenses. Retrosponsor: Wheaties. Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/the-short-life-of-suzy-dewey/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At the end of World War II, the United States was faced with the task of reburying four bodies of former German nobility. The three men assigned to the task ran in obstacle after obstacle.  Also, learn about Cap'n Crunch's full name, a dentist who would let you extract his tooth, male chest "tapestries", and a ban on padded bras. Retrosponsor: Faultless Starch Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/operation-bodysnatch/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some mysterious force was bringing garden hoses all over the United States to life back in 1955. Find out what the hoses did and how one owner named George Di Peso finally put an end to all of the madness.  Also, learn the original name of the Wheel of Fortune game show, how elephants helped clear traffic in Berlin, where some missing hogs were hiding, and how a tortoise lost during World War II was ultimately found.  Retrosponsor: Aero-Wax Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/attack-of-the-50-foot-garden-hose/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The true story of a US Navy radioman who was hunted by the Japanese during World War II.  Also, learn the name of Wrigley's first chewing gum, how XYZ pays his taxes, a woman who was indirectly shot by a porcupine, and a woman who mowed her lawn in a 2-piece bathing suit. Retrosponsor: Wrigley's Spearmint Gum. Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/george-tweed-the-ghost-of-guam/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The heart-wrenching tale of the Pleasant Hill School Bus Tragedy, in which a freak snowstorm and a series of unfortunate decisions led to the tragic deaths of five children and their bus driver in 1931. Also learn about the world's second richest charity, topless male swimming, capturing an island, and the blood-sucking boarder.  Retrosponsor: Ovaltine Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/the-pleasant-hill-school-bus-tragedy/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Easter Sunday 1937 murders of Veronica Gedeon, her mom Mary, and Frank Byrnes in NYC launched an intense nationwide hunt for the killer.  There were few clues to go on, but two bars of soap provided police with the conclusive evidence that they needed.  Also learn about the first product to bear the Duncan Hines name, a phone sicko that scared parents, a death from Smokey the Bear, and women who were tricked into removing their hair.  Retrosponsor: Mother's Best Flour. Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/robert-irwin-ivory-soap-murders/ You can follow the Useless Information Podcast on these platforms: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/uselessinformationpodcast X (Twitter): https://t.co/7pV2H8iXJV Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/FlipSideofHistory/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alvin Rodecker and his wife chose to celebrate his 60th birthday in style. It was to be an incredible, memorable trip to New York City. If only he had looked up after upon leaving a ritzy restaurant...  Also learn the name of the first commercially available windshield wipers, the death of Bonzo the chimpanzee, the kidnapping of Itsy the poodle, and another poodle that took a drive in his owner's car.  Retrosponsor: Prell shampoo.  Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/alvin-rodecker-the-sky-is-falling/ You can follow the Useless Information Podcast on these platforms: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/uselessinformationpodcast X (Twitter): https://t.co/7pV2H8iXJV Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/FlipSideofHistory/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Akron, Ohio citizen Larry Bader and Omaha, Nebraska sportscaster Fritz Johnson were complete opposites of one other. Yet, the two men looked like they could have been twins. Find out what happened when one was thought to be the other.  Also, learn about Robert Recorde's contribution to mathematics, a girl shot dead by a military gunner, boys who found gold in the sewer, and the guy who thought his house was stolen.  Retrosponsor: ENNDS Chlorophyll Tablets. Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/larry-bader-dead-ringers/ You can follow the Useless Information Podcast on these platforms: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/uselessinformationpodcast X (Twitter): https://t.co/7pV2H8iXJV Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/FlipSideofHistory/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Back in 1943, 53 women were fired by Vought-Sikorsky Aircraft for wearing sweaters to work. Listen to this story to discover the details and how it was ultimately resolved.  Also, learn about the first native Australian act to have a number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States, the man who kissed his wife, the holiday wedding that completed a family circle, and a couple that married twenty years after they were first engaged.  Retrosponsor: Jello Gelatin Audio, transcript, and images can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/sikorsky-sweater-girls/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The long-forgotten story of a poor woman named Helen McCarthy who lived a fairytale life for 24 hours. Was she able to live happily ever after? Also, find out about the first transuranium element created, two brothers who were reunited after seventeen years, an Elvis Presley sideburn ultimatum, and a color-changing baby.  Retrosponsor: Charles Schwartz & Sons.  Audio, transcript, and images can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/helen-mccarthy-apple-annie/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The amazing true story of a small-town doctor who was loved by all. When he was arrested for committing a crime that could have endangered fellow community members, they didn't abandon their faith in him.  Also, learn about the origin of the famous N-Y logo of the New York Yankees, a 10-year-old girl who sued a 14-year-old boy, the little girl who purchased seven pedigree puppies for her friends, and the boy who had his babysitter arrested.  Retrosponsor: Cashmere Bouquet Talcum Powder Audio, transcript, and images can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/freddie_brandt_dr_brown/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices