Useless Information Podcast

Podcasting since 2008! - It really is all true! Quirky, bizarre, and unusual stories from the Flip Side of History.

History
Comedy
Society & Culture
51
Retrocast #14 - UI Podcast #189
A man claims his wife snores in Morse code, the AMA recommends those over 40 not do the Twist, and more!
24 min
52
The Newburyport Anti-Inflation Plan - UI #188
In 1947, Newburyport, MA came up with a plan to fight runaway inflation. Did it work?
33 min
53
Christmas Retrocast - UI Podcast #187
10 long-forgotten true stories from Christmas past!
18 min
54
Bad Apples #5 - The Bishop's Wife - UI #186
A review of the 1947 classic Christmas movie "The Bishop’s Wife," starring Cary Grant, Loretta Young, and David Niven.
33 min
55
200 Years of Twas the Night - UI Podcast #185
Author Pamela McColl discusses the history of the classic poem Twas the Night Before Christmas.
57 min
56
The Cryptanalyst (Part 3) - UI Podcast #184
Marvin Lautzenheiser discusses leaving the FBI, modeling nuclear wars, his patents, and his theater organ.
62 min
57
The Cryptanalyst (Part 2) - UI Podcast #183
FBI cryptanalyst Marvin Lautzenheiser discusses how his team finally cracked the Hollow Nickel message and much more.
53 min
58
The Cryptanalyst (Part 1) - UI Podcast #182
Hollow Nickel cryptanalyst Marvin Lautzenheiser discusses going from a machinist to standing in J. Edgar Hoover's office in one year.
56 min
59
The Great Los Angeles Air Raid - UI Podcast #181
The long-forgotten story of a major battle that took place over Los Angeles a few months after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor.
32 min
60
YesterCast #1 - November 22, 1963 - UI #180
Find out what else was happening around the world on November 22, 1963, the day that President Kennedy was assassinated.
78 min
61
Bad Apples #4 - Gaslight - UI #179
A review of the 1944 movie Gaslight, from which the term gaslighting originated.
54 min
62
Russell Sage: The Meanest Miser in the Land - U...
Russell Sage was once one of the world's wealthiest men. When he passed away in 1906, his wife Olivia gave away nearly every penny to the causes that Sage despised.
88 min
63
Retrocast 12 - UI Podcast #177
Tim Harford cohosts. A man elopes with another man’s wife and blames it on the cake, a dead woman sits up in her coffin, and much more!
87 min
64
The Rise & Fall of the Celestial Comet - UI #176
In 1941, the Plainfield Teachers football team was unstoppable. That was until a shocking team secret was revealed and their storybook season was brought to a grinding halt.
22 min
65
Retrocast #11 - UI Podcast #175
A man speaks an unknown language, a boy’s head is stuck in a toilet seat, a woman slips on a bar of soap and goes flying, and much more!
52 min
66
Almost Over the Hump - UI Podcast #174
A plane crashes in the Himalayans and the two pilots, both with bad ankles, have no choice but to attempt to hike back to civilization.
30 min
67
Retrocast #10 - UI Podcast #173
Sliced bread is banned, popcorn in theaters may be banned, women using fly swatters to lose weight, and more!
63 min
68
From Car Show!: The Jeep and World War II
Eddie Alterman talks about the military background of the Jeep and its lasting popularity in America.
34 min
69
Henry Ford's Peace Ship - UI Podcast #172
In 1915, Henry Ford sought to end WWI by chartering a ship and sailing with many of the prominent peace activists of the day to Europe.
44 min
70
Arbor Day Turns 150! - UI Podcast #171
Arbor Day is 150 years old! Learn the origins of the day, plus how one small upstate New York town continues the annual celebration.
16 min
71
Retrocast #9 - UI Podcast #170
A woman dumps her fiancé at the altar to marry the minister, a jealous husband who used rattlesnakes to keep men away from his wife, and more!
22 min
72
The Father of Voice Radio - UI Podcast #169
It’s hard to believe, but when the first words were spoken on radio, it was dismissed as a novelty. It seems as if everyone thought that Morse code was the future. Everyone except for Reginald Fessenden.
16 min
73
The Case of the Hollow Nickel - UI #168
In 1953, a paperboy discovered a nickel coin that led to the arrest of a high-ranking Soviet spy.
25 min
74
Retrocast #8 - UI Podcast #167
A live baby is auctioned off, a carnival knife thrower accidentally hits his human target, a dog warden with an unusual approach to keeping thieves out of the pound, and much more!
20 min
75
The Eddie Cantor Peace Prize - UI #166
In 1936, Eddie Cantor asked his radio listeners to write essays describing how the United States could avoid war. With no set contest rules, something would go very wrong.
31 min