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
101
The Child Bride - UI Podcast #136
Just how young is too young to marry? This episode takes a look at the 1937 marriage between 9-year-old Eunice Winstead and 22-year-old Charlie Johns.
37 min
102
Game Design & Testing with Eddie Tice - UI Bonu...
Chatham High School senior Eddie Tice interviews Senior QA Tester Trevor Farnsworth at Vicarious Visions, a game developer located in Albany, NY.
20 min
103
Emperor of the Sahara (Part 2) - UI Podcast #135
Learn what happened to Jacques Lebaudy after his brief reign as an emperor came to an end. Let's just say that the story does not have a happy ending.
33 min
104
Emperor of the Sahara (Part 1) - UI Podcast #134
The crazy true story of Jacques Lebaudy's attempt to build an empire of his own in the Sahara.
29 min
105
A Nose for Fishing - UI Podcast #133
Sometimes a person can accomplish a great deal over the span of his or her lifetime but is forever defined by one thing that took just a brief moment while they were still young. Harry Morse was one of those men.
19 min
106
In the Blink of an Eye - UI Podcast #132
In 1925, the parents and sisters of 9-year-old Evelyn Castle were killed after their car collided with a train. What came next for Evelyn was totally unexpected. It's a story that is both heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time.
37 min
107
An Inside Job - UI Podcast #131
The incredible story of how James Rufus Landis stole $160,000 in $20 bills from the United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing on New Year's Eve of 1953.
35 min
108
A Christmas Eve Kidnapping - UI Podcast #130
On Christmas Eve of 1937, a man in Centerville, Indiana kidnapped a young boy and his babysitter. Minutes later, the boy's mother and the local grocer were taken prisoner by a second thug. A shootout between the bandit and the boy's father then followed.
33 min
109
Soul Searching - UI Podcast #129
Miner James Kidd made an incredibly unusual request in his will that would take more than 21 years for the courts to resolve.
42 min
110
The Prick of Death - UI Podcast #128
In 1933, a young man was walking through a busy train station in India when he was pricked in the arm by a man walking in the opposite direction. He would soon be dead and the shocking truth as to how and who murdered him was revealed.
28 min
111
The Case of the Doctor-Doctor Kidnapping - UI P...
In 1933, a medical doctor and a chiropractic doctor were found severely injured a short distance from one another. The two had never met before, but their lives had somehow violently crossed on that fateful day.
24 min
112
The Transcontinental Taxi Ride - UI Podcast #126
An offbeat story from 1966 about a woman requested that a taxicab drive her all the way from Toledo, Ohio to San Francisco, CA
23 min
113
The Snoring War - UI Podcast #125
A fun story from 1964 in which Brooklyn neighbors Sam Gutwirth and Sam Scheir ended up in court due to Scheir's loud snoring.
27 min
114
Flying Blind - UI Podcast #124
A great story about a Navy pilot who was blinded during a bombing run over North Korea in 1952 and the attempt by another pilot to land him safely.
26 min
115
The Many, Many Murders of Michael Malloy - UI P...
Back in 1933, more than 30 attempts were made on the life of Michael Malloy before he finally succumbed.
12 min
116
1st Jewish Couple Married on TV (Part 2) - UI #122
Part 2 of my interview with cartoonist Leigh Rubin during which we discuss how he got into cartooning and went on to become a successful syndicated cartoonist.
28 min
117
1st Jewish Couple Married on TV (Part 1) - UI #121
Natalie and Stan Rubin were the first Jewish couple ever married on national TV, but it almost never happened.
40 min
118
The Great Podcast Switcheroo!
For the Great Podcast Switcheroo, hear an episode of the Historical Blindness podcast titled The Camden Wonder.
36 min
119
UI Bonus Episode #4 - An Incredible Life of Lea...
The story of Ronald McLean who started his career as a soda jerk in a pharmacy and ultimately made his way to be appointed as the Interim Dean at the Albany College of Pharmacy.
28 min
120
UI #120 - The Coal Mountain Casanova
In 1952, Jesse Garrett had recently divorced and was in search of a new wife. He seemed like a catch and 100's of women contacted him to let them know that they were interested. In the end, Jesse Garrett was financially ruined,
33 min
121
UI Bonus Episode #3 - Interview with John Murphy
Part 2 of my interview with John Murphy. Here we discuss John's involvement with inventor Dean Kamen (of the Segway fame) and their work to establish the FIRST Robotics competition that now involves tens of thousands of students worldwide.
13 min
122
UI #119 - A Punishment That Went Horribly Wrong
The parents of Linda Marie Ault were in a panic when their daughter didn't return home after attending a dance. When she returned home the next morning, they came up with a punishment that would teach her a valuable lesson. Everything went horribly wrong.
28 min
123
UI Bonus Episode #2 - Salem Trade School Interview
Bonus episode is an interview with John Murphy. His dad was a member of the Salem Trade School, which was the subject of Useless Information Podcast #90 in January 2016.
23 min
124
UI #118 - Christmas Time in Santa Heim
Fun story from the 1940's about a man named Harry H. Heim who converted a defunct mill town into the ultimate Christmas wonderland.
33 min
125
UI #117 - The Adventure of a Lifetime
In 1957, three Chicago aluminum awning salesmen decided to quit the jobs and sail to Africa to join in on the lucrative illegal diamond trade. They were in for a wild ride along with a very big surprise waiting for them at the end.
41 min