Useless Information - Fascinating True Stories from the Flip Side of History

Useless Information

Fascinating True Stories From the Flip Side of History

On the Web Since 1994

Podcasting Since January 2008

200 Years of Twas the Night – Podcast #185

Published on December 5, 2022

Posted in: Holidays & Celebrations, Podcast

Latest episode! Author Pamela McColl discusses the origins of the poem, the debate over who truly wrote it, and how it has gone on to be the most published and most often recited poem in the library of English literature.

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The Cryptanalyst (Part 3) – Podcast #184

Published on November 18, 2022

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities

In this final installment, Marvin Lautzenhesier discusses leaving the FBI, his patents, and the giant theater organ that he installed in his house.

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The Cryptanalyst (Part 2) – Podcast #183

Published on November 3, 2022

Posted in: Fraud & Deception, Law & Order, Podcast

In this second installment, 93-year-old Marvin Lautzenheiser discusses his time as an FBI field agent, how his team finally deciphered the hollow nickel message, and offers up his opinion on the Steven Spielberg movie Bridge of Spies.

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The Cryptanalyst (Part 1) – Podcast #182

Published on October 21, 2022

Posted in: Crime & Punishment, Law & Order, Podcast

An interview with 93-year-old Marvin Lautzenheiser, who was the lead cryptanalyst for the FBI team that deciphered the microfilm message contained in the Hollow Nickel (Podcast #168).

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The Great Los Angeles Air Raid – Podcast #181

Published on October 7, 2022

Posted in: Forgotten History, Podcast

The long-forgotten story of a battle that took place over Los Angeles just a few months after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. The US used all its might to shoot down the enemy planes detected overhead.

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YesterCast #1 – November 22, 1963 – Podcast #180

Published on September 22, 2022

Posted in: Podcast, Yestercast

The assassination of President John F. Kennedy was a tragic day. But what else was happening that day? This episode of the podcast discusses the offbeat, quirky, and bizarre stories of November 22, 1963.

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Bad Apples #4 – Gaslight – Podcast #179

Published on September 7, 2022

Posted in: Bad Apples Movie Review, Podcast

A review of the 1944 psychological thriller "Gaslight," starring Ingrid Bergman, Charles Boyer, and Joseph Cotton. It is from this movie that the term "gaslighting" is derived.

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1961 – A Stewed Duck Is Too Saucy to Suit Cops (Footnote)

Published on August 29, 2022

Posted in: Animals & Pets, Bizarre & Oddities, Footnotes to History, Humor

Two policemen set out to capture a drunk duck. It wasn't as easy as they had hoped...

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1954 – Roscoe Goes to Calaboose to Escape TV at Home (Footnote)

Published on August 25, 2022

Posted in: Crime & Punishment, Footnotes to History

Roscoe Tard was so sick of his wife watching television that he opted to spend five days in jail.

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1948 – New Pill Bans That Fear of Trip to Dentist (Footnote)

Published on August 22, 2022

Posted in: Footnotes to History, Science, Technology & Medicine

Drs. Milton Levine and Robert Hoyt introduced a pill that would take the fear out of going to the dentist. It probably wasn't as safe as they originally thought.

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1964 – Unable to Find Affordable Housing, Student Sleeps in Air Vent

Published on August 19, 2022

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities, Schools & Education, Tidbits

Allan Kornfeld was unable to afford student housing at Yale. So, he decided to move into a ventilation shaft.

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1926 – Fire Company Called To Put Out a Sunset (Footnote)

Published on August 17, 2022

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities, Escape and Survival, Footnotes to History

Firemen in Tulsa, Oklahoma were called out on an emergency call. The supposed fire was really the sunset.

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Russell Sage: The Meanest Miser in the Land – Podcast #178

Published on August 15, 2022

Posted in: Death and Murder, Money & Financial, Podcast

Russell Sage was once one of the world's wealthiest men. After his death, his wife Olivia got even by gave his fortune away to the causes that Sage despised. Historian Kathy Sheehan joins me tell the true story of Russell Sage.

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1954 – Smog Turns Necktie a Bluish Purple

Published on August 11, 2022

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities, Tidbits

James Sharpless decided to wear a bright colored tie to his classes, only to find that the California smog had caused it to turn color.

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1885: The Cake Bewitched Him (Footnote)

Published on August 8, 2022

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities, Crime & Punishment, Footnotes to History, Love & Marriage

A man elopes with another man's wife and is arrested. He blames it on her delicious cake!

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Recent Podcast Episodes

200 Years of Twas the Night – Podcast #185
December 5, 2022
The Cryptanalyst (Part 2) – Podcast #183
November 3, 2022
The Cryptanalyst (Part 1) – Podcast #182
October 21, 2022
The Great Los Angeles Air Raid – Podcast #181
October 7, 2022
YesterCast #1 – November 22, 1963 – Podcast #180
September 22, 2022
Bad Apples #4 – Gaslight – Podcast #179
September 7, 2022
Russell Sage: The Meanest Miser in the Land – Podcast #178
August 15, 2022
Retrocast #12 – Podcast #177
August 1, 2022
The Rise & Fall of the Celestial Comet – Podcast #176
July 19, 2022
Retrocast #11 – Podcast #175
June 30, 2022

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