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Fascinating True Stories From the Flip Side of History

On the Web Since 1994

Podcasting Since January 2008

The Rise & Fall of the Celestial Comet – Podcast #176

Published on July 19, 2022

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities, Hoaxes, Podcast, Sports

In 1941, the Plainfield Teachers College football team was unstoppable. That was until a reporter exposed a shocking secret about the team and their storybook season was brought to a grinding halt.

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1930: Live Baby Auctioned Off

Published on March 1, 2022

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities, Hoaxes, Tidbits

Could a baby really be auctioned off? An ad by the Red Arrow Auctions claimed that they would be doing so at their next auction. Was there a catch?

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Two Worlds Collide – Podcast #153

Published on July 29, 2021

Posted in: Crime & Punishment, Hoaxes, Love & Marriage, Podcast, Schools & Education

In 1932, the office of Redondo Beach school superintendent Elliott B. Thomas was destroyed and he had mysteriously disappeared. Was he dead or alive? Or was something else going on?

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Giraffes Can’t Speak

Published on March 24, 2021

Posted in: Hoaxes, Humor, Tidbits

What did the giraffe say when the elephant stepped on his toe? To find out the answer, kids had to dial long-distance to find out the answer.

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One-Week with the Beatles?

Published on March 16, 2020

Posted in: Hoaxes, Tidbits

When Cheryl Bedrock received a call from Brian Epstein, the famed manager for the Beatles, she was told that she had won a free trip to London to meet the group. It didn't go as planned...

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Don’t Drink Sunlight Dish Detergent

Published on February 19, 2018

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities, Hoaxes, Tidbits

On July 15, 1982 the Maryland Poison Control Center in Baltimore reported that 33 adults and 46 children had consumed a brand new lemon-scented dishwashing liquid named Sunlight.

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The Salem Trade School – Podcast #90

Published on January 27, 2016

Posted in: Fraud & Deception, Hoaxes, Podcast, Schools & Education, Sports

The Salem Trade School had the worst high school football team in the Boston region back in the 1920's. But they had a big secret...

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The Last Man on Earth – Podcast #88

Published on December 2, 2015

Posted in: Escape and Survival, Hoaxes, Podcast

In 1960, Bud Boyd set out to find out what it would be like to be the last man on Earth. Without basic supplies, he set out to survive six weeks in the wild.

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The Fever Girl – Podcast #72

Published on April 18, 2014

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities, Fraud & Deception, Hoaxes, Podcast

In 1923, newspapers around the US reported on the health of the Fever Girl - Evelyn Lyons - a woman with the highest temperature ever recorded to that date.

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Summer Job Hoax

Published on April 15, 2014

Posted in: Hoaxes, Schools & Education, Tidbits

In 1932, more than fifty Bronx teachers received a telegram telling them that they had a summer job, Did they really?

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The Short Life of Suzy Dewey – Podcast #65

Published on August 19, 2013

Posted in: Death and Murder, Fraud & Deception, Hoaxes, Podcast

The story of a little girl named Suzy Dewey who was diagnosed with terminal leukemia and was the victim of a hoax during the last few months of her life.

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Will the Real Dr. Brown Please Stand Up? – Podcast #55

Published on July 10, 2012

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities, Fraud & Deception, Hoaxes, Podcast, Science, Technology & Medicine

Dr. Brown was loved by everyone in Groveton, Texas. When he was arrested for a crime that could have endangered others, they didn't abandon their faith in him.

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The Kidnapping of Caleb Milne IV – Podcast #24

Published on August 6, 2009

Posted in: Crime & Punishment, Fraud & Deception, Hoaxes, Podcast

A long-forgotten story about the sensational kidnapping of Caleb Milne IV back in 1935. Not all was as it seemed.

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Extracting Gold from Seawater – Podcast #17

Published on August 31, 2008

Posted in: Fraud & Deception, Hoaxes, Podcast

The true story of the 1897 invention of the "accumulator" that was designed to extract gold from the world's oceans.

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The Great Toilet Paper Shortage – Podcast #11

Published on March 16, 2008

Posted in: Bizarre & Oddities, Hoaxes, Humor, Podcast

Learn about one of the most unusual shortages ever in US history - one that was all started by Tonight Show host Johnny Carson.

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