Useless Information Podcast

In this episode: Who or what is ETAOIN SHRDLU, Nat King Cole is attacked, a boy gets the day off from school for a good deed, a man breaks into ȧ home to change a baby’s diaper, and much more! You can read about the two-time Carnegie Medal recipients at https://www.carnegiehero.org/heroes/roll-of-two-time-carnegie-medal-recipients/ Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/retrocast-41-podcast-256/ 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/ The Useless Information Podcast is a member of the Airwave Media podcast network.  Visit https://www.airwavemedia.com/ to listen to more great podcasts just like this one. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A running gag on the 1944 Truth or Consequences radio show was for host Ralph Edwards to ask, “Is there a Mr. Wickel in the house?” He never expected an answer. But when Rudolph Wickel stood up, he stepped into one of the most notorious pranks ever pulled on live radio. It was clever. It was cruel. And it was unforgettable. You can watch the video of Mayer Field mentioned in this episode at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcjbfuVIVzE Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/arent-we-devils-podcast-255/ Talks that I am scheduled to give: Friday, March 27, 2026 – Hudson Valley CC (Troy) - https://tinyurl.com/5839cad3 Wednesday, April 29, 2026 – Hudson Valley CC (Malta) - https://tinyurl.com/swksxtr3 Monday, June 1, 2026 (Free) – Clifton Park Library 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/ The Useless Information Podcast is a member of the Airwave Media podcast network.  Visit https://www.airwavemedia.com/ to listen to more great podcasts just like this one. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode: A couple marries and divorces over and over again, a fugitive appears on The Dating Game tv show, a man is fined for failing to give his wife a goodbye kiss, and much more! Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/retrocast-40-podcast-254/ 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/ The Useless Information Podcast is a member of the Airwave Media podcast network.  Visit https://www.airwavemedia.com/ to listen to more great podcasts just like this one. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1958, a small plane vanished into the mountains—and what followed became an extraordinary true story of survival, sacrifice, and love in the face of impossible odds. You can watch the PBS video Bruce Davis: The Gentleman of Jazz here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq4X4sEA81A Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/lost-in-the-clouds-podcast-253/ Talks that I am scheduled to give: Wednesday, February 25, 2026 (Free) - Albany Hibernian Hall - https://hibernians.com/ Friday, March 27, 2026 – Hudson Valley CC (Troy) - https://tinyurl.com/5839cad3 Wednesday, April 29, 2026 – Hudson Valley CC (Malta) - https://tinyurl.com/swksxtr3 Monday, June 1, 2026 (Free) – Clifton Park Library 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/ The Useless Information Podcast is a member of the Airwave Media podcast network.  Visit https://www.airwavemedia.com/ to listen to more great podcasts just like this one. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode: A woman has 1,446 metal objects in her stomach, a teenager faces almost certain death unless a nail is removed from her lung, a doctor claims that a patient has a bullfrog living in her stomach, and much more! My niece Sierra McGivney’s story about the four women who helped create the American Alpine Club: https://americanalpineclub.org/news/2025/11/5/guidebook-xvilibrary-feature Talks that I am scheduled to give: Monday, January 26, 2026 – Clifton Park Library - https://events.cphlibrary.org/event/15276997 Friday, March 27, 2026 – Hudson Valley CC (Troy) - https://tinyurl.com/5839cad3 Wednesday, April 29, 2026 – Hudson Valley CC (Malta) - https://tinyurl.com/swksxtr3 Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/retrocast-39-podcast-252/ 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/ The Useless Information Podcast is a member of the Airwave Media podcast network.  Visit https://www.airwavemedia.com/ to listen to more great podcasts just like this one. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Throughout the 1920s, the children of Boston’s North End gathered in anticipation to see if their beloved Hot Dog Santa Claus, Axel Bjorklund, would once again arrive. Despite his vanishing fortunes and worsening health, he proved that even small gestures can leave a lasting legacy. Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/the-hot-dog-santa-claus-podcast-251/ 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/ The Useless Information Podcast is a member of the Airwave Media podcast network.  Visit https://www.airwavemedia.com/ to listen to more great podcasts just like this one. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode: Can a wife legally swipe cash from her husband’s wallet? One Chicago man puts a bizarre social experiment in motion—mailing $1 to 500 people and asking them to mail it back. Plus, a high school student discovers a brilliant workaround for his school’s long-hair ban… and much more! Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/retrocast-38-podcast-250/ 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/ The Useless Information Podcast is a member of the Airwave Media podcast network.  Visit https://www.airwavemedia.com/ to listen to more great podcasts just like this one. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1937, a small Indiana town was rocked by a scandal that made national headlines: a 12-year-old girl and her 13-year-old classmate became parents, igniting a legal and moral firestorm. Family loyalty, courtroom drama, and the harsh realities of the Great Depression collide in this true tale of forbidden young love. Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/a-forbidden-love-podcast-249/ 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/ The Useless Information Podcast is a member of the Airwave Media podcast network.  Visit https://www.airwavemedia.com/ to listen to more great podcasts just like this one. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A fire department stands back and watches a man's home burn to the ground, a pig flies for possibly the first time ever, fleas are transported on a dog, and a gorilla destroys an American Tourister suitcase, and much more! The Flea Circus video mentioned in this episode can be seen on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9BjN_GHIic Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/retrocast-37-podcast-248/ 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/ The Useless Information Podcast is a member of the Airwave Media podcast network. Visit https://www.airwavemedia.com/ to listen to more great podcasts just like this one. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My wife, Mary Jane, joins me to discuss the 1949 movie Lost Boundaries, the screen adaptation of the lives of Dr. Albert and Thyra Johnston, the New Hampshire couple who passed as white for nearly twenty years. You can watch the movie Lost Boundaries on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z26VL_0EQks and the Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/LostBoundaries. Home to Keene: The Reunion of Lost Boundaries can be seen on New Hampshire PBS: https://www.pbs.org/video/home-to-keene-lost-boundaries-reunion-ismos9/ Images, links, and transcripts for this podcast can be found at https://uselessinformation.org/bad-apples-6-lost-boundaries-podcast-247/ 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/ The Useless Information Podcast is a member of the Airwave Media podcast network.  Visit https://www.airwavemedia.com/ to listen to more great podcasts just like this one. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to advertise on our podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices