Myths
Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence
Dr. Kate Lemay from the National Portrait Gallery tells us about the popular historical exhibition, “Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence.” She outlines the movement for women to obtain the right to vote as part of the larger struggle for equality, and tells us how that was shown in portraiture. A great show to…
Read MoreThe Weemsy Awards! Worst Abuses of U.S. History in 2020
\The Weemsy Awards spotlight the most egregious misrepresentations of U.S. History in the past year by politicians, celebrities, executives, and more! Professor Edward T. O’Donnell joins us to unveil the winners! Episode #399.
Read More“It’s a Wonderful Life” Myths and Urban Legends
Imagine being tortured by wartime memories. Explosions, death, mutilated bodies (some of them friends of yours), all the screaming. Now, imagine them coming from a very confined and dangerous place. I’ve always thought that being in a warplane or submarine would add the extra stress of being trapped, and not even being able to contemplate…
Read MoreChristmas: Commercialism, FDR, the Nazis, and Beyond!
Professor Philip Nash explains the complexities of the celebration and commercialism of Christmas — from the Roman holiday of Saturnalia to the Victorian era to the Nazi period and beyond! Listen to the best explanation of the history of modern Christmas that you’re gonna find this side of Bethlehem! Episode #387 —Buzzkill Bookshelf Gerry Bowler,…
Read More“I, Eliza Hamilton” and “The Secret Wife of Aaron Burr” – Fiction Friday!
Historical novelist, Susan Holloway Scott, joins us to discuss two of her fabulous books — “I, Eliza Hamilton” and “The Secret Wife of Aaron Burr.” We learn a lot about these historical figures, but also how historical novelists are able to create characters from the past. Episode #396 Susan Holloway Scott is the author of…
Read MoreGeorge Washington and the Development of the Cabinet
How and why did George Washington create the cabinet structure that he used in his Presidency? How did it help create new political norms and traditions in the early United States? What was its long-standing effect? Professor Lindsey Chervinsky explains all! Episode #395. —Buzzkill Bookshelf Lindsay M. Chervinsky, The Cabinet: George Washington and the Creation…
Read MoreGustav Stresmann – Man Crush Monday!
Professor Philip Nash explains his man-crush on Gustav Stresemann, the important German politician during the Weimar period. What do Stresemann’s career and his hopes for Germany tell us about the strengths that can be found in nationalism? And we engage in some “what if Stresemann had lived” speculation. Would we have seen the rise of…
Read MoreRallies for “More History” at the Gettysburg Battlefield
Professor Scott Hancock from Gettysburg College joins us to explain the development of efforts to contextualize and historicize the Confederate Monuments at the Gettysburg National Military Park. The summer of 2020 saw a great deal of tension and confrontation during these presentations. Dr. Hancock explains how this helped the “We Want More History” movement. One…
Read MoreForward and in High Heels: from Ginger Rogers to Ann Richards to Kamala Harris
It’s certainly been an exciting November here at the Buzzkill Institute and, more importantly, of course, here in the United States. Buzzkill employees have been working around the clock, trying to keep up with the pace of news and to produce shows that are relevant to current events. And, Americans as a whole have seen…
Read MoreGeorgian Texel Uprising and Hitler’s Revenge, April-May 1945
In the final days of World War II in Europe, Georgians serving in the Wehrmacht on Texel island off the Dutch coast rose up and slaughtered their German masters. Hitler ordered the island to be retaken and fighting continued for weeks, well after the war’s end. The uprising had its origins in the bloody history…
Read More