Three History Podcasts That Are Not “Hardcore Story”
I have nothing against Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History, but it looks like he ate all the ads for historical podcasts. It’s a shame because the podcast format is a fantastic way to dive into the 30-hour history of the French Revolution or grab a 12-minute report on how Warren G. Harding, betrayed by his corrupt cabinet, publicly projected all his senses onto his dog Laddy Boy.
Something true
” Something True ” proves that the details of the story are funny, even incredible for modern sensibilities. Every story in this bag of historical marginals is so bizarre and so bizarrely described that I had to go through them all on Wikipedia.
Stockholm continued to execute women because teenagers called them witches? True. Leading rocket scientist thought he summoned his wife with a magical masturbation ritual? True.
Each of the eight episodes lasts about 15 minutes. Writer Duncan Fife’s scripts are captivating, and host Alex Ashby delivers them with a professional flair. (The two gave Vulture a fascinating interview about their process.) In their hands, these stories don’t seem like freaky little things, but like adventure tales full of colorful characters. Every story would be satisfying if none of the details were true – but it is.
Crimetown
While it sits in the News and Politics section of iTunes, Gimlet Media’s Crimetown tells the story of recent history: the era of corruption in Providence, Rhode Island, under Mayor Buddy Chianchi and mobsters Raymond Patriarca.
Chianchi was elected mayor as an anti-corruption fighter in 1975 and resigned twice in disgrace, first in 1984 after refusing to challenge the assault charge, and then in 2002 after being convicted of racketeering. He made a name for himself as a public prosecutor fighting the Patriarca, who continued to lead the Patriarch’s crime family during his time in prison for murder.
But both Chianchi and Patriarca have been the beloved pillars of Providence, according to many old-timers who speak with producers Zach Stewart-Pontier and Mark Smerling in a rich, cigar-hardened providence accent. Stuart-Pontier and Smerling create a flavor profile reminiscent of Goodfellas , The Wire and The Night Of . Crimtown deserves its own prestigious TV adaptation.
Watch out for the following historical podcast Gimleta , Uncivil , which tells “stories, not included in the official history” of the Civil War.
Revolution
Get an in-depth explanation of the major revolutions in history, one after another, in Mike Duncan’s personal show, Revolutions . Each revolution has an entire season with 8-20 half-hour episodes, with one exception: the French Revolution spans a whopping 55 episodes. Now I have 16 episodes, and Duncan managed to keep his excitement even though he didn’t even get to the first beheading.
Each season is structured and designed like an accessible history textbook, with no preconditions beyond the most basic school history knowledge. Terms are explained, historical figures are presented and explained, and context is provided.
Duncan delivers his lyrics with a slightly friendly line from vlogger John Green. He adds the slightest editorial tweaks, sometimes just in tone of voice or choice of words, that humanize the drier parts of parliamentary squabbles and royal decrees. He looks like a crooked teacher with glasses who reads to his student by the fireplace in a country palace.
Duncan occasionally takes tours of the revolutionary sites announced in the podcast. He previously authored a 179-episode podcast, A History of Rome , which inspired his book The Storm Before the Storm: The Beginning of the End of the Roman Republic .
Get out those Trapper Keepers and sharpen your # 2 pencils – it’s a week back to school ! Going far beyond the classroom, we offer you ingenious tricks and ideas on how to get started with your routine, brush up on old skills, or learn something new this fall.