Horrific History Podcast

Too Much of a Good Thing “The dose makes the poison.” What do you think of when you hear that? Perhaps you think of an alchemy class at a fantastical wizarding school or of an infatuation turned into a blinding obsession. Maybe you remember the morning after a weekend bender or a “sugar coma” crash.  What can be harmless, or even beneficial, in certain amounts can become dangerous or deadly when there is too much. Horrific History co-hosts Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender explore cases in history when the everyday things from life can, when overused, have mind-altering, physically debilitating or even deadly effects.   The death of a United States President; visual, auditory and sensory hallucinations; a man who turned blue and a modern problem which was also used as a medieval torture technique, this episode has all the details for which you never thought to ask! What makes fruit pie or a certain kind of chocolate treat can also cause suffocation and kidney failure. What spices your holiday beverage can make you hallucinate, fear impending calamity and was believed to help terminate pregnancies. A metal used in an eyewash to save the vision of newborns born to mothers with gonorrhea and commonly used in jewelry can turn you blue if too much is absorbed by your body. The very same liquid that you drink to avoid dehydration can cause brain damage, coma or death while giving your body the signal that you need more…. Just remember: no squeam allowed!   So sit down with a glass of milk and a bowl of cherries while you listen to this Horrific History Podcast episode through one of your favorite podcast services (iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and more) and come back again in two weeks to learn about human organ and tissue theft!   Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode (you can find more in our Store!): * Science Notes * Mental Floss * Food Reference * Priceonomics * Imbibe Magazine * Drink: A Cultural History of Alcohol * Wellness Resources * Today * FAQS.org * Quackwatch * NCBI * WebMD *

…And You Thought Dad Jokes Were Bad What do you celebrate on Fathers’ Day? Some people are lucky enough to have fantastic dads who were positive influences in their lives, but not everyone is so fortunate. For those, if they observe the holiday at all, they may simply give tribute to surviving and learning from the trials and tribulations they never wanted. With Fathers’ Day weekend wrapping up in the United States, co-hosts Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender discuss some terrible fathers from history you’ll be glad to not have in your family.   Abuse, torture, rape, murder, flaying and royal intrigue, our co-hosts cover all the horrifying details you’d expect to find related to awful fathers with power from history. From ruling fathers committing filicide (killing their own children) and influencing the line of succession in Russia and Korea (Joseon), to a professional man who fathered up to 75 children in his area without the mothers’ knowledge or consent (increasing the risk of giving those children a horrible inheritance through inbreeding), this episode has it all… just remember: no squeam allowed!   Join us through one of your favorite podcast services (iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and more) as we delve into this Horrific History episode and come back in two weeks when we discuss what can happen when you get too much of a good thing.   Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode (you can find more in our Store!): * FactsandDetails.com * Mad Monarchs, 2 * Stetson University * Korea Times * Brain and Behavior Research Foundation * Kinja * The Memoirs of Lady Hyegyŏng * DesertNews.com * People.com * MedicalBag.com * The New York Times * ExMormon.org   Commercial break music by Dead but Dreaming.

Episode of a Thousand Downloads: Sawney Bean What kinds of milestones come to mind when you think of 1000? Do you think of scientific achievements, sports statistics or something else? For Horrific History, it isn’t surprising that when we recently exceeded our 1000th download milestone we thought of murder, cannibalism, incest and the folk tale of Sawney Bean. As a special thank you to our loyal listeners who have made this all possible we’re releasing a special edition bonus episode with a slightly different format as co-hosts Curtis Bender and Eric Slyter examine this old legend and its origins.   A multi-generational incest family, murder, cannibalism, executions, amputations and more… you’ll hear all the horrible details, right down to the depths of the cannibal family’s caves. So sit down, dim the lights, and join us through one of your favorite podcast services (iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and more) as we celebrate our 1000th download with this special edition episode. We hope you enjoy the break from our usual format and join us next week for our “bad dads” episode! Just remember, no squeam allowed!   We’d also like to give a special thank you to our listeners who, as of the publishing date (not the recording date) of this episode, have included representation from 17 countries and 31 states of the USA (full list at the bottom of this episode description). Here are some of our favorite resources for this episode (you can find more in our store here!): * History Extra * Historic UK * Exclassics.com * BBC * The Spooky Isles * The Edinburgh Dungeon   Commercial break music by Dead but Dreaming. Blog post photo credit: Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository, Public Domain. Slideshow photo credit: William de Falco/YouTube   What countries, states and territories are we celebrating during our 1000th download special (locations divided up as reflected in our statistics and by number of downloads)? Countries: USA; Canada; Japan; Australia; Germany; United Kingdom; Sweden; Norway; Virgin Islands, U.S.; Lithuania; Malaysia; Switzerland; Turkey; Israel; New Zealand; Brazil and Ireland! USA: California, Washington, Oregon, Massachusetts, Illinois, Connecticut, Wisconsin, Florida, Pennsylvania, New York, Virginia, Texas, Ohio, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Colorado, New Hampshire, Kansas, South Carolina, Arizona, Utah, Maryland, Arkansas, North Dakota, Hawaii, Georgia,

Mementos of You After your death, what do you think your survivors (friendly or foe) might keep to remember you? Perhaps a photo or some inanimate object which carried a lot of meaning to you both? Or do you think they might want something more personal, like a lock of hair or your ashes? It’s a nice thought, isn’t it? But what if they wanted to keep your rotting skin, your head or even just your re-purposed skull or bones? Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender hunt for the gruesome details on various kinds of human trophies in history beginning with the Scythians, Norse Vikings, and Aztec festivities honoring Xipe Totec (Our Lord the Flayed One) before ending with Maori mokomokai.   Skull cups, garments made of rotting skin and heads with carved tattoos, this episode has all the gory details you’d expect from humanity’s horrific history! We’ll be exploring human trophies in history as they’ve been used for dominance, commemoration, veneration, desecration, body snatching and grave robbing! Just remember: no squeam allowed!   So sit down to drink from the head of your worst enemy (or most beloved family member) and join us through one of your favorite podcast services (iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and more) as we delve into this Horrific History episode; come back again in two weeks to learn about bad dads in history (just in time for Fathers’ Day)!   Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode (you can find more in our Store!): * Daily Mail, 2 * LA Times * Damaru Works * Victoria University of Wellington, 2, 3, 4, * Aukland Libraries * CVLT Nation * The Vintage News * Dark Trophies: Hunting and the Enemy Body in Modern War * International Institute for Indigenous Resource Management * Noted * The Chick and the Dead *

A Horrible Inheritance What is the worst thing you can imagine receiving as an inheritance or “legacy gift”? What if the worst your parents could give you was their shared DNA? Sure, we know we’re going to get a combinations of physical traits, for better or worse, from our parents but some people have terrible genetic odds due to the close relations of their parents! From Neanderthal discoveries found in modern day Siberia to the royal affairs (and marriages) of royalty in Egypt and Spain and ending with the modern Colt family incest cult in Australia, this episode gets around! Co-hosts Curtis Bender and Eric Slyter will be filling this Horrific History Podcast with the tragic details on what can happen when you keep the genes inside the family!   Hapsburg’s jaws, club feet and cleft palates, we’ll be including the physical deformities which were, at certain times in history, attributed to curses and witchcraft by the superstitious before the effects of inbreeding were understood by science! Just remember: No squeam allowed!   Join us through one of your favorite podcast services (iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and more) as we delve into this Horrific History episode, and come back again in two weeks to learn about human trophies!   You learn more about Kenny the Tiger, referenced in our podcast, here.   Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode (you can find more in our store here!): * Daily Mail, and here * National Geographic, and again * Live Science * Providentia * MedicineNet.com * Too Much Information * The Tech Museum of Innovation * National Center for Biotechnology Information * West Virginia University * ABC News * PubMed.gov * US National Library of Medicine, here, and here * National Organization for Rare...

Poison, Pokers & Pee, Oh My… The gauntlet has been thrown and the challenge issued. Co-hosts Curtis “Curlystache” Bender and Eric “Iron Fist” Slyter each receive two opportunities to stump their opponent (and you) on horrible deaths and lives of the famous people in history who met those untimely demises. From ancient Egypt and Greece to medieval England and finally ending in 16th Century Denmark, we have suicides, murders, executions and assassinations. Conspiracy theories abound, and you’ll get all the explosive details as we probe history to separate fact from fiction.   A sadistic ruler who had an affinity for toxins, poisons and venom; a deposed king with Arthurian expectations who suffered from rotten luck and terrible choices which would aid a posthumous propaganda campaign; and an eccentric nerd who was willing to defend mathematics at risk of life or limb or suffer great discomfort (and death) to preserve social niceties… this episode has it all! Opium and wolfsbane, royal affairs and anal impalement, we’ve included all the sordid details but remember, no squeam allowed!   Pit your knowledge of historical deaths against that of our co-hosts as you listen to this Horrific History episode through one of your favorite podcast services (iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and more); you can tell us how you did on our blog or Facebook page! Join us in two weeks when springtime love is in the air for our kissing cousins (inbreeding) episode! Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode (you can find more in our store here!): * CNN * Toxipedia * Ancient Egypt * Isiopolis * Moments in Time * Edward the Second and here * Lament of Edward II (Poem) * Notches Blog * Dr. Ian Mortimer * US National Library of Medicine: National Institutes of Health * Gary Corby * TIME and here * International Business Times...

Making Your Blood Boil How well do you cope with being under pressure? Does it make your blood boil? Do you keep calm like a Soviet astronaut pulling a cool move out of The Martian?   From Polynesian pearl diving taravana and the discovery of Boyle’s Law, Horrific History co-hosts Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender uncork the most explosive and gory details of decompression sickness in history. To help you acclimate to the increased squeam-atmospheres of pressure, they begin with animal experimentation, caisson disease, Nazi Germany experiments involving (live?) human brain dissection and the first Russian space walk. But don’t worry, they also include the nitty gritty details you’ve wondered about including “the bends,” avascular bone necrosis, blindness and paralysis. This episode has all the explosive details and the violent dismemberment you’d expect to find in humanity’s horrific history, including accounts of the Byford Dolphin incident and Japan Airlines 123! Just remember: No squeam allowed!   Join us as we delve into this Horrific History episode through one of your favorite podcast services (iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and more), and come back again in two weeks to join us as our co-hosts engage in a trivia duel on the truth behind famous deaths! Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode (you can find more in our Store): * Space Facts * Sen * Gizmodo, and again * BBC * First to Know * Documenting Reality * Science Chamber of Horrors * The Guardian * Federal Aviation Administration * Tail Strike * Weather Channel * Revolutionary Players * The Philosophical Works  of the Honourable Robert Boyle Esq. Volume 2 * Nature and Artifice: University of California * Chemical Heritage Foundation, Robert Boyle biography *

Black Broth & Broken Vines What would you suffer or risk to become a full member of your community? Would you jump from extreme heights with only a vine to catch you? Would you allow your body to be surgically and permanently changed without the benefits of modern medicine like anesthesia? Would you kill?   Co-hosts Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender discuss real historical rites of passage in this Horrific History episode, covering documented examples from Spartans to more modern accounts of land diving from Papua New Guinea. From extreme heights (and horrible deaths), to murder and ending with genital mutilation we’re covering some of the rituals you may be glad you don’t have to do for your life milestones, right down to the penile subincision. As always: No squeam allowed!   Please Note: This episode does include a rite of passage which, in the cultural myths of its origins which is discussed by our co-hosts, does allude to something which could be interpreted as domestic violence. Further research, after the episode was recorded, revealed high rates of violence against women in that area. If you are a victim of domestic violence of any kind, there is help available. Some of the resources which are available to our listeners will be linked at the bottom of this episode description.   Join us as we delve into this Horrific History episode through one of your favorite podcast services (iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and more), and come back again in two weeks to learn about the history of compression and decompression sickness! Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode: * Daily Mail * CNN * Storytracking: Texts, Stories, and histories in Central Australia * Grand Valley Journal of History * Elysiumgates.com * Sparta’s Kings * ABC * Sparta Reconsidered   Commercial break music by Dead but Dreaming. Slideshow photo from Sparta Reconsidered. Photo by http://wellcomeimages.org/indexplus/obf_images/a3/5e/654b8cef7f9db893bdb2efc66ac2.jpgGallery: http://wellcomeimages.org/indexplus/image/M0005682.html, CC BY 4.0, Link:  

For a Healthy Glow A finger, hand, limb or life…. What would you give up for the advancement of science? Would you give up as much as the Radium Martyrs of All Nations?   Horrific History Podcast’s co-hosts, Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender discuss radiation poisoning in history, beginning with late Renaissance alchemy research in 1603 and continuing on to address more modern history including the Manhattan Project, Kyshtym Disaster, Chernobyl, and touching on current-day Fukushima.   From capturing the “golden light of the sun” to “seeing one’s death” through x-ray experimentation, this episode discusses all the horrifying things that came with the development of radiation research including blindness, loss of appendages, and even slow painful demises! You’ll hear about radium condoms, miracle “cures” and other products like “liquid sunshine,” as well as the legal case of the “Radium Girls” who had been so exposed to radium over the course of their factory work that parts of them glowed (even as as their living bodies decomposed)! Cancer, amputations and assassinations, you’ll hear all the disgusting gory details, right down to the glowing snot! Just remember, no squeam allowed!   Join us as we delve into this Horrific History episode through one of your favorite podcast services (iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and more), and come back again in two weeks to learn about various rites of passage!   Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode: * Bologna stone * Chemistry World * Schweizerbart Science Publishers * MAX IV Laboratory * US National Library of Medicine: National Institutes of Health * Profile of Dr. Kells * University of Vermont Libraries: Dana Medical Library * Smithsonian Magazine * New Yorker * CNN   Commercial break music by Dead but Dreaming. Slideshow photo credit: shenamt My tangled heartstrings via photopin (license) Photo credit: By U.S.A. – Manhattan Project –

Have a Friend for Lunch Who would you eat first, family member or friend? Would it make a difference if you had to kill the person who would be your next meal or if they were already dead? Horrific History Podcast’s co-hosts, Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender discuss winter cannibalism in history, specifically the Donner Party and the Colorado Cannibal, Alferd Packer. Grave scavenging and murders, prison breaks and lynching, you’ll hear it all! So sit down with some fava beans and a nice Chianti while you enjoy our latest Horrific History episode through one of your favorite podcast services (iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn and more), and join us again in two weeks for radiation poisoning!   Some of our favorite resources from this week’s episode: * See the route the Donner Party took here. * Denver Library * Only in Your State – Colorado * A. Packer Confessions from Colorado.gov * Chicago Tribune Commercial break music by Dead but Dreaming. Slideshow photo credit: PeraltaC775 Cannibal Cave via photopin (license) photo credit: lacygentlywaftingcurtains Broken Glass (explored 30/10/16) via photopin (license)

One Night with Venus, Part 2 We’re now on Part 2 of our Valentine’s Day debut with our co-hosts, Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender, continuing their discussion on period accounts in western culture of the historical description of symptoms and gruesome historical treatments of gonorrhea and syphilis (and modern media representations of them)! This episode primarily covers accounts from the Renaissance to more modern history including receiving purple flowers, masks and prosthetic noses, animal gut condoms, and historical poultices for testicular swelling. And if that’s not gross enough for you, we’re also covering urethral lavage, gonorrheal aprons, pustules, rotting brains and mobsters! Listen to Part 2 of our 2-part debut episode through your favorite podcast service or on our website (below)! Did you miss Part 1? Find it here: One Night with Venus, Part 1 Just can’t get enough? In two weeks we’ll release our episode on winter cannibalism! In the meantime, if you want to see some of the sources our hosts discussed in today’s episode, here are some of our favorite links…. but remember this: No Squeam Allowed! Here are some of our favorite sources of information: * Gonorrhea in women: its pathology, symptomatology, diagnosis, and treatment * History of the Medical Treatment of Gonorrhea * The Secret Malady: Venereal Disease in Eighteenth-Century Britain and France * James Boswell and a History of Gonorrhea * Boswell’s London Journal (epic break-up letter found here!) * Dr. Johnson’s ‘Own Dear Master’: The Life of Henry Thrale * Gonorrhea * Gonorrhea History As always, if you do decide to spend a night with Venus (or anyone else for that matter), safe(r) sex practices greatly reduce the likelihood of contracting STDs or STIs. Commercial break music by Dead but Dreaming. Slider photo credit: gliageek Congenital Syphilis Ventral via photopin (license) Post photo credit: cobra libre Syphilis via photopin

One Night with Venus, Part 1 Happy VD! It’s Valentine’s Day, so you may think we’re debuting our Horrific History Podcast on the horrible gifts people have given for the occasion (and, you may be right, from a certain point of view). No, we won’t be talking about candy and wine; we’re focusing on venereal diseases! Our co-hosts, Eric Slyter and Curtis Bender, will specifically be discussing period accounts in western culture of the symptoms and gruesome historical treatments of gonorrhea and syphilis, in stomach-churning detail. Rashes, prostitution, burning sensations and blindness… you’ll find it all here. Listen to Part 1 of our 2-part debut episode through your favorite podcast service or through our website!   Just can’t get enough? In two weeks the second part of this episode will be released (Find it here)! As always, if you do decide to spend a night with Venus (or anyone else for that matter), safe(r) sex practices greatly reduce the likelihood of contracting STDs or STIs. photo credit: adriaanjoubert Syphilis via photopin (license) Commercial break music provided by Dead but Dreaming.