When William Harrison disappeared from Campden, England, in 1660, his servant offered an incredible explanation: that he and his family had murdered him. The events that followed only proved the situation to be even more bizarre. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe "the Campden wonder," an enigma that has eluded explanation for more than 300 years. We'll also consider Vladimir Putin's dog and puzzle over a little girl's benefactor. Intro: In 1921, Pennsylvania su...
Oct 10, 2016•34 min•Ep. 125
In 1971 a mysterious man hijacked an airliner in Portland, Oregon, demanding $200,000 and four parachutes. He bailed out somewhere over southwestern Washington and has never been seen again. In today's show we'll tell the story of D.B. Cooper, the only unsolved hijacking in American history. We'll also hear some musical disk drives and puzzle over a bicyclist's narrow escape. Intro: In 1973, Swedish mathematician Per Enflo won a goose for solving a problem posed 37 years earlier. Established in ...
Oct 03, 2016•33 min•Ep. 124
In 1924 a curious network of catacombs was discovered in Washington D.C. They were traced to Harrison Dyar, a Smithsonian entomologist who had been industriously digging tunnels in the city for almost two decades. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe Dyar's strange hobby -- and the equally bizarre affairs in his personal life. We'll also revisit balloons in World War II and puzzle over a thief's change of heart. Intro: The melody of Peter Cornelius' 1854 compositi...
Sep 26, 2016•32 min•Ep. 123
During World War II a Polish transport company picked up an unusual mascot: a Syrian brown bear that grew to 500 pounds and traveled with his human friends through the Middle East and Europe. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll meet Wojtek, the "happy warrior," and follow his adventures during and after the war. We'll also catch up with a Russian recluse and puzzle over a murderous daughter. Intro: In 1956, U.S. Navy pilot Tom Attridge overtook his cannon rounds and shot ...
Sep 19, 2016•31 min•Ep. 122
During the siege of Leningrad in World War II, a heroic group of Russian botanists fought cold, hunger, and German attacks to keep alive a storehouse of crops that held the future of Soviet agriculture. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of the Vavilov Institute, whose scientists literally starved to death protecting tons of treasured food. We'll also follow a wayward sailor and puzzle over how to improve the safety of tanks. Intro: Tippi Hedren, star of A...
Sep 12, 2016•31 min•Ep. 121
In 1879 a ghastly crime gripped England: A London maid had dismembered her employer and then assumed her identity for two weeks, wearing her clothes and jewelry and selling her belongings. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe the murder of Julia Thomas and its surprising modern postscript. We'll also discover the unlikely origins of a Mary Poppins character and puzzle over a penguin in a canoe. Intro: Early airplanes were sometimes attacked by confused eagles. Alb...
Sep 05, 2016•30 min•Ep. 120
In 1978 a team of geologists discovered a family of five living deep in the Siberian forest, 150 miles from the nearest village. Fearing persecution, they had lived entirely on their own since 1936, praying, tending a meager garden, and suffering through winter temperatures of 40 below zero. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll meet the Lykov family, whose religious beliefs committed them to "the greatest solitude on the earth." We'll also learn about Esperanto's role in a...
Aug 29, 2016•34 min•Ep. 119
In 1976 a television crew discovered a mummified corpse in a California funhouse. Unbelievably, an investigation revealed that it belonged to an Oklahoma outlaw who had been shot by sheriff's deputies in 1911 and whose remains had been traveling the country ever since. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll trace the postmortem odyssey of Elmer McCurdy, "the bandit who wouldn't give up." We'll also reflect on a Dutch artist's disappearance and puzzle over some mysterious hos...
Aug 22, 2016•30 min•Ep. 118
In 1917 a pair of Allied officers combined a homemade Ouija board, audacity, and imagination to hoax their way out of a remote prison camp in the mountains of Turkey. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe the remarkable escape of Harry Jones and Cedric Hill, which one observer called “the most colossal fake of modern times.” We'll also consider a cactus' role in World War II and puzzle over a cigar-smoking butler. Intro: A 1962 writer to the London Times contends t...
Aug 15, 2016•33 min•Ep. 117
In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll explore some curiosities and unanswered questions from Greg's research, including the love affair that inspired the Rolls Royce hood ornament, a long-distance dancer, Otto von Bismarck's dogs, and a craftily plotted Spanish prison break. We'll also run after James Earl Ray and puzzle over an unsociable jockey. Intro: Workers constructing Washington's Grand Coulee Dam in 1942 fed a cable through a 500-foot drain by tying a string to an a...
Aug 08, 2016•31 min•Ep. 116
After the Battle of Gettysburg, a dead Union soldier was found near the center of town. He bore no identification, but in his hands he held a photograph of three children. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll follow the efforts of one Philadelphia physician to track down the lost man's family using only the image of his children. We'll also sample a 9-year-old's comedy of manners and puzzle over a letter that copies itself. Intro: The mayor of Talkeetna, Alaska, is a cat n...
Jul 25, 2016•31 min•Ep. 115
In 1968 British engineer Donald Crowhurst entered a round-the-world yacht race, hoping to use the prize money to save his failing electronics business. Woefully unprepared and falling behind, he resorted to falsifying a journey around the world. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe the desperate measures that Crowhurst turned to as events spiraled out of his control. We'll also get some updates on Japanese fire balloons and puzzle over a computer that turns on the...
Jul 18, 2016•37 min•Ep. 114
Anna Jarvis organized the first observance of Mother's Day in 1908 and campaigned to have the holiday adopted throughout the country. But her next four decades were filled with bitterness and acrimony as she watched her "holy day" devolve into a "burdensome, wasteful, expensive gift-day." In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast, we'll follow the evolution of Mother's Day and Jarvis' belligerent efforts to control it. We'll also meet a dog that flummoxed the Nazis and puzzle over wh...
Jul 11, 2016•31 min•Ep. 113
In 1961, Michael Rockefeller disappeared after a boating accident off the coast of Dutch New Guinea. Ever since, rumors have circulated that the youngest son of the powerful Rockefeller family had been killed by the headhunting cannibals who lived in the area. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast, we'll recount Rockefeller's story and consider the different fates that might have befallen him. We'll also learn more about the ingenuity of early sportscasters and puzzle over a baff...
Jul 04, 2016•34 min•Ep. 112
Toward the end of World War II, Japan launched a strange new attack on the United States: thousands of paper balloons that would sail 5,000 miles to drop bombs on the American mainland. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast, we'll tell the curious story of the Japanese fire balloons, the world's first intercontinental weapon. We'll also discuss how to tell time by cannon and puzzle over how to find a lost tortoise. Sources for our feature on Japanese fire balloons: Ross Coen, Fu-...
Jun 27, 2016•32 min•Ep. 111
Over the span of half a century, Brooklyn impostor Stanley Clifford Weyman impersonated everyone from a Navy admiral to a sanitation expert. When caught, he would admit his deception, serve his jail time, and then take up a new identity. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast, we'll review Weyman's surprisingly successful career and describe some of his more audacious undertakings. We'll also puzzle over why the police would arrest an unremarkable bus passenger. Sources for our fe...
Jun 20, 2016•32 min•Ep. 110
In 1925, Kentucky caver Floyd Collins was exploring a new tunnel when a falling rock caught his foot, trapping him 55 feet underground. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll follow the desperate efforts to free Collins, whose plight became one of the first popular media sensations of the 20th century. We'll also learn how Ronald Reagan invented a baseball record and puzzle over a fatal breakfast. Sources for our feature on Floyd Collins: Robert K. Murray and Roger W. Brucke...
Jun 12, 2016•31 min•Ep. 109
As recently as 1939, a London woman made her living by setting her watch precisely at the Greenwich observatory and "carrying the time" to her customers in the city. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll meet Ruth Belville, London's last time carrier, who conducted her strange occupation for 50 years. We'll also sample the colorful history of bicycle races and puzzle over a stymied prizewinner. Sources for our feature on Ruth Belville: David Rooney, Ruth Belville: The Green...
Jun 06, 2016•34 min•Ep. 108
In 1919, Ohio businessman Arthur Nash decided to run his clothing factory according to the Golden Rule and treat his workers the way he'd want to be treated himself. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll visit Nash's “Golden Rule Factory” and learn the results of his innovative social experiment. We'll also marvel at metabolism and puzzle over the secrets of Chicago pickpockets. Sources for our feature on Arthur Nash: Arthur Nash, The Golden Rule in Business , 1923. (Underc...
May 29, 2016•30 min•Ep. 107
During wargames in Louisiana in September 1941, the U.S. Army found itself drawn into a tense firefight with an unseen enemy across the Cane River. The attacker turned out to be three boys with a toy cannon. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll revisit the Battle of Bermuda Bridge and the Prudhomme brothers' account of their historic engagement. We'll also rhapsodize on guinea pigs and puzzle over some praiseworthy incompetence. Sources for our feature on the "Battle of Be...
May 23, 2016•32 min•Ep. 106
In 1952, French physician Alain Bombard set out to cross the Atlantic on an inflatable raft to prove his theory that a shipwreck victim can stay alive on a diet of seawater, fish, and plankton. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll set out with Bombard on his perilous attempt to test his theory. We'll also admire some wobbly pedestrians and puzzle over a luckless burglar. Please consider becoming a patron of Futility Closet -- on our Patreon page you can pledge any amount p...
May 08, 2016•34 min•Ep. 105
In August 1980, an extortionist planted a thousand-pound bomb in Harvey’s Wagon Wheel Casino in western Nevada. Unless the owners paid him $3 million within 24 hours, he said, the bomb would go off and destroy the casino. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe the tense drama that followed and the FBI's efforts to catch the criminal behind it. We'll also consider some dubious lawn care shortcuts and puzzle over why a man would tear up a winning ticket. Please consid...
May 02, 2016•33 min•Ep. 104
In 1897, confused physician Edward J. Goodwin submitted a bill to the Indiana General Assembly declaring that he'd squared the circle -- a mathematical feat that was known to be impossible. In today's show we'll examine the Indiana pi bill, its colorful and eccentric sponsor, and its celebrated course through a bewildered legislature and into mathematical history. We'll also marvel at the confusion wrought by turkeys and puzzle over a perplexing baseball game. Please consider becoming a patron o...
Apr 24, 2016•34 min•Ep. 103
In 1928, 199 runners set out on a perilous 3,400-mile footrace across America, from Los Angeles to Chicago and on to New York. The winner would receive $25,000 -- if anyone finished at all. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll follow the Trans-American Footrace, better known as the Bunion Derby, billed as the greatest footrace the world had ever known. We'll also learn some creepy things about spiders and puzzle over why one man needs three cars. Please consider becoming a...
Apr 18, 2016•34 min•Ep. 102
In 1863 the residents of Sandy Cove, Nova Scotia, discovered a legless man on the shore of St. Mary's Bay. He spoke no English and could not tell them who he was or where he had come from. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of "Jerome" and what is known or guessed of his past. We'll also learn about explosive rats in World War II and puzzle over a computer that works better when its users sit. Please consider becoming a patron of Futility Closet -- on our ...
Apr 11, 2016•31 min•Ep. 101
Here are five new lateral thinking puzzles to test your wits and stump your friends -- play along with us as we try to untangle some perplexing situations using yes-or-no questions. Please consider becoming a patron of Futility Closet -- on our Patreon page you can pledge any amount per episode, and all contributions are greatly appreciated. You can change or cancel your pledge at any time, and we've set up some rewards to help thank you for your support. You can also make a one-time donation vi...
Apr 04, 2016•37 min•Ep. 100
In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll take a tour through some oddities and unanswered questions from our research, including whether a spider saved Frederick the Great's life, a statue with the wrong face, and a spectacularly disaster-prone oil tanker. We'll also revisit the lost soldiers of World War I and puzzle over some curiously lethal ship cargo. Please consider becoming a patron of Futility Closet -- on our Patreon page you can pledge any amount per episode, and all...
Mar 28, 2016•34 min•Ep. 99
Seemingly safe in northern New England, the residents of St. Albans, Vermont, were astonished in October 1864 when a group of Confederate soldiers appeared in their midst, terrorizing residents, robbing banks, and stealing horses. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of the St. Albans raid, the northernmost land action of the Civil War. We'll also learn about Charles Darwin's misadventures at the equator and puzzle over a groundskeeper's strange method of te...
Mar 21, 2016•32 min•Ep. 98
Early one morning in 1912, the residents of Villisca, Iowa, discovered a horrible scene: An entire family had been brutally murdered in their sleep. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe the gruesome crime, which has baffled investigators for a hundred years. We'll also follow the further adventures of German sea ace Felix von Luckner and puzzle over some fickle bodyguards. Please consider becoming a patron of Futility Closet -- on our Patreon page you can pledge a...
Mar 14, 2016•31 min•Ep. 97
On June 23, 1858, the Catholic Church removed 6-year-old Edgardo Mortara from his family in Bologna. The reason they gave was surprising: The Mortaras were Jewish, and Edgardo had been secretly baptized. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of little Edgardo and learn how his family's plight shaped the course of Italian history. We'll also hear Ben Franklin's musings on cultural bigotry and puzzle over an unexpected soccer riot. Please consider becoming a pa...
Mar 07, 2016•32 min•Ep. 96
