Most people would probably say “Yes” immediately if someone agreed to pay them a million dollars for spending time on an island. But what if you had to undergo challenges like eating beetle larvae, and be judged by a jury of your peers in order to get the money? Oh, also, finding a place to poop is not fun. That may not sound like your ideal vacation, but to the first-season contestants on Survivor , that was their reality for the 39-day duration of the show. And to the millions of people who we...
Sep 03, 2024•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 46
This past week, on August 23rd, the world (A.K.A. musical theater nerds) recognized the anniversary of the passing of Oscar Hammerstein II, one of Broadway's most renowned contributors. So to honor Mr. Hammerstein in our own, special ThWAT way, here's Rob's episode all about the age in which Hammerstein ruled supreme: the Golden Age of Musical Theater. Enjoy! ~~~ Long before the barricades of Les Mis arose, before Adele Dazeem defied gravity, and before Mr. Alexander Hamilton took his shot, musi...
Aug 27, 2024•56 min•Season 2Ep. 34
Have you ever tried to build a new habit? Ever find yourself reaching for your phone even when it’s not in your pocket? Ever thought about whether free will actually exists? Yeah, that last one got deep, but that’s just how we roll here at This Was A Thing. Because this week, we’re talking all about a man who devoted his life to studying whether or not humans have a say in how they behave. His conclusion? We’re all pretty much rats pressing levers. Daniel teaches Ray and Rob about B.F. Skinner, ...
Aug 20, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Season 3Ep. 13
If you’ve ever ordered at a chain restaurant, then you know the homey feeling of knowing you’re about to eat the exact same meal as you could get at any other location. And even though the Golden Arches or a pair of red braids and freckles are some of the most recognizable franchise mascots today, if we flashback to the mid-1900s, then Simple Simon and the Pieman would’ve been just as recognizable as those other icons. Why? Because if you wanted a tasty clam belly, a delicious sundae, or to snag...
Aug 13, 2024•44 min•Season 2Ep. 20
Are you looking for a story that is 100% guaranteed to blow your mind? A true crime tale that'll leave you wondering how crooks got away with it for so long in the first place? Well, hold on to your girdle, because this one's a doozy. It's got everything: insurance scams, fake passports, an undercover sting operation, Israeli really bank accounts, and huge sales on some of the best TVs and VCRs around (sales tax not included). Best of all, you can listen to this story for the low, low price of F...
Aug 06, 2024•54 min•Season 2Ep. 12
We're busy behind the scenes here putting together a whole new batch episodes for the upcoming year, so while we do that, have a tasty, bite-sized treat on us - a chance to listen back to our episode all about the world's favorite mini-oven! ~~~ Happy holidays, listeners! We’ve got a delectable episode for you today, featuring a toy that has been a household staple for more than 60 years and is still going strong. In fact, it would be just the thing if you’re looking for some help with holiday b...
Jul 30, 2024•49 min•Season 3Ep. 7
If you turn back the clocks to the early 90s, it would be impossible to avoid all the late night jokes about Vice President Dan Quayle. Likewise, if you followed the 90s TV scene, you couldn't miss the fact that Candice Bergen was raking in the Emmys for her role as the titular Murphy Brown on CBS. So when two media behemoths like that unexpectedly went head-to-head, it was bound to be a battle for the ages... Rob teaches Ray about Dan Quayle's life and career, and his sudden rise to prominence ...
Jul 23, 2024•51 min•Season 2Ep. 9
If you’ve ever fallen into the YouTube rabbit hole of corporate training videos, then you’re our kind of listener. We could (and probably should) do a whole episode just about the glorious world of schlocky and cheesy company-produced entertainment intended to get employees the information they need - and with style! And as America prepared to enter World War II, hundreds of thousands of troops needed to quickly learn essential topics about everything from Japanese fighter planes to the perks of...
Jul 17, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 3Ep. 20
With heat waves hitting all over, it’s hot as H-E-double hockey sticks - so what could be better than revisiting a classic episode about an iconic rock album that when it debuted in 1977 was just as hot as the crazy temperatures we’re getting? Strap into your cycle and enjoy! ~~~ We’ve covered our fair share of musicians and music-adjacent topics on This Was a Thing , and we’ll probably cover plenty more in the future. But when it comes to the Venn Diagram of musical theatre, rock-and-roll, and ...
Jul 09, 2024•57 min•Season 2Ep. 58
This week, we’re celebrating a very important birthday here at This Was A Thing . No, not that one involving declarations of independence and tea taxes (although we do love spilling tea) - this July 3rd would have been the 111th birthday of Dorothy Kilgallen, one of the most recognized reporters and celebrities of the early 20th century. But in addition to a life filled with notable accomplishments, what might have made Dorothy most remembered in the history books was her death - because it happ...
Jul 03, 2024•58 min•Season 3Ep. 119
We’re giving you all a blast from the past and a peek behind the member's curtain by republishing one of our favorite Patreon bonus episodes of all time (Rob’s especially fond of the fact that Nathan Lane makes a showing). This one’s all about actor Edwin Booth, and features a very special appearance from distinguished guest host Brody Karn, Esquire. And if you like what you hear, you can get access to this and our entire collection of bonus episodes by supporting the show on Patreon or subscrib...
Jun 25, 2024•1 hr 1 min
Danny and Sandy...Troy and Gabriella...Baby and Johnny. All vacation romances that became classics in their own right. And then there’s another that’s maybe not quite as classic: the iconic, infamous, and Golden Raspberry award-winning duo of Justin and Kelly. ~~~ “American Idol” season one was an entertainment behemoth in the 2002. It introduced us to sassy judges and gave the world the multi-hyphened legend, Ryan Seacrest. But besides that, it also introduced the world to Kelly Clarkson and Ju...
Jun 18, 2024•51 min•Season 1Ep. 37
When it comes to LGBTQ trailblazers, Ellen DeGeneres is top of that list. Her decision to come out both as a public figure and her television persona made waves across the country and her daytime talk show helped normalize the image of a gay host on public airwaves. Sadly (and unsurprisingly given the slow pace of progress) there was blowback when Ellen made her momentous decision - conservatives railed against a gay television character and its impact on “family values.” But what maybe was a su...
Jun 11, 2024•58 min•Season 3Ep. 18
June's bustin' out all over, and we're bustin' out one last classic episode before we get back to some new episodes coming later this month. And since June is Pride Month and the month of the Tony Awards, we're serving up a "two birds, one stone" situation by reairing an episode that falls squarely in both categories: La Cage aux Folles! ~~~ In honor of pride month, this week is a special episode focused on the franchise that began life as a landmark French boulevard stage comedy, and was then a...
Jun 04, 2024•57 min•Season 2Ep. 37
Our final stop down defunct social media memory lane: take six seconds (give or take a few hundred) and give a listen to our classic all about Vine! ~~~ Can you put together a meaningful thought or idea in six seconds or less? What about a moderately funny video? It’s hard! But there was some GOLD in them there Vine hills! Ray teaches Rob about how Vine helped launch the careers of Shawn Mendes, King Bach, and yes, even Jake and Logan Paul. We also revisit some of our favorite Vines of years pas...
May 21, 2024•30 min•Season 1Ep. 14
Next up in our social platform retrospective: Napster! TikTok may currently be the place where up-and-coming musicians are finding their audience and where labels like Universal have banned their artists from sharing music. But rewind a couple decades and there was one indisputable home of music on the internet: Napster. Only one problem: it was probably all illegal. ~~~ Ah, to be 19 again. It's a time of possibilities, insecurities, of worrying about what adulthood is really going to be like. O...
May 14, 2024•53 min•Season 2Ep. 22
With all this hubbub about TikTok possibly getting banned, we're revisiting three of our episodes about social media platforms that burned bright and burned out fast. And up first - MySpace! ~~~ Friendster, SixDegrees, Makeoutclub - if you're a 90s kid, then you probably remember at least some of those websites (and may they all rest in peace). But there could only be one top dog, and MySpace was it. Hillary Duff, Harry Styles, Kim Kardashian - everyone had a MySpace page, and you better pray yo...
May 07, 2024•50 min•Season 1Ep. 48
This week, Rob teaches Ray and Daniel about the storied biography of Mr. Carlos Irwin Estevez, better known as Charlie Sheen, including: Sheen’s origins as a child star and teen heartthrob; his breakout role in “Platoon”; Sheen’s struggles with substances and his highly publicized firing from the sitcom that revitalized his career; and how the news media all seized on Sheen’s apparent mental collapse as an opportunity to drive ratings, regardless of the impact it might have had on his state of m...
May 02, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Season 3Ep. 17
It's Earth Day and we want to celebrate one of the finest gifts that this pretty planet has to offer. No, not Fred Silverman - everyone's best bud, cannabis! But things haven't always looked as bright for MJ as they do nowadays with modern legalization efforts, and so we're looking back at a time when the hype around marijuana was more about the insanity it caused than its many benefits. And that insanity had a special name - Reefer Madness! ~~~ REEFER MADNESS! It’s taken over this fine country,...
Apr 23, 2024•41 min•Season 1Ep. 33
In our glorious age of streaming services, we never need to worry about recording anything ourselves - we just click “Continue Watching” and chill. But in the sad, not-too-distant past, you couldn’t always just open up Netflix and binge all nine seasons of Suits whenever you felt like it. Instead, if you missed your favorite soap, tough noogies. That is, that was the way things were until the magical VCR entered the American household. Out of the house? No problem! Just pop in a cassette and you...
Apr 16, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Season 3Ep. 16
Quench your podcast thirst by listening back to this Season 1 favorite all about the little soft drink that couldn't - Crystal Pepsi! ~~~ Right Now! You’re reading a description for this week’s episode, Crystal Pepsi. Right Now! This particular episode is a little different, let’s be CLEAR. Right Now! Crystal Pepsi was a flash in the CAN (and bottle!) and we’re going to teach you all about it! Right Now! They also ran a Super Bowl commercial for it that featured a Sammy Haggar lead Van Halen, si...
Apr 09, 2024•35 min•Season 1Ep. 34
We all get mad about things sometimes, and during the Cold War, the U.S. government was mad about “M.A.D.”. That’s because “M.A.D.” “Mutually Assured Destruction” - was a global concern on everyone’s mind. And the fear that foreign countries ( / cough/** Russia cough ) would use nuclear weapons wasn’t only causing chaos in the Oval Office. Hollywood and TV studios were just as interested in it, because where there’s fear, there’s an audience. And one studio - and one movie in particular - took t...
Apr 02, 2024•59 min•Season 3Ep. 15
Nostalgia is our podcast's bread and butter (that and actual bread and butter, which is delicious). And if one episode perfectly encapsulates that feeling, it was our deep dive into the talent show that came before any of the modern shows like "Britain's Got Talent" or "American Idol." So sit back, turn on that public access channel, and listen back to our episode on Frank Masi's legendary "Stairway to Stardom"! ~~~ Turn your dials to station Manhattan Neighborhood Network station 13 because we ...
Mar 26, 2024•50 min•Season 1Ep. 30
In the age of YouTube, it feels like there’s a new conspiracy every day. Some of them are ol’ chestnuts - love how we faked the moon landing that one time, right? Some of them pop up in the seemingly most random places, like Taylor Swift’s “secret plan” to use her popularity to boost Joe Biden’s approval rating (That’s just downright silly. We all know it must have been Travis Kelce’s idea, not Taylor’s). But even with all the bonkers stuff we all come up with, the secret stuff the government ac...
Mar 20, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 3Ep. 14
It’s Oscars season! Whether or not you recognized this national holiday by tuning into the awards show on Sunday, you probably know all the drama that comes with those little golden statues - the glamor, the glitz, the snubs. And speaking of snubs, one film that had nary a nomination was the focus of today’s classic: Paul Verhoeven’s Showgirls . Enjoy (as long as you’re over 17)! ~~~ Does your Venn Diagram of interests include Dale Cooper, Saved by the Bell, and Robocop ? Also, are you 17 or old...
Mar 12, 2024•41 min•Season 1Ep. 52
Have you ever tried to build a new habit? Ever find yourself reaching for your phone even when it’s not in your pocket? Ever thought about whether free will actually exists? Yeah, that last one got deep, but that’s just how we roll here at This Was A Thing. Because this week, we’re talking all about a man who devoted his life to studying whether or not humans have a say in how they behave. His conclusion? We’re all pretty much rats pressing levers. Daniel teaches Ray and Rob about B.F. Skinner, ...
Mar 05, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Season 3Ep. 13
This week, we’re cruising back in time to revisit an episode all about a TV show that burned bright, and then burned out real quick. But those are exactly the things we celebrate here, so enjoy this week’s classic episode on The Chevy Chase Show ! ~~~ You love Caddyshack , right? How about “Weekend Update” on SNL, or all the National Lampoon Vacation movies? Classic! Then you're bound to love a talk show hosted by the one and only Chevy Chase, right? Right?? Ray teaches Rob about the late night ...
Feb 27, 2024•44 min•Season 1Ep. 47
Happy Birthday, dear Patty, haaaappy birthday to you! Who's Patty, you ask? Why, Patty Hearst, of course! Today not only happens to be Ms. Hearst's birthday, it's also the 50th anniversary of the year she was kidnapped by, and then apparently joined with, a far left domestic terrorist organization. How did that all go down? Guess you'll have to listen to find out... Rob teaches Ray and Daniel about Patty (sorry, Patricia ) Hearst's relatively mundane upbringing as an heir to the Hearst journalis...
Feb 20, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 3Ep. 12
Roses are red, violets are blue, we all worship Liza and so should you. Because who is more iconic than the woman who gave us the Cabaret movie, Linda in “Arthur,” and Lucille 2 in Arrested Development? So in celebration of the marvelous Mrs. Minnelli, here’s our episode on Liza’s stint as a host on the Home Shopping Network. ~~~ We here at “This Was A Thing” LOVE Ms. Liza May Minnelli! March 12th just happened to be her birthday, so we wanted to throw her a little birthday celebration! The woma...
Feb 13, 2024•38 min•Season 1Ep. 28
Post-credits scenes are so common nowadays, it’s almost a surprise when there isn’t a clip teasing a sequel, or an extended universe, or the next Super Mario Bros. Movie. But cliffhangers are something special. They can entice an audience to feel the irresistable urge to watch a movie or tune into an episode just to see that lingering question answered. And nobody did it better than one TV show back in 1980, when a last-minute plot twist not only changed the trajectory of that show, but led to a...
Feb 06, 2024•51 min•Season 3Ep. 11
