After Gilbert and Sullivan, a wave of American writers made the musical truly their own and created what is now called "The American Songbook." Learn how America's racist past met with new ideas about society and set us on the path to the modern musical.

Unlikely Explanations

Why do Musicals Sound Like That? The 20s–40s (Long Version)

Why do Musicals Sound Like That? The 20s–40s (Short Version)

Americans by and large are unhappy with our parties and our government. But with a few structural changes, we could bring our political system back from the brink of collapse. 

Why Do Americans Keep Electing Republicans And Democrats?

Most polar explorers survived while nearly all hauling animals died on polar expeditions. Why did Robert F. Scott die in the antarctic and what does it have to do with eating dogs?

How to Survive the South Pole

In many times and places, there were more than two options when it came to gender. Eunuchs no longer exist as a class but nonbinary people are starting to assert their identity. What can we learn from nonbinary people of the past?

How Do We Cope With Gender?

Part 1 of 2. For most of history, eunuchs were an integral part of imperial administration. Who were eunuchs and what can we learn about gender in politics from them?

What Can Eunuchs Teach Us About Politics?

We have been quarantining since before the invention of germ theory. Why do we quarantine and what can we learn from pandemics of the past?

What's in a Quarantine?—A History of Pandemics

Over the 20th Century, superconspiracy theories have infiltrated the American political discourse, particularly on the right. This process reached its climax in the election of our first openly conspiracist president, Donald Trump. This episode explores the history of conspiracy theories in America from Henry Ford to Pat Robertson to Donald Trump.

What Does Trump Mean By "Deep State"?—Conspiracies Part 2

What is a conspiracy theory? Where do they come from? Why does my grandma keep posting them on Facebook? This is the story of how fringe theories conquered the mainstream.

How Did Conspiracy Theories Become Mainstream?—Conspiracies Part 1

In 1953 the Canadian government relocated Inuit to the inhospitable far north. Why?

Why Does Anyone Live in Resolute?—A Canadian Atrocity

Warning: this episode discusses sexual assault and racist depictions. In the 1870s, the comic opera made the jump into English and started the tradition that made Broadway and West End the theater capitols of the world. This episode takes a close look at the first step of that development: the work of W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan.

Why Do Musicals Sound Like That? Gilbert and Sullivan

Two men claimed to be the first to the north pole. One man claimed to be the first to fly over. All three were lying. Hear the bizarre story of who truly reached the north pole first.Read more at unlikelyexplanation.com

Why Was The North Pole Discovered Four Different Times?

This podcast uncovers the deeper currents of history by examining strange and unlikely true stories.

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Unlikely Explanations

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