S8 Ep224: cTRADE SEMINARS, HEALTH INSPECTIONS, AND A PROPER DESK Colleague Oliver Darkshire. The guest describes attending a trade seminar in York, noting that booksellers are typically reclusive rather than social. He recounts a health and safety inspection that l

S8 Ep224: SMOGS, DRACULAS, AND THE SHOP'S RESIDENT GHOST Colleague Oliver Darkshire. Oliver categorizes customers, such as "Smogs" seeking treasures and "Draculas" obsessed with specific themes. He discusses book runners, discovering moldy copies of Edwin Drood, an

S8 Ep224: APPRENTICESHIP AT HENRY SOTHERAN'S ANTIQUARIAN BOOKSHOP Colleague Oliver Darkshire. Darkshire describes his apprenticeship at Henry Sotheran's, noting the shop's silent atmosphere and his odd interview regarding trombone playing. He details the "higgledy-

S8 Ep224: ONCE UPON A TOME: A MISSION TO EVALUATE A REMOTE LIBRARY Colleague Oliver Darkshire. Guest Oliver Darkshire discusses his memoir, Once Upon a Tome, recounting a "mission" to a remote house to evaluate a library. After a difficult trek through woods, he di

S8 Ep223: AUSTRALIA'S SUMMER WEATHER FORECAST AND CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS Colleague Jeremy Zakis. Jeremy Zakis reports that while New South Wales is currently experiencing stormy weather, the Bureau of Meteorology predicts a catastrophically hot summer influenced by s

S8 Ep222: AUSTRALIA DOMINATES ENGLAND IN THE ASHES CRICKET SERIES Colleague Jeremy Zakis. Zakis analyzes the Ashes series, noting England's poor performance and failure to execute their aggressive "Bazball" strategy effectively. Conversely, Australia's consistent,

S8 Ep222: DALLAS MEETS A SLEEPY LIZARD; DESTRUCTIVE COCKATOOS RETURN Colleague Jeremy Zakis. Zakis describes a surprisingly friendly encounter between his dog, Dallas, and a "sleepy lizard," a reptile known to bite hard when threatened. Meanwhile, flocks of cockato

S8 Ep222: VENOMOUS SNAKES ON BEACHES AND A KOALA RESCUE Colleague Jeremy Zakis. Due to extreme heat and population growth, Eastern Brown snakes are appearing in unusual locations, such as inside surfers' bags on sandy beaches. Zakis also recounts a heartwarming sto

S8 Ep221: ELECTION NIGHT LANDSLIDE AND POLITICAL REALIGNMENT Colleague David Pietrusza. On election night, early returns from Connecticut signaled a massive victory for Roosevelt, contradicting the predictions of the Literary Digest straw poll. Roosevelt won a hist

S8 Ep221: THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL: CLASS WARFARE AND THE BLACK VOTE Colleague David Pietrusza. Alf Landon proved a poor campaigner, taking long vacations and delivering ineffective radio speeches. Conversely, Eleanor Roosevelt became a powerful surrogate, campaigning fo

S8 Ep221: THE REPUBLICAN FIELD AND THE SELECTION OF ALF LANDON Colleague David Pietrusza. The Republican Party sought a candidate to challenge Roosevelt, dismissing a return of Herbert Hoover and bypassing isolationist William Borah. They settled on Kansas Governor

S8 Ep221: THE POWER AND DECLINE OF WILLIAM RANDOLPH HEARST Colleague David Pietrusza. Media magnate William Randolph Hearst, who controlled a vast empire of newspapers and radio stations, shifted from a Roosevelt supporter in 1932 to a fierce critic by 1936. Hearst

S8 Ep221: MANAGING THE LEFT: SOCIALISTS, COMMUNISTS, AND THE POPULAR FRONT Colleague David Pietrusza. Roosevelt contended with established leftist parties, including the Socialists led by Norman Thomas and the Communist Party USA under Earl Browder. While the Socia

S8 Ep221: THE TOWNSEND PLAN, FATHER COUGHLIN, AND THE THIRD PARTY THREAT Colleague David Pietrusza. Dr. Francis Townsend's popular plan for old-age pensions pressured Roosevelt, who disliked "the dole," into creating Social Security. Concurrently, Father Charles Co

S8 Ep221: POPULIST THREATS FROM THE SOUTH: HUEY LONG AND THE TALMADGES Colleague David Pietrusza. Roosevelt faced significant challenges from Southern populists who threatened to split his support in the solid South. The most dangerous was Huey Long of Louisiana, w

S8 Ep220: THE INAUGURATION RELEASE AND A PATTERN OF TREASON Colleague Craig Unger. Unger highlights the suspicious timing of the hostage release minutes after Reagan's inauguration, arguing a secret deal was undeniable. He connects this to a pattern of Republican i

S8 Ep220: INSIDE IRAN: CONFESSIONS FROM THE REVOLUTIONARIES Colleague Craig Unger. Traveling to Tehran, Unger visits the former US embassy and interviews Mohsen Rafighdoost, a Revolutionary Guard founder. Unger captured video where Rafighdoost seemingly admits to m

S8 Ep220: CONFIRMING MADRID AND THE PARIS MEETING MYSTERY Colleague Craig Unger. Unger asserts the Madrid meeting between Casey and Iranian cleric Karrubi definitely occurred to sketch the deal. While less certain about George H.W. Bush's presence at the subsequent

S8 Ep220: THE SECRET NETWORK: SAFARI CLUB AND ISRAELI INTELLIGENCE Colleague Craig Unger. The discussion examines the "Safari Club," an off-the-books network used by Casey to bypass oversight. Unger explains how Casey utilized John Shaheen as a cutout to communicat

S8 Ep220: MEDIA COVER-UPS AND THE LADIES' ROOM DISCOVERY Colleague Craig Unger. Unger recounts how Newsweek and a Congressional investigation suppressed the story, dismissing the "October Surprise" as a myth. Despite warnings from Seymour Hersh, Unger and reporter