Very Special Episodes

By iHeartPodcasts

Society & Culture Education History

What's Very Special Episodes about?

On the Very Special Episodes podcast, we tell one incredible story each week. Stranger-than-fiction tales about normal people in extraordinary situations. Stories that make you say, “this should be a movie.” Follow us down a different rabbit hole every Wednesday.

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Very Special Episodes episodes:

05.18.2024
The Affair of the Diamond Necklace
Jeanne de Valois-Saint-Rémy was a French countess with a dubious claim to nobility and one brilliant idea: she was going to steal a diamond necklace from Louis XVI. After weaseling her way into court, Jeanne impersonates Marie Antoinette in a...
05.09.2024
Introducing: Sixteenth Minute (of Fame)
Hi Very Special Episodes Fans! Take a listen to the trailer of our newest show Sixteenth Minute (of Fame) About the show: Sixteenth Minute (of Fame) is a weekly show from Jamie Loftus that takes a closer look at the internet’s...
05.01.2024
The Buffet Table
This week, we present a smattering of stories you might have missed. If you've inhaled all these, email us — [email protected] — and we'll recommend something else worth your time. Operation Lunar Eclipse Apple • Spotify • iHeart Boat Trip Apple • Spotify •...
04.24.2024
Signs of Life: Revisiting Martha's Vineyard Sign Language
Martha's Vineyard once was a place you could gossip with neighbors, shop for supplies, or play a cutthroat game of cards — all without saying a word. That's because it had a thriving Deaf community. Residents, Deaf and hearing alike,...
04.17.2024
On the Hunt for Math's Most Mysterious Number
Right now thousands of people are on a mathematical treasure hunt from the comfort of their home offices. Our own Zaron Burnett is one of them. Here's how you can join him — and compete for $50,000. * On the Very Special...
04.10.2024
Westward Hoax: The Secret History of Palisade, Nevada
In the 1870s, Palisade, NV was the meanest little town west of the Mississippi. Every week, newspapers announced another gunpowder-fueled cowboy showdown. Palisade put the wild in the “Wild West.” But there was a lot more to the story that didn’t...
04.01.2024
The Worldwide Sensation That Started as an April Fools' Joke
In the summer of 2016, the entire world was going crazy for a new mobile game. All these years later, it’s easy to forget the wildest part about Pokémon GO: the whole thing began as an April Fools’ joke. * Very Special...
03.27.2024
Up, Up and Away: The Superman Heist
A Superman fan in Illinois is horrified to discover his entire stockpile of memorabilia has gone missing. As police search for the thief, the collecting community delivers their own brand of justice. * Very Special Episodes is a new podcast with a...
03.20.2024
Seed Wars: History's Deadliest Botany Rivalry
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the main event. The greatest botany rivalry in history! It's Vavilov vs. Lysenko for the fate of the Soviet Union. In the 1920s and '30s, Nikolai Vavilov was a big deal. He was studying seed genetics...
03.13.2024
Spider-Man's Surreal Adventures on Broadway
Very Special Episodes is a new podcast hosted by Dana Schwartz, Zaron Burnett, and Jason English. Follow us down a different rabbit hole every Wednesday. In 2011, after many delays, one of the most anticipated musicals in theater history finally opened...
03.06.2024
The Case of the Two Nancy Drews
The biggest Nancy Drew mystery isn’t hidden in the plots of the books. It’s right there on the cover. If “Carolyn Keene” is a pseudonym, who really wrote the series? For 50 years, two women laid claim to that title....
02.29.2024
Happy Leap Day
With help from "Leap Day Lady" Raenell Dawn, Dana Schwartz makes the case for making Leap Day a national holiday. * Very Special Episodes is a new podcast where we tell one incredible story each week. We're back with a full episode...
02.21.2024
The Pledge: Who Really Wrote the Pledge of Allegiance?
In today's Episode, Dana, Zaron and Jason tackle a 130-year-old mystery. Although American schoolchildren still recite The Pledge every morning in nearly every classroom, we still aren't sure who actually wrote it. And all these years later, the long-accepted story...
02.15.2024
Old Man on Campus
After a middle-aged manual laborer goes back to school to turn his life around, he’s reborn as a college football standout. But as midlife crises go, this one is going to hurt. (Portions of today's episode were recorded on Radio Row...
02.07.2024
Operation Lunar Eclipse
When a teenage astronomy fan is gifted a piece of the moon by NASA, he’s inadvertently pulled into the seedy underground moonrock trade. But don’t worry. With help from H. Ross Perot, NASA secret agents are on the case. * Very Special...
01.31.2024
Boat Trip: The Attempted Sinking of Titanic
On the last day of filming in Nova Scotia, someone poisoned the cast and crew of James Cameron’s Titanic with PCP. Bedlam ensued on a tight-knit set. Everyone became a suspect. Almost three decades later, we unravel a ‘90s Hollywood mystery. * Very...
01.24.2024
Introducing: Very Special Episodes
Welcome to Very Special Episodes, an anthology of outrageous stories pulled from history and pop culture. Each immersive tale feels like a movie. Very Special Episodes will have you telling your friends and co-workers, "I just heard the craziest story...