Creature Meets Culture

Haley and Debbie sit down for a story that inspired lots of tangents, opinions, and deep thoughts and reflections! In 1989, a military surveillence system picked up a whale call at a frequency never heard before. With a call at a frequency of 52 hertz, the whale earned its name and decades of fame to go along with it. When researchers studied and shared the story of this whale, thousands of people around the world resonated with the idea of calling out and not being answered or understood. Books, movies, songs, albums, poems, tattoos, and blog posts were created, and the story of the "loneliest" whale became cemented in history. In this episode, we explore the facts that buffer this story and add context, and we're so very excited to share this one with you!

Let's Connect!

instagram: @creaturemeetsculture

gmail: [email protected]

fable (join our book club!): fable.co/club/cmc-book-club-with-debbie-442046716793?club_type=free

Sources:

Netflix Documentary: https://www.netflix.com/watch/81446263?trackId=284616272&tctx=0%2C0%2C8f3ca2a0-9181-41a2-805a-a1936c3c0e6c%2C8f3ca2a0-9181-41a2-805a-a1936c3c0e6c%7C%3DeyJwYWdlSWQiOiI4ZTI4MzM1Ny1mZjM3LTQ3YzYtYjI2ZS04YzNmNTQ3N2RiOTMvMS8vd2hhbGUgNTIvMC8wIiwibG9jYWxTZWN0aW9uSWQiOiIyIn0%3D%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%2CVideo%3A81446263%2CdetailsPagePlayButton

Watkins' Publication: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/223377110_Twelve_years_of_tracking_52-Hz_whale_calls_from_a_unique_source_in_

the_North_Pacific

Blue Whale: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/blue-whale

Fin Whale: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/fin-whale

Additional: https://cascadiaresearch.org/crc-and-the-loneliest-whale/

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/648247/52-hertz-loneliest-whale-documentary

https://niche-canada.org/2021/08/19/review-of-the-loneliest-whale-the-search-for-52/

List of Art inspired by Whale 52:

MUSIC

• "Whalien 52" — BTS (2015), from their album The Most Beautiful Moment in Life, Pt. 1 — about the isolation of fame, directly inspired by 52

• "Part of Me Apart From You" — Colin Stetson (2013), from New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light — not explicitly about 52, but the Montreal saxophonist has said publicly at live performances that the whale's story resonated deeply with the composition

• "Ode to 52 Hz" — Kimiko Hahn, from her 2010 poetry collection Toxic Flora (this is a poem, not a song, but worth noting)

• An unnamed full album written by a singer in New Mexico who quit his tech job to record it — mentioned in Leslie Jamison's essay but not named

FILM & DOCUMENTARY

• The Loneliest Whale: The Search for 52 (2021) — dir. Joshua Zeman, exec. produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and Adrian Grenier, 86% on Rotten Tomatoes

• The Phantom 52 (2019) — animated short, premiered at Sundance, directed by Geoff Marslett, stars Tom Skerritt as the whale

• The Loneliest (2014) — short mockumentary about two women searching for 52, dir. Lilian T. Mehrel, funded by an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation grant

• 52Hz, I Love You (2017) — Taiwanese musical comedy film directed by Wei Te-sheng, loosely inspired by 52

• Whale 52: Suite for Man, Boy, and Whale (2025) — animated short, screened at Manhattan's IFC Center and the Woodstock Film Festival, animated by Bill Plympton, stars Bruce Vilanch

• 52 Hertz Whales (2024) Japanese novelist Sonoko Machida published a novel in 2020 using 52 as a metaphor for voiceless lonely people finding each other — it was adapted into a film in 2024 (called 52-Hertz Whales).

LITERATURE & ESSAYS

• "52 Blue" — Leslie Jamison (2014), The Atavist Magazine, later collected in Make It Scream, Make It Burn (2019)

• "52 Hertz" — Corrie Williamson (2014), prose poem

• A children's song written by a singer in Michigan — mentioned in Jamison's essay, unnamed

VISUAL ART

• A sculpture made from old plastic bottles by an artist in upstate New York

• Countless tattoos, fan art, and social media tributes — including a dedicated Twitter account with the hashtags #lonely and #sadlife

Haley and Debbie are here for an episode that has been in the works since the inception of this podcast...The U.S. Navy's Dolphin program! Currently based out of Point Loma, San Diego, these dolphins have trained as couriers, as well as mine and enemy detectors. A large amount of the scientific research we have on bottlenose dolphins was also donw within this program, previously located at Point Mugu.

Let's Be Friends!

instagram: @creaturemeetsculture

Sources:

The Dolphin Doctor by Sam Ridgway: https://www.thriftbooks.com/a/sam-ridgeway/584499/

https://acousticstoday.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Dolphin-Biosonar-Research.pdf

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21281220/

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/224554890_Research_with_Navy_Marine_Mammals_benefits_animal_care_conservation_and_biology

Savanna and Debbie are here for the Kentucky Derby, unfortunately without their own hats for the occasion. Savanna lives in Lousiville so she's bringing us the history and traditions of America's most famous horse race. We're talking about the traditions, the hats (of course) and the names and wins that stand out the most.

Let's be friends!

[email protected]

instagram: @creaturemeetsculture

Sources:

https://www.kentuckyderby.com/

Savanna and Debbie bring you the story of Morris Frank, Dorothy Eustis, and a German Shepherd named Buddy. When dog trainer and breeder Dorthy Eustis writes an enthusiastic article for The Saturday Evening Post about seeing guide dogs lead the blind in Germany, Morris Frank's life is changed. Morris subsequently became the handler to a very unique guide dog, Buddy, who would convince an entire nation that the place of guide dogs in society was a valuable one worth advocating for.

Let's Chat!

@creaturemeetsculture

[email protected]

Seeing Eye School:

https://seeingeye.org

Assistance Dogs International:

https://assistancedogsinternational.org/

Sources:

https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2016/04/post-article-launched-seeing-eye-program/

 https://news.vanderbilt.edu/2010/12/06/through-buddys-eyes/

https://seeingeye.org/the-seeing-eyes-early-beginnings-dorothy-harrison-eustis/

https://www.igdf.org.uk/guide-dogs/history-of-guide-dogs/

https://www.marybakereddylibrary.org/research/women-of-history-dorothy-harrison-eustis/

I also read The First Lady of the Seeing Eye by Morris Frank and Blake Clark, and it's kind of ahrd to come by. I got it on thriftbooks and it's not available right now but check with your local library!

https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/first-lady-of-the-seeing-eye/13599847/#edition=20871265&idiq=35802609

Haley tells Savanna and Debbie all about emus and they're pretty weird. But also so fascinating. There was an actual war declared and executed in Australia in 1932 and *spoiler* THE EMUS WON. It's wild and crazy and leads to a great conversation about practical (and actually helpful) solutions to human-wildlife conflict.

Follow us on insta @creaturemeetsculture

Sources:

https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-great-emu-war-australia

https://www.britannica.com/technology/military-technology

 https://romanianjournalofhistoricalstudies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/richard-j.-cook-src491an-m.-jovanovic487-the-emu-strikes-back_an-inquiry-into-australiae28099s-peculiar-military-action-of-1932.pdf

https://panthera.org/

Haley and Debbie are back with part 2 of Sonora Webster Carver and her incredible diving horses. This story just keeps getting wilder. Come join us as we are in true awe of these animals and this woman.

Buy Sonora's book here:

https://www.amazon.com/Girl-Five-Brave-Horses/dp/1891396722

Join our book club!!!

https://fable.co/club/cmc-book-club-with-debbie-442046716793

Haley and Debbie learn about the truly wild and astonishing world of horse diving. In the late 1800s, "Doc" Carver created a an act where a diver waited for a horse to gallop up a ramp to a dving board. The diver would then jump on the horse (bareback!) and together they would dive the full 40 feet into a pool below. Initally part of a Wild West show and then it's own incredible circus finale act, horse diving took audiences around the country by storm. And within that world lived Sonora Webster, a strong willed 19 year old who would go on to become the greatest diver the act had ever seen.

Everything from this episode came from Sonora's autobiography, written with Elizabeth Land, titled A Girl and Her Five Brave Horses. If I can give you my own review of this book, I strongly recommend it. Her writing is incredible and the subject matter brings you in and doesn't let you go. Read it! You won't regret it!

Let's Connect!:

creaturemeetsculture.com

instagram: @creaturemeetsculture

reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/CreatureMeetsCulture/?type=TEXT

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61583610878197

We're in person, people! and we're ALL TOGETHER! Savanna brings us the story of Sargeant Subby, who was a mascot pup during WWI and an all around hero. You're not going to want to miss this story of a dog who not only brought people together, but rescues them, fought with them, and also makes it so we have another story that is not the most depressing thing you've heard all week!

Savanna's source was this book. Go buy it and read it!

Sergeant Stubby: How a Stray Dog and His Best Friend Helped Win World War I and Stole the Heart of a Nation by Ann Bausum

https://www.amazon.com/Sergeant-Stubby-Friend-Helped-Nation/dp/1426213107

Savanna and Debbie learn about the roots of the most beloved honey-loving bear there is. The name of Winnie the Pooh comes from a very real black bear. When veterinarian Harry Colebourn was on his way to Quebec to serve in WWI, he rescued a black bear cub he ran into at the train station. Colebourn's brigade welcomed the bear as a mascot. But when the troop was taken to the frontlines, Winnie was sent to London Zoo "on loan". The journey of a friendly, gentle, treat-loving bear would make it's way to a boy named Christopher Robin, and his father, A.A. Milne.

Let's Connect!

insta: @creaturemeetsculture

Sources:

Book by Colebourn's great granddaughter, winner of Caldecott Medal: Finding Winnie by Lindsay Mattick, illustrated by Sophie Blackall

https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2018/09/14/winnies-great-war-lindsay-mattick

Pretty much all photos, diary entries, and documentation on colebourn's story:

https://therealwinnie.torontomu.ca/collection/colebourn

more:

https://www.history.com/articles/the-true-story-of-the-real-life-winnie-the-pooh

https://wardiaries.ca/s/operationcanada/page/harry-colebourn-diaries-winnie-pooh

Hey everyone! It's Savanna's FIRST episode, and unsurprisingly, it's a dog rescue story. Debbie and Savanna talk about the story of Ethan, a dog left to die outside the Kentucky Humane Society. Rehabilitated and living with his forever family, Ethan isn't just a gentle giant. He influences radical change as a law in his name holds animal abusers accountable for their actions.

Let's connect on instagram @creaturemeetsculture

Email us at [email protected]

Donate and read Ethan's story here:

https://ethanalmighty.com/ethanalmightys-blessings