Dead Air Time

She was a true prodigy in every sense of the word. Her fingers flew over the black and white keys, nimble with grace surprising for such a young lady. The melody flowing from her hands matched her movements as the enraptured audience held their breath. It was enchanting. Her brother had indeed awed them before with his performance, but she captivated them just as well. While her brother would become a name famously known throughout her country, and the world, she continued to feed her love of music even when she couldn’t perform as she once did. Join us as we take a breath of dead air with Maria Anna Mozart.

Sources

https://www.ritacharbonnier.com/mozarts-sister-q-a/ 

https://herhalfofhistory.com/2025/02/20/14-8-nannerl-mozart-sister-of-wolfgang-amadeus/ 

https://interlude.hk/maria-anna-mozart-the-bittersweet-story-of-mozarts-prodigy-sister/ 

https://robertgreenbergmusic.com/music-history-monday-the-other-mozart-kid/#:~:text=Leopold%20Mozart%20%E2%80%93%20Dad%20%E2%80%93%20was%20born,to%20actually%20earn%20his%20salary). 

https://en.chateauversailles.fr/discover/history/key-dates/visit-child-mozart-1763-1764#:~:text=Key%20Dates,and%20everyone%20flocked%20after%20him.

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/anibal-seminara/los-juegos-de-brian

License code: JN6FVYTX4BTDCTQT

In 2008, a newspaper man, named Wil Haygood, was on a mission to interview a very specific person. After spending a multitude of hours making calls and searching, he finally was able to make contact with the man who had seen more history happen than Wil had even hoped for. This man had not been a politician, a musician, or a rich statistician. Nope! This man had been a butler. A butler to presidents of the United States, to be exact. What was it like to be a butler in the most distinguished household in the country? Join us as we discuss this and take a breath of dead air with Eugene Allen.

Sources

Daniels, Lee, director. The Butler. 2013. 

Haygood, Wil. “A Butler Well Served by This Election.” Washington Post, www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/a-butler-well-served-by-this-election/2019/01/02/b2a805a6-07b1-11e9-88e3-989a3e456820_story.html. Accessed 22 Dec. 2025. 

Haygood, Wil. The Butler: A Witness to History. 2018. 

Nagle, Bethany. “The Life of Eugene Allen.” White House Historical Association, www.whitehousehistory.org/the-life-of-eugene-allen. Accessed 22 Dec. 2025. 

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/ben-mcelroy/pocket-watch

License code: ADO7J0RJHQ50S6B8

While starting from humble origins, born on a small farm in a small town in Texas, this boy would go on to be not only a household name known for his warm voice, his upright character, and his beloved shows, but he would also become a great businessman with investments in a variety of things. From airplane schools to baseball teams, from television and radio shows to hotels, his business spanned across many fields. However, we remember him most for his voice and his warmth. Join us as we get “Back in the Saddle Again”, and take a breath of Dead Air with America’s Singing Cowboy, Gene Autry.

Sources

https://www.geneautry.com/geneautry/geneautry_biography.php

https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=AU004 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUK2PUwrz9Y (Biography TV Series - Gene Autry)

https://spclarke.com/?page_id=139#:~:text=Gene%20then%20returned%20to%20New,forty%2Dfive%20years%20of%20age. 

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/23905-pellagra 

https://library.uab.edu/locations/reynolds/collections/regional-history/pellagra/history#:~:text=Joseph%20Goldberger%20(1874%2D1929),a%20deficiency%20in%20the%20diet. 

https://www.normantranscript.com/news/lifestyles/inside-gene-autry/article_9d7aa572-5efb-5f2c-b843-658cd52737fd.html 

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/jacob-taylor-armerding/shes-gone

License code: CZPU2CWHV6AMBH9T

Soccer, known as football in most parts of the world, has made its mark on the lives of many generations. Today more than 250 million people play the sport and it has been a unifying game in many instances for people across cultures. Throughout time, soccer has evolved as countless players have changed the game by how they choose to play it. One such athlete was a Dutchman. Join us today as we discuss the beginnings of soccer and take a breath of dead air with Johan Cruyff.

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/drummr/gameday

License code: BRA4FFL9DQTMAVIX

Mary, Mary, quite contrary

How does your garden grow?

With silver bells and cockleshells

And pretty maids all in a row.

Mary, Mary, not so wary

Of hearts and darkness bleak

With spirits fraught, creatures new

She was never meek

Mary, Mary, like a fairy

Drawn to mists and deep

She calls a message to us all - 

Know what to give and keep. 

Join us as we take a breath of dead air with the mother of science fiction - Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley.

Sources

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mary-Wollstonecraft-Shelley 

https://www.biography.com/authors-writers/mary-shelley 

https://www.centralsquaretheater.org/2018-19-season/articles/mary-shelley-and-frankenstein-a-personal-history/ 

https://osborneeighteenthcenturychildrensliterature.wordpress.com/2017/01/14/mounseer-nongtongpaw-by-mary-godwin-shelley/ 

https://www.historythroughfiction.com/blog/love-and-tragedy 

https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/1816-the-year-without-summer.htm 

https://historicipswich.net/2020/06/25/1816-the-year-without-summer/ 

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2005/aug/hand-other-woman-shelleys-life 

https://www.historyhit.com/culture/facts-about-mary-shelley-the-woman-behind-frankenstein/ 
https://annamazzola.com/did-mary-shelley-keep-percys-heart/

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/brandon-hopkins/neighborhood

License code: FGSZT2GSUUUNFVA1

Enjoy hearing of how radio and podcasts came to be, as well as celebrate a full year of Dead Air Time Podcast with us in this off the rails episode!

Sources

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/rescue-development-radio/ 

https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/a-short-history-of-radio.pdf 

https://study.com/academy/lesson/video/radio-wave-definition-spectrum-uses.html#:~:text=Examples%20and%20Applications%20of%20Radio,in%20body%20scanners%20in%20airports.

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/airstream/everybody-dance

License code: 74X3ZJRYVKFBKHA7

What do you get when you add a growing family shoe business, a difference of opinions, and a war together? Well you’d get the Dassler brothers, of course! Join us today as we discuss the development of the sneaker and the story of two men who made the shoe market so competitive. Listen in as we take a breath of dead air with Rudolf and Adolf Dassler.

Sources

Shaw, Noah. Adidas vs Puma: Brothers at War in the Sneaker Game. ADMIT HUB REF SERVICE PR, 2025. 

Smit, Barbara. Sneaker Wars: The Enemy Brothers Who Founded Adidas and Puma and the Family Feud That Forever Changed the Business of Sports. Harper Perennial, 2009.

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/avbe/cut-the-wire

License code: THUPZ8HA6Y1YIJNU

In our human experiences, we search for truth. We sometimes ask ourselves - Who am I? What do I know? While the introduction of technology changed how we approach these questions and perhaps search for answers, these questions are ancient. A young man in Ancient Greece also asked these questions. He dared to question what drove human existence, greatly valued education, and searched for truths in life that would apply to all, not just those of a certain class. He strove to break the molds of his time. We know so much of him and his teachings, yet he never wrote down a word himself. His questions changed the world, and he would be killed for it. Join us as we take a breath of dead air with Ancient Greek philosopher, Socrates. 

Sources

“Genius of the Ancient World: Socrates - Documentary” History Explore Channel, made by BBC

https://www.metmuseum.org/essays/greek-gods-and-religious-practices 

https://iep.utm.edu/socrates/#:~:text=As%20a%20young%20man%20Socrates,influential%20men%20in%20the%20city. 

https://www.history.com/articles/socrates 

http://cas.loyno.edu/sites/chn.loyno.edu/files/Plague%20in%20the%20Ancient%20World_A%20Study%20from%20Thucydides%20to%20Justinian.pdf 

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6402746/

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/kevin-macleod/truth-in-the-stones

License code: MKSHEYHYXXE8M4YJ

Much of our modern culture has dramatized the time when pirates roamed the ocean. It is seen as a time of great adventure and lots of treasure. But where did this treasure come from? What did the pirates actually do? And what was it like for the average citizen to live during this “golden age of piracy”? Today, we’ll explore these topics, as we take a breath of dead air with Sarah Kidd.

Sources:

Geanacopoulos, Daphne Palmer. The Pirate’s Wife: The Remarkable True Story of Sarah Kidd. Hanover Square Press, 2022.

“Research Guides: Golden Age of Piracy: A Resource Guide: Introduction.” Introduction - Golden Age of Piracy: A Resource Guide - Research Guides at Library of Congress, guides.loc.gov/golden-age-of-piracy.

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/danijel-zambo/the-widow

License code: UYDCU1ZPMBMJEWIX

There is a fine line between an opportunist and a manipulator. Both see a chance for growth, power, wealth. One intentionally deceives to control the actions of others, while the other simply observes what is happening and takes advantage of the opportunities before them. It all comes down to the intent. The difficulty lies in identifying the differences between the two, especially when the outcomes can become so similar. While this can be tricky for people we know now or who we know are alive today who are oh-so-visible on our screens, others are even more complicated. As decades pass, perhaps even a century or two, furthering the divide between the past and the present, things can get lost, muddled, changed, confused. When it came to the Gilded Age of the United States, the same could be said of the robber barons. While their name implies they were ones to steal from others to gain more power and money, it may not always be that simple… or is it? After all, a robber baron by definition is one who monopolizes a market, usually by unethical or questionable methods, amassing great wealth as a result. So what is the truth? Join us as we take a breath of dead air with the robber baron of the Gilded Age, John D. Rockefeller Sr.

Sources

Podcast - History That Doesn’t Suck! Ep. 97: The Gilded Age’s Robber Barons: John D Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie

https://news.clemson.edu/a-clemson-professors-detailed-study-of-snake-oil-cures-from-long-ago-reveals-connections-to-current-pharma-industry-woes/ 

https://www.britannica.com/money/John-D-Rockefeller 

https://www.nato.int/cps/fr/natohq/declassified_215371.htm?msg_pos=1#:~:text=The%20list%20of%20everyday%20items%20that%20were,sanitary%20pads%2C%20*%20wristwatches%20and.%20*%20computers. 

https://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/teachers/lesson_plans/pdfs/unit7_3.pdf 

https://historicalsnaps.com/2018/07/26/ida-tarbell-quote-about-the-standard-oil-company/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CVery%20often%20people%20who%20admit,break%20up%20of%20the%20company. 

https://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/teachers/lesson_plans/pdfs/unit7_5.pdf 

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Great-Railroad-Strike-of-1877 

https://rockarch.org/resources/about-the-rockefellers/john-d-rockefeller-sr/#:~:text=Family%20Life,continued%20his%20father's%20philanthropic%20work. 

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/torus/delve

License code: UQSL5IEBEAPVSEJH