Historically High

The United States was brought into WW2 with the Japanese surprise attack at Pearl Harbor on Dec 7 1941. The U.S. was shook, fear of an invasion of the west coast was at an all time high with nothing standing between us and Japan. The moral of the nation wasn't good and in the weeks after Pearl Harbor more Japanese victories did nothing to reassure the country we could win this war. The U.S. needed a win, it needed to be something bold and unexpected. Something to break the aura of the invulnerability of Japanese held about their home islands. FDR wanted bombs on Tokyo and it fell to Jimmy Doolittle to make it happen. Now if you're gonna plan and execute a top secret raid on Japan's capital where success relies on doing things never before done, Jimmy's your guy. Doolittle Raid aside James Doolittle was one of the most famous aviators in American History, a doctorate in Aviation Engineering from M.I.T., the first of it's kind lends credit to his understanding off all thing aircraft. What Jimmy and his boys were able to do helped show the United States they were still in the fight and showed Japan they weren't safe at home. Find out how they pulled it off here. 

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Leonardo Da Vinci started his artistic journey at the age of 14, beginning as a studio boy to Andrea del Verrocchio. Verrocchio taught Leo the ropes in sculpting, painting, casting, leather work, amongst other things, until Da Vinci stepped in to paint a couple angels in a mostly complete "The Last Baptism". Verrocchio looked at his work, looked at Da Vinci's and legend has it he set down his brush for good at that point, seeing himself surpassed already by Da Vinci's talent. Achieving the status of Master at age 20, Da Vinci would embark upon a lifetime of creating Art, developing machines and mechanical theories, studying and documenting human anatomy, building weapons and more. The very definition of a Renaissance Man in every way, join us as we go deep into Da Vinci. 

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The Black Plague or Black Death as its also known really put it to Europe, Asia and Africa from 1346 through 1353. In just 7 years it killed off up to 60% of Europe's population. 20-50 million dead due to a little bacteria called Yersinia Pestis, the cause of the Plague. It wasn't just effective in the way it hitched a ride on fleas, which then hitched on rats, which hitched a ride on everything else. But in the way that it could attacked the body on multiple fronts. It wasn't like there hadn't been other outbreaks of Plague in the world, so why is this one so significant. Well it showed up with perfect conditions in a world completely unprepared on what to. Find out what makes the Black Death such a pivotal moment in human history this week on dun dun dun......Historically High. 

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What good would a history podcast be without some sports history? Babe Ruth feels like he should be on the Mount Rushmore of sports history. Born in the Pigtown part of Baltimore, he defied the odds to become the most well-known baseball player of all time. He dazzled fans on the field, on the silver screen, and on every sports page in the country. His trade from the Red Sox also cursed the organization for the next 86 years. As a Yankee he was a pivotal part of many World Series contenders. He was the anchor of the famed Murderers Row batting line up. For all his success on the field, his life in the clubhouse and outside the stadium was more flawed than most people know. Join us as we get Historically High on Babe Ruth.

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Who doesn't love a good Heist? Now throw in the most valuable diamond in the world at the time, the Millennium Star. Still not convinced? Well let's put this thing right in the middle of London at the Millennium Dome's De Beers exhibit. In November of the year 2000, a crew of career criminals attempted one of the ballsiest, most brazen robberies in history. And they would've probably gotten away with it too if it wasn't for those nosey specialist at Scotland Yard called The Flying Squad. Months prior the future heist-ers had attempted not one but two separate armored truck robberies that were both met with failure in different but wildly entertaining fashion.  Not to be deterred these guys might have figured their methods were sounds, just maybe they weren't aiming high enough. Find out how it all goes down here.

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As far as American Icons go it probably doesn't get much bigger and recognizable than Henry Ford and Ford Motors. Not the inventor of the automobile, that credit goes to Carl Benz (go back and listen to that episode) but Henry developed what would become the modern automotive industry as we know it. Assembly lines were a thing, just not with cars until Henry decided to use them to mass produce the Model T. His first mass produced car took the nation by storm and at one point 1/2 of all individuals who learned how to drive did so on a Model T. Where Henry excelled at making affordable reliable vehicles he fell short on personal skills, treatment of his workers, and being a father. He even almost caused the downfall of his company by not being able to tear himself away from his precious Model T and modernize with companies like General Motors who came along and challenged Ford for the top spot and for a while took the crown. Through the "Pony Wars" where each manufacturer took turns one upping each other on Horsepower, to the battle to make the most economical car when the gas shortages hit. The story of Ford is fascinating to say the very least.

Side note: Prof Chris was battling through a sinus infection which is why he sounds so sexy. 

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History sometimes has a habit of framing cultures as either heroes or villains, depending on the source. When it comes to Greek sources Herodotus "The Father of History", is kinda the go to when it comes to the period of antiquity. Every story needs a bad guy or a great evil to overcome, and when it comes to Herodotus his history was many times more fiction than fact. For the Greeks it was the vast and powerful Persian Empire coming to snuff out the light of the greek world. Weeeellllll...the Greeks were already doing a decent job of that themselves to be honest. While the first Persian Empire, established by the Acheamenid (Ack-a-men-id) Dynasty was central to the story of Greece "uniting", the Persians were across the Aegean doing some pretty incredible things. Founded by Cyrus the Great the Achaemenid Dynasty became the largest empire in the world during its time. Religious Tolerance, establishment of great road systems to carry trade and culture, the first mail system, a standardized monetary system based on the gold and silver, and a common language just to name a few. We owe a surprising amount of things in our modern world to this Empire. Tune in a find out just who were the Achaemenids and why maybe the Greeks kinda had it coming... 

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The line between cult and religion is sometimes blurred by the leader of the movement. Bonnie Nettles and Marshall Applewhite blurred the lines of new age religion and a cult by introducing aliens and UFOs. Nettles and Applewhite set out to bring their message of leaving the worldly distractions behind to ascend to the next level. The next level became more complicated when Nettles passed away. It's hard to pitch the idea of being an alien when you die of earthly sickness. Applewhite becoming the sole leader of flock, decided to take them in a direction that would put them in front of the world for all to see as the "spaceship" guided by Nettles passed the earth. Join us as we get Historically High on Heaven's Gate.

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Russian history is pretty wild. Tsarist Russia was in a league by itself. There were two main dynasties, The Rurikids and The Romanovs. Today we'll be discussing the "patriarch" of the Romanov Dynasty and the guy who brought Russia into the modern age. Peter Alekseyevich Romanov had decided he was going to drag Russia into the future whether they wanted to or not. Now Peter wasn't the kinda of dude to send out envoys or ambassadors to do his business, he wanted to stretch his legs around Europe personally. Learning the crafts of ship building from the Dutch to build Russia's first navy. Seeing how artillery worked Prussia to development a modern army. Studying the systems of governance used by other European powers all while his "Grand Embassy" drank and partied their way across the continent. His accomplishments can still be felt today however, there's always another side to the story, and Peter's gets pretty dark. Join us as we discuss the life and times of Peter the Great. 

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The 761st Tank Battalion, known as the Black Panthers, was a segregated unit created during World War 2. Regardless of the fact that African Americans had participated in every major conflict dating back to before the United States even existed, a report from the War College labeled African Americans as "not fit for service" in World War 2. The 761st was created and kept stateside until the need for more tanks was too great. The Black Panthers would accompany Gen. Patton's 3rd Army as they fought the retreating Germans. They helped during Bastogne, broke through the Seigfried Line, and even liberated a concentration camp. The hope of returning to a more accepting United States wouldn't match the reality as the 761st would return to no acclaim. Their fight for equal recognition is still going on to this day. Join us as we get Historically High on the 761st Tank Battalion. 

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