Rebel Girls

As a child, Ada Lovelace loved machines. She studied birds and drew sketches trying to build her own flying machine. She put all of her notes into a little book which she called "Flyology."

When Ada went to a ball, she didn't find a prince to marry her. Instead, she found an old mathematician, Charles Babbage, who became her lifelong friend. With Babbage, Ada wrote the first programming language in history.

THE HOST

This episode of Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls was read by Jodi Kantor. Jodi Kantor is a New York Times correspondent, an author, and an investigative reporter. She wrote a best-selling book titled "The Obamas" and she broke a number of crucial stories such as the report about Amazon's way of managing white collar employees and the Harvey Weinstein story of sexual harassment and abuse.

This episode is produced by Francesca Cavallo and Elena Favilli with sound design by Elettra Bargiacchi.

Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls is a production of Timbuktu.

Once upon a time, there was an inventor and entrepreneur named Madam C.J. Walker. She was the child of slaves, the first in her family to be born free, thanks to the Emancipation Proclamation. As a child, she had to work in the cotton fields to help support her family. Later, as a teenaged orphan, she became a washerwoman, backbreaking work considered one of the worst and most difficult jobs a woman could have.

But she dreamed of more -- for herself and her daughter. When, due to an illness, her hair began to fall out, she created a hair care regimen specifically for African-American women. It worked! She crisscrossed the country going door to door to sell her products and eventually built a beauty empire with sales representatives in every state. The formula grew to be so popular she became the first self-made female millionaire in America, and her products are still for sale today.

About Poorna Jagannathan

Poorna Jagannathan is an actress and the producer of "Nirbhaya" ('Fearless'), the critically-acclaimed play written and directed by Yael Farber. Based on real-life events, the play breaks the silence around sexual violence and was called by The Telegraph as one of the "most powerful pieces of theater you’ll ever see.”

Jagannathan gained international recognition for her portrayal of a journalist in the 2011 Bollywood film "Delhi Belly" and has appeared as series regular on HBO's "The Night Of" and Netflix's "Gypsy." She is currently a member of the ensemble cast of HBO's "Room 104," created by the Duplass brothers.

This episode of Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls is produced by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo, with writing and operation support by Darby Maloney and Elyssa Dudley. Sound Design and Original Theme Music by Elettra Bargiacchi.

Once, there was a girl with a wooden leg who was a master of disguise. Her name was Virginia. She loved adventure, hunting, and traveling the world. She wanted to join the Foreign Service but was denied entry; they didn't allow amputees. And so she became a spy for the Allied forces during World War II. She was really good at her job and put her life at risk many times in the name of freedom. She was even put on a "most-wanted" list by the German secret police! She went on to become one of the first women to work at the Central Intelligence Agency.

S. Mitra Kalita is an author, journalist, and vice president for programming at CNN Digital. She leads CNN Digital's efforts to creatively share its journalism and storytelling across an ever-exploding array of platforms. She also oversees the News & Alerting, Special Projects, and Mobile & Off-Platform teams.

She was previously managing editor for editorial strategy at the Los Angeles Times. During her year there, she helped latimes.com traffic soar to nearly 60 million uniques monthly, innovated new forms of storytelling and audience engagement, and connected the Times to new communities via events, new beats, translations, and partnerships.

This episode of Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls is produced by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo, with writing and operation support by Darby Maloney and Elyssa Dudley. Sound Design and Original Theme Music by Elettra Bargiacchi.

Coming March 6th, a fairy tale podcast about the extraordinary women who inspire us. This show is based on Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls, the global best-selling book written by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo, inspiring millions of girls and women around the world to dream bigger, aim higher, and fight harder.

Sponsored by:

www.rebelgirls.co