They say love is eternal. What about heartbreak? This Valentine’s Day, we bring you some of Japanese theater’s most popular tales of scorned lovers seeking vengeance from beyond the grave — with a burning passion.

Guests: 

From brontosauruses with bronchitis to birds on a wire to flying space rocks and a botched heist at 20 thousand feet. In this episode, Lizzie and Sidedoor producer James run all around the Smithsonian to answer listeners' questions from the Sidedoor mailbag.

Guests:

Lynn Heidelbaugh, curator at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum

Sara Hallager, curator of birds at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

Jim Nollman, composer and pioneer of the “interspecies music” genre, conceptual artist, and environmental activist

Cari Corrigan, research geologist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History and curator of the Antarctic Meteorite Collection

Sharon Bryant, marketing specialist at the Smithsonian’s Office of Communications and External Affairs

Matthew Carrano, research geologist and curator of Dinosauria at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History

As long as there have been wars, animals have joined their human companions on the battlefield. But a few have served so bravely they’ve been memorialized at the Smithsonian. In honor of these furry and feathered war heroes, we bring you the tales of dogs, cats and birds who went above and beyond the call of duty. 

Guests: 

Jennifer Jones, curator of military history at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History 

Frank Blazich, curator of military history at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History 

Ann Bausum, author of Stubby the War Dog and Sergeant Stubby: How a Stray Dog and His Best Friend Helped Win WWI and Stole the Heart of a Nation 

Scot Christenson, author of Cats in the Navy 

Chris Willingham, president of the United States War Dogs Association

Virginia Hall dreamed of being America’s first female ambassador. Instead, she became a spy. Joining the ranks of the U.S.’s first civilian spy network, she operated alone in occupied France, where she built French Resistance networks, delivered critical intelligence, and sold cheese to the enemy. All on one leg.

Guests:

Sonia Purnell, author of “A Woman of No Importance: the Untold Story of the American Spy who Helped Win World War II.” 

Randy Burkett, CIA Staff Historian

Christina Gebhard, museum specialist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History

It’s a song we often hear at the start of the new year. But what does “auld lang syne” even mean? And how did it come to be associated with New Year's Eve? With a little musical sleuthing, we find Charlie Chaplin might have something to do with it…

Guests:

James Deutsch, curator of folklife and popular culture at the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage

North American River Otters are popping up in places they haven't been seen in decades and nobody really knows why. As we search for answers we discover a trail of fish heads, poop splats and cuddle parties.

Guests:

Katrina Lohan, head of the Coastal Disease Ecology Laboratory at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Alejandra Morales Picard, psychologist at Montgomery College

Rebecca Sturniolo, assistant curator of the America Trail at the Smithsonian National Zoo

Patty Storms & Morty Bachar, otter neighbors

When Maggie Kuhn was forced to retire from the job she loved at age 65, her colleagues gave her a sewing machine as a parting gift. Outraged, she shut the sewing machine in a closet and, instead, stitched together the first-ever movement against ageism in the U.S. The Gray Panthers would galvanize gray haired citizenry and youth alike to challenge the way Americans think about aging. 

Guests:

Emily Krichbaum, founding director for the Center for Girls' and Young Women's Leadership at Columbus School for Girls and scholar of women’s history

Paul Nathanson, founder and former executive director of Justice in Aging (formerly the National Senior Citizens Law Center), a national advocacy group for the elderly poor

Jack Kupferman, president of Gray Panthers NYC

All three Giant Pandas are leaving the Smithsonian's National Zoo for China by the end of the year. What's up with that?! We sat down with the director of the Zoo, Brandie Smith, to find out why the pandas are leaving, and whether China plans to send more. This might truly be the end of a beara ... we mean era!

Guests:

Brandie Smith, John and Adrienne Mars Director of the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

Stephen Powers, panda fan

The Smithsonian Institution was founded on principles of reason and scientific inquiry. So why is the Smithsonian home to countless tales of unexplained phenomena and—dare we say—ghost sightings? Inspired by an apparition at the National Museum of American History, we creak across museum attic floorboards, sneak into an old house in the woods, and even travel back in time to bring you a collection of spooky stories that can only be found at the Smithsonian.

Guests:

Molly Horrocks, Collections Manager, Division of Political and Military History at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History

Pamela Henson, Institutional Historian at the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives

Cpl. Ronald Howlin, Security Officer at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Deborah Hull-Walski, Collections Manager, Education Collections at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History

Melissa Johnson, daughter of Deb Hull-Walski and former skeptical teenager

Kim Dixon, former volunteer at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo

Looks like these criminals used correct postage, 'cause justice is about to be delivered. Okay, there are no snappy one-liners in this crime scene investigation, but there are explosions, collisions, manhunts and even a cow who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. On the centennial of "The Last Great Train Robbery," we re-examine the evidence to find out how U.S. Postal Inspectors tracked down a band of old school outlaws using cutting edge criminal forensics...and postmarked them for prison.

Guests:

Lynn Heidelbaugh, curator at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum

Chelsea Rose, Director of the Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology

Kate Winkler Dawson, author of American Sherlock: Murder, Forensics and the Birth of American CSI