🎙️ Unscripted America

🎙️ Unscripted America

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🎙️ Unscripted America episodes

  • The Native American Chief Who Stood with George Washington
    On this episode of Our American Stories, more than 13,000 Native Americans took part in the Revolutionary War, most fighting alongside the British. Daniel Nimham chose a different path. The last sachem of the Wappinger people of New York's Hudson Valley, Nimham joined the American cause, received a commission as a captain in the Continental Army, and served alongside George Washington at Valley Forge.

    Craig Du Mez, president of the Grateful Nation Project, shares the remarkable story of Daniel and his son Abraham Nimham, who fought from Saratoga to New York City before making their final stand against an overwhelming British force at the Battle of Kingsbridge in 1778. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unscripted-america--7423192/support.
    8 min
  • Are Pro Wrestlers Really Athletes?
    On this episode of Our American Stories, from the days of Hulk Hogan to modern WWE, wrestlers travel constantly, train relentlessly, and perform feats that demand strength, timing, and endurance. The spectacle may be designed for drama, but the toll on the body is no joke.

    Sportswriter Riley Evans of Grandstand Central shares the real story and physical cost of professional wrestling. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unscripted-america--7423192/support.
    11 min
  • How America's First Female Detective Saved Abraham Lincoln
    On this episode of Our American Stories, in February 1861, Abraham Lincoln was making a 13-day journey from Springfield, Illinois, to Washington, D.C., when warnings emerged of a plot to assassinate the president-elect as he passed through Baltimore, Maryland. With the country already coming apart and Lincoln’s inauguration only days away, detective Allan Pinkerton raced to uncover the threat and find a way to get Lincoln safely through the city.

    Daniel Stashower, author of The Hour of Peril, shares the remarkable story of the Baltimore Plot and Kate Warne, a pioneering detective who posed as Lincoln’s sister and helped smuggle the future president through the city under cover of night. We’d like to thank the Library of Congress for making this audio available to the public. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unscripted-america--7423192/support.
    28 min
  • John Brown: The Radical Abolitionist Who Launched a Holy War Against Slavery
    On this episode of Our American Stories, to Southerners, John Brown was a dangerous villain. To many Northerners, he was a fanatic. But Brown believed he was an instrument of God, called to wage war against the evil of slavery.

    David S. Reynolds, author of John Brown, Abolitionist, shares the story of how a deeply religious boy from Connecticut became one of the most feared and controversial men in America. Brown’s crusade against slavery would take him west to the blood-soaked plains of Kansas and eventually to Harpers Ferry, Virginia, where he hoped to ignite a rebellion that would free the enslaved. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unscripted-america--7423192/support.
    39 min
  • James Madison: The Lawgiver Who Gave Us the Constitution
    On this episode of Our American Stories, James Madison may not have been America's greatest president, but his understanding of the Constitution helped shape the nation long before he entered the White House. A Virginia legislator, author of the Federalist Papers, architect of the Constitution, political partner of Thomas Jefferson, and eventual fourth president of the United States, Madison devoted much of his life to understanding how a free government could control power while remaining accountable to the people.

    Hillsdale College President Dr. Larry P. Arnn shares the story of Madison, the "lawgiver." Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unscripted-america--7423192/support.
    11 min
  • How Catholics Gave Us the McDonald's Filet-O-Fish
    On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1960, McDonald's franchise owner Lou Groen had a problem. His Cincinnati, Ohio, restaurant sat in a neighborhood that was 87 percent Catholic, and on Fridays, when many Catholics abstained from eating meat, his hamburger sales collapsed. With his struggling restaurant and his family's livelihood on the line, Groen came up with an idea: sell fish.

    Simon Whistler of Today I Found Out and the Brain Food Show shares how Groen's creation helped turn a struggling Ohio franchisee into the owner of 43 McDonald's restaurants. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unscripted-america--7423192/support.
    10 min
  • Elijah and the Jewish Roots of American Liberty
    On this episode of Our American Stories, from the American Revolution to the Civil War, the biblical prophet Elijah has played an important role in the American story, inspiring generations in their fights for liberty and justice.

    Rabbi Dr. Stuart Halpern, co-author of The Jewish Roots of American Liberty, shares how Elijah’s rebuke of the tyrannical King Ahab inspired Americans during the Revolution. His “still small voice” would later echo in the words of Frederick Douglass, while the story of his ascent to heaven found new life in the spiritual “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.” Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unscripted-america--7423192/support.
    10 min
  • How One Man Made a Million Dollars Selling Pet Rocks
    On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1975, advertising copywriter Gary Dahl was sitting in a California bar listening to friends complain about the hassle of caring for their pets when he joked that a rock would make the perfect companion. It would never need to be fed, walked, groomed, or taken to the vet.

    Our frequent contributor Jesse Edwards shares the tale of the Pet Rock and how clever packaging and a 32-page instruction manual turned an ordinary stone into a cultural phenomenon in 1970s America. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unscripted-america--7423192/support.
    8 min
  • How a Recovering Addict Created the World's Hottest Pepper
    On this episode of Our American Stories, before "Smokin' Ed" Currie created the Carolina Reaper and Pepper X, two of the hottest peppers the world has ever known, his life was being consumed by drugs and alcohol. After hitting rock bottom, an experience during a Michigan blizzard led him to a rehabilitation hospital and began a journey through recovery, faith, family, and an obsession with peppers that stretched back to his childhood.

    Ed Currie, founder of South Carolina's PuckerButt Pepper Company, shares the remarkable story of how a recovering addict turned his fascination with capsaicin into a business that continues to spice up our lives today. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unscripted-america--7423192/support.
    39 min
  • America's 150-Year Quest to Get Greenland
    On this episode of Our American Stories, when President Donald Trump floated the idea of buying Greenland in 2019, many Americans thought the proposal came out of nowhere. In reality, the United States had been eyeing the Arctic island for more than 150 years. We especially wanted it after Denmark fell into Nazi hands.

    Mark Kawar, author of America, but Bigger: Near-Annexations from Greenland to the Galápagos, shares the remarkable history of America's long fascination with Greenland and why its location, resources, and strategic importance have repeatedly drawn the attention of American leaders...and changed world history. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unscripted-america--7423192/support.
    11 min

About 🎙️ Unscripted America

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UNSCRIPTED AMERICA – Real People. Real Lives. No Perfect Story.

Welcome to Unscripted America, a modern American lifestyle podcast about real people, real experiences, and the realities of life…