Weird Historian

In the late 1800s, Joseph Pujol took Paris by storm and ruled the Moulin Rouge. Known as Le Petomane, his entire act was performed with his anus. The man was a true fartiste. Keeping in theme, this episode will also introduce you to an 18th-century pooping duck automaton. Both are tales of rather unusual forms of genius. See images from these stories and read more weird history at WeirdHistorian.com.

In 1908, six cars set out on a race around the world, from New York City to Paris. They started in winter, at a time before cars even had windshields. Find out what happened and who won the Great Race in this episode of Weird Historian. You’ll also hear about a vehicle that came before these daring race cars — one that was designed to be friendly to passing horses. And not much more. It was called the Horsey Horseless. See images from these stories and read more weird history at WeirdHistorian.com.

Meet Robert Wadlow and hear the voice of the tallest man who ever lived. At 8 feet 11 1/2 inches tall, he towered over all other giants, including Ted Evans, who claimed to stand a ridiculous 9 feet 3 inches. You'll also meet a shorter, but far more massive man, Miles Darden, who was possibly the biggest human ever. See images from these stories and read about other weird moments in history at WeirdHistorian.com.

Meet Lady Wonder, the psychic horse who predicted Dewey wouldn’t defeat Truman in 1948, helped police find missing children, and even picked winning race horses. This episode will also introduce you to the screaming hen image seen in the artwork for this podcast. See images from these stories and read about other weird moments in history at WeirdHistorian.com.

Charles Blondin is one of history’s most famous and daring wire walkers. Hear about the time he had to fend off a suicidal volunteer riding on his back atop the wire. This episode also features Clifford Calverley, another wire walker who gleefully risked his life for the entertainment of the audience. You’ll also meet some other walkers who put on a rather unusual show. Not on a wire — but upside-down on the ceiling. See images from these stories and find more weird history at WeirdHistorian.com.

Sir Oliver Lodge attempted to prove mass telepathy was achievable in 1927, and Kuda Bux mystified audiences with his x-ray vision. Could such things have been possible? See images from these stories and read about other weird moments in history at WeirdHistorian.com.

A 19th-century reverend writes a guidebook to Hell for children and the London Association for the Prevention of Premature Burial tries save people from an early trip to the Underworld. See images from these stories and read about other weird moments in history at WeirdHistorian.com.

This episode features the posthumous adventures of Oliver Cromwell’s embalmed head, which journeyed through England for 300 years (from 1661-1960), and Galileo’s fingers, which can still be seen in the Museo Galileo in Florence, Italy. See images from these stories and read about other weird moments in history at WeirdHistorian.com.

In 1920 Thomas Edison discussed his plans to invent a Spirit Phone, allowing communication with the dead. Years earlier, he invented the talking doll, which was not nearly as cute as he might have hoped. See images from these stories and read about other weird moments in history at WeirdHistorian.com.

In the 1920s, a Londoner telepathically communicated with a Martian woman named Oomaruru. Meanwhile, 19th-century amateur astronomer, Thomas Dick, took a census of Jupiter. See images from these stories and read about other weird moments in history at WeirdHistorian.com.