Deviate

What museums reveal about places (and what they have to offer travelers)


Listen Later

“We do not just keep and collect things. We trouble ourselves to repurpose, create, and invent things just to carry, a little easier, those stories we cannot live without.”

—Kendra Greene

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf speaks to the directors of two very different museums — Dawn Hammat of the Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum & Boyhood Home in Abilene, Kansas, and Greg Long of Long’s Collectible Showplace & Gift Shop in Salina, Kansas (0:00); what people are drawn to in a given museum, and how a kind of nostalgia drives what people look for there (5:30); the ways all museums change and adapt over time, and how museums can surprise their visitors (12:00).

Notable Links:

  • Dwight Eisenhower (34th president of the United States)
  • Mamie Eisenhower (first lady of the US from 1953-61)
  • Barbie (fashion doll)
  • Hot Wheels (brand of toy car)
  • The Vagabond’s Way, by Rolf Potts (book)
  • Ozzy Osbourne (rock singer)
  • Wonder cabinets (early versions of museums)
  • British Museum (national museum in London)
  • Beanie babies (line of stuffed toys)
  • Pez (brand of candy dispenser)
  • Paint by numbers (popular painting kits)
  • Nelson Rockefeller (businessman and politician)
  • Ethel Merman (20th century actress and singer)
  • World’s Largest Belt Buckle (attraction in Kansas)
  • Greyhound Hall of Fame (museum in Kansas)
  • Chisholm trail (19th century cattle-driving trail)
  • The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel’s 2017 album Lumber.

    Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we’re happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at [email protected].

    ...more
    View all episodesView all episodes
    Download on the App Store

    DeviateBy Rolf Potts

    • 4.8
    • 4.8
    • 4.8
    • 4.8
    • 4.8

    4.8

    161 ratings


    More shows like Deviate

    View all
    Travel with Rick Steves by Rick Steves

    Travel with Rick Steves

    198 Listeners

    Fresh Air by NPR

    Fresh Air

    37,904 Listeners

    Tangentially Speaking with Christopher Ryan by Chris Ryan

    Tangentially Speaking with Christopher Ryan

    2,063 Listeners

    Making Sense with Sam Harris by Sam Harris

    Making Sense with Sam Harris

    26,286 Listeners

    Zero To Travel Podcast by Jason Moore

    Zero To Travel Podcast

    828 Listeners

    The James Altucher Show by PodcastOne

    The James Altucher Show

    2,492 Listeners

    Slate Money by Slate Podcasts

    Slate Money

    1,003 Listeners

    The Frommer's Travel Show by Pauline Frommer

    The Frommer's Travel Show

    124 Listeners

    The Gray Area with Sean Illing by Vox

    The Gray Area with Sean Illing

    10,651 Listeners

    Team Human by Douglas Rushkoff

    Team Human

    349 Listeners

    How to Be Fine by Kristen and Jolenta

    How to Be Fine

    5,400 Listeners

    Women Who Travel | Condé Nast Traveler by Condé Nast Traveler

    Women Who Travel | Condé Nast Traveler

    607 Listeners

    Emergence Magazine Podcast by Emergence Magazine

    Emergence Magazine Podcast

    468 Listeners

    The Daily Stoic by Daily Stoic | Wondery

    The Daily Stoic

    4,736 Listeners

    How to Age Up by The Atlantic

    How to Age Up

    1,381 Listeners