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Edison's Little Monsters episode artwork

May 30, 2024 36 min

Edison's Little Monsters

from Conjuring Curiosities

This week, we find out why some ideas are better left on the drawing board. Thomas Edison, the inventor behind the light bulb and phonograph, thought it would be a great idea to make dolls talk. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t. What was supposed to be a groundbreaking toy turned into a nightmare, with dolls spewing scratchy, eerie nursery rhymes that left children and parents terrified. And you know if it creeped the Victorians out, it was seriously creepy. So grab your phonographs and ready your ears for some serious nightmare fuel! See photos discussed in this episode on our instagram Follow us on tiktok for videos that cover a condensed version of each topic! VIDEO: ItWorks - How does a record player work with sound… RECORDINGS: Wikipedia - Edison’s Phonograph Doll SOURCES: Wikipedia - Phonograph Smithsonian - Edison Talking Doll npca.org - The World’s First Talking Dolls Smithsonian Magazine - The Epic Failure of Thomas Edison’s Talking Doll The Henry Ford - Edison Talking Doll, 1889-1890 Smithsonian Magazine - How Porcelain Dolls Became the Ultimate Victorian Status Symbol Reddit - "Victorian Mourning Dolls"- Where's The Evidence? Burials and Beyond - The World of Victorian Grave Dolls The Order of the Good Death - Cabinet of Curiosities: Victorian Death Dolls

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How long is this episode of Conjuring Curiosities?

This episode is 36 minutes long.

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This episode was published on May 30, 2024.

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