PODCAST · history
The Story Behind
by Emily Prokop
The Story Behind tells the extraordinary history of the ordinary. Everyday objects are more closely examined, from their ancient beginnings through the present—all within 5-10 minutes.
Episodes
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Cotton Swabs
Every time I use the subject of today's episode, my husband is quick to point out how I shouldn't. He loves to tell me about all the injuries this common household item causes, and as much as a lot of what I do depends on my hearing, I can't help but continue to use it now and again. And I'm sure...
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Sunglasses
From starting out as eye protection against snow blindness to helping pilots navigate the skies without being blinded by the sun, the subject of today's episode not only protects your eyes but has also been a staple of fashion for centuries, as it turns out. You're listening to The Story Behind:...
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Glitter
Ever hear of Shiny Object Syndrome? Usually, it's said to refer to those who see something new and have to have it, only to get bored with it once they finally attain it. But in this episode, I wanted to know just what it is about literal shiny objects that make them so appealing to humans. And...
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Mouthwash
One of the most fascinating things about today's episode is not just the creation of this everyday object, but the marketing tactic of presenting a problem that many people weren't concerned with until the solution was advertised. You're listening to The Story Behind: The Extraordinary History of...
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Son of a Gun - Operation Switcharoo
Happy April Fool's Day. This year, I was part of a number of other podcasts that wanted to do some cross-promotion, so if you're looking for The Story Behind April Fool's Day, I invite you to check out the Forgotten News Podcast. I should put a disclaimer on this episode that it may not be…
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Conversation Hearts
One of my favorite holidays just passed. February 15th. Yup, you heard me right. February 15th, not the 14th. Oh, I love Valentine's Day, but I'm more in love with the discounted candy the day after, including a candy that apparently I'm in the minority when it comes to liking. But this year…
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The Trampoline
One of my favorite things to learn about when researching episodes is how people marketed inventions that had never been on the market before. In The Story Behind Post-its, we talked about how 3M's style of marketing was to show what the product could do, rather than just showing the product. In...
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Groundhog Day
Okay, campers, rise and shine and don't forget your booties 'cause it's cold out there today! No, you're not stuck in a loop, unless you've already listened to this episode before. But today's episode is all about a seemingly silly holiday that has a fascinating history behind it and a 1993 movie...
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Pantyhose
Even though the topic of today's episode isn't necessarily exercise-related, it would be safe to say it gave me a bit of a workout this past week. Imagine paying $12 for something, then you find yourself struggling to put it on, only to have it rip. Now, because I didn't have time to go to the...
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Bottled Water
Remember the Left Shark from the Super Bowl a few years ago? He was supposed to be just a guy in a shark costume dancing next to Katy Perry during the halftime show. But because he decided to do his own thing, he became the center of attention. Every so often, another Left Shark will come along…
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Toilet Paper
One of my favorite compliments I get about The Story Behind book is that people love reading it in the bathroom. At first, people seem embarrassed to tell me this, but in the introductory chapter of the book, I put a PS at the end that says, "I won't be offended if you read it in the bathroom..…
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Re-Release of The Story Behind Christmas Traditions (Part 1)
Hey there! Hope everyone is enjoying this weird week between Christmas and New Years! When I released the last episode, The Story Behind Christmas Traditions, Part 2, I had some questions about the first part. I released that one way back in 2016, but since I've gotten more listeners since then…
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Christmas Traditions (Part 2)
As I'm recording this, I have my holiday candle burning, my kids hopped up on Christmas cookie sugar, and I'm struggling to find a way to hide Christmas presents from my husband before being able to wrap them. If you're listening to this way later, and you haven't already looked at the title of...
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Tipping
I love my job as a podcast editor. I get to listen to podcasts every day and get paid for it, and my clients are absolutely wonderful, as many podcasters often are. One of my clients, Catherine, is the producer for Solo Travel Talk with Astrid Clements of AstridTravel.com. Every episode I listen...
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Balloons
When I was in Washington, DC, a few weeks ago, I stopped at the International Spy Museum before leaving. I could have stayed in there for hours, and it was incredible to see these gadgets and spy equipment that we normally only see in movies. But a set of pictures intrigued me. They were of both...
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Cranberry Sauce | From Controversy to Canned Creation (TSB132)
This past year has been one of the busiest I've ever had. I could never have imagined two years ago that starting this podcast would have brought me the most amazing listeners in the world or that they would go from listeners to the best book launch team I could have imagined. Since we're...
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Sick Sayings | Bless You, Frog In Your Throat, Sick as a Dog (TSB131)
Sorry for the delayed episode this week! If you follow me on Instagram or Twitter, you may have seen that I went to DC Podfest. And the first day I was there, I woke up with the beginnings of a cold. Luckily, I was able to get a hold of a bottle of Zicam fairly quickly and stave off the cold for…
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Boston Baked Beans | Traditional New England Fare (TSB130)
If you follow @StoryBehindPod on Instagram, you may have seen that I went to Boston last weekend for the Sound Education conference at Harvard University to be on a panel with other history podcasters that included Liz Covart from Ben Franklin's World, Patrick Wyman from Tides of History, and…
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'Africa' by Toto | Two-Year Anniversary Episode (TSB129)
This is a very special episode of The Story Behind. Believe it or not, two years ago I pressed Publish on the first three episodes of this podcast, The Story Behind the Theremin, The Story Behind Dry Ice, and The Story Behind Sugar Skulls. This podcast was supposed to be a side-project for me. It...
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Play-Doh | From Wallpaper Cleaner to Teacher's Craft Supply (TSB128)
If you're a parent who has even been on Pinterest and looked for activities for your child, you've probably seen at least a dozen different recipes for modeling clay or sensory dough, as it's sometimes called. Most of the recipes are different variations on the mixture of flour, water and salt...
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The Printing Press | Gutenberg's Grand Idea and How It Left Him Poor (TSB127)
If you're listening to this episode when it comes out, you may know that The Story Behind book will be released on Monday, October 15th. In the spirit of that, I'll be doing a few episodes revolving around books. This topic seemed almost too easy to cover, since the invention was something I…
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The Story Behind Book Update #2
There will be a new episode this week, but I also wanted to put out a bonus episode talking about The Story Behind book, which releases Monday, October 15th. In all honesty, it's still not real, even after getting the advanced copies of the book, and on top of everything, social media fatigue and...
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Banned Books | A History of Putting Books on Blast (TSB126)
Only a few more weeks until The Story Behind book is out! And one of my podcasting mentors and buddies Dave Jackson gave me the idea to do a bunch of episodes relating to books around this time to hopefully set the mood for its release. While I was looking into different topics, I found out that...
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Hairspray | School Photo Horror, Big Hair Throughout the Decades, and the Real Story that Inspired the Musical (TSB125)
School picture time is here and every time I get my daughter ready for her picture, I try not to follow current trends too much. I have this fear she'll have the same experience I had in 1990 when my mom decided to go all out with my school picture and not only give me a big enough pinafore on my...
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Matches | Alchemy, Phossy Jaw, and the Matchstick Girls Strike (TSB124)
I honestly didn't think I would be as interested in the history of today's topic when I first started reading about it. There was a lot of chemistry involved and anyone who knew me in high school knows that was the worst subject for me. When you listen to the episode, you'll notice I kept the...
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The Teddy Bear | Conflicting Stories, Theodore Roosevelt, Steiff Bears (TSB123)
I love when I find out an origin story I think I knew turns out to be either a widely believed false rumor or when I find out other people learned different origin stories. That's what this episode is about, so if you think you already know the story behind today's subject, you may be surprised…
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Roller Coasters | From Russian Ice Slides to Disneyland to the Psychology Behind Thrill Seekers (TSB122)
For us in the Northern Hemisphere, the summer is pretty much reaching the end. And, as a parent, I'm pretty happy about that because it means my daughter is back in school. But before we start talking about Pumpkin Spice-everything and the holiday season, here's one last hurrah. And, for many…
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S'mores | The (Awkward) History of Graham Crackers, The Medicinal Marshmallows, and All About Milton Hershey (TSB121)
This episode will be told in layers. The tasty summer treat I'm talking about has three ingredients, and while they're all delicious on their own, together they are incredible. And this episode will be set up similarly, with different stories smushed together into one show. This episode has just…
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Roadside Attractions | A Road Trip with Josh Hallmark from Our Americana (TSB120)
Today I'm doing a collaborative show with Josh Hallmark from the podcast Our Americana, which explores unique small towns across America through the stories that impact, cultivate, and challenge community. America can feel oppressive. Every day it feels more and more like pieces of it are...
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Headphones | From Telephone Operators to the U.S. Navy to Your Ears Today (TSB119)
If you're listening to this when it comes out, you may know that next week I'm going to a huge conference for podcasters known as Podcast Movement. And I thought it only appropriate to do an episode related to this. You may be using the topic of today's episode right now and listening to this...
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The Necktie | From Chinese Soldiers to European Dandies to Politicians (TSB118)
One of my favorite things about doing this podcast is looking at things in everyday life and wondering if they still have the same purpose they did when they were invented. This week's subject is a bit ambiguous. It's most notably known for bringing a pop of color and whimsy to an otherwise drab...
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The Stethoscope | Thoroughly Modest Medicine (TSB117)
If you've ever read Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart," you may hear a heartbeat as something a little creepy. Although it's funny to note that on many sound machines for babies, a heartbeat is offered as a way to help them remember one of the sounds they heard in the womb. However, for...
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The Story Behind Book Update #1
No new episode this week, but I wanted to give a quick update on the book, since I am up against deadline right now to get it finished on time. I also wanted to thank everyone in The Story Behind Discussion Group on Facebook for their encouragement and support, and also go through some of the...
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Hamburgers | More Than Meats the Eye (TSB116)
Earlier this week, one of the funniest exchanges on social media came about after the company known as IHOP changed out their P, which stood for Pancakes, to a B. Initially, no one knew what the B stood for. International House of Breakfast? International House of Bacon? International House of...
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Bingo | From the Italian Lottery to Popular Church Fundraising Game (TSB115)
Knock at the door One fat lady Rugby team Sweet sixteen A duck and a flea The famous street in Manhattan No, those weren't bloopers, although I'm sure this episode will have plenty. Those were actually number nicknames used in a particular game that's been around for 500 years we'll be talking...
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Pong | Bleep, Bloop! Table-Tennis for your Television! (TSB114)
If you're one of the die-hard listeners of The Story Behind who eagerly await the episode to be released at midnight Eastern time on Thursdays -- yes, Adam, I'm talking to you — you may be wondering why it's a few hours late. Usually, when an episode is late, it's because I'm either dealing with...
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The Traffic Light | Stop Right Now, Thank You Very Much (TSB113)
As many of you know, The Story Behind is being turned into a book, which means I'm in the process right now of doing probably one of my favorite parts of making the podcast, which is doing a ton of research in preparation. This week's episode will be one of the chapters in the book, but the...
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Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen | Freddie Mercury, The Music Video, Wayne's World (TSB1112)
I've only done one other episode of The Story Behind about a song, and that was The Story Behind Imagine by John Lennon. And if you've been in the Story Behind Discussion Group on Facebook, you probably would think I would be doing The Story Behind Arica by Toto. Well, not yet. Usually, I get…
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Livestream for the Cure | Fundraising for Cancer Research with the Epic Film Guys (TSB111)
This will be a different episode from normal, since I normally don't do interview shows, but I wanted to bring on Nick from the Epic Film Guys to talk a little bit about the fundraiser he and other podcasters are doing called Livestream for the Cure. Nick is one of my oldest friends in podcasting...
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Emily Prokop | Meet Your Host and Learn About the Show (TSB110)
If this is your first episode, this is a warning it'll be a little different than past episodes, but it will also be a good way to hear what this show is about. Does that make sense? Don't worry. It will. On the day I'm recording it, it is currently my birthday. It's the ninth time I am turning…
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The Paperclip | Office Supply and Demand, Paperclip Trading, and Clippy (RIP) (TSB109)
This episode is actually one of the first topics I ever thought to talk about when I created the show. And I weirdly kept putting it off. Whenever I tell someone what my podcast is about, I say something along the lines of it being a short history podcast about everyday things. And this…
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Mercury Retrograde | Damn it, Planet! (TSB108)
While not scientifically proven as a reason why communication and technology fails, there was plenty of evidence in this episode to prove otherwise, including having to record three times. I'm your host, Emily Prokop, and this is The Story Behind Mercury Retrograde. Join The Story Behind…
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The Paralympics | The Doctor Who Turned World War II Spinal Injury Patients Into Athletes (TSB107)
I am pleased to have worked with Win from the podcast Ask Win for this episode and I'm going to let her introduce it. When Win first talked to me about doing an episode in conjunction with Cerebral Palsy Awareness month, which was in March, many of the articles and stories I read were about…
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April Fool's Day "Remastered" | The Quotes Are Intentional ;)
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PEZ | History, Candy Marketing, The PEZ Outlaw (TSB106)
If you follow The Story Behind on Instagram, you may have seen our weekend adventure with the family to the factory where today's sugary-sweet topic is made. We looked at the old uniforms ladies used to wear to dispense the candy, which is funny because the candy already comes in a plastic...
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Pi(e) | Meetups, Meatpies, and Mathematics (TSB105)
If you're listening to this on the day it comes out, beware the Ides of March! That is if you're Julius Caesar. But in all honesty, I tried looking up the ides of March and, really, when I found out how Romans calculated dates and that they actually counted backward from certain points within the...
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The Band-Aid | Adhesive Bandages, Marketing Highs and Lows, and the 1980s Supergroup (TSB104)
For those who don't know, I am incredibly accident-prone. I've never had any sort of grace. In fact, it's a miracle I've never broken any bones. But one thing I do end up with are a lot of cuts and scrapes, and we end up keeping quite a large supply of the topic of today's episode in the house at...
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Post-its | Persistence, Productivity, and Romy & Michele (TSB103)
One of my favorite movies I feel doesn't get enough love is Romy & Michele's High School reunion, starring Mira Sorvino and Lisa Kudrow as two 20-somethings who realize their 10-year high school reunion is coming up and begin to transform their lives so they can go back and impress their former...
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Sliced Bread | The Greatest Thing Since Betty White (TSB102)
Today's topic came about in 1928, and in the span of time since then, many things have been said to be the greatest thing since its invention. The more I read about it, and how easy it made people's lives, the more I realize the idiom about how great it is isn't too far off the mark. Because of...
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The Pink Slip | Enjoyment from Unemployment (TSB101)
Hey there! Remember me? Yup, The Story Behind is finally back after a hiatus I did not expect would be as long as it has. Here's the short version of what happened and why it was so long, and I promise this has everything to do with today's topic. I started editing and writing show notes for…
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The Story Behind have?
The Story Behind currently has 161 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The Story Behind about?
The Story Behind tells the extraordinary history of the ordinary. Everyday objects are more closely examined, from their ancient beginnings through the present—all within 5-10 minutes.
How often does The Story Behind release new episodes?
The Story Behind publishes regularly with 161 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to The Story Behind?
You can listen to The Story Behind on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The Story Behind?
The Story Behind is created and hosted by Emily Prokop.
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