Episodi

  • The Secret Animator Who Made the Lusitania Witness the Sea

    The Secret Animator Who Made the Lusitania Witness the Sea
    Aug 21 2026
    The Secret Animator Who Made the Lusitania Witness the Sea

    Grief and outrage meet in a secret twelve-minute film born from twenty-five thousand drawings - a newspaper cartoonist turned clandestine filmmaker tried to give the Lusitania a witness when the world had no photograph. How did Winsor McCay spend twenty-two months and risk his career to show an event that modern audiences had never seen?

    In this episode, we tell how a single artist within a media empire produced a twelve-minute animated film about the Lusitania, the production details behind it, and the costs that followed - why did McCay make the film in secret and what happened when the secret finally surfaced?

    Person: Winsor McCay
    Event: Sinking of the RMS Lusitania
    Date: May 7, 1915
    Duration: Twelve minutes
    Drawings: Twenty-five thousand individual drawings

    - The Lusitania sank in eighteen minutes with 1,198 people killed.
    - McCay produced the film over twenty-two months, yielding nine hundred feet of film.
    - The production averaged eight weeks of work for eight seconds of finished film.
    - McCay used twenty-five thousand individual drawings and thicker animation cells accepting pencil, ink, wash, and crayon.
    - The film was shot at Vitagraph Studios and involved collaborators John Fitzsimmons and William Apthorp Adams.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    23 min
  • The Obsolete Battleship That Lent Its Name to Gallipoli's Unknown Beach

    The Obsolete Battleship That Lent Its Name to Gallipoli's Unknown Beach
    Aug 20 2026
    The Obsolete Battleship That Lent Its Name to Gallipoli's Unknown Beach

    The thought that an obsolete battleship-broken up for scrap seven years after Gallipoli-would be the name scratched into a landing record still chills: survivors called the landing site Implacable Beach after a ship declared useless before the campaign. How did a vessel with two peacetime boiler explosions and a scattered crew become the informal namesake of a stretch of Turkish coastline?

    In this episode, we tell the story of HMS Implacable from her laying down to her final fate, covering her construction, armament, accidents, wartime service and the small informal mark that preserved her name-what does that lone field notation tell us about memory and loss?

    Person: Captain Prince Louis of Battenberg
    Date laid down: July 13, 1898
    Date launched: March 11, 1899
    Displacement: 15,800 long tons fully loaded
    Crew: 780 officers and ratings

    - Laid down at Devonport Dockyard on July 13, 1898 and launched March 11, 1899 while incomplete due to slip availability.
    - Commissioned September 10, 1901 and arrived at Malta on October 8, 1901 to join the Mediterranean Fleet.
    - Suffered two boiler explosions: July 12, 1905 (9 killed or injured) and August 16, 1906 (cause: loss of feedwater).
    - Measured 431 feet 9 inches length, 75 feet beam, drawing 26 feet of water with two funnels and twenty Belleville boilers.
    - Broken up for scrap and towed to Germany seven years after Gallipoli, while the name "Implacable Beach" remained in landing records.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    23 min
  • New boots, soles blown off - the man beneath them looked peacefully asleep

    New boots, soles blown off - the man beneath them looked peacefully asleep
    Aug 19 2026
    New boots, soles blown off - the man beneath them looked peacefully asleep

    The image of a man floating face-up with new pegged boots whose soles and heels had been blown clean away captures the random cruelty of one afternoon in San Pedro Bay; fragments of the Ada Hancock landed up to three-quarters of a mile away, yet one body appeared almost undisturbed - who could explain that contrast? What really destroyed the vessel and where did the missing money go?

    In this episode, we tell the story of the Ada Hancock: who was aboard, how the harbor tender was used that day, the aftermath on the water and shore, and the unanswered questions about lost lives and vanished cash - how did a routine run end in such total destruction and immediate theft?

    Date: April 27, 1863
    Location: San Pedro Bay
    Event: Explosion and destruction of the Ada Hancock
    Person: Phineas Banning
    Amount: $40,000 in cash carried by two messengers

    - 53 people boarded the Ada Hancock on the afternoon of April 27, 1863.
    - At least 26 of those aboard never reached shore alive.
    - Fragments of the vessel landed as far as three-quarters of a mile away on a distant island.
    - William Ritchie carried $10,000 for Wells Fargo and Fred E. Kerlin carried $30,000 in greenbacks; none of that money was ever accounted for.
    - Phineas Banning, owner of the Ada Hancock, was thrown many feet into the air and survived with minor injuries while his wife was wounded.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    24 min
  • When a Marlin Ate a 157‑lb Tuna: Secrets from the John R. Manning

    When a Marlin Ate a 157‑lb Tuna: Secrets from the John R. Manning
    Aug 18 2026
    When a Marlin Ate a 157‑lb Tuna: Secrets from the John R. Manning

    The ocean kept a secret for decades: in 1955 a 1,500‑lb marlin swallowed a 157‑lb yellowfin tuna headfirst, still bearing two puncture wounds from the marlin's bill - a single stomach find that finally settled a long scientific debate. What else did the 86‑foot John R. Manning uncover as she mapped unknown waters across the Pacific and changed how fishermen understood tuna behavior?

    In this episode, you will hear the story of the US FWS John R. Manning, the purpose‑built research vessel that left Seattle on February 21, 1950, with an 8,000 nautical mile range and instruments like a bathythermograph, and learn how its work raised the catch rate for yellowfin by roughly 40%. How did one wooden ship transform fishery science and resolve questions about billfish predation?

    Vessel: US FWS John R. Manning
    Departure date: February 21, 1950
    Length: 86 feet 6 inches
    Engine power: 320 horsepower
    Catch rate improvement: ~40%

    - In 1955 crew reached into a marlin's stomach and pulled out a 157‑lb yellowfin tuna swallowed headfirst.
    - The yellowfin showed two puncture wounds consistent with the marlin's bill.
    - Congress authorized the Pacific Ocean Fishery Program in August 1947 to map the living ocean across millions of square miles.
    - The Manning was built by Pacific Ocean Company from a June 27, 1949 contract and carried LORAN, a radio direction finder, and a bathythermograph.
    - The Manning's brine refrigeration system could hold 30 short tons of tuna and her cruising range was 8,000 nautical miles.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    21 min
  • Declared Dead at Sea: The Ship That Left a Hundred Alive

    Declared Dead at Sea: The Ship That Left a Hundred Alive
    Aug 17 2026
    Declared Dead at Sea: The Ship That Left a Hundred Alive

    A hundred people survived two shattered ships on a sandbank in the Coral Sea on August 17, 1803 - and were later officially declared dead by a report that named the third ship, the Bridgewater, as having lost both vessels with no survivors. How could a captain file a false report that erased more than one hundred lives, and why did the Bridgewater vanish two years later before anyone could answer that question?

    In this episode, we tell the sequence of events recorded in the archive: the Bridgewater’s long service for the East India Company, the final voyage with Captain E. H. Palmer, the wrecking of HMS Porpoise and the Cato, and the surviving castaways left on the reef - and we return to the unresolved question of what Palmer saw and reported.

    Person: E. H. Palmer
    Date: August 17, 1803
    Location: Coral Sea (157 miles north of Sandy Cape, 51 miles east)
    Event: Wrecking of HMS Porpoise and the Cato; survivors on sandbank
    Ship: Bridgewater (launched 1785; eighth and final voyage)

    - The Bridgewater was launched in 1785 and served eight voyages for the East India Company.
    - Captain E. H. Palmer departed Port Jackson on August 10, 1803, in company with HMS Porpoise and the Cato.
    - On August 17, 1803, the Porpoise struck a coral bank and rapidly sank; the Cato struck the same bank within minutes.
    - More than one hundred crew and passengers reached a nameless sandbank with no shelter and no fresh water, 157 miles from the Queensland coast.
    - The Bridgewater cleared the bank, arrived in Bombay, and later filed a report stating both vessels were lost with no survivors - a report contradicted by survivors on the reef.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    23 min
  • The Night a Suburb Vanished: A Murder by Timed Microwave Explosion

    The Night a Suburb Vanished: A Murder by Timed Microwave Explosion
    Aug 16 2026
    The Night a Suburb Vanished: A Murder by Timed Microwave Explosion

    Tension and the fear of ordinary safety shattered in one second: at 11:10 PM on November 10, 2012 a house on Fieldfare Way was "erased" by a timed microwave-triggered explosion that shook windows three blocks away - and two neighbors never woke up. Who set a microwave as a clock inside a house filled with natural gas, and why were irreplaceable photographs removed hours earlier?

    In this episode, we recount the sequence of events, the people involved, and the evidence uncovered in the days and months after the blast, leading to the central question: was this an insurance plot meticulously rehearsed, or something even more calculated?

    Person: Monserrate Shirley
    Person: John Longworth
    Person: Date: November 10, 2012
    Location: Fieldfare Way, Indianapolis
    Event: Timed microwave-triggered explosion

    - Explosion occurred at 11:10 PM and shook windows three blocks away.
    - The neighboring residents, John and Jennifer Longworth, lived at 8355 Fieldfare Way and did not survive the event.
    - Homeowner's insurance on 8349 Fieldfare Way had been increased to $300,000 before the explosion.
    - Investigators found a microwave set to close a circuit at a specific time inside the wreckage of 8349 Fieldfare Way.
    - Mark Leonard had lost $10,000 at the same casino he and Monserrate Shirley checked into on the night of the explosion.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    19 min
  • The One-Dollar Mill: The Explosion That Swallowed a Name

    The One-Dollar Mill: The Explosion That Swallowed a Name
    Aug 15 2026
    The One-Dollar Mill: The Explosion That Swallowed a Name

    A tiny Minnesota town sold a paper mill for one dollar in 1905, and that bargain set in motion a century of dynamite, ten million gallons of river water a day, and a mystery: a man walked into the Sartell mill on May 28, 2012, and the public record never records his name - what happened inside to erase him?

    In this episode, we lay out the mill’s full arc from its incorporation on May 10, 1905 to the unexplained explosion on May 28, 2012, describing the people, machinery, wartime production, and routine use of dynamite that defined its operations - could an everyday procedure have led to a fatal, undocumented catastrophe?

    Person: unnamed man who died on May 28, 2012
    Date: May 10, 1905 (incorporation); May 28, 2012 (explosion)
    Location: Sartell, Minnesota
    Event: routine dynamite use to break frozen pulp; explosion in Machine Number Three area
    Volume: 10,000,000 gallons per day processed and returned cleaner to the Mississippi

    - Purchase price to relocate the sawmill into Sartell in 1905: $1.00
    - Incorporation capitalization set at $200,000 with $100 shares in 1905
    - Machine Number One began running by September 1905; Machine Number Two in 1910
    - From 1934 onward, excess groundwood pulp stored on a concrete pad froze solid in winter and was routinely broken with dynamite
    - Regulatory record includes seven citations from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and recognition from the Izaak Walton League

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    21 min
  • They Were Fixing a Leak - Then the Factory Blew Apart in Seconds

    They Were Fixing a Leak - Then the Factory Blew Apart in Seconds
    Aug 14 2026
    They Were Fixing a Leak - Then the Factory Blew Apart in Seconds

    A routine heating test turned into a silent catastrophe: a corroded underground propane pipeline leaked from two separate breaches beneath a factory floor, and three people standing at the source were dead before anyone heard the explosion. How did a line that had been failing quietly for years go unchecked in a legal blind spot until a plant and its workers paid the price?

    In this episode, we walk through the timeline of the December 6, 2006 disaster at the Falk Corporation plant, the decades-long questions about when the line was installed, the forty-minute window between first smells and detonation, and the legal changes pushed afterward. What exactly failed - technically and legally - that allowed propane to pool unnoticed until the moment it ignited?

    Date: December 6, 2006
    Location: Falk Corporation plant, Menomonee River Valley, Milwaukee
    Event: Propane pipeline leak and explosion
    People: Three people killed; about 600 workers present that morning
    Company: Falk (owned by Rexnord); contractor J.M. Brennan Inc. implicated

    - Explosion registered as a shockwave at 8:07 AM when the door of a nearby fire station buckled inward on its hinges.
    - The plant complex covered roughly 61 acres and 1.5 million square feet, with the Annex and 2-2 building footprint about 50,000 square feet.
    - Six propane tanks were housed inside the Annex area and fed by an underground liquid propane line.
    - Workers reported smelling propane at least 30 minutes before the building exploded during a heating system test that began around 7:25 AM and ran for about 40 minutes.
    - Metallurgists and pressure testing confirmed corrosion in two separate places on the underground pipeline, evidence the leaks had been developing for years.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    21 min