Cool Weird Awesome With Brady Carlson

This month in 1863, the founding of a town that made history: Mitchelville was the first town in the United States to be governed by formerly enslaved people. Plus: it’s National Girl Scout Day, and a scout troop in Muskogee, Oklahoma gets the credit for the first ever sale of Girl Scout cookies in 1917. This Island in South Carolina Has the First Self-governed Town of Formerly Enslaved People in the U.S. (Travel and Leisure)Statue commemorates first cookie sale (Muskogee Phoenix)You can help build our show as a backer on Patreon

Women’s History Month is here, and in 1920 a group of women made history in Jackson, Wyoming, as one of the first-ever all-female town councils in the United States. Plus: for National Worship of Tools Day, a visit to the world's largest chainsaw. Petticoat Rulers: 1920 All Women Jackson Town Council Inspires Women Today (Wyoming Public Media)Big Gus is the world's largest chainsaw (Boing Boing)Our Patreon backers rule

It's National Landline Telephone Day. In the landline era, if you were out in the world and needed to call someone, you usually had to find a phone booth to do it - and at one time, college students tried to cram themselves into those booths by the dozens. Plus: the story of a stray cat who decided to start dropping flowers off at a lady's front door. Cramming People Into A Thing: A Photo History (Mental Floss)Thoughtful Pregnant Stray Cat Brought Pink Flowers to a Woman’s Door Who Then Let Her Inside to Give Birth (Laughing Squid)There’s plenty of room for backers on our Patreon page, no one will feel crammed!

Today in 1998, a little-noticed line in a funding bill for the National Sea Grant Program led the United States to declare that there were not five but six Great Lakes. Plus: starting tomorrow in south Georgia, it’s the Valdosta-Lowndes Azalea Festival. When Lake Champlain Became A Great Lake… For 18 Days (All That’s Interesting)Valdosta-Lowndes Azalea Festival Our Patreon backers make this show great, support our show today!

Today in 1945, George Nissen received the patent for a “tumbling device” which we now call the trampoline.  And while most of the time that device has been used for tumbling, during World War II the trampoline became a key part of training fighter pilots. Plus: this month in 1929, the start of a high-flying advertising campaign known as the Baby Ruth Flying Circus. Trampoline Training During World War II (West View Trampoline Community via Archive.org) The day Baby Ruth candy bars rained down from heaven (Aerotech News)Help our show bounce higher and higher as a backer on Patreon

Today in 1884 was probably the birthdate of a pioneer in aerial photography, Edith Keating. Plus: today is the first day of the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival. In 1920s New York, This Woman Typist Became a Pioneering Aerial Photographer (Smithsonian)Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival Fly high with this podcast on Patreon

In New Orleans, king cake is a Mardi Gras tradition, though it's one that started with an earlier holiday. Plus: this month in Janesville, Wisconsin, the Lincoln-Tallman Museum hosts the Gowns & Guns Exhibit. The Tradition Behind The Mardi Gras King Cake (Southern Living) Gowns & Guns Exhibit (Janesville Area Convention & Visitors Bureau) Don’t give up this show for Lent, back it on Patreon

Today in 1931, President Herbert Hoover signed a bill that made “The Star-Spangled Banner” the national anthem of the United States, more than a century after it was written. Another fun fact about the anthem: there's an official Spanish-language version. Plus: today in 1920, the birthday of James Doohan. His Star Trek character, Mr. Scott, has a plaque in the town where he's supposed to be born in 2222. Not Lost in Translation: The Life of Clotilde Arias (National Museum of American History) LINLITHGOW FUTURE HERITAGE Thanks to all our Patreon backers (or, in Spanish, gracias)

Earlier this week we had a story out of the community of Boring, Oregon, which is named for a guy named William Boring. In other words, it’s anything but boring in Boring, and today we have the story to prove it. Plus: it’s the last day of February everywhere except for a cemetery in Ashmore, Illinois, where a tombstone seems to say February has 31 days. No, the town of Boring wasn't named such because it was a dull place to be (KGW)St. Omer Cemetery Witch Grave (Atlas Obscura)Back our show on Patreon and you’ll make the world a lot less boring

Today in 1944, the end of a contest in which baseball’s Philadelphia Phillies decided to take on a nickname, briefly becoming known as "blue jays." Plus: today in 1980, a 70s icon wins the one and only Grammy for Best Disco Recording. How the Phillies also briefly became 'Blue Jays' (MLB.com)“I Will Survive” wins the first—and last—Grammy ever awarded for Best Disco Recording (History.com)Give yourself the nickname of “backer” when you support our show on Patreon

Today in 1932, the birthday of Johnny Cash, a singer/songwriter who who seemed like he’d seen and done it all. And in some ways, that was true: for example, Johnny Cash is one of the few music stars who ever got in a fight with an ostrich. Plus: today in 1953, the birthday of singer Michael Bolton, who reportedly once auditioned to be the lead singer of the heaviest metal band of all time. Johnny Cash once tried to fight an ostrich and, predictably, suffered a heavy defeat (Farout)Tony Iommi says Michael Bolton once auditioned to be in Black Sabbath (NME)Backing our show on Patreon is a lot more fun than getting kicked by an angry ostrich

Today in 1970, Ernie from Sesame Street first sang his signature song, “Rubber Duckie.” So it's a great time to talk about how so many people became awfully fond of rubber ducks. Plus: the town of Boring, Oregon didn't get its name because it's a boring place! Rubber ducks (Quartz)No, the town of Boring wasn't named such because it was a dull place to be (KGW)Float on over to our Patreon page and help this show grow

Today in 1978, pro basketball player Clifford Ray got to lend his extra long to help a dolphin named Mr. Spock caught in an odd situation. Plus: hot sauce maker Sauce Shed is partnering with Atari for a line of hot sauces inspired by (or at least sharing graphic design with) games from the old 2600 console. Ray’s Flipper Saved a Dolphin (New York Times)Atari Sauce Hot Sauces (The Awesomer)Backing our show on Patreon doesn’t cost an arm or a leg (or even a bolt)

This week we’re replaying some of our favorite episodes about the stuff painters use. In this episode from October 2020, the story of Fordite, a substance that looks just like the stuff of colorful jewelry, but it’s actually a byproduct of the automaking process. Plus: Make.com posts plans for how to make a special mold of your own face, and then use that to make your own face into a bread bowl. Your Earrings Remind Me of Grandma’s Gran Torino (New York Times)How To Make A Bread Mold Of Your Own Face (Make)Together, Cool Weird Awesome and our backers on Patreon can make great art – join us!

This week we’re replaying some of our favorite episodes about the stuff painters use. In this episode from October 2020, scientists at Purdue University find a way to help keep us cool even without air conditioning, and it starts with a fresh coat of paint. Plus: the community of Asbestos, Quebec, chooses a new, less carcinogenic-sounding name. New ‘Super-White’ Paint Can Cool Down Buildings and Cars (Interesting Engineering)Goodbye Asbestos, hello Val-des-Sources: Que. town changing infamous name (CBC)Our backers on Patreon are really, really bright

This week we’re replaying some of our favorite episodes about the stuff painters use. In this episode from September 2019, paintings made with Day Glo paint, some made by well-known and influential artists, are losing their glow over time. Scientists are trying to keep the glo for as long as possible. Plus: a research team in Massachusetts figures out how to make a color that absorbs 99.995 percent of incoming light. Day-Glo masterpieces are fading. A conservator and her team are racing to save them (Los Angeles Times)How DayGlo Went From Utility Pigment to Design World Darling (AIGA Eye on Design)Engineers Just Unveiled a New Blackest-Ever Material, Even Darker Than Vantablack (Science Alert)Make life more colorful when you back Cool Weird Awesome on Patreon

This week we’re replaying some of our favorite episodes about the stuff painters use. In this episode from September 2022, a school near Atlanta finds a partial solution to scorching hot asphalt playgrounds, and it’s as simple as getting a fresh coat of paint. Plus: for National Bunny Day, a visit to southern California's Bunny Museum. Thanks to an innovative new paint, this school’s playground just got 12 degrees cooler (Fast Company)LA’s Bunny Museum will redline your rabbit-o-meter (Boing Boing)You can back this show for just $1 a month as a backer on Patreon

This week we’re replaying some of our favorite episodes about the stuff painters use. In this episode from February 2022, the story of Mummy Brown, a pigment made by combining white pitch and myrrh with the ground-up bits of actual mummies. Plus: seventeen years after the opening of King Tut's tomb, a musician played a trumpet found there for a radio broadcast. Mummy Brown (Florida State University Department of Art History)A Pigment from the Depths (Harvard Art Museums)Tutankhamun’s ‘cursed’ trumpet that stirs ‘deadly conflict’ has arrived in London (ClassicFM)Our Patreon backers will be hailed as heroes for centuries and centuries

Today in 1964, Elvis Presley donated a historic ship to help a Memphis hospital raise money. That ship had once been a favorite hangout for President Franklin Roosevelt. Plus: today in 2018, authorities in Australia found a very odd situation involving a man, a pipe organ, and "remnants of a cheeseburger." USS Potomac History Former Brisbane Freemason Glenn Langford apologises after being found naked in broken pipe organ, surrounded by cheeseburgers (The West Australian)No need to donate a ship to our podcast, just back us on Patreon

A team at the University of Guelph has developed a substance that can generate electricity and could help in a multitude of medical situations. What is it? High-tech slime. Plus:tarting Saturday in Phoenix, Arizona, it’s the World Championship Hoop Dance Contest.Walking could soon generate electricity with new slime that powers up when stepped on (Interesting Engineering)World Championship Hoop Dance ContestPower up our podcast as a backer on Patreon