Cock and Bull

100: John Hunter and Charles Byrne

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 11:00:00 -0000

On June 1, 1783, a 7'7" Irishman named Charles Byrne died of tuberculosis and complications with giantism. Eagerly awaiting his death was a man regarded as England's greatest surgeon, who was competing with others in the medical community to earn the opportunity of dissecting such a rare medical specimen. Byrne, however, was terrified of post-mortem dissection, and begged his friends to take any measures to keep his body away from the mob of doctors... but Hunter didn't take "no" for an answer.

Cock and Bull is a somewhat-weekly history podcast about unbelievable characters and shockingly true stories, brought to you by Spencer Foust and Nathan: a sophisticated text-to-speech program. You can donate to our show with the tip jar, which we promise to use for research materials and NOT $1 medium fountain drinks at Taco Bell from 2-5 p.m.

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99: Victor Hugo: An Erotic Life

Tue, 14 Nov 2023 10:58:00 -0000

On June 24, 1801, Victor Hugo was conceived on the peaks of the Vosges Mountains. It's unclear whether this is pertinent to him writing The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

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98: The Death of King Charles II

Tue, 07 Nov 2023 10:58:00 -0000

February 2 of 1685, Charles II, King of England, woke up feeling a little under the weather. What followed was perhaps the most aggressive case of "good intentions, poor execution."

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97: Radithor

Tue, 31 Oct 2023 09:00:00 -0000

After the discovery of atomic decay, radioactive medicines were soon stocked in drug stores across the world. Today's episode centers on "Radithor," a radioactive patent drug consumed by famed semi-pro golfer Eben Byers; who would go on to be known as "a guy you absolutely shouldn't look up on Google images. Please."

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96: Honey Mummies

Tue, 24 Oct 2023 09:00:00 -0000

The mellified men, also known as human mummy confections, were a legendary medicinal substance created by steeping a human cadaver in honey. Join us as we unravel another Bipin Banger History Mystery!

Cock and Bull is a primary source on The Dollop. It's also a somewhat-weekly history podcast about unbelievable characters and shockingly true stories, brought to you by Spencer Foust and Nathan: a sophisticated text-to-speech program. You can donate to our show with the tip jar, which we promise to use for research materials and NOT $1 medium fountain drinks at Taco Bell from 2-5 p.m.

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95: Sokushinbutsu

Tue, 17 Oct 2023 09:00:00 -0000

The Japanese climate is not exactly conducive to mummification. There are no peat bogs, no arid deserts, and no alpine peaks perennially encased in ice. The summers are hot and humid. Between 1081 and 1903, at least 17 monks managed to mummify themselves.

Pic 1 Pic 2 Pic 3 Pic 4

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94: Tarrare "The Bottomless Pit"

Tue, 10 Oct 2023 09:04:00 -0000

CONTENT WARNING: ANIMAL CRUELTY, EATING DISORDERS

In the early 1780s, a family of French famers made the awful, and no-doubt difficult decision to abandon their son. The boy was incredibly skinny, had angel-fine hair, and an insatiable appetite--able to eat his weight in beef. Unable to afford this costly extra mouth, the boy (known only as "Tarrare") was thrown out into the French countryside to fend for himself. What followed was a brief, miserable, and morbidly fascinating life. This is the story of Tarrare: the veteran, sideshow performer, and medical anomaly with a bottomless gut.

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93: William Buckland's Buffet

Tue, 03 Oct 2023 13:46:39 -0000

Famed geologist and paleontologist William Buckland was among the most energetic and eccentric Deans to ever pass through the halls of Oxford. Not only did he help name the fist-ever dinosaur, but he also played a role in discrediting the Biblical Flood Theory, and... and... checks notes ... And he wanted to eat one of every animal on earth?

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92: Dr. Messenger Monsey

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 09:33:00 -0000

Nathan and Spencer take it down a notch from last week by talking about a silly 18th century doctor who longed for the life of a fancy boy. Midway through the episode we refer to a pair of pictures. Picture 1, and Picture 2.

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91: Pruitt Igo

Tue, 19 Sep 2023 09:57:00 -0000

In 1952, construction began on a public housing project in North St. Louis, Missouri. 33 apartment buildings--a herculean spending project in the name of urban renewal. By 1972, they would famously be demolished on television. There’s much more to the story. Pruitt-Igoe was not proof of a Cold War logic; it did not display the “inevitable” failures of planned housing. It was an organized sabotage—and a clandestine site for radiological weapons experimentation. These studies were conducted on innocent and unconsenting civilians, who were mostly poor, mostly Black, and mostly women and children.

All credit for this week's episode goes to Devin Tomas O'Shea's article in Proteanmag.

Cock and Bull is a somewhat-weekly history podcast about unbelievable characters and shockingly true stories, brought to you by Spencer Foust and Nathan: a sophisticated text-to-speech program.

You can find our other shows at: www.one-shot-one-quill.pinecast.co www.marxmadness.pinecast.co www.blunderphonics.pinecast.co www.cooperative-effort.pinecast.co

Cock and Bull is a labor of love, and has neither sponsors nor a network to monetize it. Donations go towards purchasing research materials like memoirs, letters, and research papers from a time when people thought "some idiot's gonna buy this in 2023, and he's gotta work for it."

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