Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun

Edwin Howard Armstrong isn’t exactly a well-known inventor, but his work in radio literally changed communications around the globe. But his most famous invention – FM radio – became a source of constant frustration after he developed it. Research: Armstrong, Edwin H. “Frequency ... Show More

Before the ballpoint pen, people used their hands, reeds, bamboo, brushes, quills, and eventually nibs to write or draw. But how did things evolve from there to get to things like the fountain pen, and eventually, a ballpoint? Research: "pen." Britannica Library, Encyclopædia Bri ... Show More

This 2022 episode starts with the story of John Bibb, credited with cultivating Bibb lettuce. But his family’s legacy, good and bad, is all tied to having enslaved people build their familial wealth. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 

Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, had an image problem: she was seen as frivolous, silly, and out-of-touch. In order to combat her poor press, the royal court commissioned a series of portraits of the queen to make her more relatable and sympathetic. Such images act as excellent ... Show More

In 1793, the infamous Marie Antoinette was moved to the Conciergerie in Temple Prison. A woman who became synonymous with indulgence spent her final months with almost no personal possessions, separated from her children, awaiting her imminent death. Learn more about your ad-choi ... Show More

Sarah Bernhardt began her life in France as the unwanted child of a heartless courtesan. She found her first true home in the theater; and through hard work, sheer luck, shocking eccentricity and her indomitable spirit, she transformed herself into the first A-list international ... Show More

Josephine went from the daughter of a Caribbean plantation owner to the wife of a prominent French aristocrat. After her husband was guillotined during the revolution, she caught the eye of an up and coming soldier named Napoleon. He wrote her romantic letters while conquering mu ... Show More

Hortense Mancini is perhaps most famous for being a royal mistress, but her life was a series of adventures and scandals. Hortense was willing to do whatever it took to be a woman who lived on her own terms in the 17th century. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.ihea ... Show More

Le nom d'Angelika Kauffman ne vous dit peut-être rien. En France, cette artiste reste méconnue. Elle mérite d'être redécouverte. C'est l'une des premières femmes à mener une grande carrière de peintre, une pionnière.A la fin du XVIIIe siècle, de Rome, à Londres, jusqu'à Saint-Pet ... Show More

Catherine the Great, Russia's most famous Empress, wasn't born in Russia—she was a minor German princess engaged to the future Emperor. But less than a year after her husband ascended to the Russian throne, Catherine overthrew him in a coup with the help of her lover in one of th ... Show More

In the late 19th century, a painting titled The Roll Call, by a virtually unknown artist, took England by storm. But after that brilliant first effort, the artist all but disappeared. Why? And what does The Roll Call tell us about the fate of those first through the door? To lear ... Show More