Charles “Sonny” Liston was once the heavyweight boxing champion of the world: a human dreadnought built for fighting. But during a match with a newcomer in May 1965, Liston was sent to the mat by an unremarkable punch few spectators even noticed. How could the champion go down so easily?
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Yesterday
Winchester Mystery House: Ghosts, Legends, and Hoaxes
If you’ve heard of the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California, you’ve surely heard the rumors about its famous owner, Sarah Winchester. Like the claims she was an eccentric hermit who never left her 24,000-square-foot mansion. Or that she demanded construction crews wor ... Show More
47m 59s
Oct 7
Panic in the Streets: The War of the Worlds Radio Broadcast
On Halloween Eve, 1938 Orson Welles' The War of the Worlds aired on CBS radio. It detailed an alien invasion so realistic that, according to legend, it caused widespread panic among listeners. People really believed aliens were invading Earth. The mass hysteria is an important pa ... Show More
47m 40s
Mar 2022
That Time A Dead Guy Won an Olympic Medal
<p>In his heyday, the story goes, Arrhichion of Phigalia was a renowned pankration champion, a brutal sport of the ancient Olympics. But he was getting on in years, and his days at the top seem numbered. In today's episode, the guys explore the strange series of circumstances tha ... Show More
28m 38s
Feb 2012
Jack Johnson and the Fight of the Century
<p>During Jack Johnson's time, the heavyweight championship was unofficially a whites-only title. Despite discrimination, he fought title-holder Tommy Burns in 1908. Johnson became the first black heavyweight champion, but some questioned his legitimacy.</p><p> </p> Learn more ab ... Show More
28m 57s
Mar 2022
Don King | 1. Make Me Big
We track Don King’s path to boxing, from a poverty-stricken childhood, to a crime-laden young adulthood, and finally to the moment he enters the arena by attaching himself to greatest fighter of all time. But when you go from the bottom to the top, or at least pretty close, not e ... Show More
34m 49s
Sep 2024
33 | Bad and Bougie | Complicated Champion Jack Johnson
Jack Johnson, the Galveston Giant, is known for two things: his brutal fists and fearless audacity. Before Muhammad Ali, Johnson shocked the world with his unrivaled boxing skills, shattering racial barriers and igniting racial tensions. On July 4th, 1910, in "The Fight of the Ce ... Show More
36 m