logo
episode-header-image
May 2018
1h 4m

Jackie Robinson

SPOTIFY STUDIOS
About this episode
Jackie Robinson was the first black man in America  to cross “the color line” and play baseball in the major leagues. But when he was in his early teens, Jackie joined a street gang and had numerous run-ins with the law.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 
Up next
Jun 2018
Mark Twain
Most people know Mark Twain as one of America’s most popular writers and humorists. Some even know that as a young man, he was a Riverboat pilot. But did you know that during the Civil War, he volunteered for the war effort to fight for the South? Learn more about your ad choices ... Show More
1h 3m
Jun 2018
Anwar El-Sadat
Anwar El-Sadat was an Egyptian president who is credited with bringing peace between Egypt and Israel in the late 1970s. But, as a young soldier, he formed a group called The Free Officers, a revolutionary movement that would eventually overthrow King Farouk and liberate the Egyp ... Show More
1h 7m
Jul 2018
Sir Francis Bacon
Sir Francis Bacon was many things. A philosopher. A lawyer. A scientist that is sometimes credited with formalizing the Scientific Method, a process that includes making a hypothesis, testing and retesting it until the results are found. But was he also...William Shakespeare? Lea ... Show More
54m 37s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2022
Jackie Robinson Tries Out for the Majors
April 16, 1945. Jackie Robinson is ready. He’s won a tryout with the Boston Red Sox, and if he makes the team, he will become the first player to break baseball’s long-standing racial divide. Robinson puts his supreme athletic skills on full display… but never hears back from the ... Show More
28m 27s
Feb 2025
Selects: How the Negro Leagues Worked
A decade before the U.S. officially segregated in 1896, baseball banned black players. A decade before the US integrated, baseball broke the color barrier. Between, the Negro Leagues produced some of the finest players to ever take the field. Explore this important piece of Ameri ... Show More
55m 8s
Sep 2016
How the Negro Leagues Worked
<p>A decade before the U.S. officially segregated in 1896, baseball banned black players. A decade before the US integrated, baseball broke the color barrier. Between, the Negro Leagues produced some of the finest players to ever take the field.</p><p> </p> Learn more about your ... Show More
54m 39s
Feb 2022
Black Baseball Goes Pro
Feb 13, 1920. For over thirty years, Black baseball players have been locked out of the major leagues. So on this day in Kansas City, Rube Foster, a former pitcher and now a team owner, is trying to make his own league just for Black players. He has gathered owners of other Black ... Show More
28m 26s
Mar 2025
Muhammad Ali vs. The Draft | Black Athletes and Activism | 4
Muhammad Ali risked his career and even his freedom to take a stand against the Vietnam War. He followed in the footsteps of men like baseball great Jackie Robinson and singer Paul Robeson, who started out playing football. These Black athletes are all part of a heritage of worki ... Show More
36m 8s
Apr 2021
More Than a Home Run
April 8, 1974. On a humid night in Atlanta, Hank Aaron is poised to make history. On the all-time home run leaderboard, Aaron is tied with the legendary Babe Ruth. With one swing of the bat, he can break Ruth’s record. But not everyone in America wants to see this happen; the thr ... Show More
25m 55s
Jul 2019
King of the Street | 1
Episode 1: L.A. street racing legend Big Willie Robinson uses cars to heal a city torn apart by racial violence. His larger-than-life exploits touch Hollywood, the Southland’s most notorious gangs and even the Los Angeles Times. Learn more about the story, sign up for new episode ... Show More
29m 2s
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
Aug 2019
BLACK SOX Ep. 1 | "The Glory Days"
Baseball’s progression from an amateur activity to a professional sport is full of great stories. Hear about the myths and legends of early baseball; the pioneers and the inventors; the moguls and the superstars. And the gamblers. It all leads to the formation of the 1919 Chicago ... Show More
38m 9s
May 2020
“The Slave Master” Pt. 1: John Edward Robinson
As a child growing up in Illinois in the 1940s and ‘50s, John Edward Robinson was obsessed with figures from the criminal underworld. When he was grown and married, he began conning his way into jobs he wasn't qualified for. It wasn't long before his scheming ways took a decidedl ... Show More
44m 7s