Sarah tells Mike about media history, labor organizing, century-old moral panics — and the unlikely Disney musical that introduced her to all three. Digressions include Sting, "The Princess Bride" and 19th century graphic design. Both co-hosts recount their extremely millennial work histories. Support us: Subscribe on Patreon Donate on Paypal Buy cute merch ... Show More
Apr 14
The Great American Spelling Bee with Gabe Henry
Can you use the word in a sentence? For this episode, Spelling Correspondent Gabe Henry takes Sarah through the surprisingly rampageous (r-a-m-p-a-g-e-o-u-s) history of the Spelling Bee, a uniquely American phenomenon. From the earliest examples of late night “spelling matches,” ... Show More
1h 26m
Mar 17
How to Deprogram a Guy in 10 Days with Endless Thread
Free yourself. What does it take to get someone to leave a cult? What happens if the cult is all around us? In this episode, Ben Brock Johnson & Amory Sivertson of NPR’s Endless Thread podcast join Sarah for a discussion about the cultier aspects of our culture, politics, and his ... Show More
1h 24m
May 2021
15: Family.. The Good, The Bad, The Ugly
TW: child death Two Hot Takes host, Morgan, is joined by guest co-host Alejandra! This episode is about families.. and how dramatic they can be. Stories include a mother who married her fiancé's father before they could walk down the aisle, a woman whose MIL harassed her at her c ... Show More
1h 13m
Aug 2020
Comedy from Stand-up to Sitcom - Part 1 I 30
In the 1990s there was a massive flood of stand-up comedians making the leap to television to star in their own stand-up sitcoms thanks in part to the success of the Cosby Show and Roseanne.Those shows were followed by other massive hits like Seinfeld, Home Improvement, Martin, E ... Show More
43m 48s
May 2024
How WWE made Donald Trump | Too Many Tabs
<p>Mr. Pearlmania sits Mrs. P down and explains the long and complicated of how a madman learned how to work arenas full of people into a frenzy, became a billionaire, and had a best friend that became president of the United States of America. That's right, this week's episode i ... Show More
1h 13m
Dec 2022
S2E3: Rosemary, The Hidden Daughter
<p>"<strong><em>The Kennedys were the most famous family of the 20th century, they were talked about, written about, and photographed more than any other group known to man during their lifetime… but one member slipped by almost entirely unnoticed. Or maybe it just seemed that wa ... Show More
1 h
May 2021
18: Age Gaps.. They're Not So Black And White
TW: potential grooming! Two Hot Takes host, Morgan, is joined by guest co-host, Lauren! We're tackling age gaps and stories related to them. This is always a super debatable topic on social media platforms so we figured we'd give our takes on some stories! Stories include a woman ... Show More
1h 22m