Curious Louisville

What do Paul McCartney, Betty White and Muhammad Ali have in common? All three, along with about 100,000 other people, have been given the title “Kentucky Colonel.” But how does one gain the honor? That was listener Patrick Grantz’s question for Curious Louisville -- and our resident Kentucky Colonel, broadcast managing editor Rick Howlett, has the answer:

If you listen to our sister station WFPK, or attended Forecastle in 2016, you’ve probably heard of Pokey LaFarge He’s an artist whose music, as NPR’s Stephen Thompson once said, “evokes the old-timey spirit of a thousand crackling 78 RPM records.” LaFarge is based in St. Louis, but lived in Louisville for a time, which is what inspired his 2015 song “Home Away From Home” -- and our latest Curious Louisville question from listener Troy Richardson. WFPL’s Ashlie Stevens has more:

Earlier this month, Curious Louisville asked what questions you have about the JCPS audit and possible state takeover. You sent us more than 50 in the first 24 hours, and we realized we’d need to dedicate some extra time to answer them all. Here's our hour-long news special, hosted by Kentucky Public Radio’s Ryland Barton and WFPL education reporter Roxanne Scott.

Curious Louisville asked for your questions about the JCPS audit -- and you had lots of questions! In today’s edition, we take a look at the Jefferson County Teachers Association--also known as JCTA or the teachers union--to answer this question from former teacher, Paul Downs: "With JCTA and JCPS set to renegotiate a new contract for teachers this summer, what happens if the state takes over and the contract has not yet been negotiated?" WFPL's Laura Ellis and Roxanne Scott have the answers... lots of them.

Last month, the Kentucky Department of Education released an audit recommending the state take over Louisville’s public school system. Curious Louisville asked for your questions about the audit. Shawn Carroll and Karen Rippy wanted to know if there had been other state-takeovers in Kentucky. And if so, how were they working out? Ashlie Stevens talked to Kentucky Public Radio's Ryland Barton for the answer.

As part of Curious Derby, we’ve reported on horse safety, injuries and even deaths while racing. But this caused Rob Harris from Louisville to wonder: "What happens to race horses once they retire, winners or not?" WFPL’s Ashlie Stevens went to a farm that specifically houses older thoroughbreds to find out the answer:

When you watch the Kentucky Oaks tonight, look for a solid brown filly whose jockey is in orange and brown checkered silks. Her name is Chocolate Martini, and trainer Tom Amoss bought her at a claiming race. That got listener Elizabeth Jesse thinking. "So my best friend, her name is Hayley Amoss, and her dad is a trainer, Tom Amoss," Elizabeth said. "And he claimed a horse that’s actually running in the Oaks. Her name is Chocolate Martini and they only paid 25,000 for her. So that kind of sparked my curiosity about if there’d ever been a claimer in the Derby." Elizabeth asked Curious Louisville whether any claimed horses had run in the Derby, and what's the least expensive horse that has run. WFPL's Laura Ellis looked for an answer.

It’s 34 notes in the key of C -- no sharps, no flats. And it means the next race is about 10 minutes away. You know it as the Call to the Post. Listener Hannah Zimmerman wanted to know where it came from, so WFPL's Laura Ellis went looking for the answer.

During the most exciting two minutes in sports, a lot of people pay attention to the athleticism of the horses -- and with good reason. But have you ever wondered what type of physical conditioning it requires to guide and stay balanced on top of a 1000-pound racehorse? As part of our Curious Derby series, WFPL health reporter Lisa Gillespie looked into how jockeys stay in shape for races, and how they heal after injuries.

Every horse racing fan remembers Eight Belles’ death, said Michael Blowen, the owner of Old Friends, a retirement farm for thoroughbreds. It happened in 2008, minutes after the filly had placed in the Kentucky Derby; she collapsed on the track after both her ankles broke. In television coverage from the race, cameras zoomed in on veterinarian Dr. Larry Bramlage. “They immediately euthanized her because there was no possible way to save her," Bramlage said after the race. “But I’ll tell you,” said Blowen, “Nobody loved Eight Belles more than her trainer, Larry Jones. I was on the backside of Churchill Downs every morning that week, and he had that horse out grazing every day. He adored her, and no one was more broken up about what happened to Eight Belles.” And Blowen himself loves horses, especially racehorses. Old Friends is an expansive farm outside Georgetown — the kind with wide pastures and volunteers who hand-feed carrots to retired racehorses. Every morning Blowen visits 1997 Kentucky Derby and Pr

The perfect dress. An outrageous hat. A pair of killer heels -- and a pair of backup flip flops. Everyone knows what the Derby essentials are for women. But what about men? Tyler Franklin wanted to know, what's up with men's Derby fashion? How did it evolve? WFPL's Ryan Van Velzer needed the answer too -- he's going to his first Derby this year and had NO idea what to wear. Tyler and Ryan teamed up for this Derby edition of Curious Louisville.

During the first weekend in May, people from all over the world flock to Louisville for the Kentucky Derby. But Fred Benz and his wife typically leave that weekend to avoid the rush of tourists. Whenever they do, Benz notices how packed the tarmac at Louisville International Airport becomes, which led him to wonder how many planes fly into the city over the course of Derby weekend. As part of Curious Derby -- a special series by the producers of Curious Louisville -- WFPL reporter Kyeland Jackson set out to find the answer:

When Donna Finnell was working downtown in the late 1970s, she spent a lot of lunch breaks walking around on the Belvedere. She especially liked to visit a small statue nestled in the landscaping there — a delicate bronze figure of the Greek god Pan. He was shown bending towards the ground, playing a flute. Ashlie Stevens Pan. Eventually, she got a different job, and when she visited the Belvedere again years later, Pan was gone. So she asked Curious Louisville: What happened to it? When I first saw this question, I thought it would be a relatively easy one to answer. A quick Google search revealed the Belvedere Pan statue, as seen in the photo above, had been created by Charlotte Price (and cast by Louisville’s Barney Bright). LVA/Submitted Charlotte Price and Louisville sculptor Ed Hamilton. I pulled out the city’s directory of public art, scanned for “Pan” and “Price” — and that’s when the story became more complicated. Check it out in the player above. You can also download this story, and subscribe to Cu

We know that all dogs go to heaven, but what happens to the Louisville Zoo animals when they die? This Curious Louisville question actually has a variety of answers — ranging from the zoo’s educational programs to a baby pool on the rooftop of a Bellarmine University science building. Dr. Zoli Gymesi is the senior staff veterinarian at the Louisville Zoo. “Let me start by saying that any time we lose a zoo animal, it’s a sad day,” Gymesi said. “But with any loss, we try to maximize what we can learn from their death.” He said that the zoo has a strict set of procedures after an animal dies. “We have a dedicated necropsy room, and in the necropsy room is where we would do post-mortem evaluations,” Gymesi said. “That’s gross dissection of the animal after it has passed, you usually get a good feel there, and then you harvest tissues that gets sent off to a veterinary pathologist for microscopic evaluation.” At that point, there is a full pathologic evaluation of the animal — cause of death, what kind of issues

For our latest installment of Curious Louisville, WFPL listener Ben Taylor came to us with this inquiry: “Why is Louisville located at this particular point on the Ohio River instead of somewhere else?” Submitted Curious question asker Ben Taylor. The answer lies mostly in the river — and the Falls of the Ohio. At the Portland Museum just west of downtown Louisville, Teresa Lee took me on a topographical tour of the Falls of the Ohio, past and present. Lee is the museum’s education and visitor services coordinator. For early navigators, the prehistoric rock ledge formations and rapids that once interrupted the flow of much of the Ohio River near Portland were an impediment. But they were integral to the development of Louisville. Lee said prior to construction and expansion of the Portland Canal in the 1800s and — much later — the McAlpine Locks and Dam, navigating the falls was dangerous work for pilots of Ohio River vessels. “You had to make a decision. There were times of year you had to stop and get out o

For our latest installment of Curious Louisville, listener Peggy Hoffman came to us with the question, “How do you pronounce N-A-C-H-A-N-D? It’s a street off of Watterson Trail — what’s the history of it?” We found out this distinct name is actually found on streets and buildings in both Louisville and Southern Indiana — Jeffersontown and Jeffersonville, specifically — and it turns out that the origin differs based on what side of the river you are on. Jeffersonville Parks Department The Nachand Field House in Jeffersonville, Indiana Since this is a story about pronunciation, you’re going to want to listen to the whole story in the player above. You can also download this story, and be sure to subscribe to Curious Louisville wherever you get your podcasts. Submit your own question at curiouslouisville.org.

Ask anyone in Louisville the best place to see Halloween decorations, and you’ll likely be sent to Hillcrest Avenue in Crescent Hill. It’s just one of those things everyone seems to know. But how did it get started? And what’s it like being a homeowner there? That’s what Curious Louisville listener Katharine Crawford wanted to know. Some sources have the tradition going back to the 1980s — originally a competition between two neighbors trying to outdo each other. But historian Joanne Weeter said Halloween on Hillcrest really started picking up steam in the 90s. “1995 was the first year that Hillcrest was formally mentioned in the local paper that it was a Halloween thing,” Weeter said. Word got out, and crowds started showing up throughout the month of October. These days, they number in the tens of thousands. Up and down the street, stretching from Frankfort Avenue to Brownsboro Road, houses are decked out by proud homeowners who spend months preparing. “It takes a commitment to pull off such a wonderful dis

You see it performed everywhere. At sporting events, on television, maybe even at your workplace. It’s the high five. From the documentary ‘Doctors of Dunk’ But while this gesture seems like it’s probably been around forever, its origin story may actually have local ties. For WFPL’s Curious Louisville project, I looked into where the high-five came from, which led me from the basketball court to the baseball field — and behind an elaborate hoax. Listen in the player above, download this story, or subscribe to Curious Louisville wherever you get your podcasts. And submit your own question at curiouslouisville.org.