Cool Weird Awesome With Brady Carlson

World Doll Day is tomorrow. And while the world has lots of amazing and well-loved dolls, there aren’t many like the 18th Century automata known as The Writer. Plus: today in 1928, the birthday of author and artist Maurice Sendak, who once sent a very tasty message to a young fan. Remarkable 240-Year-Old Doll Automaton Can Write Actual Programmable Text (My Modern Met) Maurice Sendak and childhood — we ate it up, we loved it (Washington Post) Be a doll and join our community of backers on Patreon, would you please? --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Today we’re looking at a new kind of solar project from Swiss company Sun-Ways, which is putting energy-generating panels in a new spot: in between train tracks. Plus: starting today in Peru, Indiana, it’s the Cole Porter Festival. Switzerland is turning the gap between train tracks into a ‘solar carpet’ (Fast Company) Cole Porter Festival Shine a light on this show as a backer on Patreon --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1909, the birthday of Dr. Virginia Apgar, who created the short but important test known as the Apgar Score to make sure a newborn baby is getting off to a good start. Plus: we're just days away from the National Asparagus Festival in Oceana County, Michigan. Virginia Apgar May Have Saved Your Life (Hackaday) National Asparagus Festival in Michigan Our Patreon backers keep this short but important podcast healthy --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1933, truly a moment for the record books: a pitcher in a minor league baseball game got injured after being bitten by his own false teeth. Plus: on this day in 1942, Adeline Gray became the first person to test a nylon parachute, since silk was in short supply because of World War II.  Clarence Blethen (Society for American Baseball Research) Meet the Daredevil Parachutist Who Tested the First Nylon Parachute 75 Years Ago (Smithsonian) Our Patreon backers are the real record setters --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1962, Spider-Man first appeared in comic books. He's had a huge influence on comics, movies, cartoons and really entertainment as a whole, but did you also know a Spider-Man comic helped lead to the creation of the first ankle monitor? Plus: Manhattan's Grolier Club is hosting an exhibit of vintage restaurant menus from the 1840s to the 1940s. How Spider-Man Led to the Invention of the Prisoner Ankle Monitor (Gizmodo) NYC Exhibition Extols the Charm of Restaurant Menus (Hyperallergic)  Back our show on Patreon --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Today is one of several days the US commemorates its First Ladies. Some are well known, some are obscure. Some loved the job, others didn't want it at all. But only one First Lady had her own color: Mamie Eisenhower, the namesake of "Mamie pink." Plus: this weekend in Lewes, Delaware, it’s the Mid-Atlantic Sea Glass and Coastal Arts Festival.  How Pink Became a Color for Girls (Racked) Mid-Atlantic Sea Glass and Coastal Arts Festival (Historic Lewes) Our Patreon backers keep this show colorful, join them today! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1992, it's said the first picture book featuring a sock monkey was published. But where did the sock monkey itself show up? That was decades earlier, in the Illinois city of Rockford - or, as it's sometimes called, Sockford. Plus: today in 1929, the UK newspaper known as The Sphere published an eye-catching photo of storefront mannequins melting in the London heat. Monkey shines in Rockford (Illinois Times) It’s Sock Monkey Madness in Rockford, Illinois, the birthplace of the beloved children’s toy (Roadtrippers) MELTING MANNEQUINS (Nag on the Lake) No need to monkey around, backing our show on Patreon is quick and easy --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Wellington R. Burt, known as "The Lone Pine of Michigan," was once among the wealthiest people in America - but when he died in 1919, he made sure most of that anyone who expected to inherit a big chunk of his enormous fortune would have to wait a long, long time. Plus: in Grand Rapids, Michigan, it’s the Grand Rapids Lantern Festival. Wellington's millions: 92 years after his death, Saginaw lumber baron's vindictive testament nears endgame (MLive.com) GRAND RAPIDS LANTERN FESTIVAL --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Inventors put wheels on suitcases and made it so much easier for travelers to get their bags through airports and terminals and lobbies. So why was there so much resistance to rolling luggage when it first went up for sale? Plus: this weekend in Ruston, Louisiana, the Louisiana Peach Festival. Mystery of the wheelie suitcase: how gender stereotypes held back the history of invention (The Guardian) Who Actually Invented the Wheeled Suitcase? (Interesting Engineering) Louisiana Peach Festival We keep moving forward thanks to support from our backers on Patreon --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Many of our servicemembers are laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery. For Memorial Day, we tell the story of a group who makes sure every servicemember buried there is properly remembered. Arlington Ladies make funerals a time of comfort, honor and remembrance (Military Families Magazine) Arlington National Cemetery: Where Every Day We Remember (Library of Congress) --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1951, Sally Ride was born. She was a worldwide sensation in the 1980s as the first American woman in space, but before that, she was a talented youth tennis player who once caught the attention of the legendary Billie Jean King. Plus: today is National Road Trip Day. If you’re in or around Sonoita, Arizona, check out their series of specially painted propane tanks. 20 Things You Might Not Know About Sally Ride (UC San Diego)  Sonoita, Arizona: Painted Propane Tanks (Roadside America) Our Patreon backers help us make our mark every day --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1986, Hands Across America! People were supposed to build national unity and help those in need by linking hands in a chain that stretched from sea to shining sea. And at least some of them did. Plus: this week in 2016, a teen in the Bay Area pulled off a pretty good prank at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.   Us: What Was Hands Across America, the Creepy Event That Inspired Jordan Peele? (Vanity Fair) This Teen Pulled Off The Ultimate Joke At An Art Gallery (Buzzfeed News) Join hands with our show as a backer on Patreon --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1879, the birthday of S.S. Adams. If you don’t know the name, you know the products: joy buzzers, sneezing powder, the dribble glass and hundreds of other novelties known all over the world all started with the S.S. Adams Company. Plus: a new website takes maps of the Roman Empire's extensive system of ancient roads and turns them into an interactive route planner.  Remembering the S.S. Adams Company (Stuckeys) S.S. Adams, the Original Gag Factory (NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday) If the ancient Romans had Google Maps (Big Think) No joke, our Patreon backers have helped us make every episode of this podcast --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Sometime on this night in 1920 the president of France fell out of a moving train. And the story got weirder from there. Plus: today in 1993, the first movie ever played over the internet - though the streaming was definitely more lo-fi than what we watch today. The Unusual French President (Danny Dutch) Cult Film Is a First On Internet --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1455, it's said that the Wars of the Roses began in England. The civil wars over who should be king led to mostly battles but also the legendary story of Blanche Heriot, who found a creative way to keep her love from being executed. Plus: in 2021, artists in the Czech Republic created a crop circle in the shape of Pac-Man as a protest. Women of Runnymede (Chertsey Museum) Huge Pac-Man crop circle was guerrilla art protest against Czech prime minister (Boing Boing) Keep the bells ringing out for this show as a backer on Patreon --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

This week we’re replaying some of our favorite episodes about some of our favorite rock musicians. In this episode from April 2022, we look back at Aerosmith's landmark album “Toys In The Attic.” One of the biggest hits from that album got its name from an unusual source - the Mel Brooks movie "Young Frankenstein." Plus: New Mexico hosts the Las Cruces Space Festival.  How Aerosmith Created 'Walk This Way' (Wall Street Journal via Archive.org)   Las Cruces Space Festival  Our Patreon backers rock --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

This week we’re replaying some of our favorite episodes about some of our favorite rock musicians. In this episode from January 2021, we remember the time in the 90s that Pat Boone - the pop and gospel singer - made a record where he sang Hendrix, AC/DC, Deep Purple and Metallica. How did he, of all people, end up "In A Metal Mood"? Plus: heavy metal is so popular in Finland that there's even a metal band geared toward little kids!  Pat Boone (AV Club) Heavy metal dinosaurs rock the kiddie crowd in Finland (The Age) If you think our Patreon backers aren't the ones who make this show possible, you got another thing comin' --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

This week we’re replaying some of our favorite episodes about some of our favorite rock musicians. In this episode from November 2020, we look back at the time the Who's drummer, Keith Moon, collapsed and had to be taken to the hospital. Amazingly, the band chose a 19 year old from the crowd, Scot Halpin, to fill in for the rest of the show. Plus: the 2020 Pasadena Doo Dah Parade isn't just irreverent, it's irreverent and virtual!  The Hoosier That Rescued the World’s Biggest Band (Orange Bean Indiana) Pasadena Doo Dah Parade  Join us for a night, or every night, as a backer on Patreon --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

This week we’re replaying some of our favorite episodes about some of our favorite rock musicians. In this episode from August 2019, the story of Dee Gallant. When a cougar started walking toward her on a logging trail in British Columbia, she used the power of rock to protect herself. Plus: in a move that might make heavy metal even heavier, guitarist Takamizawa Toshihiko designs a guitar shaped like Godzilla. Metallica responds to B.C. woman who fended off wild cougar with the band’s music (GlobalNews.ca) A Very Resourceful Woman Scared Off a Cougar by Blasting Metallica (Noisey) This Limited-Edition Godzilla is a Monster of a Guitar (Guitar World) Ride the lightning when you back Cool Weird Awesome on Patreon! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support

This week We’re replaying some of our favorite episodes about some of our favorite rock musicians. In this episode from October 2020, we remember guitar great Eddie Van Halen. His band won millions of fans on record and offstage, and won a reputation for offstage excess. But one of their most infamous stories - that they banned brown M&Ms from backstage - wasn't quite what it seemed. Plus: a Gloria Estefan hit gets a heavy metal treatment on YouTube.  Did Van Halen’s Concert Contract Require the Removal of Brown M&Ms? (Snopes) A Headbashingly Good Metal Cover of Gloria Estefan’s Conga (Geeks Are Sexy) Rock out with us as a backer on Patreon --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/coolweirdawesome/support