In 2008, a newspaper man, named Wil Haygood, was on a mission to interview a very specific person. After spending a multitude of hours making calls and searching, he finally was able to make contact with the man who had seen more history happen than Wil had even hoped for. This man had not been a politician, a musician, or a rich statistician. Nope! This man had been a butler. A butler to presidents of the United States, to be exact. What was it like to be a butler in the most distinguished household in the country? Join us as we discuss this and take a breath of dead air with Eugene Allen.

Sources

Daniels, Lee, director. The Butler. 2013.

Haygood, Wil. “A Butler Well Served by This Election.” Washington Post, www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/a-butler-well-served-by-this-election/2019/01/02/b2a805a6-07b1-11e9-88e3-989a3e456820_story.html. Accessed 22 Dec. 2025.

Haygood, Wil. The Butler: A Witness to History. 2018.

Nagle, Bethany. “The Life of Eugene Allen.” White House Historical Association, www.whitehousehistory.org/the-life-of-eugene-allen. Accessed 22 Dec. 2025.

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While starting from humble origins, born on a small farm in a small town in Texas, this boy would go on to be not only a household name known for his warm voice, his upright character, and his beloved shows, but he would also become a great businessman with investments in a variety of things. From airplane schools to baseball teams, from television and radio shows to hotels, his business spanned across many fields. However, we remember him most for his voice and his warmth. Join us as we get “Back in the Saddle Again”, and take a breath of Dead Air with America’s Singing Cowboy, Gene Autry.

Sources

https://www.geneautry.com/geneautry/geneautry_biography.php

https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=AU004

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUK2PUwrz9Y (Biography TV Series - Gene Autry)

https://spclarke.com/?page_id=139#:~:text=Gene%20then%20returned%20to%20New,forty%2Dfive%20years%20of%20age.

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/23905-pellagra

https://library.uab.edu/locations/reynolds/collections/regional-history/pellagra/history#:~:text=Joseph%20Goldberger%20(1874%2D1929),a%20deficiency%20in%20the%20diet.

https://www.normantranscript.com/news/lifestyles/inside-gene-autry/article_9d7aa572-5efb-5f2c-b843-658cd52737fd.html

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https://uppbeat.io/t/jacob-taylor-armerding/shes-gone

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Soccer, known as football in most parts of the world, has made its mark on the lives of many generations. Today more than 250 million people play the sport and it has been a unifying game in many instances for people across cultures. Throughout time, soccer has evolved as countless players have changed the game by how they choose to play it. One such athlete was a Dutchman. Join us today as we discuss the beginnings of soccer and take a breath of dead air with Johan Cruyff.

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Mary, Mary, quite contrary

How does your garden grow?

With silver bells and cockleshells

And pretty maids all in a row.

Mary, Mary, not so wary

Of hearts and darkness bleak

With spirits fraught, creatures new

She was never meek

Mary, Mary, like a fairy

Drawn to mists and deep

She calls a message to us all -

Know what to give and keep.

Join us as we take a breath of dead air with the mother of science fiction - Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley.

Sources

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mary-Wollstonecraft-Shelley

https://www.biography.com/authors-writers/mary-shelley

https://www.centralsquaretheater.org/2018-19-season/articles/mary-shelley-and-frankenstein-a-personal-history/

https://osborneeighteenthcenturychildrensliterature.wordpress.com/2017/01/14/mounseer-nongtongpaw-by-mary-godwin-shelley/

https://www.historythroughfiction.com/blog/love-and-tragedy

https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/1816-the-year-without-summer.htm

https://historicipswich.net/2020/06/25/1816-the-year-without-summer/

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2005/aug/hand-other-woman-shelleys-life

https://www.historyhit.com/culture/facts-about-mary-shelley-the-woman-behind-frankenstein/
https://annamazzola.com/did-mary-shelley-keep-percys-heart/

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https://uppbeat.io/t/brandon-hopkins/neighborhood

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Enjoy hearing of how radio and podcasts came to be, as well as celebrate a full year of Dead Air Time Podcast with us in this off the rails episode!

Sources

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/rescue-development-radio/

https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/a-short-history-of-radio.pdf

https://study.com/academy/lesson/video/radio-wave-definition-spectrum-uses.html#:~:text=Examples%20and%20Applications%20of%20Radio,in%20body%20scanners%20in%20airports.

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What do you get when you add a growing family shoe business, a difference of opinions, and a war together? Well you’d get the Dassler brothers, of course! Join us today as we discuss the development of the sneaker and the story of two men who made the shoe market so competitive. Listen in as we take a breath of dead air with Rudolf and Adolf Dassler.

Sources

Shaw, Noah. Adidas vs Puma: Brothers at War in the Sneaker Game. ADMIT HUB REF SERVICE PR, 2025.

Smit, Barbara. Sneaker Wars: The Enemy Brothers Who Founded Adidas and Puma and the Family Feud That Forever Changed the Business of Sports. Harper Perennial, 2009.

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In our human experiences, we search for truth. We sometimes ask ourselves - Who am I? What do I know? While the introduction of technology changed how we approach these questions and perhaps search for answers, these questions are ancient. A young man in Ancient Greece also asked these questions. He dared to question what drove human existence, greatly valued education, and searched for truths in life that would apply to all, not just those of a certain class. He strove to break the molds of his time. We know so much of him and his teachings, yet he never wrote down a word himself. His questions changed the world, and he would be killed for it. Join us as we take a breath of dead air with Ancient Greek philosopher, Socrates.

Sources

“Genius of the Ancient World: Socrates - Documentary” History Explore Channel, made by BBC

https://www.metmuseum.org/essays/greek-gods-and-religious-practices

https://iep.utm.edu/socrates/#:~:text=As%20a%20young%20man%20Socrates,influential%20men%20in%20the%20city.

https://www.history.com/articles/socrates

http://cas.loyno.edu/sites/chn.loyno.edu/files/Plague%20in%20the%20Ancient%20World_A%20Study%20from%20Thucydides%20to%20Justinian.pdf

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6402746/

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https://uppbeat.io/t/kevin-macleod/truth-in-the-stones

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Much of our modern culture has dramatized the time when pirates roamed the ocean. It is seen as a time of great adventure and lots of treasure. But where did this treasure come from? What did the pirates actually do? And what was it like for the average citizen to live during this “golden age of piracy”? Today, we’ll explore these topics, as we take a breath of dead air with Sarah Kidd.

Sources:

Geanacopoulos, Daphne Palmer. The Pirate’s Wife: The Remarkable True Story of Sarah Kidd. Hanover Square Press, 2022.

“Research Guides: Golden Age of Piracy: A Resource Guide: Introduction.” Introduction - Golden Age of Piracy: A Resource Guide - Research Guides at Library of Congress, guides.loc.gov/golden-age-of-piracy.

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