EP145: The History of Christmas Trees, The Ac...

On this episode of Our American Stories, Dustin Tomlinson grew up in rural Missouri, the youngest of four brothers on a cattle farm where competition was part of everyday life. Like a lot of people in small towns, he had arm wrestled plenty of times on truck hoods, in hayfields, ...  Show more

On this episode of Our American Stories, most Americans remember Brian Keith as Uncle Bill on the television series Family Affair. Calm, steady, and dependable, he played the bachelor suddenly responsible for raising his niece and nephew.That calm presence came from a life far fr ...  Show more

St Nicholas was a Greek bishop, known for his generosity. But he didn’t have a beard, and he didn’t drive a sleigh - so how did he morph into the Santa Claus the world knows and loves? The supposed date of his death - 3rd December, 343 - may have a lot to do with it… Then there’s ...  Show more

In the lead-up to Christmas, 1927, the good citizens of Cisco, Texas, were looking forward to celebrating the holiday with their nearest and dearest. But a group of men who rolled into town on the morning of December 23 from Wichita Falls had different ideas. Led by an ex-con in ...  Show more

It's Christmas in July! Start drafting those letters to Santa — that's just how John Duval Gluck would have wanted it. He scammed the wealthy of New York society into doing good for poor kids, sending the kids gifts from Santa himself. Until one man asked to see the receipts.See ...  Show more

Just a little Christmas Eve cheer for our listeners as everyone keeps an eye out for Santa! It's our 2017 episode about how NORAD started tracking Santa. There’s some myth-busting here, and maybe the tiniest bit of bah-humbug. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.ihear ...  Show more