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Elyse speaks to criminology professor Alex Gerould about the wanted scrapbook.
America's top gumshoes are on the case to prove once again that an object found in an attic or backyard might be anything but ordinary. Exploring historical objects and the stories behind them, History Detectives crisscrosses the country delving into legends, folklore and personal histories to discover potentially extraordinary objects in everyday American homes.
Video description: History Detectives explores whether a 1940s recording may have helped convict the woman alleged to be "Tokyo Rose". In 1948, the woman who twice signed her name the "one and original Tokyo Rose," was brought back from Japan to face a grand jury. The war had ended, but her battle had just begun. History Detectives investigates whether this object can explain the story behind her "confession?"
Elyse speaks to criminology professor Alex Gerould about the wanted scrapbook.
History detective Eduardo Pagan searches through microfiche at the public library in order to find articles related to the Nazi spy ring that Jim so vividly remembers. He finds record of the arrest of Dr. Fred W. Thomas, a German-born obstetrician, and a counter-spy named Grace Buchanan-Deneen. Pagan then provides background on fears of sabotage and espionage during World War II.
Clint Black meets History Detective Elyse Luray and tells her how he came to own this crumbling scrapbook.
History Detective Elyse Luray talks with Bob Dylan expert Andy Greene, who describes the historic night at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965 when Dylan first played electric guitar.
In this episode excerpt, History Detective Tukufu Zuberi interviews two participants in the 1960 sit-ins in Winston-Salem, NC: Carl Matthews, who desegregated the lunch counters, and Bill Stevens, a white man who supported and was arrested with Matthews. Matthews and Stevens describe what it was like to be a part of the Civil Rights Movement and the strategies they used.
Elyse Luray talks with Jonathan Taplin, one of Dylan’s roadies who was at Newport, and argues that Dylan did not sell out but made a gigantic artistic leap forward.
History Detective Wes Cowan talks with translator Merle Pribbenow, who translates passages from the diary of a Vietnamese soldier. The diary tells of the soldier’s grueling journey through Laos, over the Ho Chi Minh Trail, and reveals his personal motivations for fighting.
In this clip, History Detective Eduardo Pagan provides background on Motown Records and James Jamerson, the bass player for the Funk Brothers, Motown’s house band. He interviews Tim Hewitt and Ufuoma Wallace, Motown experts who explain how the Motown Sound, in part generated by Jamerson’s bass style, made history.
In this episode, History Detective Tukufu Zuberi is the one asking for help. Tukufu comes to host Elyse Luray for help learning about the origins of an amazing World War I poster he owns. The poster shows an African-American soldier bravely fighting German soldiers. Tukufu thinks it was a recruitment poster for the United States Army, but Elyse isn’t so sure.
In this excerpt from Bootlegger's notebook, cocktail expert David Wondrich describes New York in the 1890s as a “wide open town.” The culture of saloons led to many patrons drinking far too much alcohol and the saloon owners sometimes serving wood alcohol—a potentially lethal drink—to satisfy the demand.
Wes Cowan meets with Joel Shockley, a park guide at the Washita Battlefield National Historic Site, who describes what took place at the Battle of the Washita.
History Detective Wes Cowan meets with Jerry Greene, a historian of the Indian Wars, who provides background on the Battle of the Washita. Greene explains the conflicts within the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes as well as the conflict with the white settlers.
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