October 26, 2022 • 33 mins
Our contestants and famous folks are breaking barriers on today's episode! We wax poetic and Ernest Shackleton stops by the studio to talk about naming boats!
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Ivy. It's cold in here. I can see my breath.
Did we leave the A CNN in the studio again? Elliott,
don't touch that thermostat. I'm getting into the mindset of
one of our famous figures from today, the British Antarctic
explorer Ernest Shackleton. Here, I brought you an extra fur coat.
Thank you, Hey, b which animal has neon pink fur? Oh? Please?
(00:23):
It's it vegan? For what makes it vegan? For it's
made entirely out of celery, corn and almonds, and it's
electric pink. And my coat is electric blue because, like
our other famous figure, pioneering American poet Walt Whitman, I
wanted to sing the body electric. That's a famous line
from one of his poems. Yes, two great figures from
(00:45):
history who are inspired by nature in totally different ways. Raspberries.
I seem to be allergic to this electric vegan for
so now that I can't wear the fur, can we
please turn the A C off? Oh, don't worry. I
have a backup plan that will keep you warm and
make you feel electric. Here. Just grab this for okay,
(01:06):
and let's head over to this light socket over here.
Oh no, I know where this is going. Eric, please
play the theme song. Here go. What do you think
you know about the rates from this story? The game
is on. To get some energy and buckle up your
brain because it's time to play the worst podcast. Because
(01:31):
it's time to play book Who Live from Tonga Land
or so called So Cow Los Angeles? Welcome to Who Was?
The history quish show that gives contestants the chance to
win mega prizes and podcast glory. I'm your announcer, b
and I promise I'm not gonna drone on for too long.
(01:51):
And here's your host, the man Who's insurance has Insurance.
It's Elliot Kalin. Thank you be you can never be
too careful. It's and welcome everyone to the Who Was? Podcast.
This show it's like Jeopardy, only the surprise guests, silly games,
and hot towels for everyone. Book Our contestants were sent
Who Was books about two great figures from history. Now
(02:14):
they're here to show off their knowledge in the hope
subwating fantastic prizes. Today we're learning about the Antarctic explorer
Ernest Shackleton and the poet Walt Whitman. Too pioneering spirits
who drew inspiration from the natural world in very different ways.
But before we meet them, let's meet our contestants. First up,
(02:36):
we've got Ava, Ava, Please introduce yourself. Hi, my name's Ava.
I'm ten years old in a mesqui jumper. You're a
ski jumper. Oh my goodness. Now, how do you train
for that? When there's not snow on the ground. You
can actually ski jump in the summer. You ski jump
up on fast state grass. Okay, so it's just some
(02:58):
thangular chump. I'll say any kind of ski jumping is difficult.
I tried it once. I strapped skis to my feet
and I tried jumping, and it's very hard. My skis
kept getting tangled and I kept falling over and it
was just difficult. It's hard enough to do a regular jump,
let al m to jump of skis on your feet.
So I'm very used. Yeah. Yeah, And Elliott, you were
on a trampoline with your skis right because you wanted
to get an even more air yeah for a maximum
(03:20):
jump itch. Yeah. Yeah, it made it very difficult. A
lot a lot of luck up, broken skis, bones. Kids,
don't try it. Don't try Leave the ski jumping to
the professionals. That's right. Well, thank you so much, Ava,
and with us today we also have Lily. Lily, please
introduce yourself. Hi, my name is Lily, and UM, me
and my family foster kittens. You foster kittens. That's so amazing.
(03:44):
Are you currently fostering kittens right now? Um? We actually
just gave them back a couple of days ago. Okay,
what were the kittens names? And um, every time that
you get new foster kittens, do you get to name them? No,
they already come with names. They're normally named with sets
of things like bugs or um flowers or condiments or
(04:06):
something like these kittens named after condiments like a kitten
name mustard, and a kitten named salt and ketchup, and
a kitten named a huge handful of butter just a
handful of bud. Don't judge me. That's a that can
be a condiment. I like that all right. Well, thank
you both so much for being here today. Thank you
so much for joining us, and thank you to Eric,
(04:28):
our musician, providing that lovely meet the contestants music. So
that's who is now let's find out who was. Walt
Whitman with four fast facts. Walt Whitman was born in
eighteen nineteen and died in eighteen ninety two and lived
mostly in Brooklyn, New York. Wal Whitman was an important
poet who was one of the early adopters of free verse.
(04:50):
Walt Whitman has been celebrated as an l G B.
T q I A plus icon based on the themes
and subjects in his writing. He helped an estimated eighty
thou and wounded Union soldiers during the Civil War by
visiting them and bringing them small gifts or helping them
write letters to their families. Now today is very special
(05:12):
because not only did Lilian Ever read the who was
Walt witt In book, we also asked them to read
a poem of all woman's and give us their thoughts
about it. The poem is entitled I dreamed in a dream,
and our contestants are going to read it for us
right now. I dreamed in a dream. I saw a
(05:32):
city invincefult the attacks of the whole of the rest
of the earth. I dreamed that was the new city
of Friends. Nothing was greater there than the quality of
robust love. It was seen every hour in the actions
of the men of that city, and in all their
looks and words. It's funny because poems are made of words,
(05:54):
but it can be hard to put their meaning into
words sometimes. And does this feel like to you? Is
it wish? Is it a prophecy? Is it a fantasy?
Is it? Is it a curse? A curse? Is something
he's seen or fears or yearns for. What do you think?
What do you what do you get from this film?
In that way? He liked range. I guess that's true.
He does say I dreamed in a dream in the beginning. Okay,
(06:16):
good point, good point you picked up on. We would
call that the internal evidence of the poem. Do you
think this was a good dream or a nightmare? This
dream of a city of friends where love was felt everywhere?
Good one? Yeah, yeah, probably a good dream, Probably a
good dream. He doesn't say anything in it about like
a monster coming in or he looks down and he's
just in his underpants. That that would make it more
of a nademare That would definitely made more of a nightmare.
(06:37):
So now, Lily, I heard that you were going to
change them a couple of word or a word in here,
and instead of saying it was seen every hour in
the actions of the men of that city, and you
had some different thoughts about that, right, you thought I
should read it a little bit differently. Um, My thought
instead of men, it should be people. So it feels
like to me when I heard that you had thought
(06:59):
about that, I was like, oh the least totally right
about this because in this poem, I think when Walt
Woman says men of that city, I think he's using
like the royal men as if to refer to everyone, right, men, women, children, uh,
everyone who lived in the city, foster kittens, foster kittens. Well,
(07:21):
thank you both so much for taking the time to
read that poemb and to put some good thought into it,
and um for sharing your amazing talents with the Who
Was Podcast and being our poetry readers. We really appreciate it.
Let's get to it. It's our first game. It's called
true or false false false false? Or is a true?
(07:43):
It is a true that it was false it was true?
Or true true poor false. There's no poetic metaphor here.
It's exactly what it sounds like for this game. Be
will read a statement. If you will, then let us
know if that statement is true or suspense suspense suspense?
What could it be faulse false? That's right, Ava, you
were up first, take it away. Being Walt was the
(08:05):
valedictorian of his class and gave a graduation speech at
his high school that was not surprisingly. I think that's false.
You're exactly right. That is false. Walt's family struggled to
make ends meet, so we dropped up school at age
eleven and started apprenticing for a group of lawyers. One
lawyer got him a library card, where Walt discovered novels
(08:27):
and poetry. Whalt read as much as he could, and
he felt this was the most important thing that had
ever happened to him. While we hear it, who was
do not condone dropping out of school at eleven. Stay
in school, kids. We do encourage getting a library card.
It's free books, people, There's nothing better than that. Okay,
the next question is for it lily true or false.
Walt's first job, running a newspaper, showed up all of
(08:48):
his talents, from writing to editing and printing to horseback writing.
While he made newspaper delivery. I think that's true. You're right,
that's true. His work as a printing a print us
learning the way newspapers used to be made on a
printing press. Taught the young poet as much about writing
as it did printing. Unfortunately, the first paper he was
in charge of, The Long Islander, was appropriately named. People
(09:10):
waited a long time between publications because Walt just put
out issues whenever he felt like. It wasn't a daily,
it wasn't a weekly. It was a win. Ever, Lee,
the owners of the paper fired him. But pretty impressive.
He was able to learn so much about good rating
by just being around a printing press. Okay eva, This
next question is for you true or false. Walt Whitman
called his style of writing free verse because he felt
(09:33):
weird about charging people to buy his books, and he
just gave them away. Uh. I think you're right. That's false.
They do have a place that books are given away,
that's a library, but that's not what this was about.
As a library. Go to your library. It's great. It
was called free verse because it was free of a
traditional structure. Free verse has no rhyme, scheme, no word count.
(09:55):
Each poem just exists its own thing. Man leading thinker
of the time, Ralph Waldo Emerson, had put out the
challenge for someone to create a new American style of
poetry that wasn't just a copy of what the European
poets were doing, and Walt Whitman was the first American
poet to do this. It was pretty radical for the time.
And speaking of a radical, Lily, this laxt question is
for you and your radical Walt didn't limit himself to
(10:19):
writing poetry. He also wrote a novel, newspaper articles, and
he wrote positive reviews of his own book when everyone
else was writing bad reviews of it. Is that true
or fault true? That's right, it's true. Most people know
Walt wrote newspaper articles in the novel that they may
be shocked to learn that he anonymously wrote good reviews
(10:40):
of his first book of poetry. But even those positive
reviews and the praise of Ralph Waldo Emerson didn't really
help the book sell many copies. Walt believed in his
own work, though, and kept writing, and today is still
considered one of America's greatest poets. So I guess all
those positive book reviews he wrote well deceitful and we
would never recommend you doing it were correct, and he
was right to do. And that's the end of the game.
(11:02):
True true, true, true, powful and now let's hear some
of the most beautiful stands of poetry. To my ears
producer Jane telling us the scores. Billy, it didn't be.
I've got to tell you that what we have here
is a tie two point each. Thank you, Jane. I'll
keep us saying. There's lots more game and your presence
(11:22):
we hope to retain after this short reframe. Well, well, well, Elliott,
Walt Whitman's work was all about not rhyming. What are
you doing. I'm getting into this freethinking spirit and breaking
the mold by bringing the molds back, and now I'm
thinking about molds. Gross, Eric, play us out with some
Brooklyn music. Please, I'm walking here. Welcome back to the
(11:53):
Who Was Podcast. When we last left off, Eva had
two points and Lily had two points. And now fact
to your host, Elliot Galin thank you be. In the
last round, we learned all about Walt Whitman, and so
now we must venture forth and learn about our other
famous figure. For today, Sir Ernest Shackleton with four fast
facts Prospects. Sir Ernest Shackleton was born in eighteen seventy
(12:19):
four and died in nineteen twenty two, Ernest Shackleton led
three British expeditions to the Antarctic. He was knighted by
King Edward the Seventh for the farthest Antarctic exploration and
for climbing Mount Erebus, an active and Arctic volcano. One
of his ships, the Endurance, was trapped by pack ice
in nineteen fourteen, and its remains weren't discovered until two
(12:42):
that's one hundred and eight years later. Look it up.
It's awesome prospects, Lily, Ava, If you could explore anywhere,
where would you explore? Because Shackleton was very focused on
the Antarctic. He was all about ice. He was all
about that ice ice baby. So I'm wondering if you
(13:03):
had a chance and an opportunity to explore anywhere, where
would it be, Lily. I would go to England. You
go to England and explore England? Okay, yeah, what about
England really calls to you? Um? I love English accents,
So so each time you hear someone speaking in English accidents,
(13:24):
like they're saying, come and explore in England's cool. I
love that? And Eva, what about you? I don't. I
don't know where I would explore I think that if
I were to explore anywhere, if I physically could, because
I'm so scared of this, I would explore the deepest
parts of the ocean because more people have been into
(13:47):
space than have gone so far into the ocean, and
I'm just I'm terrified as to what we might find
down there. It just feels like such an unknown. I
totally get that, because similarly, I would like to explore
in the back of my refrigerator, because it's like the
front stuff, the things in the front, they make it
hard to see what's in the back, and who knows
(14:07):
what's back there. I don't know even know if my
lifetime is gonna in my lifetime, if we're gonna end
up back there or not. There's just so much hidden there,
and I don't know what. Every now and then I
hear something or smell something, and I'm like, what wonders,
What untold things are yet to be discovered in the
back of this refrigerator. Yeah, and I mean, now, for
the for the second time on this show, Elliott, I'm
thinking about mold. Oh no, mold, dude, gross. Well, thank
(14:32):
you for all that. I think. I hope everyone, I
hope uh Lily, you get to explore England. That eva
you find a place. Who want to explore? Be? Maybe
you want to go to the bottom of the sea.
And I hope everyone's knighted for all of your explirations
except for you Be. I think the power would probably
go to your head. Absolutely. So let's move on to
our next game, which I hope has nothing in it
about mold. It's called Backpack from the Past from the
(14:56):
Best I'm a backpack into in some of Ernest Shacklin's
personal objects. B and I are going to describe those
objects for a contestants and the listeners at home. Contestants,
you tell us what part of his life the object is.
From listeners at home, you can also tell us what
we won't hear you. We recorded this already and you're
talking to your headphones. And because this is our second round,
(15:17):
each question is worth two points. Lily, you're up first.
Oh wow, it's a large wooden log. Why would this
be significant enough to include an Ernest Shackleton's backpack. Is
it a the log he used to stand on at
his farm and pretend he was on a ship, or
b it's his lucky log that he drew eyes on
and treated like a friend when he was stranded after
(15:38):
a shipwreck. Um A, yes, the answer is a Ernest.
Shackleton was British but raised in Ireland. He came from
a big family, but knew even as a young boy
that he wanted to be out on the high seas,
exploring and looking for adventure. He left school at the
age of sixteen to be an apprentice on a ship
and worked his way up through the Thanks alright, this
(16:01):
next item is for Eva. WHOA, it's a hot air balloon. Wow,
this is one big backpack. Why is this in our
backpack from the past? Is it because a Ernest took
some of the first aerial photographs of the Antarctic in
this hot air balloon? Or be he once tried to
reach the South Pole in a hot air balloon. I'm
(16:24):
pretty sure that's you are pretty sure and you're right.
The answer is a earnest. First trip to the Antarctic
was in nineteen hundred of the English naval officer Robert
Falcon Scott on the ship Discovery Good Name. It was
on this trip that Shackleton took some of the first
aerial photographs of Antarctica. Discovery didn't reach the South Pole,
and Shackleton and Scott became bitter rivals, raising each other
(16:46):
to be the first to reach the South Pole. Twist,
neither of them were the first. A Norwegian expedition led
by Roald Ammonson was the first to get there. Okay,
the next object is for Lily. Let's see what's in
this backpack. It's a pair of free book be Are
you using the backpack from the past as your personal backpack?
We told you not to do that. Okay, No, those
definitely belonged to Ernest. They are not vegan for Okay, Lily,
(17:11):
Are they there because a Ernest gave up exploring for
a few years and became a fashion designer? Or b
These boots are made from reindeer skin and Arctic explorers
used to keep warm. B That's right. The answer is be.
These boots were made for walking in snow. Let joke
about a song. Well, today explorers have space age technology
(17:33):
to keep them warm. Explorers of Shackleton's time relied on
fur sealskin canvas, and woolf to keep them from freezing.
They wore glass goggles in the icy wind and camped
in tense and small huts. Made of quirk and felt.
I get cold just thinking about it. Okay, the last
question is for Ava. Oh my goodness, it's a hello,
(17:53):
still away, rude. I have a name. It's Percy Blackborrow. Okay,
can you tell us why this Percy Blackborough fellow would
be hiding in our backpack from the past? Is it
that A he was the stowaway on Shackleton's ship Endurance
or B. Tickets to a live taping of the Huah's
podcast are super hard to get. I think that's a.
(18:15):
You're correct. The answer is A. I was a stowaway
on Shackleton's ship Endurance, and once I was discovered, I
took a job helping out the ship's cook. It was
an adventure of a lifetime. Were stuck on the ice
for ten months, but Shackleton kept us all in good spirits.
I got to see penguins, seals, and the Southern Lights.
I was stranded on Elephant Island and lost my foot
(18:37):
to frostbite. WHOA, you've lost your foot to frostbite. Ah,
that's the price of adventure. That's enough out of you, Percy.
Now back in the backpack, Hey, is that a walrus
over there? A Walris Geraldine, do you have a plate today? Oh,
he's just distracting me so he can run away. Scotto,
I'm out of here. Oh great, Now there's a stowaway.
(18:58):
Loosen the studio get I hate it when that happens,
and I hate that. That was the end of the
game from the best. Now let's check with producer Jane
to see how our contestants are stilling away these points.
B and Elliott. I'm not to blame, but Ava and
(19:22):
Lily's scores are the same. Yes, it's a poem, six
points each. Oh my goodness. Wow, Well that is fantastic,
and what a great game between these two adventurous contestants.
They are adventurous and I should know Ernest, Yes, indeed,
(19:43):
and I came hea via the who was app Who
was that you want to read somewhere in the past.
Thank goodness you're here. We have a of a stowaway problem,
and we would love your You mean, Percy, Percy, you're rapscallion.
(20:07):
Oh captain, my captain, good to see your lad. Hey,
did you know you just quoted a poem by our
other famous figure today, Walter Whitman. Yeah, of course he
knows that he may be a stowaway, but he's no philistine.
And I've come here today with a task of a
somewhat poetic nature. I've got a new ship, and I
(20:27):
need a good name, Prick. My other ships had great names,
the Aurora, the Endurance, and of course Nimrod. Day, you're
laughing again, No, you laughed when I said nim rocks.
There's just again you're laughing. No, sorry, it was something
(20:49):
from before, all right. Well as for the nim Rocks,
he still laughing at me. It means someone who is
a great hunter. Sorry, but that's not what that word
really means anymore. If you called someone that word today,
it would not be a compliment. I would take this
as a compliment if you called me a nimrods them
(21:15):
start all right, all right, that's enough, sir. Ernest Shackleton
traveled through time to come and meet you, and all
you can do is laugh at him, Elliott, I expected
this from you, But be how juvenile? Okay? Sorry, but
today nimrod means not smart, a dim wit, a goose,
(21:37):
a buffoon, a chowder ahead, a fool. Okay, okay, I
think we get the picture. And why did you get
all those examples, are you carrying a dictionary around with
you or something? Sort of? We just googled other words
for nimrod. Wait what was that word you just said? Googled? Yes? Yes,
(21:58):
what does that word mean? Google? It's kind of hard
to explain, but it's when you put a bunch of
search terms into Yahoo dot com to find the answer
to your question. What a beautiful word? I love it?
And if you called someone a Google, that wouldn't be
an insult. Not exactly excellent. I can't wait for all
(22:24):
the adventures I'm about to have on the Google. That's funny.
That's what I say most mornings. Not a moment to
lose it. Thank you for helping me name my new ship?
And thanks again? Who was happily? Who? Well? That was interesting?
It shure was Percy. You're still here, yep? And while
(22:47):
I'm here, I may as well make myself useful and
don't go anywhere? Who was? As the is one more
game left to go, We'll be back after this short break.
Eric play us some endurance music please see it's my
job to ask Eric to play music. Eric, can you
play some in germs music? Please? Okay? How long can
(23:13):
this bit go? Sally, who was there? Sim Marie Curie.
You may remember me from winning multiple Nobel prizes, or
perhaps from my episode of the Who Worst Podcast where
I played myself. I wanted to take a moment to
read one of my favorite reviews about the Who Was Podcast.
(23:34):
This is from Shaken Bay and it reads loved this
Me and my little sister love this show more. Please.
Our faith is Riet Toman. If you want to hear
your review right on the air, make sure to subscribe,
like and reviewed to the Worst Podcasts in the I
Heart Radio up or wherever you give your podcasts revoir
(23:56):
or should I stay Abbien do? Welcome back to the
Who Was Podcast. I'm a scowaway, Percy Blackborow and I've
escaped from the backpack from the past. Now back to
your host, Elliott Kaylin. Thank you, Percy, though it's kind
of weird to have you announced the show. Well, be
is sitting right there eating a burrito during great for
(24:18):
a seat, passa sausa? Okay, and now for our last game,
Converge of Greatness. In this multiple choice game, we'll explore
how our famous figures connect, overlap, or converge. Choose the
(24:41):
best answer for each question be asked to, and because
this is the third game, each question as worth three
huge points. Ava Europe. First taken Away, Percy. Both Ernest
and Walt lived through big wars. For Walt it was
the American Civil War, but Ernest Shackleton was about to
set sail on the Endurance on the eve of World
War One when he offered to postpone the trip so
(25:04):
that his crew could serve in the British Army. What
phrase did the King give him in response granting him
permission to go on with the trip as planned? A proceed,
B miss me with that or see no worries. I
think it was proceed. You're right the answers a proceed.
(25:26):
The King felt it was more important for the crew
to go ahead with the trip the interns would eventually
be trapped. When he could no longer make it through
the icy waters before it sank, The crew set up
camp on the frozen sea, where they ended up living
for months, but amazingly, all of the crew members survived.
The next question is for Lily take it Away, Percy.
When Walt Whitman wrote, oh Captain, my captain, he wasn't
(25:48):
talking about Ernest Shackleton even though Ernest was a sea captain,
who was Walt Whitman talking about a captain kangaroo B
Abraham Lincoln or Captain Jack B. That's right, The answer
is B. What Whitman was devastated when President Lincoln was
assassinated in eighteen sixty five. He shared Lincoln's vision for
(26:11):
in America without slavery and a unified country. Another one
of Whitman's famous poems, When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloomed,
is also about the death of Abraham Lincoln and later
in life Whitman toward giving lectures about the president. Yes,
Whitman was an Abraham stand Next question is for ava.
Both Shackleton and Whitman are buried in places that have
(26:31):
deep significance. For that, Whitman is buried in his beloved
city of Camden, New Jersey, where there's even a bridge
named after him. And Shackleton's final resting place is this
island A, the Isle of Manhattan, B South Georgia Island
or C the I'll see you later. Ah, I think
(26:53):
that's right. The answer is B or. Ernest was setting
off on yet another adventure after the endurance trip in
nineteen twenty one. He suffered a heart attack early on
in the trip, then recovered in Brazil. The ships at
sail again. For Ernest died from a heart attack at
a whaling station at South Georgia Island. Soon after. His
wife Emily decided he should be buried there because quote,
he would want to remain in those cold southern lands
(27:15):
he had loved so much, how beautiful. Next and final
question is for Lily. Final question, here we go. Both
Walt and Ernest kept returning to our particular subject over
and over again in their lives. For Ernest this was
a geographical location, the Antarctic, but for Whitman, it was
a book of poems that he kept returning to and
(27:36):
rewrote many times. Was the name of that book? A
Leaves of Grass B Poetry for Dummies or ce Hamlet
A that's right, the answers. A Leaves of Breast had
six editions or publications between eighteen fifty five and eighteen
eighty two. It contained two hundred and ninety three poems
(27:58):
that Walt kept revisings throughout his career, like some kind
of poetical George Lucas. In two the City of Boston
said they would ban it if Walt didn't make some
changes to his poems. Walt refused to be censored, and
Leaves of Grass was pulled from bookstore shelves in Boston,
but that scandal helped sales of the book in Philadelphia,
where it's sold over six thousand copies. Whitman more like
(28:19):
win Man because he won that battle and that's the
end of the round. The end of that game means
it's just about the end of the show. While Jane
Tally is up the final scores, I would love to
hear from the contestants. What was something you were surprised
(28:40):
to learn about Ernest Shackleton or Walt Whitman. Ava what
surprised you but either of our famous figures that Ernest
Shampo Finch sunk his ship in ice. Yeah, and it's
interesting he used such a beloved figure. Uh, but you know,
you don't think of someone who's like, oh, I kind
of didn't come my mission and he still got knighted.
(29:03):
But the important thing was that everyone on his crew
came back um alive and safe, and he wasn't deterred
by that. He went on to to do another mission.
So that's pretty great. It's like, the most inspiring about
Ernest Shackleton is less that he accomplished something great and
more that he just kept trying no matter what. Lily,
what about you? What surprised you about Ernics Shackleton or
(29:25):
Walt Whitman. Um, I thought that it was really cool
that Ernest Shackleton like did plays and took pictures from
a parachute while he was still on his missions. That
there's more to him than just see Captain King. He
had lots and lots of things that he did. He
contained multitude, He did contain multitudes. Maybe wal Whitman should
been writing about Ernest Shackleton. Yeah, you know what they
(29:47):
should have called his ship, the Walt, the Walt. Yeah,
they should have called it the Yeah, the the the
S S Walt. That's this is Swalt. Oh yeah, you're right, people,
I think it would be called the s Swalt. That's
not maybe that's not so great. Well, thank you both
for sharing the things that stuck with you about those figures.
Now it's time for the big moment. Jane, please announced
our winner. May I announced them in the form of
(30:10):
a poem? Yes, please please, Shackleton explored. Whitman wrote poems
Lily had twelve points and so did Eva. Oh my gosh,
what a beautiful example of free first poetry. Jane, thank you. Yeah,
you really set us up for rhymes and then didn't
have any because it was still a beautiful poem with
(30:30):
a beautiful message, which is that we have a tie
on the show today. Amazing. Eva and Lily, you are
both winners and you both get ten seconds for shoutouts
to thank those who got you to this victory. Lily,
would you go first? Who would you like to shout
out to? Um? I'd like to thank my family, the librarians,
and my pets. Wonderful, the big three is there known?
(30:50):
That's fantastic? And Eva, who would you like to thank
my family? My cats? Uh and my daughter? Oh good?
All right, we got some love for the dogs there too. Finally,
after all this cat talk, it's nice for the dogs
to finally have their day. Our winners and their libraries
of choice were receiving a selection of who was books
And I'm going to give a shout out of my
own to Intern Zach, Jane Eric and Zach Timpson. He
(31:12):
sounds a little bit like intern Zach for being our
Percy blackborrow and Chris Ferry for being our Earnest Shackleton,
and of course a thank you to be and then
the biggest thank you of all to both of our contestants,
and then an even bigger biggest thank you of all
to you wherever you are for listening, Thanks for hearing
these two amazing attestants play an amazing game. Next week,
join us again as we find out who Was two
(31:33):
more amazing figures from history. Until then, this is Elliott
Leaves of Grasscalin saying We're history. Goodbye. Everybody got a
question for any of our famous figures, Send us a
voice memo at the Who Was Podcast at gmail dot com.
It might just end up on the show. Who Was
(31:54):
Podcast is produced by Radio Point, I Heart Media and
Penguin Workshop and is based on the best selling who
HQ series published by Penguin. This episode was hosted by
Elliott Klin with co host Megan O'Neill as be. It
also starred Jane Baker as Producer, Jane, Eric Shackney as Eric,
Chris Ferry as Ernest Shackleton, and Zach Timpson as Percy
(32:14):
Black Borrow. Executive producers are Richard Corson Alex Bach Elliott Klin,
Megan O'Neil, Daniel Powell, and Houston Snyder. Executive producer for
Penguin Workshop is Francesco Sadita. Executive producer for iHeart Media
is Lindsay Hoffman. This episode was written by Megan O'Neil,
Elliott Calin, and Devin Coleman. It was produced by Bernie
Kaminsky and Taylor Kowalski. Our talent producer is Jane Baker.
(32:35):
Our theme song and music were composed and performed by
Eric Shackney. It was edited and mixed by Kate molden Hower,
and it was recorded by Alison Worth. Special thanks are
due to Zach Timpson, Charlotte Dienda, and Michael Lewis Howard.
Sound services were provided by Great City Posts. Podcast Standard
Ivy. It's cold in here. I can see my breath.
Did we leave the A CNN in the studio again? Elliott,
don't touch that thermostat. I'm getting into the mindset of
one of our famous figures from today, the British Antarctic
explorer Ernest Shackleton. Here, I brought you an extra fur coat.
Thank you, Hey, b which animal has neon pink fur? Oh? Please?
(00:23):
It's it vegan? For what makes it vegan? For it's
made entirely out of celery, corn and almonds, and it's
electric pink. And my coat is electric blue because, like
our other famous figure, pioneering American poet Walt Whitman, I
wanted to sing the body electric. That's a famous line
from one of his poems. Yes, two great figures from
(00:45):
history who are inspired by nature in totally different ways. Raspberries.
I seem to be allergic to this electric vegan for
so now that I can't wear the fur, can we
please turn the A C off? Oh, don't worry. I
have a backup plan that will keep you warm and
make you feel electric. Here. Just grab this for okay,
(01:06):
and let's head over to this light socket over here.
Oh no, I know where this is going. Eric, please
play the theme song. Here go. What do you think
you know about the rates from this story? The game
is on. To get some energy and buckle up your
brain because it's time to play the worst podcast. Because
(01:31):
it's time to play book Who Live from Tonga Land
or so called So Cow Los Angeles? Welcome to Who Was?
The history quish show that gives contestants the chance to
win mega prizes and podcast glory. I'm your announcer, b
and I promise I'm not gonna drone on for too long.
(01:51):
And here's your host, the man Who's insurance has Insurance.
It's Elliot Kalin. Thank you be you can never be
too careful. It's and welcome everyone to the Who Was? Podcast.
This show it's like Jeopardy, only the surprise guests, silly games,
and hot towels for everyone. Book Our contestants were sent
Who Was books about two great figures from history. Now
(02:14):
they're here to show off their knowledge in the hope
subwating fantastic prizes. Today we're learning about the Antarctic explorer
Ernest Shackleton and the poet Walt Whitman. Too pioneering spirits
who drew inspiration from the natural world in very different ways.
But before we meet them, let's meet our contestants. First up,
(02:36):
we've got Ava, Ava, Please introduce yourself. Hi, my name's Ava.
I'm ten years old in a mesqui jumper. You're a
ski jumper. Oh my goodness. Now, how do you train
for that? When there's not snow on the ground. You
can actually ski jump in the summer. You ski jump
up on fast state grass. Okay, so it's just some
(02:58):
thangular chump. I'll say any kind of ski jumping is difficult.
I tried it once. I strapped skis to my feet
and I tried jumping, and it's very hard. My skis
kept getting tangled and I kept falling over and it
was just difficult. It's hard enough to do a regular jump,
let al m to jump of skis on your feet.
So I'm very used. Yeah. Yeah, And Elliott, you were
on a trampoline with your skis right because you wanted
to get an even more air yeah for a maximum
(03:20):
jump itch. Yeah. Yeah, it made it very difficult. A
lot a lot of luck up, broken skis, bones. Kids,
don't try it. Don't try Leave the ski jumping to
the professionals. That's right. Well, thank you so much, Ava,
and with us today we also have Lily. Lily, please
introduce yourself. Hi, my name is Lily, and UM, me
and my family foster kittens. You foster kittens. That's so amazing.
(03:44):
Are you currently fostering kittens right now? Um? We actually
just gave them back a couple of days ago. Okay,
what were the kittens names? And um, every time that
you get new foster kittens, do you get to name them? No,
they already come with names. They're normally named with sets
of things like bugs or um flowers or condiments or
(04:06):
something like these kittens named after condiments like a kitten
name mustard, and a kitten named salt and ketchup, and
a kitten named a huge handful of butter just a
handful of bud. Don't judge me. That's a that can
be a condiment. I like that all right. Well, thank
you both so much for being here today. Thank you
so much for joining us, and thank you to Eric,
(04:28):
our musician, providing that lovely meet the contestants music. So
that's who is now let's find out who was. Walt
Whitman with four fast facts. Walt Whitman was born in
eighteen nineteen and died in eighteen ninety two and lived
mostly in Brooklyn, New York. Wal Whitman was an important
poet who was one of the early adopters of free verse.
(04:50):
Walt Whitman has been celebrated as an l G B.
T q I A plus icon based on the themes
and subjects in his writing. He helped an estimated eighty
thou and wounded Union soldiers during the Civil War by
visiting them and bringing them small gifts or helping them
write letters to their families. Now today is very special
(05:12):
because not only did Lilian Ever read the who was
Walt witt In book, we also asked them to read
a poem of all woman's and give us their thoughts
about it. The poem is entitled I dreamed in a dream,
and our contestants are going to read it for us
right now. I dreamed in a dream. I saw a
(05:32):
city invincefult the attacks of the whole of the rest
of the earth. I dreamed that was the new city
of Friends. Nothing was greater there than the quality of
robust love. It was seen every hour in the actions
of the men of that city, and in all their
looks and words. It's funny because poems are made of words,
(05:54):
but it can be hard to put their meaning into
words sometimes. And does this feel like to you? Is
it wish? Is it a prophecy? Is it a fantasy?
Is it? Is it a curse? A curse? Is something
he's seen or fears or yearns for. What do you think?
What do you what do you get from this film?
In that way? He liked range. I guess that's true.
He does say I dreamed in a dream in the beginning. Okay,
(06:16):
good point, good point you picked up on. We would
call that the internal evidence of the poem. Do you
think this was a good dream or a nightmare? This
dream of a city of friends where love was felt everywhere?
Good one? Yeah, yeah, probably a good dream, Probably a
good dream. He doesn't say anything in it about like
a monster coming in or he looks down and he's
just in his underpants. That that would make it more
of a nademare That would definitely made more of a nightmare.
(06:37):
So now, Lily, I heard that you were going to
change them a couple of word or a word in here,
and instead of saying it was seen every hour in
the actions of the men of that city, and you
had some different thoughts about that, right, you thought I
should read it a little bit differently. Um, My thought
instead of men, it should be people. So it feels
like to me when I heard that you had thought
(06:59):
about that, I was like, oh the least totally right
about this because in this poem, I think when Walt
Woman says men of that city, I think he's using
like the royal men as if to refer to everyone, right, men, women, children, uh,
everyone who lived in the city, foster kittens, foster kittens. Well,
(07:21):
thank you both so much for taking the time to
read that poemb and to put some good thought into it,
and um for sharing your amazing talents with the Who
Was Podcast and being our poetry readers. We really appreciate it.
Let's get to it. It's our first game. It's called
true or false false false false? Or is a true?
(07:43):
It is a true that it was false it was true?
Or true true poor false. There's no poetic metaphor here.
It's exactly what it sounds like for this game. Be
will read a statement. If you will, then let us
know if that statement is true or suspense suspense suspense?
What could it be faulse false? That's right, Ava, you
were up first, take it away. Being Walt was the
(08:05):
valedictorian of his class and gave a graduation speech at
his high school that was not surprisingly. I think that's false.
You're exactly right. That is false. Walt's family struggled to
make ends meet, so we dropped up school at age
eleven and started apprenticing for a group of lawyers. One
lawyer got him a library card, where Walt discovered novels
(08:27):
and poetry. Whalt read as much as he could, and
he felt this was the most important thing that had
ever happened to him. While we hear it, who was
do not condone dropping out of school at eleven. Stay
in school, kids. We do encourage getting a library card.
It's free books, people, There's nothing better than that. Okay,
the next question is for it lily true or false.
Walt's first job, running a newspaper, showed up all of
(08:48):
his talents, from writing to editing and printing to horseback writing.
While he made newspaper delivery. I think that's true. You're right,
that's true. His work as a printing a print us
learning the way newspapers used to be made on a
printing press. Taught the young poet as much about writing
as it did printing. Unfortunately, the first paper he was
in charge of, The Long Islander, was appropriately named. People
(09:10):
waited a long time between publications because Walt just put
out issues whenever he felt like. It wasn't a daily,
it wasn't a weekly. It was a win. Ever, Lee,
the owners of the paper fired him. But pretty impressive.
He was able to learn so much about good rating
by just being around a printing press. Okay eva, This
next question is for you true or false. Walt Whitman
called his style of writing free verse because he felt
(09:33):
weird about charging people to buy his books, and he
just gave them away. Uh. I think you're right. That's false.
They do have a place that books are given away,
that's a library, but that's not what this was about.
As a library. Go to your library. It's great. It
was called free verse because it was free of a
traditional structure. Free verse has no rhyme, scheme, no word count.
(09:55):
Each poem just exists its own thing. Man leading thinker
of the time, Ralph Waldo Emerson, had put out the
challenge for someone to create a new American style of
poetry that wasn't just a copy of what the European
poets were doing, and Walt Whitman was the first American
poet to do this. It was pretty radical for the time.
And speaking of a radical, Lily, this laxt question is
for you and your radical Walt didn't limit himself to
(10:19):
writing poetry. He also wrote a novel, newspaper articles, and
he wrote positive reviews of his own book when everyone
else was writing bad reviews of it. Is that true
or fault true? That's right, it's true. Most people know
Walt wrote newspaper articles in the novel that they may
be shocked to learn that he anonymously wrote good reviews
(10:40):
of his first book of poetry. But even those positive
reviews and the praise of Ralph Waldo Emerson didn't really
help the book sell many copies. Walt believed in his
own work, though, and kept writing, and today is still
considered one of America's greatest poets. So I guess all
those positive book reviews he wrote well deceitful and we
would never recommend you doing it were correct, and he
was right to do. And that's the end of the game.
(11:02):
True true, true, true, powful and now let's hear some
of the most beautiful stands of poetry. To my ears
producer Jane telling us the scores. Billy, it didn't be.
I've got to tell you that what we have here
is a tie two point each. Thank you, Jane. I'll
keep us saying. There's lots more game and your presence
(11:22):
we hope to retain after this short reframe. Well, well, well, Elliott,
Walt Whitman's work was all about not rhyming. What are
you doing. I'm getting into this freethinking spirit and breaking
the mold by bringing the molds back, and now I'm
thinking about molds. Gross, Eric, play us out with some
Brooklyn music. Please, I'm walking here. Welcome back to the
(11:53):
Who Was Podcast. When we last left off, Eva had
two points and Lily had two points. And now fact
to your host, Elliot Galin thank you be. In the
last round, we learned all about Walt Whitman, and so
now we must venture forth and learn about our other
famous figure. For today, Sir Ernest Shackleton with four fast
facts Prospects. Sir Ernest Shackleton was born in eighteen seventy
(12:19):
four and died in nineteen twenty two, Ernest Shackleton led
three British expeditions to the Antarctic. He was knighted by
King Edward the Seventh for the farthest Antarctic exploration and
for climbing Mount Erebus, an active and Arctic volcano. One
of his ships, the Endurance, was trapped by pack ice
in nineteen fourteen, and its remains weren't discovered until two
(12:42):
that's one hundred and eight years later. Look it up.
It's awesome prospects, Lily, Ava, If you could explore anywhere,
where would you explore? Because Shackleton was very focused on
the Antarctic. He was all about ice. He was all
about that ice ice baby. So I'm wondering if you
(13:03):
had a chance and an opportunity to explore anywhere, where
would it be, Lily. I would go to England. You
go to England and explore England? Okay, yeah, what about
England really calls to you? Um? I love English accents,
So so each time you hear someone speaking in English accidents,
(13:24):
like they're saying, come and explore in England's cool. I
love that? And Eva, what about you? I don't. I
don't know where I would explore I think that if
I were to explore anywhere, if I physically could, because
I'm so scared of this, I would explore the deepest
parts of the ocean because more people have been into
(13:47):
space than have gone so far into the ocean, and
I'm just I'm terrified as to what we might find
down there. It just feels like such an unknown. I
totally get that, because similarly, I would like to explore
in the back of my refrigerator, because it's like the
front stuff, the things in the front, they make it
hard to see what's in the back, and who knows
(14:07):
what's back there. I don't know even know if my
lifetime is gonna in my lifetime, if we're gonna end
up back there or not. There's just so much hidden there,
and I don't know what. Every now and then I
hear something or smell something, and I'm like, what wonders,
What untold things are yet to be discovered in the
back of this refrigerator. Yeah, and I mean, now, for
the for the second time on this show, Elliott, I'm
thinking about mold. Oh no, mold, dude, gross. Well, thank
(14:32):
you for all that. I think. I hope everyone, I
hope uh Lily, you get to explore England. That eva
you find a place. Who want to explore? Be? Maybe
you want to go to the bottom of the sea.
And I hope everyone's knighted for all of your explirations
except for you Be. I think the power would probably
go to your head. Absolutely. So let's move on to
our next game, which I hope has nothing in it
about mold. It's called Backpack from the Past from the
(14:56):
Best I'm a backpack into in some of Ernest Shacklin's
personal objects. B and I are going to describe those
objects for a contestants and the listeners at home. Contestants,
you tell us what part of his life the object is.
From listeners at home, you can also tell us what
we won't hear you. We recorded this already and you're
talking to your headphones. And because this is our second round,
(15:17):
each question is worth two points. Lily, you're up first.
Oh wow, it's a large wooden log. Why would this
be significant enough to include an Ernest Shackleton's backpack. Is
it a the log he used to stand on at
his farm and pretend he was on a ship, or
b it's his lucky log that he drew eyes on
and treated like a friend when he was stranded after
(15:38):
a shipwreck. Um A, yes, the answer is a Ernest.
Shackleton was British but raised in Ireland. He came from
a big family, but knew even as a young boy
that he wanted to be out on the high seas,
exploring and looking for adventure. He left school at the
age of sixteen to be an apprentice on a ship
and worked his way up through the Thanks alright, this
(16:01):
next item is for Eva. WHOA, it's a hot air balloon. Wow,
this is one big backpack. Why is this in our
backpack from the past? Is it because a Ernest took
some of the first aerial photographs of the Antarctic in
this hot air balloon? Or be he once tried to
reach the South Pole in a hot air balloon. I'm
(16:24):
pretty sure that's you are pretty sure and you're right.
The answer is a earnest. First trip to the Antarctic
was in nineteen hundred of the English naval officer Robert
Falcon Scott on the ship Discovery Good Name. It was
on this trip that Shackleton took some of the first
aerial photographs of Antarctica. Discovery didn't reach the South Pole,
and Shackleton and Scott became bitter rivals, raising each other
(16:46):
to be the first to reach the South Pole. Twist,
neither of them were the first. A Norwegian expedition led
by Roald Ammonson was the first to get there. Okay,
the next object is for Lily. Let's see what's in
this backpack. It's a pair of free book be Are
you using the backpack from the past as your personal backpack?
We told you not to do that. Okay, No, those
definitely belonged to Ernest. They are not vegan for Okay, Lily,
(17:11):
Are they there because a Ernest gave up exploring for
a few years and became a fashion designer? Or b
These boots are made from reindeer skin and Arctic explorers
used to keep warm. B That's right. The answer is be.
These boots were made for walking in snow. Let joke
about a song. Well, today explorers have space age technology
(17:33):
to keep them warm. Explorers of Shackleton's time relied on
fur sealskin canvas, and woolf to keep them from freezing.
They wore glass goggles in the icy wind and camped
in tense and small huts. Made of quirk and felt.
I get cold just thinking about it. Okay, the last
question is for Ava. Oh my goodness, it's a hello,
(17:53):
still away, rude. I have a name. It's Percy Blackborrow. Okay,
can you tell us why this Percy Blackborough fellow would
be hiding in our backpack from the past? Is it
that A he was the stowaway on Shackleton's ship Endurance
or B. Tickets to a live taping of the Huah's
podcast are super hard to get. I think that's a.
(18:15):
You're correct. The answer is A. I was a stowaway
on Shackleton's ship Endurance, and once I was discovered, I
took a job helping out the ship's cook. It was
an adventure of a lifetime. Were stuck on the ice
for ten months, but Shackleton kept us all in good spirits.
I got to see penguins, seals, and the Southern Lights.
I was stranded on Elephant Island and lost my foot
(18:37):
to frostbite. WHOA, you've lost your foot to frostbite. Ah,
that's the price of adventure. That's enough out of you, Percy.
Now back in the backpack, Hey, is that a walrus
over there? A Walris Geraldine, do you have a plate today? Oh,
he's just distracting me so he can run away. Scotto,
I'm out of here. Oh great, Now there's a stowaway.
(18:58):
Loosen the studio get I hate it when that happens,
and I hate that. That was the end of the
game from the best. Now let's check with producer Jane
to see how our contestants are stilling away these points.
B and Elliott. I'm not to blame, but Ava and
(19:22):
Lily's scores are the same. Yes, it's a poem, six
points each. Oh my goodness. Wow, Well that is fantastic,
and what a great game between these two adventurous contestants.
They are adventurous and I should know Ernest, Yes, indeed,
(19:43):
and I came hea via the who was app Who
was that you want to read somewhere in the past.
Thank goodness you're here. We have a of a stowaway problem,
and we would love your You mean, Percy, Percy, you're rapscallion.
(20:07):
Oh captain, my captain, good to see your lad. Hey,
did you know you just quoted a poem by our
other famous figure today, Walter Whitman. Yeah, of course he
knows that he may be a stowaway, but he's no philistine.
And I've come here today with a task of a
somewhat poetic nature. I've got a new ship, and I
(20:27):
need a good name, Prick. My other ships had great names,
the Aurora, the Endurance, and of course Nimrod. Day, you're
laughing again, No, you laughed when I said nim rocks.
There's just again you're laughing. No, sorry, it was something
(20:49):
from before, all right. Well as for the nim Rocks,
he still laughing at me. It means someone who is
a great hunter. Sorry, but that's not what that word
really means anymore. If you called someone that word today,
it would not be a compliment. I would take this
as a compliment if you called me a nimrods them
(21:15):
start all right, all right, that's enough, sir. Ernest Shackleton
traveled through time to come and meet you, and all
you can do is laugh at him, Elliott, I expected
this from you, But be how juvenile? Okay? Sorry, but
today nimrod means not smart, a dim wit, a goose,
(21:37):
a buffoon, a chowder ahead, a fool. Okay, okay, I
think we get the picture. And why did you get
all those examples, are you carrying a dictionary around with
you or something? Sort of? We just googled other words
for nimrod. Wait what was that word you just said? Googled? Yes? Yes,
(21:58):
what does that word mean? Google? It's kind of hard
to explain, but it's when you put a bunch of
search terms into Yahoo dot com to find the answer
to your question. What a beautiful word? I love it?
And if you called someone a Google, that wouldn't be
an insult. Not exactly excellent. I can't wait for all
(22:24):
the adventures I'm about to have on the Google. That's funny.
That's what I say most mornings. Not a moment to
lose it. Thank you for helping me name my new ship?
And thanks again? Who was happily? Who? Well? That was interesting?
It shure was Percy. You're still here, yep? And while
(22:47):
I'm here, I may as well make myself useful and
don't go anywhere? Who was? As the is one more
game left to go, We'll be back after this short break.
Eric play us some endurance music please see it's my
job to ask Eric to play music. Eric, can you
play some in germs music? Please? Okay? How long can
(23:13):
this bit go? Sally, who was there? Sim Marie Curie.
You may remember me from winning multiple Nobel prizes, or
perhaps from my episode of the Who Worst Podcast where
I played myself. I wanted to take a moment to
read one of my favorite reviews about the Who Was Podcast.
(23:34):
This is from Shaken Bay and it reads loved this
Me and my little sister love this show more. Please.
Our faith is Riet Toman. If you want to hear
your review right on the air, make sure to subscribe,
like and reviewed to the Worst Podcasts in the I
Heart Radio up or wherever you give your podcasts revoir
(23:56):
or should I stay Abbien do? Welcome back to the
Who Was Podcast. I'm a scowaway, Percy Blackborow and I've
escaped from the backpack from the past. Now back to
your host, Elliott Kaylin. Thank you, Percy, though it's kind
of weird to have you announced the show. Well, be
is sitting right there eating a burrito during great for
(24:18):
a seat, passa sausa? Okay, and now for our last game,
Converge of Greatness. In this multiple choice game, we'll explore
how our famous figures connect, overlap, or converge. Choose the
(24:41):
best answer for each question be asked to, and because
this is the third game, each question as worth three
huge points. Ava Europe. First taken Away, Percy. Both Ernest
and Walt lived through big wars. For Walt it was
the American Civil War, but Ernest Shackleton was about to
set sail on the Endurance on the eve of World
War One when he offered to postpone the trip so
(25:04):
that his crew could serve in the British Army. What
phrase did the King give him in response granting him
permission to go on with the trip as planned? A proceed,
B miss me with that or see no worries. I
think it was proceed. You're right the answers a proceed.
(25:26):
The King felt it was more important for the crew
to go ahead with the trip the interns would eventually
be trapped. When he could no longer make it through
the icy waters before it sank, The crew set up
camp on the frozen sea, where they ended up living
for months, but amazingly, all of the crew members survived.
The next question is for Lily take it Away, Percy.
When Walt Whitman wrote, oh Captain, my captain, he wasn't
(25:48):
talking about Ernest Shackleton even though Ernest was a sea captain,
who was Walt Whitman talking about a captain kangaroo B
Abraham Lincoln or Captain Jack B. That's right, The answer
is B. What Whitman was devastated when President Lincoln was
assassinated in eighteen sixty five. He shared Lincoln's vision for
(26:11):
in America without slavery and a unified country. Another one
of Whitman's famous poems, When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloomed,
is also about the death of Abraham Lincoln and later
in life Whitman toward giving lectures about the president. Yes,
Whitman was an Abraham stand Next question is for ava.
Both Shackleton and Whitman are buried in places that have
(26:31):
deep significance. For that, Whitman is buried in his beloved
city of Camden, New Jersey, where there's even a bridge
named after him. And Shackleton's final resting place is this
island A, the Isle of Manhattan, B South Georgia Island
or C the I'll see you later. Ah, I think
(26:53):
that's right. The answer is B or. Ernest was setting
off on yet another adventure after the endurance trip in
nineteen twenty one. He suffered a heart attack early on
in the trip, then recovered in Brazil. The ships at
sail again. For Ernest died from a heart attack at
a whaling station at South Georgia Island. Soon after. His
wife Emily decided he should be buried there because quote,
he would want to remain in those cold southern lands
(27:15):
he had loved so much, how beautiful. Next and final
question is for Lily. Final question, here we go. Both
Walt and Ernest kept returning to our particular subject over
and over again in their lives. For Ernest this was
a geographical location, the Antarctic, but for Whitman, it was
a book of poems that he kept returning to and
(27:36):
rewrote many times. Was the name of that book? A
Leaves of Grass B Poetry for Dummies or ce Hamlet
A that's right, the answers. A Leaves of Breast had
six editions or publications between eighteen fifty five and eighteen
eighty two. It contained two hundred and ninety three poems
(27:58):
that Walt kept revisings throughout his career, like some kind
of poetical George Lucas. In two the City of Boston
said they would ban it if Walt didn't make some
changes to his poems. Walt refused to be censored, and
Leaves of Grass was pulled from bookstore shelves in Boston,
but that scandal helped sales of the book in Philadelphia,
where it's sold over six thousand copies. Whitman more like
(28:19):
win Man because he won that battle and that's the
end of the round. The end of that game means
it's just about the end of the show. While Jane
Tally is up the final scores, I would love to
hear from the contestants. What was something you were surprised
(28:40):
to learn about Ernest Shackleton or Walt Whitman. Ava what
surprised you but either of our famous figures that Ernest
Shampo Finch sunk his ship in ice. Yeah, and it's
interesting he used such a beloved figure. Uh, but you know,
you don't think of someone who's like, oh, I kind
of didn't come my mission and he still got knighted.
(29:03):
But the important thing was that everyone on his crew
came back um alive and safe, and he wasn't deterred
by that. He went on to to do another mission.
So that's pretty great. It's like, the most inspiring about
Ernest Shackleton is less that he accomplished something great and
more that he just kept trying no matter what. Lily,
what about you? What surprised you about Ernics Shackleton or
(29:25):
Walt Whitman. Um, I thought that it was really cool
that Ernest Shackleton like did plays and took pictures from
a parachute while he was still on his missions. That
there's more to him than just see Captain King. He
had lots and lots of things that he did. He
contained multitude, He did contain multitudes. Maybe wal Whitman should
been writing about Ernest Shackleton. Yeah, you know what they
(29:47):
should have called his ship, the Walt, the Walt. Yeah,
they should have called it the Yeah, the the the
S S Walt. That's this is Swalt. Oh yeah, you're right, people,
I think it would be called the s Swalt. That's
not maybe that's not so great. Well, thank you both
for sharing the things that stuck with you about those figures.
Now it's time for the big moment. Jane, please announced
our winner. May I announced them in the form of
(30:10):
a poem? Yes, please please, Shackleton explored. Whitman wrote poems
Lily had twelve points and so did Eva. Oh my gosh,
what a beautiful example of free first poetry. Jane, thank you. Yeah,
you really set us up for rhymes and then didn't
have any because it was still a beautiful poem with
(30:30):
a beautiful message, which is that we have a tie
on the show today. Amazing. Eva and Lily, you are
both winners and you both get ten seconds for shoutouts
to thank those who got you to this victory. Lily,
would you go first? Who would you like to shout
out to? Um? I'd like to thank my family, the librarians,
and my pets. Wonderful, the big three is there known?
(30:50):
That's fantastic? And Eva, who would you like to thank
my family? My cats? Uh and my daughter? Oh good?
All right, we got some love for the dogs there too. Finally,
after all this cat talk, it's nice for the dogs
to finally have their day. Our winners and their libraries
of choice were receiving a selection of who was books
And I'm going to give a shout out of my
own to Intern Zach, Jane Eric and Zach Timpson. He
(31:12):
sounds a little bit like intern Zach for being our
Percy blackborrow and Chris Ferry for being our Earnest Shackleton,
and of course a thank you to be and then
the biggest thank you of all to both of our contestants,
and then an even bigger biggest thank you of all
to you wherever you are for listening, Thanks for hearing
these two amazing attestants play an amazing game. Next week,
join us again as we find out who Was two
(31:33):
more amazing figures from history. Until then, this is Elliott
Leaves of Grasscalin saying We're history. Goodbye. Everybody got a
question for any of our famous figures, Send us a
voice memo at the Who Was Podcast at gmail dot com.
It might just end up on the show. Who Was
(31:54):
Podcast is produced by Radio Point, I Heart Media and
Penguin Workshop and is based on the best selling who
HQ series published by Penguin. This episode was hosted by
Elliott Klin with co host Megan O'Neill as be. It
also starred Jane Baker as Producer, Jane, Eric Shackney as Eric,
Chris Ferry as Ernest Shackleton, and Zach Timpson as Percy
(32:14):
Black Borrow. Executive producers are Richard Corson Alex Bach Elliott Klin,
Megan O'Neil, Daniel Powell, and Houston Snyder. Executive producer for
Penguin Workshop is Francesco Sadita. Executive producer for iHeart Media
is Lindsay Hoffman. This episode was written by Megan O'Neil,
Elliott Calin, and Devin Coleman. It was produced by Bernie
Kaminsky and Taylor Kowalski. Our talent producer is Jane Baker.
(32:35):
Our theme song and music were composed and performed by
Eric Shackney. It was edited and mixed by Kate molden Hower,
and it was recorded by Alison Worth. Special thanks are
due to Zach Timpson, Charlotte Dienda, and Michael Lewis Howard.
Sound services were provided by Great City Posts. Podcast Standard
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