The Bright Side with Kevin & Jason

The Bright Side with Kevin & Jason

Bad news is easy to come by. Sometimes it feels like we’re drowning in it. But on The Bright Side, our hosts believe that in every tragedy we can also find hope. The Bright Side with Kevin and Jason is a podcast that explores some of humanity’s biggest blunders, then digs deep to find out what good we can find in the situations. Join Kevin Held and Jason T. Gaffney as they discover the redemption in our missteps.

Episodes

#122 – Panic! At The Library

November 25, 2021 • 53 mins
Reading can be dangerous, what with all those evil forces out there trying to stymie the free transmission of liberating ideas. And now we have to worry about cholera?! This week, the guys turn the page to when the fear of these new things called germs caused people to think that library books could spread disease. Given that this episode is dropping on Thanksgiving, Kevin and Jason would also like to take a moment to thank you fo...
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#121 – Badass Women Vol. 3: Rosalind Franklin

November 6, 2021 • 50 mins
Women didn't fare so well in last week's episode. To balance the scales a little bit, this week the guys take a deep dive into the life of Dr. Rosalind Franklin, the badass woman of science whose work directly led to the understanding of the structure of DNA, among many other achievements. In a time when women in STEM were subjected to vast sexism and condescension, Dr. Franklin brashly broke the mold in the search for scie...
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#120 – Hot Air Buffoons

October 30, 2021 • 56 mins
No, that's not a new title for the show! It is, however, a pretty good description of the people featured in this week's episode! Come get high with the guys as they expel gas and yank your chain with the tale of the Leicester Balloon Riot of 1864.
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#119 – It Gets Butter

October 22, 2021 • 50 mins
Norway, Jose! This week, the guys lube up their absolutely worst accents to take you, our loyal listener, to a magical place of fjords, riverboat cruises, wooden shoes (?) and the great Norwegian Butter Crisis of 2011.
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#118 – Flatty-Boombalatty

October 15, 2021 • 50 mins
What would life be without the ability to look down on other people? This week, the guys look down from a great height, high enough to see the curve of the earth, in order to delve into the Flat Earth Movement. We promise, it's just as dumb as you've come to expect from us.
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#117 – A Happy Ending at Blue Ball Creek

September 10, 2021 • 55 mins
Are you blue? Now, is it just a feeling, or are you literally blue? This week, they guys set off into the wild blue yonder to learn about the Blue Fugates of Kentucky, a clan of people with a rare genetic condition that turned their skin blue for generations. If you're not tired of hearing the word "blue" yet, stay tuned!
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#116 – Intensylvania

September 3, 2021 • 47 mins
Pennsylvania is not really known for being the focal point for intense tragedies, but maybe we should reconsider that reputation. This week, the guys revisit the home of the Centralia Fire (featured on the show all the way back on Episode 9) to stare into the murky depths of the 1948 Death Fog of Donora, PA. Maybe try not to breathe too deep as you listen, just to be safe.
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#115 – There Are Giants in This Guy

August 28, 2021 • 44 mins
Exams aren't the only things you can cram for. This week, the guys get into the stuff of legends as they spelunk into the weird, brief fad of shoving as many college students into a phone booth as possible. Though the fad only went for about a year in the 50s, the memories will last a lifetime for those confused college boys.
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#114 – #CockyGate

August 19, 2021 • 48 mins
Romancelandia, the fellowship of romance authors and their readers, is a famously supportive and tight community. Until it isn't. This week, the guys plunge into the #CockyGate scandal, wherein romance author Faleena Hopkins tried, rather cockily, to prevent other authors from placing a commonly-used word into any title of any published work, anywhere, anytime. As you might suspect, things didn't go great for her.
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#113 – The Indigo Girls…And Boys

August 14, 2021 • 48 mins
Here at the Bright Side, we've always assumed that our listeners were just very special people. But this week, we explore the possibility that you all are actually genius reincarnations of an extinct Martian race, sent to us to warn of the dangers of nuclear war. Either way, thanks for the support!
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#112 – Cock-A-Doodle-Don’t

August 6, 2021 • 46 mins
In the latest episode of our Feral Animals Series, the guys say Aloha to the feral chickens of Kauai! In a rollicking adventure that spans the globe, we join these brave, seafaring chickens in their epic quest to find love, freedom, and someplace to gobble up the crumbs of tourists' lunches.
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#111 – Olympians Have Nothing on These Idiots

July 31, 2021 • 50 mins
In honor of the Olympics, this week the guys tumble dishonorably into the exact opposite of them--namely, really stupid sports from around the globe. Warning: this episode may cause a case of the "Twisties," and you may want to take some time off afterwards for your mental health. We respect that decision.
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#110 – Feral Paw Set

July 24, 2021 • 34 mins
Disneyland. The Happiest Place on Earth. Unless you're a rat who can't cook. This week, the guys go searching for the fabled Feral Cats of Disneyland, the storied rat-catchers that stalk the Magic Kingdom at night, yet are hardly ever seen during the day. Do they really exist? You'll have to listen to the episode to find out! Actually, you won't. They do. They exist. But still listen, please.
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#109 – We Wanna Rock!

July 16, 2021 • 48 mins
Ah, it's a lovely day in Central Park in 1901. Take a stroll, ride the carousel, escape the heat in a shaded rocking chair. Now pay that gray-suited goon a nickel, or Mr. Spate will have you arrested for theft! Wait, what? This week, the guys uncover the unhinged story of the Rocking Chair Riots, wherein the little guy stood up for his right to sit down!
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#108 – A Jelly Up Do Snatch

July 10, 2021 • 43 mins
Rain blobs keep falling on my head, And sadly, that means my eyes will soon be turning red, And they'll start to bleed, 'Cuz, these blobs are jellyfish or possibly aliens, Or space jelly. And they're worrying me!  
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#107 – A Horde of Horny Teenagers

July 2, 2021 • 46 mins
No, we already did an episode on the Fyre Festival. This is different. This week, the guys dig up the truth about the cicada horde that lies in wait, only to emerge from the ground every 17 years, impossibly horny and improbably loud. Along the way, they learn that there's almost nothing that a month-long orgy can't cure. Plus recipes!
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#106 – I Did Nazi That Coming!

June 25, 2021 • 45 mins
It should be no surprise that the marketer and inventor behind Sea Monkeys was a charming, whimsical rake. What should surprise you, however, is that he was also a fucking Nazi and weapons manufacturer. Yes, this week the guys dredge up the history of Harold von Braunhut, the huckster and con artist behind such innovations as the Invisible Fish and X-Ray Spex. None of it was real, none of it was true, but we'll be damned if it ...
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#105 – Abra Cadaver

June 18, 2021 • 49 mins
Say what you want about the Catholic Church, but at least they never exhumed a dead pope just to put him on trial. Wait, oops, nope, they totally did. Ok, just say what you want, then.
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#104 – Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems

June 11, 2021 • 48 mins
Everyone wants to win the lottery, but nobody thinks that the moment could curse their lives forever. Well, it could. In a classic "Be Careful What You Wish For" story, the guys this week scratch off the surface of the Curse of the Lottery Winner. Apologies for this week's sub-par audio. It's all Kevin's fault and he'll fix it for the next episode!
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#103 – Aw, Nutz!

May 28, 2021 • 54 mins
It was a dark time for America. A time when our future was uncertain, and a great war was threatening the very foundation of our nation. A war which pitted brother against brother, which separated the men from the other men (because women aren't dumb enough to engage in this). From our privileged vantage point now, it's hard to remember how close we came to annihilation, but we offer this requiem so that none may ever forge...
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