1 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:07,440 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Manke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,480 --> 00:00:09,320 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. 3 00:00:12,840 --> 00:00:16,840 Speaker 2: Our world is full of the unexplainable, and if history 4 00:00:17,040 --> 00:00:20,280 Speaker 2: is an open book, all of these amazing tales are 5 00:00:20,320 --> 00:00:23,720 Speaker 2: right there on display, just waiting for us to explore. 6 00:00:25,239 --> 00:00:28,840 Speaker 2: Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 7 00:00:36,360 --> 00:00:39,879 Speaker 1: China is a massive country with a recorded history stretching 8 00:00:39,960 --> 00:00:43,320 Speaker 1: back thousands of years, but it wasn't always one big, 9 00:00:43,440 --> 00:00:46,440 Speaker 1: united nation. In ancient times, it was made up of 10 00:00:46,479 --> 00:00:49,800 Speaker 1: many smaller kingdoms, and it took one man, the First Emperor, 11 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:53,680 Speaker 1: to unite them all. But the First Emperor, despite his accomplishments, 12 00:00:53,800 --> 00:00:56,720 Speaker 1: was not a beloved figure. He was as cruel as 13 00:00:56,760 --> 00:00:59,920 Speaker 1: he was visionary. When most leaders die, they are treated 14 00:00:59,920 --> 00:01:02,480 Speaker 1: to a state funeral, But when the First Emperor died, 15 00:01:02,720 --> 00:01:06,080 Speaker 1: his people did something very curious with the body. She 16 00:01:06,280 --> 00:01:08,880 Speaker 1: Wan d became king of the province of Chin when 17 00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:12,320 Speaker 1: he was only thirteen years old in two forty seven BC. 18 00:01:12,880 --> 00:01:16,280 Speaker 1: That name actually means First Emperor, and so obviously it 19 00:01:16,360 --> 00:01:18,920 Speaker 1: wasn't his real name, but we'll keep using it since 20 00:01:18,920 --> 00:01:21,240 Speaker 1: it's the name that he's best known by in history. 21 00:01:21,640 --> 00:01:24,360 Speaker 1: When he was about twenty one, his chief adviser and 22 00:01:24,440 --> 00:01:27,640 Speaker 1: his mother both tried to overthrow his rule. There's some 23 00:01:27,920 --> 00:01:31,080 Speaker 1: historical evidence that his adviser was actually his real father 24 00:01:31,440 --> 00:01:35,160 Speaker 1: rather than the previous king rough parents right, But amazingly, 25 00:01:35,240 --> 00:01:38,280 Speaker 1: Shei wan D stopped the coup. His advisor's slash father 26 00:01:38,440 --> 00:01:42,440 Speaker 1: killed himself, and his mother was imprisoned. This whole experience 27 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:46,480 Speaker 1: obviously traumatized she wan D. He became inspired by a 28 00:01:46,520 --> 00:01:49,920 Speaker 1: philosophy known today as legalism, the idea that humans are 29 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:53,680 Speaker 1: inherently selfish and require a strong central government to rule 30 00:01:53,680 --> 00:01:57,000 Speaker 1: over and punish them. Having experienced to childhood where his 31 00:01:57,040 --> 00:01:59,680 Speaker 1: own parents were so greedy that they turned on him, 32 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:03,160 Speaker 1: she wand was ready to believe in the inherent evilness 33 00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:05,360 Speaker 1: of human beings. The only way that he could ever 34 00:02:05,360 --> 00:02:08,959 Speaker 1: feel safe was if he ruled over all people. Now, 35 00:02:09,040 --> 00:02:11,480 Speaker 1: there were seven states in China at the time, and 36 00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:14,160 Speaker 1: they were all constantly fighting with each other. Part of 37 00:02:14,160 --> 00:02:16,280 Speaker 1: this was because they all followed a strict code of 38 00:02:16,320 --> 00:02:18,560 Speaker 1: honor that meant battles had to be fought in a 39 00:02:18,600 --> 00:02:21,000 Speaker 1: certain way. They would all line up in a field, 40 00:02:21,240 --> 00:02:23,840 Speaker 1: giving each other a chance to get into formation, and 41 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:26,840 Speaker 1: then they would attack, and so battles were almost more 42 00:02:26,919 --> 00:02:29,800 Speaker 1: like chess games played between two knights than a true 43 00:02:29,840 --> 00:02:34,600 Speaker 1: attempt to completely defeat one another. But Shiwandi's legalism beliefs 44 00:02:34,600 --> 00:02:36,320 Speaker 1: meant that he would not be able to abide by 45 00:02:36,320 --> 00:02:39,440 Speaker 1: these rules. He would fight as ruthlessly as possible to 46 00:02:39,560 --> 00:02:42,800 Speaker 1: ensure that everyone fell under his own thumb. Why spend 47 00:02:42,840 --> 00:02:45,440 Speaker 1: his life trusting greedy kings to follow codes of honor 48 00:02:45,639 --> 00:02:48,799 Speaker 1: when he could just eliminate those kings entirely. By two 49 00:02:48,919 --> 00:02:52,360 Speaker 1: twenty one BC, he had conquered all seven kingdoms and 50 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:55,919 Speaker 1: declared himself emperor over it all, and at first China 51 00:02:55,960 --> 00:02:58,520 Speaker 1: prospered under his rule in what became known as the 52 00:02:58,800 --> 00:03:03,560 Speaker 1: Qin Dynasty. His strong centralized system of governments efficiently administered 53 00:03:03,560 --> 00:03:07,400 Speaker 1: the entire country, growing the provinces and undertaking several large 54 00:03:07,400 --> 00:03:10,280 Speaker 1: building projects. He even built what would become the Great 55 00:03:10,320 --> 00:03:14,080 Speaker 1: Wall of China, protecting the kingdoms from foreign invaders. But 56 00:03:14,160 --> 00:03:16,880 Speaker 1: even with all this power and a giant wall to 57 00:03:16,919 --> 00:03:20,760 Speaker 1: protect him, Shiwandi still didn't feel safe. It bothered him 58 00:03:20,800 --> 00:03:22,639 Speaker 1: that there were still those in the kingdom who would 59 00:03:22,680 --> 00:03:26,480 Speaker 1: speak out against his rule and his legalism philosophy, and 60 00:03:26,520 --> 00:03:30,080 Speaker 1: so He instigated a brutal crackdown on any human expression 61 00:03:30,320 --> 00:03:33,600 Speaker 1: that contradicted him or his beliefs. He had many people 62 00:03:33,680 --> 00:03:36,880 Speaker 1: killed and burned historical texts. He wanted to make it 63 00:03:36,920 --> 00:03:40,360 Speaker 1: as if there had only ever been one China, his China. 64 00:03:41,000 --> 00:03:45,320 Speaker 1: As the years went on, Shiwandi fended off multiple assassination attempts. 65 00:03:45,600 --> 00:03:48,720 Speaker 1: His own mortality weighed on him. He constructed a massive 66 00:03:48,760 --> 00:03:51,720 Speaker 1: palace for himself, which was to serve as his tomb 67 00:03:51,920 --> 00:03:55,120 Speaker 1: if his enemies ever defeated him. He had eight thousand 68 00:03:55,200 --> 00:03:59,280 Speaker 1: terracotta warriors constructed around that tomb, so that even in death, 69 00:03:59,440 --> 00:04:02,000 Speaker 1: he would have an army to protect him. But he 70 00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:05,960 Speaker 1: wasn't dead yet. Shiwandi next traveled throughout China looking for 71 00:04:06,000 --> 00:04:09,040 Speaker 1: a way to make himself immortal. He drank a variety 72 00:04:09,080 --> 00:04:12,640 Speaker 1: of strange concoctions, some of them containing substances that we 73 00:04:12,680 --> 00:04:16,640 Speaker 1: now know to be harmful, including toxins like mercury. The 74 00:04:16,680 --> 00:04:19,600 Speaker 1: irony is that in his quest for immortality, he may 75 00:04:19,600 --> 00:04:22,880 Speaker 1: have cut his life short while on this tour through China. 76 00:04:22,960 --> 00:04:26,400 Speaker 1: He died suddenly in two eleven BC, leaving no will 77 00:04:26,480 --> 00:04:29,760 Speaker 1: for instructions as to who should take his place. Now 78 00:04:29,880 --> 00:04:32,919 Speaker 1: none of shi Wangdi's servants mourned his passing. They didn't 79 00:04:33,040 --> 00:04:35,280 Speaker 1: like the guy, but they worried what would happen if 80 00:04:35,320 --> 00:04:37,640 Speaker 1: the Seven Kingdoms found out that he was dead with 81 00:04:37,760 --> 00:04:41,679 Speaker 1: no designated air and so as they continued to travel, 82 00:04:41,920 --> 00:04:45,520 Speaker 1: they hid his body inside his carriage, changing his clothes 83 00:04:45,560 --> 00:04:48,680 Speaker 1: for weeks and pretending to feed him. They kept baskets 84 00:04:48,680 --> 00:04:51,240 Speaker 1: of smelly fish near the carriage to cover up the 85 00:04:51,279 --> 00:04:54,600 Speaker 1: smell of the rotting body, and once they finally got 86 00:04:54,640 --> 00:04:56,840 Speaker 1: back to the capitol, they wrote up a fake will 87 00:04:56,880 --> 00:04:59,800 Speaker 1: that declared one of the emperor's more impressionable sons to 88 00:04:59,800 --> 00:05:03,599 Speaker 1: t take his place. Unfortunately, the new young emperor had 89 00:05:03,640 --> 00:05:07,119 Speaker 1: all of his father's temperament and none of his father's vision, 90 00:05:07,400 --> 00:05:11,840 Speaker 1: and was soon deposed. Despite all of Shiwandi's machinations, the 91 00:05:11,960 --> 00:05:15,800 Speaker 1: Qin dynasty only lasted fifteen years. It was replaced by 92 00:05:15,800 --> 00:05:18,799 Speaker 1: the Han dynasty, which came to power in twoo two BC. 93 00:05:19,320 --> 00:05:21,920 Speaker 1: The Han dynasty was known for being much more open minded, 94 00:05:22,160 --> 00:05:26,279 Speaker 1: incorporating a variety of philosophies from across China. As such, 95 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:30,240 Speaker 1: it lasted for over two centuries. It's curious that even 96 00:05:30,279 --> 00:05:33,160 Speaker 1: though it was the Qin dynasty that united China. It 97 00:05:33,200 --> 00:05:36,120 Speaker 1: was the Han dynasty that actually made its people see 98 00:05:36,120 --> 00:05:53,120 Speaker 1: themselves as one. Allan was a nobody when he arrived 99 00:05:53,120 --> 00:05:56,000 Speaker 1: in Hollywood hoping to see his name in lights. He 100 00:05:56,120 --> 00:05:58,200 Speaker 1: wasn't one of the millions of kids with dreams of 101 00:05:58,240 --> 00:06:01,039 Speaker 1: becoming an actor. Alan was going to be a director, 102 00:06:01,279 --> 00:06:03,840 Speaker 1: the kind who made movies that were personal and bold, 103 00:06:04,040 --> 00:06:07,440 Speaker 1: that audiences lined up to see on opening weekends. This 104 00:06:07,640 --> 00:06:10,760 Speaker 1: was the late nineteen sixties when directors were becoming stars 105 00:06:10,800 --> 00:06:13,479 Speaker 1: in their own right. It was the era of the tour. 106 00:06:13,640 --> 00:06:16,920 Speaker 1: The French word meaning author used in film to describe 107 00:06:16,920 --> 00:06:19,960 Speaker 1: directors whose style and vision are so strong the movie 108 00:06:20,040 --> 00:06:24,640 Speaker 1: feels like their personal creation. Think Steven Spielberg or Wes Anderson. 109 00:06:25,760 --> 00:06:29,479 Speaker 1: And in this era, the director's vision often outranked the producer, 110 00:06:29,520 --> 00:06:33,359 Speaker 1: the screenwriter, and even the studio. And these tours weren't 111 00:06:33,400 --> 00:06:36,119 Speaker 1: just making art house films. They were directing mega hits 112 00:06:36,120 --> 00:06:39,599 Speaker 1: with massive budgets. Stanley Kubrick had just released two thousand 113 00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:42,640 Speaker 1: and one, A Space Odyssey, and Francis Ford Coppola would 114 00:06:42,640 --> 00:06:45,400 Speaker 1: soon make The Godfather. These were the kinds of directors 115 00:06:45,480 --> 00:06:49,200 Speaker 1: shaping Hollywood's future, and every young filmmaker wanted to be 116 00:06:49,320 --> 00:06:51,920 Speaker 1: one of them, so Alan got his chance with The 117 00:06:52,000 --> 00:06:55,680 Speaker 1: nineteen sixty nine Death of a Gunfighter, a gritty, character 118 00:06:55,800 --> 00:06:59,520 Speaker 1: driven western that blended old school shootouts with modern themes. 119 00:06:59,800 --> 00:07:02,359 Speaker 1: The film's original director had had a falling out with 120 00:07:02,400 --> 00:07:05,360 Speaker 1: a star and was fired mid production. Alan was brought 121 00:07:05,360 --> 00:07:07,400 Speaker 1: on to finish the film, and while it was his 122 00:07:07,400 --> 00:07:10,640 Speaker 1: first time behind the camera, he pulled it off amazingly. 123 00:07:10,680 --> 00:07:13,679 Speaker 1: The film was a modest success and earned strong reviews 124 00:07:13,720 --> 00:07:17,240 Speaker 1: with critics. Roger Ebert praised the direction while admitting that 125 00:07:17,280 --> 00:07:19,960 Speaker 1: he had never heard of the filmmaker before, and he 126 00:07:20,040 --> 00:07:23,160 Speaker 1: wasn't alone. Before this film, almost no one in Hollywood 127 00:07:23,240 --> 00:07:25,960 Speaker 1: knew the name Alan Smithy, but now the whole town 128 00:07:26,040 --> 00:07:29,320 Speaker 1: would be watching his career, and what a career it was. 129 00:07:29,760 --> 00:07:32,400 Speaker 1: Over the next few decades, Alan worked in almost every 130 00:07:32,520 --> 00:07:37,720 Speaker 1: genre imaginable, directing splashy action flicks, expensive sci fi thrillers, 131 00:07:37,800 --> 00:07:41,440 Speaker 1: quiet dramas, and dark comedies. A few of his movies 132 00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:44,880 Speaker 1: belonged to massive franchises, too, like the Twilight Zone movie 133 00:07:45,200 --> 00:07:48,400 Speaker 1: and Bird's Two Lands End, a sequel to the Alfred 134 00:07:48,480 --> 00:07:52,280 Speaker 1: Hitchcock classic. He dabbled in television and animation, as well, 135 00:07:52,520 --> 00:07:56,680 Speaker 1: directing episodes of mcgiver and even Tiny Toons Adventures. But 136 00:07:56,800 --> 00:07:59,880 Speaker 1: despite the growing credits, Alan remained something of a miss. 137 00:08:00,600 --> 00:08:04,440 Speaker 1: He never gave interviews, never appeared in behind the scenes footage, 138 00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:09,160 Speaker 1: and avoided the spotlight entirely. While other directors built public personas, 139 00:08:09,400 --> 00:08:13,320 Speaker 1: Alan stayed firmly behind the camera. As for the work itself, 140 00:08:13,600 --> 00:08:17,080 Speaker 1: while the results were mixed, There were a few modest successes, 141 00:08:17,120 --> 00:08:20,360 Speaker 1: but most of his films failed to impress audiences. One 142 00:08:20,400 --> 00:08:22,960 Speaker 1: of his lowest points came with the nineteen ninety seven 143 00:08:23,120 --> 00:08:27,400 Speaker 1: Burn Hollywood Burn, a satire about a director losing control 144 00:08:27,480 --> 00:08:30,200 Speaker 1: of his own movie. It was panned by critics and 145 00:08:30,320 --> 00:08:34,160 Speaker 1: swept at the Razzies, winning five awards there, including Worst 146 00:08:34,200 --> 00:08:38,760 Speaker 1: Picture and Worst Director, but somehow Alan kept getting hired. 147 00:08:39,400 --> 00:08:42,360 Speaker 1: The strangest thing about his career wasn't just the number 148 00:08:42,400 --> 00:08:46,120 Speaker 1: of duds. It was how wildly inconsistent his movies were. 149 00:08:46,559 --> 00:08:48,800 Speaker 1: One film would be loud and over the top, and 150 00:08:48,840 --> 00:08:51,880 Speaker 1: the next would be quiet and serious. Some were cheap, 151 00:08:52,040 --> 00:08:55,200 Speaker 1: made for TV soap operas, while others had big stars 152 00:08:55,240 --> 00:08:58,160 Speaker 1: and even bigger budgets. While he was born out of 153 00:08:58,200 --> 00:09:01,760 Speaker 1: the autur era, Alan had no signature's style of his own. 154 00:09:02,080 --> 00:09:04,440 Speaker 1: His films didn't even feel like they were made by 155 00:09:04,480 --> 00:09:09,160 Speaker 1: the same person, which made sense because in reality they weren't. 156 00:09:09,559 --> 00:09:12,640 Speaker 1: I said, Alan Smithee came to Hollywood a nobody, and 157 00:09:12,840 --> 00:09:16,000 Speaker 1: that was true. He was always a nobody because he 158 00:09:16,120 --> 00:09:20,960 Speaker 1: literally did not exist. Alan Smithe was a pseudonym created 159 00:09:21,040 --> 00:09:23,960 Speaker 1: by the Director's Guild of America in nineteen sixty eight 160 00:09:24,240 --> 00:09:27,400 Speaker 1: and used whenever a director wanted to disown a film 161 00:09:27,440 --> 00:09:30,839 Speaker 1: they were making. If a movie had been re edited, rewritten, 162 00:09:31,160 --> 00:09:33,680 Speaker 1: or altered so much that it no longer reflected the 163 00:09:33,720 --> 00:09:37,000 Speaker 1: director's vision, they could simply ask to have their name removed, 164 00:09:37,280 --> 00:09:40,240 Speaker 1: but the Guild required a name to appear in the credits, 165 00:09:40,559 --> 00:09:44,560 Speaker 1: and so they invented one. And that's why Alan's filmography 166 00:09:44,920 --> 00:09:47,960 Speaker 1: is so inconsistent and why so many of his movies 167 00:09:47,960 --> 00:09:50,840 Speaker 1: turned out to be disasters. The fact that he's credited 168 00:09:50,880 --> 00:09:53,760 Speaker 1: on over one hundred projects is a testament to just 169 00:09:53,840 --> 00:09:58,160 Speaker 1: how often movies spiral out of control. His IMDb page 170 00:09:58,480 --> 00:10:01,440 Speaker 1: is a graveyard of Hollywood fi. But at least the 171 00:10:01,440 --> 00:10:04,760 Speaker 1: films got finished, and maybe there's a lesson in that, 172 00:10:05,120 --> 00:10:07,920 Speaker 1: because for a guy who never existed, Alan Smithey has 173 00:10:07,960 --> 00:10:11,280 Speaker 1: had one of the longest and most prolific careers in Hollywood. 174 00:10:11,480 --> 00:10:16,040 Speaker 1: No ego, no drama, no vision, and always available. Maybe 175 00:10:16,040 --> 00:10:19,280 Speaker 1: that's the real secret to surviving in the film industry. 176 00:10:23,000 --> 00:10:25,680 Speaker 1: I hope you've enjoyed today's guided tour of the Cabinet 177 00:10:25,720 --> 00:10:29,600 Speaker 1: of Curiosities. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn 178 00:10:29,640 --> 00:10:34,120 Speaker 1: more about the show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. 179 00:10:34,240 --> 00:10:37,800 Speaker 1: The show was created by me Aaron Mankey in partnership 180 00:10:37,840 --> 00:10:41,120 Speaker 1: with how Stuff Works. I make another award winning show 181 00:10:41,240 --> 00:10:45,319 Speaker 1: called Lore, which is a podcast, book series, and television show, 182 00:10:45,559 --> 00:10:47,400 Speaker 1: and you can learn all about it over at the 183 00:10:47,600 --> 00:10:54,040 Speaker 1: Worldoflore dot com. And until next time, stay curious.