1 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:07,480 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Manke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:14,480 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. Our world is full of 3 00:00:14,520 --> 00:00:18,440 Speaker 1: the unexplainable, and if history is an open book, all 4 00:00:18,520 --> 00:00:22,639 Speaker 1: of these amazing tales right there on display, just waiting 5 00:00:22,680 --> 00:00:28,880 Speaker 1: for us to explore. Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 6 00:00:36,680 --> 00:00:38,800 Speaker 1: When there's little to work with, we just have to 7 00:00:38,840 --> 00:00:41,960 Speaker 1: make do with what we have. Ever need to charge 8 00:00:41,960 --> 00:00:44,200 Speaker 1: your phone but don't have the power brick for the wall, 9 00:00:44,520 --> 00:00:47,440 Speaker 1: Check the back of the TV. There's usually a USB 10 00:00:47,600 --> 00:00:50,000 Speaker 1: port you can plug into. And are you tired of 11 00:00:50,040 --> 00:00:53,520 Speaker 1: your headphone cable unwinding in your bag? Use a hairclip 12 00:00:53,600 --> 00:00:57,160 Speaker 1: to keep it in place. Mister Cardini was also under 13 00:00:57,160 --> 00:00:59,840 Speaker 1: some tough limits at his restaurant. You see, he was 14 00:00:59,840 --> 00:01:04,400 Speaker 1: an entrepreneur from Italy, like his three other brothers. One brother, Niero, 15 00:01:04,600 --> 00:01:08,200 Speaker 1: opened a hotel in Santa Cruz, California, while the two others, 16 00:01:08,440 --> 00:01:12,600 Speaker 1: Alessandro and Gaudenzio, moved to Mexico City, where they opened 17 00:01:12,640 --> 00:01:16,240 Speaker 1: up a restaurant. Mister Cardini, however, came to New York 18 00:01:16,280 --> 00:01:19,919 Speaker 1: on the RMS Olympic, the sister ship of the Titanic 19 00:01:20,040 --> 00:01:23,839 Speaker 1: in nineteen thirteen. He then headed north to Canada. After 20 00:01:23,880 --> 00:01:26,479 Speaker 1: several years abroad, he returned home for a short time, 21 00:01:26,800 --> 00:01:29,720 Speaker 1: then came back to the US in nineteen nineteen, where 22 00:01:29,760 --> 00:01:33,280 Speaker 1: he ran a small restaurant in Sacramento, California with his 23 00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:36,960 Speaker 1: business partner, William Brown. But Cardini knew that there was 24 00:01:37,000 --> 00:01:40,680 Speaker 1: an opportunity to the south Way south. In January of 25 00:01:40,760 --> 00:01:44,320 Speaker 1: nineteen twenty, the United States officially outlawed the manufacture and 26 00:01:44,360 --> 00:01:47,760 Speaker 1: sale of alcohol within its borders. Knowing that Americans like 27 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:51,040 Speaker 1: to drink, Cardini opened up a new restaurant in Tijuana, 28 00:01:51,080 --> 00:01:54,440 Speaker 1: Mexico that would cater to their needs. His new place 29 00:01:54,600 --> 00:01:57,120 Speaker 1: was a hit, with Americans from all walks of life 30 00:01:57,120 --> 00:02:00,440 Speaker 1: getting a good meal and some good booze from the 31 00:02:00,440 --> 00:02:03,720 Speaker 1: watchful eyes of the US government. This wasn't a surprise. 32 00:02:04,000 --> 00:02:07,680 Speaker 1: The Cardini family restaurants had all been successful. They fed 33 00:02:07,720 --> 00:02:12,120 Speaker 1: everyone who was anyone, including Lncheny, Clark Gable, and Rita Hayworth, 34 00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:16,040 Speaker 1: just to name a few. But mister Cardini's Tijuana Eatery 35 00:02:16,400 --> 00:02:19,160 Speaker 1: was special, so special that it became the place to 36 00:02:19,160 --> 00:02:22,800 Speaker 1: be On July fourth of nineteen twenty four, that day, 37 00:02:23,040 --> 00:02:26,560 Speaker 1: the restaurant faced an unusual rush of customers, one that 38 00:02:26,600 --> 00:02:29,400 Speaker 1: caused the kitchen to run out of almost every ingredient 39 00:02:29,440 --> 00:02:33,160 Speaker 1: they had. Almost there were still a few things left, 40 00:02:33,280 --> 00:02:37,480 Speaker 1: including eggs, cheese, and something called cause. Cause was a long, 41 00:02:37,639 --> 00:02:40,760 Speaker 1: dark green lettuce native to the Mediterranean and Middle East, 42 00:02:40,919 --> 00:02:45,440 Speaker 1: though many people probably note by its other name Romayne. Cardini, 43 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:48,120 Speaker 1: realizing that he needed something to keep his guests fed 44 00:02:48,160 --> 00:02:51,160 Speaker 1: and entertained, came up with an idea. Rather than just 45 00:02:51,240 --> 00:02:53,640 Speaker 1: dump all of his ingredients into a pot and hand 46 00:02:53,639 --> 00:02:56,359 Speaker 1: it to them, he would turn the act of assembling 47 00:02:56,360 --> 00:03:00,600 Speaker 1: the dish into an experience itself. First, heap the romain 48 00:03:00,639 --> 00:03:03,600 Speaker 1: into smaller pieces and placed them in a bowl. Then 49 00:03:03,720 --> 00:03:06,360 Speaker 1: he coddled the egg, meaning that he cooked it in 50 00:03:06,400 --> 00:03:09,240 Speaker 1: a small dish which sat in a boiling pot of 51 00:03:09,280 --> 00:03:12,040 Speaker 1: water to firm up the yolk. Cardini even wished that 52 00:03:12,200 --> 00:03:14,680 Speaker 1: hardened yolk with a bit of lemon juice, salt, pepper, 53 00:03:14,840 --> 00:03:19,440 Speaker 1: olive oil, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, and parmesan cheese. This creamy 54 00:03:19,480 --> 00:03:23,200 Speaker 1: concoction became addressing for the romain in the bowl, but 55 00:03:23,240 --> 00:03:25,640 Speaker 1: he didn't put it all together in the kitchen. Instead, 56 00:03:25,680 --> 00:03:28,560 Speaker 1: he brought the ingredients to the customer's table, where he 57 00:03:28,560 --> 00:03:31,720 Speaker 1: would toss the romaine leaves with the dressing right before 58 00:03:31,720 --> 00:03:34,760 Speaker 1: their eyes. Once the leaves were sufficiently coated, he would 59 00:03:34,840 --> 00:03:37,800 Speaker 1: drop a handful of croutons on top. Now, according to 60 00:03:37,840 --> 00:03:41,000 Speaker 1: Cardini's brother Alex, that's not how the recipe came to 61 00:03:41,040 --> 00:03:43,960 Speaker 1: be at all. In his version, he invented it in 62 00:03:43,960 --> 00:03:47,080 Speaker 1: the late nineteen twenties and called it the Aviator Salad, 63 00:03:47,200 --> 00:03:50,240 Speaker 1: named in honor of the pilots who frequented his establishment 64 00:03:50,280 --> 00:03:52,880 Speaker 1: at the time. But the truth is many individuals have 65 00:03:52,920 --> 00:03:55,720 Speaker 1: stepped forward as the true creators of the salad over 66 00:03:55,720 --> 00:03:59,119 Speaker 1: the years, including people who worked at mister Cardini's restaurant. 67 00:03:59,480 --> 00:04:01,360 Speaker 1: But in the end, and it was Caesar Cardini who 68 00:04:01,400 --> 00:04:03,680 Speaker 1: had whipped together what he had on hand in order 69 00:04:03,720 --> 00:04:06,880 Speaker 1: to please the hungry, drunken customers who had come to 70 00:04:06,920 --> 00:04:11,360 Speaker 1: his establishment, Caesar's Palace for a nice meal. That's exactly 71 00:04:11,440 --> 00:04:13,440 Speaker 1: what they got too. It was so nice that the 72 00:04:13,480 --> 00:04:16,279 Speaker 1: recipe eventually made its way back north and has become 73 00:04:16,279 --> 00:04:19,440 Speaker 1: a staple of thousands of restaurant menus all over the world. 74 00:04:19,760 --> 00:04:22,080 Speaker 1: And to make sure they never forgot where it came from, 75 00:04:22,240 --> 00:04:24,400 Speaker 1: its inventor made sure that he was a part of 76 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:27,200 Speaker 1: its name, and that's why we now know the beloved 77 00:04:27,200 --> 00:04:45,760 Speaker 1: appetizer as the Caesar salad. As I'm sure anyone could 78 00:04:45,800 --> 00:04:49,440 Speaker 1: tell you. Broadway musicals sometimes have more drama off stage 79 00:04:49,480 --> 00:04:52,720 Speaker 1: than on the same goes for Hollywood or politics, and 80 00:04:52,800 --> 00:04:56,839 Speaker 1: when the three meet, sparks fly. Musicals about the American 81 00:04:56,880 --> 00:04:59,760 Speaker 1: Revolution have been a popular subject for as long as 82 00:04:59,800 --> 00:05:02,600 Speaker 1: the medium has existed. Just look at the smash Hit 83 00:05:02,720 --> 00:05:06,680 Speaker 1: Hamilton or the nineteen twenties with Rogers and Heart's Dearest Enemy. 84 00:05:07,080 --> 00:05:11,640 Speaker 1: So Sherman wasn't exactly reinventing the wheel. Sherman Edwards was 85 00:05:11,680 --> 00:05:14,719 Speaker 1: born in nineteen nineteen and was a high school history 86 00:05:14,720 --> 00:05:18,320 Speaker 1: teacher before becoming a full time musician and songwriter. Musical 87 00:05:18,360 --> 00:05:21,080 Speaker 1: theater might be an interesting choice for the man who 88 00:05:21,120 --> 00:05:24,119 Speaker 1: wrote songs for Elvis Presley, but when he was about 89 00:05:24,120 --> 00:05:27,920 Speaker 1: forty years old, he sat down to write seventeen seventy six. 90 00:05:28,560 --> 00:05:31,159 Speaker 1: The premise was simple. It focused on John Adams and 91 00:05:31,200 --> 00:05:34,680 Speaker 1: his attempt to get the Continental Congress to declare independence 92 00:05:34,680 --> 00:05:39,040 Speaker 1: from Great Britain and support the revolution. Edwards took sections 93 00:05:39,080 --> 00:05:42,400 Speaker 1: of letters and diary entries from the founding Fathers and 94 00:05:42,480 --> 00:05:45,040 Speaker 1: worked that into the music and dialogue of the show, 95 00:05:45,400 --> 00:05:48,599 Speaker 1: bringing life to these long dead men and showing them 96 00:05:48,600 --> 00:05:52,119 Speaker 1: for what they were, not infallible gods, but human beings 97 00:05:52,160 --> 00:05:56,440 Speaker 1: who quarreled and lied and made mistakes. Edwards wrote the 98 00:05:56,480 --> 00:05:59,560 Speaker 1: score and Peter Stone wrote the book, although he later 99 00:05:59,600 --> 00:06:02,840 Speaker 1: recalled thinking it was maybe the worst idea that had 100 00:06:02,880 --> 00:06:06,279 Speaker 1: ever been proposed for a musical. The show starred William 101 00:06:06,400 --> 00:06:10,360 Speaker 1: Daniels as John Adams, Ken Howard as Thomas Jefferson, and 102 00:06:10,480 --> 00:06:13,680 Speaker 1: Howard da Silva as Benjamin Franklin, and it premiered in 103 00:06:13,760 --> 00:06:16,719 Speaker 1: nineteen sixty nine to great acclaim. It also went on 104 00:06:16,800 --> 00:06:21,479 Speaker 1: to earn several tony nominations. Head of Warner Brothers, Jack Warner, 105 00:06:21,800 --> 00:06:24,800 Speaker 1: saw an opportunity, so he bought the rights and produced 106 00:06:24,800 --> 00:06:28,280 Speaker 1: the film version in nineteen seventy one. Warner decided to 107 00:06:28,320 --> 00:06:31,799 Speaker 1: cast the original Broadway actors to reprise their roles as well. 108 00:06:31,960 --> 00:06:34,719 Speaker 1: Apparently he had learned a thing or two after refusing 109 00:06:34,720 --> 00:06:37,719 Speaker 1: to cast Julie Andrews in the film adaptation of My 110 00:06:37,839 --> 00:06:41,560 Speaker 1: Fair Lady. Hollywood was still recovering from the House on 111 00:06:41,640 --> 00:06:45,960 Speaker 1: American Activities Committee investigations and Blacklist, and many actors were 112 00:06:46,000 --> 00:06:49,640 Speaker 1: still on edge, including Howard da Silva. You see, Da 113 00:06:49,640 --> 00:06:52,520 Speaker 1: Silva was a popular actor, and, like hundreds of others 114 00:06:52,560 --> 00:06:55,480 Speaker 1: in the entertainment industry, he was called for a hearing 115 00:06:55,520 --> 00:06:58,680 Speaker 1: before the Committee. He gave testimony in March of nineteen 116 00:06:58,720 --> 00:07:02,200 Speaker 1: fifty one and repeat heatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment rights, 117 00:07:02,520 --> 00:07:06,839 Speaker 1: never naming names. Afterward, he was officially blacklisted and didn't 118 00:07:06,880 --> 00:07:10,200 Speaker 1: work in film again for a decade. The Tony Award 119 00:07:10,200 --> 00:07:12,920 Speaker 1: winning cast were invited to give a performance at the 120 00:07:12,960 --> 00:07:16,480 Speaker 1: White House, a long standing tradition. They beat out Hair 121 00:07:16,560 --> 00:07:19,520 Speaker 1: for Best Musical at the nineteen sixty nine Tony Awards, 122 00:07:19,760 --> 00:07:22,920 Speaker 1: and America's then president, Richard Nixon had a great deal 123 00:07:22,960 --> 00:07:26,360 Speaker 1: of fondness for the show. Director Peter Hunt later remarked 124 00:07:26,360 --> 00:07:28,680 Speaker 1: that he was thrilled with rehearsing in front of the 125 00:07:28,720 --> 00:07:31,760 Speaker 1: former marine, but the rest of the cast wasn't so sure. 126 00:07:32,000 --> 00:07:34,360 Speaker 1: They were all politically active, and many of them were 127 00:07:34,400 --> 00:07:37,600 Speaker 1: involved with the Screen Actress Guild, a powerful union of 128 00:07:37,640 --> 00:07:41,200 Speaker 1: which the William Daniels was president. And let's not forget 129 00:07:41,200 --> 00:07:44,120 Speaker 1: the last time Howard Silva got an invitation from Richard Nixon. 130 00:07:44,200 --> 00:07:47,560 Speaker 1: He ended up blacklisted by Hollywood. The House on American 131 00:07:47,600 --> 00:07:50,920 Speaker 1: Activities Committee had been a pet project of Nixon's while 132 00:07:50,920 --> 00:07:53,600 Speaker 1: he was still in Congress, and the cast of seventeen 133 00:07:53,680 --> 00:07:58,000 Speaker 1: seventy six were understandably reluctant. Still, they went and put 134 00:07:58,080 --> 00:08:02,119 Speaker 1: on a good show. But then something odd happened, well, really, 135 00:08:02,160 --> 00:08:06,080 Speaker 1: something very predictable. Nixon had enjoyed the performance, but he 136 00:08:06,160 --> 00:08:09,400 Speaker 1: had some notes about the upcoming film. There were three 137 00:08:09,440 --> 00:08:13,880 Speaker 1: songs that offended Nixon's conservative sensibilities, and he wanted them cut. 138 00:08:14,440 --> 00:08:17,840 Speaker 1: Mama Looked Sharp described a dying boy on the battlefield 139 00:08:17,880 --> 00:08:20,920 Speaker 1: and his mother coming to search for him. Molasses to 140 00:08:21,040 --> 00:08:24,480 Speaker 1: Rum called out the hypocrisy of the northern colonies in 141 00:08:24,520 --> 00:08:27,960 Speaker 1: the question of slavery and largely condemned the whole country's 142 00:08:27,960 --> 00:08:31,600 Speaker 1: attitude towards civil rights. And finally, there was cool, cool, 143 00:08:31,640 --> 00:08:35,640 Speaker 1: considerate men, which Nixon hated more than the rest. During 144 00:08:35,679 --> 00:08:38,640 Speaker 1: the song, the wealthy loyalists of Congress sing an ode 145 00:08:38,640 --> 00:08:41,600 Speaker 1: to their status and privilege, reminding the viewer that these 146 00:08:41,640 --> 00:08:45,280 Speaker 1: conservative men only moved to the right, forever to the right, 147 00:08:45,600 --> 00:08:48,960 Speaker 1: never to the left, they sang. Apparently, the cast performed 148 00:08:48,960 --> 00:08:52,839 Speaker 1: that number with considerable Gusto or venom, depending on how 149 00:08:52,840 --> 00:08:56,800 Speaker 1: you look at it. Nixon was perturbed, then Nixon got angry, 150 00:08:57,040 --> 00:09:00,120 Speaker 1: until finally Nixon began making phone calls. But when he 151 00:09:00,240 --> 00:09:03,200 Speaker 1: requested that these songs be cut to better fit his 152 00:09:03,440 --> 00:09:07,400 Speaker 1: version of American history, the cast and creative team outright 153 00:09:07,480 --> 00:09:12,079 Speaker 1: refused to be censored. Their efforts were valiant, but unfortunately 154 00:09:12,160 --> 00:09:16,000 Speaker 1: Nixon had a longer reach. He contacted Jack Warner directly 155 00:09:16,040 --> 00:09:18,960 Speaker 1: and demanded the cuts. Warner, by the way, had also 156 00:09:19,080 --> 00:09:22,040 Speaker 1: named names when called before the House on American Activities 157 00:09:22,040 --> 00:09:25,720 Speaker 1: Committee back in nineteen forty seven, So the studio went 158 00:09:25,760 --> 00:09:28,560 Speaker 1: behind the production team's backs and demanded one of the 159 00:09:28,559 --> 00:09:33,040 Speaker 1: film's editors, Florence Williamson, to cut Cool, Cool, Considerate men. 160 00:09:33,520 --> 00:09:37,200 Speaker 1: When director Peter Hunt discovered the excised number, he asked 161 00:09:37,240 --> 00:09:41,080 Speaker 1: Warner how he could do it. Warner coolly replied with 162 00:09:41,160 --> 00:09:44,800 Speaker 1: a pair of scissors. According to the story, Warner refused 163 00:09:44,800 --> 00:09:47,880 Speaker 1: to be second guest by history and ordered the original 164 00:09:47,920 --> 00:09:51,640 Speaker 1: negatives to be destroyed, but Williamson wouldn't go that far. 165 00:09:52,000 --> 00:09:55,760 Speaker 1: He quietly hid the negatives in storage. The film was 166 00:09:55,800 --> 00:09:58,480 Speaker 1: a disappointment at the box office, and many members of 167 00:09:58,520 --> 00:10:01,880 Speaker 1: the cast blamed that on the number being cut. According 168 00:10:01,920 --> 00:10:04,320 Speaker 1: to one account, Warner later said that he regretted the 169 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:07,000 Speaker 1: cut and felt that it ruined the structure of the film. 170 00:10:07,520 --> 00:10:10,680 Speaker 1: Today you can see seventeen seventy six exactly the way 171 00:10:10,679 --> 00:10:13,080 Speaker 1: Peter Hunt and the rest of the cast had intended. 172 00:10:13,400 --> 00:10:16,079 Speaker 1: The original version was restored in two thousand and two 173 00:10:16,480 --> 00:10:19,480 Speaker 1: thanks to Williamson's quick thinking, and you can see for 174 00:10:19,559 --> 00:10:22,520 Speaker 1: yourself why a song with the lyrics most men with 175 00:10:22,640 --> 00:10:26,400 Speaker 1: nothing would rather protect the possibility of becoming rich than 176 00:10:26,480 --> 00:10:30,960 Speaker 1: face the reality of being poor made Richard Nixon's head spin. 177 00:10:35,400 --> 00:10:38,040 Speaker 1: I hope you've enjoyed today's guided tour of the Cabinet 178 00:10:38,120 --> 00:10:42,000 Speaker 1: of Curiosities. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn 179 00:10:42,040 --> 00:10:46,479 Speaker 1: more about the show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. 180 00:10:46,640 --> 00:10:50,200 Speaker 1: The show was created by me Aaron Mankey in partnership 181 00:10:50,240 --> 00:10:53,559 Speaker 1: with How Stuff Works. I make another award winning show 182 00:10:53,640 --> 00:10:57,720 Speaker 1: called Lore, which is a podcast, book series, and television show, 183 00:10:57,960 --> 00:11:00,040 Speaker 1: and you can learn all about it over at the 184 00:11:00,080 --> 00:11:08,280 Speaker 1: Worldoflore dot com. And until next time, stay curious. H