1 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:07,400 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Manke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,480 --> 00:00:14,440 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. Our world is full of 3 00:00:14,480 --> 00:00:18,440 Speaker 1: the unexplainable, and if history is an open book, all 4 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:22,599 Speaker 1: of these amazing tales right there on display, just waiting 5 00:00:22,640 --> 00:00:28,840 Speaker 1: for us to explore. Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 6 00:00:36,400 --> 00:00:39,440 Speaker 1: To be a rebel, you need a voice, and usually 7 00:00:39,479 --> 00:00:42,280 Speaker 1: a loud one, whether you use a megaphone or a 8 00:00:42,320 --> 00:00:45,720 Speaker 1: printing press. Making yourself heard is typically the first step 9 00:00:45,760 --> 00:00:51,560 Speaker 1: in turning protests into revolution, but Valentine Silvestrov found another way. 10 00:00:51,880 --> 00:00:55,880 Speaker 1: He rebelled with silence. Valentine was born in Kiev in 11 00:00:55,960 --> 00:00:59,280 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty seven, when Ukraine was firmly tucked behind the 12 00:00:59,320 --> 00:01:02,880 Speaker 1: Iron Curtain. He didn't set out to overthrow governments. He 13 00:01:03,040 --> 00:01:06,040 Speaker 1: just loved music. As a kid, he dreamed of being 14 00:01:06,080 --> 00:01:09,160 Speaker 1: a concert pianist and composer, But as he grew up 15 00:01:09,200 --> 00:01:11,600 Speaker 1: and found his own musical voice, it turned out that 16 00:01:11,720 --> 00:01:16,320 Speaker 1: voice didn't exactly harmonize with the authorities idea of approved art. 17 00:01:16,800 --> 00:01:21,840 Speaker 1: In the Soviet Union, creative freedom was well non existent. Painters, writers, 18 00:01:21,880 --> 00:01:25,720 Speaker 1: and musicians were expected to produce work that celebrated the state. 19 00:01:26,240 --> 00:01:30,720 Speaker 1: Art had to be uplifting, patriotic, and safely traditional. Anything 20 00:01:30,760 --> 00:01:35,760 Speaker 1: too experimental to western or too emotionally complicated was frowned upon. 21 00:01:36,319 --> 00:01:39,959 Speaker 1: Now sometimes frowned upon meant censored, and sometimes it meant 22 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:43,039 Speaker 1: getting thrown behind bars or worse, and that was a 23 00:01:43,080 --> 00:01:46,679 Speaker 1: problem for Valentine. By the nineteen sixties, his music had 24 00:01:46,720 --> 00:01:51,880 Speaker 1: become downright rebellious, inspired by modernist movements sweeping across Europe. 25 00:01:52,080 --> 00:01:57,520 Speaker 1: Valentine's compositions were confrontational, startling, and full of unexpected turns. 26 00:01:57,840 --> 00:02:00,600 Speaker 1: One moment you might hear a gentle melody, the next 27 00:02:00,840 --> 00:02:05,240 Speaker 1: a crash of dissonant chords. It wasn't uplifting or traditional, 28 00:02:05,520 --> 00:02:08,760 Speaker 1: and it definitely wasn't Soviet approved, so pretty soon the 29 00:02:08,800 --> 00:02:12,320 Speaker 1: authorities took notice. In nineteen sixty nine, he crossed the 30 00:02:12,360 --> 00:02:15,040 Speaker 1: line by walking out of a public event in protest 31 00:02:15,120 --> 00:02:19,280 Speaker 1: of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. The state responded swiftly, 32 00:02:19,360 --> 00:02:22,480 Speaker 1: expelling him from the Composer's Union. They let him back 33 00:02:22,520 --> 00:02:24,320 Speaker 1: in a few years later, thinking that he might have 34 00:02:24,480 --> 00:02:27,240 Speaker 1: learned his lesson, but he still refused to temper his 35 00:02:27,320 --> 00:02:30,800 Speaker 1: modernist music. As a result, he was expelled again in 36 00:02:30,880 --> 00:02:35,160 Speaker 1: nineteen seventy four. This time Valentine took the rebuke. Personally 37 00:02:35,480 --> 00:02:39,800 Speaker 1: embarrassed and fearing harsher punishment, he withdrew from public life. 38 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:43,240 Speaker 1: He still performed for friends and acquaintances, but he stopped 39 00:02:43,240 --> 00:02:46,760 Speaker 1: doing shows for larger audiences. To many who had followed 40 00:02:46,760 --> 00:02:49,360 Speaker 1: his career, it looked like the Soviet state had won, 41 00:02:49,680 --> 00:02:53,000 Speaker 1: that the authorities had finally broken the avant garde composer. 42 00:02:53,520 --> 00:02:57,680 Speaker 1: But in reality, something far more complicated and remarkable was happening. 43 00:02:58,160 --> 00:03:01,760 Speaker 1: During his self imposed exile, Valentine's music went through a 44 00:03:01,840 --> 00:03:07,200 Speaker 1: dramatic transformation. Gone were the furious outbursts and modernist shocks. 45 00:03:07,240 --> 00:03:09,920 Speaker 1: In their place came something far more dangerous to an 46 00:03:09,960 --> 00:03:15,400 Speaker 1: oppressive regime restraint. He began composing his Silent Songs, a 47 00:03:15,520 --> 00:03:19,560 Speaker 1: cycle of pieces that leaned into fragility and subtlety, incorporating 48 00:03:19,600 --> 00:03:23,200 Speaker 1: moments of tranquil silence. The voice was still Valentine's, but 49 00:03:23,280 --> 00:03:27,120 Speaker 1: he wasn't shouting anymore. He was whispering, And somehow that 50 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:32,120 Speaker 1: whisper carried even further in a world where political slogans, speeches, 51 00:03:32,120 --> 00:03:36,640 Speaker 1: and propaganda were constantly being weaponized. Choosing to say less 52 00:03:36,920 --> 00:03:41,080 Speaker 1: became its own form of protest. The Silent Songs spread, 53 00:03:41,360 --> 00:03:44,680 Speaker 1: gaining critical acclaim in the West. The Soviets tried to 54 00:03:44,720 --> 00:03:49,160 Speaker 1: limit their popularity in Valentine's home country, sometimes outright banning 55 00:03:49,200 --> 00:03:53,680 Speaker 1: the pieces, but they couldn't stop his rising fame. His melancholic, 56 00:03:53,760 --> 00:03:58,040 Speaker 1: nostalgic pieces resonated with the Ukrainian people, who themselves were 57 00:03:58,040 --> 00:04:02,800 Speaker 1: grappling with sadness and regret, and slowly Valentine's music transformed 58 00:04:02,800 --> 00:04:06,120 Speaker 1: again in a way that he never expected. It became 59 00:04:06,160 --> 00:04:11,240 Speaker 1: a voice for Ukraine. Fast forward a few decades, Silvestrov 60 00:04:11,280 --> 00:04:16,240 Speaker 1: continued composing, gradually gaining international recognition. In nineteen ninety one, 61 00:04:16,520 --> 00:04:19,479 Speaker 1: as the Soviet Union dissolved, he took to the streets 62 00:04:19,480 --> 00:04:23,440 Speaker 1: with his countrymen to celebrate Ukrainian independence. It was an 63 00:04:23,440 --> 00:04:27,360 Speaker 1: incredible victory for the country and the composer, but Valentine 64 00:04:27,640 --> 00:04:31,320 Speaker 1: never fully escaped the specter of violence. In twenty twenty two, 65 00:04:31,520 --> 00:04:34,400 Speaker 1: at the age of eighty four, he found himself uprooted 66 00:04:34,440 --> 00:04:38,000 Speaker 1: by conflict. As Russian bombs began falling on Kiev. He 67 00:04:38,080 --> 00:04:42,600 Speaker 1: fled his beloved homeland, becoming a refugee in Germany. It's 68 00:04:42,600 --> 00:04:45,440 Speaker 1: heartbreaking to think of someone who had already overcome so 69 00:04:45,680 --> 00:04:49,840 Speaker 1: much being forced from his home again, and yet Valentine's 70 00:04:49,839 --> 00:04:53,839 Speaker 1: response was not one of rage, but of reflection. Today, 71 00:04:53,880 --> 00:04:57,960 Speaker 1: as Ukraine endures unspeakable suffering, his music has taken on 72 00:04:58,040 --> 00:05:02,680 Speaker 1: a new resonance. His delicate, consoling compositions offer a kind 73 00:05:02,680 --> 00:05:06,520 Speaker 1: of healing that loud slogans and anthems can't provide. In 74 00:05:06,560 --> 00:05:09,640 Speaker 1: a time of deafening violence, his music reminds us that 75 00:05:09,800 --> 00:05:13,880 Speaker 1: silence can be its own kind of resistance. Valentine Silvestrov 76 00:05:14,000 --> 00:05:16,880 Speaker 1: never needed a megaphone to be a rebel. He just 77 00:05:16,960 --> 00:05:20,320 Speaker 1: needed a piano, a stubborn heart, and the radical belief 78 00:05:20,360 --> 00:05:24,240 Speaker 1: that freedom and beauty are always worth defending, even when 79 00:05:24,279 --> 00:05:42,440 Speaker 1: it seems like no one is listening. For decades, American 80 00:05:42,480 --> 00:05:45,000 Speaker 1: cooks knew that if their soufles fell flat or their 81 00:05:45,080 --> 00:05:48,320 Speaker 1: muffins tasted musty, there was just one person to ask 82 00:05:48,400 --> 00:05:51,279 Speaker 1: for advice. It was a woman who everyone knew. She 83 00:05:51,400 --> 00:05:55,080 Speaker 1: smiled from grocery store shelves, spoke over the airwaves, and 84 00:05:55,120 --> 00:05:58,159 Speaker 1: even published her own cookbook. I'm talking, of course, about 85 00:05:58,440 --> 00:06:02,440 Speaker 1: Betty Crocker. So when Americans wrote, called, or emailed Betty, 86 00:06:02,640 --> 00:06:06,200 Speaker 1: they were often getting responses from someone else entirely because 87 00:06:06,279 --> 00:06:09,920 Speaker 1: you see Betty Crocker, the face of American baking, never 88 00:06:10,000 --> 00:06:14,960 Speaker 1: actually existed. Betty's origins traced back to Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 89 00:06:15,040 --> 00:06:18,680 Speaker 1: nineteen twenty one. Back then, at the bustling offices of 90 00:06:18,760 --> 00:06:22,720 Speaker 1: the Washburn Crosby Company, the marketing department had a problem. 91 00:06:22,960 --> 00:06:26,400 Speaker 1: Washburn Crosby's main product was gold metal flour, and to 92 00:06:26,560 --> 00:06:29,400 Speaker 1: promote it, they would run a contest in a magazine. 93 00:06:29,560 --> 00:06:32,080 Speaker 1: Readers could solve a puzzle in an ad and then 94 00:06:32,160 --> 00:06:35,120 Speaker 1: send the answer in for a prize. The issue was 95 00:06:35,120 --> 00:06:38,080 Speaker 1: that people weren't just sending in completed puzzles. They were 96 00:06:38,279 --> 00:06:42,320 Speaker 1: asking questions, and over the past few days, Washburn Crosby's 97 00:06:42,360 --> 00:06:47,520 Speaker 1: all male advertising department had received nearly thirty thousand cooking queries. Now, 98 00:06:47,600 --> 00:06:49,680 Speaker 1: they had dealt with something like this before, but on 99 00:06:49,720 --> 00:06:52,080 Speaker 1: a much smaller scale, and at that time they had 100 00:06:52,120 --> 00:06:55,120 Speaker 1: simply asked female staff who baked for advice and then 101 00:06:55,240 --> 00:06:58,279 Speaker 1: sent those answers off. But the deluge of questions this 102 00:06:58,360 --> 00:07:01,120 Speaker 1: time brought to light a concern that Samuel Gail, the 103 00:07:01,360 --> 00:07:04,960 Speaker 1: head of advertising, had quietly been worrying about. He believed 104 00:07:04,960 --> 00:07:07,800 Speaker 1: the mostly female customers who were writing in wanted to 105 00:07:07,800 --> 00:07:10,920 Speaker 1: hear from another woman, someone who they, as a consumer, 106 00:07:10,960 --> 00:07:14,000 Speaker 1: would trust to give good advice. Since baking was seen 107 00:07:14,040 --> 00:07:16,680 Speaker 1: as a female activity at the time, he thought they 108 00:07:16,720 --> 00:07:19,280 Speaker 1: wouldn't want tips in a letter signed by a man, 109 00:07:19,600 --> 00:07:22,840 Speaker 1: even if the advice was actually coming from the female 110 00:07:22,840 --> 00:07:27,160 Speaker 1: office staff. So Samuel's idea to create whole Cloth a 111 00:07:27,200 --> 00:07:31,280 Speaker 1: fictional woman in charge of answering baking questions. Her last 112 00:07:31,320 --> 00:07:34,600 Speaker 1: name would be Crocker, after William G. Crocker, the recently 113 00:07:34,640 --> 00:07:38,480 Speaker 1: retired company director, and her first name well, something friendly, 114 00:07:38,680 --> 00:07:43,600 Speaker 1: something wholesome, something like Betty. After that, a Washburn Crosby 115 00:07:43,680 --> 00:07:46,320 Speaker 1: secretary wrote out a signature for the new fake baker, 116 00:07:46,640 --> 00:07:49,760 Speaker 1: and just like that, Betty Crocker was born and she 117 00:07:50,040 --> 00:07:53,200 Speaker 1: was an instant hit. By nineteen twenty four, she had 118 00:07:53,200 --> 00:07:56,520 Speaker 1: a radio show where a home economics expert named Marjorie 119 00:07:56,600 --> 00:07:59,800 Speaker 1: Child Husted brought her to life. In nineteen thirty six, 120 00:08:00,000 --> 00:08:02,240 Speaker 1: he finally got a face to go with the voice. 121 00:08:02,440 --> 00:08:05,840 Speaker 1: Washburn Crosby put together a composite of all the women 122 00:08:05,920 --> 00:08:08,679 Speaker 1: at the company, the result being the first ever Betty 123 00:08:08,760 --> 00:08:13,600 Speaker 1: Crocker official portrait. Betty's influence was felt in homes across 124 00:08:13,640 --> 00:08:17,120 Speaker 1: America all through the twentieth century. During World War Two, 125 00:08:17,240 --> 00:08:20,840 Speaker 1: she published cookbooks and ran a special radio program teaching 126 00:08:20,880 --> 00:08:24,120 Speaker 1: home cooks how to make do with ration foods. And 127 00:08:24,200 --> 00:08:27,240 Speaker 1: she continued to educate new cooks, giving lessons over the 128 00:08:27,320 --> 00:08:30,880 Speaker 1: radio and sponsoring cooking schools. It's no wonder that in 129 00:08:30,920 --> 00:08:34,720 Speaker 1: nineteen forty five, Fortune magazine named Betty Crocker the second 130 00:08:34,760 --> 00:08:37,840 Speaker 1: best known woman in America. The first was, of course, 131 00:08:38,200 --> 00:08:41,800 Speaker 1: Eleanor Roosevelt. Betty even came to the small screen in 132 00:08:41,880 --> 00:08:45,679 Speaker 1: nineteen forty nine when actress Adelaide Holly played her on TV. 133 00:08:46,160 --> 00:08:49,080 Speaker 1: For the next fifteen years, this real life Betty would 134 00:08:49,120 --> 00:08:52,720 Speaker 1: pop into TV shows on CBS and ABC to teach 135 00:08:52,760 --> 00:08:56,280 Speaker 1: television characters and celebrities to bake with the best of them. 136 00:08:56,760 --> 00:08:59,959 Speaker 1: Besides teaching consumers, Betty quickly began to sell to them 137 00:09:00,240 --> 00:09:03,320 Speaker 1: as well. Now, while you might instantly recognize Betty with 138 00:09:03,400 --> 00:09:06,520 Speaker 1: boxed cake mix or frosting, the first product bearing her 139 00:09:06,600 --> 00:09:09,120 Speaker 1: name was actually a dried soup mix that launched in 140 00:09:09,200 --> 00:09:12,880 Speaker 1: nineteen forty two. Quickly after that came cake mix, cookies, 141 00:09:13,200 --> 00:09:15,640 Speaker 1: and the other Betty Crocker products that we all know 142 00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:18,840 Speaker 1: and love. While Betty was never a real person, the 143 00:09:18,920 --> 00:09:22,600 Speaker 1: researchers behind her advice were. Over the years, a series 144 00:09:22,640 --> 00:09:27,160 Speaker 1: of recipe developers, nutritionists, and housekeeping experts were the brains 145 00:09:27,200 --> 00:09:31,960 Speaker 1: behind Betty and Washburn Crosby, which later became General Mills, 146 00:09:32,360 --> 00:09:35,640 Speaker 1: was wholly dedicated to making sure Betty's advice and products 147 00:09:35,920 --> 00:09:39,679 Speaker 1: worked perfectly for home cooks. In nineteen forty six, General 148 00:09:39,679 --> 00:09:43,280 Speaker 1: Mills created the Betty Crocker Test Kitchens at their office 149 00:09:43,320 --> 00:09:47,320 Speaker 1: in Minneapolis. These were replicas of home kitchens, complete with 150 00:09:47,400 --> 00:09:50,840 Speaker 1: the ovens, tools, and other equipment that a typical customer 151 00:09:50,960 --> 00:09:54,040 Speaker 1: might have in their home. They used these kitchens to 152 00:09:54,160 --> 00:09:57,280 Speaker 1: test out recipes and advice. So if a Betty Crocker 153 00:09:57,320 --> 00:10:00,640 Speaker 1: recipe said bake for twenty five minutes, you better believe 154 00:10:00,679 --> 00:10:03,800 Speaker 1: someone tried it at twenty three, twenty four, and twenty six, 155 00:10:04,320 --> 00:10:07,200 Speaker 1: just to be sure. Although she's over one hundred years 156 00:10:07,200 --> 00:10:10,360 Speaker 1: old today, Betty Crocker's cooking advice is still as fresh 157 00:10:10,440 --> 00:10:13,880 Speaker 1: as ever. She has helped generations of home cooks coddle 158 00:10:13,920 --> 00:10:17,280 Speaker 1: their eggs and cram their brulets. Back in the nineteen twenties, 159 00:10:17,600 --> 00:10:20,760 Speaker 1: Washburn Crosby took a gamble, hoping that people would like 160 00:10:20,800 --> 00:10:24,120 Speaker 1: advice from a character and not a committee, and today 161 00:10:24,520 --> 00:10:27,480 Speaker 1: it's still paying off, which just goes to show you 162 00:10:27,559 --> 00:10:31,079 Speaker 1: when it comes to cooking, there is no reward without 163 00:10:31,679 --> 00:10:38,319 Speaker 1: a little whisk. I hope you've enjoyed today's guided tour 164 00:10:38,440 --> 00:10:42,520 Speaker 1: of the Cabinet of Curiosities. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, 165 00:10:42,600 --> 00:10:46,079 Speaker 1: or learn more about the show by visiting Curiosities podcast 166 00:10:46,360 --> 00:10:50,120 Speaker 1: dot com. The show was created by me Aaron Manky 167 00:10:50,440 --> 00:10:53,920 Speaker 1: in partnership with how Stuff Works. I make another award 168 00:10:53,920 --> 00:10:57,520 Speaker 1: winning show called Lore, which is a podcast, book series, 169 00:10:57,559 --> 00:11:00,079 Speaker 1: and television show, and you can learn all about it 170 00:11:00,240 --> 00:11:05,720 Speaker 1: over at Theworldoflore dot com. And until next time, stay curious.