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 00:00:36,720 --> 00:00:39,440 Speaker 1: Winter is the perfect time to curl up with a blanket, 7 00:00:39,560 --> 00:00:42,200 Speaker 1: a cup of hot tea, and a cozy mystery novel. 8 00:00:42,440 --> 00:00:45,320 Speaker 1: What's better than spending the chilly evening indoors attempting to 9 00:00:45,360 --> 00:00:48,559 Speaker 1: answer the age old question who done it well? If 10 00:00:48,560 --> 00:00:51,000 Speaker 1: you lived in New York City in the early seventies, 11 00:00:51,120 --> 00:00:53,040 Speaker 1: there's one place you would have gone to pick up 12 00:00:53,040 --> 00:00:56,560 Speaker 1: your newest cozy read. It was called Murder Ink. That's 13 00:00:56,720 --> 00:00:59,520 Speaker 1: I NK as in the ink from a pen. And 14 00:00:59,560 --> 00:01:02,880 Speaker 1: it was the first American bookstore solely devoted to selling 15 00:01:02,920 --> 00:01:06,000 Speaker 1: mystery novels. The Hole in the Wall Bookshop was run 16 00:01:06,040 --> 00:01:09,000 Speaker 1: out of a tiny storefront in Manhattan's Upper west Side. 17 00:01:09,120 --> 00:01:12,759 Speaker 1: The decort was, in a word, eclectic. A plastic skeleton 18 00:01:12,840 --> 00:01:15,720 Speaker 1: hung facing the front door, as if to welcome or 19 00:01:15,800 --> 00:01:19,280 Speaker 1: threaten any would be customers. The floors were plaid linoleum, 20 00:01:19,319 --> 00:01:22,840 Speaker 1: and the wallpaper was paisley flower arrangements hung from the ceiling. 21 00:01:23,080 --> 00:01:26,840 Speaker 1: Tall wooden bookshelves lined the walls, each one overflowing with 22 00:01:26,959 --> 00:01:29,840 Speaker 1: hundreds of paperback books. Here and there you might stumble 23 00:01:29,920 --> 00:01:32,640 Speaker 1: upon the jar of pretzels or a cat curled up 24 00:01:32,680 --> 00:01:35,160 Speaker 1: on the floor. When you were ready to check out, 25 00:01:35,360 --> 00:01:37,560 Speaker 1: you would head towards the huge desk at the front 26 00:01:37,560 --> 00:01:40,400 Speaker 1: of the room, and there sat the store's owner, thirty 27 00:01:40,440 --> 00:01:43,560 Speaker 1: one year old Dylis win. With short, dark hair and 28 00:01:43,680 --> 00:01:46,800 Speaker 1: eyes that seemed to be sizing up other people, Dylis 29 00:01:46,840 --> 00:01:49,880 Speaker 1: cut an intimidating figure, but she was also one of 30 00:01:49,880 --> 00:01:53,360 Speaker 1: the most beloved people in the mystery novel community. She 31 00:01:53,480 --> 00:01:56,520 Speaker 1: was born in Dublin, Ireland, in nineteen thirty nine, but 32 00:01:56,640 --> 00:01:58,480 Speaker 1: her mother brought her to the United States when she 33 00:01:58,560 --> 00:02:01,560 Speaker 1: was still a baby. Grew up among her extended family 34 00:02:01,600 --> 00:02:04,080 Speaker 1: in New Jersey, and, strangely enough, she never had a 35 00:02:04,080 --> 00:02:08,360 Speaker 1: particular affinity for mystery stories. Sure, she read Nancy Drew, 36 00:02:08,400 --> 00:02:10,560 Speaker 1: but that was basically a write of passage for any 37 00:02:10,600 --> 00:02:13,800 Speaker 1: girl in the mid twentieth century. It wasn't until she 38 00:02:13,880 --> 00:02:17,239 Speaker 1: graduated from college in nineteen sixty one that she became, 39 00:02:17,560 --> 00:02:20,359 Speaker 1: as The New York Times put it, a serious reader 40 00:02:20,480 --> 00:02:25,080 Speaker 1: of mysteries, Charles Dickens, Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie. She 41 00:02:25,240 --> 00:02:28,320 Speaker 1: often read two full novels each day, and that was 42 00:02:28,400 --> 00:02:31,480 Speaker 1: all on top of her full time job as a copywriter. 43 00:02:32,240 --> 00:02:35,480 Speaker 1: By nineteen seventy one, Dylis was making a good living, 44 00:02:35,600 --> 00:02:38,840 Speaker 1: but she wasn't passionate about her work. She started daydreaming 45 00:02:38,840 --> 00:02:42,520 Speaker 1: about turning her love of mystery novels into a job. Now, 46 00:02:42,560 --> 00:02:45,520 Speaker 1: when Dylis wanted something, she didn't hesitate to get it. 47 00:02:45,720 --> 00:02:48,400 Speaker 1: One Wednesday, she decided she would open a bookstore that 48 00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:50,880 Speaker 1: only sold mystery novels, and she settled on the name 49 00:02:51,000 --> 00:02:54,120 Speaker 1: Murder Inc. On Thursday, she walked around Manhattan until she 50 00:02:54,160 --> 00:02:57,160 Speaker 1: found a suitable building for rent. On Friday, she signed 51 00:02:57,200 --> 00:02:59,480 Speaker 1: the lease, and over the next six weeks she built 52 00:02:59,520 --> 00:03:02,680 Speaker 1: up a stock of over fifteen hundred different titles, moved 53 00:03:02,680 --> 00:03:05,720 Speaker 1: in her desk, and hung up her iconic skeleton, and 54 00:03:05,919 --> 00:03:08,680 Speaker 1: just like that, it was time for the grand opening. 55 00:03:09,160 --> 00:03:11,280 Speaker 1: On her first day of business, a reporter from The 56 00:03:11,280 --> 00:03:14,440 Speaker 1: New York Times stumbled inside. He was so charmed by 57 00:03:14,480 --> 00:03:16,640 Speaker 1: the odd little store that he wrote a positive review 58 00:03:16,639 --> 00:03:19,040 Speaker 1: about it in the paper. The next thing, Dylis knew 59 00:03:19,200 --> 00:03:22,240 Speaker 1: she had a near constant flood of customers, ranging from 60 00:03:22,240 --> 00:03:26,720 Speaker 1: bookworms to forensic scientists and police detectives. Just one year 61 00:03:26,760 --> 00:03:29,919 Speaker 1: after opening, she had doubled her stock, opened a mail 62 00:03:30,000 --> 00:03:33,760 Speaker 1: order business, and even started catering to mystery novel collectors. 63 00:03:33,800 --> 00:03:36,880 Speaker 1: To celebrate her success, she invited friends and customers to 64 00:03:36,960 --> 00:03:40,200 Speaker 1: a party. In true Murder Ink fashion. The get together 65 00:03:40,280 --> 00:03:43,760 Speaker 1: had a grizzly name, the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre. When 66 00:03:43,800 --> 00:03:47,480 Speaker 1: guests arrived, they were promptly served a bloody Mary, and 67 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:51,320 Speaker 1: this party helped Dyllis realize something about herself. She actually 68 00:03:51,400 --> 00:03:54,920 Speaker 1: liked hosting parties more than running her bookstore. In nineteen 69 00:03:54,960 --> 00:03:58,160 Speaker 1: seventy five, she sold Murder Ink and pivoted to organizing 70 00:03:58,280 --> 00:04:02,760 Speaker 1: mystery centric events. Every Sunday, she hosted mystery talks, where 71 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:05,840 Speaker 1: she interviewed writers, editors, and other guests in front of 72 00:04:05,880 --> 00:04:08,880 Speaker 1: a live audience. She put together a two week mystery 73 00:04:08,920 --> 00:04:11,560 Speaker 1: reader's tour of Great Britain, complete with a stop at 74 00:04:11,600 --> 00:04:13,640 Speaker 1: the Tower of London and a walk through Jack the 75 00:04:13,720 --> 00:04:17,359 Speaker 1: Ripper's neighborhood. And through all these events, Dylus met and 76 00:04:17,440 --> 00:04:20,279 Speaker 1: became friends with a ton of novelists, and she got 77 00:04:20,279 --> 00:04:23,680 Speaker 1: to thinking, what if instead of writing mysteries, she gave 78 00:04:23,720 --> 00:04:27,400 Speaker 1: these authors a chance to solve one. In nineteen seventy seven, 79 00:04:27,440 --> 00:04:29,560 Speaker 1: she teamed up with two other women to plan a 80 00:04:29,640 --> 00:04:32,440 Speaker 1: murder mystery party for the Ages. It was held at 81 00:04:32,440 --> 00:04:35,080 Speaker 1: the Mohunk Mountain House in New Platts, New York, in 82 00:04:35,160 --> 00:04:37,880 Speaker 1: the dead of winter. Two hundred and fifty people were 83 00:04:37,920 --> 00:04:40,800 Speaker 1: invited to bear witness to a murder, a staged one, 84 00:04:40,839 --> 00:04:43,400 Speaker 1: that is, and then try to solve the case. Among 85 00:04:43,440 --> 00:04:46,960 Speaker 1: the guests were authors Isaac Asimov and Stephen King. The 86 00:04:47,000 --> 00:04:49,680 Speaker 1: party was such a success that it's been held annually 87 00:04:49,760 --> 00:04:53,320 Speaker 1: ever since. Murder Inc shut down in two thousand and six, 88 00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:56,960 Speaker 1: but Dylis wins legacy continues to delight and inspire those 89 00:04:57,000 --> 00:05:00,279 Speaker 1: who love a good cozy winter time read. Soh, the 90 00:05:00,279 --> 00:05:04,200 Speaker 1: beloved bookshop founder passed away in twenty sixteen. She donated 91 00:05:04,240 --> 00:05:06,880 Speaker 1: her body to science, perhaps in the hopes that she 92 00:05:06,960 --> 00:05:24,800 Speaker 1: might help future physicians learn to solve the mysteries of medicine. 93 00:05:25,839 --> 00:05:28,880 Speaker 1: Animals really are incredible, aren't they. I think that most 94 00:05:28,880 --> 00:05:31,040 Speaker 1: of us have dogs or cats in our lives who 95 00:05:31,120 --> 00:05:34,440 Speaker 1: are cherished, silly and maybe even a little bit bizarre. 96 00:05:34,640 --> 00:05:36,640 Speaker 1: I know in my family we have a running joke 97 00:05:36,680 --> 00:05:39,320 Speaker 1: about what's going on between our dogs' ears, and I 98 00:05:39,360 --> 00:05:41,760 Speaker 1: think most people think about that every once in a while, 99 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:45,000 Speaker 1: usually after a beloved family pet does something way too 100 00:05:45,040 --> 00:05:49,160 Speaker 1: smart or chaotic. But sometimes they seem so human, especially 101 00:05:49,200 --> 00:05:51,839 Speaker 1: when they're reminding us that it's time for dinner. But 102 00:05:52,040 --> 00:05:55,320 Speaker 1: one species actually can speak to us if we give 103 00:05:55,360 --> 00:05:58,080 Speaker 1: them time and attention. It turns out that Edgar Allen 104 00:05:58,160 --> 00:06:00,919 Speaker 1: Poe wasn't too far off the mud with his smack 105 00:06:01,000 --> 00:06:05,400 Speaker 1: talking feathered friend. Some species of birds, including cockatiles, crows, 106 00:06:05,640 --> 00:06:09,440 Speaker 1: and yes, even ravens, are capable of speech. And of 107 00:06:09,480 --> 00:06:12,440 Speaker 1: course let's not forget about parrots, although they tend to 108 00:06:12,480 --> 00:06:15,840 Speaker 1: either be the b villain in Alatin or incessantly asking 109 00:06:15,920 --> 00:06:18,760 Speaker 1: if Polly wants a cracker. But back in the early 110 00:06:18,800 --> 00:06:21,880 Speaker 1: eighteen hundreds, a funny little birdie was discovered in South 111 00:06:21,880 --> 00:06:25,800 Speaker 1: America that changed history. There are about three hundred and 112 00:06:25,839 --> 00:06:29,640 Speaker 1: fifty species of parrots spread across almost every continent, from 113 00:06:29,680 --> 00:06:33,360 Speaker 1: Australia to Asia and Africa to the Americas, and they'll 114 00:06:33,400 --> 00:06:36,880 Speaker 1: eat just about anything, even meat, which opens up a 115 00:06:36,880 --> 00:06:40,480 Speaker 1: bunch of possibilities for a new winged Halloween beastia. Some 116 00:06:40,600 --> 00:06:43,880 Speaker 1: are as big as a housecat, well almost, and parrots 117 00:06:43,920 --> 00:06:46,719 Speaker 1: can almost live as long as thirty five to fifty years, 118 00:06:46,760 --> 00:06:49,960 Speaker 1: depending on the species. But the oldest ever recorded was 119 00:06:49,960 --> 00:06:52,560 Speaker 1: a cockatoo named Cookie, who died at the age of 120 00:06:52,560 --> 00:06:56,520 Speaker 1: eighty two. And yes, some species of parrots can learn 121 00:06:56,600 --> 00:06:59,120 Speaker 1: to talk, although if you want a chatty pet that 122 00:06:59,160 --> 00:07:00,960 Speaker 1: will probably be with you for the rest of your 123 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:03,640 Speaker 1: natural life, you should know that it takes some practice 124 00:07:03,640 --> 00:07:08,200 Speaker 1: and patience and treats, lots and lots of treats. Now, 125 00:07:08,360 --> 00:07:11,840 Speaker 1: we humans have always been drawn to parrot's colorful plumage 126 00:07:11,840 --> 00:07:16,160 Speaker 1: and even more colorful attitudes. Alexander von Humboldt was no different. 127 00:07:16,480 --> 00:07:19,280 Speaker 1: Humboldt was a geographer and a naturalist by trade, and 128 00:07:19,400 --> 00:07:22,960 Speaker 1: he absorbed the Enlightenment idea of learning anything and everything, 129 00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:27,080 Speaker 1: making it his life's work. Swinging between charismatic and annoying, 130 00:07:27,320 --> 00:07:30,200 Speaker 1: Humboldt turned out an impressive amount of work. Before his death. 131 00:07:30,600 --> 00:07:33,840 Speaker 1: He traveled to four continents, wrote over thirty six books 132 00:07:34,040 --> 00:07:37,760 Speaker 1: and twenty five thousand letters, allegedly only slept four hours 133 00:07:37,760 --> 00:07:41,000 Speaker 1: a night, and lived basically on coffee he called it 134 00:07:41,360 --> 00:07:44,840 Speaker 1: concentrated sunbeams. I like to call it nap in a cup. 135 00:07:45,280 --> 00:07:47,960 Speaker 1: My kind of guy, right, So it's not surprising that 136 00:07:48,040 --> 00:07:51,239 Speaker 1: tall tales about his exploits appeared over time. He seems 137 00:07:51,280 --> 00:07:53,800 Speaker 1: like a bizarre mix of a mad scientists and an 138 00:07:53,800 --> 00:07:56,560 Speaker 1: adventurer with all the stories that he told. But one 139 00:07:56,560 --> 00:07:59,080 Speaker 1: of those anecdotes might not have been as fictional as 140 00:07:59,120 --> 00:08:02,760 Speaker 1: we thought. In June of seventeen ninety nine, Humbold set 141 00:08:02,760 --> 00:08:04,600 Speaker 1: out from Spain on a journey that would take him 142 00:08:04,640 --> 00:08:07,720 Speaker 1: the length and breadth of North and South America. Lasting 143 00:08:07,840 --> 00:08:10,840 Speaker 1: about five years, he would bounce through different countries and 144 00:08:10,880 --> 00:08:13,920 Speaker 1: colonies before making his way back to Europe. He hoped 145 00:08:14,160 --> 00:08:17,680 Speaker 1: with new discoveries to publish, and he got what he wanted, 146 00:08:17,760 --> 00:08:21,680 Speaker 1: recording vast amounts of raw ecological and zoological data about 147 00:08:21,760 --> 00:08:24,600 Speaker 1: every place he visited. He also made sure to note 148 00:08:24,640 --> 00:08:27,840 Speaker 1: the cultures he encountered, the conversations he had, and the 149 00:08:27,840 --> 00:08:30,880 Speaker 1: people he met, and to be fair, speaking Spanish was 150 00:08:30,920 --> 00:08:33,240 Speaker 1: a huge help, giving him the ability to talk to 151 00:08:33,280 --> 00:08:36,640 Speaker 1: most indigenous tribes he came across. Because few places had 152 00:08:36,720 --> 00:08:40,440 Speaker 1: escaped Spain's grasping, greedy fingers in the century since Columbus's 153 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:45,200 Speaker 1: conquest and everything that followed. That unifying language also helped 154 00:08:45,240 --> 00:08:48,000 Speaker 1: humboldt gain insight into the peoples he met, no matter 155 00:08:48,080 --> 00:08:51,480 Speaker 1: where they lived. According to one story, Humbold made a fascinating, 156 00:08:51,600 --> 00:08:55,000 Speaker 1: extraordinary discovery in the depths of the Venezuelan jungle around 157 00:08:55,000 --> 00:08:58,720 Speaker 1: eighteen hundred. He was exploring the Orinoco River and staying 158 00:08:58,760 --> 00:09:01,920 Speaker 1: with the local Carab tribe. These people kept several parrots 159 00:09:01,920 --> 00:09:04,360 Speaker 1: in cages throughout the village, and many of them could 160 00:09:04,400 --> 00:09:07,200 Speaker 1: and would speak to anyone who talked to them. Delighted 161 00:09:07,240 --> 00:09:10,120 Speaker 1: by what he saw, Humbold observed each parrot in turn, 162 00:09:10,280 --> 00:09:12,840 Speaker 1: and then began to realize that one bird sounded different 163 00:09:12,880 --> 00:09:15,480 Speaker 1: from the others. After asking his hosts about the creature, 164 00:09:15,520 --> 00:09:18,640 Speaker 1: he learned that it hadn't originally been theirs. The parrots 165 00:09:18,640 --> 00:09:21,160 Speaker 1: had come from a neighboring tribe, one of the Carib 166 00:09:21,200 --> 00:09:24,640 Speaker 1: people's enemies. Some years before. The tribe had been driven 167 00:09:24,720 --> 00:09:27,640 Speaker 1: away from their lands, and the last members died decades 168 00:09:27,679 --> 00:09:31,120 Speaker 1: before Humbold's arrival, meaning that all aspects of their culture 169 00:09:31,400 --> 00:09:35,000 Speaker 1: died out with them, well, all but one. You see. 170 00:09:35,080 --> 00:09:37,600 Speaker 1: Humbold realized that this parrot must have learned to speak 171 00:09:37,640 --> 00:09:41,280 Speaker 1: its original owner's language, and was therefore the last living 172 00:09:41,360 --> 00:09:44,680 Speaker 1: creature to do so. Leaping into action, he managed to 173 00:09:44,720 --> 00:09:48,160 Speaker 1: phonetically record about forty words from the near dead language 174 00:09:48,400 --> 00:09:51,800 Speaker 1: and saved it from total extinction. Now, the truth of 175 00:09:51,840 --> 00:09:54,400 Speaker 1: the story might always be a little iffy, and this 176 00:09:54,520 --> 00:09:57,920 Speaker 1: project was relatively minor compared to his other work, but 177 00:09:58,000 --> 00:10:00,600 Speaker 1: it has been a gift and an inspiration for linguists 178 00:10:00,640 --> 00:10:03,680 Speaker 1: and even artists to this day. In fact, in nineteen 179 00:10:03,760 --> 00:10:06,760 Speaker 1: ninety seven, an artist taught that language to a pair 180 00:10:06,800 --> 00:10:10,079 Speaker 1: of modern parrots, and knowing how long they live, it'll 181 00:10:10,080 --> 00:10:12,920 Speaker 1: probably be with us for many more years to come. 182 00:10:17,960 --> 00:10:20,680 Speaker 1: I hope you've enjoyed today's guided tour of the Cabinet 183 00:10:20,679 --> 00:10:24,560 Speaker 1: of Curiosities. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn 184 00:10:24,600 --> 00:10:29,080 Speaker 1: more about the show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. 185 00:10:29,200 --> 00:10:32,800 Speaker 1: The show was created by me Aaron Mankey in partnership 186 00:10:32,840 --> 00:10:36,120 Speaker 1: with how Stuff Works. I make another award winning show 187 00:10:36,240 --> 00:10:40,280 Speaker 1: called Lore, which is a podcast, book series, and television show, 188 00:10:40,559 --> 00:10:42,400 Speaker 1: and you can learn all about it over at the 189 00:10:42,600 --> 00:10:49,920 Speaker 1: Worldoflore dot com. And until next time, stay curious.