1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,400 Speaker 1: Fellow Ridiculous Historians, We're gonna say it. We hope this 2 00:00:03,440 --> 00:00:08,080 Speaker 1: doesn't ruffle too many feathers. We are big fans of spam, boy. 3 00:00:07,920 --> 00:00:08,520 Speaker 2: Are we ever? 4 00:00:09,760 --> 00:00:11,440 Speaker 3: Just I don't know, man, I don't love it to 5 00:00:11,480 --> 00:00:14,120 Speaker 3: eat necessarily, but I love the concept of it. And 6 00:00:14,160 --> 00:00:17,200 Speaker 3: I did recently have a spam musubi, which is like 7 00:00:17,280 --> 00:00:20,560 Speaker 3: a little Hawaiian kind of spam sushi role situation. 8 00:00:21,440 --> 00:00:24,840 Speaker 1: Yeah, spam musubi is crazy good. And if you've ever 9 00:00:25,000 --> 00:00:30,280 Speaker 1: spent time in Hawaii, or maybe in Korea or even Japan, 10 00:00:30,680 --> 00:00:34,000 Speaker 1: you know that spam is a global phenomenon. 11 00:00:34,520 --> 00:00:36,880 Speaker 2: It is darn air. 12 00:00:36,840 --> 00:00:41,159 Speaker 1: Ubiquitous in Hawaii, and yeah, it's tough for everyone. It 13 00:00:41,280 --> 00:00:44,480 Speaker 1: is a processed meat, and learning about how that meat 14 00:00:44,560 --> 00:00:49,159 Speaker 1: is processed may turn you off of the stuff. But luckily, 15 00:00:49,200 --> 00:00:53,760 Speaker 1: in today's classic episode, we are joined with our legendary 16 00:00:54,080 --> 00:00:58,000 Speaker 1: dear friend of our show, dear friend at our personal lives, 17 00:00:58,360 --> 00:01:01,960 Speaker 1: the co host and co creator of Savor, Annie Reese. 18 00:01:02,240 --> 00:01:06,360 Speaker 1: She's gonna help us understand just how ridiculous the origin 19 00:01:06,440 --> 00:01:07,680 Speaker 1: of spam actually is. 20 00:01:08,200 --> 00:01:12,000 Speaker 3: It is, indeed, so let's roll that beautiful spam footage. 21 00:01:15,319 --> 00:01:44,200 Speaker 1: Ridiculous History is a production of iHeartRadio. Hello everyone, ridiculous historians, 22 00:01:44,200 --> 00:01:47,520 Speaker 1: thank you for tuning in. This is the show where 23 00:01:47,560 --> 00:01:49,919 Speaker 1: we look at some of the strangest, weirdest, most bizarre, 24 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:53,360 Speaker 1: and yes, ridiculous people, places, things, and events throughout the 25 00:01:53,400 --> 00:01:55,600 Speaker 1: span of human civilization. 26 00:01:55,120 --> 00:02:00,160 Speaker 3: Animals, vegetables, minerals today. I'm not sure which category this 27 00:02:00,280 --> 00:02:04,800 Speaker 3: topic falls under, but it's it's a thing, it's historically driven. 28 00:02:04,720 --> 00:02:05,560 Speaker 2: And it's a fun thing. 29 00:02:05,640 --> 00:02:06,920 Speaker 3: It is a fun thing. You know what just happened? 30 00:02:06,920 --> 00:02:08,400 Speaker 3: I want to point out by the way, Ben. 31 00:02:08,520 --> 00:02:08,960 Speaker 2: What's that? 32 00:02:09,120 --> 00:02:14,960 Speaker 3: Noel, our super producer Casey Pegrin said, Okay, start talking, 33 00:02:15,400 --> 00:02:18,560 Speaker 3: go right, go. He literally cracked the whip at us. 34 00:02:18,560 --> 00:02:20,120 Speaker 3: I will because you you would. 35 00:02:20,480 --> 00:02:23,040 Speaker 1: You had thrown both Casey and I under the bus 36 00:02:23,080 --> 00:02:27,959 Speaker 1: before the before the show started. Yeah, by by saying 37 00:02:27,960 --> 00:02:32,840 Speaker 1: that you are more grateful than anyone for a particularly surprising, 38 00:02:32,919 --> 00:02:35,400 Speaker 1: amazing thing we have happening in this episode. 39 00:02:35,440 --> 00:02:37,880 Speaker 3: That's just me over compensating. You notice about me, Ben? 40 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:38,920 Speaker 2: You know this about me? 41 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:41,920 Speaker 3: Do you want how about this? Let's let's drop the 42 00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:43,840 Speaker 3: drop the goods. What do we have today? That's so right, 43 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:44,640 Speaker 3: that's correct. 44 00:02:44,680 --> 00:02:49,440 Speaker 1: Yeah, So we have today an amazing story about an 45 00:02:49,639 --> 00:02:53,840 Speaker 1: iconic food product that everyone in the US is aware of, 46 00:02:53,880 --> 00:02:56,840 Speaker 1: and I assume many people throughout the world are aware 47 00:02:56,880 --> 00:03:00,280 Speaker 1: of this. It is called spam. But you and I 48 00:03:00,320 --> 00:03:04,720 Speaker 1: are not exploring this story alone today. Thank god we 49 00:03:04,840 --> 00:03:08,480 Speaker 1: called in an expert. Folks, would like to introduce you 50 00:03:08,560 --> 00:03:12,440 Speaker 1: to our friend and today's co host, Annie Reese. 51 00:03:12,600 --> 00:03:15,600 Speaker 4: Hi, everybody, thanks so much for having me. Guys, did 52 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:16,880 Speaker 4: you know that you were a spam expert? 53 00:03:16,960 --> 00:03:17,360 Speaker 3: Annie? 54 00:03:18,040 --> 00:03:21,280 Speaker 2: Spam spurt? You know, I am so disgusting. That does 55 00:03:21,360 --> 00:03:23,000 Speaker 2: sound really gross. Yeah, it didn't work out. 56 00:03:23,040 --> 00:03:24,400 Speaker 3: It's like what happens when you opened the can and 57 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:25,840 Speaker 3: a little bit of the juice you. 58 00:03:26,520 --> 00:03:28,840 Speaker 2: Oh, I did not need that mental image. 59 00:03:29,600 --> 00:03:30,880 Speaker 3: You didn't know it, but she did. 60 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:31,639 Speaker 2: Annie. 61 00:03:31,720 --> 00:03:34,720 Speaker 3: Okay, expert maybe not. I don't know. We're all kind 62 00:03:34,720 --> 00:03:37,360 Speaker 3: of like armchair experts on a lot of things. We 63 00:03:37,400 --> 00:03:39,560 Speaker 3: have a good time researching. I don't know how you 64 00:03:39,560 --> 00:03:42,200 Speaker 3: would get the qualification of spam expert, but I'm going 65 00:03:42,240 --> 00:03:44,480 Speaker 3: to refer to you as our spam spirit guide today. 66 00:03:44,480 --> 00:03:44,960 Speaker 3: How about that? 67 00:03:44,960 --> 00:03:46,880 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, I like about spam consultant. 68 00:03:48,160 --> 00:03:51,000 Speaker 2: I'm going to go it sounds like an email. I 69 00:03:51,080 --> 00:03:52,720 Speaker 2: come in and you're getting a lot. 70 00:03:52,680 --> 00:03:55,840 Speaker 3: Of spam sorted out, like make all the filters on 71 00:03:55,880 --> 00:03:56,440 Speaker 3: your emails. 72 00:03:56,600 --> 00:03:59,240 Speaker 1: I feel like I'm shopping at a grocery store and 73 00:03:59,280 --> 00:04:01,960 Speaker 1: I'm going, oh wait, there's so many different things, and 74 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:05,280 Speaker 1: then you appear and you explain it in a step 75 00:04:05,280 --> 00:04:07,080 Speaker 1: by step basis, And I just want you to know 76 00:04:07,160 --> 00:04:11,240 Speaker 1: that I am preemptively very appreciative of that. 77 00:04:12,000 --> 00:04:15,120 Speaker 2: I feel like i'd be good at that. I'm not sure, but. 78 00:04:15,080 --> 00:04:15,920 Speaker 3: Are very efficient. 79 00:04:17,080 --> 00:04:22,480 Speaker 1: And you are a co host of our food podcast, Savor, 80 00:04:22,720 --> 00:04:25,120 Speaker 1: Food Lifestyle Travel. Could you tell us a little bit 81 00:04:25,120 --> 00:04:25,560 Speaker 1: about Saver. 82 00:04:26,320 --> 00:04:31,960 Speaker 4: Yeah. Savor is a show where we explore the science 83 00:04:32,040 --> 00:04:36,440 Speaker 4: history culture of food and drinks and why we like 84 00:04:36,480 --> 00:04:38,080 Speaker 4: what we like and how you can get more of that. 85 00:04:38,400 --> 00:04:39,480 Speaker 2: It used to be called food Stuff. 86 00:04:39,520 --> 00:04:43,080 Speaker 4: We recently rebranded, but we did a whole episode on 87 00:04:43,120 --> 00:04:47,040 Speaker 4: spam back when it was old school food stuff. And 88 00:04:47,440 --> 00:04:49,760 Speaker 4: I have a confession to make that Noel and I 89 00:04:49,800 --> 00:04:51,520 Speaker 4: were talking about briefly before this. 90 00:04:52,120 --> 00:04:53,560 Speaker 2: Anyone who knows anything. 91 00:04:53,320 --> 00:04:57,880 Speaker 4: About Apple podcast reviews, you don't read them unless you're 92 00:04:57,920 --> 00:04:58,640 Speaker 4: a masochist. 93 00:04:58,680 --> 00:04:59,960 Speaker 3: Oh yeah, right, which I am. 94 00:05:01,640 --> 00:05:03,960 Speaker 4: Well, you were a very result in me, but once 95 00:05:04,000 --> 00:05:06,159 Speaker 4: I'm a friend of mine left a review and was 96 00:05:06,160 --> 00:05:07,520 Speaker 4: like you've got to go find it, you've got to 97 00:05:07,520 --> 00:05:09,160 Speaker 4: read it, And I said, do you know what you're 98 00:05:09,160 --> 00:05:12,480 Speaker 4: asking me to do? But eventually I got over it 99 00:05:12,520 --> 00:05:15,320 Speaker 4: and delved into the nightmare. 100 00:05:14,960 --> 00:05:18,799 Speaker 3: War the shark pity that is podcast reviews. 101 00:05:18,880 --> 00:05:21,120 Speaker 2: I like the reviews I read it. 102 00:05:21,440 --> 00:05:25,000 Speaker 4: Oh, that might say something about you, but it might 103 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:28,080 Speaker 4: say something about me as well. But one of the 104 00:05:28,160 --> 00:05:31,520 Speaker 4: number one recurring negative reviews was that I have never 105 00:05:31,560 --> 00:05:34,279 Speaker 4: tried any of the foods we're talking about. And when 106 00:05:34,279 --> 00:05:36,640 Speaker 4: we recorded spam, I had not tried it. 107 00:05:36,839 --> 00:05:40,160 Speaker 3: Yeah, you're very open about it on the show, though, Yeah, 108 00:05:40,480 --> 00:05:43,320 Speaker 3: it seems like a very misplaced complaint. You know, you're 109 00:05:43,360 --> 00:05:45,760 Speaker 3: talking to it, you're owning up to it. You honestly, 110 00:05:45,800 --> 00:05:47,839 Speaker 3: maybe it's better that you haven't tasted the stuff. It 111 00:05:47,839 --> 00:05:49,120 Speaker 3: makes you more objective about it. 112 00:05:49,160 --> 00:05:51,720 Speaker 2: Have you still tried it? I tried it. 113 00:05:51,800 --> 00:05:56,640 Speaker 4: Afterwards, I went and got spam subi and that was 114 00:05:56,720 --> 00:05:56,960 Speaker 4: it was. 115 00:05:56,960 --> 00:05:59,560 Speaker 2: Lovely spam what musubi? 116 00:06:01,080 --> 00:06:04,600 Speaker 4: Yeah, it's a very popular you can find it inconvenience 117 00:06:04,600 --> 00:06:06,479 Speaker 4: stores in Hawaii, that's how popular it is. And it 118 00:06:06,560 --> 00:06:09,200 Speaker 4: kind of to me looks like nigiri, like sushi, but 119 00:06:09,279 --> 00:06:10,760 Speaker 4: it's it's spam. 120 00:06:10,800 --> 00:06:14,279 Speaker 1: Oh, yes, Okay, yeah, I'm familiar with that. And what 121 00:06:14,320 --> 00:06:17,800 Speaker 1: we know nowadays is that in most grocery stores that 122 00:06:17,920 --> 00:06:21,559 Speaker 1: carry spam, you won't just see the iconic, regular garden 123 00:06:21,600 --> 00:06:25,479 Speaker 1: variety spam. You'll see stuff like turkey spam, spam with bacon, 124 00:06:25,720 --> 00:06:31,440 Speaker 1: spam light. And because this is so recognizable, we have 125 00:06:31,520 --> 00:06:35,279 Speaker 1: to ask ourselves, how how did this thing which people 126 00:06:35,360 --> 00:06:38,880 Speaker 1: love or hate, how did it become so ubiquitous in 127 00:06:38,960 --> 00:06:44,360 Speaker 1: the world today? How how come everybody, vegetarians vegans included, 128 00:06:44,720 --> 00:06:47,960 Speaker 1: know what you're talking about and you say spam. 129 00:06:47,520 --> 00:06:50,839 Speaker 3: Well, first of all, it's good branding right to say 130 00:06:50,839 --> 00:06:53,800 Speaker 3: the spa sound is one of my favorites. And then 131 00:06:53,839 --> 00:06:56,400 Speaker 3: add va am and it's just a delight to say 132 00:06:56,440 --> 00:06:59,200 Speaker 3: out loud, and it's it's it's meant to be an acronym, 133 00:06:59,200 --> 00:07:01,919 Speaker 3: but the or of what its acronym actually might be 134 00:07:02,440 --> 00:07:04,200 Speaker 3: is a little bit lost to history, or it's kind 135 00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:05,320 Speaker 3: of a little murky, right. 136 00:07:05,560 --> 00:07:08,520 Speaker 4: Yeah, there are a couple of stories about where the 137 00:07:08,600 --> 00:07:11,920 Speaker 4: name came from from the people who should know where 138 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:16,000 Speaker 4: it came from. One is that it's like spiced ham, 139 00:07:16,160 --> 00:07:19,960 Speaker 4: or maybe it stands for scientifically processed. 140 00:07:19,480 --> 00:07:24,760 Speaker 2: Animal matter animal matter sound not so delicious not quite 141 00:07:25,640 --> 00:07:28,280 Speaker 2: meat animal matter. 142 00:07:28,440 --> 00:07:30,920 Speaker 3: And there's others too. There's a shoulder of pork and 143 00:07:31,040 --> 00:07:33,400 Speaker 3: ham and like you said, spiced ham. And then if 144 00:07:33,440 --> 00:07:35,200 Speaker 3: we want to really get into the weeds that's utterly 145 00:07:35,240 --> 00:07:38,440 Speaker 3: not food related. There's Stop Pornography and Abusive Marketing Act. 146 00:07:38,600 --> 00:07:42,680 Speaker 3: There's also the State Police Association of Massachusetts. Best we forget. 147 00:07:43,840 --> 00:07:46,200 Speaker 2: I didn't realize that was in the running. 148 00:07:46,200 --> 00:07:50,400 Speaker 3: Schools of the Pacific Atmospheric Monitoring Society for the Publication 149 00:07:50,560 --> 00:07:56,160 Speaker 3: of American Music Systems Personnel Activity Meeting. That's from Yale 150 00:07:56,280 --> 00:07:59,800 Speaker 3: in my personal favorite society for palm top advancement through meetings. 151 00:08:00,360 --> 00:08:01,880 Speaker 2: Oh through only through media. 152 00:08:01,960 --> 00:08:04,880 Speaker 3: That seems like a fascinating use of time. But okay, 153 00:08:04,880 --> 00:08:08,200 Speaker 3: so spam It dates back to nineteen thirty seven in 154 00:08:08,240 --> 00:08:14,400 Speaker 3: a town called Austin, Minnesota aka Spamtown, USA. 155 00:08:13,240 --> 00:08:18,200 Speaker 1: And it was made by Hormel Foods. They initially pitched 156 00:08:18,240 --> 00:08:24,160 Speaker 1: it as a way to help busy homemakers serve quick 157 00:08:24,280 --> 00:08:27,320 Speaker 1: and easy pork dishes without having to slave away for 158 00:08:27,440 --> 00:08:28,920 Speaker 1: hours in front of it of it. 159 00:08:29,000 --> 00:08:31,760 Speaker 3: But in like an Edward Burnet's style stroke of genius, 160 00:08:31,800 --> 00:08:35,000 Speaker 3: it also did a thing where it Hormel the guy 161 00:08:36,040 --> 00:08:39,600 Speaker 3: had a slaughterhouse, and he had these byproduct parts that 162 00:08:39,880 --> 00:08:44,480 Speaker 3: weren't very sellable, aka the pork shoulder. We now kind 163 00:08:44,480 --> 00:08:46,400 Speaker 3: of dig pork shoulder. That's like a thing that it's 164 00:08:46,400 --> 00:08:48,560 Speaker 3: like a delicacy, right or like people eat it at 165 00:08:48,559 --> 00:08:49,800 Speaker 3: the Thanksgiving table or whatever. 166 00:08:49,880 --> 00:08:54,160 Speaker 2: Right, people are into it now, Yeah for barbecue, I think, right, yeah, yeah, yeah, 167 00:08:54,200 --> 00:08:54,679 Speaker 2: exactly so. 168 00:08:54,960 --> 00:08:57,640 Speaker 3: But he had this surplus of pork shoulder. It was 169 00:08:57,679 --> 00:09:00,280 Speaker 3: not a popular cut, and so he wanted to figure 170 00:09:00,320 --> 00:09:02,800 Speaker 3: out a way to make this, as you say, ben 171 00:09:02,920 --> 00:09:07,200 Speaker 3: convenient product that could be marketed to homemakers who are 172 00:09:07,240 --> 00:09:09,920 Speaker 3: all about canned food. At the time it was all 173 00:09:09,960 --> 00:09:10,960 Speaker 3: the rage. 174 00:09:10,600 --> 00:09:14,560 Speaker 1: And they haven't really fuxed with the ingredients too much. 175 00:09:14,800 --> 00:09:15,000 Speaker 2: You know. 176 00:09:15,200 --> 00:09:19,120 Speaker 1: It's strange because when you think of shelf stable, that 177 00:09:19,320 --> 00:09:22,000 Speaker 1: shell stable being the term for stuff that can stay 178 00:09:22,000 --> 00:09:25,400 Speaker 1: at room temperature without going bad. I guess getting worse 179 00:09:25,440 --> 00:09:27,840 Speaker 1: than it originally was. When you think of that, usually 180 00:09:27,840 --> 00:09:31,960 Speaker 1: think of a ton of chemicals with so many syllables 181 00:09:31,960 --> 00:09:33,840 Speaker 1: in the name that it sounds like a spell from 182 00:09:33,840 --> 00:09:37,840 Speaker 1: Harry Potter, right. But in the case of spam, they 183 00:09:37,880 --> 00:09:45,040 Speaker 1: have what six ingredients is just port slash, ham salt water, potato, starch, sugar, 184 00:09:45,280 --> 00:09:47,319 Speaker 1: and of course sodium nitrate. 185 00:09:47,760 --> 00:09:53,640 Speaker 2: Of course for color. Yes, that captivating pinkishu. It's they 186 00:09:53,720 --> 00:09:54,320 Speaker 2: describe it. 187 00:09:54,840 --> 00:10:01,280 Speaker 1: So spam didn't immediately become this worldwide since there were 188 00:10:01,480 --> 00:10:06,320 Speaker 1: other things happening across the planet that eventually would lead 189 00:10:06,400 --> 00:10:10,800 Speaker 1: to spam becoming like the king of canned meat. And 190 00:10:12,080 --> 00:10:14,199 Speaker 1: it goes into an angle that a lot of people 191 00:10:14,280 --> 00:10:16,880 Speaker 1: might not be aware of. It goes to tensions between 192 00:10:16,920 --> 00:10:20,600 Speaker 1: the US and Japan during the nineteen thirties. There's a guy, 193 00:10:20,720 --> 00:10:24,240 Speaker 1: Donald M. Shug at the University of Hawaii who published 194 00:10:24,240 --> 00:10:28,120 Speaker 1: a paper on this, and he says that the US 195 00:10:28,280 --> 00:10:32,680 Speaker 1: military began to view Hawaii's fishing fleet as a serious 196 00:10:32,720 --> 00:10:36,520 Speaker 1: threat to national security. So, you know, at this time, 197 00:10:36,600 --> 00:10:40,920 Speaker 1: Hawaii is still not a US state, right, So when 198 00:10:41,080 --> 00:10:44,680 Speaker 1: the Japanese government arranged for many of Hawaii's Japanese fishermen 199 00:10:44,720 --> 00:10:48,560 Speaker 1: to attend fishing schools in Japan, there were concerns that 200 00:10:48,600 --> 00:10:53,719 Speaker 1: these fishermen were actually being interrogated by Japanese navy officials. 201 00:10:54,040 --> 00:10:55,920 Speaker 3: Yeah, but to what end? Ben to what end? 202 00:10:56,360 --> 00:11:00,000 Speaker 1: So this eventually, okay, we walked through this real quick. 203 00:11:00,480 --> 00:11:05,440 Speaker 1: So in nineteen forty three years after the invention of spam, 204 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:09,600 Speaker 1: suspicions about the loyalty of Japanese immigrants resulted in the 205 00:11:09,640 --> 00:11:13,680 Speaker 1: implementation of a federal statute that stopped or banned fishing 206 00:11:13,760 --> 00:11:18,080 Speaker 1: vessels of five tons or more from obtaining licenses unless 207 00:11:18,120 --> 00:11:20,880 Speaker 1: the person who owned the vessel was a US citizen. 208 00:11:21,160 --> 00:11:23,840 Speaker 1: The next year, nineteen forty one, they passed a law 209 00:11:23,880 --> 00:11:29,400 Speaker 1: prohibiting quote aliens from fishing with gil purs or these 210 00:11:29,400 --> 00:11:32,160 Speaker 1: different kinds of nets within one mile of shore, because 211 00:11:32,200 --> 00:11:35,599 Speaker 1: they wanted to preserve the fishery resources for Native Hawaiians 212 00:11:35,880 --> 00:11:38,599 Speaker 1: and US citizens. This ended careers of a lot of 213 00:11:38,640 --> 00:11:41,960 Speaker 1: people in the fishing industry in Hawaii, and then that 214 00:11:42,120 --> 00:11:46,480 Speaker 1: meant that without spam these other canned meats and sardines, 215 00:11:46,960 --> 00:11:49,600 Speaker 1: the economy would have collapsed. They had to find something 216 00:11:49,880 --> 00:11:52,720 Speaker 1: to replace this massive fishing industry. 217 00:11:52,760 --> 00:11:55,200 Speaker 3: And let's not forget about Executive Order in ninety sixty 218 00:11:55,240 --> 00:12:00,920 Speaker 3: six where Franklin Roosevelt basically banned Japanese Americans citizens who 219 00:12:00,920 --> 00:12:04,080 Speaker 3: were occupying military zones had them put in internment camp. 220 00:12:04,120 --> 00:12:07,640 Speaker 3: So this whole anti Japanese sentiment was wide rife in 221 00:12:07,679 --> 00:12:11,120 Speaker 3: the country, and weirdly enough, it trickled down to this 222 00:12:11,320 --> 00:12:13,040 Speaker 3: canned meat product. 223 00:12:13,480 --> 00:12:18,320 Speaker 1: And of course these tensions, these discriminatory laws and economic 224 00:12:18,400 --> 00:12:24,200 Speaker 1: practices were only ripples of a much larger event on 225 00:12:24,280 --> 00:12:28,199 Speaker 1: the horizon, which is World War Two. And when the 226 00:12:28,240 --> 00:12:31,280 Speaker 1: war begins, spam also has a part to play. 227 00:12:31,520 --> 00:12:34,920 Speaker 4: Yeah, it does, because if you remember, spam was pretty 228 00:12:34,920 --> 00:12:39,400 Speaker 4: new around the time that America was getting involved in 229 00:12:39,440 --> 00:12:43,480 Speaker 4: World War Two, but it was a popular option for 230 00:12:43,640 --> 00:12:48,680 Speaker 4: soldiers because getting fresh meat or fresh anything to Hawaii 231 00:12:49,480 --> 00:12:54,280 Speaker 4: was difficult for American soldiers station there, so the US 232 00:12:54,400 --> 00:12:58,640 Speaker 4: government was sending spam, or it might not have been 233 00:12:58,720 --> 00:12:59,560 Speaker 4: exactly spam. 234 00:12:59,720 --> 00:13:02,080 Speaker 3: Wasn't it kind of like leftover meat parts that they 235 00:13:02,160 --> 00:13:04,480 Speaker 3: had that they shipped to Hormel and then they made 236 00:13:04,520 --> 00:13:06,080 Speaker 3: them my spam like stuff. 237 00:13:06,160 --> 00:13:11,280 Speaker 4: Yeah yeah, yeah, so Hormel's canning them. But it probably 238 00:13:11,400 --> 00:13:14,440 Speaker 4: wasn't exactly what spam is today or what we think 239 00:13:14,440 --> 00:13:17,560 Speaker 4: of it today. And it was cheap, non perishable, could 240 00:13:17,559 --> 00:13:23,320 Speaker 4: withstand all sorts of weather conditions. But soldiers weren't exactly 241 00:13:23,360 --> 00:13:26,679 Speaker 4: happy with spam. They were sometimes eating it three times 242 00:13:26,720 --> 00:13:29,719 Speaker 4: a day, so I'm sure they were tired of it. 243 00:13:30,240 --> 00:13:33,720 Speaker 4: Some of them even wrote hate mail to Hormel. Which 244 00:13:33,840 --> 00:13:37,880 Speaker 4: the company kept in a quote scurrilous file, and some 245 00:13:37,920 --> 00:13:41,840 Speaker 4: of my favorite dishes are quote meat loaf without basic 246 00:13:41,920 --> 00:13:45,679 Speaker 4: training haam, that didn't pass its physical and the real 247 00:13:45,800 --> 00:13:47,359 Speaker 4: reason war was hell. 248 00:13:47,480 --> 00:13:48,960 Speaker 2: That's great, it's fantastic. 249 00:13:49,040 --> 00:13:51,480 Speaker 3: It's pretty harsh. Those are some sick burns. Do you 250 00:13:51,520 --> 00:13:54,360 Speaker 3: think that this would have been like branded as spam? 251 00:13:54,360 --> 00:13:56,000 Speaker 3: Would it have come in the tins, like with the 252 00:13:56,040 --> 00:13:58,360 Speaker 3: logo on it and everything, because you kind of made 253 00:13:58,400 --> 00:14:00,320 Speaker 3: a point on your episode of food Stuff back when 254 00:14:00,320 --> 00:14:03,760 Speaker 3: it was called that that almost like the proper spam 255 00:14:03,840 --> 00:14:05,840 Speaker 3: kind of got a bad rap because this was like 256 00:14:05,880 --> 00:14:09,240 Speaker 3: almost like bootleg spam, but it was being manufactured in 257 00:14:09,320 --> 00:14:13,080 Speaker 3: Hormel's canning facilities. So I'm wondering if they like branded 258 00:14:13,120 --> 00:14:16,040 Speaker 3: it differently or called it like Mr. Spam or something, 259 00:14:16,160 --> 00:14:17,920 Speaker 3: or I don't know, do you find anything about that 260 00:14:17,960 --> 00:14:18,600 Speaker 3: in your research. 261 00:14:18,880 --> 00:14:22,240 Speaker 4: I didn't find much about that at all. In fact, 262 00:14:22,440 --> 00:14:26,120 Speaker 4: the fact that it wasn't spam was sort of a 263 00:14:26,160 --> 00:14:26,720 Speaker 4: deep cut. 264 00:14:26,760 --> 00:14:29,400 Speaker 3: It was kind of lost on people. Clearly they were 265 00:14:29,440 --> 00:14:32,040 Speaker 3: writing those letters, those angry letters. Oh and this also 266 00:14:32,120 --> 00:14:33,360 Speaker 3: know it reminds me of the kind of people that 267 00:14:33,680 --> 00:14:35,160 Speaker 3: write mean things about podcasts. 268 00:14:35,280 --> 00:14:38,200 Speaker 1: Well, it's also in the case of spam, there's an 269 00:14:38,200 --> 00:14:41,760 Speaker 1: interesting linguistic thing that occurs because they're using it as 270 00:14:41,800 --> 00:14:45,920 Speaker 1: one word to describe this umbrella of umbrella of processed meat. 271 00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:47,960 Speaker 2: So the image it just got weird for me. 272 00:14:48,400 --> 00:14:51,280 Speaker 1: But you know, it's similar to the way that instead 273 00:14:51,280 --> 00:14:53,680 Speaker 1: of people saying search for something on the Internet, they 274 00:14:53,760 --> 00:14:56,680 Speaker 1: say google it, or instead of make a copy xerox this. 275 00:14:56,880 --> 00:14:57,080 Speaker 4: Yeah. 276 00:14:57,160 --> 00:15:01,880 Speaker 1: Right, And it seems pretty certain in the history that 277 00:15:02,320 --> 00:15:07,160 Speaker 1: only a few soldiers received genuine spam. But because there 278 00:15:07,160 --> 00:15:10,280 Speaker 1: had already been this can be product around since the 279 00:15:10,400 --> 00:15:14,400 Speaker 1: late thirties, that's just what people called it. So maybe 280 00:15:14,440 --> 00:15:19,080 Speaker 1: spam got an unfair uh mark, a scurreless mark on 281 00:15:19,120 --> 00:15:21,040 Speaker 1: its on its reputation. 282 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:24,760 Speaker 4: I wonder if it's possible too that because spam was 283 00:15:24,880 --> 00:15:28,120 Speaker 4: new and at the time, there was such a push 284 00:15:28,280 --> 00:15:32,120 Speaker 4: to be like behind the boys, and you know, all 285 00:15:32,360 --> 00:15:35,480 Speaker 4: American soldiers and America is doing great in the war. 286 00:15:35,760 --> 00:15:39,200 Speaker 1: Annie is Annie has throwing some great propaganda. Yeah, she's 287 00:15:39,240 --> 00:15:42,800 Speaker 1: got these tiny American flags. She's gently twisting between her 288 00:15:42,840 --> 00:15:43,640 Speaker 1: thumb and forefinger. 289 00:15:43,800 --> 00:15:46,760 Speaker 2: Shut off a firecracker. I always come with crops, I 290 00:15:46,800 --> 00:15:47,720 Speaker 2: always come with props. 291 00:15:47,920 --> 00:15:48,840 Speaker 3: Very true. 292 00:15:49,480 --> 00:15:54,160 Speaker 4: But I wonder if maybe they made a miscalculation and thought, oh, 293 00:15:54,280 --> 00:15:56,840 Speaker 4: spam is supporting the soldiers and this will really get 294 00:15:56,840 --> 00:15:59,880 Speaker 4: our name out there. And it did, but not in 295 00:16:00,080 --> 00:16:01,480 Speaker 4: the way they were hoping. 296 00:16:02,200 --> 00:16:04,520 Speaker 3: Oh man, this is like a like an attempt, like 297 00:16:04,560 --> 00:16:07,920 Speaker 3: a ham fisted attempt at a pr kind of stun 298 00:16:08,240 --> 00:16:10,680 Speaker 3: visited a test spam fisted attempt. That's even better, and 299 00:16:10,840 --> 00:16:12,240 Speaker 3: he took to the next level like you do. 300 00:16:13,400 --> 00:16:16,120 Speaker 4: I'm just curious if there was an element of that 301 00:16:16,200 --> 00:16:18,640 Speaker 4: behind it, because I could see I could see the 302 00:16:18,680 --> 00:16:20,000 Speaker 4: calculation there. 303 00:16:19,880 --> 00:16:23,080 Speaker 1: Because it is free advertising when you think about it. 304 00:16:23,160 --> 00:16:27,000 Speaker 1: That's a good point because these soldiers from the US 305 00:16:27,200 --> 00:16:29,440 Speaker 1: are traveling around the world. They're going to Europe, they're 306 00:16:29,440 --> 00:16:32,960 Speaker 1: going to the Pacific, they're going to various different islands, 307 00:16:33,320 --> 00:16:35,680 Speaker 1: and they're bringing spam along with them. 308 00:16:36,280 --> 00:16:40,000 Speaker 4: Yeah, and it's a government contract, so you're getting paid 309 00:16:40,680 --> 00:16:43,520 Speaker 4: to do it. I bet there was something like that 310 00:16:43,600 --> 00:16:48,240 Speaker 4: going on, and the backlash from the soldiers generated one 311 00:16:48,240 --> 00:16:50,240 Speaker 4: of my favorite quotes about spam, because there are a 312 00:16:50,280 --> 00:16:52,880 Speaker 4: lot of excellent quotes about spam. Hormale describes it as 313 00:16:53,000 --> 00:16:54,840 Speaker 4: meat with a pause button, which I love. 314 00:16:55,120 --> 00:16:57,040 Speaker 3: I'm gonna need you to unpack that for us A 315 00:16:57,080 --> 00:17:00,280 Speaker 3: little bit meat with a pause button, meaning like it 316 00:17:00,320 --> 00:17:02,480 Speaker 3: never goes bad. Or is that the implication? 317 00:17:02,640 --> 00:17:04,840 Speaker 4: Yeah, like you put it in that can. It's like 318 00:17:04,880 --> 00:17:07,960 Speaker 4: a time capsule. It's just going to stay the same. 319 00:17:08,119 --> 00:17:15,240 Speaker 4: I got it pushing pause. Another one of my favorite 320 00:17:15,280 --> 00:17:17,840 Speaker 4: quotes comes from a nineteen forty five New Yorker piece, 321 00:17:18,200 --> 00:17:20,320 Speaker 4: and it was all about as a profile on Jay Hormel, 322 00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:24,080 Speaker 4: and in the article, the author wrote, I got the 323 00:17:24,119 --> 00:17:27,600 Speaker 4: distinct impression that being responsible for spam might be too 324 00:17:27,600 --> 00:17:29,600 Speaker 4: great a burden on any one. Man. 325 00:17:29,880 --> 00:17:33,520 Speaker 2: I love that idea of being cursed by the success 326 00:17:33,960 --> 00:17:36,000 Speaker 2: of spam. Yeah. 327 00:17:36,280 --> 00:17:38,960 Speaker 1: So is it that the soldiers genuinely didn't like the 328 00:17:39,040 --> 00:17:40,880 Speaker 1: taste or is it? Do you think it's really more 329 00:17:41,080 --> 00:17:43,439 Speaker 1: because as you said, they were eating it so often. 330 00:17:43,920 --> 00:17:47,280 Speaker 4: I think it was a couple of things. I think 331 00:17:47,320 --> 00:17:50,119 Speaker 4: it was they were eating it so often, they were 332 00:17:50,119 --> 00:17:53,960 Speaker 4: eating it cold. And one of the reasons I've found 333 00:17:54,080 --> 00:17:58,399 Speaker 4: when looking into this question of why spam is so 334 00:17:58,560 --> 00:18:03,560 Speaker 4: popular in Hawaiian like other Asian Pacific countries, is because 335 00:18:03,960 --> 00:18:07,080 Speaker 4: not only were they kind of their hand was forced 336 00:18:07,119 --> 00:18:09,680 Speaker 4: because of the things you were talking about earlier, where 337 00:18:10,000 --> 00:18:16,800 Speaker 4: Japanese immigrants couldn't fish. They also were incorporating spam in 338 00:18:16,880 --> 00:18:20,399 Speaker 4: ways that were delicious, like they were putting them in 339 00:18:20,440 --> 00:18:23,360 Speaker 4: recipes that they made. Anyway, they were adding them into 340 00:18:23,359 --> 00:18:25,040 Speaker 4: spam fried rice or spam and eggs. 341 00:18:25,600 --> 00:18:26,840 Speaker 2: Soldiers were just eating them cold. 342 00:18:26,880 --> 00:18:30,440 Speaker 4: Out of the ten, I think I have very limited 343 00:18:30,560 --> 00:18:31,439 Speaker 4: experience with spam. 344 00:18:31,480 --> 00:18:33,160 Speaker 2: I don't know about the two of you, but. 345 00:18:33,160 --> 00:18:35,200 Speaker 3: I limited limited. Yeah, purposely. 346 00:18:35,320 --> 00:18:40,000 Speaker 1: I will make a confession that Casey and Annie probably know, 347 00:18:40,040 --> 00:18:44,280 Speaker 1: you probably don't know I received in my early years 348 00:18:44,680 --> 00:18:47,800 Speaker 1: working when we all started working together, I received an 349 00:18:47,960 --> 00:18:48,960 Speaker 1: MVP Award. 350 00:18:49,160 --> 00:18:50,160 Speaker 2: Do you remember this, Andy. 351 00:18:50,440 --> 00:18:54,280 Speaker 1: It's just three cans of spam that have been wrapped 352 00:18:54,320 --> 00:19:00,159 Speaker 1: together and artistically artistically designed so that parts of the 353 00:19:00,200 --> 00:19:04,480 Speaker 1: spam logos say MVP or something like that, and it's 354 00:19:04,600 --> 00:19:07,240 Speaker 1: It's one of the most prestigious awards I've ever received. 355 00:19:07,800 --> 00:19:12,439 Speaker 1: It's also still in our office in case of an emergency. 356 00:19:12,040 --> 00:19:14,879 Speaker 2: Yes, the case of a trophy emergency. 357 00:19:14,400 --> 00:19:16,439 Speaker 1: The case of a trophy case, we're trapped here and 358 00:19:16,440 --> 00:19:19,880 Speaker 1: we have to eat spam. Oh yeah, I think about that. 359 00:19:19,920 --> 00:19:23,040 Speaker 1: But but the I might have just a little bit 360 00:19:23,080 --> 00:19:27,359 Speaker 1: more familiarity with this stuff because in Boy Scouts we 361 00:19:27,400 --> 00:19:29,399 Speaker 1: would camp a lot, and we would have to we 362 00:19:29,440 --> 00:19:31,159 Speaker 1: would have to eat that stuff, and we tried to 363 00:19:31,200 --> 00:19:33,480 Speaker 1: find different ways to make it taste interesting. It's just 364 00:19:33,520 --> 00:19:34,360 Speaker 1: not the same old thing. 365 00:19:34,400 --> 00:19:36,920 Speaker 3: But it's already spiced. I mean, what else does in need? 366 00:19:37,520 --> 00:19:41,920 Speaker 4: It's right, the secret nitrate. 367 00:19:42,040 --> 00:19:43,600 Speaker 2: I don't know what else you're missing. 368 00:19:43,520 --> 00:19:45,560 Speaker 1: But yeah, it's I think it's a thing that a 369 00:19:45,560 --> 00:19:48,719 Speaker 1: lot of people did, as you said, the assimilated spam. 370 00:19:49,040 --> 00:19:53,480 Speaker 4: Yes, and to get back to the point, they were 371 00:19:53,600 --> 00:19:56,359 Speaker 4: putting it in things that I think were probably much 372 00:19:56,520 --> 00:20:00,080 Speaker 4: well definitely much more flavorful. And so they had a 373 00:20:00,119 --> 00:20:05,440 Speaker 4: positive experience with spam in on Hawaii after soldiers left. 374 00:20:05,480 --> 00:20:07,840 Speaker 4: A lot of soldiers when they went home, they brought 375 00:20:07,880 --> 00:20:09,600 Speaker 4: with them their distaste. 376 00:20:09,680 --> 00:20:12,400 Speaker 3: They were also turning spam into spam and ade, right. 377 00:20:12,480 --> 00:20:14,880 Speaker 3: I mean, they were flooded and inundated with all these 378 00:20:14,920 --> 00:20:18,760 Speaker 3: the spam, and because they couldn't get protein from fishing, 379 00:20:18,880 --> 00:20:21,840 Speaker 3: and didn't the US kind of like send them a 380 00:20:21,840 --> 00:20:24,160 Speaker 3: lot of the spam because they had like a surplus 381 00:20:24,160 --> 00:20:24,679 Speaker 3: of the stuff. 382 00:20:24,880 --> 00:20:27,960 Speaker 1: Right, And that wasn't just during World War Two, I 383 00:20:28,000 --> 00:20:29,760 Speaker 1: continued during the Korean War as well. 384 00:20:29,800 --> 00:20:34,520 Speaker 4: I believe, yes, because spam was included in a lot 385 00:20:34,560 --> 00:20:39,520 Speaker 4: of foreign aid packages. And during the Korean War, people 386 00:20:39,840 --> 00:20:42,320 Speaker 4: made something that I'm. 387 00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:45,440 Speaker 2: Not entirely sure what's in there, and other. 388 00:20:45,280 --> 00:20:48,800 Speaker 4: Folks weren't either, but they called it army stew, and 389 00:20:49,560 --> 00:20:51,800 Speaker 4: spam was one of the ingredients that we do know 390 00:20:52,600 --> 00:20:53,920 Speaker 4: was featured. 391 00:20:53,600 --> 00:20:57,200 Speaker 2: In army stew Army sum And. 392 00:20:57,680 --> 00:21:01,639 Speaker 4: To this day, Korea is spam's second largest market and 393 00:21:01,680 --> 00:21:04,760 Speaker 4: it's a popular gift on Lunar New Year in that country. 394 00:21:05,119 --> 00:21:07,560 Speaker 2: Oh wow, mm hmmm, Oh, that's cool. 395 00:21:08,680 --> 00:21:12,280 Speaker 1: Do they have different varieties of spam in different countries, 396 00:21:12,880 --> 00:21:14,919 Speaker 1: like different flavors and such? I? 397 00:21:15,480 --> 00:21:19,639 Speaker 4: Yes, I couldn't speak to specifics, but I do know 398 00:21:19,800 --> 00:21:23,760 Speaker 4: that there's a wide variety of spam flavors and that 399 00:21:23,840 --> 00:21:26,879 Speaker 4: it does vary in different countries. 400 00:21:27,600 --> 00:21:31,400 Speaker 2: But Hawaii for sure is the biggest market. 401 00:21:31,640 --> 00:21:31,880 Speaker 5: Yeah. 402 00:21:31,960 --> 00:21:34,600 Speaker 2: Do you have some stats for us about that? Do I? Ever? 403 00:21:36,080 --> 00:21:36,840 Speaker 2: And I'm not sure. 404 00:21:36,960 --> 00:21:40,280 Speaker 4: I didn't know that spam had this association with Hawaii 405 00:21:40,359 --> 00:21:43,200 Speaker 4: until I did that the research for that episode, but 406 00:21:43,280 --> 00:21:45,320 Speaker 4: I think it's pretty common knowledge at least here in 407 00:21:45,320 --> 00:21:50,679 Speaker 4: the United States. But Hawaiians consume about five million pounds 408 00:21:50,720 --> 00:21:55,159 Speaker 4: of spam every year, which is about two million a 409 00:21:55,160 --> 00:21:58,640 Speaker 4: little over two million kilograms, and on average that's about 410 00:21:58,640 --> 00:22:01,719 Speaker 4: three pounds per person or about one point three kilograms 411 00:22:02,040 --> 00:22:02,960 Speaker 4: a year, or. 412 00:22:02,880 --> 00:22:06,760 Speaker 3: I think around six cans a year for every man, uh, 413 00:22:06,800 --> 00:22:10,800 Speaker 3: every man, woman, child, any type of human is consuming 414 00:22:10,800 --> 00:22:12,480 Speaker 3: about six cans of spam a year. 415 00:22:13,040 --> 00:22:17,199 Speaker 1: I can't we completely forgot Hey, Casey, yes, do you 416 00:22:17,280 --> 00:22:18,359 Speaker 1: have do you have. 417 00:22:18,280 --> 00:22:20,480 Speaker 2: Any experience for familiarity with spam? 418 00:22:20,520 --> 00:22:23,960 Speaker 3: Just the other weird al song, the Rim parody? 419 00:22:24,800 --> 00:22:25,000 Speaker 2: Wait? 420 00:22:25,040 --> 00:22:26,760 Speaker 3: Which was that spam? 421 00:22:26,880 --> 00:22:29,240 Speaker 2: And the place where you live? You know that one? 422 00:22:29,359 --> 00:22:34,000 Speaker 3: I don't. Yeah, it's a deep weird Outcot's stand by Rim. 423 00:22:34,119 --> 00:22:35,440 Speaker 3: But stand. 424 00:22:37,320 --> 00:22:37,520 Speaker 4: Is this? 425 00:22:37,800 --> 00:22:38,800 Speaker 3: Is this like a classic? 426 00:22:39,440 --> 00:22:39,600 Speaker 2: Yeah? 427 00:22:39,680 --> 00:22:42,960 Speaker 3: Mid eight I means whenever stand was out? So okay, 428 00:22:43,000 --> 00:22:46,000 Speaker 3: Casey on the case turning Casey on the case like 429 00:22:46,040 --> 00:22:49,919 Speaker 3: that has a sound effect and everything. 430 00:22:49,920 --> 00:22:53,000 Speaker 2: Any oh yeah, I mean it's got to because he's 431 00:22:53,000 --> 00:22:53,600 Speaker 2: on the case. 432 00:22:53,800 --> 00:22:56,800 Speaker 1: We we love being able to drop the sounds so 433 00:22:56,880 --> 00:23:01,600 Speaker 1: multiple Yeah, well just listen after Casey spins this in 434 00:23:01,640 --> 00:23:03,800 Speaker 1: different spends the spam into gold. 435 00:23:04,200 --> 00:23:05,240 Speaker 2: I'm going to be shocked. 436 00:23:06,240 --> 00:23:10,080 Speaker 4: The Hawaii also has what looks to be one of 437 00:23:09,800 --> 00:23:11,800 Speaker 4: the festivals I would just. 438 00:23:12,040 --> 00:23:13,520 Speaker 2: Be over the moon to attend. 439 00:23:13,920 --> 00:23:18,280 Speaker 4: It's called spam Jam Festival in Waikiki, and I was 440 00:23:18,280 --> 00:23:21,720 Speaker 4: looking at pictures for it. There's just mascot stressed is 441 00:23:21,760 --> 00:23:25,040 Speaker 4: all the different types of spam, the spam eating contest. 442 00:23:25,119 --> 00:23:30,760 Speaker 4: I think somebody got married there once. It looks awesome 443 00:23:31,280 --> 00:23:34,359 Speaker 4: and I would love to go. And spam is also 444 00:23:34,440 --> 00:23:36,920 Speaker 4: called Hawaiian steak, which I wasn't sure if it was 445 00:23:36,960 --> 00:23:38,920 Speaker 4: a joke or not when I was reading that. In 446 00:23:38,960 --> 00:23:40,639 Speaker 4: the state they call it Hawaiian steak. 447 00:23:40,760 --> 00:23:43,159 Speaker 1: Okay, so actual native Hawaiians call. 448 00:23:43,040 --> 00:23:45,520 Speaker 2: It that, from what I understand from what the Internet 449 00:23:45,560 --> 00:23:48,000 Speaker 2: tells me, is okay, okay. 450 00:23:48,040 --> 00:23:50,280 Speaker 1: I'm just I'm trying to figure out if we can 451 00:23:50,359 --> 00:23:52,120 Speaker 1: say that or if that's mocking it. 452 00:23:52,840 --> 00:23:55,520 Speaker 2: Yeah right, I'm not here to mock. 453 00:23:55,880 --> 00:23:57,480 Speaker 3: Surely they also have steak in Hawaii. 454 00:23:57,960 --> 00:24:01,119 Speaker 2: Surely they do, but probably they prefer spam. 455 00:24:01,200 --> 00:24:04,160 Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, I'm sure steak is certainly much more 456 00:24:04,160 --> 00:24:06,200 Speaker 1: expensive than they're just here on the mainland. 457 00:24:06,640 --> 00:24:07,200 Speaker 2: That is true. 458 00:24:07,280 --> 00:24:09,200 Speaker 3: Yeah, Yeah, we kind of take for granted the fact 459 00:24:09,200 --> 00:24:12,720 Speaker 3: that they are sort of isolated and require all of 460 00:24:12,720 --> 00:24:15,719 Speaker 3: their goods to be shipped in literally, you know, by 461 00:24:15,800 --> 00:24:16,720 Speaker 3: plane or by sea. 462 00:24:17,119 --> 00:24:19,240 Speaker 2: Yeah, which makes things expensive. 463 00:24:19,840 --> 00:24:24,320 Speaker 1: So the legacy of spam established during World War Two 464 00:24:25,080 --> 00:24:29,119 Speaker 1: and the Korean War takes this canned food product, this 465 00:24:29,200 --> 00:24:34,600 Speaker 1: animal matter from Minnesota to its new home in You said, 466 00:24:34,680 --> 00:24:37,880 Speaker 1: Hawaii is by far the largest market. Korea is second. 467 00:24:38,960 --> 00:24:41,480 Speaker 1: That that would that should surprise a lot of people, right, 468 00:24:41,520 --> 00:24:44,800 Speaker 1: because spam feels like such an American food because of 469 00:24:44,920 --> 00:24:46,479 Speaker 1: the way it's spread across the planet. 470 00:24:47,080 --> 00:24:48,280 Speaker 2: Yeah, it surprised me. 471 00:24:48,440 --> 00:24:52,760 Speaker 4: I do find it really fascinating that it's so localized, 472 00:24:52,760 --> 00:24:55,600 Speaker 4: it's so specific where people love it. And then I 473 00:24:55,640 --> 00:24:58,280 Speaker 4: feel like the rest of the world and the rest 474 00:24:58,320 --> 00:25:01,600 Speaker 4: of the US were kind of like, that's that weird 475 00:25:01,640 --> 00:25:02,160 Speaker 4: food thing. 476 00:25:03,080 --> 00:25:04,200 Speaker 2: What is that exactly? 477 00:25:05,240 --> 00:25:07,639 Speaker 4: But I would like to mention that there is an 478 00:25:07,680 --> 00:25:12,719 Speaker 4: amazing I've never been, but listeners have sent like some 479 00:25:12,720 --> 00:25:17,040 Speaker 4: some stuff they've gotten from this museum in Austin, Minnesota, 480 00:25:17,200 --> 00:25:21,199 Speaker 4: which is, like you said, spamtam USA. And if anyone 481 00:25:21,240 --> 00:25:24,000 Speaker 4: has the opportunity, I highly recommend it. 482 00:25:24,000 --> 00:25:31,280 Speaker 2: It's hands on it touch the spam hams on right. Nice. 483 00:25:31,920 --> 00:25:35,040 Speaker 4: You get to race to see how many cans of 484 00:25:35,160 --> 00:25:38,280 Speaker 4: fake it's fake spam that you can make in a minute. 485 00:25:38,320 --> 00:25:39,560 Speaker 2: It's practice spam. 486 00:25:39,680 --> 00:25:43,200 Speaker 4: Yeah, like you're trying to shove it into the can 487 00:25:43,400 --> 00:25:46,280 Speaker 4: and you're competing against like a robot. 488 00:25:46,520 --> 00:25:48,240 Speaker 3: So it's kind of like the world of Coca Cola 489 00:25:48,280 --> 00:25:51,000 Speaker 3: in Atlanta. But yeah, with spam, yes, I would hope 490 00:25:51,000 --> 00:25:54,440 Speaker 3: that you would have the opportunity to sample different titles Spam, 491 00:25:54,520 --> 00:25:55,560 Speaker 3: the Spams. 492 00:25:55,119 --> 00:25:57,240 Speaker 2: Of the World, Allah, World of Code. 493 00:25:57,280 --> 00:25:59,679 Speaker 3: That would be super cool. We we didn't really talk 494 00:25:59,680 --> 00:26:02,119 Speaker 3: about this, and I think it's fine to say it. 495 00:26:02,119 --> 00:26:06,760 Speaker 3: For the end, Spam is cooked in the can. Yeah, 496 00:26:06,920 --> 00:26:09,240 Speaker 3: the way it's made, isn't that weird? That that struck 497 00:26:09,280 --> 00:26:11,040 Speaker 3: me as super odd? And there's a reason for that, 498 00:26:11,119 --> 00:26:11,399 Speaker 3: right an. 499 00:26:11,680 --> 00:26:14,919 Speaker 4: Yeah, and it has to do with that whole shelf 500 00:26:15,000 --> 00:26:18,520 Speaker 4: stable thing, because you wanna you want to mix the 501 00:26:18,600 --> 00:26:21,919 Speaker 4: meat in a vacuum and vacuum seal it and then 502 00:26:21,960 --> 00:26:22,680 Speaker 4: cook the whole can. 503 00:26:22,720 --> 00:26:24,960 Speaker 2: That's part of the whole meat with a pause button thing. 504 00:26:25,040 --> 00:26:28,080 Speaker 4: It's so nothing gets in there that you don't want, 505 00:26:28,680 --> 00:26:30,760 Speaker 4: unless maybe you don't want the spam, but that's a 506 00:26:30,840 --> 00:26:31,840 Speaker 4: whole different argument. 507 00:26:32,800 --> 00:26:33,920 Speaker 2: And when you. 508 00:26:33,840 --> 00:26:37,399 Speaker 4: Cook it, the the meat breaks down and you're laughed 509 00:26:37,480 --> 00:26:41,040 Speaker 4: with a little a little loaf of spam and some juices. 510 00:26:41,920 --> 00:26:44,040 Speaker 2: We're not making it sound very appetite. 511 00:26:43,560 --> 00:26:47,080 Speaker 3: Semi gelatinous almost hm, not as gelatinous as it could 512 00:26:47,119 --> 00:26:49,040 Speaker 3: be if it didn't have that additive, right, because it 513 00:26:49,160 --> 00:26:51,320 Speaker 3: was one of those additives that keeps it from forming 514 00:26:51,359 --> 00:26:53,960 Speaker 3: like a gross congealed layer of goo on the top, 515 00:26:54,920 --> 00:26:59,040 Speaker 3: to make something that's already not super appetizing practically inedible. 516 00:26:59,440 --> 00:27:01,240 Speaker 1: And I'll tell you, guys, I will I make a 517 00:27:01,320 --> 00:27:03,800 Speaker 1: mean spam fried rice if you ever want to come over. 518 00:27:03,920 --> 00:27:05,639 Speaker 3: I'd be cool that if you cut it in the 519 00:27:05,640 --> 00:27:07,959 Speaker 3: little cubes like that, right, it's like you hide it. 520 00:27:07,960 --> 00:27:09,960 Speaker 3: It's like the way I feed my kid vegetables. You know, 521 00:27:10,200 --> 00:27:12,120 Speaker 3: I shopped the carrot stuff so small you can't even 522 00:27:12,119 --> 00:27:14,600 Speaker 3: see them. I mean, spam, for all intensive purposes probably 523 00:27:14,640 --> 00:27:17,720 Speaker 3: tastes fine, But the texture of it and the look 524 00:27:17,720 --> 00:27:19,280 Speaker 3: of it, and the idea of it just give me 525 00:27:19,320 --> 00:27:20,879 Speaker 3: the grossouts. 526 00:27:21,000 --> 00:27:23,720 Speaker 1: It's the fact that it comes out can shaped. I 527 00:27:23,760 --> 00:27:25,840 Speaker 1: think for a lot of people. You see the rills 528 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:31,720 Speaker 1: in the can. Yeah, yeah, but not everybody. Not everybody 529 00:27:31,800 --> 00:27:35,159 Speaker 1: hated it, right, we said, Hawaiian's welcomed it with open arms. 530 00:27:35,320 --> 00:27:39,600 Speaker 1: People in parts of the Pacific Rim also really enjoyed it, 531 00:27:39,920 --> 00:27:43,760 Speaker 1: and the Russians liked it. They called it Roosevelt sausage. 532 00:27:44,240 --> 00:27:46,760 Speaker 3: To be fair, Russian Russian food's pretty gross. 533 00:27:47,080 --> 00:27:50,320 Speaker 1: I feel like in terms of cuisine, Russians already very 534 00:27:50,320 --> 00:27:53,440 Speaker 1: familiar with a lot of canned meat products, you know, yeah, 535 00:27:53,640 --> 00:27:58,000 Speaker 1: like anchovies, different potted meats. So maybe it was just 536 00:27:58,080 --> 00:28:00,720 Speaker 1: something that already seemed familiar to them. 537 00:28:00,800 --> 00:28:03,040 Speaker 3: Okay, And first of all, for any Russian listeners out there, 538 00:28:03,080 --> 00:28:07,320 Speaker 3: I want to apologize for insulting the entire cuisine of Russia, 539 00:28:07,400 --> 00:28:11,320 Speaker 3: but I just never really run across Russian food that 540 00:28:11,400 --> 00:28:13,400 Speaker 3: was particularly appetite to me. It seems like a lot 541 00:28:13,400 --> 00:28:17,560 Speaker 3: of cabbage, a lot of like lard based things and 542 00:28:17,920 --> 00:28:22,800 Speaker 3: borshed and you know, very rustic kind of stuff. 543 00:28:22,840 --> 00:28:26,600 Speaker 1: There's a great Russian restaurant up north of Atlanta where 544 00:28:26,640 --> 00:28:28,800 Speaker 1: we are based, and I would highly. 545 00:28:28,560 --> 00:28:29,560 Speaker 2: Recommend checking it out. 546 00:28:29,840 --> 00:28:32,679 Speaker 1: And actually, you know, in defense of Russian food, this 547 00:28:32,800 --> 00:28:37,760 Speaker 1: is totally nonspare, but in defense of Russian food, make 548 00:28:37,840 --> 00:28:41,200 Speaker 1: friends with someone who cooks Russian food themselves. 549 00:28:40,800 --> 00:28:43,400 Speaker 2: And it will be amazing. Yeah, there's always like thirty 550 00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:44,280 Speaker 2: dishes of things. 551 00:28:44,840 --> 00:28:49,320 Speaker 4: Yeah, I would imagine that there's probably a lot of 552 00:28:49,880 --> 00:28:55,680 Speaker 4: food that is historically Russian that we just have lost. Yeah, 553 00:28:55,800 --> 00:28:58,000 Speaker 4: we've forgotten that it is, or we've made it our 554 00:28:58,040 --> 00:29:01,560 Speaker 4: own thing. I'm sure thinking of any right now, but 555 00:29:01,680 --> 00:29:03,720 Speaker 4: I'm sure there's good Russian fear, and. 556 00:29:03,800 --> 00:29:05,000 Speaker 3: We do like a chicken Kiev. 557 00:29:05,160 --> 00:29:08,320 Speaker 1: Yeah, we could do a Russian food update too. Sure 558 00:29:08,320 --> 00:29:10,880 Speaker 1: we're going to get some emails about this one. Another 559 00:29:11,000 --> 00:29:13,160 Speaker 1: one of, perhaps one of the most famous Russian fans 560 00:29:13,160 --> 00:29:18,040 Speaker 1: of spam was Soviet Premier Nikita Krushchev. Oh yeah, he 561 00:29:18,080 --> 00:29:23,239 Speaker 1: wrote about spam in his memoirs called Krushev remembers not 562 00:29:23,320 --> 00:29:30,760 Speaker 1: the most amazingly innovati threat though never Yeah, he probably 563 00:29:30,800 --> 00:29:32,920 Speaker 1: had some threats in there. He probably took some shots. 564 00:29:32,960 --> 00:29:37,360 Speaker 1: But in the memoir he specifically shouts out spam by saying, quote, 565 00:29:37,560 --> 00:29:40,120 Speaker 1: there were many jokes going around in the army, some 566 00:29:40,200 --> 00:29:42,920 Speaker 1: of them off color of American spam. 567 00:29:43,120 --> 00:29:43,800 Speaker 2: It tastes good. 568 00:29:43,880 --> 00:29:47,640 Speaker 1: Nonetheless, without spam, we will not feed our army. We 569 00:29:47,680 --> 00:29:51,680 Speaker 1: would have lost our most fertile land, most fertile land. Dah, 570 00:29:51,760 --> 00:29:52,880 Speaker 1: got it, got it? 571 00:29:52,960 --> 00:29:54,240 Speaker 2: Who was that Russian guy? 572 00:29:54,560 --> 00:29:56,320 Speaker 3: It was? It was Krushchev was. 573 00:29:58,640 --> 00:29:59,080 Speaker 2: Terrible. 574 00:29:59,160 --> 00:30:01,640 Speaker 1: Oh my gosh, we've got I've got a practice on 575 00:30:01,680 --> 00:30:04,760 Speaker 1: the accents, folks. But he raises an interesting point. You 576 00:30:04,800 --> 00:30:09,680 Speaker 1: know that similar to what was happening with war survivors 577 00:30:09,800 --> 00:30:13,080 Speaker 1: in the countries on the Pacific Rim. There were people 578 00:30:13,080 --> 00:30:17,360 Speaker 1: who would have starved without access to this easily transportable, 579 00:30:17,800 --> 00:30:19,440 Speaker 1: infinitely durable food. 580 00:30:19,720 --> 00:30:22,720 Speaker 4: Yeah, kind of along the same lines. Margaret Thatcher called 581 00:30:22,760 --> 00:30:26,000 Speaker 4: it a wartime delicacy. She called spam a wartime delicacy. 582 00:30:26,400 --> 00:30:30,719 Speaker 4: And it's interesting, I think, because there is an odd 583 00:30:30,840 --> 00:30:34,080 Speaker 4: sense of nostalgia for spam that a lot of people have, 584 00:30:34,920 --> 00:30:38,360 Speaker 4: and I feel that it needed time to get away 585 00:30:38,800 --> 00:30:42,960 Speaker 4: from the war the direct aftermath, but then after that 586 00:30:43,400 --> 00:30:46,360 Speaker 4: people had this association with spam. 587 00:30:46,400 --> 00:30:48,320 Speaker 2: It was there for me when I needed it. 588 00:30:49,720 --> 00:30:50,080 Speaker 4: Yeah. 589 00:30:50,360 --> 00:30:52,160 Speaker 3: It's also one of those things where it's like it 590 00:30:52,200 --> 00:30:56,320 Speaker 3: hasn't changed much. The branding is the same. It's you know, 591 00:30:56,400 --> 00:30:58,360 Speaker 3: people have fond memories of that and they like the 592 00:30:58,400 --> 00:31:00,760 Speaker 3: idea of, you know, everything in this in this fast paced, 593 00:31:00,960 --> 00:31:03,440 Speaker 3: mixed up world of ours, everything's always changing a mile 594 00:31:03,480 --> 00:31:05,560 Speaker 3: a minute, but we can rely on spam. 595 00:31:05,640 --> 00:31:07,960 Speaker 2: Yes, the spam never changes. 596 00:31:08,160 --> 00:31:09,000 Speaker 3: Like our true North. 597 00:31:09,280 --> 00:31:12,680 Speaker 2: There we go, true North of canned animal matter. 598 00:31:13,120 --> 00:31:16,080 Speaker 1: I do have a question, this is something that I 599 00:31:16,160 --> 00:31:20,920 Speaker 1: was wondering if we could explore together, how did spam 600 00:31:21,120 --> 00:31:26,520 Speaker 1: also become a term for deluges of bizarre emails. 601 00:31:26,960 --> 00:31:30,400 Speaker 2: Well then it has to do with Monty Python. 602 00:31:31,000 --> 00:31:33,400 Speaker 3: Oh yeah, yeah, that's sketch. 603 00:31:33,080 --> 00:31:35,640 Speaker 2: Right, yes, huh can you describe the sketch? 604 00:31:35,640 --> 00:31:36,720 Speaker 3: We should just play a clip of it. 605 00:31:37,320 --> 00:31:41,320 Speaker 5: Oh you go, then all this egg and bikon eggs, 606 00:31:41,360 --> 00:31:46,920 Speaker 5: sausage and bithon egg and spam, egg, bacon and spam, bcon, 607 00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:52,600 Speaker 5: sausage and SPA, spam, bacon, sausage and SPA, spam, eggs, spat, spat, 608 00:31:52,760 --> 00:31:57,880 Speaker 5: bacon and spat, spams, fam, spat, egg and spat, spamspam, 609 00:31:57,960 --> 00:32:02,320 Speaker 5: span spam, spam, spat by clean spam, spam, spat spam 610 00:32:04,560 --> 00:32:07,000 Speaker 5: prevents the mode I saw Scottish. 611 00:32:09,120 --> 00:32:09,719 Speaker 4: Spam. 612 00:32:10,560 --> 00:32:12,240 Speaker 2: I didn't want anything without. 613 00:32:11,960 --> 00:32:15,280 Speaker 5: Spam in it. Well, span, eg, sausage and spam. It's 614 00:32:15,320 --> 00:32:16,479 Speaker 5: not much spam in it. 615 00:32:18,160 --> 00:32:20,360 Speaker 4: The end credits for that episode, by the way, include 616 00:32:20,840 --> 00:32:25,880 Speaker 4: Spam with every company member, Spam, Terry Jones, Terry spam, sausage, spam, 617 00:32:25,880 --> 00:32:31,120 Speaker 4: egg spam. 618 00:32:28,680 --> 00:32:31,360 Speaker 3: And the idea of just like inundating you with something. 619 00:32:31,120 --> 00:32:34,720 Speaker 4: Yeah, like annoying you always kind of just blaring in 620 00:32:34,800 --> 00:32:39,640 Speaker 4: the back of your mind. It has no appreciable content. 621 00:32:40,720 --> 00:32:45,720 Speaker 4: It's omnipresent. But as you can imagine, Hormel doesn't exactly 622 00:32:45,880 --> 00:32:47,400 Speaker 4: love that association. 623 00:32:47,800 --> 00:32:48,240 Speaker 2: No way. 624 00:32:48,800 --> 00:32:52,880 Speaker 4: Yeah, I think they've even tried to. I think there 625 00:32:53,000 --> 00:32:57,920 Speaker 4: was some very quickly defeated legal way they tried to. 626 00:32:58,040 --> 00:33:00,400 Speaker 3: Well, it's not like anybody branded spam. It's just in 627 00:33:00,440 --> 00:33:03,160 Speaker 3: the zeitgeys. People just toss it around, you know, yeah, 628 00:33:03,360 --> 00:33:03,880 Speaker 3: owns it. 629 00:33:04,600 --> 00:33:09,040 Speaker 2: I'm not sure everyone exactly. I'm not sure what they thought. 630 00:33:09,080 --> 00:33:11,560 Speaker 4: They could just send out a message to everyone, a 631 00:33:11,640 --> 00:33:13,440 Speaker 4: spam message and say. 632 00:33:13,320 --> 00:33:16,840 Speaker 2: Please use a different term for this, but this thing 633 00:33:17,040 --> 00:33:17,920 Speaker 2: is that we're sending. 634 00:33:18,160 --> 00:33:22,760 Speaker 1: And usually when people or institutions or companies attempt to 635 00:33:22,800 --> 00:33:26,200 Speaker 1: do something like that, they just make the problem much 636 00:33:26,320 --> 00:33:29,800 Speaker 1: much worse, such as when a celebrity politely asked the 637 00:33:29,800 --> 00:33:31,600 Speaker 1: Internet to take down a photo of them. 638 00:33:32,040 --> 00:33:32,720 Speaker 2: Yeah, what I mean. 639 00:33:33,680 --> 00:33:36,840 Speaker 1: So they've probably done the math and they thought, if 640 00:33:36,880 --> 00:33:39,000 Speaker 1: we ask people to not do this, it's not going 641 00:33:39,080 --> 00:33:39,320 Speaker 1: to work. 642 00:33:39,360 --> 00:33:40,160 Speaker 2: I know there's some. 643 00:33:41,960 --> 00:33:45,480 Speaker 1: There's a bit of a renaissance sometimes for spam, every 644 00:33:45,520 --> 00:33:48,120 Speaker 1: so often in more high end restaurants, right. 645 00:33:48,480 --> 00:33:53,120 Speaker 4: Yes, I saw this a lot when I was in 646 00:33:53,240 --> 00:33:55,920 Speaker 4: San Francisco a couple year or so ago. 647 00:33:56,360 --> 00:33:57,480 Speaker 2: And there's one restaurant. 648 00:33:57,520 --> 00:34:01,000 Speaker 4: I think it's called Le Yacht Club something like that, 649 00:34:01,480 --> 00:34:03,680 Speaker 4: and they have a lot. 650 00:34:03,480 --> 00:34:05,680 Speaker 2: Of spam options on their menu. And it's a very 651 00:34:05,840 --> 00:34:07,160 Speaker 2: nice restaurant. 652 00:34:07,400 --> 00:34:09,879 Speaker 3: Is it Hawaiian like tamed? It is just like, what's 653 00:34:09,880 --> 00:34:12,040 Speaker 3: this loco mocho? I keep hearing about? Mocho? 654 00:34:12,080 --> 00:34:14,080 Speaker 2: Loco loco is good. 655 00:34:14,360 --> 00:34:17,600 Speaker 3: It's like spam with gravy or something. Yes, rice maybe 656 00:34:17,680 --> 00:34:18,040 Speaker 3: mm hmm. 657 00:34:18,080 --> 00:34:22,439 Speaker 4: It's rice, spam, gravy and a fried egg. You can 658 00:34:22,480 --> 00:34:25,320 Speaker 4: also get it with ground b for other. 659 00:34:25,160 --> 00:34:26,680 Speaker 3: Meats or a hamburger patty either. 660 00:34:26,840 --> 00:34:30,920 Speaker 2: Yes, so that's what I had. I didn't have spam. 661 00:34:30,400 --> 00:34:31,880 Speaker 3: Loco mocho oh okay, okay. 662 00:34:31,960 --> 00:34:33,040 Speaker 2: I did have the other one. 663 00:34:33,040 --> 00:34:35,200 Speaker 3: And it was very interesting that there's like high end 664 00:34:35,600 --> 00:34:41,239 Speaker 3: Hawaiian restaurants that still use this, uh, pretty cheap, not 665 00:34:41,400 --> 00:34:45,279 Speaker 3: very nutritional canned meat. Speaking of nutrition, you want to 666 00:34:45,280 --> 00:34:47,279 Speaker 3: point out real quick that one of these cans of 667 00:34:47,320 --> 00:34:51,880 Speaker 3: spams twelve ounces and it apparently contains about six servings, 668 00:34:53,200 --> 00:34:56,520 Speaker 3: which contain so the six servings that they can, which yeah, 669 00:34:56,600 --> 00:35:01,600 Speaker 3: come on really very and it can contains twenty five 670 00:35:01,680 --> 00:35:06,720 Speaker 3: percent of the daily recommended fat intake for the US 671 00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:09,280 Speaker 3: and thirty three percent of the sodium. 672 00:35:09,719 --> 00:35:12,560 Speaker 2: So it's not a health food. No. 673 00:35:12,840 --> 00:35:16,920 Speaker 1: But there's another stet Americans z't approximately three point eight 674 00:35:16,960 --> 00:35:19,120 Speaker 1: cans per second. I have a problem with that step 675 00:35:19,120 --> 00:35:21,520 Speaker 1: because I think Hawaii is throwing off the average. 676 00:35:21,680 --> 00:35:24,000 Speaker 2: I yes, I would agree. 677 00:35:24,440 --> 00:35:28,000 Speaker 4: I can't really recall spam ever coming up in my 678 00:35:28,080 --> 00:35:29,160 Speaker 4: childhood as an option. 679 00:35:29,880 --> 00:35:30,160 Speaker 2: I don't. 680 00:35:30,239 --> 00:35:32,640 Speaker 3: Well, you clearly didn't have elderly parents like I did. 681 00:35:32,800 --> 00:35:33,920 Speaker 2: Oh really, they you. 682 00:35:33,920 --> 00:35:36,640 Speaker 3: Know, remembered it fondly from the wartime where they spam. 683 00:35:36,680 --> 00:35:36,799 Speaker 2: Fit. 684 00:35:37,000 --> 00:35:39,279 Speaker 3: No, my parents weren't alive in World War Two, but 685 00:35:39,320 --> 00:35:41,680 Speaker 3: their parents were, and so it was something you know, 686 00:35:41,840 --> 00:35:43,680 Speaker 3: a lot of people went through the depression, they like 687 00:35:44,000 --> 00:35:46,879 Speaker 3: they learned how to hoard properly, and they learned how 688 00:35:46,880 --> 00:35:49,959 Speaker 3: to like be frugal and like use canned meats and things. 689 00:35:50,280 --> 00:35:52,960 Speaker 3: I remember growing up in my Grandpapa would make brains 690 00:35:53,000 --> 00:35:56,160 Speaker 3: and eggs, which is lightly brain. It's literally I didn't 691 00:35:56,160 --> 00:35:58,120 Speaker 3: even realize this until many years later. It's like cow 692 00:35:58,200 --> 00:36:00,959 Speaker 3: brains and eggs. But it was like a cheap part 693 00:36:01,080 --> 00:36:03,160 Speaker 3: that you could just you know, added a little texture 694 00:36:03,160 --> 00:36:05,080 Speaker 3: and a little flavor to your eggs. Same with spam 695 00:36:05,600 --> 00:36:08,759 Speaker 3: or something called liver pudding. Or scrapple is what it's 696 00:36:08,760 --> 00:36:11,920 Speaker 3: known as in the Wearing, not the Midwest, like up in. 697 00:36:12,040 --> 00:36:15,080 Speaker 2: The ChIL Yeah, Pennsylvania are yeah exactly. 698 00:36:15,400 --> 00:36:17,760 Speaker 3: I liked all of those things and didn't think anything 699 00:36:18,040 --> 00:36:21,680 Speaker 3: of it. But they're both kind of these congealed meat 700 00:36:22,000 --> 00:36:24,880 Speaker 3: cubes that you then slice up and fry like spam. 701 00:36:24,960 --> 00:36:27,000 Speaker 3: So there's there's there's other analogs. 702 00:36:26,520 --> 00:36:27,279 Speaker 2: To spam, for sure. 703 00:36:27,520 --> 00:36:35,239 Speaker 1: Absolutely these are foods that come about out of necessity, 704 00:36:35,520 --> 00:36:39,040 Speaker 1: you know, And I think necessity and nostalgia are inextricably 705 00:36:39,360 --> 00:36:42,919 Speaker 1: intertwined here. So I guess I guess the next question 706 00:36:42,960 --> 00:36:45,840 Speaker 1: will be what is the what is the future of spam? 707 00:36:46,120 --> 00:36:48,239 Speaker 1: Are they slowing up? Are they speeding up? 708 00:36:48,520 --> 00:36:51,759 Speaker 4: I think they they They're in a good place. I 709 00:36:51,840 --> 00:36:55,560 Speaker 4: definitely don't think that they need to be worried. I 710 00:36:55,719 --> 00:37:01,279 Speaker 4: Hawaiians love it. They're gonna keep the market going. Like 711 00:37:01,320 --> 00:37:04,920 Speaker 4: we said, these fancier restaurants, and this is a trend. 712 00:37:04,920 --> 00:37:08,200 Speaker 4: We see a lot where the combination of high end 713 00:37:08,239 --> 00:37:13,359 Speaker 4: and low end. I've seen around Atlanta government cheese at 714 00:37:13,400 --> 00:37:17,359 Speaker 4: really nice restaurants. It's pretty frequently. So I don't think 715 00:37:17,400 --> 00:37:19,480 Speaker 4: they have to be worried. What they should be worried about. 716 00:37:20,000 --> 00:37:23,719 Speaker 2: Is theft? That's right? Okay, can you tell us a 717 00:37:23,719 --> 00:37:24,520 Speaker 2: little bit about this? 718 00:37:24,880 --> 00:37:28,040 Speaker 1: Yes, we love well. I can't speak for you, but 719 00:37:28,200 --> 00:37:30,360 Speaker 1: I love it. I love a good high story. Do 720 00:37:30,400 --> 00:37:31,319 Speaker 1: you love a good high story? 721 00:37:31,360 --> 00:37:33,799 Speaker 3: No, you are wrong. You shouldn't have spoken about that. Yeah, 722 00:37:33,800 --> 00:37:36,080 Speaker 3: of course I love a good high story, especially when 723 00:37:36,080 --> 00:37:38,080 Speaker 3: it involves an absurd potted meat. 724 00:37:38,320 --> 00:37:41,360 Speaker 4: A spam high story. Is it's up there, that's a 725 00:37:41,400 --> 00:37:45,840 Speaker 4: good one. Lately there have been a spate of spam 726 00:37:45,920 --> 00:37:47,040 Speaker 4: thefts in Hawaii. 727 00:37:47,440 --> 00:37:47,680 Speaker 2: Nice. 728 00:37:48,000 --> 00:37:51,360 Speaker 4: In one account, three women filled a cart with eighteen 729 00:37:51,480 --> 00:37:53,800 Speaker 4: cans of spam at a drug store and made a 730 00:37:53,880 --> 00:37:56,760 Speaker 4: dash for the exit. But this customer, he just planted 731 00:37:56,840 --> 00:37:59,080 Speaker 4: himself in front of the doors and said, what are 732 00:37:59,120 --> 00:38:02,080 Speaker 4: you doing with that spam? You didn't say that but 733 00:38:02,400 --> 00:38:05,120 Speaker 4: along those lines, And they made a run for it, 734 00:38:05,160 --> 00:38:07,239 Speaker 4: and they did not succeed in their heist, but enough 735 00:38:07,280 --> 00:38:11,120 Speaker 4: people have that now some stores have started storing their 736 00:38:11,200 --> 00:38:14,680 Speaker 4: cans of spam locked in those plastic cases that are 737 00:38:14,680 --> 00:38:21,000 Speaker 4: typically a use for expensive items electronics razors. Yeah, now 738 00:38:21,239 --> 00:38:23,880 Speaker 4: spam is back there. You have to go ask for 739 00:38:24,120 --> 00:38:26,520 Speaker 4: key for your spam. 740 00:38:26,680 --> 00:38:28,799 Speaker 3: The reason for this is super interesting. It has to 741 00:38:28,800 --> 00:38:32,080 Speaker 3: do with a change in the law in Hawaii, where 742 00:38:32,239 --> 00:38:36,640 Speaker 3: I think in the past theft up to three hundred 743 00:38:36,680 --> 00:38:39,759 Speaker 3: dollars was considered a felony, and then they raised it 744 00:38:39,800 --> 00:38:43,480 Speaker 3: to seven hundred, so you could steal up to seven 745 00:38:43,560 --> 00:38:46,840 Speaker 3: hundred dollars worth of spam and it would be just 746 00:38:46,880 --> 00:38:49,560 Speaker 3: a misdemeanor if they caught you. But also it's like, 747 00:38:49,560 --> 00:38:51,480 Speaker 3: how are you going to you know, track down the 748 00:38:51,480 --> 00:38:54,080 Speaker 3: purp if you don't catch them doing it. And the 749 00:38:54,160 --> 00:38:58,719 Speaker 3: fact that this famous spam shelf stability means that you 750 00:38:58,800 --> 00:39:01,000 Speaker 3: don't have to fence it right away, right you can 751 00:39:01,320 --> 00:39:03,879 Speaker 3: sit on your stash for a while. And this great 752 00:39:03,960 --> 00:39:06,279 Speaker 3: article from grub Street that you turned us onto any 753 00:39:06,320 --> 00:39:10,839 Speaker 3: Hawaiian grocery stores reportedly overrun with spam bandits spammed its 754 00:39:11,200 --> 00:39:15,520 Speaker 3: spammed it that it's it's like an epidemic, and it's 755 00:39:15,719 --> 00:39:20,279 Speaker 3: a lot. Largely the article conjectures folks are stealing the 756 00:39:20,280 --> 00:39:22,960 Speaker 3: stuff so that they can flip it and buy drugs. 757 00:39:24,000 --> 00:39:27,160 Speaker 3: But it's so flippable because the market for spam and 758 00:39:27,200 --> 00:39:28,640 Speaker 3: Hawaii is like through the roof. 759 00:39:30,120 --> 00:39:30,359 Speaker 2: Yeah. 760 00:39:30,440 --> 00:39:34,120 Speaker 4: Tina Yamaki, the President of Retail Merchants of Hawaii, calls 761 00:39:34,160 --> 00:39:39,120 Speaker 4: it organized retail crime. And she's spoken a lot about 762 00:39:39,280 --> 00:39:42,920 Speaker 4: the spam black market and how you can buy spam 763 00:39:43,000 --> 00:39:45,440 Speaker 4: out of somebody's car, out of their trunk. 764 00:39:45,760 --> 00:39:49,799 Speaker 1: Wow, it's you know, usually if I see somebody with 765 00:39:49,960 --> 00:39:53,680 Speaker 1: a ton of canned meat in their trunk standing by 766 00:39:53,719 --> 00:39:55,919 Speaker 1: the side of the road, my first instinct isn't to 767 00:39:55,960 --> 00:39:59,000 Speaker 1: ask them how much what the going price is? 768 00:39:59,280 --> 00:40:01,960 Speaker 2: You clearly not a spam fan, Ben, I'm not. 769 00:40:02,440 --> 00:40:05,120 Speaker 1: You know what I'm I can say safely, I'm a fan, 770 00:40:05,160 --> 00:40:07,280 Speaker 1: but I don't think I'm built to be a spam tycoon. 771 00:40:07,560 --> 00:40:10,040 Speaker 1: I hope they're out there somewhere in Hawaii. I hope 772 00:40:10,040 --> 00:40:12,719 Speaker 1: there's a black market spam tycoon. And I hope that 773 00:40:12,800 --> 00:40:14,440 Speaker 1: you are listening to this show. 774 00:40:15,600 --> 00:40:16,120 Speaker 2: We want to. 775 00:40:16,200 --> 00:40:18,320 Speaker 3: Make God have mercy on your soul. 776 00:40:18,440 --> 00:40:20,160 Speaker 1: May God have mercy on your spam? 777 00:40:20,520 --> 00:40:20,640 Speaker 2: Right? 778 00:40:21,160 --> 00:40:24,640 Speaker 1: I think we all want to hear spam recipes from 779 00:40:24,680 --> 00:40:26,080 Speaker 1: listeners if you're a fan of spam. 780 00:40:26,200 --> 00:40:28,319 Speaker 3: Well, speaking of spam recipes, we remember we talked about 781 00:40:28,360 --> 00:40:30,759 Speaker 3: like how the Hormel company is doing and moving forward 782 00:40:30,840 --> 00:40:33,400 Speaker 3: or whatever. Well, they've really embraced a lot of this 783 00:40:33,560 --> 00:40:36,319 Speaker 3: kitch surrounding spam, and like the masubi's and all that, 784 00:40:36,560 --> 00:40:38,839 Speaker 3: and they have like recipes on their site for this 785 00:40:38,880 --> 00:40:42,319 Speaker 3: is fantastic national geographic article by April Fulton shows some 786 00:40:42,400 --> 00:40:44,240 Speaker 3: images of some of the stuff that I'm talking about. 787 00:40:44,239 --> 00:40:47,200 Speaker 3: One of them is a Hello Kitty Spam musubi that 788 00:40:47,239 --> 00:40:49,960 Speaker 3: they show you how to make. They also have a tour, 789 00:40:50,239 --> 00:40:53,160 Speaker 3: a national tour called the Tiny House of Sizzle Tour, 790 00:40:53,760 --> 00:40:57,239 Speaker 3: where they are shopping around the whole US of a 791 00:40:57,239 --> 00:41:01,640 Speaker 3: a spicy Spam breakfast burrito recipe made by their chef 792 00:41:01,800 --> 00:41:05,240 Speaker 3: Jordan and Dino, And it's like a traveling Spam food truck, 793 00:41:05,440 --> 00:41:07,160 Speaker 3: sort of the way you see the Oscar Mayer Wiener 794 00:41:07,440 --> 00:41:11,440 Speaker 3: uh Mobile or whatever. So you know, Spam's not slowing down. 795 00:41:11,480 --> 00:41:14,160 Speaker 3: They're they're they're rising to the occasion. They're adapting to 796 00:41:14,239 --> 00:41:16,720 Speaker 3: the times. Yeah, they're adapting times. 797 00:41:16,719 --> 00:41:17,200 Speaker 2: They always have. 798 00:41:17,200 --> 00:41:19,040 Speaker 1: I want to show you guys one of my favorite 799 00:41:19,040 --> 00:41:22,680 Speaker 1: pictures so any on this show, we love vintage averagells too, 800 00:41:23,000 --> 00:41:27,000 Speaker 1: so Spam Dandy is one of my one of my favorites. 801 00:41:27,040 --> 00:41:31,200 Speaker 1: That they have these collections of all their ads that 802 00:41:31,680 --> 00:41:35,719 Speaker 1: have the exact nostalgia tone For anybody who enjoyed our 803 00:41:35,800 --> 00:41:36,960 Speaker 1: previous episode on. 804 00:41:37,280 --> 00:41:41,040 Speaker 2: What was it nola, was it meat jell? Oh? Yeah? 805 00:41:41,920 --> 00:41:46,160 Speaker 3: Aspects yeah, and also just like various savory gelatine dishes 806 00:41:46,320 --> 00:41:49,400 Speaker 3: that were very popular as like centerpieces and made you 807 00:41:49,719 --> 00:41:52,919 Speaker 3: seem like you really had your homemaking skills in order. 808 00:41:53,120 --> 00:41:55,560 Speaker 3: And spam. I'm sure it's all part of this, like 809 00:41:55,760 --> 00:41:58,719 Speaker 3: the food of the Future movement, the idea, oh well, 810 00:41:58,760 --> 00:42:01,319 Speaker 3: just eat out of tens and that's super progressive and 811 00:42:01,400 --> 00:42:03,920 Speaker 3: like shows that we have money or something. Even though 812 00:42:03,920 --> 00:42:06,520 Speaker 3: it was cheap and gelatin was cheap, it was a 813 00:42:06,640 --> 00:42:09,319 Speaker 3: very odd dichotomy and that really interesting to look back on. 814 00:42:09,480 --> 00:42:10,680 Speaker 2: Insane gelatine. 815 00:42:10,840 --> 00:42:13,319 Speaker 1: Just when you see pictures of those things at the 816 00:42:13,320 --> 00:42:16,000 Speaker 1: center of a dining table, it strikes me as lovecrafting. 817 00:42:16,000 --> 00:42:18,160 Speaker 1: And I'm gonna be honest, it's something from like the 818 00:42:18,239 --> 00:42:19,560 Speaker 1: Darkness beyond the stars. 819 00:42:19,920 --> 00:42:24,440 Speaker 4: Oh I love looking at a good aspect or meat jelly. 820 00:42:24,120 --> 00:42:29,279 Speaker 4: They're hilarious and they are that interesting intersection of At 821 00:42:29,280 --> 00:42:33,040 Speaker 4: the time, if you didn't have a lot of money, 822 00:42:33,280 --> 00:42:35,480 Speaker 4: you wanted to put a lot of work and artistry 823 00:42:35,480 --> 00:42:39,719 Speaker 4: into a thing to show that you were successful and 824 00:42:39,800 --> 00:42:41,560 Speaker 4: that you could afford to do this. 825 00:42:42,080 --> 00:42:43,600 Speaker 2: But it was a cheap food thing. 826 00:42:44,040 --> 00:42:49,040 Speaker 4: Everyone was participating in kind of this masquerade, this facade, 827 00:42:49,520 --> 00:42:54,000 Speaker 4: and spam is a similar food in that it does 828 00:42:54,080 --> 00:42:58,200 Speaker 4: have that futuristic it'll last forever vibe, but it's very 829 00:42:58,960 --> 00:43:02,440 Speaker 4: cheap and during the recent recession in two thousand and 830 00:43:02,480 --> 00:43:06,680 Speaker 4: eight because of this, spam saw an increase of sales 831 00:43:06,719 --> 00:43:10,480 Speaker 4: of ten percent, because yeah, it is a food that 832 00:43:10,920 --> 00:43:15,080 Speaker 4: people can't afford. And there aren't strict numbers, but according 833 00:43:15,080 --> 00:43:19,440 Speaker 4: to the Hormel website, they estimate twelve point eight cans 834 00:43:19,480 --> 00:43:23,400 Speaker 4: of spam are consumed every second across the planet. 835 00:43:23,520 --> 00:43:26,799 Speaker 3: Mostly and that's not even to speak of the ones 836 00:43:26,840 --> 00:43:29,399 Speaker 3: that are just hoarded in a bombshell's right. 837 00:43:30,040 --> 00:43:34,279 Speaker 1: Or in the trunk of a Cadillac driving owhere near you. 838 00:43:35,000 --> 00:43:35,960 Speaker 2: I love it well. 839 00:43:36,040 --> 00:43:37,640 Speaker 3: I don't know about you, guys, but I'm filled with 840 00:43:37,680 --> 00:43:40,600 Speaker 3: gratitude at the end of this episode for you, Annie. 841 00:43:40,719 --> 00:43:43,680 Speaker 3: My heart is just bursting out of my chest with gratitude, 842 00:43:43,680 --> 00:43:46,520 Speaker 3: clearly more gratitude than either Ben or Casey are capable 843 00:43:46,520 --> 00:43:47,120 Speaker 3: of mustering. 844 00:43:47,760 --> 00:43:49,360 Speaker 2: So I win. Annie. 845 00:43:49,560 --> 00:43:51,839 Speaker 1: I wasn't really listening when Noel was talking about I 846 00:43:51,840 --> 00:43:54,080 Speaker 1: do want to say thank you so much for coming 847 00:43:54,080 --> 00:43:56,359 Speaker 1: on in the episode. I'm kidding Noel I think we're 848 00:43:56,360 --> 00:43:59,160 Speaker 1: both really happy that you took the time here and 849 00:44:00,080 --> 00:44:02,000 Speaker 1: taught us so much about spam. I'm wondering if I'm 850 00:44:02,000 --> 00:44:03,759 Speaker 1: going to cook some this weekend. We've talked so much 851 00:44:03,760 --> 00:44:06,359 Speaker 1: about it. I feel like we've almost, in a way 852 00:44:06,520 --> 00:44:10,160 Speaker 1: consumed it ourselves just by exploring this concept. 853 00:44:10,239 --> 00:44:13,800 Speaker 3: I think we should do a potted meat like, uh, potluck, 854 00:44:14,440 --> 00:44:16,080 Speaker 3: let's do it, let's get it. Would be a potluck, 855 00:44:16,120 --> 00:44:18,480 Speaker 3: a potted potted potted meat. 856 00:44:18,480 --> 00:44:22,879 Speaker 4: Look, this is the office to host such an event. 857 00:44:22,920 --> 00:44:26,160 Speaker 4: There would be very creative concoctions. 858 00:44:25,640 --> 00:44:29,799 Speaker 1: Behind the curtain, folks. We recently hung out after work 859 00:44:29,920 --> 00:44:34,640 Speaker 1: and had a game night where we learned well I 860 00:44:34,640 --> 00:44:37,759 Speaker 1: think you already knew all the games, Annie, but we 861 00:44:37,800 --> 00:44:39,680 Speaker 1: both learned some really cool stuff. 862 00:44:39,719 --> 00:44:42,960 Speaker 3: So yeah, shout out to Dixit right, Dixon, fun to say, 863 00:44:43,000 --> 00:44:45,960 Speaker 3: fun to play. That should be their tagline, that to. 864 00:44:46,239 --> 00:44:47,800 Speaker 2: Have it, you're gonna give it to them for free. 865 00:44:47,920 --> 00:44:50,520 Speaker 3: Well, I don't know. They can send me some some swag, 866 00:44:51,640 --> 00:44:53,759 Speaker 3: some mugs or something. You guys can have it was 867 00:44:53,960 --> 00:44:55,600 Speaker 3: so fun. It was It was really really a joy, 868 00:44:55,600 --> 00:44:57,000 Speaker 3: and it was a successful Game nine and I look 869 00:44:57,040 --> 00:44:59,359 Speaker 3: forward to doing it again. But I also look forward 870 00:44:59,440 --> 00:45:01,240 Speaker 3: to having you Annie on the show again. 871 00:45:01,480 --> 00:45:04,080 Speaker 2: Yes please, yes, please, And this was so this was 872 00:45:04,120 --> 00:45:06,399 Speaker 2: so much fun. Yes, we're so glad. I enjoyed it. 873 00:45:07,200 --> 00:45:09,840 Speaker 1: I'm a huge fan of food history, as you know 874 00:45:09,960 --> 00:45:13,040 Speaker 1: from some of our works outside of this show. But 875 00:45:13,840 --> 00:45:17,440 Speaker 1: in the meantime, before you make another return appearance, where 876 00:45:17,480 --> 00:45:21,160 Speaker 1: can our listeners hear more of your work with how 877 00:45:21,160 --> 00:45:21,760 Speaker 1: Stuff works? 878 00:45:22,600 --> 00:45:27,120 Speaker 4: You can find me over at Savor podcast at your 879 00:45:27,200 --> 00:45:29,040 Speaker 4: internet humans. I'm sure you can find it, but it 880 00:45:29,040 --> 00:45:32,359 Speaker 4: is I will say it's Savor without the you. So 881 00:45:32,560 --> 00:45:36,360 Speaker 4: for the non American listeners among you, and I also 882 00:45:36,960 --> 00:45:39,120 Speaker 4: am a co host of a show called Stuff Mom've 883 00:45:39,120 --> 00:45:41,759 Speaker 4: Never Told You, which you can google Google right. 884 00:45:41,680 --> 00:45:42,680 Speaker 2: Away and you'll find it. 885 00:45:42,920 --> 00:45:46,319 Speaker 1: Fantastic shows. Do check them out, the shows that I 886 00:45:46,360 --> 00:45:49,680 Speaker 1: personally listened to in my free time. So okay, yeah, 887 00:45:49,680 --> 00:45:52,239 Speaker 1: I don't want to fanboy out too much, but maybe 888 00:45:52,239 --> 00:45:53,880 Speaker 1: I'll ask you an autograph. 889 00:45:53,400 --> 00:45:54,000 Speaker 2: After the show. 890 00:45:54,080 --> 00:45:56,240 Speaker 3: I definitely listened to the Spam episode today and crypped 891 00:45:56,239 --> 00:45:58,320 Speaker 3: most of my notes with this episode from that episode. 892 00:45:58,480 --> 00:46:01,640 Speaker 3: So this is where that this is like a yeah. 893 00:46:02,680 --> 00:46:06,319 Speaker 1: The stake that consumes its tale and we have more 894 00:46:06,360 --> 00:46:10,280 Speaker 1: tales to tell we had earlier said that we would 895 00:46:10,280 --> 00:46:13,799 Speaker 1: be exploring some more spooky stories as we lead up 896 00:46:13,920 --> 00:46:18,080 Speaker 1: to Halloween, So tune in next time when we delve 897 00:46:18,120 --> 00:46:22,280 Speaker 1: into this strange story of well mummies. 898 00:46:21,960 --> 00:46:24,800 Speaker 3: Yeah, Mexican mummies to be precise. And in the meantime, 899 00:46:24,800 --> 00:46:27,440 Speaker 3: I like to thank Casey, our super producer, Alex Williams, 900 00:46:27,440 --> 00:46:31,600 Speaker 3: who composed our theme, research associates Christopher Hasiotis and Eve's 901 00:46:31,640 --> 00:46:34,200 Speaker 3: Jeffcoat and Ben as usual, I'd like to throw a 902 00:46:34,280 --> 00:46:35,720 Speaker 3: little thanks your way, my friend. 903 00:46:37,000 --> 00:46:40,000 Speaker 1: I would like to treat that thanks like a boomerang, 904 00:46:40,280 --> 00:46:42,359 Speaker 1: add some extra thanks to it, and make sure it 905 00:46:42,360 --> 00:46:43,319 Speaker 1: gets right back to you. 906 00:46:43,360 --> 00:46:44,520 Speaker 3: Why do you aways have to want up be on 907 00:46:44,560 --> 00:46:44,879 Speaker 3: the thanks? 908 00:46:44,920 --> 00:46:45,200 Speaker 4: Why not? 909 00:46:45,440 --> 00:46:46,719 Speaker 2: Man, I just like hanging out. 910 00:46:47,400 --> 00:46:58,279 Speaker 3: We'll see you next time, folks. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, 911 00:46:58,360 --> 00:47:01,239 Speaker 3: visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple p Podcasts, or wherever you 912 00:47:01,320 --> 00:47:02,680 Speaker 3: listen to your favorite shows.