1 00:00:02,440 --> 00:00:07,520 Speaker 1: Happy Saturday. Beauty expert and fitness specialist, Sylvia of Hollywood 2 00:00:07,680 --> 00:00:10,159 Speaker 1: was born on April sixth, eighteen eighty one. That's one 3 00:00:10,240 --> 00:00:13,440 Speaker 1: hundred and forty three years ago today, So our episode 4 00:00:13,440 --> 00:00:17,279 Speaker 1: on her is Today's Saturday Classic. Thus originally came out 5 00:00:17,360 --> 00:00:24,439 Speaker 1: July first, twenty nineteen. Enjoy Welcome to Stuff You Missed 6 00:00:24,440 --> 00:00:34,600 Speaker 1: in History Class, a production of iHeartRadio. Hello, and welcome 7 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:37,920 Speaker 1: to the podcast. I'm Holly Frye and I'm Tracy B. Wilson, 8 00:00:38,200 --> 00:00:40,519 Speaker 1: And today's topic is one I've actually been wanting to 9 00:00:40,520 --> 00:00:43,280 Speaker 1: do for a little bit because it is the woman 10 00:00:43,320 --> 00:00:47,239 Speaker 1: who really started the idea of celebrity trainers, and she 11 00:00:47,400 --> 00:00:51,680 Speaker 1: also cemented the idea that Hollywood's beauties were aspirational figures 12 00:00:51,720 --> 00:00:54,920 Speaker 1: for the average woman to try to achieve similar looks, 13 00:00:55,680 --> 00:00:58,440 Speaker 1: which there's a whole bundle of psychology to discuss there, 14 00:00:58,440 --> 00:01:01,800 Speaker 1: but that is not a history podcast. That's a different podcast. 15 00:01:02,000 --> 00:01:05,000 Speaker 1: There's some baggage, a lot of baggage. Yeah, there's a 16 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:07,520 Speaker 1: ton of baggage, and it's fascinating. As we go through 17 00:01:07,520 --> 00:01:09,920 Speaker 1: her story, you will hear a lot of things and 18 00:01:09,959 --> 00:01:13,080 Speaker 1: practices and ideas that are very commonplace today. But we're 19 00:01:13,120 --> 00:01:15,959 Speaker 1: not at the time at all. She is a mix 20 00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:20,360 Speaker 1: of kind of interesting and trailblazing and also like there's 21 00:01:20,360 --> 00:01:23,360 Speaker 1: some cringing. We'll talk, you'll hear about the cringe e parts. 22 00:01:23,840 --> 00:01:27,120 Speaker 1: Her name was Sylvia Ulbach. You will see that spelled 23 00:01:27,160 --> 00:01:30,240 Speaker 1: two different ways, sometimes with two l's and sometimes with one. 24 00:01:30,680 --> 00:01:32,399 Speaker 1: And the reason is that she almost never used her 25 00:01:32,480 --> 00:01:36,360 Speaker 1: last name. She went by Sylvia or Sylvia of Hollywood 26 00:01:36,400 --> 00:01:39,600 Speaker 1: or Madam Sylvia, but in anything, even her books are 27 00:01:39,600 --> 00:01:42,679 Speaker 1: written as Sylvia of Hollywood, you never see her actual 28 00:01:42,760 --> 00:01:45,280 Speaker 1: name appear in them. Yeah. I also saw some places 29 00:01:45,280 --> 00:01:47,600 Speaker 1: where it was spelled with an E instead of an A, 30 00:01:47,880 --> 00:01:50,920 Speaker 1: so it's kind of all over the place. Yeah. And 31 00:01:51,000 --> 00:01:53,680 Speaker 1: in the nineteen twenties and nineteen thirty she became a 32 00:01:53,720 --> 00:01:56,919 Speaker 1: star in her own right, known for shaping up starlits 33 00:01:56,960 --> 00:02:00,160 Speaker 1: to get them screen ready and heads up. Obviously, this 34 00:02:00,200 --> 00:02:02,440 Speaker 1: episode is going to be talking about things like body 35 00:02:02,440 --> 00:02:04,960 Speaker 1: image and weight loss in ways that are in some 36 00:02:05,000 --> 00:02:08,840 Speaker 1: ways completely sensible and in others utterly ludicrous and really 37 00:02:08,919 --> 00:02:12,079 Speaker 1: dangerous and unhealthy. So if that's a sensitive topic for you, 38 00:02:12,120 --> 00:02:15,360 Speaker 1: just know that going in. Additionally, Sylvia was known to 39 00:02:15,360 --> 00:02:18,560 Speaker 1: be really harsh and direct in her criticism of people's bodies, 40 00:02:18,840 --> 00:02:21,160 Speaker 1: So that is a whole other angle. If hearing people 41 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:24,440 Speaker 1: be very mean to other people is problematic, this might 42 00:02:24,440 --> 00:02:27,320 Speaker 1: not be the episode you want to hang out with. Yeah, 43 00:02:27,320 --> 00:02:30,120 Speaker 1: because she could be really harsh. One of the few 44 00:02:30,200 --> 00:02:33,440 Speaker 1: photos of her that you can find on the internet 45 00:02:33,600 --> 00:02:38,160 Speaker 1: is literally of her preparing to hit someone because they're slouching. Yes, 46 00:02:39,200 --> 00:02:41,720 Speaker 1: I have the book that that photo appeared in. She's 47 00:02:41,760 --> 00:02:44,560 Speaker 1: showing how you should teach your friends to do it. Well. 48 00:02:45,080 --> 00:02:48,639 Speaker 1: Oh great, because her idea is that we don't talk 49 00:02:48,639 --> 00:02:50,359 Speaker 1: about this a lot later, so I could say it now. 50 00:02:50,720 --> 00:02:53,920 Speaker 1: A lot of her books where she's talking about things 51 00:02:53,960 --> 00:02:56,400 Speaker 1: that she would do as a trainer, she wants people 52 00:02:56,400 --> 00:02:59,120 Speaker 1: to have a workout partner so they can do some 53 00:02:59,200 --> 00:03:01,919 Speaker 1: of the stretches to get and stuff, but also can 54 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:04,680 Speaker 1: hit each other in the back when they're not exhibiting 55 00:03:04,680 --> 00:03:09,720 Speaker 1: good posture. Great. Like I said, it's a mixed bag. 56 00:03:10,760 --> 00:03:14,800 Speaker 1: She was born Sylvia Waller in eighteen eighty one in Oslo, Norway, 57 00:03:14,919 --> 00:03:18,079 Speaker 1: to an opera singer mother and an artist father. Her 58 00:03:18,120 --> 00:03:21,239 Speaker 1: grandparents were her primary caregivers, in part because her parents 59 00:03:21,240 --> 00:03:24,880 Speaker 1: both had really demanding careers, but also because she lost 60 00:03:24,880 --> 00:03:27,640 Speaker 1: her mother when she was still a girl. Her mother, Emily, 61 00:03:27,720 --> 00:03:30,600 Speaker 1: died in eighteen ninety one when Sylvia was ten, and 62 00:03:30,600 --> 00:03:33,560 Speaker 1: then Sylvia claimed in interviews that her family referred to 63 00:03:33,639 --> 00:03:37,040 Speaker 1: her as an ugly duckling and that really catalyzed her 64 00:03:37,040 --> 00:03:40,320 Speaker 1: interest in beauty. Yeah, we should also say, and we 65 00:03:40,360 --> 00:03:43,520 Speaker 1: talk about this a little, that Sylvia is also a 66 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:47,720 Speaker 1: little bit tricky because she crafted her persona very carefully 67 00:03:47,760 --> 00:03:50,520 Speaker 1: in the media. So we don't know how much of 68 00:03:50,560 --> 00:03:53,720 Speaker 1: the things she said about her life previous to becoming 69 00:03:53,760 --> 00:03:57,880 Speaker 1: a well known figure in the United States are true 70 00:03:58,080 --> 00:04:01,840 Speaker 1: versus how many are kind of crafted to developed that persona. 71 00:04:02,680 --> 00:04:04,120 Speaker 1: So we don't know if they really called her an 72 00:04:04,200 --> 00:04:07,200 Speaker 1: ugly duckling, but that's what she said. As a young 73 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:10,080 Speaker 1: woman in the eighteen ninety Sylvia, against the wishes of 74 00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:13,720 Speaker 1: her father, decided to pursue nursing as a career. I 75 00:04:13,760 --> 00:04:15,280 Speaker 1: had read at one point that she had wanted to 76 00:04:15,320 --> 00:04:17,040 Speaker 1: be a doctor, but that was not an avenue open 77 00:04:17,080 --> 00:04:21,080 Speaker 1: to her. She claimed later on, when she was recounting 78 00:04:21,080 --> 00:04:24,320 Speaker 1: her life, to have studied under a doctor Ulrich in Copenhagen. 79 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:26,960 Speaker 1: But there is a little bit of fuzziness about whether 80 00:04:27,040 --> 00:04:29,720 Speaker 1: she actually took any medical courses while she was there. 81 00:04:30,400 --> 00:04:33,600 Speaker 1: She did learn massage during this time, and would describe 82 00:04:33,600 --> 00:04:36,880 Speaker 1: what she learned as a sort of medical massage, manipulating 83 00:04:36,920 --> 00:04:40,200 Speaker 1: the body for medical purposes. To be clear, the mid 84 00:04:40,240 --> 00:04:42,880 Speaker 1: to late eighteen hundreds were a time when massage was 85 00:04:42,920 --> 00:04:46,479 Speaker 1: being integrated into an approach to wellness that involved massage 86 00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:49,360 Speaker 1: and callisthenics as a way to improve your digestion and 87 00:04:49,440 --> 00:04:54,120 Speaker 1: mood and fatigue, among other things, similarly to how a 88 00:04:54,120 --> 00:04:56,200 Speaker 1: lot of folks talk about massage today. So it's really 89 00:04:56,279 --> 00:04:59,080 Speaker 1: not especially unusual that Sylvia would talk about this link 90 00:04:59,120 --> 00:05:03,480 Speaker 1: between massage medicine. We just don't have any hard evidence 91 00:05:03,800 --> 00:05:08,080 Speaker 1: that she had actual medical training. Yeah, and in the 92 00:05:08,320 --> 00:05:10,400 Speaker 1: parts of Europe where she lived was where this whole 93 00:05:10,440 --> 00:05:15,480 Speaker 1: idea of massage and wellness being linked and also physical 94 00:05:15,520 --> 00:05:20,320 Speaker 1: activity was really getting sort of the most interest in research, 95 00:05:21,120 --> 00:05:23,120 Speaker 1: So she was kind of in the hotbed for that 96 00:05:23,160 --> 00:05:26,040 Speaker 1: to be a very real discussion she would have been 97 00:05:26,880 --> 00:05:29,359 Speaker 1: a part of, or at least had access to. Yeah, 98 00:05:29,400 --> 00:05:33,360 Speaker 1: as a former massage therapist, I will also say it 99 00:05:33,400 --> 00:05:36,720 Speaker 1: was a lot more common to call massage therapist messuses 100 00:05:36,880 --> 00:05:39,240 Speaker 1: at the time, which will like come up later on 101 00:05:39,320 --> 00:05:42,359 Speaker 1: in the episode. Yeah, it's an interesting thing. I was 102 00:05:42,400 --> 00:05:44,080 Speaker 1: looking up usage of that word, and a lot of 103 00:05:44,080 --> 00:05:46,720 Speaker 1: people still use it, but other people find it not 104 00:05:46,839 --> 00:05:50,279 Speaker 1: so good. I used it in her case because she 105 00:05:50,360 --> 00:05:53,560 Speaker 1: used it about herself, right. And sometime in the late 106 00:05:53,600 --> 00:05:56,320 Speaker 1: eighteen nineties, while she was doing these studies, Sylvia met 107 00:05:56,360 --> 00:05:59,080 Speaker 1: a man named Andrew Ulback and the two were married. 108 00:05:59,480 --> 00:06:01,600 Speaker 1: The exact date of their wedding is not known. It's 109 00:06:01,720 --> 00:06:05,680 Speaker 1: estimated to have happened sometime in nineteen hundred, probably, and 110 00:06:05,720 --> 00:06:08,680 Speaker 1: the couple had two sons. And the way that marriage 111 00:06:09,240 --> 00:06:12,920 Speaker 1: was and was characterized by Sylvia shifts a little bit 112 00:06:13,320 --> 00:06:16,440 Speaker 1: depending on what interview with her you might read. So 113 00:06:16,520 --> 00:06:18,960 Speaker 1: in some she describes it as a very happy union, 114 00:06:19,560 --> 00:06:22,240 Speaker 1: but at other times she mentions that after Andrew returned 115 00:06:22,240 --> 00:06:24,839 Speaker 1: from fighting in World War One, understandably he was a 116 00:06:24,960 --> 00:06:27,800 Speaker 1: very different man and that affected their relationship and they 117 00:06:27,800 --> 00:06:30,640 Speaker 1: were maybe not so close. Sylvia was a master of 118 00:06:30,680 --> 00:06:32,960 Speaker 1: self promotion, and once she told a story to the 119 00:06:33,000 --> 00:06:36,400 Speaker 1: Hartford Current about her relationship with Andrew leading her to 120 00:06:36,480 --> 00:06:40,280 Speaker 1: a life of calisthenics and healthy eating. She claimed that 121 00:06:40,320 --> 00:06:42,559 Speaker 1: she had put on some weight during their marriage until 122 00:06:42,600 --> 00:06:44,839 Speaker 1: she weighed more than one hundred and fifty pounds at 123 00:06:44,880 --> 00:06:49,320 Speaker 1: five feet tall. After seeing Andrew flirting with a slender secretary, 124 00:06:49,560 --> 00:06:52,480 Speaker 1: Sylvia vowed to learn about reducing and got her own 125 00:06:52,520 --> 00:06:55,479 Speaker 1: weight down to ninety five pounds, which was her weight 126 00:06:55,520 --> 00:06:58,000 Speaker 1: for most of the rest of her life. It's really 127 00:06:58,040 --> 00:07:00,400 Speaker 1: not clear if this story is true or it was 128 00:07:00,480 --> 00:07:03,000 Speaker 1: just more of a yarn spun by Sylvia to bolster 129 00:07:03,080 --> 00:07:05,480 Speaker 1: her image as a weight loss expert. In the summer 130 00:07:05,480 --> 00:07:08,880 Speaker 1: of nineteen twenty one, Sylvia, Andrew and their children moved 131 00:07:08,880 --> 00:07:12,800 Speaker 1: from Copenhagen to the United States. Before the war, Andrew 132 00:07:12,880 --> 00:07:15,920 Speaker 1: had a successful lumber business, but the post war economy 133 00:07:15,960 --> 00:07:19,320 Speaker 1: made it impossible to keep that company going, so they 134 00:07:19,400 --> 00:07:23,200 Speaker 1: moved first to New York and then shortly thereafter to Chicago. 135 00:07:23,600 --> 00:07:27,680 Speaker 1: In Chicago, Sylvia started working with the family of Julius Rosenwald, 136 00:07:27,760 --> 00:07:30,160 Speaker 1: and if that name sounds familiar, he was mentioned in 137 00:07:30,160 --> 00:07:33,320 Speaker 1: our episode on Sears History. He was a partner in 138 00:07:33,400 --> 00:07:36,920 Speaker 1: the Sears roebucking company business. We've talked about wanting to 139 00:07:36,920 --> 00:07:39,960 Speaker 1: do an episode on him. At some point two, Sylvia 140 00:07:40,080 --> 00:07:43,000 Speaker 1: was hired to help the family matriarch recover from an 141 00:07:43,040 --> 00:07:46,800 Speaker 1: injury and she exceeded all their expectations in that role. 142 00:07:47,280 --> 00:07:50,120 Speaker 1: After Sylvia's massage treatment got the woman back on her 143 00:07:50,160 --> 00:07:52,240 Speaker 1: feet in less than a week, the family put her 144 00:07:52,240 --> 00:07:56,000 Speaker 1: on retainer as their massage therapist. Sylvia was paid a 145 00:07:56,080 --> 00:07:58,840 Speaker 1: dollar and fifty cents daily for this role, which was 146 00:07:58,880 --> 00:08:02,640 Speaker 1: a good income at the time. But through the Rosenwalds, 147 00:08:02,720 --> 00:08:06,000 Speaker 1: she also had interactions with other wealthy and famous people 148 00:08:06,040 --> 00:08:09,720 Speaker 1: who also became her clients. Yeah, their grandmother had apparently 149 00:08:09,840 --> 00:08:12,440 Speaker 1: hurt one or both of her kneecaps when she fell, 150 00:08:12,800 --> 00:08:14,600 Speaker 1: so she had had a lot of difficulty walking, and 151 00:08:14,680 --> 00:08:18,600 Speaker 1: Sylvia apparently appeared as a miracle worker to them. And 152 00:08:18,640 --> 00:08:21,240 Speaker 1: through those connections that she made through the Rosenwald family, 153 00:08:21,720 --> 00:08:25,960 Speaker 1: Sylvia eventually found herself pulled to Hollywood. She had made 154 00:08:25,960 --> 00:08:29,520 Speaker 1: several connections to the entertainment industry while working for the Rosenwalds, 155 00:08:29,520 --> 00:08:32,959 Speaker 1: and eventually one or more, the story of which celebrity 156 00:08:33,080 --> 00:08:36,560 Speaker 1: or if there were several shifts a little bit urged 157 00:08:36,600 --> 00:08:38,840 Speaker 1: her to move to Los Angeles and attend to the 158 00:08:38,880 --> 00:08:42,320 Speaker 1: needs of the actresses there full time. So in nineteen 159 00:08:42,360 --> 00:08:45,040 Speaker 1: twenty five, Sylvia made the move to the West Coast. 160 00:08:45,360 --> 00:08:47,680 Speaker 1: She was in a good position from the start for 161 00:08:47,720 --> 00:08:50,360 Speaker 1: a number of reasons. For once, she had a lot 162 00:08:50,360 --> 00:08:53,240 Speaker 1: of clients already waiting for her when she arrived. And 163 00:08:53,320 --> 00:08:55,320 Speaker 1: for another, this was a time when there was a 164 00:08:55,520 --> 00:08:59,360 Speaker 1: surge of body consciousness, which created a really fertile ground 165 00:08:59,400 --> 00:09:03,000 Speaker 1: for a health and beauty business to grow. The ideal 166 00:09:03,040 --> 00:09:07,280 Speaker 1: body type in quotation marks had shifted from the hourglass 167 00:09:07,360 --> 00:09:10,120 Speaker 1: shape of the Victorian era and the Gibson girl to 168 00:09:10,160 --> 00:09:13,760 Speaker 1: a more boyish and less voluptuous figure. A lot of 169 00:09:13,800 --> 00:09:15,760 Speaker 1: women were eager to be told how to achieve a 170 00:09:15,800 --> 00:09:19,640 Speaker 1: slim figure. And so this idea of reducing and we 171 00:09:19,679 --> 00:09:21,480 Speaker 1: put that in quotes because that's what it was called 172 00:09:21,520 --> 00:09:23,600 Speaker 1: at the time, was all the rage, and it was 173 00:09:23,640 --> 00:09:26,960 Speaker 1: often marketed to women throughout the United States as the 174 00:09:27,000 --> 00:09:29,800 Speaker 1: way to become happy and beautiful. Yes, that is totally 175 00:09:29,840 --> 00:09:33,679 Speaker 1: damaging language. This is really a time when fat shaming 176 00:09:33,760 --> 00:09:37,240 Speaker 1: as a means of advertising first became common in the US, 177 00:09:37,400 --> 00:09:41,720 Speaker 1: and products to help women reduce were often downright dangerous 178 00:09:42,160 --> 00:09:45,560 Speaker 1: related to our recent episode. For example, on radioiodine therapy, 179 00:09:46,280 --> 00:09:49,560 Speaker 1: some women even turned to medication that would essentially put 180 00:09:49,600 --> 00:09:52,920 Speaker 1: their bodies into a state of hyperthyroidism to lose weight. 181 00:09:53,520 --> 00:09:55,760 Speaker 1: We talked in that episode about how that is a 182 00:09:55,840 --> 00:09:58,400 Speaker 1: dangerous state to be in for your body, so obviously 183 00:09:59,080 --> 00:10:01,800 Speaker 1: not a good plan. The film industry was still in 184 00:10:01,840 --> 00:10:04,800 Speaker 1: its infancy, and it was taking off at this same 185 00:10:04,880 --> 00:10:08,120 Speaker 1: time in a way that really created celebrity actors. So 186 00:10:08,240 --> 00:10:11,200 Speaker 1: these standards of beauty were often really closely tied to 187 00:10:11,240 --> 00:10:15,559 Speaker 1: these starlets who were appearing on screen as the aspirational 188 00:10:15,600 --> 00:10:18,880 Speaker 1: figures that women should strive to emulate. And coming up, 189 00:10:18,920 --> 00:10:21,720 Speaker 1: we're going to talk about how one magazine actually tried 190 00:10:21,760 --> 00:10:25,920 Speaker 1: to combat this unhealthy approach and the unhealthy products that 191 00:10:25,920 --> 00:10:28,680 Speaker 1: were being marketed to women, and how that really set 192 00:10:28,679 --> 00:10:31,280 Speaker 1: the stage for Sylvia's rise to fame. But first we're 193 00:10:31,280 --> 00:10:42,840 Speaker 1: going to pause and have a little sponsor break. Just 194 00:10:42,880 --> 00:10:46,040 Speaker 1: as quickly as these false claim weight loss products became 195 00:10:46,160 --> 00:10:50,880 Speaker 1: regularly advertised, the American Medical Association denounced them as both 196 00:10:50,920 --> 00:10:55,240 Speaker 1: fake and dangerous hogwash. Photoplay magazine, one of the most 197 00:10:55,320 --> 00:10:58,600 Speaker 1: popular film periodicals of the time, ran a three part 198 00:10:58,760 --> 00:11:02,880 Speaker 1: xpose on what was called reduce Omania, titled Wholesale Murder 199 00:11:02,920 --> 00:11:06,240 Speaker 1: and Suicide, which opened with the line quote in their 200 00:11:06,280 --> 00:11:09,800 Speaker 1: efforts to reduce thousands of American women are ruining their 201 00:11:09,800 --> 00:11:13,480 Speaker 1: health and preparing their bodies for tuberculosis and other diseases 202 00:11:13,760 --> 00:11:17,240 Speaker 1: by lowering their resistance. The preface to this article made 203 00:11:17,280 --> 00:11:21,280 Speaker 1: the magazine's strong stance on this matter really clear. It's 204 00:11:21,320 --> 00:11:25,239 Speaker 1: said quote Photoplay magazine refuses to admit to its advertising 205 00:11:25,280 --> 00:11:30,040 Speaker 1: columns any internal reducing preparations are questionable methods. Photoplay is 206 00:11:30,080 --> 00:11:32,240 Speaker 1: going to fight to the end to force these dangerous 207 00:11:32,240 --> 00:11:35,319 Speaker 1: preparations from the market. Why is the sale of mind 208 00:11:35,360 --> 00:11:39,079 Speaker 1: and body wrecking drugs prohibited and the sale of dangerous 209 00:11:39,120 --> 00:11:44,040 Speaker 1: reducing nostrums permitted? After its investigation and exposure of reduction 210 00:11:44,160 --> 00:11:48,040 Speaker 1: drugs as completed, Photoplay believes that national action will be necessary. 211 00:11:48,440 --> 00:11:52,280 Speaker 1: Medical quacks must be prevented from killing American women, and 212 00:11:52,320 --> 00:11:55,679 Speaker 1: American women must be prevented from committing suicide. In the 213 00:11:55,720 --> 00:11:59,839 Speaker 1: Pursuit of Fashion and That series, written by fairly well 214 00:11:59,880 --> 00:12:03,240 Speaker 1: known journalist at the time, Catherine Brody, discussed the use 215 00:12:03,280 --> 00:12:06,160 Speaker 1: of thyroid treatment as a weight loss aid women who 216 00:12:06,240 --> 00:12:09,400 Speaker 1: developed mental health disorders as a result of their anxiety 217 00:12:09,440 --> 00:12:12,360 Speaker 1: related to their bodies, and it even talked about the 218 00:12:12,360 --> 00:12:15,040 Speaker 1: death of actress Barbara Lamar as it built its case 219 00:12:15,120 --> 00:12:17,680 Speaker 1: against the dangerous claims the medical quacks that it sought 220 00:12:17,720 --> 00:12:20,760 Speaker 1: to expose. She had died not long before this article 221 00:12:21,320 --> 00:12:24,679 Speaker 1: from I Believe a heart failure, which is how it 222 00:12:24,720 --> 00:12:26,880 Speaker 1: was publicized, but really she had been doing some very 223 00:12:26,880 --> 00:12:30,960 Speaker 1: foolish things trying to become incredibly thin. That article also 224 00:12:30,960 --> 00:12:33,920 Speaker 1: stated pretty clearly that there is no such thing as 225 00:12:33,920 --> 00:12:37,440 Speaker 1: an ideal figure, but merely trends that shift and lead 226 00:12:37,480 --> 00:12:41,199 Speaker 1: to these problematic situations as reduce somnia as a craze. 227 00:12:41,960 --> 00:12:45,920 Speaker 1: And this whole series concluded with exercise tips that were 228 00:12:46,240 --> 00:12:48,520 Speaker 1: from a more sensible approach to fitness. It was like, 229 00:12:48,559 --> 00:12:50,680 Speaker 1: maybe you should if you want to be healthy, just 230 00:12:50,760 --> 00:12:52,880 Speaker 1: eat well and take care of your body and don't 231 00:12:52,880 --> 00:12:55,319 Speaker 1: worry about what people say it should look like. As 232 00:12:55,320 --> 00:12:58,280 Speaker 1: the discussion played out in papers and magazines, the concept 233 00:12:58,320 --> 00:13:00,840 Speaker 1: of a diet and exercise regime that was meant to 234 00:13:00,920 --> 00:13:03,960 Speaker 1: achieve a slim look rather than using a pillar a 235 00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:08,079 Speaker 1: cream started to take shape and enter Sylvia Ulbach. Sylvia 236 00:13:08,240 --> 00:13:11,600 Speaker 1: was essentially already doing similar work to what Photoplay and 237 00:13:11,679 --> 00:13:14,440 Speaker 1: other journals were touting as a more reasonable approach to 238 00:13:14,520 --> 00:13:17,680 Speaker 1: health and beauty. She had developed a three part approach 239 00:13:17,720 --> 00:13:21,199 Speaker 1: to health and beauty that combined a healthy diet, exercise, 240 00:13:21,360 --> 00:13:24,800 Speaker 1: and massage. From the mid nineteen twenties on, Sylvia was 241 00:13:24,840 --> 00:13:27,599 Speaker 1: working with clients both in her home in Los Angeles 242 00:13:27,640 --> 00:13:30,360 Speaker 1: and in their homes. She would go over what they 243 00:13:30,360 --> 00:13:33,840 Speaker 1: were eating, give them massages, and teach them exercises to 244 00:13:34,040 --> 00:13:36,640 Speaker 1: get and keep them in shape for their on screen work. 245 00:13:36,679 --> 00:13:39,440 Speaker 1: And this is still an industry. She was a trailblazer 246 00:13:39,440 --> 00:13:42,200 Speaker 1: in this regard, and as she built a client's hell 247 00:13:42,240 --> 00:13:45,439 Speaker 1: and a reputation for getting results, she emerged as something 248 00:13:45,440 --> 00:13:48,160 Speaker 1: of a celebrity in her own right. She started fielding 249 00:13:48,160 --> 00:13:51,439 Speaker 1: requests for interviews to give advice and tips to magazine 250 00:13:51,440 --> 00:13:53,840 Speaker 1: readers that would mirror the work that she was doing 251 00:13:53,880 --> 00:13:57,000 Speaker 1: with celebrity clients. Yeah, this really like was where her 252 00:13:57,000 --> 00:14:01,120 Speaker 1: career exploded. One of those celebrities that she worked with, incidentally, 253 00:14:01,240 --> 00:14:04,160 Speaker 1: was May Murray, who we mentioned in our donut episode. 254 00:14:04,600 --> 00:14:07,240 Speaker 1: Murray was the one that's given credit for inventing dunking 255 00:14:07,280 --> 00:14:10,360 Speaker 1: by accidentally dropping a donut in her coffee. But she 256 00:14:10,480 --> 00:14:13,120 Speaker 1: had hired Sylvia to go with her on her vaudeville 257 00:14:13,160 --> 00:14:16,720 Speaker 1: tour starting in September of nineteen twenty seven. In April 258 00:14:16,840 --> 00:14:19,440 Speaker 1: nineteen twenty eight, so just a few months later their 259 00:14:19,480 --> 00:14:23,400 Speaker 1: business relationship had fallen apart, and eventually they went to court. 260 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:26,440 Speaker 1: Ulbach said that the actress had failed to pay her 261 00:14:26,600 --> 00:14:29,800 Speaker 1: and sued Murray for her unpaid wages, and the court 262 00:14:29,840 --> 00:14:32,680 Speaker 1: found in Olbeck's favor and she won two thousand dollars. 263 00:14:33,120 --> 00:14:37,120 Speaker 1: She also swore off exclusive contracts after that. That desire 264 00:14:37,200 --> 00:14:41,080 Speaker 1: to stay away from becoming one star's exclusive messuse an 265 00:14:41,120 --> 00:14:46,640 Speaker 1: advisor was just almost instantly problematic. Gloria Swanson desperately wanted 266 00:14:46,640 --> 00:14:52,400 Speaker 1: to be Sylvia's only clients, even after Sylvia said no repeatedly. Eventually, 267 00:14:52,440 --> 00:14:56,320 Speaker 1: Swanson appealed to Joseph Kennedy at Pathay Studios to step in. 268 00:14:56,600 --> 00:14:59,960 Speaker 1: Kennedy did. He offered Sylvia a contract to work exclud 269 00:15:00,040 --> 00:15:03,920 Speaker 1: lusively with the studios stars, including a clause that Swanson 270 00:15:03,960 --> 00:15:07,440 Speaker 1: had to get priority over everyone else. And Sylvia took 271 00:15:07,480 --> 00:15:10,240 Speaker 1: that job and it became something of a stepping stone 272 00:15:10,240 --> 00:15:13,400 Speaker 1: for her career because she had carved out this unique 273 00:15:13,400 --> 00:15:16,360 Speaker 1: space for herself in Hollywood. She was also a source 274 00:15:16,400 --> 00:15:19,280 Speaker 1: of fascination for the press. She was in the job 275 00:15:19,400 --> 00:15:22,360 Speaker 1: less than two years, but gave dozens of interviews during 276 00:15:22,400 --> 00:15:25,880 Speaker 1: that time, and her message in those interviews resonated with 277 00:15:25,960 --> 00:15:29,520 Speaker 1: the public. She felt that beauty was in your mind first, 278 00:15:29,600 --> 00:15:31,880 Speaker 1: and that you had to work on your confidence to 279 00:15:32,000 --> 00:15:35,240 Speaker 1: achieve the body that you desired. She focused on health 280 00:15:35,280 --> 00:15:38,320 Speaker 1: as a means to achieve beauty. Sylvia was said to 281 00:15:38,440 --> 00:15:41,960 Speaker 1: work miracles through a very direct, no nonsense approach that 282 00:15:42,080 --> 00:15:45,720 Speaker 1: did not baby her clients. She could be sharp and critical, 283 00:15:45,760 --> 00:15:48,680 Speaker 1: but people found this appealing instead of off putting. Her 284 00:15:48,800 --> 00:15:51,720 Speaker 1: tough truthfulness was a departure from the ways stars were 285 00:15:51,800 --> 00:15:55,680 Speaker 1: used to being treated. Additionally, her promotion of a healthy 286 00:15:55,800 --> 00:15:58,280 Speaker 1: lifestyle was a breadth of fresh air at a time 287 00:15:58,280 --> 00:16:02,240 Speaker 1: when Hollywood was seen as being indulgent and debaucherous. Yeah, 288 00:16:02,240 --> 00:16:04,160 Speaker 1: she really sort of became a good bit of pr 289 00:16:04,240 --> 00:16:06,320 Speaker 1: for Hollywood when it was like, no, we're employing this 290 00:16:06,360 --> 00:16:09,480 Speaker 1: woman who talks about not drinking and not eating bad 291 00:16:09,520 --> 00:16:13,360 Speaker 1: things and not being self indulgent, and aren't we the 292 00:16:13,600 --> 00:16:18,600 Speaker 1: paragons of good healthy living? So it was in the 293 00:16:18,640 --> 00:16:21,000 Speaker 1: studio's interest to promote that they were working with her. 294 00:16:21,760 --> 00:16:24,640 Speaker 1: But while she was in her studio contract, Sylvia also 295 00:16:24,760 --> 00:16:27,200 Speaker 1: got caught in the middle of a bunch of Hollywood 296 00:16:27,280 --> 00:16:29,640 Speaker 1: drama because of her clients, which she did not enjoy. 297 00:16:30,160 --> 00:16:33,360 Speaker 1: When Gloria Swanson's husband's mistress, if you can follow all 298 00:16:33,360 --> 00:16:36,360 Speaker 1: of that, whose name was Constant Bennett, was signed on 299 00:16:36,480 --> 00:16:40,480 Speaker 1: as a talent with the studio, Gloria and Constance started 300 00:16:40,520 --> 00:16:44,960 Speaker 1: battling over everything, including Sylvia's time and attention. And just 301 00:16:45,000 --> 00:16:47,080 Speaker 1: to be clear, this is not a case where Swanson 302 00:16:47,160 --> 00:16:49,840 Speaker 1: was a spurned wife acting out of hurt. She was 303 00:16:49,840 --> 00:16:51,800 Speaker 1: having her own affair with the head of the studio, 304 00:16:51,880 --> 00:16:55,320 Speaker 1: Joseph Kennedy. It was a big morass of people all 305 00:16:55,440 --> 00:16:58,040 Speaker 1: cheating on one another and being devious and having just 306 00:16:58,160 --> 00:17:02,400 Speaker 1: terrible relationships. One point, Bennett, according to Sylvia, even tried 307 00:17:02,440 --> 00:17:05,479 Speaker 1: to bribe her to be her exclusive mesuse with an 308 00:17:05,520 --> 00:17:10,240 Speaker 1: expensive sapphire ring. Sylvia was loyal to Swanson and refused, 309 00:17:10,280 --> 00:17:12,600 Speaker 1: but this tug of war that the two women were 310 00:17:12,600 --> 00:17:16,919 Speaker 1: playing over her just exhausted and frustrated Sylvia. It started 311 00:17:16,920 --> 00:17:20,560 Speaker 1: a sentiment that Hollywood just might not be worth the trouble. Yeah, 312 00:17:20,560 --> 00:17:22,879 Speaker 1: she definitely reached a point where she thought Hollywood was 313 00:17:22,920 --> 00:17:25,960 Speaker 1: getting more out of the relationship than she was. In 314 00:17:26,000 --> 00:17:29,400 Speaker 1: another case of perfect timing, just as she had kind 315 00:17:29,400 --> 00:17:31,879 Speaker 1: of landed on the Hollywood scene as this desire to 316 00:17:31,920 --> 00:17:34,840 Speaker 1: shift away from some of the more foolish approaches to 317 00:17:35,560 --> 00:17:40,879 Speaker 1: losing weight was happening. When the nineteen twenty nine crash happened, 318 00:17:40,920 --> 00:17:44,399 Speaker 1: it really didn't damage Sylvia's business. That signaled the end 319 00:17:44,440 --> 00:17:48,080 Speaker 1: of the flapper era and the excess of the Roaring twenties, 320 00:17:48,520 --> 00:17:52,119 Speaker 1: and so her more sensible methodology was actually bolstered and 321 00:17:52,160 --> 00:17:55,119 Speaker 1: her business continued to thrive, although it did go on 322 00:17:55,160 --> 00:17:59,200 Speaker 1: a different path. Instead of treating individual clients, she took 323 00:17:59,240 --> 00:18:01,680 Speaker 1: her advice on health and beauty to the masses by 324 00:18:01,680 --> 00:18:04,560 Speaker 1: starting a writing career. By the time Sylvia left her 325 00:18:04,600 --> 00:18:08,080 Speaker 1: studio gig in nineteen thirty, her name had significant star 326 00:18:08,160 --> 00:18:10,679 Speaker 1: power of its own. In fact, when she left her 327 00:18:10,720 --> 00:18:15,000 Speaker 1: studio contract behind, almost every other studio in Hollywood started 328 00:18:15,000 --> 00:18:17,760 Speaker 1: making her offers, but she didn't take any of them. 329 00:18:18,040 --> 00:18:20,240 Speaker 1: She had initially told the press that she wanted to 330 00:18:20,240 --> 00:18:22,840 Speaker 1: work with anybody she pleased to not be limited by 331 00:18:22,880 --> 00:18:26,080 Speaker 1: exclusivity deals with the studio, but she never really re 332 00:18:26,280 --> 00:18:29,760 Speaker 1: established her client based business and said she started writing 333 00:18:29,880 --> 00:18:33,760 Speaker 1: articles for the weekly general interest periodical Liberty, and these 334 00:18:33,840 --> 00:18:37,679 Speaker 1: articles were actually touted as being written by Sylvia's quote 335 00:18:37,680 --> 00:18:42,840 Speaker 1: Indiscreet Secretary, which was actually ghostwriter James Whittaker. Presumably they 336 00:18:42,840 --> 00:18:45,720 Speaker 1: were published that way in an attempt to shield Sylvia 337 00:18:45,760 --> 00:18:49,360 Speaker 1: from blowback because she told a number of Hollywood secrets 338 00:18:49,400 --> 00:18:52,000 Speaker 1: in her article series, which ran for two months and 339 00:18:52,119 --> 00:18:55,480 Speaker 1: was titled A Masseuse looks at the Stars. The article 340 00:18:55,560 --> 00:18:59,400 Speaker 1: series was also adapted into a book called Hollywood Undressed, 341 00:18:59,400 --> 00:19:02,199 Speaker 1: which came out a nineteen thirty one, and despite the 342 00:19:02,280 --> 00:19:05,320 Speaker 1: effort to claim the info was leaked by a secretary, 343 00:19:05,440 --> 00:19:08,800 Speaker 1: Sylvia of Hollywood became a contentious figure in the film industry. 344 00:19:09,280 --> 00:19:12,520 Speaker 1: The book adaptation contained both anecdotes of her time working 345 00:19:12,560 --> 00:19:15,240 Speaker 1: with film stars as well as the diet and exercise 346 00:19:15,280 --> 00:19:17,720 Speaker 1: advice that she gave to them, and in the process 347 00:19:17,760 --> 00:19:20,439 Speaker 1: she talked in detail about the private lives of the 348 00:19:20,560 --> 00:19:24,000 Speaker 1: rich and famous. She mentioned her feud with May Murray, 349 00:19:24,160 --> 00:19:27,919 Speaker 1: and she described the actress's bad marriage and hinted that 350 00:19:27,960 --> 00:19:32,280 Speaker 1: May's husband was abusive. She also called out various entertainers 351 00:19:32,320 --> 00:19:35,760 Speaker 1: as fat and lazy, and she outed people for various 352 00:19:35,840 --> 00:19:39,720 Speaker 1: minor illegal activities. She pointed out who in Hollywood broke prohibition, 353 00:19:39,800 --> 00:19:42,760 Speaker 1: for example, and it seemed that she had turned and 354 00:19:42,800 --> 00:19:45,200 Speaker 1: bitten the hand that had been feeding her for years. 355 00:19:45,840 --> 00:19:48,439 Speaker 1: Some actors actually called for a boycott of Ulbach, and 356 00:19:48,480 --> 00:19:50,840 Speaker 1: those who did not were still pretty vocal that her 357 00:19:50,880 --> 00:19:53,480 Speaker 1: career in Hollywood was over. There were a handful of 358 00:19:53,480 --> 00:19:56,000 Speaker 1: exceptions that were like, ah, that's just Sylvia, but for 359 00:19:56,080 --> 00:19:59,080 Speaker 1: the most part, she was quickly becoming persona non grata. 360 00:19:59,480 --> 00:20:02,879 Speaker 1: Sylvia vehemently denied that she had done anything wrong and 361 00:20:03,040 --> 00:20:06,679 Speaker 1: argued back and forth with various Hollywood figures through reporters. 362 00:20:07,160 --> 00:20:09,480 Speaker 1: She was insistent that she was not about to back 363 00:20:09,560 --> 00:20:12,440 Speaker 1: down because the very people that she had called spoiled 364 00:20:12,480 --> 00:20:15,320 Speaker 1: were mad at her for it. She gave statements to 365 00:20:15,359 --> 00:20:18,080 Speaker 1: the press that anyone was welcome to come and talk 366 00:20:18,119 --> 00:20:20,240 Speaker 1: with her or even give her a sock in the jaw. 367 00:20:20,640 --> 00:20:23,080 Speaker 1: She also said that people could be as mad as 368 00:20:23,119 --> 00:20:26,760 Speaker 1: they liked, but they still needed her treatments just the same, 369 00:20:26,920 --> 00:20:29,639 Speaker 1: whether she had intended to all along or if it 370 00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:32,840 Speaker 1: was precipitated by all the conflict, Sylvia moved away from 371 00:20:32,880 --> 00:20:36,439 Speaker 1: Los Angeles, and there is some debate also about just 372 00:20:36,520 --> 00:20:39,080 Speaker 1: how much of the writing that went into Hollywood undressed 373 00:20:39,160 --> 00:20:41,760 Speaker 1: and the articles that preceded it was really the work 374 00:20:41,760 --> 00:20:45,720 Speaker 1: of ghostwriter James Whittaker. Whittaker was the ex husband of 375 00:20:45,760 --> 00:20:48,520 Speaker 1: actress Ana Clair, and he had his own access to 376 00:20:48,520 --> 00:20:52,160 Speaker 1: grind in Hollywood, so some people shifted the focus off 377 00:20:52,200 --> 00:20:55,040 Speaker 1: of Sylvia and onto him, claiming that Sylvia could not 378 00:20:55,160 --> 00:20:58,760 Speaker 1: have understood some of the nuances of cutting phrasing that 379 00:20:58,800 --> 00:21:00,920 Speaker 1: were used in the book because she was a non 380 00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:04,280 Speaker 1: native speaker of English. We'll talk next about the evolution 381 00:21:04,440 --> 00:21:08,120 Speaker 1: of Sylvia's career after her break with Hollywood, but first 382 00:21:08,119 --> 00:21:10,240 Speaker 1: we'll take our own break and hear from one of 383 00:21:10,280 --> 00:21:21,800 Speaker 1: the sponsors that keeps the show going. It turned out 384 00:21:21,960 --> 00:21:25,960 Speaker 1: that Sylvia spilling Hollywood gossip was actually a pretty brilliant 385 00:21:26,040 --> 00:21:30,399 Speaker 1: business move. Whether she truly disdained the famous people who 386 00:21:30,480 --> 00:21:32,919 Speaker 1: had come to her for help in her time in Hollywood, 387 00:21:33,520 --> 00:21:37,720 Speaker 1: in calling them spoiled, frivolous, and indulgent cinema children, she 388 00:21:37,800 --> 00:21:40,880 Speaker 1: appealed to a much broader audience of readers who were 389 00:21:40,880 --> 00:21:43,919 Speaker 1: dealing with the early years of the economic depression and 390 00:21:44,000 --> 00:21:47,280 Speaker 1: had their own negative opinions about the spoiled entertainers of 391 00:21:47,320 --> 00:21:49,879 Speaker 1: the film industry. The time when all of this was 392 00:21:49,920 --> 00:21:52,720 Speaker 1: going on was a significant moment in Sylvia's life for 393 00:21:52,800 --> 00:21:55,760 Speaker 1: other reasons too. When she left Hollywood to move to 394 00:21:55,760 --> 00:21:58,800 Speaker 1: New York, she did so alone. Her husband Andrew, and 395 00:21:58,840 --> 00:22:01,080 Speaker 1: their two sons, who were her adults at this point, 396 00:22:01,119 --> 00:22:04,000 Speaker 1: all stayed in La Yeah. Her sons were both working 397 00:22:04,080 --> 00:22:06,919 Speaker 1: in the entertainment industry, not as actors, but in various 398 00:22:06,920 --> 00:22:10,520 Speaker 1: other roles, and Sylvia's life in New York involved a 399 00:22:10,520 --> 00:22:13,800 Speaker 1: lot of efforts in different areas. She made appearances at 400 00:22:13,800 --> 00:22:16,800 Speaker 1: department stores to talk about health and beauty, and she 401 00:22:16,960 --> 00:22:19,440 Speaker 1: had started a line of cosmetics with which Andrew was 402 00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:21,399 Speaker 1: basically running that part of the business, and so she 403 00:22:21,400 --> 00:22:24,600 Speaker 1: would go and promote those cosmetics in stores. But she 404 00:22:24,680 --> 00:22:28,240 Speaker 1: also dabbled in new areas, including writing a satirical play 405 00:22:28,280 --> 00:22:32,080 Speaker 1: about Hollywood with playwright Edith Ellis Furness, and even appearing 406 00:22:32,119 --> 00:22:34,560 Speaker 1: on stage in a couple of vaudeville acts. That play 407 00:22:34,560 --> 00:22:36,960 Speaker 1: that she wrote never was actually produced, by the way, 408 00:22:37,320 --> 00:22:39,320 Speaker 1: But in the end, it was her status as a 409 00:22:39,359 --> 00:22:41,920 Speaker 1: health and beauty expert that kept her afloat even as 410 00:22:41,960 --> 00:22:45,200 Speaker 1: the Depression wore on. In nineteen thirty two, the year 411 00:22:45,280 --> 00:22:47,600 Speaker 1: after she arrived in New York, she started working for 412 00:22:47,640 --> 00:22:51,199 Speaker 1: Photoplay magazine as a regular columnist. She wrote for the 413 00:22:51,240 --> 00:22:54,760 Speaker 1: magazine for three years, using that platform to continue and 414 00:22:54,800 --> 00:22:58,480 Speaker 1: share her knowledge about exercise and healthful eating. And it's 415 00:22:58,560 --> 00:23:01,199 Speaker 1: interesting to note that even as she advised women on 416 00:23:01,240 --> 00:23:03,959 Speaker 1: how to achieve the figure they desired, she tended to 417 00:23:04,000 --> 00:23:07,640 Speaker 1: focus it on women making themselves happy and was never 418 00:23:07,680 --> 00:23:11,000 Speaker 1: about pleasing or catching a man. We have to note here, though, 419 00:23:11,040 --> 00:23:13,920 Speaker 1: as we said to Tom, there's some conflict because even 420 00:23:13,960 --> 00:23:16,680 Speaker 1: though she was insistent that there was no single ideal 421 00:23:16,720 --> 00:23:20,240 Speaker 1: body type, she did insist that you had to be slim, 422 00:23:20,760 --> 00:23:22,320 Speaker 1: so it is a little bit of a mixed bag. 423 00:23:22,640 --> 00:23:24,640 Speaker 1: She was very clear that women had to get over 424 00:23:24,720 --> 00:23:27,240 Speaker 1: the laziness of their bodies and minds if they wished 425 00:23:27,240 --> 00:23:30,359 Speaker 1: to reduce and she remained her very direct and sometimes 426 00:23:30,480 --> 00:23:34,520 Speaker 1: quite harsh self. At one point, in response to reader questions, 427 00:23:34,760 --> 00:23:38,120 Speaker 1: she didn't do like a direct reply, but she wrote 428 00:23:38,119 --> 00:23:41,160 Speaker 1: in her article, either get some brains or stop reading 429 00:23:41,200 --> 00:23:43,760 Speaker 1: my stories. I'm sick and tired of the silly questions. 430 00:23:43,800 --> 00:23:47,800 Speaker 1: A lot of you ask, not the most nurturing of that. 431 00:23:48,800 --> 00:23:51,159 Speaker 1: And this reminds me a little bit. I think it 432 00:23:51,280 --> 00:23:55,480 Speaker 1: was about Annette Kellerman, who was the woman who made 433 00:23:55,520 --> 00:23:59,920 Speaker 1: swimming a lot more accessible to other women, particularly most 434 00:24:00,160 --> 00:24:02,920 Speaker 1: white women at the time, and how she also got 435 00:24:02,920 --> 00:24:06,760 Speaker 1: into like some beauty tips as part of her thing. 436 00:24:06,760 --> 00:24:09,560 Speaker 1: And it was like she would sort of simultaneously say, 437 00:24:10,080 --> 00:24:13,879 Speaker 1: there is nothing wrong with you, it's society's expectations of 438 00:24:13,920 --> 00:24:16,080 Speaker 1: you are what to blame. But at the same time 439 00:24:16,119 --> 00:24:17,840 Speaker 1: she would be sort of liked but here's how to 440 00:24:17,840 --> 00:24:22,320 Speaker 1: meet those expectations there right, Yeah, I feel like Sylvia 441 00:24:22,359 --> 00:24:27,640 Speaker 1: in some ways invented the concept of the tough love trainer. Yeah, 442 00:24:27,680 --> 00:24:30,280 Speaker 1: she could be very, very harsh. She did make some 443 00:24:30,359 --> 00:24:34,960 Speaker 1: interesting connections between physical wellness and mental wellness, though, though 444 00:24:35,040 --> 00:24:38,080 Speaker 1: sometimes that really turned out to be about how crying 445 00:24:38,119 --> 00:24:41,439 Speaker 1: makes your skin puffy and unattractive. She was also a 446 00:24:41,480 --> 00:24:45,480 Speaker 1: proponent of positivity and obviously hard work, and she told 447 00:24:45,480 --> 00:24:48,640 Speaker 1: readers that these were just as valuable to being happy 448 00:24:49,000 --> 00:24:52,320 Speaker 1: as any weight that they might lose. In nineteen thirty two, 449 00:24:52,640 --> 00:24:56,000 Speaker 1: after thirty one years of marriage, Sylvia shocked her husband 450 00:24:56,000 --> 00:24:59,560 Speaker 1: Andrew by asking for a divorce. While she had moved 451 00:24:59,600 --> 00:25:02,160 Speaker 1: to New York alone, they had remained married and seemed 452 00:25:02,760 --> 00:25:05,600 Speaker 1: to be pretty amicable at that point. It is always, 453 00:25:05,640 --> 00:25:08,200 Speaker 1: of course, unclear what a relationship is truly like from 454 00:25:08,240 --> 00:25:10,440 Speaker 1: the inside. And we don't know if there were troubles 455 00:25:10,440 --> 00:25:13,160 Speaker 1: before this, but in the press at that point Sylvia 456 00:25:13,240 --> 00:25:16,320 Speaker 1: and Andrew had seemed very contented together. But once she 457 00:25:16,440 --> 00:25:19,159 Speaker 1: was in New York, Sylvia met someone. That someone was 458 00:25:19,200 --> 00:25:22,239 Speaker 1: actor Edward Lighter, who was twenty two years younger than 459 00:25:22,280 --> 00:25:25,040 Speaker 1: Sylvia and who really swept her off her feet. At 460 00:25:25,080 --> 00:25:27,720 Speaker 1: the end of June nineteen thirty two, Sylvia and Andrew 461 00:25:27,760 --> 00:25:31,399 Speaker 1: were divorced in Mexico, and three days later she married Lighter, 462 00:25:31,440 --> 00:25:33,400 Speaker 1: who stayed with her for the rest of her life. 463 00:25:33,480 --> 00:25:36,760 Speaker 1: As Sylvia continued to write, she still used her Hollywood 464 00:25:36,760 --> 00:25:40,000 Speaker 1: experiences as material, even though she had left Hollywood behind. 465 00:25:40,680 --> 00:25:43,320 Speaker 1: She wrote a series in which she used famous actresses 466 00:25:43,400 --> 00:25:46,800 Speaker 1: as examples of different body types and advised readers on 467 00:25:46,840 --> 00:25:49,720 Speaker 1: how to achieve a similar level of fitness. It was 468 00:25:49,760 --> 00:25:53,400 Speaker 1: an early sort of synergistic journalism where Photoplay could use 469 00:25:53,480 --> 00:25:57,520 Speaker 1: this popular column to then promote the latest entertainment. It's 470 00:25:57,600 --> 00:26:00,480 Speaker 1: kind of like its own little custom content studio going on. 471 00:26:01,040 --> 00:26:03,399 Speaker 1: And in a later series, she wrote as though she 472 00:26:03,440 --> 00:26:05,960 Speaker 1: were writing two celebrities to tell them what was wrong 473 00:26:06,000 --> 00:26:08,679 Speaker 1: with them and how to fix it. These are to 474 00:26:08,760 --> 00:26:11,320 Speaker 1: me troubling to read because she's basically like, here's what's 475 00:26:11,320 --> 00:26:14,120 Speaker 1: wrong with you. She would tell an actress, for example, 476 00:26:14,119 --> 00:26:16,679 Speaker 1: that her face was too fat, and then outline a 477 00:26:16,720 --> 00:26:19,760 Speaker 1: plan to address the issue of her critique. In nineteen 478 00:26:19,800 --> 00:26:22,640 Speaker 1: thirty two, Ulbak found herself in a new role, which 479 00:26:22,720 --> 00:26:27,000 Speaker 1: was radio host. General Electric and Ralston sponsored the radio 480 00:26:27,080 --> 00:26:31,520 Speaker 1: show Madame Sylvia of Hollywood. On each show, Sylvia recounted 481 00:26:31,520 --> 00:26:34,520 Speaker 1: working with the specific celebrity, starting with the story of 482 00:26:34,520 --> 00:26:37,439 Speaker 1: how any given woman came to be her client, usually 483 00:26:37,440 --> 00:26:40,960 Speaker 1: at the urging of studio executives. These stories were played 484 00:26:40,960 --> 00:26:45,280 Speaker 1: out as re enactments with actors. Sylvia herself only briefly 485 00:26:45,320 --> 00:26:48,320 Speaker 1: appeared each week. Yeah, I would be like, here's what happened, 486 00:26:48,440 --> 00:26:50,919 Speaker 1: and here's how I fixed it, Tadah happy. Ending is 487 00:26:50,960 --> 00:26:54,440 Speaker 1: that she was beautiful in this film. A second book 488 00:26:54,520 --> 00:26:58,120 Speaker 1: by Sylvia was published in nineteen thirty four. This one, 489 00:26:58,240 --> 00:27:01,919 Speaker 1: titled No More Alibis, became a bestseller, and the opening 490 00:27:02,000 --> 00:27:04,919 Speaker 1: chapter extols the virtues of a healthy lifestyle, and it 491 00:27:05,000 --> 00:27:08,480 Speaker 1: is a mix of Sylvia's stern and direct manner. For example, 492 00:27:08,480 --> 00:27:11,160 Speaker 1: she writes, quote, stop being lazy, stop wishing for good 493 00:27:11,200 --> 00:27:13,240 Speaker 1: looks when all you have to do is get them 494 00:27:13,280 --> 00:27:16,119 Speaker 1: by making the effort. And it's also got a healthy 495 00:27:16,160 --> 00:27:19,840 Speaker 1: dose of encouragement. For example, she writes, quote and believe me, 496 00:27:20,000 --> 00:27:22,440 Speaker 1: I'm for you. I think every one of you who 497 00:27:22,480 --> 00:27:25,919 Speaker 1: really tries is swell. The world is yours. Take it. 498 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:29,240 Speaker 1: It's your right. She lays out a very clear ideology 499 00:27:29,280 --> 00:27:32,600 Speaker 1: in this text. People eat too much and moreover, eat 500 00:27:32,680 --> 00:27:36,080 Speaker 1: unhealthy foods and then don't get enough exercise. It's the 501 00:27:36,119 --> 00:27:38,920 Speaker 1: same simple advice that a lot of trainers still give today. 502 00:27:39,200 --> 00:27:41,840 Speaker 1: And she also touched on elements of mental health in 503 00:27:41,880 --> 00:27:45,200 Speaker 1: the book, particularly noting that nervousness was a normal reaction 504 00:27:45,280 --> 00:27:48,159 Speaker 1: to the demands of modern life. She wrote, to be 505 00:27:48,280 --> 00:27:50,720 Speaker 1: ambitious is fine, but there is such a thing as 506 00:27:50,760 --> 00:27:55,160 Speaker 1: being eaten up with ambition. She recommended massage to counter 507 00:27:55,280 --> 00:27:59,920 Speaker 1: nervousness and anxiety. That works for me. The massage part 508 00:28:00,359 --> 00:28:04,199 Speaker 1: advice is great. And the diet that Sylvia recommended for 509 00:28:04,400 --> 00:28:07,920 Speaker 1: reducing in the book was fairly straightforward. It featured a 510 00:28:07,960 --> 00:28:12,080 Speaker 1: breakfast of grapefruit or orange juice, black coffee, and melbatoast 511 00:28:12,119 --> 00:28:15,439 Speaker 1: or rye wafers with honey but no butter. Lunch was 512 00:28:15,480 --> 00:28:18,360 Speaker 1: liquids only, tomato juice, and a large bowl of clear 513 00:28:18,480 --> 00:28:21,200 Speaker 1: vegetable soup with black coffee or tea with lemon to 514 00:28:21,320 --> 00:28:25,200 Speaker 1: drink no sugar. Of course. For dinner, the woman seeking 515 00:28:25,240 --> 00:28:28,040 Speaker 1: to reduce could have a fresh fruit cup, a lettuce 516 00:28:28,080 --> 00:28:31,840 Speaker 1: and tomato salad sprinkled with parsley, a small portion of 517 00:28:31,840 --> 00:28:35,280 Speaker 1: broiled or roasted meat, potato skins, seasoned with a little 518 00:28:35,359 --> 00:28:39,200 Speaker 1: salt only, and for dessert gelatin, a baked apple or 519 00:28:39,240 --> 00:28:44,480 Speaker 1: stewed fruit, no sugar added. I would cry on this diet. 520 00:28:45,520 --> 00:28:50,360 Speaker 1: There's some problems there. That was my weary sigh. Yeah, 521 00:28:50,640 --> 00:28:53,720 Speaker 1: she I mean for the time, her ideology was that, no, 522 00:28:54,160 --> 00:28:57,920 Speaker 1: I'm putting together a balanced menu, but we know a 523 00:28:57,920 --> 00:29:03,320 Speaker 1: lot more about nutrition and that not the same nutrition 524 00:29:03,440 --> 00:29:06,640 Speaker 1: will work for every person, whereas she was pretty much 525 00:29:06,720 --> 00:29:10,080 Speaker 1: like do this everybody, Yeah, well, and even the whole idea, 526 00:29:10,240 --> 00:29:12,640 Speaker 1: like there are a lot of things that claim to 527 00:29:12,640 --> 00:29:17,600 Speaker 1: be about nutrition but are really about weight loss, like right, yeah, 528 00:29:18,200 --> 00:29:20,520 Speaker 1: Like a lot of times people are marketed these things 529 00:29:20,520 --> 00:29:21,960 Speaker 1: in a way that it makes it seem like it's 530 00:29:21,960 --> 00:29:24,760 Speaker 1: the same thing when it's really not. There are also 531 00:29:25,160 --> 00:29:28,560 Speaker 1: plenty of exercises aimed at reducing and in sculpting various 532 00:29:28,560 --> 00:29:31,320 Speaker 1: parts of the body, and a lot of cases massage 533 00:29:31,440 --> 00:29:34,520 Speaker 1: is also prescribed to melt away the pounds. This whole 534 00:29:34,560 --> 00:29:37,640 Speaker 1: book is full of quips like a fat back mars 535 00:29:37,680 --> 00:29:40,400 Speaker 1: your figure and posture and makes people think you're older 536 00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:43,560 Speaker 1: than you really are. There's also a chapter dedicated to 537 00:29:43,600 --> 00:29:45,760 Speaker 1: the needs of people who need to put on weight. 538 00:29:46,120 --> 00:29:48,760 Speaker 1: She also advises to have a friend give you a 539 00:29:48,800 --> 00:29:51,360 Speaker 1: hard whack on the back if they see you slouching, 540 00:29:51,400 --> 00:29:55,400 Speaker 1: which we talked about at the top of the show. Yeah, please, 541 00:29:55,440 --> 00:29:57,360 Speaker 1: don't any of my friends whack me on the back, 542 00:29:57,480 --> 00:29:59,640 Speaker 1: Just tell me I'm slouching. I also just want to 543 00:29:59,640 --> 00:30:02,000 Speaker 1: know that there's a difference between like you and a 544 00:30:02,040 --> 00:30:06,160 Speaker 1: friend deciding to do something together to support each other, 545 00:30:06,400 --> 00:30:09,680 Speaker 1: and like policing your friend's behavior, which seems right more 546 00:30:09,720 --> 00:30:12,600 Speaker 1: her jam here. Yeah, I mean I think she wants 547 00:30:12,640 --> 00:30:14,960 Speaker 1: to be the person that polices your behavior. She does 548 00:30:15,040 --> 00:30:16,400 Speaker 1: kind of make it like you should have a friend 549 00:30:16,440 --> 00:30:18,800 Speaker 1: do this stuff with you, but she wants to yell 550 00:30:18,840 --> 00:30:23,400 Speaker 1: at you about your posture for sure. The second half 551 00:30:23,480 --> 00:30:26,120 Speaker 1: of the nineteen thirty saw a lot of activity in 552 00:30:26,200 --> 00:30:29,360 Speaker 1: Sylvia's writing career, both in terms of volume and in 553 00:30:29,400 --> 00:30:33,480 Speaker 1: terms of where it appeared. She abruptly left Photoplay magazine 554 00:30:33,520 --> 00:30:36,960 Speaker 1: and started writing for a competitor, Modern Screen, but then 555 00:30:37,000 --> 00:30:39,280 Speaker 1: she went back to Photoplay as the beauty editor, in 556 00:30:39,320 --> 00:30:42,200 Speaker 1: part because they had received so many letters from people 557 00:30:42,280 --> 00:30:45,480 Speaker 1: wanting her to come back, and she also wrote articles 558 00:30:45,480 --> 00:30:48,880 Speaker 1: for Physical Culture. Her articles during this time followed the 559 00:30:48,920 --> 00:30:51,880 Speaker 1: same sorts of formulas that her early writing had, often 560 00:30:52,000 --> 00:30:55,120 Speaker 1: using stars as examples and then telling readers how to 561 00:30:55,160 --> 00:30:58,680 Speaker 1: get similarly pleasing figures, although she did always warn that 562 00:30:58,720 --> 00:31:01,320 Speaker 1: you shouldn't try to make yourself a carbon copy of anyone, 563 00:31:01,680 --> 00:31:05,520 Speaker 1: but just be your best self. Her writing topics expanded though, 564 00:31:05,560 --> 00:31:09,040 Speaker 1: to include her thoughts and advice on parenting and marriage. 565 00:31:09,200 --> 00:31:11,440 Speaker 1: She wanted parents to teach their children about a healthy 566 00:31:11,480 --> 00:31:13,600 Speaker 1: lifestyle from the very beginning, to set them up for 567 00:31:13,600 --> 00:31:16,040 Speaker 1: a healthy life. When it came to marriage, it was 568 00:31:16,160 --> 00:31:20,320 Speaker 1: less progressive, essentially urging women who found themselves in lackluster 569 00:31:20,400 --> 00:31:25,720 Speaker 1: marriages to recapture their youthful figures to reinvigorate their husband's interest. Yeah, 570 00:31:25,760 --> 00:31:28,720 Speaker 1: she did talk a lot in her writing about how 571 00:31:29,760 --> 00:31:32,360 Speaker 1: I am more than twenty years older than my husband, 572 00:31:32,440 --> 00:31:34,960 Speaker 1: but I look so young, that that's how I keep 573 00:31:35,040 --> 00:31:37,160 Speaker 1: him and like, there's a lot of that going on. 574 00:31:37,320 --> 00:31:39,840 Speaker 1: So and she did look very young for her age, 575 00:31:40,360 --> 00:31:41,960 Speaker 1: but yeah, it's a lot of like this is how 576 00:31:42,000 --> 00:31:45,960 Speaker 1: you stay happy in your marriage. In nineteen thirty six, 577 00:31:46,000 --> 00:31:49,280 Speaker 1: she wrote the book Pull Yourself Together, Baby, which discusses 578 00:31:49,320 --> 00:31:52,680 Speaker 1: diet and exercise, but in the framework of a person's personality. 579 00:31:53,400 --> 00:31:55,880 Speaker 1: It made the case that your personality was a reflection 580 00:31:56,080 --> 00:31:58,720 Speaker 1: of your physical health, and this was sort of intended 581 00:31:58,720 --> 00:32:01,440 Speaker 1: as a follow up to No More Alibis, employing a 582 00:32:01,480 --> 00:32:05,200 Speaker 1: similar work ethic to cultivating character once your physique is 583 00:32:05,240 --> 00:32:08,040 Speaker 1: in pretty good shape, all with the idea of becoming 584 00:32:08,120 --> 00:32:12,160 Speaker 1: as beautiful as any of her Hollywood clients. Ulbeck's last 585 00:32:12,200 --> 00:32:15,400 Speaker 1: book was Streamline Your Figure in nineteen thirty nine, and 586 00:32:15,520 --> 00:32:18,480 Speaker 1: was published after she had stopped writing articles for magazines. 587 00:32:19,160 --> 00:32:21,920 Speaker 1: Was once again a return to her more body focused 588 00:32:21,960 --> 00:32:25,600 Speaker 1: advice and less about personality, but it was really last 589 00:32:25,680 --> 00:32:28,160 Speaker 1: in a series of efforts to try to stay relevant. 590 00:32:28,600 --> 00:32:31,600 Speaker 1: In the late nineteen thirties, the Nazi ideology of a 591 00:32:31,600 --> 00:32:35,640 Speaker 1: physically superior race and talk of physical perfection made it 592 00:32:35,760 --> 00:32:38,160 Speaker 1: hard for someone in the business of telling people how 593 00:32:38,200 --> 00:32:40,840 Speaker 1: to make their bodies as perfect as possible to stay 594 00:32:40,840 --> 00:32:44,400 Speaker 1: in favor in the United States. Additionally, as the world 595 00:32:44,400 --> 00:32:48,160 Speaker 1: found itself in a very serious conflict beauty culture, even 596 00:32:48,240 --> 00:32:52,400 Speaker 1: Sylvia's relatively sensitive approach to it started to feel frivolous. 597 00:32:52,640 --> 00:32:56,280 Speaker 1: After the publication of Streamline Your Figure, Sylvia stepped away 598 00:32:56,280 --> 00:33:00,480 Speaker 1: from the spotlight entirely. On the nineteen forty census, under otipation, 599 00:33:00,720 --> 00:33:03,479 Speaker 1: she was noticed as a housewife. Her life after that 600 00:33:03,520 --> 00:33:05,920 Speaker 1: was apparently quiet, and little is known about it in 601 00:33:06,000 --> 00:33:08,800 Speaker 1: terms of specifics. She and Edward bought a house in 602 00:33:08,840 --> 00:33:11,280 Speaker 1: Santa Monica, California, where they lived out the rest of 603 00:33:11,280 --> 00:33:15,320 Speaker 1: their lives. Edward died in February nineteen seventy five, and 604 00:33:15,400 --> 00:33:17,920 Speaker 1: Sylvia died a month later at the age of ninety four. 605 00:33:18,520 --> 00:33:21,840 Speaker 1: Reading any of Sylvia's writing which I sort of have 606 00:33:21,880 --> 00:33:24,240 Speaker 1: an almost guilty pleasure level of it, like I really 607 00:33:24,320 --> 00:33:27,240 Speaker 1: like reading it, but it is definitely a mix of yeah, 608 00:33:27,240 --> 00:33:30,479 Speaker 1: these are good ideas and complete and total cringes. In 609 00:33:30,520 --> 00:33:34,040 Speaker 1: many ways, her rhetoric is so much about empowerment and 610 00:33:34,080 --> 00:33:36,840 Speaker 1: positivity and getting what you want out of life. But 611 00:33:36,880 --> 00:33:39,400 Speaker 1: then she also writes things along the lines of saying 612 00:33:39,760 --> 00:33:42,320 Speaker 1: the Great Depression was actually good for Americans because it 613 00:33:42,320 --> 00:33:45,760 Speaker 1: made them stop being physically and mentally soft. She also 614 00:33:45,800 --> 00:33:50,160 Speaker 1: could be incredibly harsh, writing things that always suggested that 615 00:33:50,200 --> 00:33:53,840 Speaker 1: any bodily issues were the individuals to overcome, even when 616 00:33:53,840 --> 00:33:56,560 Speaker 1: they were things like actual disabilities, Like she talks in 617 00:33:56,600 --> 00:33:58,920 Speaker 1: some of her books about like, if you have very 618 00:33:58,960 --> 00:34:01,040 Speaker 1: severe bow legs, if you just work out and get 619 00:34:01,040 --> 00:34:03,720 Speaker 1: the outside of them thinner, then you'll look almost normal. 620 00:34:04,080 --> 00:34:08,000 Speaker 1: Like it's a little dicey, that's a lot dicey. Yeah, 621 00:34:08,280 --> 00:34:13,240 Speaker 1: So she definitely does not give any leeway for people 622 00:34:13,360 --> 00:34:21,880 Speaker 1: to have anything but a pretty healthy, standardized life and figure, 623 00:34:22,080 --> 00:34:24,600 Speaker 1: Like she puts all of the onus on you, as 624 00:34:24,640 --> 00:34:27,600 Speaker 1: though any problem or defect you have is kind of 625 00:34:27,600 --> 00:34:30,200 Speaker 1: your own fault. Yeah. Well, an idea that then people 626 00:34:30,200 --> 00:34:34,839 Speaker 1: are automatically healthy is just not true. Nope. There are 627 00:34:35,360 --> 00:34:38,239 Speaker 1: though some gems you can find reading her work. Some 628 00:34:38,280 --> 00:34:41,720 Speaker 1: of them come off as funny just because she's so kurt, 629 00:34:42,239 --> 00:34:44,920 Speaker 1: and then some of them do seem like pretty good advice. 630 00:34:45,160 --> 00:34:49,120 Speaker 1: So we thought we would close with a handful of them. So, first, 631 00:34:49,200 --> 00:34:53,320 Speaker 1: is I legitimately love this advice. There is a funny 632 00:34:53,360 --> 00:34:57,440 Speaker 1: side to everything that happens. Look at that side. Then 633 00:34:57,480 --> 00:35:02,160 Speaker 1: there's eat properly, live properly, exercize regularly, and properly. I 634 00:35:02,239 --> 00:35:05,759 Speaker 1: might add, use your noodle and stay away from quackery 635 00:35:05,840 --> 00:35:10,560 Speaker 1: and hocus pocus. That's pretty good advice. The next is 636 00:35:10,640 --> 00:35:13,160 Speaker 1: you've got to have courage and grit to be beautiful, 637 00:35:13,520 --> 00:35:18,560 Speaker 1: and you've got to stop whining. I think that might 638 00:35:18,600 --> 00:35:23,200 Speaker 1: maybe should go on a shirt. Yeah, every woman can 639 00:35:23,239 --> 00:35:27,919 Speaker 1: be charming if she'll let herself be. And then this one. 640 00:35:28,040 --> 00:35:32,480 Speaker 1: Remember this self assurance, the self respecting kind is a 641 00:35:32,520 --> 00:35:36,799 Speaker 1: first and ever present necessity of personality development. Finally, there's 642 00:35:36,800 --> 00:35:40,080 Speaker 1: this opening passage from her first photoplay article titled any 643 00:35:40,080 --> 00:35:43,680 Speaker 1: Woman Can be Beautiful. I say any woman can be beautiful, 644 00:35:43,680 --> 00:35:46,480 Speaker 1: and I mean it. You can't all have lovely features, 645 00:35:46,520 --> 00:35:49,160 Speaker 1: but you can be beautiful. Whoever said beauty is only 646 00:35:49,200 --> 00:35:53,120 Speaker 1: skin deep is a fool. Beauty begins behind your forehead, 647 00:35:53,160 --> 00:35:55,200 Speaker 1: and the beauty of some of the loveliest women I 648 00:35:55,239 --> 00:35:57,960 Speaker 1: know can never be registered by a motion picture camera. 649 00:35:58,440 --> 00:36:00,759 Speaker 1: Now here's the amazing part of it. You can make 650 00:36:00,800 --> 00:36:03,880 Speaker 1: yourself beautiful. You can, if you have the nerve and 651 00:36:03,920 --> 00:36:06,880 Speaker 1: the courage do it all yourself. That's kind of like 652 00:36:06,960 --> 00:36:11,959 Speaker 1: the best of Sylvia because then you know you'll find 653 00:36:12,000 --> 00:36:15,440 Speaker 1: something less delightful if you keep reading. Yeah, she's such 654 00:36:15,440 --> 00:36:17,719 Speaker 1: a mixed bang that that's part of what's really fascinating 655 00:36:17,719 --> 00:36:20,400 Speaker 1: about her to me. Like I said, I'll read her 656 00:36:20,400 --> 00:36:22,440 Speaker 1: stuff and be like, yeah, that's great. Oh oh what 657 00:36:22,480 --> 00:36:25,200 Speaker 1: did you just say. No, it's all over the place. 658 00:36:31,880 --> 00:36:34,719 Speaker 1: Thanks so much for joining us on this Saturday. Since 659 00:36:34,760 --> 00:36:36,799 Speaker 1: this episode is out of the archive, if you heard 660 00:36:36,800 --> 00:36:39,640 Speaker 1: an email address or a Facebook RL or something similar 661 00:36:39,680 --> 00:36:42,560 Speaker 1: over the course of the show, that could be obsolete now. 662 00:36:43,000 --> 00:36:48,720 Speaker 1: Our current email address is History Podcast at iHeartRadio dot com. 663 00:36:49,120 --> 00:36:51,680 Speaker 1: You can find us all over social media at missed 664 00:36:51,840 --> 00:36:54,719 Speaker 1: d History, and you can subscribe to our show on 665 00:36:54,800 --> 00:36:59,000 Speaker 1: Apple podcasts, Google podcasts, the iHeartRadio app, and wherever else 666 00:36:59,040 --> 00:37:04,520 Speaker 1: you listen to podcasts. Stuffy missed in History Class is 667 00:37:04,520 --> 00:37:08,879 Speaker 1: a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit 668 00:37:08,920 --> 00:37:12,360 Speaker 1: the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to 669 00:37:12,400 --> 00:37:13,240 Speaker 1: your favorite shows.