1 00:00:01,080 --> 00:00:04,000 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:12,920 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,000 --> 00:00:16,480 Speaker 1: I'm Holly Frying and I'm Tracy B. Wilson, and today 4 00:00:16,560 --> 00:00:20,160 Speaker 1: we're doing another listener request hooray uh, and it's a 5 00:00:20,200 --> 00:00:22,720 Speaker 1: really delightful one. But I'm actually going to save the 6 00:00:22,760 --> 00:00:25,640 Speaker 1: information about the listener email that requested it for the 7 00:00:25,760 --> 00:00:28,200 Speaker 1: end of the episode. It'll be our listener mail segment 8 00:00:28,400 --> 00:00:32,920 Speaker 1: because it adds a nice coda to the whole story. So, Tracy, 9 00:00:33,240 --> 00:00:35,960 Speaker 1: I'm sure you remember writing a carousel or merry go 10 00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:41,720 Speaker 1: around as a child, maybe even as an adult. It is, 11 00:00:41,880 --> 00:00:44,200 Speaker 1: or at least was a pretty common part of childhood. 12 00:00:44,280 --> 00:00:47,720 Speaker 1: But carousels have kind of become a less and less 13 00:00:48,080 --> 00:00:51,400 Speaker 1: of an of the moment kind of part of childhood, 14 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:54,200 Speaker 1: even though there are still a number around and people 15 00:00:54,200 --> 00:00:57,640 Speaker 1: do still enjoy them, but they are in some ways 16 00:00:57,640 --> 00:00:59,760 Speaker 1: part of history and they have their own really interesting 17 00:00:59,800 --> 00:01:02,520 Speaker 1: his three. Uh. They're by no means gone, and we're 18 00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:04,520 Speaker 1: going to talk about some of the modern developments in 19 00:01:04,560 --> 00:01:07,200 Speaker 1: them at the end, but their prevalence in the entertainment 20 00:01:07,280 --> 00:01:09,680 Speaker 1: landscape is not what it once was. They used to 21 00:01:09,720 --> 00:01:12,959 Speaker 1: be much more of like an event item and centerpiece 22 00:01:13,000 --> 00:01:16,600 Speaker 1: to amusement parks. And so we're actually gonna talk about 23 00:01:16,640 --> 00:01:18,760 Speaker 1: a few things in this episode. We're going to talk 24 00:01:18,760 --> 00:01:22,000 Speaker 1: first about general carousel history, and then we're gonna talk 25 00:01:22,040 --> 00:01:26,400 Speaker 1: briefly about a couple of key innovators in carousels, and 26 00:01:26,440 --> 00:01:28,160 Speaker 1: then at the very end there's kind of a neat 27 00:01:28,200 --> 00:01:31,040 Speaker 1: story that we're going to talk about about one particular 28 00:01:31,080 --> 00:01:34,360 Speaker 1: carousel that has its own history that's related to the 29 00:01:34,360 --> 00:01:38,760 Speaker 1: civil rights movement. So it sounds like a lot, but 30 00:01:38,920 --> 00:01:41,520 Speaker 1: we're doing you know, they're kind of the brief versions 31 00:01:41,520 --> 00:01:44,760 Speaker 1: of any of those stories. So this first chuncolet that 32 00:01:44,760 --> 00:01:47,840 Speaker 1: we're talking about is consistently told anytime you look at 33 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:51,760 Speaker 1: a history of carousels, but in terms of hard substantiation, 34 00:01:51,760 --> 00:01:53,840 Speaker 1: it's difficult to come by. It's almost one of those 35 00:01:53,840 --> 00:01:57,480 Speaker 1: things that it could be all completely true, but it 36 00:01:57,480 --> 00:01:59,360 Speaker 1: could also be one of those things that's been repeated 37 00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:03,240 Speaker 1: so much that accepted his history. Uh. But like I said, 38 00:02:03,240 --> 00:02:05,640 Speaker 1: we don't have like so much hard proof on this one. 39 00:02:06,160 --> 00:02:08,680 Speaker 1: So yes, and it's so delightful that it would be 40 00:02:08,760 --> 00:02:11,959 Speaker 1: such a shame not to talk about it. So the possible, 41 00:02:12,240 --> 00:02:16,760 Speaker 1: the possibly apocryphal story of carousels actually starts back in 42 00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:19,960 Speaker 1: the twelfth century with a game played by Turkish and 43 00:02:19,960 --> 00:02:23,400 Speaker 1: Arabian horsemen, and to play this game, the riders would 44 00:02:23,400 --> 00:02:26,680 Speaker 1: toss a clay ball containing perfume back and forth while 45 00:02:26,680 --> 00:02:29,519 Speaker 1: they were on horseback, and if a player didn't successfully 46 00:02:29,520 --> 00:02:32,160 Speaker 1: catch the ball, it would break and it would cover 47 00:02:32,280 --> 00:02:35,960 Speaker 1: him in the scent of failure. Yeah, he would smell good, 48 00:02:36,320 --> 00:02:38,880 Speaker 1: presumably it was a perfume, but everyone would know that 49 00:02:38,919 --> 00:02:41,960 Speaker 1: he had lost. So it's it's kind of an awkward 50 00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:46,000 Speaker 1: consolation prize to smell lovely, but uh, that being kind 51 00:02:46,000 --> 00:02:48,000 Speaker 1: of the identifier that you were not as skilled as 52 00:02:48,000 --> 00:02:52,640 Speaker 1: your challengers. Italian and Spanish crusaders are said to have 53 00:02:52,639 --> 00:02:55,440 Speaker 1: witnessed this game taking place and that they eventually brought 54 00:02:55,440 --> 00:02:57,720 Speaker 1: it back to Europe and there it took on the 55 00:02:57,840 --> 00:03:02,440 Speaker 1: name Catacella or gerosell uh, depending on which language you're speaking, 56 00:03:02,480 --> 00:03:06,960 Speaker 1: and that translated at that time to little War. Later on, 57 00:03:07,000 --> 00:03:10,160 Speaker 1: the French adopted this game and they expanded their play 58 00:03:10,200 --> 00:03:16,120 Speaker 1: to include multiple equestrian challenges. These developed into competitions called carousels, 59 00:03:16,160 --> 00:03:19,880 Speaker 1: and participants needed to practice for their matches, so a 60 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:23,600 Speaker 1: training mechanism was developed that had wooden horses mounted on 61 00:03:23,840 --> 00:03:27,600 Speaker 1: arms that were suspended from big poles or chains, and 62 00:03:27,680 --> 00:03:31,680 Speaker 1: they rotated around a central central point. There wasn't really 63 00:03:31,680 --> 00:03:36,680 Speaker 1: a floor on these carousels. Yeah, it's really um. You know, 64 00:03:36,720 --> 00:03:41,240 Speaker 1: they're all kind of dangling from above. So not quite 65 00:03:41,240 --> 00:03:43,560 Speaker 1: the way you would think of a carouseler and merry 66 00:03:43,560 --> 00:03:47,080 Speaker 1: go around today, but you know, again dangling. There are 67 00:03:47,120 --> 00:03:51,400 Speaker 1: other um rides that have have become popular that are 68 00:03:51,400 --> 00:03:54,040 Speaker 1: similar where you spin ours. But I'm like this, it's 69 00:03:54,080 --> 00:03:56,560 Speaker 1: like the swings at the carnival, where you sit in 70 00:03:56,600 --> 00:03:59,440 Speaker 1: the swing and it turns and you swing out. Yes, 71 00:03:59,520 --> 00:04:02,520 Speaker 1: but for a long time, that's how carousels worked. So uh. 72 00:04:02,680 --> 00:04:05,440 Speaker 1: Some versions of these training carousels were pulled by horses 73 00:04:05,520 --> 00:04:08,760 Speaker 1: or mules, others were powered by humans. There would often 74 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:11,600 Speaker 1: be a hand crank or a pull rope that created 75 00:04:11,640 --> 00:04:15,160 Speaker 1: the movement, and the horsemen would participate in various games 76 00:04:15,160 --> 00:04:17,760 Speaker 1: while they were riding these training steeds. And I'm being 77 00:04:17,839 --> 00:04:22,960 Speaker 1: very generous because apparently they were very rudimentary quote horses. Uh. 78 00:04:23,000 --> 00:04:25,120 Speaker 1: And one of the games that they would play included 79 00:04:25,160 --> 00:04:28,400 Speaker 1: trying to spear a ring with a jousting lance. So 80 00:04:28,520 --> 00:04:30,320 Speaker 1: if you have ever been on a carousel with a 81 00:04:30,400 --> 00:04:32,680 Speaker 1: ring for riders to grab as they pass under or 82 00:04:32,760 --> 00:04:36,760 Speaker 1: buy it, uh, this is a callback allegedly to this game, 83 00:04:37,640 --> 00:04:40,320 Speaker 1: although those have become less and less popular. This is 84 00:04:40,320 --> 00:04:42,880 Speaker 1: also where that expression grabbed the brass ring comes from, 85 00:04:42,880 --> 00:04:46,200 Speaker 1: as the brass ring would be the most prized of 86 00:04:46,279 --> 00:04:50,240 Speaker 1: the rings on a carousel game like this. More often 87 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:51,920 Speaker 1: you would see iron rings and then there would be 88 00:04:51,920 --> 00:04:54,760 Speaker 1: an occasional brass ring. So that association of grabbing the 89 00:04:54,800 --> 00:04:57,280 Speaker 1: brass ring with you know, going after the big prize 90 00:04:57,360 --> 00:05:02,080 Speaker 1: or going after something comes all from this. So watching 91 00:05:02,120 --> 00:05:04,440 Speaker 1: sports has been a pastime for as long as there 92 00:05:04,440 --> 00:05:08,320 Speaker 1: have been sports, and so spectators watched the horsemen practice 93 00:05:08,760 --> 00:05:10,760 Speaker 1: and they're said to have grown interested in trying it 94 00:05:10,760 --> 00:05:14,480 Speaker 1: out for themselves. So where there's a demand, they are 95 00:05:14,560 --> 00:05:17,040 Speaker 1: usually people who are ready to fill it for a price. 96 00:05:17,160 --> 00:05:20,080 Speaker 1: And by the late seventeen hundreds, carousels were being made 97 00:05:20,200 --> 00:05:24,000 Speaker 1: not for sports training but for entertainment, and for the 98 00:05:24,040 --> 00:05:27,320 Speaker 1: next hundred years or so, these simple man and mule 99 00:05:27,400 --> 00:05:30,640 Speaker 1: power divertisements because they worked pretty much exactly the same 100 00:05:30,640 --> 00:05:33,279 Speaker 1: way as the training ones. They were just gussied up 101 00:05:33,279 --> 00:05:36,360 Speaker 1: in a more fun way. Uh, we're appearing at European 102 00:05:36,400 --> 00:05:40,719 Speaker 1: festivals and pit fairs pretty consistently, but because they were 103 00:05:40,920 --> 00:05:44,560 Speaker 1: powered either by man or animal, they had to stay 104 00:05:44,640 --> 00:05:49,800 Speaker 1: pretty much on the small side. Victorian circus entrepreneur Lord 105 00:05:49,880 --> 00:05:53,440 Speaker 1: George Sanger described the early hand cranked carousels his father 106 00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:57,479 Speaker 1: once made in his book Seventy Years a Showman. These 107 00:05:57,560 --> 00:06:01,480 Speaker 1: rudimentary early merrygarounds had horses that weren't realistic, but they 108 00:06:01,480 --> 00:06:04,760 Speaker 1: were colorful. The horses, manes and tails are made using 109 00:06:04,839 --> 00:06:11,880 Speaker 1: rabbit fur, and because these still required a living creature 110 00:06:11,920 --> 00:06:16,160 Speaker 1: to power them, kids were generally employed to push carousels 111 00:06:16,200 --> 00:06:19,640 Speaker 1: like singers to get these mechanisms to spin. So these 112 00:06:19,680 --> 00:06:22,120 Speaker 1: were usually the kids that could not afford to pay 113 00:06:22,160 --> 00:06:24,600 Speaker 1: for a ride themselves, so they would push for the 114 00:06:24,680 --> 00:06:26,480 Speaker 1: day and then at the end of the day they 115 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:29,760 Speaker 1: would be paid with free rides. Uh. There are some 116 00:06:29,839 --> 00:06:33,200 Speaker 1: sort of dicey tails, mostly apocryphal, but I'm sure some 117 00:06:33,279 --> 00:06:35,520 Speaker 1: of this happened of sort of near slave labor at 118 00:06:35,560 --> 00:06:38,960 Speaker 1: some fairs where kids weren't really treated all that well. Uh, 119 00:06:39,040 --> 00:06:40,680 Speaker 1: But for the most part it seems to have been 120 00:06:40,720 --> 00:06:44,159 Speaker 1: like a pay for play situation. You come and do 121 00:06:44,200 --> 00:06:45,440 Speaker 1: this work, and then at the end of the day 122 00:06:45,480 --> 00:06:47,919 Speaker 1: you get rewarded with a ride on the carousel. And 123 00:06:48,000 --> 00:06:50,760 Speaker 1: some mechanisms did not involve children, and they were turned 124 00:06:50,760 --> 00:06:55,160 Speaker 1: by horses or, more often at fairs, ponies. The velocityed 125 00:06:55,320 --> 00:06:59,080 Speaker 1: was an interesting variation on this idea. Bicycles mounted around 126 00:06:59,120 --> 00:07:02,320 Speaker 1: the outside to the carousel would generate the circular motion. 127 00:07:03,440 --> 00:07:06,880 Speaker 1: Those things look so fun to me. Now. I'm reminded 128 00:07:07,200 --> 00:07:09,960 Speaker 1: for a moment of a ride at the Georgia Renaissance 129 00:07:10,000 --> 00:07:13,680 Speaker 1: Festival where you sit in it and it's mounted from 130 00:07:13,720 --> 00:07:16,000 Speaker 1: a pole in the center, and the people push it 131 00:07:16,040 --> 00:07:17,840 Speaker 1: to turn it all the way up the pole and 132 00:07:17,880 --> 00:07:20,800 Speaker 1: it rises up as the thing that suspending it gets 133 00:07:20,840 --> 00:07:23,240 Speaker 1: wrapped around the pole and then they let go and 134 00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:27,520 Speaker 1: you spin on the way down. Oh I don't I'm 135 00:07:27,640 --> 00:07:30,880 Speaker 1: having trouble recalling that one. But I maybe never paid 136 00:07:30,920 --> 00:07:33,080 Speaker 1: attention to the rides at the Renaissance Festival. I was 137 00:07:33,080 --> 00:07:37,320 Speaker 1: probably too busy eating. Uh. In eighteen sixty one, there 138 00:07:37,360 --> 00:07:40,080 Speaker 1: was a major leap forward when steam entered the picture 139 00:07:40,160 --> 00:07:43,200 Speaker 1: as a way to power carousels without direct man or 140 00:07:43,240 --> 00:07:47,280 Speaker 1: animal power. On New Year's Day, Thomas Bradshaw debuted his 141 00:07:47,320 --> 00:07:50,640 Speaker 1: steam driven carousel in Bolton, England, and it contained a 142 00:07:50,720 --> 00:07:54,360 Speaker 1: London built boiler unit, an engine and horses that have 143 00:07:54,440 --> 00:07:58,080 Speaker 1: been made by Bradshaw himself, and he patented his carousel 144 00:07:58,120 --> 00:08:02,400 Speaker 1: design in eighteen sixty three. A similar carousel, which may 145 00:08:02,440 --> 00:08:04,960 Speaker 1: actually have been the same one from the eighteen sixty 146 00:08:05,000 --> 00:08:08,640 Speaker 1: one Bolton debut, was operating at a fair in Halifax 147 00:08:08,680 --> 00:08:13,280 Speaker 1: in eighteen sixty three, and while carousel technology was moving forward, 148 00:08:13,320 --> 00:08:18,600 Speaker 1: it wasn't really met with universal enthusiasm at the outset. Yeah. 149 00:08:18,640 --> 00:08:23,160 Speaker 1: A journalist who was describing this installation in Halifax described 150 00:08:23,160 --> 00:08:26,960 Speaker 1: the mechanism as mammoth and overpowered, and he wondered how 151 00:08:27,080 --> 00:08:31,080 Speaker 1: riders were not shot off their mounts like cannon balls. Uh. 152 00:08:31,240 --> 00:08:34,320 Speaker 1: Local residents also fretted over the possibility that the whole 153 00:08:34,320 --> 00:08:39,080 Speaker 1: thing would explode explode from the pressure of the boiler unit, 154 00:08:39,960 --> 00:08:43,439 Speaker 1: and there were some claims and accusations made that they 155 00:08:43,440 --> 00:08:47,240 Speaker 1: were endangering children by having this ride available. However, there 156 00:08:47,240 --> 00:08:50,680 Speaker 1: were not any explosions and people did continue to be 157 00:08:50,720 --> 00:08:54,040 Speaker 1: interested in carousels, and the next couple of years several 158 00:08:54,080 --> 00:08:57,360 Speaker 1: more of them appeared around Britain. There's even a newspaper 159 00:08:57,400 --> 00:09:00,840 Speaker 1: report of at a steam driven velocity eat at King's 160 00:09:00,880 --> 00:09:03,720 Speaker 1: lynmart in eighteen sixty six, although the records of the 161 00:09:03,760 --> 00:09:06,680 Speaker 1: mechanism are incomplete, and I'm a little like, how do 162 00:09:06,760 --> 00:09:10,080 Speaker 1: you combine the bicycles and the steam? Yeah, I don't know, 163 00:09:10,160 --> 00:09:13,199 Speaker 1: but it sounded so fascinating to me. Um. And then 164 00:09:13,240 --> 00:09:16,280 Speaker 1: once carousels crossed the Atlantic to the US, they really 165 00:09:16,320 --> 00:09:20,240 Speaker 1: underwent a huge transformation and they became bigger and flashier 166 00:09:20,280 --> 00:09:23,880 Speaker 1: and more colorful, and the horses became far more intricate 167 00:09:23,920 --> 00:09:27,600 Speaker 1: and detailed. Uh. There, it was a little bit of 168 00:09:27,600 --> 00:09:29,320 Speaker 1: a shift to sort of the art of it in 169 00:09:29,360 --> 00:09:34,439 Speaker 1: many ways. Because the late eighteen hundred saw major advancements 170 00:09:34,440 --> 00:09:37,679 Speaker 1: and technology and industry, it wasn't long before the carousel 171 00:09:37,760 --> 00:09:41,479 Speaker 1: saw them too. The so called Golden Age of carousel's 172 00:09:41,600 --> 00:09:44,160 Speaker 1: started around eighteen eighty, and this was a merry grounds 173 00:09:44,240 --> 00:09:47,720 Speaker 1: integrated flooring platforms and up and down movement of the 174 00:09:47,760 --> 00:09:52,360 Speaker 1: animals as they circled the central mechanism. Other variations were tried, 175 00:09:52,400 --> 00:09:56,360 Speaker 1: including coiled springs to add bounce, and even animals mounted 176 00:09:56,400 --> 00:09:59,160 Speaker 1: on undulating tracks to create an up and down movement. 177 00:10:00,040 --> 00:10:02,880 Speaker 1: The carousel at the Little Rock, Arkansas Zoo, which is 178 00:10:02,920 --> 00:10:06,440 Speaker 1: called over the Jumps, still uses an undulating track and 179 00:10:06,480 --> 00:10:10,840 Speaker 1: it's been fully refurbished. If you ever want to ride one, yeah, 180 00:10:10,880 --> 00:10:12,720 Speaker 1: so that one instead of like the pole sort of 181 00:10:12,720 --> 00:10:16,360 Speaker 1: moving up and down, it just follows this nice wave 182 00:10:16,440 --> 00:10:18,439 Speaker 1: pattern track, so you just go up and down. It's 183 00:10:18,440 --> 00:10:20,680 Speaker 1: a little more of a rolling hill effect. It's quite gentle, 184 00:10:21,600 --> 00:10:23,719 Speaker 1: and as well as all of the technical advancements, there 185 00:10:23,720 --> 00:10:26,640 Speaker 1: were some pretty amazing artistic strides going on. So in 186 00:10:26,679 --> 00:10:31,440 Speaker 1: the US carousels UH did not restrict themselves to featuring 187 00:10:31,480 --> 00:10:36,600 Speaker 1: horses alone, so soon unicorns, lions, guerrillas, dolphins, giraffes, and 188 00:10:36,640 --> 00:10:41,480 Speaker 1: a host of other animals made appearances as mounts on carousels. 189 00:10:41,520 --> 00:10:45,560 Speaker 1: For five decades, carousels stood as the main attraction affairs 190 00:10:45,559 --> 00:10:48,559 Speaker 1: and amusement parks throughout the United States, and people marveled 191 00:10:48,559 --> 00:10:52,080 Speaker 1: at their beauty and their craftsmanship. Carousel rides were a 192 00:10:52,200 --> 00:10:55,920 Speaker 1: much consumed entertainment diversion for adults as well as kids, 193 00:10:57,000 --> 00:11:00,800 Speaker 1: and several different styles developed in the carousel world in 194 00:11:00,840 --> 00:11:05,400 Speaker 1: the US. UH. The Coney Island style it's sometimes called, 195 00:11:05,520 --> 00:11:08,600 Speaker 1: is sort of a showier style. The horses are painted 196 00:11:08,840 --> 00:11:11,839 Speaker 1: in really bright colors and they often have jewels attached 197 00:11:12,000 --> 00:11:15,240 Speaker 1: and metallic leaf and the rest of the unit, like 198 00:11:15,280 --> 00:11:19,800 Speaker 1: the the central part and the ceilings often feature multitudes 199 00:11:19,840 --> 00:11:23,960 Speaker 1: of light catching mirrors. And then the Philadelphia style UH 200 00:11:24,000 --> 00:11:26,120 Speaker 1: is a little bit more realistic in the way its 201 00:11:26,160 --> 00:11:30,080 Speaker 1: animals are painted and created and carved, and it's associated 202 00:11:30,120 --> 00:11:33,880 Speaker 1: usually with really exquisite craftsmanship. The county fair style is 203 00:11:33,920 --> 00:11:37,600 Speaker 1: populated with much simpler designs. UH. These merrygorounds are usually 204 00:11:37,640 --> 00:11:40,560 Speaker 1: intended to move from place to place like county fairs do, 205 00:11:41,120 --> 00:11:43,800 Speaker 1: so they are by necessity a lot less complex and 206 00:11:43,840 --> 00:11:47,600 Speaker 1: they don't have as much decoration. And then, just as 207 00:11:47,679 --> 00:11:50,560 Speaker 1: the culture of carousels had really embedded itself in the 208 00:11:50,600 --> 00:11:55,240 Speaker 1: Americana landscape, the Great Depression happened. Like a lot of industries, 209 00:11:55,280 --> 00:11:57,920 Speaker 1: carousel production was hit really hard, and a lot of 210 00:11:57,960 --> 00:12:01,800 Speaker 1: companies significantly reduced their out put or closed up shop altogether. 211 00:12:02,480 --> 00:12:06,199 Speaker 1: The Golden age of carousels had ended. And it's estimated 212 00:12:06,280 --> 00:12:08,920 Speaker 1: that more than four thousand carousels were made in the 213 00:12:08,960 --> 00:12:12,320 Speaker 1: United States during the Golden Age. Fewer than a hundred 214 00:12:12,320 --> 00:12:16,400 Speaker 1: and fifty of these are still intact UH, and we'll 215 00:12:16,440 --> 00:12:20,360 Speaker 1: talk a little bit about some restoration efforts later. On. 216 00:12:20,480 --> 00:12:22,800 Speaker 1: But next we're going to talk about a couple of 217 00:12:22,840 --> 00:12:26,079 Speaker 1: important men in carousel history. There's certainly more than two, 218 00:12:26,920 --> 00:12:28,880 Speaker 1: but in the interests of time, we had to kind 219 00:12:28,880 --> 00:12:32,200 Speaker 1: of pick two that are important. But before we talked 220 00:12:32,200 --> 00:12:35,360 Speaker 1: about them, let's pause for a quick sponsor break. Now 221 00:12:35,400 --> 00:12:38,240 Speaker 1: back to our story. Uh. One of the big names 222 00:12:38,240 --> 00:12:42,480 Speaker 1: in carousels is Gustave Denzel, and he was originally from Germany, 223 00:12:42,520 --> 00:12:44,240 Speaker 1: and he immigrated to the U s and the mid 224 00:12:44,240 --> 00:12:48,000 Speaker 1: eighteen hundreds, and as a boy, Denzel had traveled throughout 225 00:12:48,000 --> 00:12:50,520 Speaker 1: Germany with his family in the summers, helping them run 226 00:12:50,559 --> 00:12:55,040 Speaker 1: their carousel ride. In the eighteen sixties, Gustave's father shipped 227 00:12:55,080 --> 00:12:57,960 Speaker 1: the young man, his brothers, and a carousel to America 228 00:12:58,000 --> 00:13:01,440 Speaker 1: on a steamer. When they got there, they brought Philadelphia 229 00:13:01,520 --> 00:13:03,960 Speaker 1: one of the first carousels in the United States and 230 00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:07,640 Speaker 1: they set up shop there. Yeah. So that's uh, you know, 231 00:13:07,720 --> 00:13:10,800 Speaker 1: happening at the same time that things like the steam 232 00:13:10,840 --> 00:13:13,640 Speaker 1: power are coming into being. It's a little bit after that, 233 00:13:14,440 --> 00:13:16,680 Speaker 1: uh you know, so while England is having this little 234 00:13:16,679 --> 00:13:19,959 Speaker 1: boom of of carousels, it is shipping across the Atlantic 235 00:13:20,000 --> 00:13:22,760 Speaker 1: at the same time, and there it was certainly happening 236 00:13:22,760 --> 00:13:25,680 Speaker 1: in other parts of Europe as well. The Denzel family 237 00:13:25,800 --> 00:13:29,480 Speaker 1: built this reputation of incredible craftsmanship, and they set the 238 00:13:29,520 --> 00:13:31,960 Speaker 1: tone of realism that came to be associated with the 239 00:13:31,960 --> 00:13:35,640 Speaker 1: Philadelphia style of carousels. And what's really interesting is that 240 00:13:35,720 --> 00:13:38,880 Speaker 1: their style stayed really consistent throughout the years, even with 241 00:13:38,960 --> 00:13:42,520 Speaker 1: changes in leadership to the company. Gustave died in nineteen 242 00:13:42,520 --> 00:13:44,800 Speaker 1: o nine, at which point his son's William and Edward 243 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:49,959 Speaker 1: took over the family business. In nineteen twenty, Edward moved 244 00:13:49,960 --> 00:13:53,560 Speaker 1: to California to run a West Coast carousel business, and 245 00:13:53,600 --> 00:13:58,760 Speaker 1: Williams stayed in Philadelphia, and after almost twenty years helming 246 00:13:58,800 --> 00:14:02,160 Speaker 1: the Denzel Carousel come ben He. William died in seven 247 00:14:02,720 --> 00:14:06,320 Speaker 1: and the company folded soon thereafter, and Edward decided to 248 00:14:06,320 --> 00:14:11,400 Speaker 1: remain in California. He eventually became mayor of Beverly Hills. Eventually, 249 00:14:11,920 --> 00:14:16,200 Speaker 1: Edward's son, who was also named William, restarted the family business, 250 00:14:16,280 --> 00:14:20,160 Speaker 1: and his son, William Denzel the third still continues this 251 00:14:20,600 --> 00:14:25,160 Speaker 1: five generation tradition of elegance, both crafting new pieces and 252 00:14:25,200 --> 00:14:30,440 Speaker 1: restoring older hair cells. Yeah, one of the things that 253 00:14:30,480 --> 00:14:32,680 Speaker 1: you'll find if you start looking around online is that 254 00:14:32,720 --> 00:14:35,240 Speaker 1: a lot of these companies have had sort of a resurgence, 255 00:14:35,280 --> 00:14:38,160 Speaker 1: and often it's it's family members that have reopened them 256 00:14:38,680 --> 00:14:40,480 Speaker 1: or have just kind of bolstered them when they were 257 00:14:40,480 --> 00:14:42,600 Speaker 1: struggling and are now running them again, which is kind 258 00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:46,520 Speaker 1: of a lovely, sort of heartwarming part of it. Um. 259 00:14:46,600 --> 00:14:48,360 Speaker 1: The other man that we're going to talk about today 260 00:14:48,480 --> 00:14:52,040 Speaker 1: is Charles I. D Loof, and, like Denzel, Luf was 261 00:14:52,080 --> 00:14:54,560 Speaker 1: originally from Europe. He was born in Denmark in eighteen 262 00:14:54,600 --> 00:14:57,640 Speaker 1: fifty two and he moved to the US in eighteen 263 00:14:57,680 --> 00:14:59,880 Speaker 1: seventy at the age of eighteen, and at first he 264 00:15:00,040 --> 00:15:04,680 Speaker 1: started as a furniture carver. His carousel carving actually started 265 00:15:04,720 --> 00:15:06,800 Speaker 1: as a hobby. It was something he did with his 266 00:15:07,280 --> 00:15:10,840 Speaker 1: furniture making skills in his off hours, but it soon 267 00:15:10,960 --> 00:15:13,440 Speaker 1: sort of started to become a passion, and just five 268 00:15:13,520 --> 00:15:16,240 Speaker 1: years after arriving in New York, he opened his first 269 00:15:16,440 --> 00:15:20,840 Speaker 1: Coney Island carousel for business. Luke saw the potential of 270 00:15:20,880 --> 00:15:24,600 Speaker 1: an amusement destination and he was instrumental in developing Coney 271 00:15:24,640 --> 00:15:28,400 Speaker 1: Island as a permanent attraction. Yeah. He also is often 272 00:15:28,440 --> 00:15:31,800 Speaker 1: credited with developing or being a major contributor to the 273 00:15:31,840 --> 00:15:36,160 Speaker 1: Coney Island style of carousel horses, and five years after 274 00:15:36,240 --> 00:15:38,720 Speaker 1: he opened his carousel and Coney Island, he opened a 275 00:15:38,720 --> 00:15:42,200 Speaker 1: carousel factory in Brooklyn and he stayed in that location 276 00:15:42,240 --> 00:15:45,120 Speaker 1: from eighteen eighty until sometime in late nineteen o four 277 00:15:45,240 --> 00:15:47,880 Speaker 1: or early nineteen o five, and at that point he 278 00:15:47,960 --> 00:15:51,440 Speaker 1: moved the business to Riverside, Rhode Island. In nineteen ten, 279 00:15:51,520 --> 00:15:54,160 Speaker 1: he moved again, but this time much further. He went 280 00:15:54,200 --> 00:15:57,640 Speaker 1: across the country to California, and there he was instrumental 281 00:15:57,680 --> 00:16:00,600 Speaker 1: in the development of Venice Beach and the Santa Appears 282 00:16:00,680 --> 00:16:04,880 Speaker 1: amusement attractions. Unfortunately, Loof's work building up the role of 283 00:16:04,920 --> 00:16:07,560 Speaker 1: amusement parks in America turned out to be part of 284 00:16:07,600 --> 00:16:12,040 Speaker 1: the carousel's downfall. Working with his son Arthur Charles Luf 285 00:16:12,600 --> 00:16:16,200 Speaker 1: and the Wholesome Entertainment Venues he helped build created this 286 00:16:16,280 --> 00:16:20,040 Speaker 1: perfect platform for the rise and popularity of a different attraction, 287 00:16:20,560 --> 00:16:25,280 Speaker 1: the roller coaster. And as roller coasters became more and 288 00:16:25,320 --> 00:16:28,640 Speaker 1: more common, they already existed before this, but they really 289 00:16:28,680 --> 00:16:32,880 Speaker 1: started to get a groundhold in terms of popularity in 290 00:16:32,920 --> 00:16:36,160 Speaker 1: the amusement industry, in large part due to Luf creating 291 00:16:36,160 --> 00:16:39,160 Speaker 1: these sort of parks where people would go. Uh. They 292 00:16:39,200 --> 00:16:42,640 Speaker 1: started drawing more and more crowds, and interesting carousels started 293 00:16:42,640 --> 00:16:44,880 Speaker 1: to wane because this was a much more exciting and 294 00:16:44,880 --> 00:16:48,920 Speaker 1: thrilling ride. Uh, And to try to regain some market share, 295 00:16:49,600 --> 00:16:52,880 Speaker 1: the marketing for carousels sort of shifted to be like 296 00:16:52,960 --> 00:16:56,040 Speaker 1: more about kids and children's entertainment, whereas, as we mentioned 297 00:16:56,360 --> 00:16:59,240 Speaker 1: prior to that, they were touted as diversions for children 298 00:16:59,280 --> 00:17:02,680 Speaker 1: and adults each really, but between the newer and more 299 00:17:02,760 --> 00:17:05,560 Speaker 1: thrilling options and the onset of the Great Depression, there 300 00:17:05,560 --> 00:17:08,000 Speaker 1: just wasn't anyway for Marry Gar Rounds to keep their 301 00:17:08,000 --> 00:17:13,040 Speaker 1: previous status. And when Luke died in nineteen eighteen, all 302 00:17:13,080 --> 00:17:16,240 Speaker 1: management of their California Peer ventures went to his son, 303 00:17:16,720 --> 00:17:19,560 Speaker 1: and Arthur eventually sold off the portion of the Peer 304 00:17:19,640 --> 00:17:22,640 Speaker 1: that the family owned, although he continued to operate attractions 305 00:17:22,680 --> 00:17:26,600 Speaker 1: there for several years. But eventually the loose contracts they're 306 00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:31,240 Speaker 1: all expired and their many empire was dismantled. UH. The carousel, 307 00:17:31,280 --> 00:17:34,480 Speaker 1: which had originally been part of loose Santa Monica amusement 308 00:17:34,480 --> 00:17:38,280 Speaker 1: center called the Hippodrome, was sold off in parts to collectors. 309 00:17:38,760 --> 00:17:42,119 Speaker 1: The Hippodrome incidentally was actually saved from demolition in the 310 00:17:42,200 --> 00:17:45,680 Speaker 1: nineteen seventies when Robert Redford and Paul Newman, as well 311 00:17:45,720 --> 00:17:49,480 Speaker 1: as other local activists saved it. And it still stands today. 312 00:17:50,040 --> 00:17:52,280 Speaker 1: It's been renovated a few times, and it has a 313 00:17:52,320 --> 00:17:56,000 Speaker 1: different carousel in it. So before we delve into one 314 00:17:56,160 --> 00:17:59,679 Speaker 1: carousel's significance in civil rights history, let's have a quick 315 00:18:00,080 --> 00:18:04,320 Speaker 1: word from a sponsor that sounds super duper. So there's 316 00:18:04,359 --> 00:18:07,240 Speaker 1: one particular carousel that's connected to the history of the 317 00:18:07,359 --> 00:18:10,800 Speaker 1: U s Civil rights movement. Yeah, it's not like it 318 00:18:10,880 --> 00:18:12,919 Speaker 1: had a huge, big impact, but it's kind of just 319 00:18:12,960 --> 00:18:15,879 Speaker 1: a really beautiful story. Um, And it's a carousel that 320 00:18:15,920 --> 00:18:19,359 Speaker 1: still exists today. So, as the March on Washington was 321 00:18:19,400 --> 00:18:23,159 Speaker 1: taking place in August nineteen sixty three, a smaller but 322 00:18:23,240 --> 00:18:26,359 Speaker 1: still important event was taking place forty miles north of 323 00:18:26,400 --> 00:18:29,560 Speaker 1: the city, and on that day, a white, solely amusement 324 00:18:29,560 --> 00:18:32,560 Speaker 1: park called Gwynn Oak allowed black children in for the 325 00:18:32,600 --> 00:18:35,880 Speaker 1: first time. Sharon Langley, he was only eleven months old 326 00:18:35,880 --> 00:18:37,679 Speaker 1: at the time and was held in place on the 327 00:18:37,680 --> 00:18:40,879 Speaker 1: saddle by her father, was the first African American child 328 00:18:40,920 --> 00:18:43,560 Speaker 1: to ride the carousel at the park, along with white 329 00:18:43,600 --> 00:18:47,920 Speaker 1: children and Unfortunately, just a few years after the amusement 330 00:18:47,920 --> 00:18:52,159 Speaker 1: park desegregated, it actually closed for good. And after a 331 00:18:52,200 --> 00:18:54,600 Speaker 1: few more years, the carousel that had stood at Gwynn 332 00:18:54,600 --> 00:18:58,320 Speaker 1: Park was purchased by the Smithsonian that was in one 333 00:18:58,720 --> 00:19:00,760 Speaker 1: and at that point it was moved to the National Mall. 334 00:19:01,680 --> 00:19:04,399 Speaker 1: Seven years after it's moved to the mall, standing Donna 335 00:19:04,520 --> 00:19:08,040 Speaker 1: Hunter purchased the carousel, uh and they have since operated 336 00:19:08,080 --> 00:19:10,320 Speaker 1: it there on the mall. But during all that time, 337 00:19:10,359 --> 00:19:13,240 Speaker 1: no one knew of this kind of interesting little piece 338 00:19:13,280 --> 00:19:16,920 Speaker 1: of history attached to it. Amy Nathan, and author researching 339 00:19:16,960 --> 00:19:19,679 Speaker 1: civil rights history, finally put all the pieces together in 340 00:19:19,720 --> 00:19:23,119 Speaker 1: two thousand eleven and notified the Hunters of their merrygorounds 341 00:19:23,200 --> 00:19:27,480 Speaker 1: historical significance. It became part of Nathan's book Round and 342 00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:30,119 Speaker 1: Round Together, Taking Your Ride into Civil Rights History, and 343 00:19:30,119 --> 00:19:32,919 Speaker 1: the Nathan's have repainted the horse that Langley rode that 344 00:19:33,040 --> 00:19:37,560 Speaker 1: day to commemorate the civil rights movement. The National Park 345 00:19:37,640 --> 00:19:41,600 Speaker 1: Service has also included the carousel in educational programming about 346 00:19:41,600 --> 00:19:44,800 Speaker 1: civil rights. Yeah. I just love that there's this wonderful 347 00:19:44,840 --> 00:19:47,680 Speaker 1: piece of like children's history that's also a part of 348 00:19:47,720 --> 00:19:51,040 Speaker 1: the civil rights movement. There's a really sweet picture of 349 00:19:51,200 --> 00:19:53,840 Speaker 1: Langley writing it with her dad holding her when she's 350 00:19:53,840 --> 00:19:56,239 Speaker 1: eleven months old, and then as an adult, once they 351 00:19:56,280 --> 00:19:58,840 Speaker 1: figured out this little piece of history, she went back 352 00:19:58,840 --> 00:20:03,280 Speaker 1: and wrote it again and it's just so heartwarming. Uh So, 353 00:20:03,400 --> 00:20:06,480 Speaker 1: while carousels did not vanish completely with a great depression, 354 00:20:06,640 --> 00:20:09,240 Speaker 1: they certainly experienced a drop in terms of their presence 355 00:20:09,280 --> 00:20:12,199 Speaker 1: and their popularity. And once the economy picked back up, 356 00:20:12,280 --> 00:20:15,719 Speaker 1: so did production to some degree. But the hand carved 357 00:20:15,760 --> 00:20:19,800 Speaker 1: carousel horses that had been sort of this amazing art 358 00:20:19,880 --> 00:20:24,200 Speaker 1: that was developing were replaced by fiberglass and aluminum versions. Uh. No, 359 00:20:24,320 --> 00:20:26,960 Speaker 1: more steam powered carousels were made. They had shifted over 360 00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:31,439 Speaker 1: to electric. Yeah, definitely. When I was a kid, the 361 00:20:31,440 --> 00:20:33,800 Speaker 1: thing that we were riding into County Fair was a 362 00:20:33,880 --> 00:20:37,800 Speaker 1: fiber last carousel run on electricity, and I was like, 363 00:20:37,880 --> 00:20:44,119 Speaker 1: why are you making me do? But now as an adult, 364 00:20:44,119 --> 00:20:46,640 Speaker 1: when I'm somewhere and I see some like beautifully restored 365 00:20:47,040 --> 00:20:51,480 Speaker 1: handmade wooden carousel, I think it's very lovely. Yeah, there 366 00:20:51,520 --> 00:20:54,320 Speaker 1: are still some of those hand carved beauties remaining, and 367 00:20:54,359 --> 00:20:57,440 Speaker 1: the restoration projects have been undertaken to keep a lot 368 00:20:57,480 --> 00:21:01,520 Speaker 1: of them around. Yeah, some of them are um mounted 369 00:21:01,520 --> 00:21:04,680 Speaker 1: by you know, just private people that sometimes start collecting 370 00:21:04,840 --> 00:21:07,640 Speaker 1: carousel horses and then decide they want to put carousels 371 00:21:07,640 --> 00:21:11,520 Speaker 1: back together, others who are handled by companies. But in 372 00:21:11,560 --> 00:21:15,399 Speaker 1: the last four decades, interesting carousels and carousel horses as 373 00:21:15,440 --> 00:21:18,520 Speaker 1: collectors items has really swelled, Like in the nineteen seventies, 374 00:21:18,560 --> 00:21:21,359 Speaker 1: sort of this kickoff just happened where people started to 375 00:21:21,359 --> 00:21:24,639 Speaker 1: become really into them again. And unfortunately, part of the 376 00:21:24,680 --> 00:21:27,480 Speaker 1: problem with keeping carousels going is that in many cases 377 00:21:27,520 --> 00:21:30,280 Speaker 1: it is more profitable to sell off the amazing horses 378 00:21:30,600 --> 00:21:32,760 Speaker 1: than it is to try to keep a carousel running. 379 00:21:33,280 --> 00:21:36,320 Speaker 1: They have to run at a profit. There are also 380 00:21:36,520 --> 00:21:40,800 Speaker 1: some interesting innovations and modern carousels. Washington's National Zoo now 381 00:21:40,840 --> 00:21:42,760 Speaker 1: has one that runs on solar power, and all of 382 00:21:42,760 --> 00:21:45,600 Speaker 1: the animals that are represented there are endangered species, so 383 00:21:45,800 --> 00:21:50,800 Speaker 1: it's in line with the zoo's theme of conservation. Uh So, 384 00:21:50,880 --> 00:21:53,080 Speaker 1: if you love carousels, this is our p s A. 385 00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:55,720 Speaker 1: And you want to see them stick around again. They 386 00:21:55,760 --> 00:21:58,080 Speaker 1: have to operate in a way that makes money and 387 00:21:58,080 --> 00:22:01,280 Speaker 1: makes sense for them to keep going. So go ride one. Seriously, 388 00:22:01,280 --> 00:22:03,200 Speaker 1: if you have a local carousel, go buy a ticket 389 00:22:03,240 --> 00:22:05,400 Speaker 1: to ride, help keep it going, visit off and bring 390 00:22:05,400 --> 00:22:07,679 Speaker 1: your friends. That's what's going to keep this piece of 391 00:22:07,720 --> 00:22:11,080 Speaker 1: history alive. And so now we're gonna tie some things 392 00:22:11,080 --> 00:22:13,080 Speaker 1: that we've talked about together with the listener mail that 393 00:22:13,160 --> 00:22:16,560 Speaker 1: Holly referenced at the top of the episode. Uh, she 394 00:22:17,119 --> 00:22:20,400 Speaker 1: or we both actually got this email last year. So 395 00:22:20,520 --> 00:22:24,520 Speaker 1: when we tell you that sometimes it takes a while, uh, 396 00:22:24,880 --> 00:22:28,120 Speaker 1: I would say almost always said almost always takes a while. 397 00:22:29,720 --> 00:22:33,480 Speaker 1: Uh yeah, I mean I wanna I know we always 398 00:22:33,520 --> 00:22:35,199 Speaker 1: say it, but I do want to reassure people that 399 00:22:35,240 --> 00:22:39,840 Speaker 1: even if we haven't gotten to your request yet, we 400 00:22:39,920 --> 00:22:42,000 Speaker 1: may or may not, but we're trying to. So we're 401 00:22:42,000 --> 00:22:43,880 Speaker 1: working through it. And this is one of those things 402 00:22:43,880 --> 00:22:45,639 Speaker 1: that I love the second we got it, and then 403 00:22:45,680 --> 00:22:47,480 Speaker 1: it just kind of got back Bernard by other things 404 00:22:47,520 --> 00:22:50,000 Speaker 1: for a while. So and we also do read every 405 00:22:50,000 --> 00:22:54,320 Speaker 1: single email that we get, although we are not nearly 406 00:22:54,359 --> 00:22:57,480 Speaker 1: as good about answering No. Well, it's hard to keep 407 00:22:57,560 --> 00:23:00,720 Speaker 1: up with as well as you know. Unfortunately, the podcast 408 00:23:00,800 --> 00:23:04,760 Speaker 1: is not our only job here, so there's we're juggling 409 00:23:04,840 --> 00:23:07,119 Speaker 1: some stuff. So I hope no one feels slighted if 410 00:23:07,119 --> 00:23:08,960 Speaker 1: they don't get a personal reply. We try too, as 411 00:23:08,960 --> 00:23:11,760 Speaker 1: many as we can. But anyway, that's the story. So 412 00:23:11,920 --> 00:23:15,040 Speaker 1: this listener mail is from our listener Ashley, and she says, 413 00:23:15,560 --> 00:23:18,480 Speaker 1: hello ladies. I love your podcast and I laugh at 414 00:23:18,520 --> 00:23:21,359 Speaker 1: your love affairs with delicious food in historical clothing, both 415 00:23:21,359 --> 00:23:23,560 Speaker 1: things I wish I knew more about. I have a 416 00:23:23,600 --> 00:23:26,280 Speaker 1: happy topic for you since you ask for them so recently. 417 00:23:26,600 --> 00:23:29,960 Speaker 1: My job. I work for the world's largest manufacture of 418 00:23:29,960 --> 00:23:34,359 Speaker 1: wooden carousels, the Carousel Works, Incorporated of Mansfield, Ohio. This 419 00:23:34,480 --> 00:23:37,080 Speaker 1: is site of the historic Ohio State Reformatory where they 420 00:23:37,160 --> 00:23:41,439 Speaker 1: filled the Shawshank Redemption. Our carousels are handbuilt, hand carved, 421 00:23:41,480 --> 00:23:43,960 Speaker 1: and hand painted. We are one of the few companies 422 00:23:43,960 --> 00:23:45,879 Speaker 1: in the world that still does this. And in addition 423 00:23:45,920 --> 00:23:48,440 Speaker 1: to having a carousel in nearly every state in the Union, 424 00:23:48,760 --> 00:23:51,400 Speaker 1: we have a carousel in Canada too. In South Korea 425 00:23:51,760 --> 00:23:54,440 Speaker 1: and the only two carousels at sea on cruise ships 426 00:23:54,440 --> 00:23:57,119 Speaker 1: with Royal Caribbeans Oasis of the Seas and Allure of 427 00:23:57,160 --> 00:23:59,840 Speaker 1: the Seas. We're putting up our fifty five new care 428 00:24:00,040 --> 00:24:04,680 Speaker 1: sell later in our third in South Korea. Right now, 429 00:24:04,720 --> 00:24:08,440 Speaker 1: we are restoring the historic Euclid Beach Park, Grand carousel 430 00:24:08,680 --> 00:24:11,720 Speaker 1: that was once located in Cleveland, Ohio, just one in 431 00:24:11,760 --> 00:24:14,400 Speaker 1: a long line of restorations we've taken part in. It's 432 00:24:14,400 --> 00:24:18,560 Speaker 1: also known as PTC Number nineteen. The Philadelphia Toboggan Company 433 00:24:18,600 --> 00:24:20,720 Speaker 1: was one of the premier carousel makers in the States, 434 00:24:20,760 --> 00:24:23,520 Speaker 1: and their name is tossed around with historic carvers such 435 00:24:23,520 --> 00:24:27,879 Speaker 1: as Eleon, herschel Stillman, dentzel, Loof, and Parker. Many of 436 00:24:27,880 --> 00:24:30,080 Speaker 1: the wood carvers were immigrants who came from Europe and 437 00:24:30,119 --> 00:24:32,959 Speaker 1: found work in the States. Many of these carousels were 438 00:24:33,040 --> 00:24:36,520 Speaker 1: richly decorated and painted. However, after the Great Depression they 439 00:24:36,520 --> 00:24:39,360 Speaker 1: almost all went away and were replaced with a luminium fiberglass. 440 00:24:39,960 --> 00:24:42,280 Speaker 1: It was actually the Carousel Works that created the first 441 00:24:42,359 --> 00:24:46,120 Speaker 1: new hand carved carousel in to have been built since 442 00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:50,160 Speaker 1: the nineteen thirties, using an antique frame, but all new figures, murals, 443 00:24:50,200 --> 00:24:53,600 Speaker 1: and gears. I grew up riding that carousel. This is 444 00:24:53,600 --> 00:24:55,840 Speaker 1: a really cool part about her job. It's all cool, 445 00:24:55,880 --> 00:24:58,320 Speaker 1: but she says, I myself am a painter at the 446 00:24:58,320 --> 00:25:01,400 Speaker 1: Carousel Works, having painted figures and murals for almost three 447 00:25:01,480 --> 00:25:03,960 Speaker 1: years now. You can actually see my paint jobs on 448 00:25:04,000 --> 00:25:06,840 Speaker 1: a carousel near you at the Birmingham Zoo. It's kind 449 00:25:06,840 --> 00:25:10,720 Speaker 1: of near the day trip maybe. Um. We built that 450 00:25:10,760 --> 00:25:13,439 Speaker 1: carousel in two thousand two and repainted the figures recently. 451 00:25:13,440 --> 00:25:17,879 Speaker 1: In I painted the clouded leopard and the jaguar. That 452 00:25:18,040 --> 00:25:22,120 Speaker 1: is the coolest thing. Actually, I actually cyberstocked her work 453 00:25:22,160 --> 00:25:24,000 Speaker 1: and went looking for pictures of the clouded leopard and 454 00:25:24,040 --> 00:25:28,240 Speaker 1: the jaguar at the Birmingham Zoo carousel, and they're gorgeous. 455 00:25:28,400 --> 00:25:31,280 Speaker 1: It's so beautiful. I am so thankful for this listener 456 00:25:31,320 --> 00:25:33,920 Speaker 1: mail and the inspiration of it, because it's one of 457 00:25:33,960 --> 00:25:36,600 Speaker 1: those topics that it is really beautiful part of history. 458 00:25:36,640 --> 00:25:40,399 Speaker 1: And I always like supporting artists, and carousels are in 459 00:25:40,400 --> 00:25:43,800 Speaker 1: many cases amazing works of art. So I also kind 460 00:25:43,800 --> 00:25:46,240 Speaker 1: of want to return to the days where we played 461 00:25:46,240 --> 00:25:48,840 Speaker 1: a game of riding horses and throwing perfume at each other. 462 00:25:49,359 --> 00:25:53,480 Speaker 1: I would play that. Well, we can mount that as 463 00:25:53,520 --> 00:25:56,840 Speaker 1: our own game. Can have some sort of horrible office 464 00:25:56,880 --> 00:25:59,800 Speaker 1: game where we all smell like perfume. My thing is that, 465 00:26:00,200 --> 00:26:02,240 Speaker 1: you know, I would want it to be good perfume, 466 00:26:02,280 --> 00:26:06,040 Speaker 1: but that gets really expensive. We can just delete an oil. 467 00:26:06,200 --> 00:26:09,399 Speaker 1: That's what we'll do there. You go, uh, if you 468 00:26:09,440 --> 00:26:11,440 Speaker 1: would like to write to us with an awesome idea 469 00:26:11,560 --> 00:26:14,359 Speaker 1: or to tell us about your awesome historically significant job. 470 00:26:14,880 --> 00:26:17,040 Speaker 1: You can do that at History Podcast at how stuff 471 00:26:17,040 --> 00:26:19,639 Speaker 1: works dot com. You can also connect with this on 472 00:26:19,680 --> 00:26:22,640 Speaker 1: Facebook dot com slash mist in history, on Twitter at 473 00:26:22,680 --> 00:26:26,040 Speaker 1: Misston History at Misston History dot tumbler dot com, and 474 00:26:26,080 --> 00:26:28,199 Speaker 1: at pinterest dot com slash mist in history. This is 475 00:26:28,200 --> 00:26:30,800 Speaker 1: another episode where I can't wait to pin things. Uh. 476 00:26:30,800 --> 00:26:33,120 Speaker 1: We also have a spreadshirt store at Misston History dot 477 00:26:33,160 --> 00:26:35,560 Speaker 1: spreadshirt dot com if you would like to get some shirts, 478 00:26:35,680 --> 00:26:39,200 Speaker 1: or tote bags or messenger bags or cases for your 479 00:26:39,200 --> 00:26:42,399 Speaker 1: phone or other things that are delightful to you. If 480 00:26:42,440 --> 00:26:44,520 Speaker 1: you would like to learn a little bit more related 481 00:26:44,560 --> 00:26:45,919 Speaker 1: to what we talked about today, you can go to 482 00:26:45,920 --> 00:26:48,520 Speaker 1: our parents site, how stuff works dot com. Go to 483 00:26:48,560 --> 00:26:50,800 Speaker 1: the search bar put in roller coasters and you will 484 00:26:50,840 --> 00:26:54,119 Speaker 1: get an awesome article about how roller coasters work. Uh. 485 00:26:54,160 --> 00:26:57,880 Speaker 1: It is like what I consider how stuff Works classic. UH. 486 00:26:57,960 --> 00:27:00,000 Speaker 1: If you would like to visit us online, you can 487 00:27:00,000 --> 00:27:02,000 Speaker 1: do so at Miston History dot com, where we have 488 00:27:02,160 --> 00:27:05,439 Speaker 1: show notes all of our episodes archived, as well as 489 00:27:05,440 --> 00:27:07,960 Speaker 1: the occasional blog post UH, and we encourage you to 490 00:27:08,040 --> 00:27:10,159 Speaker 1: visit us there at Miston History dot com or our 491 00:27:10,160 --> 00:27:16,440 Speaker 1: parents site house works dot com for more on this 492 00:27:16,640 --> 00:27:19,119 Speaker 1: and thousands of other topics. Does it, How staff works 493 00:27:19,119 --> 00:27:22,760 Speaker 1: dot com, m