WEBVTT - 9 Outrageous Stories about Cars

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<v Speaker 1>I guess what, well, what's that mango? So you know Carhart, right,

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<v Speaker 1>like the pants company, the pants guy. I think they

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<v Speaker 1>do more than just pants, right, like all kinds of clothing.

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<v Speaker 1>But yeah, I know the company. Yeah, so I think

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<v Speaker 1>of them as this sort of workman brand, and I

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<v Speaker 1>was looking up the business. It is fascinating. So Carhart

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<v Speaker 1>was founded in Detroit in late eighteen hundreds by this

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<v Speaker 1>guy named Hamilton Carhart. He launched his clothing brand with

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<v Speaker 1>just two song machines and five employees, but as his

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<v Speaker 1>business grew, he really got enamored with this whole startup

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<v Speaker 1>scene in Detroit, and in he actually started manufacturing cars

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<v Speaker 1>under the car Heart brand. How in the world you

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<v Speaker 1>go from making like pants and stuff like that to

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<v Speaker 1>making cars? So they actually made cars. Yeah, But the

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<v Speaker 1>weirdest part is that the vehicles weren't made for the

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<v Speaker 1>same audience as his clothing. Like the company had this

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<v Speaker 1>showroom at the Plaza Hotel in New York City, which

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<v Speaker 1>is so fancy, and they really set out to appeal

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<v Speaker 1>to the aristocracy. So when um fancy dignitaries royalty came

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<v Speaker 1>from abroad like car Hard, cars were actually sent to

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<v Speaker 1>meet them at the pier and escort them to the hotel.

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<v Speaker 1>Why have I not heard this before? I know I

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<v Speaker 1>was thinking the same thing. But the company only made

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<v Speaker 1>a few models and in business was so bad that

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<v Speaker 1>Hamilton's decided to close it up. But you know, according

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<v Speaker 1>to the Automotive Hall of Fame, less than five car

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<v Speaker 1>hard cars were built in total, and none are known

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<v Speaker 1>to exist today. None. But that's just the first of

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<v Speaker 1>nine great stories you've got about cars today. Let's dig

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<v Speaker 1>in y hey their podcast listeners, Welcome to Part Time Genius.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm Will Pearson and as always I'm joined by my

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<v Speaker 1>good friend man Gush Ticketer and sitting behind the soundproof

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<v Speaker 1>glass reading the golden book he got off of eBay.

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<v Speaker 1>It's called Tristan flash it over here it's called Herbie

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<v Speaker 1>gets a Special Friend. And man, he is truly invested

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<v Speaker 1>in this book. He's been reading this thing for hours now.

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<v Speaker 1>That's our friend, that producer, Tristan McNeil. I love that

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<v Speaker 1>it takes some hours to read a golden book. And

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<v Speaker 1>speaking of Herbie, did you actually watch those movies growing up?

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<v Speaker 1>I mean I might have watched them, I have to

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<v Speaker 1>be honest. I remember kind of a little bit about them,

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<v Speaker 1>but not that much. I don't remember that much about him,

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<v Speaker 1>so I do remember watching them and loving him. And

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<v Speaker 1>you know, we're always looking for the kind of classic

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<v Speaker 1>Disney movies for a movie night with our kids, and

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<v Speaker 1>for some reason, Henry and Ruby refused to watch it.

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<v Speaker 1>And it kills me. I mean, I think that they

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<v Speaker 1>only have like enough love for cars from the movie

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<v Speaker 1>Cars in their hearts. But uh, you know that didn't

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<v Speaker 1>stop me from looking up a fact about the movie

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<v Speaker 1>for this episode. So did you know that the VW

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<v Speaker 1>Bug wasn't actually the initial choice to be Herbie. I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>it seems like the obvious choice because it actually looks

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<v Speaker 1>like it has a face. But now I wasn't aware

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<v Speaker 1>of that, So that's what I was thinking too, And

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<v Speaker 1>I just assumed the movie was written with the Volkswagen

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<v Speaker 1>Beetle in mind. But apparently the cars had to audition

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<v Speaker 1>for the role, and according to the l A Times,

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<v Speaker 1>about a dozen cars, including Toyotas, Volvo's MGS Fiats and

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<v Speaker 1>a Pearl White Beetle audition for the role of Herbie.

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<v Speaker 1>So apparently the crew came by, they kicked the tires,

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<v Speaker 1>they checked out the steering and testro of the models,

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<v Speaker 1>but when they walked up to Herbie, they actually couldn't

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<v Speaker 1>help but pat and stroke the parked bug, Like that's

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<v Speaker 1>how the decision was made. They just fell in love

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<v Speaker 1>with the thing. And you know, we grew up with

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<v Speaker 1>a white box e Volvo that was our family car

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<v Speaker 1>for like seventeen or eighteen years. And I am curious,

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<v Speaker 1>like if a Volvo had been in that starring role

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<v Speaker 1>and had gone bananas and gone to Mark Monte Carlo,

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<v Speaker 1>like if people would have embraced the movies with the

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<v Speaker 1>same figure. Maybe so well, I mean, I know, Herbie

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<v Speaker 1>was obviously a car who got by on his charm.

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<v Speaker 1>But I've actually got a story about a car that's

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<v Speaker 1>basely the opposite. Now. That was James Dean's Porsche, which

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<v Speaker 1>also went by the nickname Little Bastard, and boy did

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<v Speaker 1>it earn this nickname. So after Dean died in an

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<v Speaker 1>accident and it it was sold for its parts, and

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<v Speaker 1>basically it sounds like the car revolted against this. According

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<v Speaker 1>to a Mental Flaws article, it fell and crushed a

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<v Speaker 1>mechanic's legs. And then here I'm actually just going to

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<v Speaker 1>quote the piece because it's pretty ridiculous. So it says

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<v Speaker 1>a doctor who bought the engine was killed in a

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<v Speaker 1>car accident. Another victim who bought the transmission was severely

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<v Speaker 1>injured in a crash. The tire sold from Little Bastard

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<v Speaker 1>blew out, simultaneously injuring the buyer. While the shell of

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<v Speaker 1>the car was being transported, the truck carrying it crashed.

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<v Speaker 1>Thieves were injured trying to steal the car. The car

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<v Speaker 1>was even lended to a highway safety exhibit in which

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<v Speaker 1>the garage that housed the car burned down in a fire.

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<v Speaker 1>Like you can't make this stuff up. And of course

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<v Speaker 1>now the location of the car is completely unknown. I

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<v Speaker 1>guess nobody wants to know that they have any part

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<v Speaker 1>of this. I love the idea that this car is

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<v Speaker 1>like so gangster. It also feels like, you know, it's

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<v Speaker 1>just hiding out on a beach with Elvis and Tupac

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<v Speaker 1>kind of drinking and telling war stories. You know, are wonderful.

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<v Speaker 1>Researcher Eves found me this next story. And actually I

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<v Speaker 1>forgot to mention this, but this is actually Eves Jeff

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<v Speaker 1>COT's last episode helping us with nine Things, So we

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<v Speaker 1>should take a second to thank her. That's right. She's

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<v Speaker 1>gonna be helping launch and shape some new shows here

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<v Speaker 1>at how stuff works. Well, it should be a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of fun. But anyway you were saying, yeah, so Eves

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<v Speaker 1>found the story about the Nature Mobile. It was invented

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<v Speaker 1>in two thousand nine, and basically it's a Flintstone's car,

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<v Speaker 1>but it's powered by a horse, like a like a

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<v Speaker 1>carriage or what uh kind of. So here's a description. Basically,

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<v Speaker 1>this Iranian engineer put a horse on a treadmill, and

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<v Speaker 1>he put this treadmill inside a box on wheels. So

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<v Speaker 1>basically the driver and the passenger are sitting up front,

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<v Speaker 1>the horse in the back, and to get it to move,

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<v Speaker 1>you switch the treadmill on and wait for the horse

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<v Speaker 1>to just start trotting. And I don't understand anything about this.

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<v Speaker 1>Why wouldn't you just ride a horse instead? That's a

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<v Speaker 1>good question. But it's got twenty years. It goes up

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<v Speaker 1>to twenty eight miles per hour, and like an electric car,

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<v Speaker 1>the movement and the breaks kind of recharged the treadmill's battery.

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<v Speaker 1>For anyone who's concerned about the horse though, and I

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<v Speaker 1>do think we should all be concerned for this horse.

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<v Speaker 1>The engineer wants to assure you that he spent more

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<v Speaker 1>than two years adding things on to make the horse comfortable.

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<v Speaker 1>So apparently there's this cold water jacket that gets applied

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<v Speaker 1>to the horse so it doesn't overheat. There's a bag

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<v Speaker 1>that collects the horses emissions as he puts it, and

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<v Speaker 1>it cleanly stores the waist under the treadmill. And they're

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<v Speaker 1>actually photos of this thing in the Guardian. It is

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<v Speaker 1>completely transparent so people can see the horse and it's

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<v Speaker 1>kind of beautiful actually, but it isn't made for roads

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<v Speaker 1>and highways. It's supposedly more of a way to get

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<v Speaker 1>around villages, which you know, brings me back to the

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<v Speaker 1>same point, like, why don't you just ride the horse? Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm I'm not sure why this one didn't take off.

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<v Speaker 1>This is a really interesting idea. But well, here's a

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<v Speaker 1>crazy one I just learned about, and it's more of

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<v Speaker 1>a way to soup up your car. But it's called

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<v Speaker 1>the bolster and it was designed by this engineer named

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<v Speaker 1>Charles Foury in South Africa, and the bolster was a

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<v Speaker 1>way to protect yourself against carjackings, which were happening with

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<v Speaker 1>some frequency in Johannesburg at the time. That this was created.

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<v Speaker 1>So tell me what does the bolster do? Well? Just wait,

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<v Speaker 1>for only seven hundred dollars, you get a pair of

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<v Speaker 1>nozzles that pointed out from underneath your car, and if

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<v Speaker 1>you felt unsafe, you could hit this small foot button,

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<v Speaker 1>you hit the gas pedal and then massive flames would

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<v Speaker 1>shoot out from under your car. So it's basically a

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<v Speaker 1>flamethrower for your car for only seven hundred bucks Manga.

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<v Speaker 1>So do they sell well despite that very reasonable price?

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<v Speaker 1>In my opinion, apparently not. Just a few hundred of

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<v Speaker 1>these things were sold and the company unfortunately went out

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<v Speaker 1>of business, and supposedly there are still a few cars

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<v Speaker 1>in South Africa that have these things attached to them though,

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<v Speaker 1>So just a warning to any would be carjackers in

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<v Speaker 1>Johannesburg who also happened to listen to Part Time Genius.

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<v Speaker 1>It's good to know and I'm glad you were thinking

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<v Speaker 1>about then. So have you seen those bikes in Panama

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<v Speaker 1>that are completely kidded out? I don't think so. So

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<v Speaker 1>they're just like bicycles and this idea of the bolster

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<v Speaker 1>just remind me of them because they have these uh

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<v Speaker 1>outrageous modifications on them, like They've got sirens and air

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<v Speaker 1>horns and boom boxes. Some have like vending stalls in

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<v Speaker 1>front of them, a giant sculptural artworks. It's really amazing.

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<v Speaker 1>But you know, I could see some of these having

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<v Speaker 1>flamethrowers as well. Yeah, they need to take it to

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<v Speaker 1>the next level, all right, So where do you want

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<v Speaker 1>to go from here? So how about covering a guy

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<v Speaker 1>named Houdina, which I know sounds like Houdini, but it

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<v Speaker 1>is not, though it is equally magical in this guy,

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<v Speaker 1>Francis Houdina designed a driverless car and this is in ninety.

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<v Speaker 1>Basically he had an antent on top and a second

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<v Speaker 1>car behind the driver of this car maneuvering it so

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<v Speaker 1>you could like blow the horns, which gears turned the

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<v Speaker 1>wheel all from the second car. And while this doesn't

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<v Speaker 1>seem that amazing now, was obviously a huge deal. And

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<v Speaker 1>so there's some New York Times reporting on it, and

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<v Speaker 1>this is our quote. It was as if a phantom

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<v Speaker 1>hand were at the wheel. So they were pretty enamored

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<v Speaker 1>with it, and very smartly Hudna sat in the passenger

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<v Speaker 1>seat of this driver of this car the first time

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<v Speaker 1>his ghost car took a drive, just in case he

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<v Speaker 1>needed to take the wheel, and apparently he definitely needed

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<v Speaker 1>to take the wheel. So here's what Jelapnick says about

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<v Speaker 1>it and the first ride through New York City. Quote

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<v Speaker 1>the radio car Korean from left or right down Broadway,

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<v Speaker 1>around Columbus Circle and south on Fifth Avenue, almost running

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<v Speaker 1>down two trucks and a milk wagon, which took to

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<v Speaker 1>the curbs for safe At st Judina lunged for the

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<v Speaker 1>steering wheel, but could not prevent the car from crashing

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<v Speaker 1>into the fender of an automobile filled with cameraman. It

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<v Speaker 1>was at forty three Street that a crash into a

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<v Speaker 1>fire engine was barely averted. The police advised Judina to

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<v Speaker 1>postpone his experiments. So what happened then, Like did the

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<v Speaker 1>car ever go under production? And I guess Judina kept

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<v Speaker 1>working on improvements and taking his car on tour. They're like, um,

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<v Speaker 1>there's this report from Virginia and the thirties. It called

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<v Speaker 1>the car one of the most amazing modern spectacles that

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<v Speaker 1>people have ever seen. And this car keeps quietly surfacing

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<v Speaker 1>in other places. But I do think like World War

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<v Speaker 1>two and uh, the drying up of funds might have

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<v Speaker 1>put a damper on that research. I still can't get

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<v Speaker 1>over this name. Like this, this magical car is invented

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<v Speaker 1>by somebody named Houdina. But is there what you're saying?

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<v Speaker 1>There's there's no relation to Houdini, So that's what I

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<v Speaker 1>thought initially, and then I looked more into it, and

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<v Speaker 1>apparently there's a story there too. So apparently Harry Houdini

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<v Speaker 1>hated Houdina and he stormed into the Houdina Company and

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<v Speaker 1>tried to get them to change their name. And it

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<v Speaker 1>wasn't just because he thought they were in fringeing on

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<v Speaker 1>his name to sell us possessed car. It was more

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<v Speaker 1>because he was irritated that his mail was actually ending

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<v Speaker 1>up at the wrong address. Like he was just baffled

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<v Speaker 1>that the mail was going to the wrong place and

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<v Speaker 1>he was upset about it. So in the end, he

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<v Speaker 1>was just really annoyed that he could make the Houdina

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<v Speaker 1>Company disappear. All right, Well, speaking of remote control cars,

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<v Speaker 1>did you realize they actually use remote control cars in

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<v Speaker 1>the Olympics during the track and field events? No? I

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<v Speaker 1>had never heard that, And apparently this has been happening

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<v Speaker 1>since at least the two thousand eight Olympics. But Obviously,

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<v Speaker 1>the worst part of shot put, javelin and the hammer

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<v Speaker 1>throwing is having to go retrieve your shot put javelin

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<v Speaker 1>or hammer, and the remote control cars can do just that.

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<v Speaker 1>There were these beautiful and apparently very pricey little vehicles,

0:11:42.920 --> 0:11:46.040
<v Speaker 1>and one thing they aren't though, is self driving. So

0:11:46.080 --> 0:11:48.960
<v Speaker 1>a track official guides of the car to the javelin

0:11:49.000 --> 0:11:51.760
<v Speaker 1>to be picked up for this very official reason, And

0:11:51.800 --> 0:11:54.200
<v Speaker 1>when one shot putter said she wanted to buy one

0:11:54.280 --> 0:11:56.560
<v Speaker 1>and hope to test drive it on the field, the

0:11:56.600 --> 0:11:58.800
<v Speaker 1>officials said it was too expensive to let her take

0:11:58.800 --> 0:12:01.400
<v Speaker 1>it for a spin. I mean, that's so ridiculous. It's

0:12:01.480 --> 0:12:04.920
<v Speaker 1>just a remote control car. But I mean, is there

0:12:05.040 --> 0:12:08.480
<v Speaker 1>one auto manufacturer or like toy company who's responsible for

0:12:08.480 --> 0:12:11.600
<v Speaker 1>making these? There might be, but the Olympic rules actually

0:12:11.679 --> 0:12:15.200
<v Speaker 1>prevent any logos or sponsorship. So even though one set

0:12:15.240 --> 0:12:17.960
<v Speaker 1>of rcs looked a little bit like many coopers and

0:12:18.440 --> 0:12:21.200
<v Speaker 1>another look like pickup trucks, no one really knows who

0:12:21.280 --> 0:12:24.160
<v Speaker 1>makes them. That's pretty fun. Well, you know, I know,

0:12:24.240 --> 0:12:26.000
<v Speaker 1>we've got two more facts to go, but before we

0:12:26.000 --> 0:12:44.760
<v Speaker 1>get to them, let's take a quick break. Welcome back

0:12:44.760 --> 0:12:47.440
<v Speaker 1>to Part Time Genius, where we're talking cars. So I

0:12:47.480 --> 0:12:49.560
<v Speaker 1>was trying to figure out what my last fact should be,

0:12:49.600 --> 0:12:52.400
<v Speaker 1>and I've got a bunch of short ones and honestly

0:12:52.720 --> 0:12:56.080
<v Speaker 1>just can't pick among these mango So you know, my

0:12:56.160 --> 0:12:58.040
<v Speaker 1>take with this is always just to real them off.

0:12:58.760 --> 0:13:01.360
<v Speaker 1>All right, Well, here are some of the things that

0:13:01.400 --> 0:13:04.520
<v Speaker 1>I just thought were so interesting. Jaguar cars used to

0:13:04.600 --> 0:13:07.640
<v Speaker 1>be called SS cars, but changed their name because of

0:13:07.679 --> 0:13:12.040
<v Speaker 1>the Nazi Association. Really why Yeah, apparently they used to

0:13:12.040 --> 0:13:15.719
<v Speaker 1>specialize just in motorcycle side cars, so the original name

0:13:15.720 --> 0:13:18.760
<v Speaker 1>of the company was Swallow Side Car Company. That's where

0:13:18.760 --> 0:13:21.680
<v Speaker 1>the SS comes from. But in the forties they changed

0:13:21.720 --> 0:13:24.679
<v Speaker 1>their name for obvious reasons. Yeah, that makes sense. So

0:13:25.000 --> 0:13:28.680
<v Speaker 1>what else you got? Well, Mazda had to recall cars

0:13:28.760 --> 0:13:32.840
<v Speaker 1>once because of spiders. Apparently they were called about a

0:13:33.000 --> 0:13:37.320
<v Speaker 1>hundred thousand M six sedans because yellow sack spiders loved

0:13:37.360 --> 0:13:40.200
<v Speaker 1>the smell of the gasoline so much that they'd climb

0:13:40.200 --> 0:13:42.760
<v Speaker 1>into the engines and block event with the webs that

0:13:42.800 --> 0:13:46.120
<v Speaker 1>they'd weave, which sounds impossible but I guess it's true.

0:13:46.200 --> 0:13:49.560
<v Speaker 1>So they actually had to recall them twice. But I

0:13:49.600 --> 0:13:52.280
<v Speaker 1>think my favorite story I stumbled into is about the

0:13:52.360 --> 0:13:55.600
<v Speaker 1>law marquises and it's a car from eight eight four.

0:13:56.080 --> 0:13:58.679
<v Speaker 1>It was creative for the Count de Dion, and basically

0:13:58.840 --> 0:14:02.080
<v Speaker 1>it's a steam car and it runs on coal, wood

0:14:02.160 --> 0:14:04.880
<v Speaker 1>and bits of paper, and it takes the car about

0:14:04.960 --> 0:14:07.880
<v Speaker 1>half an hour to really rev up, but then it

0:14:07.920 --> 0:14:10.440
<v Speaker 1>can actually cruise at about thirty eight miles an hour.

0:14:10.520 --> 0:14:13.320
<v Speaker 1>And you should note the verb in the tents that

0:14:13.400 --> 0:14:16.560
<v Speaker 1>I use there, that's can cruise. Because even though the

0:14:16.600 --> 0:14:20.240
<v Speaker 1>car won the world's first automobile race back in eighties seven,

0:14:20.760 --> 0:14:23.720
<v Speaker 1>it was last sold in two thousand eleven for four

0:14:23.800 --> 0:14:27.920
<v Speaker 1>point six million dollars and apparently has the distinction of

0:14:27.960 --> 0:14:31.440
<v Speaker 1>being the oldest known running automobile. Oh that's really cool.

0:14:31.480 --> 0:14:33.880
<v Speaker 1>That's still runs. You know, I actually had a story

0:14:33.920 --> 0:14:37.600
<v Speaker 1>about Sarah Kanigg and her dad who supposedly wrote the

0:14:37.640 --> 0:14:41.400
<v Speaker 1>super famous Volkswagen Lemon newspaper ads. You know, it's a

0:14:41.440 --> 0:14:44.760
<v Speaker 1>great bit of Madman history. But actually want to save

0:14:44.800 --> 0:14:46.680
<v Speaker 1>that story, it's so good for another time and just

0:14:46.720 --> 0:14:49.520
<v Speaker 1>give you today's t man. What a tease you're leaving

0:14:49.600 --> 0:14:51.600
<v Speaker 1>us with that, U. That is a good one that

0:14:51.720 --> 0:14:53.600
<v Speaker 1>we'll have to get to that well, thank you so much.

0:14:54.040 --> 0:14:56.480
<v Speaker 1>Thanks again to Eaves for all her wonderful facts. We

0:14:56.520 --> 0:14:58.360
<v Speaker 1>wish her the best of luck, but we're excited to

0:14:58.360 --> 0:15:00.920
<v Speaker 1>see everything she does here at House Stuff Works, and

0:15:00.920 --> 0:15:02.880
<v Speaker 1>as always, thanks so much for listening. We'll be back

0:15:02.920 --> 0:15:16.800
<v Speaker 1>with a full length episode tomorrow. M