1 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:07,480 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Manke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:14,480 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. Our world is full of 3 00:00:14,520 --> 00:00:18,480 Speaker 1: the unexplainable, and if history is an open book, all 4 00:00:18,520 --> 00:00:22,119 Speaker 1: of these amazing tales are right there on display, just 5 00:00:22,239 --> 00:00:28,880 Speaker 1: waiting for us to explore. Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 6 00:00:36,680 --> 00:00:39,319 Speaker 1: In October of nineteen thirty two, a twelve year old 7 00:00:39,320 --> 00:00:43,040 Speaker 1: boy walked into a traveling circus near Chicago, Illinois. Little 8 00:00:43,040 --> 00:00:45,640 Speaker 1: did he know how shocking the knights would be now. 9 00:00:45,640 --> 00:00:47,920 Speaker 1: As he made his way around the circus, he passed 10 00:00:47,960 --> 00:00:51,599 Speaker 1: all the usual sideshow acts, clowns with fake red noses, 11 00:00:51,840 --> 00:00:55,080 Speaker 1: a man swallowing a shiny metal sword, a woman doing 12 00:00:55,240 --> 00:00:59,200 Speaker 1: flips on a trapeze, and then something unique caught his eye, 13 00:00:59,600 --> 00:01:03,800 Speaker 1: a booth with a big painted sign that read mister Electrico. 14 00:01:04,640 --> 00:01:07,759 Speaker 1: The boy couldn't help it, he was curious. He scampered 15 00:01:07,760 --> 00:01:09,800 Speaker 1: into the booth and took a seat near the front. 16 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:12,479 Speaker 1: A few minutes later, the lights dimmed and a man 17 00:01:12,560 --> 00:01:15,640 Speaker 1: wearing a three piece suit waltzed out, taking a seat 18 00:01:15,680 --> 00:01:18,240 Speaker 1: in a metal chair at the center stage. He then 19 00:01:18,319 --> 00:01:20,840 Speaker 1: pulled out a sword from where the boy wasn't quite 20 00:01:20,920 --> 00:01:24,760 Speaker 1: sure and held it in one hand, and suddenly a loud, 21 00:01:24,880 --> 00:01:28,120 Speaker 1: buzzing sound cut through the air. The boy watched as 22 00:01:28,160 --> 00:01:31,440 Speaker 1: sparks seemed to dance along the surface of the man's skin. 23 00:01:31,959 --> 00:01:35,800 Speaker 1: His teeth chattered, his hair stuck straight out. He was 24 00:01:35,840 --> 00:01:39,280 Speaker 1: sitting in an electric chair being bombarded with tens of 25 00:01:39,319 --> 00:01:42,679 Speaker 1: thousands of volts of electricity, and then with a current 26 00:01:42,840 --> 00:01:45,880 Speaker 1: still flowing through him. The man stood up and held 27 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:49,040 Speaker 1: his sword out about the audience. The boy later wrote, 28 00:01:49,280 --> 00:01:53,360 Speaker 1: and I quote, mister Electrico brushed an ex caliber sword 29 00:01:53,440 --> 00:01:56,440 Speaker 1: over the heads of the children, nighting them with fire. 30 00:01:56,800 --> 00:01:59,160 Speaker 1: When he came to me, he tapped me on both 31 00:01:59,200 --> 00:02:02,200 Speaker 1: shoulders and and the tip of my nose. The lightning 32 00:02:02,280 --> 00:02:07,840 Speaker 1: jumped into me. Mister Electrico cried, live forever, but well, 33 00:02:07,920 --> 00:02:10,280 Speaker 1: immortality is kind of a lot to ask of a 34 00:02:10,320 --> 00:02:13,240 Speaker 1: twelve year old kid. Nonetheless, the boy left that night 35 00:02:13,320 --> 00:02:16,840 Speaker 1: feeling electrified, so much so that the following day he 36 00:02:16,880 --> 00:02:20,520 Speaker 1: went back to the circus. The boy tracked down mister Electrico, 37 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:23,880 Speaker 1: who seemed almost weirdly happy to see him. He led 38 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:26,800 Speaker 1: the boy all around the circus, introducing him to the 39 00:02:26,840 --> 00:02:29,480 Speaker 1: other performers, and at the end of the night, just 40 00:02:29,560 --> 00:02:32,560 Speaker 1: as they were about to part ways, mister Electrico told 41 00:02:32,600 --> 00:02:36,040 Speaker 1: the boy and I quote, we have met before. You 42 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:38,880 Speaker 1: were my best friend in France in nineteen eighteen, and 43 00:02:38,960 --> 00:02:41,520 Speaker 1: you died in my arms in the Battle of Arden 44 00:02:41,600 --> 00:02:44,400 Speaker 1: Forest that year. And here you are born again in 45 00:02:44,480 --> 00:02:48,440 Speaker 1: a new body with a new name. Welcome back. Which 46 00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:51,600 Speaker 1: is the kind of claim that really needs some further explanation, 47 00:02:51,760 --> 00:02:55,240 Speaker 1: I know, but these were apparently mister Electrico's final words. 48 00:02:55,520 --> 00:02:57,960 Speaker 1: The boy went home feeling a bit dazed, a bit special, 49 00:02:58,320 --> 00:03:02,000 Speaker 1: and more than a little inspired. Mister Electrico and the 50 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:05,960 Speaker 1: other circus performers were such vibrant, strange characters too. They 51 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:09,560 Speaker 1: were stories unto themselves, and meeting them inspired the boy 52 00:03:09,600 --> 00:03:12,799 Speaker 1: to start writing his own stories. He started with shorter 53 00:03:12,880 --> 00:03:16,200 Speaker 1: pieces and eventually moved up to writing novels. There was 54 00:03:16,400 --> 00:03:20,480 Speaker 1: The Illustrated Man, inspired by a heavily tattooed circus performer. 55 00:03:20,840 --> 00:03:24,079 Speaker 1: There was Something Wicked This Way Comes, which features a 56 00:03:24,160 --> 00:03:27,960 Speaker 1: character named mister Electrico, and maybe most famous of all, 57 00:03:28,320 --> 00:03:32,480 Speaker 1: Fahrenheit four fifty one. That little boy was Ray Bradbury, 58 00:03:32,639 --> 00:03:33,959 Speaker 1: and he would go on to become one of the 59 00:03:34,040 --> 00:03:38,360 Speaker 1: most important names in American literature. Bradbury later called mister 60 00:03:38,440 --> 00:03:42,920 Speaker 1: Electrico his catalyst the reason he became a writer, which 61 00:03:42,960 --> 00:03:45,760 Speaker 1: is a really nice story. But here's the other thing 62 00:03:45,800 --> 00:03:49,800 Speaker 1: about Ray Bradbury. He wasn't above embellishing some details or 63 00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:53,440 Speaker 1: making things up altogether. For example, he claimed that he 64 00:03:53,480 --> 00:03:57,240 Speaker 1: could remember his own birth. If it's true, it would 65 00:03:57,240 --> 00:04:00,360 Speaker 1: make him the most brilliant newborn who had ever lived. Honestly, 66 00:04:00,360 --> 00:04:04,000 Speaker 1: though it's probably just a story. Experts generally believe that 67 00:04:04,040 --> 00:04:07,480 Speaker 1: this isn't possible, and just like it, the circus story 68 00:04:07,520 --> 00:04:11,320 Speaker 1: in Chicago might be a tall tale too. Historians and 69 00:04:11,360 --> 00:04:14,119 Speaker 1: scholars have dug through the records, and while electric chair 70 00:04:14,160 --> 00:04:18,400 Speaker 1: circus performances definitely existed, there isn't anything to suggest that 71 00:04:18,480 --> 00:04:22,440 Speaker 1: mister Electrico did much less that united Ray Bradbury with 72 00:04:22,480 --> 00:04:26,599 Speaker 1: an electrified sword and told him to live forever. Chances 73 00:04:26,600 --> 00:04:29,880 Speaker 1: are it's a sort of origin story that Bradbury created 74 00:04:29,880 --> 00:04:32,960 Speaker 1: for himself, a way to mythologize his own past and 75 00:04:33,040 --> 00:04:35,960 Speaker 1: make it seem more magical than it actually was, But 76 00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:39,120 Speaker 1: the jury is still out. At least two Bradbury scholars 77 00:04:39,120 --> 00:04:41,599 Speaker 1: have gone on the record to say that despite the 78 00:04:41,680 --> 00:04:45,600 Speaker 1: lack of evidence, they believe Bradbury's circus tale, and who 79 00:04:45,640 --> 00:04:49,120 Speaker 1: am I to say different? After all, more curious things 80 00:04:49,360 --> 00:05:06,599 Speaker 1: have happened. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is one of the 81 00:05:06,600 --> 00:05:10,440 Speaker 1: most iconic children books ever written. The characters are unforgettable. 82 00:05:10,680 --> 00:05:13,760 Speaker 1: We all recognize Alice in her blue dress, the Mad 83 00:05:13,800 --> 00:05:16,719 Speaker 1: Hatter in his suit and top hat, and the striped 84 00:05:16,800 --> 00:05:20,359 Speaker 1: cheshire Cats crawling through the trees. Since its publication in 85 00:05:20,440 --> 00:05:24,600 Speaker 1: eighteen sixty five, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland has never been 86 00:05:24,640 --> 00:05:27,560 Speaker 1: out of print. It's been translated into one hundred and 87 00:05:27,640 --> 00:05:31,839 Speaker 1: seventy four languages and sold over one hundred million copies worldwide. 88 00:05:32,400 --> 00:05:35,120 Speaker 1: But when the book was originally published, no one knew 89 00:05:35,160 --> 00:05:37,919 Speaker 1: it would become such a massive success. In fact, the 90 00:05:37,960 --> 00:05:41,120 Speaker 1: story of its first edition printing is stranger than you 91 00:05:41,200 --> 00:05:44,159 Speaker 1: might imagine. You see, way back in eighteen sixty five, 92 00:05:44,240 --> 00:05:47,360 Speaker 1: Lewis Carroll signed a contract with McMillan and Company. They 93 00:05:47,400 --> 00:05:51,440 Speaker 1: agreed to print two thousand copies of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, which, 94 00:05:51,640 --> 00:05:54,800 Speaker 1: knowing how huge the story would get, seems like nothing right, 95 00:05:55,320 --> 00:05:57,919 Speaker 1: But at the time Lewis Carroll was super happy to 96 00:05:57,960 --> 00:06:00,640 Speaker 1: have the contract and the money that came along with it. 97 00:06:01,320 --> 00:06:04,120 Speaker 1: A few weeks before the book's official release, though Carol 98 00:06:04,200 --> 00:06:07,240 Speaker 1: received fifty author copies to give to family, friends and 99 00:06:07,440 --> 00:06:09,720 Speaker 1: whoever else he wanted, he gave one to the man 100 00:06:09,760 --> 00:06:13,400 Speaker 1: who illustrated the book, John Teniell. Teniell flipped open the 101 00:06:13,400 --> 00:06:16,000 Speaker 1: advanced copy, and right away he told Carroll there was 102 00:06:16,000 --> 00:06:19,960 Speaker 1: a problem. He was and I quote entirely dissatisfied with 103 00:06:20,040 --> 00:06:24,000 Speaker 1: the printing of the pictures. Apparently the illustrations just didn't 104 00:06:24,040 --> 00:06:26,839 Speaker 1: look quite right. Teniell was so upset about it that 105 00:06:26,880 --> 00:06:29,680 Speaker 1: he convinced Carol to halt the production of that version 106 00:06:29,720 --> 00:06:32,800 Speaker 1: of the book. The first edition print run was literally 107 00:06:32,839 --> 00:06:35,840 Speaker 1: stopped in its tracks, and Carol asked everyone who had 108 00:06:35,839 --> 00:06:38,800 Speaker 1: received an advanced copy to give it back. He later 109 00:06:38,839 --> 00:06:41,360 Speaker 1: wrote in his diary that the original versions of Alice's 110 00:06:41,360 --> 00:06:44,840 Speaker 1: Adventures in Wonderland should and I quote be sold as 111 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:48,640 Speaker 1: waste paper. Over the next month, Carol and Teniel worked 112 00:06:48,680 --> 00:06:51,080 Speaker 1: with the publisher to create a new first edition that 113 00:06:51,120 --> 00:06:53,719 Speaker 1: they were happy with. Carol ended up losing a pretty 114 00:06:53,760 --> 00:06:56,160 Speaker 1: significant amount of money on the deal, but he hoped 115 00:06:56,200 --> 00:06:58,320 Speaker 1: that if the book sold well enough, he'd be able 116 00:06:58,360 --> 00:07:01,640 Speaker 1: to recuperate those losses, and of course he did just 117 00:07:01,680 --> 00:07:05,440 Speaker 1: that many many times over. In fact, Alice and her 118 00:07:05,520 --> 00:07:09,040 Speaker 1: Journey down the Rabbit Hole became a universally beloved story. 119 00:07:09,600 --> 00:07:12,360 Speaker 1: But here's the kicker. When Lewis Carroll asked for his 120 00:07:12,400 --> 00:07:15,440 Speaker 1: author copies back from those people, well, he didn't get 121 00:07:15,440 --> 00:07:18,880 Speaker 1: a single one back. Exactly twenty two copies of the 122 00:07:18,920 --> 00:07:22,559 Speaker 1: first first edition remained, and as the years passed, those 123 00:07:22,560 --> 00:07:27,320 Speaker 1: books became incredibly valuable. Of the twenty two, sixteen of 124 00:07:27,360 --> 00:07:30,440 Speaker 1: them now reside in museums around the world. They're bound 125 00:07:30,560 --> 00:07:33,640 Speaker 1: in red cloth and feature a golden emblem of Alice 126 00:07:33,640 --> 00:07:36,240 Speaker 1: on the front. The paper, now over one hundred and 127 00:07:36,280 --> 00:07:39,200 Speaker 1: fifty years old, is too delicate to touch, although the 128 00:07:39,200 --> 00:07:42,080 Speaker 1: books are often open to pages with illustrations so that 129 00:07:42,200 --> 00:07:45,760 Speaker 1: curious onlookers can see the printing that John Teniel believed 130 00:07:45,880 --> 00:07:49,960 Speaker 1: was disgraceful. As for the other six copies, they belong 131 00:07:50,080 --> 00:07:52,600 Speaker 1: to private owners. One of them was once owned by 132 00:07:52,600 --> 00:07:55,480 Speaker 1: a man named George William Kitchen. He went to church 133 00:07:55,520 --> 00:07:58,640 Speaker 1: with Lewis Carroll and received an advanced copy in eighteen 134 00:07:58,720 --> 00:08:02,160 Speaker 1: sixty five. When Carol asked for the book back, Kitchen 135 00:08:02,280 --> 00:08:05,760 Speaker 1: didn't comply. Instead, he passed it down to his daughter, 136 00:08:05,920 --> 00:08:08,720 Speaker 1: who eventually sold it at auction in nineteen twenty five. 137 00:08:09,200 --> 00:08:11,800 Speaker 1: It briefly belonged to a library, then to a few 138 00:08:11,800 --> 00:08:15,000 Speaker 1: more private owners, before being purchased by John Lindzyth, a 139 00:08:15,120 --> 00:08:19,520 Speaker 1: scholar and bibliographer. In twenty sixteen, Lindzyth decided it was 140 00:08:19,560 --> 00:08:21,840 Speaker 1: time to part with his beloved book. He put it 141 00:08:21,920 --> 00:08:24,480 Speaker 1: up for auction through Christie's, one of those big name 142 00:08:24,560 --> 00:08:27,800 Speaker 1: auction houses that specifically caters to people with a lot 143 00:08:27,840 --> 00:08:30,440 Speaker 1: of money to blow. As you'd expect, the listing of 144 00:08:30,440 --> 00:08:33,520 Speaker 1: this ultra rare book made headlines and it was expected 145 00:08:33,559 --> 00:08:37,160 Speaker 1: to fetch anywhere from two to three million dollars, not 146 00:08:37,240 --> 00:08:41,120 Speaker 1: bad for something that Carol himself called waste paper. Part 147 00:08:41,120 --> 00:08:43,160 Speaker 1: of the reason it was worth so much was because 148 00:08:43,200 --> 00:08:45,920 Speaker 1: of these six privately owned copies, this one had a 149 00:08:45,960 --> 00:08:50,160 Speaker 1: particularly well documented provedance, meaning the chain of ownership was 150 00:08:50,240 --> 00:08:54,000 Speaker 1: clearly recorded, and it was also in pristine condition. For 151 00:08:54,120 --> 00:08:58,920 Speaker 1: wealthy bibliophiles, this was an amazing opportunity. Only, on the 152 00:08:59,000 --> 00:09:01,640 Speaker 1: day the book went up for six nobody bought it. 153 00:09:02,080 --> 00:09:05,040 Speaker 1: The auction house said that there was spirited interest in 154 00:09:05,080 --> 00:09:09,280 Speaker 1: the bidding, but clearly it wasn't spirited enough. Perhaps this 155 00:09:09,320 --> 00:09:11,680 Speaker 1: would be a good time to quote Alice herself when 156 00:09:11,720 --> 00:09:20,080 Speaker 1: she said, curiouser and curiouser. I hope you've enjoyed today's 157 00:09:20,120 --> 00:09:23,720 Speaker 1: guided tour of the Cabinet of Curiosities. Subscribe for free 158 00:09:23,800 --> 00:09:26,480 Speaker 1: on Apple Podcasts, or learn more about the show by 159 00:09:26,559 --> 00:09:31,559 Speaker 1: visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. The show was created by 160 00:09:31,600 --> 00:09:35,200 Speaker 1: me Aaron Mankey in partnership with how Stuff Works. I 161 00:09:35,320 --> 00:09:39,079 Speaker 1: make another award winning show called Lore, which is a podcast, 162 00:09:39,200 --> 00:09:42,160 Speaker 1: book series, and television show, and you can learn all 163 00:09:42,200 --> 00:09:46,240 Speaker 1: about it over at the Worldolore dot com. And until 164 00:09:46,280 --> 00:09:50,000 Speaker 1: next time, stay curious.