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 --> 00:00:22,639 Speaker 1: of these amazing tales right there on display, just waiting 5 00:00:22,680 --> 00:00:28,880 Speaker 1: for us to explore. Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 6 00:00:36,680 --> 00:00:39,600 Speaker 1: For some children in the Midwestern United States, Christmas morning 7 00:00:39,680 --> 00:00:42,320 Speaker 1: begins with a scavenger hunt. They jump out of bed, 8 00:00:42,479 --> 00:00:45,000 Speaker 1: rush to the tree, and start digging through its branches. 9 00:00:45,320 --> 00:00:48,760 Speaker 1: Hidden amongst the pine needles, one lucky kid finds a treasure, 10 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:53,239 Speaker 1: a green glass ornament shape like a gurkin. It's the 11 00:00:53,240 --> 00:00:56,200 Speaker 1: coveted Christmas pickle. The first child to grab it either 12 00:00:56,240 --> 00:00:59,400 Speaker 1: receives a special gift or gets to open their presence first, 13 00:00:59,680 --> 00:01:02,720 Speaker 1: but more importantly, they enjoy bragging rights for the rest 14 00:01:02,760 --> 00:01:06,200 Speaker 1: of the year. It's one of many weird and wonderful 15 00:01:06,200 --> 00:01:10,080 Speaker 1: holiday traditions in America. But what makes the Christmas pickle 16 00:01:10,240 --> 00:01:14,360 Speaker 1: especially strange is that nobody really knows where it came from. Now, 17 00:01:14,440 --> 00:01:17,200 Speaker 1: if you ask an average Midwesterner, they'll probably say that 18 00:01:17,240 --> 00:01:20,200 Speaker 1: it's a German thing passed down through the generations, which 19 00:01:20,440 --> 00:01:23,080 Speaker 1: does seem to make sense. The Midwest was once a 20 00:01:23,160 --> 00:01:27,640 Speaker 1: popular destination for German immigrants, including my ancestors, and pickles 21 00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:30,600 Speaker 1: are common in that nation's cuisine. But if you ask 22 00:01:30,680 --> 00:01:33,600 Speaker 1: actual German people, they probably won't have any idea what 23 00:01:33,640 --> 00:01:35,880 Speaker 1: you're talking about. According to The New York Times, a 24 00:01:35,920 --> 00:01:39,200 Speaker 1: twenty sixteen poll found that ninety one percent of Germans 25 00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:41,920 Speaker 1: had never heard of the Christmas pickle, even though it 26 00:01:42,000 --> 00:01:45,319 Speaker 1: was being widely attributed to their culture. So how did 27 00:01:45,319 --> 00:01:48,320 Speaker 1: this curious practice really begin. Well, there are a few 28 00:01:48,320 --> 00:01:51,360 Speaker 1: different legends about that. According to one story, there was 29 00:01:51,400 --> 00:01:54,320 Speaker 1: a German American soldier who fought in the Civil War. 30 00:01:54,640 --> 00:01:57,040 Speaker 1: At one point, he was taken captive and the prison 31 00:01:57,040 --> 00:02:00,280 Speaker 1: guard refused to feed him. He starved for weeks. Finally, 32 00:02:00,320 --> 00:02:03,000 Speaker 1: on Christmas Eve, the soldier felt his body beginning to 33 00:02:03,040 --> 00:02:05,480 Speaker 1: shut down. Certain that he would die, he begged his 34 00:02:05,560 --> 00:02:10,639 Speaker 1: capture to let him have one final meal, a single pickle. Miraculously, 35 00:02:10,760 --> 00:02:13,600 Speaker 1: this measley snack gave the soldier the strength he needed 36 00:02:13,600 --> 00:02:15,760 Speaker 1: to survive. When he made it home after the war, 37 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:19,200 Speaker 1: he spread the tale of the relish that saved his life. Thus, 38 00:02:19,240 --> 00:02:23,160 Speaker 1: the Christmas pickle was born at least that's one version 39 00:02:23,200 --> 00:02:26,560 Speaker 1: of the story. Another one goes like this. Two Spanish 40 00:02:26,639 --> 00:02:29,240 Speaker 1: boys were heading home from boarding school for the holidays. 41 00:02:29,360 --> 00:02:31,480 Speaker 1: They were making the long trek on foot, and they 42 00:02:31,520 --> 00:02:34,200 Speaker 1: moved slowly. They realized that they wouldn't be home by 43 00:02:34,200 --> 00:02:37,160 Speaker 1: December twenty fifth, so on Christmas Eve, they decided to 44 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:40,440 Speaker 1: stop and rest overnight at an inn. For whatever reason, 45 00:02:40,480 --> 00:02:43,280 Speaker 1: the innkeeper did not like these boys. They grabbed the 46 00:02:43,360 --> 00:02:46,480 Speaker 1: children and locked them inside a barrel of pickles. The 47 00:02:46,520 --> 00:02:48,960 Speaker 1: boys banged on the sides of the container, but no 48 00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:52,400 Speaker 1: one heard their screams. That is not until Saint Nicholas 49 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:54,640 Speaker 1: made a stop at the end. He heard the children 50 00:02:54,720 --> 00:02:57,680 Speaker 1: yelling for help and freed them from their pickoly prison. 51 00:02:57,880 --> 00:02:59,840 Speaker 1: The boys eventually made it home, where they shared this 52 00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:03,239 Speaker 1: story of their incredible escape. This inspired people to hang 53 00:03:03,280 --> 00:03:06,240 Speaker 1: pickles on their Christmas trees in remembrance of the kids' 54 00:03:06,240 --> 00:03:10,160 Speaker 1: survival and Chris Kringle's good deed. Now, if these tails 55 00:03:10,200 --> 00:03:13,160 Speaker 1: sound a bit far fetched to you, I'm inclined to agree. 56 00:03:13,200 --> 00:03:16,080 Speaker 1: They're fun for sure, but they're probably not factual. In 57 00:03:16,120 --> 00:03:18,919 Speaker 1: all likelihood, the origin of the Christmas pickle is less 58 00:03:18,919 --> 00:03:23,200 Speaker 1: about magic and more about capitalism. You see. Beginning around 59 00:03:23,200 --> 00:03:26,680 Speaker 1: the eighteen forties, German glass blowers were producing all kinds 60 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:31,280 Speaker 1: of unique food shaped holiday ornaments, fruits, nuts, vegetables. You 61 00:03:31,280 --> 00:03:33,600 Speaker 1: could put an entire glass garden in your tree if 62 00:03:33,600 --> 00:03:36,480 Speaker 1: you really wanted to. They were fairly popular in Europe, 63 00:03:36,560 --> 00:03:39,720 Speaker 1: for sure, but the FW. Woolworth Company wanted to capture 64 00:03:39,760 --> 00:03:43,240 Speaker 1: the American market too. Fast forward to the eighteen hundreds, 65 00:03:43,280 --> 00:03:46,560 Speaker 1: when that same business began importing German made glass to 66 00:03:46,640 --> 00:03:50,119 Speaker 1: the United States. To convince people to buy their weird products, 67 00:03:50,120 --> 00:03:54,080 Speaker 1: the FW. Woolworth Company spun a tail about the pickle ornament. 68 00:03:54,200 --> 00:03:57,320 Speaker 1: In particular, they claimed that hiding a glass girkin in 69 00:03:57,360 --> 00:04:00,720 Speaker 1: the Christmas tree was a long standing German tradition, even 70 00:04:00,760 --> 00:04:04,800 Speaker 1: though it actually wasn't. Nevertheless, if this story is true, 71 00:04:05,080 --> 00:04:07,960 Speaker 1: it seems like their marketing ploy paid off. The ornaments 72 00:04:08,000 --> 00:04:11,880 Speaker 1: became an integral part of some family's holiday traditions, especially 73 00:04:12,200 --> 00:04:15,440 Speaker 1: in the Midwest, and even now, nearly one hundred and 74 00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:19,840 Speaker 1: fifty years later, the Christmas pickle is still a pretty 75 00:04:19,839 --> 00:04:36,080 Speaker 1: big dill. On the night of March second of nineteen 76 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:39,479 Speaker 1: seventy eight, two men tiptoed into a small cemetery the 77 00:04:39,520 --> 00:04:43,000 Speaker 1: graveyard was located in the hills above Lake Geneva in Switzerland. 78 00:04:43,240 --> 00:04:45,719 Speaker 1: It was beautiful and quiet, save for the sound of 79 00:04:45,720 --> 00:04:49,120 Speaker 1: the men creeping through the grass. Eventually they reached the 80 00:04:49,120 --> 00:04:51,440 Speaker 1: tombstone they were looking for. It was marked with a 81 00:04:51,480 --> 00:04:55,039 Speaker 1: birth date April eighteenth of eighteen eighty nine, and below 82 00:04:55,080 --> 00:04:58,200 Speaker 1: that was a date of death, Christmas Day of nineteen 83 00:04:58,279 --> 00:05:02,559 Speaker 1: seventy seven, belong to Charlie Chaplin, one of the most 84 00:05:02,640 --> 00:05:06,279 Speaker 1: famous actors who ever lived. Beginning his show business career 85 00:05:06,320 --> 00:05:08,920 Speaker 1: at just eight years old, Chaplin rose to fame as 86 00:05:08,960 --> 00:05:12,040 Speaker 1: a physical comedian during the silent film era. He went 87 00:05:12,080 --> 00:05:15,120 Speaker 1: on to work as an actor, writer, producer, and director, 88 00:05:15,360 --> 00:05:19,480 Speaker 1: gaining numerous awards and international acclaim. He's widely considered one 89 00:05:19,520 --> 00:05:23,040 Speaker 1: of the most important figures in the history of cinema. Now, 90 00:05:23,080 --> 00:05:25,240 Speaker 1: when Chaplin died, he was married to a woman named 91 00:05:25,320 --> 00:05:28,679 Speaker 1: Una O'Neill. She was the daughter of playwright Eugene O'Neill. 92 00:05:28,920 --> 00:05:31,200 Speaker 1: On their wedding day, she was eighteen years old and 93 00:05:31,279 --> 00:05:33,880 Speaker 1: Chaplin was fifty three. And now all of this had 94 00:05:33,920 --> 00:05:36,039 Speaker 1: been in the news, so the men in the cemetery 95 00:05:36,120 --> 00:05:39,880 Speaker 1: knew about Chaplain's career and his personal life. But and 96 00:05:39,920 --> 00:05:41,760 Speaker 1: here's the reason I'm telling you all of this. The 97 00:05:41,800 --> 00:05:44,159 Speaker 1: men were not there to pay respects, nor did they 98 00:05:44,240 --> 00:05:47,880 Speaker 1: want to spit on Chaplin's grave. No, they wanted to 99 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:51,560 Speaker 1: rob it. The men pulled out their shovels and started digging. 100 00:05:51,880 --> 00:05:54,640 Speaker 1: They cracked open the actor's caskets and came face to 101 00:05:54,680 --> 00:05:57,039 Speaker 1: face with his corpse, which had been sitting in the 102 00:05:57,080 --> 00:05:59,440 Speaker 1: ground for over two months. It couldn't have been a 103 00:05:59,440 --> 00:06:02,760 Speaker 1: pretty sight, but the men weren't deterred. They lifted Charlie 104 00:06:02,839 --> 00:06:05,880 Speaker 1: Chaplin from his grave, closed the casket, and shoved the 105 00:06:05,920 --> 00:06:08,840 Speaker 1: dirt back in to cover their tracks, and then they 106 00:06:08,880 --> 00:06:11,960 Speaker 1: carried the actress body to a nearby cornfield, where they 107 00:06:12,040 --> 00:06:15,880 Speaker 1: reburied it. The following morning, Chaplain's widow, Una received a 108 00:06:15,920 --> 00:06:18,640 Speaker 1: call at her home in Switzerland. Two men told her 109 00:06:18,640 --> 00:06:20,840 Speaker 1: that they had stolen her late husband's body and that 110 00:06:20,920 --> 00:06:22,560 Speaker 1: the only way to get it back was to pay 111 00:06:22,600 --> 00:06:26,120 Speaker 1: them six hundred thousand dollars. If she didn't comply, they 112 00:06:26,160 --> 00:06:30,240 Speaker 1: threatened the lives of her and Chaplain's eight children. Unbeknownst 113 00:06:30,279 --> 00:06:32,440 Speaker 1: to the thieving duo, though Una was not a woman 114 00:06:32,480 --> 00:06:35,320 Speaker 1: who could be easily shaken, she basically laughed at them. 115 00:06:35,560 --> 00:06:38,200 Speaker 1: She later gave an interview about the situation, saying, and 116 00:06:38,360 --> 00:06:42,559 Speaker 1: I quote Charlie would have thought it rather ridiculous. Una 117 00:06:42,640 --> 00:06:45,440 Speaker 1: had no intention of paying the ransom. She didn't really 118 00:06:45,480 --> 00:06:48,400 Speaker 1: believe the men's threats either, but she did believe that 119 00:06:48,440 --> 00:06:51,240 Speaker 1: they would try to call her again, so she contacted 120 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:53,960 Speaker 1: the local police, who tapped her phone line and began 121 00:06:54,080 --> 00:06:57,360 Speaker 1: monitoring every phone booth in the area. Five weeks later, 122 00:06:57,720 --> 00:07:01,200 Speaker 1: they caught the grave robbers. Their names were Roman Wardis 123 00:07:01,240 --> 00:07:03,640 Speaker 1: and Gansho Ganev. Although we don't have a lot of 124 00:07:03,680 --> 00:07:06,279 Speaker 1: information about them, we know they both worked as auto 125 00:07:06,320 --> 00:07:09,680 Speaker 1: mechanics and they'd come to Switzerland as political refugees from 126 00:07:09,720 --> 00:07:12,120 Speaker 1: Eastern Europe. They told police they were down on their 127 00:07:12,160 --> 00:07:14,679 Speaker 1: luck financially and that they had only committed the crime 128 00:07:14,800 --> 00:07:17,760 Speaker 1: for money. Now that they were caught, though, Roman and 129 00:07:17,800 --> 00:07:20,720 Speaker 1: Gancho led authorities to the cornfield where they had hidden 130 00:07:20,760 --> 00:07:23,880 Speaker 1: Chaplain's body, he was once again unearthed and returned to 131 00:07:23,960 --> 00:07:26,560 Speaker 1: the cemetery from whence he came, and then his family 132 00:07:26,600 --> 00:07:28,760 Speaker 1: opted to have his grave covered in a slab of 133 00:07:28,800 --> 00:07:32,840 Speaker 1: cement to deter future thieves. Roman, who was apparently the 134 00:07:32,840 --> 00:07:36,120 Speaker 1: mastermind behind the operation, was sentenced to four years of 135 00:07:36,160 --> 00:07:40,160 Speaker 1: hard labor. Gnho received a lesser punishment of eighteen months, 136 00:07:40,720 --> 00:07:42,560 Speaker 1: but that was not the end of the story. One 137 00:07:42,600 --> 00:07:45,080 Speaker 1: of the men's wives was so embarrassed by their behavior 138 00:07:45,280 --> 00:07:48,000 Speaker 1: that she sent a letter to Una apologizing for the 139 00:07:48,040 --> 00:07:52,240 Speaker 1: whole debacle. As unshakable as ever and shockingly generous given 140 00:07:52,280 --> 00:08:01,120 Speaker 1: the circumstances, Una responded, all is forgiven. I hope you've 141 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:05,160 Speaker 1: enjoyed today's guided tour of the Cabinet of Curiosities. Subscribe 142 00:08:05,160 --> 00:08:07,800 Speaker 1: for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn more about the 143 00:08:07,840 --> 00:08:12,640 Speaker 1: show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com. The show was 144 00:08:12,680 --> 00:08:16,520 Speaker 1: created by me Aaron Mankey in partnership with how Stuff Works. 145 00:08:16,960 --> 00:08:20,080 Speaker 1: I make another award winning show called Lore, which is 146 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:23,560 Speaker 1: a podcast, book series, and television show, and you can 147 00:08:23,640 --> 00:08:27,520 Speaker 1: learn all about it over at the Worldoflore dot com. 148 00:08:27,560 --> 00:08:31,760 Speaker 1: And until next time, stay curious.