Florida Spectacular

Episode 247: Submerged Stories (Sundown Towns)

Send us your Florida questions! Cathy Salustri and Ryan Worthington talk about Sundown Towns, apologies, and the problems the racism of the past still creates.Links We MentionedTougaloo College's Sundown Town databaseWas Gulfport, Florida a Sundown Town?South Pinellas Sundown TownsFlorida Sundown Towns Support the showQuestion or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee). NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Episode 246: Bithlo, Getting Chased by a Cobra, and a Springs Adventure

Send us your Florida questions!Buckle in for a wild ride... this episode starts in Bithlo, detours through Orlando Speed World, gets chased by a cobra, and then goes on an adventure through the springs. Links We MentionedBithloBithlo real estateOrlando Speed WorldSwampySt. Cloud SerpentariumBarberville Yard Art EmporiumDeLeon Springs State ParkQueenie the Waterskiing ElephantGinger Ale SpringsGreen SpringsSam Stoltz housesOrlando ShineGiant inflatable pigeons in OrlandoPhoto of Orlando inflatable pigeons by Rick Kilby.Support the showQuestion or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee). NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Episode 245: In the Shoes of Florida's Black History

Send us your Florida questions!Rick and Cathy talk about gentrification, the difficult relationship white people have with Black history, its place in Florida's history, and how Florida's Black history impacts modern-day Florida.Links We MentionedLincolnvilleFort MoseAxe Handle SaturdayThe ZorgEatonville's Zora Neale Hurston MuseumKingsley PlantationCarter Woodson MuseumLincolnville MuseumHistoric Hampton HouseAmerican BeachA.L. Lewis Museum Support the showQuestion or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee). NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Episode 244: Eliot Kleinberg, Nate Moran, and Hypocrite's Row

Send us your Florida questions!Eliot Kleinberg, a journalist whose career spans five decades, has turned his talents to fiction. His first book, Hypocrite's Row, is due out February 26.From Eliot:Hypocrite’s Row, the first book of my “Adventures of Nate Moran” novels about the Roaring 20s Miami police detective, comes out next month. The setting is the real battle between gangsters and law enforcement during the mostly failed effort to enforce Prohibition in South Florida.Florida native Eliot Kleinberg, creator of the Civil War historical novel "Peace River," the"Adventures of Nate Moran" novels, and the original "Weird Florida" books, spent nearly a half-century reporting on local news and writing about Florida and Florida history. He produced two history columns and wrote fourteen books -- and co-wrote or contributed to several more -- all of them about Florida. Son of longtime journalist Howard Kleinberg, he lectures regularly on Florida topics and runs a blog on better writing called "Something Went Horribly Wrong." Links We MentionedEliot's websiteEliot's newsletterLevel Best booksPlanner or Pantser?Hypocrite's RowBookshop.orgSupport the showQuestion or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee). NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Episode 243: Learning Not To Be Racist, Drinking Too Much, and a Beautiful Life: Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

Send us your Florida questions!Ann McCutchan's book, The Life She Wished To Live: A Biography of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Author of The Yearling, focuses on Rawling's life. Ann, Cathy, and Rick talk about Rawlings' life, how she learned not to be a racist, her struggles with alcohol, and why The Yearling is not the best of her works.Links We MentionedAnn McCutchan's websiteHere is Home: Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and Cross CreekThe Life She Wished To Live: A Biography of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Author of The YearlingMarjorie Kinnan Rawlings Society annual conference Support the showQuestion or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee). NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!