The Strange History Podcast

Totally Normal in the 1960s: 25 Outrageous Everyday Things That Would Shock Us Now

Step back into the rotary phone days with The Strange History Podcast as host Amy unpacks 25 things that were totally normal in the 1960s—but would raise serious eyebrows (and maybe legal action) today. From teachers with paddles and nuclear bomb drills in school, to doctors lighting cigarettes during house calls, this episode dives into the everyday absurdities of a decade where no one locked their doors and kids played on ten-foot steel slides over concrete. We’re talking silent home movies, community spankings, charm school, unpasteurized parenting, and enough cigarette smoke to form its own weather system. If you love retro culture, weird history, and dark humor with a nostalgic twist—this is your new favorite episode.

The Royal Scepter: How Ferdinand VII’s Grotesque Member Shaped a Nation (Literally)

In this Strange History Podcast: After Dark bonus episode, Amy uncovers the bizarre and disturbing truth behind King Ferdinand VII of Spain’s infamously large and misshapen genitalia. From wedding night horror to dynastic disaster, discover how one monarch’s unusual anatomy may have helped trigger a civil war. Yes—sometimes history really is hard to believe.

Hollywood Forever: Haunted Legends, Celebrity Graves & Ghost Stories from L.A.’s Iconic Cemetery

Step beyond the velvet rope and into the shadows of Hollywood Forever Cemetery — one of Los Angeles' most infamous and haunted landmarks. In this episode of The Strange History Podcast, host Amy unearths the cemetery’s star-studded past, from the golden age of silent film to punk rock legends and present-day ghost sightings. Discover the true stories behind Rudolph Valentino’s mysterious Lady in Black, hear chilling personal accounts from groundskeepers and visitors, and explore how this once-forgotten graveyard became a living tribute to Tinseltown’s eternal residents. Packed with dark history, eerie folklore, and strange facts, this episode is your backstage pass to the afterlife in Hollywood.

Lily Dale New York: America’s Most Haunted Town of Mediums, Ghosts, and Spiritualism

Welcome to Lily Dale, New York — the small Victorian town where ghosts talk back, mediums are certified, and the spirit world has a summer home. In this episode of The Strange History Podcast, host Amy takes you deep into the origins of the Spiritualist movement, the founding of Lily Dale in 1879, and the true stories behind places like Inspiration Stump, the Leolyn Hotel, and the mystical Fairy Trail. Hear chilling personal accounts, meet spirits that never checked out, and explore how this lakeside village became the epicenter of American Spiritualism. Whether you’re a believer, a skeptic, or just here for the ghost stories, you won’t want to miss this strange slice of haunted history.

Bachelor’s Grove: Ghosts, Gangsters, and a Phantom House Party

Dive deep into the haunted heart of Illinois with Amy as she explores the spine-tingling true history of Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery. From ghostly ladies in white and vanishing houses to mobster murder ponds and paranormal photo bombs, this eerie episode of The Strange History Podcast uncovers every chilling corner of America’s most haunted graveyard.