Frederick II was celebrated as a "renaissance man" who championed education and the arts. But his conflicts with the Pope would lead to multiple excommunications. Actor and historian Peter Weller (RoboCop, author of Leon Battista Alberti in Exile) joins the show to discuss his complicated legacy.

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When Martha Ray was 18, she met the Earl of Sandwich. The married Earl took Martha as his mistress, and they spent years living together as husband and wife. But their arrangement wasn't without friction, and in the end, their story would be a tragedy neither could have imagined.

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When Baron von Steuben arrived at Valley Forge, he was met with a dismal sight. The soldiers were starving, undisciplined, and freezing. The Baron had a daunting task ahead of him: give them a fighting chance against the British.

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Virginia Woolf compared her to a giant cucumber plant. Had she read that, Margaret Cavendish might have thought it a compliment.

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Eighty years ago this summer, a young John F. Kennedy took a job as a journalist for Hearst newspapers, filing dispatches in the final days of World War II. Even the most seasoned JFK scholars often overlook this chapter.

Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Fred Logevall and legendary director Rob Reiner join Dana Schwartz to explore the forgotten summer that helped shape Kennedy's worldview.

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If you liked this episode, check out the Very Special Episodes feed for more!

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Check out Fred Logevall's excellent book: JFK: Coming of Age in the American Century.

Listen to Who Killed JFK? from Rob Reiner and Soledad O'Brien wherever you get your podcasts. And go see Spinal Tap II: The End Continues in theaters this September!

And thanks to our JFK voice actor, Tom Antonellis, for nailing another role.

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Hosted by Dana Schwartz, Zaron Burnett, and Jason English
Written by Joe Pompeo
Produced by Josh Fisher
Editing and Sound Design by Jonathan Washington and Josh Fisher
Additional Editing by Mary Dooe
Mixing and Mastering by Josh Fisher
Research and Fact-Checking by Joe Pompeo and Austin Thompson
Original Music by Elise McCoy
Show Logo by Lucy Quintanilla
Executive Producer is Jason English

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In 'A Room of One's Own,' Virginia Woolf writes of Margaret Cavendish's reputation: "Evidentally the crazy Duchess became a bogey to frighten clever girls with." Dismisses as mad in her own time, and untalented later, Cavendish remains something of an enigma, a strange proto-feminist, proto-science fiction writer who remained entirely untamed.

Support Noble Blood:

— Bonus episodes, stickers, and scripts on Patreon
— Order Dana's book, 'Anatomy: A Love Story' and its sequel 'Immortality: A Love Story'

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King Arthur is arguably the most famous monarch in British history, the subject of countless films and books of both non-fiction and fantasy. But there's one tiny, but important question worth asking: did he even exist?

Support Noble Blood:

— Bonus episodes, stickers, and scripts on Patreon
— Order Dana's book, 'Anatomy: A Love Story' and its sequel 'Immortality: A Love Story'

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