When It’s a Wonderful Life was first released, it wasn’t a box office hit, but it did draw the attention of the FBI and its investigation into the Communist Infiltration of the Motion Picture Industry (COMPIC). The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) didn’t end up doing anything with the FBI’s allegations of subversion in the film, but the pressure of investigations like this led to a shift in Christmas films over the next 15 years away from stories of social problems to more lighthearted romances and musicals. Joining me in this episode is Dr. Vaughn Joy, author of Selling Out Santa: Hollywood Christmas Films in the Age of McCarthy. Dr. Joy’s public scholarship website with her husband, Dr. Ben Railton, is Black and White and Read All Over.

Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag, composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is "Carol of the Bells," composed by Mykola Leontovych and performed by the Concert Band of the United States Air Force Band of the Rockies; the performance is in the public domain and available via Wikimedia Commons. The episode image is a still from It’s a Wonderful Life, which is in the public domain.

Films Discussed:

• It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
• Susan Slept Here (1954)
• Babes in Toyland (1961)

Additional Sources:

• “Breaking Hollywood's 'Pattern of Sameness'; That is the task the independent producers have set themselves, says Frank Capra, who is one of them.” by Frank Capra, The New York Times, May 5, 1946.
• “The Truman Doctrine, 1947,” U.S. Department of State Office of the Historian.
• “House Un-American Activities Committee,” Harry S. Truman Library & Museum.
• “Screen Guide for Americans,” by Ayn Rand, the Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals, 1947.
• “FBI File on Communist Infiltration- Motion Picture Industry (COMPIC),” via archive.org.
• “When 'It's a Wonderful Life' Came Under FBI Scrutiny,” by Christopher Klein, History.com, December 11, 2025.
• “How ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ Went From Box Office Dud to Accidental Christmas Tradition,” by Jay Serafino, Mental Floss, December 6, 2024.

Americans love their coffee; according to the Fall 2025 National Coffee Data Trends Report, 66% of adult Americans drink coffee every day, averaging three cups per day. This devotion to the caffeinated beverage is nothing new. Even before Bostonians dumped over 90,000 pounds of tea in the harbor, Americans were sipping cups of joe. George and Martha Washington served tea at the President’s House in New York, and after he stepped down as president, George Washington even tried growing coffee trees at Mount Vernon. Joining me in this episode is Dr. Michelle Craig McDonald, Director of the Library & Museum at the American Philosophical Society, and author of Coffee Nation: How One Commodity Transformed the Early United States.

Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag, composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is “Coffee in the Morning and Kisses in the Night,” by Gus Arnheim, 1934, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The episode image is of a coffee pot, made by Robert and William Peaston and accompanying sugar bowl, creampot, and tongs, made by Myer Myers; the items were owned by Dorothy Remsen, who married Abraham Brinckerhoff of New York in 1772. The coffee set is on view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 704; and the image is available as part of the Met's Open Access policy.

Additional Sources:

• “Coffee’s Creation Myth: How Coffee Conquered the World,” by Blake Stilwell, Coffee or Die Magazine, April 16, 2022.
• “The Boston Tea Party at 250: History steeped in myth,” by Gabrielle Emanuel, WBUR, December 14, 2024.
• “Coffee and the White House,” by Tianna Mobley, The White House Historical Association, May 2, 2022.
• “Coffee,” George Washington’s Mount Vernon.
• “Coffee: World Markets and Trade,” by United States Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service, December 2024.
• “Poll reveals America’s coffee consumption habits,” by Georgia Smith, Global Coffee Report, September 11, 2025.

Global rum sales are expected to reach nearly $28 billion USD by the year 2033, making it one of the ten most popular alcoholic beverages in the world. In this episode we look at the early history of rum, how its invention and production were intertwined with the transatlantic slave trade, and how abolitionists tried to find free-labor sources of the popular liquor. Joining me in this episode is Dr. Jordan B. Smith, Associate Professor of History at Widener University, and author of The Invention of Rum: Creating the Quintessential Atlantic Commodity (use code PENN-JSMITH30 at Penn Press for 30% off).

Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag, composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is “Fun Island,” by Geoff Harvey - Pixabay; used under the Pixabay Content License. The episode image is “Barrels of Rum,” by MAClarke21, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Additional Sources:

• “How Authentic Caribbean Rum Is Made [video],” West Indies Rum and Spirits Producers' Association (WIRSPA), YouTube, May 16, 2014.
• “About Barbados: History Of Barbados,” Barbados, org.
• “The History of Jamaica,” Jamaica Information Service.
• “Historical Context: Facts about the Slave Trade and Slavery,” by Steven Mintz, The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.
• “Top 10 best-selling rum Brand Champions 2025,” by Lauren Bowes, The Spirits Business, July 1, 2025.
• “Global Rum Market Size, Share, Growth, and Regional Forecast, 2025 – 2032,” Persistence Market Research, June 20, 2025.
• “20 Countries that Export the Most Rum in the World,” by Sultan Khalid, Insider Monkey via Yahoo Finance, March 18, 2024.

Donate to Recovery Efforts in Jamaica:

• Jamaican Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM)
• World Central Kitchen
• Project Hope
• One Love Brigade

New Orleans is known for its unique cuisine that blends and highlights the many cultural roots of the city and its residents. The history of food distribution in New Orleans is just as unique within the American landscape, relying heavily on public food systems, both street vendors and municipally-run public markets. Joining me in this episode is Dr. Ashley Rose Young, a curator and public historian who serves as the American History Curator in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division at the Library of Congress and is a Smithsonian Research Associate. Her book, Nourishing Networks: The Public Culture of Food in New Orleans has just been published.

Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag, composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is “On my way to New Orleans,” composed by Albert Von Tilzer with lyrics by Ballard MacDonald; this performance was sung by George O’Connor on February 10, 1915, in New York, and is in the public domain and available via the Library of Congress National Jukebox. The episode image is: “French Market, New Orleans, La.,” Detroit Publishing Company, 1910; there are no known restrictions on publication, and the image is accessible via the Library of Congress.

Additional sources:

• “New Orleans History 101: A beginner’s guide to understanding the Crescent City,” by Historic New Orleans Collection Visitor Services Staff, January 21, 2022.
• “Timeline: New Orleans,” PBS American Experience.
• “New Orleans Then and Now: The French Market,” by Ellen Terrell, Library of Congress Blog, July 12, 2018.
• “The Native Roots of the French Market,”by Kalie Rhodes, New Orleans Historical: A project by The Midlo Center for New Orleans Studies at the University of New Orleans, February 11, 2021.
• “200 Years of Commerce, Community & Culture,” French Market District.
• “New Orleans Street Vendors: A long history of African American entrepreneurship,” by Zella Palmer, 64 Parishes, December 1, 2019.

In 1912, wealthy Savannahian Juliette Gordon Low supposedly called her cousin and exclaimed: “Come right over! I’ve got something for the girls of Savannah, for all of America, and for the world.” That something would become the Girl Scouts of the USA, an organization that throughout its history struggled to fulfill its initial promise of inclusion for all girls while trying to maintain an apolitical stance with deference to local councils. Joining me in this episode is Dr. Amy Farrell, the James Hopes Caldwell Memorial Chair and Professor of American Studies and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Dickinson College and author of Intrepid Girls: The Complicated History of the Girl Scouts of the USA.

Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag, composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is “By the campfire,” composed by Percy Wenrich with lyrics by Mabel Elizabeth Girling; the performance by the Sterling Trio on February 18, 1919, in New York, is available via the Library of Congress National Jukebox and is in the public domain. The episode image is “Girl Scouts, circa 1940s,” taken at Camp Long; Item 31422, Ben Evans Recreation Program Collection (Record Series 5801-02), Seattle Municipal Archives; used under CC BY 2.0.

Additional sources:

• “Practical Patriotism: Camp Fire Girls, Girl Scouts, and Americanization,” by Leslie Hahner, Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies, 5(2), 2008, 113–134. https://doi.org/10.1080/14791420801989702.
• “New Quarter Honors Juliette Gordon Low, Founder of Girl Scouts,” by By Shannon Browning-Mullis, Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum, March 20, 2025.
• “Early Girl Scouting,” Georgia Historical Society.
• “Girl Scouts Through the Years,” Women’s History and Cultural Center.
• “100 years of Girl Scouts: part I,” by Adam Frost, Smithsonian Institute, May 30, 2012
• “Quick History: Juliette Gordon Low [video],” Northeast Georgia History Center, March 13, 2020.
• “Golden Eaglet: The Story of a Girl Scout [video],” Girl Scouts USA, 1919.
• “From 18 girls in Savannah to a global movement to make a difference,” Girl Scouts USA.
• “Girl Scout Cookie History,” Girl Scouts USA.

Zoe Anderson Norris, known to her friends in the Ragged Edge Klub as the Queen of Bohemia, was born in Kentucky in 1860, moved to Wichita, Kansas, with her first husband, and then to New York City, where she forged a career for herself as a journalist and novelist, eventually launching her own magazine, The East Side. In The East Side and in her journalism, she often focused on the lives of immigrants and the poor. Joining me in this episode is Eve M. Kahn, author of Queen of Bohemia Predicts Own Death: Gilded-Age Journalist Zoe Anderson Norris.

Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag, composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is “Come to the land of Bohemia,” composed by George Evans, with lyrics by Ren Shields; this performance by Hatvey Hindermyer was recorded on April 30, 1908, in New York, and is in the public domain and available via the Library of Congress National Jukebox. The episode image is of Zoe Anderson Norris from 1909, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Additional Sources:

• “To Fight for the Poor With My Pen: Zoe Anderson Norris, Queen of Bohemia,” Grolier Club Online Exhibitions.
• “Zoe Anderson Norris,” by W.J. Lampton, New York Times, February 27, 1914.
• “Zoe A. Norris,” Kentucky in American Letters, 1784-1912,” by John Wilson Townsend, Cedar Rapids, IA: Torch Press, 1913.

Dr. Marguerite Phillips Dorsey Cartwright, born May 17, 1910, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, was a journalist, sociologist, educator, and actress, who served as a correspondent for the United Nations, attended and wrote about both the Bandung Conference and the All-African People's Conference, and was appointed to the Provisional Council of the University of Nigeria, where she became one of five trustees. Joining me in this episode to discuss both Marguerite Cartwright and Black women’s leadership in the fight for human rights is Dr. Keisha N. Blain, Professor of History and Africana Studies at Brown University and author of Without Fear: Black Women and the Making of Human Rights.

Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag, composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode audio is “Down South blues,” written by Fletcher Henderson, Alberta Hunter, and Ethel Waters, and performed by The Virginians, in New York City, on September 25, 1923; the audio is available via the Library of Congress National Jukebox and is in the public domain. The episode image is “Portrait of Marguerite Cartwright wearing a dashiki, undated,” by John Schiff; the photograph is courtesy Leo Baeck Institute and is used under fair use guidelines.

Additional Sources:

• “Marguerite Cartwright and African-American Internationalism [video],” Society of Southwest Archivists, August 13, 2021.
• “M. P. CARTWRIGHT,” The New York Times, May 9, 1986, Section D, Page 22.
• “Introducing Marguerite Cartwright,” Amistad Research Center.
• “Cartwright, Marguerite, 1910-1986,” Biographical Note, Marguerite Cartwright papers, Amistad Research Center.
• “Bandung Conference (Asian-African Conference), 1955,” Office of the Historian, United States Department of State.
• “AAPC Background,” Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana.

The feminist anti-rape movement began in the late 1960s at the height of women’s liberation. As rape crisis centers relied on federal grants aimed at prosecution of those committing sexual violence, feminists worried about the conservatizing influence of those funds, and Black women in particular were not well-served by the developing model. Black women activists found their own methods to combat rape and to care for survivors. Joining me in this episode is Dr. Caitlin Reed Wiesner, Assistant Professor of History at Mercy University in Dobbs Ferry, New York, and author of Between the Street and the State: Black Women's Anti-Rape Activism Amid the War on Crime.

Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag, composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is “Emotional Piano Music,” by Mikhail Smusev, used under the Pixabay Content License. The episode image is “Black Women Matter,” taken on September 30, 2017, at the March for Racial Justice by Miki Jourdan; the image is available on Flickr and is available for use, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

Additional Sources:

• “Feminism: The Second Wave,” National Women’s History Museum, June 18, 2020.
• “How Ronald Reagan Tried to Shrink Government Spending,” by Christopher Klein, History.com, Published: November 21, 2024, and Last Updated: May 28, 2025.
• “A brief history of the Victims of Crime Act,” by Blair Ames, U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs, October 11. 2024.
• “The 2022 Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Reauthorization,” Congress.gov.
• “What are Rape Crisis Centers and how have they changed over the years?” National Sexual Violence Resource Center, September 15, 2021.
• Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN).