Sidedoor
More than 154 million treasures fill the Smithsonian’s vaults. But where the public’s view ends, Sidedoor begins. With the help of biologists, artists, historians, archaeologists, zookeepers and astrophysicists, host Lizzie Peabody sneaks listeners through the Smithsonian’s side door, telling stories that can’t be heard anywhere else. Check out si.edu/sidedoor and follow @SidedoorPod for more info.
- Update frequency
- every 13 days
- Average duration
- 26 minutes
- Episodes
- 230
- Years Active
- 2016 - 2025
Building a Movement
America has a long history of clustering heavy industry and toxic facilities in communities where people of color live. But in the 1980s, a series of events sparked a movement to fight back against t…
00:30:18 |
Wed 21 Jun 2023
Recording the World
In 1948, Moses Asch set out with an ambitious project: to document the world’s sounds! 75 years later, that project has grown into one of the world’s most eclectic, iconic and LARGEST repositories of…
00:36:21 |
Wed 07 Jun 2023
The Funk List
Women have long fueled America's greatest scientific achievements. But when you go searching for information about these women scientists, you'll likely come up short. Only 19% of articles on Wikiped…
00:27:43 |
Wed 24 May 2023
Get Off My Lawn
Nowhere in the world are lawns as revered as they are in the United States. The picture-perfect patch of grass is so deeply rooted in the American psyche it feels more like a default setting than a c…
00:29:52 |
Wed 10 May 2023
Bill Nye the Sidedoor Guy
As a kid, Bill Nye spent whole days wandering the halls of Smithsonian museums. Now the Science Guy is back… to find his own blue lab coat and periodic table bowtie on display at the National Museum …
00:26:12 |
Wed 26 Apr 2023
Space Marathon
Until the 1970s, women were barred from competing in U.S. marathons because of the belief that the "violent movements" would wreak havoc on their reproductive system, "thus defeating a woman’s true p…
00:33:01 |
Wed 12 Apr 2023
Monsoon Mood
We think of paintings as art, but can they also be a source of data? 300 years ago, a young prince inherited the throne in Udaipur, India, and brought with him some newfangled ideas about art. His co…
00:29:18 |
Wed 29 Mar 2023
Lights Out
Most people in North America can't see the Milky Way. The reason? We're ensconced in a luminous fog of artificial lighting 24/7. The evolution of lighting technology over the last century has made it…
00:30:47 |
Wed 15 Mar 2023
The Phantom Violins
When Sidedoor listener Cliff Hall bought a used violin, he found a tattered note tucked alongside the century-old instrument. Obsessed with this cryptic piece of paper, Cliff’s quest to find the owne…
00:35:32 |
Wed 01 Mar 2023
It’s Season Nine!
Sidedoor returns for its ninth season on Wednesday, March 1st!
00:01:40 |
Wed 22 Feb 2023
Love Letters
They bring out the voyeur in us. And the Smithsonian’s Archives of American Art is full of them. In three short letters, we offer a glimpse of tender moments in the complex lives of others.
Guests:…
00:13:41 |
Thu 09 Feb 2023
The Cabbage Patch Kids Riots
In 1983, the Cabbage Patch Kids were released, causing widespread pandemonium in toy stores and in the media. How did a children's toy inspire such bad adult behavior? Slate’s Decoder Ring podcast ex…
00:34:30 |
Wed 25 Jan 2023
King's Speech
This MLK Day we're digging into the story behind Dr. King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech —from its first draft to a rhyming poem and, finally, to the speech we all know today.
This episode was pr…
00:36:11 |
Wed 11 Jan 2023
The Monumental Imagination of Augusta Savage
Public monuments to honor Black Americans in the 1930s: that was the vision of Augusta Savage, a Harlem Renaissance sculptor who has been called one of the most influential artists of the 21st centur…
00:27:39 |
Wed 28 Dec 2022
A Very Merry Sidedoor
What is it about a mistletoe that says “smooch?” And what the heck is figgy pudding anyway? The holidays are here again, and with them come songs, foods, and rituals so familiar we may not think to a…
00:38:16 |
Wed 14 Dec 2022
Lucy Hicks Anderson
Known for her smashing parties, lighter-than-air souffles and comedic wit, Lucy Hicks Anderson never let anyone tell her how to live her life – not even the courts. When her gender was put on trial i…
00:26:30 |
Wed 30 Nov 2022
Reservation Math: Navigating Love in Native America
If you’ve heard the phrase, “full blooded,” you’re already familiar with the concept of blood quantum. But Native Americans are the only peoples in the United States whose identity is defined by it. …
00:33:41 |
Wed 16 Nov 2022
Wronging the Wrights
It took pride, deceit, and a giant catapult to set off the feud between the Wright brothers and the Smithsonian. On December 17, 1903, the Wrights made history when they flew across a blustery beach …
00:34:59 |
Wed 02 Nov 2022
Who Built the White House?
"I wake up every morning in a house built by slaves." After Michelle Obama said those words at the 2016 Democratic National Convention, thousands of Americans flooded the White House Historical Assoc…
00:24:42 |
Wed 19 Oct 2022
Spooked at the Smithsonian
The Smithsonian Institution was founded on principles of reason and scientific inquiry. So why is the museum home to countless tales of unexplained phenomena and —dare we say — ghost sightings? Inspi…
00:37:20 |
Wed 05 Oct 2022
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