Theater of the Mind
Can You Imagine That?
33 episodes · 1940 · Syndicated · Historical
Play Can You Imagine That? on Radio Days
Strange-but-true oddities dramatized in a few minutes each, hosted by Lindsay MacHarrie with Elvia Allman, first heard on KMPC in Los Angeles in 1940.
Sources: RadioGOLDINdex
Episodes
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1940
- Grog in 1740
Grog was named for a British admiral, a boy climbs thirty feet down a well to save a baby, and the songwriter behind "I'll Take You Home Again, Kathleen" meant every word. - Clam Chowder
Chowder isn't American but baseball is, and a famous popular song hides in an opera. - Bits of Bread (Napkins)
The ancient Greeks had no napkins, a man loses his job over mistaken identity, and the man who broke the bank at Monte Carlo was real. - Parliament Buildings
Parliament is searched regularly for hidden explosives, a German pays duty on goods he never got, and Scotland once banned golf. - Tin Can Tied to Dogs Tail
A tin can on a dog's tail nearly kills two people, a traveler recovers $10,000 just before sailing, and a car race is won at 15 miles an hour. - First Car of Funeral Train
Diplomats quarrel over who rides first on a funeral train, and a hit song is found by accident. - More Married Men
America has more married men than married women, four people are arrested over a penny's worth of pickles, and a son spanks his father. - A Girl Changes Her Mind
A girl changes her mind with her stockings, Denmark celebrates the Fourth of July, and a 2,000-year-old aqueduct still works. - 44 Year Old Quarrel
Two women end a 44-year quarrel, the death of Chung Ling Soo stays a mystery, and Westminster Abbey has mirrors on its seats. - Two Million an Hour
A man earns two million dollars an hour, two famous authors come to blows, and half a peck of oysters wins a seat by the fire. - Building Rises from the Sea
A building more than 500 years old rises from the sea, the story behind "millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute," and five tunes in one song. - Two Days on a Streetcar
An immigrant rides streetcars for two days straight, two kings bet on a wrestling match, and a forgotten ballad makes an operetta famous. - Boy Battles Eagle
A boy fights an eagle to the death, a beggar saves $10,000, and a manager gives his typists time to primp. - Sneezing for 21 Days
A girl sneezes for 21 days, a game leads to a massacre, and history repeats itself. - Stone Giant
A stone giant fools a nation, the superstition behind introductions, and a great piece of music written for a dog. - Number Two Is Unlucky
The number two is unluckier than thirteen, a parent's pride breaks a picket line, and the noise of machinery starts an industry. - Frightened Out of Speech
A young woman is frightened speechless, a curfew stops a revolution, and a mailman throws away 200 letters. - Chimp Language
A man writes a dictionary of chimpanzee talk, Cinderella's slipper wasn't glass, and a gold cross brings ruin. - Animals Field Day
Animals run wild in New Jersey, kisses pay off a $5,000 debt, and a song grows from a chance remark. - Two Billion Dollar Bet
Two men bet billions on a building, Scottish cows wear sweaters, and no one ever sees a live herring. - Funeral Fire
Bonfires began as funeral fires, a constable chasing a heifer is caught in a trap, and two famous women duel with their fingernails. - Explosion Heard Three Thousands Miles Away
An explosion is heard 3,000 miles away, a man is sentenced to hang himself, and another goes to jail for frying a steak. - Five Men Swindled
Two miners swindle five famous men, a man pays $3,000 for a few dollars' worth of brass, and the battle of Bunker Hill wasn't fought on Bunker Hill. - Not English
The world's most spoken language isn't English, a son's death brings back his mother's voice, and a hand leads the police astray. - Reward Nineteen Years Later
A good deed is rewarded nineteen years later, catching fireflies is a business, and many drivers miss head-on crashes by a second. - Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc waited more than 400 years to be made a saint, and a man gets rich buying worthless money. - Marriage Customs
Our wedding customs come from the ancients, a man falls 15,000 feet and lives, and a mocking song becomes the enemy's victory march. - His Brothers Father
A man becomes his brother's father, a jury hands down an impossible verdict, and a letter travels 50 miles an hour in 1755. - Babies and Weather
Babies sense the weather, $20,000 worth of radium is kicked around New York, and "It's a Long Way to Tipperary" wasn't a war song. - Detective Stories
Detective stories are 2,500 years old, Paganini's broken strings remain a mystery, and twins have the same accident a week apart. - Ape Saved Key Possession
An ape saves a British possession, a man invents a silent soup spoon, and "ambition" first meant politics. - Angel of Death
The Bible never calls Gabriel the Angel of Death, a president couldn't write until he was 19, and a New York song crosses the Atlantic twice before catching on. - Motion Pictures
Movies aren't made in Hollywood proper, bandits rob a bank with barbed wire, and Dolley Madison is honored on the House floor.