The House Red
History is stranger than fiction---and we're here to prove it. Welcome to The House Red, the podcast where we uncork the wildest, weirdest, and most unbelievable true stories from history. From bizarre plagues to daring heists, twisted scandals to forgotten legends, we dive into the past's juiciest tales with a twist of dark humor and a splash of intrigue. So pour yourself a glass and get ready---because history has never been this intoxicating.
Episodes
39 episodes
Julianne Koepcke: Surviving the Amazon
At 17, Julianne Koepcke fell from a plane into the Amazon—and survived. Alone and injured, she spent 11 days fighting her way through the jungle in one of the most unbelievable survival stories ever told.
•
Season 1
•
Episode 39
•
32:41
The Great A-Flock-Alypse: 7 Days of Death
For one strange week in 2010, something bizarre seemed to be happening around the world. Birds fell from the sky, thousands of fish washed ashore, and animals began dying in sudden, unexplained events. Was it coincidence, natural ...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 38
•
38:33
Shock and Awe: The Story of Topsy
In 1903, thousands gathered at Coney Island for a spectacle unlike any other. At the center of it all was Topsy, a circus elephant with a troubled past—and a grim fate. In an era obsessed with electricity, showmen turned he...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 37
•
44:08
Phineas Gage: A Mind-Blowing Experience
He lost part of his brain but stayed awake. In this episode, we tell the unbelievable true story of Phineas Gage—the man who survived the ultimate workplace accident—and how the iron that should’ve killed him instead reshape...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 36
•
34:27
King Zog I: Bullets, Blood Feuds, and a Self-Crowned King
King Zog I of Albania survived assassination attempts, coups, exile, and international pressure to crown himself king in one of Europe’s most unstable regions. This episode follows Zog’s entire life—from his rise as a...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 35
•
25:45
Linda Hazzard: The Hunger Cure
In the early 1900s, self-proclaimed healer Linda Hazzard promised miraculous cures through one simple method: starvation. Branding herself as a medical authority, she convinced wealthy patients that extreme fasting could cle...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 34
•
27:18
Birds of War: Pigeon Guided Missiles
Long before AI and smart weapons, the U.S. government explored a very different guidance system: pigeons. Project Pigeon was a real, classified attempt to train birds to steer missiles using behavioral science. In th...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 33
•
36:37
Neglected Waters: The Marie Joseph Story
A summer afternoon, a public pool, and a mystery that went unnoticed far too long. In this episode of The House Red, we follow the quiet disappearance of Marie Joseph—and the unsettling questions that rose to the surf...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 32
•
28:38
The New England Vampire Panic: Fear, Folklore, and the Vampire Next Door
New England once had a full-on vampire panic — and no, it wasn’t sparked by a moody novelist or a fog machine gone rogue. In this episode of The House Red, we dig up (literally) the bizarre 19th-century hysteria that ...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 31
•
32:44
Miracle at Noon: The Day the Sun Danced
On October 13th, 1917, tens of thousands gathered in Fátima expecting a miracle — and many swore they got one. Witnesses reported the sun spinning, plunging, dancing, and defying every law of physics. Was it divine intervention? Mass hysteria? ...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 30
•
30:28
Chaos in Karansebes: The Austrian Army Debacle
When an army mistakes itself for the enemy, things get weird fast. In this episode, we dive into the legendary 1788 Austrian Army debacle at Karansebes—an epic cascade of misunderstandings, booze-fueled panic, flying passwords, and...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 29
•
35:54
Death on Display: The Paris Morgue
In 19th-century Paris, death became a public spectacle. The city’s morgue drew massive crowds—not for mourning, but for curiosity. Behind glass walls, the unclaimed dead were displayed like exhibits, turning tragedy into ent...
•
Season 1
•
27:55
Tsutomu Yamaguchi: The Atomic Man
In August 1945, two cities burned under the blinding light of atomic fire. Most who saw it never lived to tell the tale. But one man—Tsutomu Yamaguchi—witnessed both Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and somehow survived th...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 27
•
27:13
Ken Rex McElroy: The Skidmore Bully
Ken Rex McElroy terrorized the small town of Skidmore, Missouri for decades—bullying neighbors, dodging the law, and walking free from dozens of charges. But in 1981, the town had enough. In broad daylight, surrounded by dozens of ...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 26
•
28:28
Napoleon's Bunny Brigade
In 1807, Napoleon Bonaparte prepared for a grand hunting party—only to be ambushed by an unexpected army. But instead of soldiers, it was rabbits. Lots of rabbits. In this episode of The House Red, we dive into the bizarre day whe...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 25
•
35:59
Griselda Blanco: Cocaine's Godmother
Before Pablo Escobar, there was Griselda Blanco — the ruthless "Godmother of Cocaine." From Medellín to Miami, she built a billion-dollar empire on blood, betrayal, and fear. In this episode, we uncover how a poor girl from Colombia became one ...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 24
•
36:22
Project Acoustic Kitty: Whiskers, Wires, and Espionage
During the Cold War, the CIA poured millions into one of the strangest espionage schemes in history: turning a housesat into a living spy device. Dubbed Project Acoustic Kitty, it was part science experiment and part absurdity. &nb...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 23
•
31:16
Elisa Lam: Drifting in the Cecil
In 2013, hotel guests in downtown Los Angeles complained of strange-tasting water. Days later, the body of 21-year-old traveler Elisa Lam was discovered in the rooftop tank of the notorious Cecil Hotel. In this episode of The...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 22
•
58:05
Ghost Years: The Phantom Time Hypothesis
What is everything you know about the year is off--by centuries? in this episode of The House Red, we dive into the bizarre and controversial Phantom Time Hypothesis, a theory that claims nearly 300 years of history never hap...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 21
•
48:23
Chilling Cargo: The S.S. Ourang Medan
In 1947, a mysterious distress call echoed across the Strait of Malacca: "All officers, including captain, are dead...lying in chartroom and bridge. Possibly whole crew dead." Minutes later: "I die." When rescuers boarded SS Ourang...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 20
•
33:16
Tarrare: Digesting The Legend
Meet Tarrare, an 18th-century Frenchman whose hunger knew no limits—literally. He ate corks, live animals, and even, allegedly, human flesh. In this episode of The House Red, we dig into the bizarre, unsettling, and tragi...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 19
•
30:58
Built to Bewilder: The Winchester Mystery House
"Built to Bewilder" takes you inside the twisting halls and dead-end staircases of the Winchester Mystery House. Was it a grieving widow's obsession, a master plan to confuse vengeful spirits, or something stranger still? &n...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 18
•
29:55
The Cadaver Synod: The Dead Man on the Stand
In one of the most macabre moments in papal history, a long-dead pope was dug up, dressed in full vestments, and put on trial by his successor. In this episode we investigate and dive into the twisted tale of the Cada...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 17
•
35:19
Jane Toppan: Angel of Death
Jane Toppan was the picture of a devoted nurse-until her patients started dying in droves. But this wasn't incompetence. It was murder. Lots of it. In this episode of The House Red, we dive into the twisted mind of "Jolly Ja...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 16
•
35:38
Delivering Dollars: The Great Stork Derby
In the heart of the Great Depression, a bizarre competition unfolded. A race not of speed or strength, but of childbirth. Fueled by the eccentric will of a wealthy bachelor, the Great Stork Derby turned Toronto into a baby making ...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 15
•
34:23