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- [00:00]
Lindsey Graham
There are more ways than ever to listen to History Daily ad free. Listen with Wondry plus in the Wondery app as a member of Noiser plus at noiser.com or in Apple Podcasts. Or you can get all of History Daily plus other fantastic history podcasts@intohristory.com It's July 4, 1862, on the River Thames near Oxford, England. 30 year old Professor Charles Dodgson pulls on the oars of a small rowboat. It's a glorious day and Charles doesn't have any classes to teach, so he's making the most of a summer afternoon. But he isn't alone. Sat with him in the boat are three daughters of a university colleague. As Charles guides the rowboat upriver, the girls lounge on the seats and watch the world go by. But the middle daughter, 10 year old Alice, is getting restless. She trails her fingers over the side of the boat before scooping a handful of water and splashing her older sisters. As the girls begin squabbling, the rowboat rocks alarmingly. Charles realizes that he needs to calm the kids, otherwise his leisurely afternoon is going to end in wet disaster. Suddenly, a blue streak shoots in front of the boat, catching the girl's attention. It's a bird, a kingfisher, disappearing into its nest near the bank. And that gives Charles an idea. With the girl stunned into silence by the blue bird, Charles resumes rowing. But this time he begins telling a story. As he works the oars, he improvises a tale of a girl tumbling into a hole, and Charles smiles at the precocious middle daughter as he reveals the name of the girl who falls into that fantastical world. Alice. This spur of the moment story leaves the three girls enthralled, and when Charles Dodgson drops them off at home that evening, Alice begs Charles to write the story down for her. Thanks to her pleading, Charles was set to work turning his whimsical improvisation into a proper manuscript. The tale will eventually be published under Charles pen name, Lewis Carroll, and become the classic of children's literature. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland But Alice's relationship with Charles will end soon after the story is published, and posthumous allegations will stain Charles reputation as a children's author, a career that began after a boat trip on the river Thames on July 4, 1862. History Daily is sponsored by a Truby. Lately you may have been hearing about a serious but rare heart condition called attr Cardiac Amyloidosis, or attrcm. Because symptoms can be similar to other heart conditions, it may take time to be diagnosed, but learning more about ATTRCM and a treatment called a truby, also called Acharamatis could be important for you or a loved one. Atruby is a prescription medicine used to treat adults with ATTRCM to reduce death and hospitalization due to heart issues. In one study, people taking a truby saw an impact on their health related quality of life and 50% fewer hospitalizations due to heart issues than people who didn't take a truby, giving you more chances to do what you love with who you love. Tell your doctor if you're pregnant, plan to become pregnant or are breastfeeding and about the medications you take. The most common side effects were mild and included diarrhea and abdominal pain. And if you have attrcm, talk to your cardiologist about attruby or visit attruby.com that's attruby.com to learn more Space meets.
- [03:32]
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- [04:17]
Lindsey Graham
From Noiser and Airship I'm Lindsey Graham and this is Daily History is made every day on this podcast. Every day we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world. Today is July 4, 1862. Lewis Carroll imagines Wonderland. It's March 1850 in Croft on Tees, a village in North Yorkshire, 12 years before Charles Dodgson's boat trip. 18 year old Charles enters his dining room, his hands behind his back and a smile on his face. The rest of the large Dodgson family are seated around the table. Charles Father, a parish priest, gestures impatiently for Charles to sit down so they can begin eating. But first, Charles has something to show them. He takes his hands from behind his back and places a small homemade book on the table. Flicking to the first page, Charles Father reads the handwritten title, the Rectory Magazine. A few weeks ago, Charles returned home from the boarding school where he spent three unhappy years. But now that he's come of age, Charles is looking forward to better things. In two months, he'll begin studying mathematics at Christchurch College, part of the University of Oxford. In the meantime, Charles is spending the long summer break writing short stories and poems. Charles has eight younger siblings and they all take turns reading Charles homemade book over dinner. The Rectory magazine is full of silly stories and colorful illustrations. Even Charles serious father can't help but smile at his son's satirical writing. But when Charles leaves for Christchurch College, his father reminds him that he needs to leave such frivolities aside from and pay attention to his studies. Over the next five years, Charles does almost exactly as his father asks. He excels at mathematics, impressing his tutors with his ability to solve complex problems. In 1852, he earns his degree and is invited to stay on at Oxford as a postgraduate student and teacher. But although Charles is a skilled mathematician, he is also easily distracted, especially by his true passion, writing. Despite his father's warning, after spending his days crunching numbers, Charles chooses to spend his evenings playing with letters. He continues writing short stories and poems like the ones he included in the Rectory magazine. But now Charles sends his latest creations off to local newspapers and in March 1856, Charles gets his first big break in the literary world. A national magazine offers to publish one of his poems. But since Charles reputation as a mathematician is growing, he doesn't want his academic work to be confused with the playful stories he writes for Leisure. The magazine editor has a solution. He tells Charles to use a pen name. So Charles offers a Short list of 4 names to use and the editor chooses the one he likes. Lewis Carroll. A few months after adopting this literary alias, Charles meets a family that will change his life. As the newly appointed dean of Christchurch College, Henry Little is effectively Charles boss. On the surface, the men seem very different. There's a 21 year age gap between them and Henry has five children while Charles is still a young bachelor. But despite all this, Charles and Henry quickly become close friends. And over the next few years, Charles often takes dinner with the Littles. And he's soon adopted as an honorary uncle by the Liddell children and joins the family on day trips around Oxford and on vacations to their second home in North Wales. When Charles becomes an early adopter of the new medium of photography, he takes the Little family on excursions to shoot the local landscapes and countryside. Usually, Charles rows upriver to a quiet spot with a picnic basket in the bottom of the boat. The children then spend a happy few hours running around in the fields while Charles messes about with his camera. And it's during one of These trips, on July 4, 1862, that Charles invents a story about a young girl called Alice who who stumbles into a fantasy world. The three little daughters are gripped by Charles improvised and absurd tale. He has Alice follow a white rabbit carrying a pocket watch. She meets a perpetually grinning Cheshire cat and escapes from a short tempered Queen of hearts. That evening, as Charles returns the children back to the care of their parents, the middle daughter Alice asks Charles if he'll write the story down for her. She wants to be able to read it again and again. Charles is touched and agrees. Soon Charles Dodgson will set to work on the promise he made to Alice. But after his story is finished and published, the strange tale of a girl lost underground will take on a life of its own and shatter the simple, scholarly one that Charles had built for himself in Oxford.
- [09:17]
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- [10:02]
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- [11:01]
Lindsey Graham
It'S October 19, 1863, in London, one year after Charles Dodgson improvised a story during a boat trip on the river Thames. Now 31 years old, Charles walks through busy streets, looking at a map to make his way. Although London is only 60 miles from Oxford, the bustling Capitol seems like a different world to the tranquil college courtyards Charles is more used to. With a final check of his bearings, Charles spots his destination and hurries to its door. There, a plaque declares that the building belongs to the publisher Alexander Macmillan. After promising Alice little that he'd write up his story for her, Charles found it more challenging than he expected. He was used to writing short stories and struggled to motivate himself to work on a full length novel. But several weeks ago, Charles finally sent his friend and author, George MacDonald an incomplete manuscript. It was titled Alice's Adventures Underground. Upon reading it, George was so impressed that he immediately forwarded the manuscript to his own publisher, Alexander Macmillan. Now Charles has traveled to London to negotiate a publishing deal. Taking a seat in Alexander's office, Charles waits anxiously for the publisher's verdict. Alexander explains that most children's books are educational texts. Even children's novels tend to be designed more to instruct than to entertain. But Alice's Adventures Underground goes against that trend. It's whimsical, silly even. But Alexander loves it for exactly that reason. At the end of their meeting, Charles shakes hands with Alexander and leaves with a promise that Macmillan will publish Alice's Adventures Underground when it's finished. This publishing deal helps motivate Charles to get down to work. But progress is still slow. Between his responsibilities at the university, he spends hours poring over his notes, editing the text and even rewriting entire chapters. Finally, though, he manages to finish the book a year after shaking hands with Alexander MacMillan and two years after he told Alice that he'd write the story. But at last, in November 1864, as promised, he presents Alice with a handwritten manuscript, complete with his own illustrations. Charles then sends another unillustrated copy of his book to Alexander in London. But that isn't the end of Charles involvement. Alexander soon discovers Charles is a difficult author to handle. Charles wants control over every aspect of the publishing process. He wants to choose the artist who will provide the illustrations. He wants to choose the typeface from the text. He even wants to choose the quality of paper. But despite all his meddling, when the first run of 2000 books comes off the press, Charles still isn't happy and demands a reprint. Alexander Macmillan is an experienced businessman, however, and knows when to stand up for himself. He agrees to the reprint, but insists on Charles paying for it. And that's not the only fight. Alexander wins with Charles. He also convinces Charles to change the book's title. It's Alexander who suggests something more befitting of the story, and thanks to his intervention, Alice's adventures underground becomes Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. But all the disputes and disagreements between publisher and author are worth it. When Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is published in November 1865, the book is an immediate hit. Reviewers rave over the innovative story, and the first 2,000 copies sell out within a month. A new edition is rushed out in time for Christmas, and even Queen Victoria reads it to her children. But Charles doesn't get the chance to celebrate his success with the girl who inspired his story. Soon after the publication of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Charles falls out with Henry Little and stops visiting the family. Although he and Henry eventually resume their friendship, they are never as close. Charles no longer joins the Littles on their excursions and and he never again takes the children out for day trips on the River Thames. Although he will rarely see the real Alice again, Charles will return to the fictional Alice in 1871 when he writes a sequel, through the Looking Glass. And in the years that follow, Charles will remain at Oxford, where he will write more short stories, two poetry collections, and another novel, all under the pen name that made him famous. Charles Dodgson will forever be better known as Lewis Carroll, but long after his death, his reputation will be tarnished when uncomfortable questions emerge about his relationship with the girl behind his iconic creation.
- [15:25]
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- [16:05]
Florence Baker Lennon
Series the Gilded Age is back, and.
- [16:08]
Lindsey Graham
So is the official companion podcast, and you keep curious about how they brought Gilded Age New York to life.
- [16:14]
Florence Baker Lennon
I don't understand. Which bit is not clear? None of it is clear. Want to know where the writers branched off from history? Well, when you set your mind on a thing, no one can stop you. I take that as a compliment.
- [16:27]
Lindsey Graham
Watch or listen to the official Gilded Age Podcast Wherever you find podcasts Foreign 65 years after the publication of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, 35 year old American journalist Florence Baker Lennon enters the living room of a townhouse with pen and paper in hand. For years Florence has been interested in the work of Lewis Carroll and she's come to London to interview someone who knew him personally. Now 82 year old Laurina Skeen, the eldest daughter of of Henry Little, Charles Dodgson, better known as Lewis Carroll, died more than 32 years ago at the age of 65. But his works have remained popular and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is still one of the world's best selling children's books. So today Florence is here to find out more about the man who wrote the story. She scribbles down notes as Lorena describes the beau trip on July 4, 1862, when Charles first made up a story to entertain her and her two younger sisters. Then Lorena drops a bombshell. She explains why her father broke off relations with Charles around the time that Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was published. According to Lorena's recollections, Henry thought that Charles had an unhealthy and inappropriate attraction to Lorena's sister Alice. Florence is shocked by the revelation, but she keeps it under her hat for another 15 years until her biography of Charles Dodgson is released in 1945. In her book, Florence repeats Lorena's accusations that Charles was attracted to Alice. She even suggests that Charles propose marriage when Alice was just 11 years old and that Henry Little responded by briefly ending his friendship with Charles. Other scholars soon cast doubt on Florence's findings, though the only evidence supporting these Allegations is a 30 minute interview with an elderly witness. The events happened more than 67 years years prior and everyone else who was involved has since died. A note from the time also implies that Henry Little fell out with Charles not because of his attraction to Alice, but because Charles was hoping to court the Little's daughter's governess. But with the publishing of Florence's book, the damage is done. Over the decades, others will repeat Florence's allegations and use Charles photographs of the little children as evidence, even though Charles's defenders point out there's no proof proved that Charles took some of the photographs used to smear him. Even to this day, literary scholars continue to debate the subject. But despite the rumors that plague its author, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland remains a classic of children's literature that's never once been out of print. Since it was published, it's been translated into 174 languages and adapted on screen and stage many times. A spectacular afterlife for a story that was conceived during a summer bow trip trip on the river Thames on July 4, 1862. Next on History Daily July 7, 2011. A phone hacking scandal forces the closure of Rupert Murdoch's long running News of the World from Noiser and Airship. This is History Daily. Hosted, edited and executive produced by me, Lindsey Graham Audio editing by Mohammed Shahzi Sound design by Gabriel Gould Music by Thrum this episode is written and researched by Scott Reeves. Edited by William Simpson Managing producer Emily Burr Executive producers are William Simpson for Airship and Pascal Hughes for Noiser.
- [20:16]
Florence Baker Lennon
Pop Quiz Jack which app started a war by accidentally erasing a border of Costa Rica? That would be Google Maps. Yes, engineers had to manually redraw the border to solve the conflict. Okay, how about this one man? Which iconic drink was actually hated by Starbucks until they acquired it? That would be Frappuccino. Yeah, Howard Schultz was was not into these frozen Franken coffees until it made him a billion dollars.
- [20:42]
Hellman's Advertiser
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- [20:42]
Florence Baker Lennon
The products you are most obsessed with have an origin story that never made it to the front page. And on our podcast, the Best Idea yet, we dig into those untold stories, the weird pitches, the Hail Marys and the project pivots that made them go viral. So if you're the kind of person who wants to know how the Ninja Turtles used a growth hack from stand up comedy or who really invented Costco Kirkland brand hint it involves an airplane struck by lightning, then follow the Best Idea yet on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. And you can listen to the Best Idea yet early and ad free right now by joining Wondery Plus.