Season Zero Episode Zero

Summary

The Duncan & Coe History Show: Season Zero Episode Zero – Detailed Summary

Release Date: October 30, 2024

In the inaugural episode of The Duncan & Coe History Show, hosts Mike Duncan and Alexis Coe delve into the origins of their long-anticipated podcast, sharing personal narratives, the challenges they faced, and their vision for the future of the show. This comprehensive summary encapsulates the key discussions, insights, and conclusions presented in the episode.

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1. Introduction and Announcement Delays (00:00 - 01:45)

The episode opens with Mike and Alexis expressing their excitement about finally launching the show after a two-year hiatus since its announcement.

• Mike Duncan begins, “Hello and welcome to the Duncan and Company Show. I'm Mike Duncan.” (00:00)
• Alexis Coe responds, “I'm Alexis Ko. And this is our show. Finally.” (00:04)

The hosts reflect on their continuous discussions about starting the podcast, despite unforeseen personal challenges.

• Mike Duncan states, “I announced that we were doing this at the end of Revolutions, which was in December of 2022... we had been talking about this constantly.” (00:12)
• Alexis Coe adds, “We never stopped talking about it.” (00:22)

They reveal that the primary obstacle was simultaneous personal upheavals—both going through divorces—which significantly delayed the podcast’s launch.

• Alexis Coe shares, “The thing was that I was getting a divorce... devastating and really time-consuming.” (01:17)
• Mike Duncan concurs, “I was getting a divorce... which was very difficult.” (01:23)

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2. Overcoming Personal Challenges and Reigniting the Project (01:45 - 03:39)

After a prolonged hiatus, both Mike and Alexis independently reached a pivotal moment to recommit to the podcast.

• Mike Duncan recounts, “I was just like, you know what? We hadn't talked about it for a little bit... we should get back together and start working on the show.” (01:51)
• Alexis Coe echoes this sentiment, stating she was simultaneously thinking the same thing while at a D.C. airport, leading to a serendipitous reconnection. (02:07)

They describe this coincidence as a “banana story,” emphasizing the serendipitous nature of their mutual decision to revive the podcast.

• Mike Duncan remarks, “This is a banana story. This is true. We're not making this up.” (02:20)
• Alexis Coe adds humorously, “I didn't even... so I just called you and we talked about how ridiculous that was.” (02:34)

Determined to move forward, they navigate the practicalities of launching the show under their new circumstances, highlighting the absence of traditional production resources.

• Alexis Coe confesses apprehension, “It is extremely frightening to me that this is the first time I have made a podcast without a team of, like, Peabody winners behind me.” (02:49)
• Mike Duncan acknowledges the learning curve, “I've never done an unscripted show like this before.” (03:04)

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3. Launching Season Zero: Format and Content (03:39 - 04:31)

With their renewed commitment, Mike and Alexis unveil Season Zero of their show, characterized by informal, unscripted conversations.

• Alexis Coe announces, “We have been recording ever since the spring. We've been putting episodes in the can and calling it Season 0 of the Duncan & Company History Show.” (03:29)
• Mike Duncan explains the release strategy, “We're going to start dropping episodes, but not necessarily in the order that we recorded them.” (03:34)

Season Zero features "formative episodes," where the hosts interview each other about their careers and delve into various historical topics beyond their previous specializations.

• Alexis Coe describes the content, “Because we were used to talking about Washington and Lafayette, but now we talk about everything to do with history.” (04:08)
• Mike Duncan summarizes the show’s direction, “Anything that has to do with the intersection of history and culture is going to be fair game for the Duncan and Company show.” (04:21)

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4. Future Plans and Community Building (04:31 - 05:25)

Looking ahead, Mike and Alexis outline their aspirations to expand the podcast’s reach and engage more deeply with their audience.

• Alexis Coe mentions, “We also want to grow this out. And especially we hope to do live shows like joint events together.” (04:49)
• Mike Duncan highlights the importance of building a community, “...hope to build a little history community here between the two of us and between all of you listening out there.” (05:10)

They also introduce their Patreon account, promising exclusive bonus content, including a humorous episode about a recent black-tie dinner where Mike gets playfully roasted by Alexis.

• Alexis Coe teases, “...a black tie dinner we went to recently.” (04:49)
• Mike Duncan humorously warns, “If you subscribe to the Patreon and hear this, it will be me getting roasted by Alexis for some things.” (04:53)

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5. Conclusion and Episode Schedule (05:25 - 05:34)

The hosts wrap up the episode by reiterating the release schedule, assuring listeners of fresh content every Wednesday.

• Alexis Coe concludes, “...season zero of the Duncan and Company show, which is available now and you can expect new episodes every Wednesday.” (05:15)
• Mike Duncan adds, “Yep, new episodes every Wednesday, which means next Wednesday, too. So we will see you then.” (05:25)

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Key Takeaways and Insights

• Personal Resilience: The hosts’ transparency about their personal struggles highlights the human side of podcast creation, emphasizing resilience and the importance of timing.

• Organic Growth: Choosing to launch without a traditional production team underscores a commitment to authenticity and organic content development.

• Community Engagement: The emphasis on live shows and Patreon-exclusive content reflects a strategy to build a dedicated listener community and offer value beyond standard episodes.

• Diverse Content Focus: By broadening their historical discussions, Mike and Alexis aim to appeal to a wider audience interested in various intersections of history and culture.

Notable Quotes

• Mike Duncan: “This is a banana story. This is true. We're not making this up.” (02:20)

• Alexis Coe: “I did not like it.” (01:52)

• Alexis Coe: “We never stopped talking about it.” (00:22)

Conclusion

Season Zero Episode Zero serves as a heartfelt and candid introduction to The Duncan & Coe History Show, laying a strong foundation for future episodes. Mike Duncan and Alexis Coe successfully convey their passion for history, their commitment to overcoming personal hurdles, and their vision for creating an engaging and dynamic podcast. Listeners can anticipate a blend of insightful discussions, personal anecdotes, and a genuine exploration of historical topics in the episodes to come.

Transcript

[A]

Hello and welcome to the Duncan and Company Show. I'm Mike Duncan.

[B]

I'm Alexis Ko. And this is our show. Finally.

[A]

Finally.

[B]

It's been two eventful years since we announced the show.

[A]

I announced that we were doing this at the end of Revolutions, which was in December of 2022, an announcement that I made very confidently because we had been talking about this constantly.

[B]

We never stopped talking about it.

[A]

And that's the thing that never changed. We've always loved talking about history together, far beyond just history books.

[B]

The original conceit of the show, the whole reason we're doing this.

[A]

And so we've been talking about it nonstop.

[B]

But in all that time that we were talking about it, we weren't talking about the thing that was getting in the way of us actually doing it, of just putting dates on the calendar and recording, right?

[A]

Because a very big thing was happening.

[B]

In my life, and a very big thing was happening in my life, and.

[A]

They were the same thing, actually on the same timeline, which we never discussed. We were not discussing it.

[B]

We never discussed it. We didn't talk about it for, I would say, an absurd amount of time until we did, right?

[A]

And the thing was that I was getting a divorce.

[B]

And the thing was, I was also.

[A]

Getting a divorce, which was very difficult.

[B]

I would say devastating and really time consuming. And so when we finally talked about it, we realized that it was not the right moment to do the show. And so what we do is do the show in the future, but we would take a little break to work out some things in our lives, right?

[A]

We were going to take a little break, not a long break. But then it kind of became a long break, and it was getting too long for my tastes.

[B]

I did not like it.

[A]

And then one day back in the spring, I was just like, you know what? We hadn't talked about it for a little bit, and I was just like, I'm just gonna send her a text message and say, we should do this thing. We should get back together and start working on the show.

[B]

And at that exact same moment, I, in a D.C. airport, for whatever reason, was also thinking about you and texting you the same thing.

[A]

Yeah, this is a banana story. This is true. We're not making this up. When I texted her out of the blue, it was like. It was like a bell had gone off in both of our heads simultaneously to say, we need to reconnect with the other. Because as I was texting her, she was texting me, right?

[B]

And I didn't even. So I just called you and we talked about how ridiculous that was and that it was yet another sign that we should just be doing this show. And so how could we do it in a way that made sense to us right now? And we figured that out. And I'm just going to lead by saying that it is extremely frightening to me that this is the first time I have made a podcast without a team of, like, Peabody winners behind me. We have no producer. We have no budget. We don't even have music.

[A]

We don't have music. Right. But now. And I've done those things, right? Like, I've never had a producer. I've never had a budget, but I've never done an unscripted show like this before. But we have been recording ever since the spring. We've been putting episodes in the can and calling it Season 0 of the Duncan & Company History Show.

[B]

And that's the big news. It's coming out. We're releasing them on Wednesdays.

[A]

Right. So we're going to start dropping episodes, but not necessarily in the order that we recorded them.

[B]

No, we've. We've. All along the way, we have done what we call a formative episodes. We've been doing topics that we always knew we were going to do from the very beginning, and then we've been adding things along the way as we've been inspired.

[A]

Right. And it's season zero, and so things are just going to be coming out in the feed. And some of the early stuff is just us interviewing each other about work that we've been doing, things that were formative in our own careers as historians and just chatting.

[B]

Right. Because we were used to talking about Washington and Lafayette, but now we talk about everything to do with history. We're just like two history buddies hanging out, shooting the shit kind of all the time.

[A]

And that's what this is going to be going forward. You know, episodes as they come out are going to be, you know, anything that has to do with the intersection of history and culture is going to be fair game for the Duncan and Company show.

[B]

Oh, and not only that, Mike tells me that all good podcasts have Patreon accounts. And so we're going to have that. We're going to release bonus content there, including my favorite episode so far, which is about a black tie dinner we went to recently.

[A]

Yes, yes, yes, that black tie dinner where if you. If you subscribe to the Patreon and hear this, I. It will be me getting roasted by Alexis for some things. So beyond the Patreon. Right. We also want to grow this out. And especially we hope to do live shows like joint events together. We both love being out on the road doing speaking gigs, and we're going to do those together and then hopefully build a little history community here between the two of us and between all of you listening out there.

[B]

And that starts now with season zero of the Duncan and Company show, which is available now and you can expect new episodes every Wednesday.

[A]

Yep, new episodes every Wednesday, which means next Wednesday, too. So we will see you then. This was the Duncan and Company show. I'm Mike Duncan.

[B]

I'm Alexis Ko. This was our show.