Nudie Reads

Joe Colombo's 1972 MoMA design statement for his Total Furnishing Unit - a radical living pod with kitchen, bed, bathroom and wardrobe, all built in. He called it the future. MoMA called it art. Severance just called the props department. Bold ideas, and gorgeous writing from an Italian design guru.

Jack and the Beanstalk—the 1807 version edited by Mary Shelley's dad! Magic beans, golden eggs, a harp that sings, one courageous lad. And something missing! If you love folklore and great writing, this one's for you.

What happens when the Cardinals take nearly 3 years to elect a Pope? You get conclave chaos, a roofless meeting hall, and a man named Teobaldo Visconti summoned home from Crusade to become Pope Gregory X. In this offbeat episode, I read from Archibald Bower's vivid 1750 account of how one Pope cleaned up the mess with a decree that still governs papal elections today.⛪

Aesop's Fables are timeless very short tales packed with wit, wisdom, and morals that still matter. Don't count your chickens before they hatch. Look before you leap. They've been educating and bringing joy for over 2600 years. Whether you're new to Aesop or grew up on these stories, there's something here for every curious mind.

Gritty, operatic, great writing from the underworld of Prohibition-era Chicago 1929. A vivid newspaper report on the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, one of the most infamous gangland slaughters in American history.

Shakespeare debuts on Nudie Reads! The Merchant of Venice (1596) delivers high drama in Act 4's courtroom scene, with Portia's “quality of mercy” speech and a cunning legal twist. Mercy, justice, and contracts collide in one of the many of the Bard's timeless works.

The story of St George is a corker. Slays a dragon, saves of princess, survives dreadful torture. Where does it come from? A rather odd English translation by publisher William Caxton of the 13th C classic collection The Golden Legend captured the weirdness.

Homer shines on Nudie Reads! The Odyssey(8th century BC) delivers epic adventure—Odysseus vs. the Cyclops is pure wit and grit. From TikTok to Hollywood, it's a timeless tale people love to retell.

A poet, a painter, and a patriot's ride! Grant Wood's 1931 quirky pic The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere is a great visualcompanion for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's epic poem “Paul Revere's Ride” as it gallops through 250 year old history. Saddle up for an offbeat Thursday ep!

Lady Fortune spins her wheel. Boethius, a Roman in 534, imagined her as Lady Luck in person and wrote of her capricious ways in "On The Consolation of Philosophy" as he sat on death row. Wisdom from a condemned man.

Rock n roll and Roman history. There's plenty of cross-over to consider. And a certain James Newell Osterberg Jnr better known as Iggy Pop penned a lovely review of Edward Gibbon'sThe Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire in 1995 that proves it. Who knew he had it in him?

Long before The Weave of US President Donald Trump there was  Laurence Sterne's Tristram Shandy, a wild 18th-century classic from England via Ireland more known for its detours than the autobiography it pretends to be. The OG weave and rather cheeky.

The Fram2 spacecraft orbits Earth's polar regions for the first time ever. And The Fram, the OG ship of the 19th century was also a trailblzer. Nansen's diaries of her first Artic voyage are a gem of spellbinding writing. Great words from a Norwegian hero. Takk for listening!

Thomas Hobbes's Leviathan contains his killer line about life being ‘nasty, brutish, and short'. He was grim fella but his work is a 17th century English classic of political thought. Lived to the ripe old age of 91, single the whole time and loved tennis. Who knew?

On March 16, 2025 Blue Ghost, a Texas-built lunar robot signed off with a hauntingly beautiful message straightfrom Mare Crisium, sketched by Galileo and named by Riccioli in the 17th century. Great, writing, from space.

His name is a byword for being a pants man. But Casanova was also a classic Enlightenment era writer. He was a true libertine and his jailbreak story, from Venice's notoriously unbreakable Piombi prison, taken from his memoirs, is a ripping yarn.

Nudie Reads the Book of Common Prayer 1662. Paul's letter to the Corinthians 13:1 on love, or charity. From Bergman's films to metal riffs, “through a glass, darkly” haunts us still. Sending peaceful vibes for Lent to all listeners.

Gargantua and Pantagruel by François Rabelais is a Giant story - literally. Filled with wit and bawdy humour it is a five-book satirical masterpiece, first published in the 16th century. Perfect reading for Mardi Gras, the season of indulgence andrevelry.

Experience the chilling legend of Sawney Bean, the Scot's cannibal and his demented clan, from a 1836 book that's as mysterious as its subjects.

The Charge of the Light Brigade was written in 1854 by Alfred Lord Tennyson, inspired by the disastrous cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava in the Crimean War. Tennyson was one of the greatest poets of the Victorian era. You probably know this poem. It's loved and and recited still around the world.

Old age fraud is always newsworthy and in 1835 PT Barnum wrote a compelling flyer for his first ever foray into showmanship and hoaxing the public. Poor old - but not 161 years old - Joice Heth was his muse.

Plutarch's Life of Crassus is one of the key surviving sources on Spartacus's rebellion. Though written about 150 years after the events, and about 2000 years ago, it's a rollicking read and invaluable insight into the man who shook Rome. The story remains a powerful testament to resistance, even today.

The 1983 New York Post headline "Headless Body in Topless Bar" remains one of journalism's most memorable works. The New York Post sure has a knack for sensational storytelling. It's come a long way from Alexander Hamilton!

Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves is one of the most well-known stories fromA Thousand and One Arabian Nights. It's a tale of wit and cunning and it's all rather violent. Bugt it stands as proof that intelligence can triumph over brute strength. ✨

The Parable of the Fence is one of G.K. Chesterton's most enduring ideas, perfectly, simply and shortly expressed. It reminds us that before we dismantle something, we should understand why it exists. A valuable lesson for any time, including February 2025 as President Trump and his DOGE team get to work.

Summa Theologica by Thomas Aquinas is one of the most influential works of medieval philosophy and theology. The Order of Love and charity remains a topic of debate centuries later, now even making waves in modern US political discourse in 2025 on Twitter! ✝️

What happened to the crew of the Mary Celeste is a mystery beloved by theorists since she was found, abandoned, in 1872. The crew gone. Even the cat. Was she a victim of foul play or just unlucky? The Captain's nephew wrote beautifully, trying to get to the bottom of it all?

The Dunwich Horror by H.P. Lovecraft is a gripping tale of weirdo cosmic horror first published in 1929. Dive into Lovecraft's universe of the eerie and otherworldly to discover why his work continues to captivate readers to this day.

In 1914 a bra patent was filed in the USA that managed to avoid any mention of breasts. How did Mary Jacobs Phelps pull that off? With a lot of class and some great writing.

Dale Carnegie's How To Win Friends And Influence People was published in the height of the Great Depression. It was best-seller then as now, in our internet and smart-phone age. It's lessons are practical and ageless.

What did it take to be an admired courtier in Renaissance Italy? The same as being an influencer today. Effortless elegance. Seeming to be blessed with grace without even trying. Baldassare Castiglione captured the concept in his 1528 smash hit “The Book of Courtier”

In Italy 1881 kids were by turns delighted and terrified by Pinocchio, a serialised story by Carlo Collodi, of the adventures of a wooden puppet who wants to become a real boy. The 1940 Disney animated film adaptation is wonderful. The original literary work remains a brilliant, darker, exploration of what it means to become a good person.

In the 19th century Reverend Spooner of Oxford became famous for his mis-speaking. A unique butcher of the English language he inspired Terry Jones of Monty Python fame to pen a short poem of Spoonerist delight in homage.

P.G Wodehouse - pronounced wood-house - introduced Bertie Wooster and his genius valet, Jeeves, to the world in the early 20th century. The adventures of the idiot British well-heeled gent and the valet who is the brains of the operation have made the world smile ever since. You can't be sad when reading Wodehouse.

In 1823 New Yorker Clement Clarke Moore wrote one of the most famous poems of all time - Twas The Night Before Christmas. That's him. His wondrous poem of Dancer Prancer Donner and Blixem (with an "m" in the original print edition) is beloved the world over at this time of year. But it is great writing at anmy time. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all Nudie Reads listeners. You are the best. Thankyou for listening.

In 1810 when Edgar Allan Poe was just a year old, German writer Heinrich von Kleist wrote a Poe-like tale that had all the Poe-type elements but not quite the panache of the American. Kleist came before Poe. Still, von Kleist's work is a vital literary building block by a great writer.

Roald Dahl is most famous for Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, James & The Giant Peach and Matilda. But his short story collection called Tales of the Unexpected is a classic of thriller literature. So good Alfred Hitchcock loved it.

In 2017 US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts gave a gem of a commencement speech to middle school graduates at a New Hampshire boys' school. His speech was beautifully written and the advice unusual but very wise.

Moliere is the French Shakespeare, a brilliant playwright, poet and actor of the 17th century. He was beloved by Louis XIV, the Sun King himself, and remains a genius of the French language and of the art of mocking pieties, 400 years after his birth.

The first recorded recipe for glass was found in 1845 in the Library at Nineveh, founded by King Ashurbanipal of Assyria around 650 BCE. In 1970 the recipe was put to the test (not including the sheep sacrifice). And it worked. It may be ancient but it's still chemistry.

Charlotte Bronte's "Jane Eyre" is a great galumphing bodice ripping romance novel with a terrific storyline. We have Charlotte to thank for the concept of the mad woman in the attic. Some people call it the the world's first feminist novel but don't let that put you off.

Leonardo Da Vinci is known as a Florentine High Renaissance genius painter, sculptor, engineer and inventor. Add great writing to his skills. With his posthumous book 'A Treatise on Painting' including 'How to Compose a Battle' he cracked the code of art - teaching painting with words alone.

The world's first travelogue is the late 13th century best seller by Marco Polo about his travels around the Asian world as a diplomat for Mongol Emperor Khubla Khan, grandson of Ghengis. He saw Xanadu and everywhere else and his "Travels" are a delight even today

In 1954 "space opera" was a pejorative term applied to the literary genre of sci fi pulp fiction. It was considered low brow writing. But it takes a creative mind to explore a possible space alien future. And good writing makes the exploration fun for all.

Modern historians are indebted to him and Cicero called him 'the father of history'. Herodotus wrote his Histories over two thousand years ago and they are as exciting as any airport novel. If you love the movie "300" you'll love the original tale.

22 January 1973 is the date of the US Supreme Court decision of Roe v Wade. By 7-2 the 9 SCOTUS judges - all men - addressed the difficult topic of abortion with great care, respect and sensitivity. Great writing that is notorious and all over the news right now in 2022.

What links Audrey Hepburn and Bailey Sarian? Truman Capote. The famed author of Breakfast at Tiffany's also penned the book that started all this true crime fuss. Capote's "In Cold Blood" is the original true crime work. Thanks Truman, I guess.

On 4 August 1892 Lizzie Borden's step-mother and her father were found murdered by hatchet. Lizzie was found not guilty because her defence, led by AJ Jennings, was top shelf. The very best defence her dead father's money could buy. But she totally did it. Or did she?

At a house party in 1816, a 19 year old Mary Wollstonecraft wrote the G.O.A.T of mad scientist stories - 'Frankenstein' - and readers the world over and still today, over 200 years later, are in love with her gothic horror sci fi tale of animation, murder and regret.

In 1830 a cad named Edward Bulwer-Lytton opened his dreadful novel "Paul Clifford" with the words "It was a dark and stormy night" and to this day the Edward Bulwer-Lytton award for bad writing is awarded to purveyors of purple prose. But some great writing was associated with Bulwer-Lytton. Not his own, of course.

In 1812 the Brothers Grimm, Jacob and Wilhelm, published the first of 3 volumes of fairytales which have been terrifying children all over the world for over 200 years. Take Hansel and Gretel. A tale of poverty and cannibalism. Sweet dreams!