CLASSIC: The Attack of the Japanese Balloon Bombs

Ridiculous History

iHeartPodcasts

History, Society & Culture

4.2 • 4.7K Ratings

🗓️ 4 July 2026

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | Apple Podcasts | RSS

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Summary

Picture this: It's late 1944, and you, like thousands of other people on the west coast of North America, have noticed bizarre, jellyfish-like objects floating through the sky. You call the local authorities, maybe even the Air Force, only to be ignored. You don't see anything about this in the papers or on the radio. You are in the midst of a real-world conspiracy of silence -- until, that is, the bombs begin to explode. Listen in to learn more about the attack of the Japanese balloon bombs in this week's Classic episode. (Also: Happy Birthday, America!)

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Fellow ridiculous historians, welcome to this week's classic episode.
0:05.0	Noel, have you ever been into balloons?
0:07.8	You know, Ben, I do love balloons.
0:09.2	They're just a delightful thing to behold.
0:12.4	When they float, I like it when they bounce.
0:15.3	I just like them.
0:16.5	They like them when they're shaped like things.
0:18.2	I like them when they're wielded by clowns.
0:19.7	I don't really like them as delivery mechanisms for bombs, though.
0:24.5	Ah, yeah, yep.
0:25.9	That's why you and I should have been in the meeting in late 1944, probably a few years before that,
0:32.5	when thousands of people on the West Coast of the United States
0:37.6	noticed bizarre what they call jellyfish-like objects
0:41.6	floating in the sky.
0:43.4	Yeah, and this episode is called
0:44.6	The Attack of the Japanese Balloon Bombs.
0:47.4	And let's roll the tape.
0:49.3	This is an I-Heart podcast.
0:51.8	Guaranteed Human.
0:55.7	Ridiculous history is a production of IHeart Radio. Welcome to the show, Ridiculous historians, quick peek behind the curtain.
1:27.2	It is Friday as we record this,
1:29.5	and all three of us are really looking forward to the weekend. Hi, I'm Ben. Hi, I'm Noel,
	...

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