One Year: 1990 | 1. Pizzastroika

Slow Burn

Slate Podcasts

News, Society & Culture, History, Documentary, Politics

4.6 • 25.1K Ratings

🗓️ 22 November 2023

⏱️ 53 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Pizza Hut’s adventure in the Soviet Union was unlike any restaurant opening before or since. It involved a fleet of submarines, a very special pizza topped with tuna and salmon, and a casual dining spot on a mission to change the world. This episode was written by Kelly Jones and Josh Levin, One Year’s editorial director. One Year’s senior producer is Evan Chung. This episode was produced by Kelly Jones and Evan Chung, with additional production by Olivia Briley. It was edited by Joel Meyer and Derek John, Slate’s executive producer of narrative podcasts. Merritt Jacob is our senior technical director. Join Slate Plus to get a special behind-the-scenes conversation at the end of our season about how we put together our 1990 stories. Slate Plus members also get to listen to all Slate podcasts without any ads. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Rita Skimmeymy Horn was born and raised in Miskuda, Illinois.
0:04.0	It was a small town, without a lot going on.
0:07.0	Growing up in the 1970s, there was one spot where everyone hung out.
0:12.0	After football games, after dances, it was the place to be.
0:16.0	There's a lot of good names and Pizza Hut.
0:20.0	Pizza Hut was the There's a lot of good things under our roof.
0:23.6	Pizza Hut was the place to go.
0:27.4	This was before pizza delivery was really a big thing.
0:30.9	Pizza Hut was a Dine In restaurant restaurant with its famous red roof and red plastic cups for
0:36.1	sodas.
0:37.1	Red checkered tablecloths and a red light that hung over the table.
0:41.4	Rita would make a Pizza Hut pilgrimage every Saturday. She'd
0:45.1	financed that weekly habit by helping to clean her friend's brother's apartment.
0:49.6	Which it was disgusting. There was dishes that had mold on it and we had to scrape that off.
0:55.3	We pick up his clothes and he would pay us $5. So my friend Denise and I would then walk from the apartment to Pizza Hut with our $5 in our pocket
1:06.0	and we could get a small pizza and two small sodas and still have like, you know, 35 cents
1:11.1	left for a tip. What did you order?
1:14.0	Small fitting crispy pepperoni.
1:15.0	Same thing every week.
1:17.0	Let yourself go to Pizza Hut.
1:20.0	But you look at that pizza.
1:22.0	For Rita, Pizza Hut wasn't just a restaurant.
	...

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