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Have you ever been to National Tennessee? It's a great town. Weirdly, when I first traveled there

and I guess around 1999 maybe, I found the best bagel I've ever eaten in my life, still probably.

But Nashville is much better known for its connection to country music of course.

There's also the Hermitage, President Andrew Jackson's estate,

and a replica of the Parthenon built in 1897. And more recently,

Nashville is the birthplace of a sweeping food fad, the hot chicken sandwich.

But the true Nashville treasure is my friend Dr. Benjamin Sawyer.

You have not lived until you've spit your beer into your pork ribs,

laughing at an impromptu comedic monologue on coleslaw that somehow also incorporates 19th century

Russian history, and the reason why so many old cartoons had characters slipping on banana peels.

Ben is a stand-up comedian, but he's also a senior instructor of history at Middle Tennessee

State University. And much more relevant for our purposes today, he's also the co-host of the

podcast The Road to Now. And the episode we're sharing on today's Saturday, Matt Nay is a great

example of the kinds of topics, discussions that Ben and his co-host Bob Crawford,

a Grammy-nominated member of the band The Ava Brothers, do so well.

Miss America's Secret Past. In conversation with author Amy Argettsinger, Ben and Bob explore

Miss America's origins, how the pageant both shaped and was shaped by American society,

and why it might be okay that the pageant significance in American culture has faded.

I hope you enjoy. While you're listening, be sure to search for and follow the Road to Now podcast.

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