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Build For Tomorrow

Teddy Bears Are History’s Most Subversive Toy (Classic)

Build For Tomorrow

Jason Feifer

Business, History, Technology, Entrepreneurship

4.7573 Ratings

🗓️ 30 June 2022

⏱️ 47 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The teddy bear: Is it cute and cuddly, or a “horrible monstrosity” that’ll destroy humanity? In 1907, many people feared the worst — that this new toy would ruin young girls’ developing maternal instincts, and lead us to a terrible fate. This is the story of how the teddy bear changed us all… and how we then changed the bear. The “Build For Tomorrow” book is almost here! Grab your copy at www.jasonfeifer.com/book Get in touch! Newsletter: jasonfeifer.bulletin.com Website: jasonfeifer.com Instagram: @heyfeifer Twitter: @heyfeifer mfmpod.com Indeed.com/ARCHIVE Jordanharbinger.com/subscribe Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Something unexpected has arrived in Happy Meal.

0:03.2

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Hello Kitty and friends are teaming up for the ultimate collab.

0:08.3

Joining your little ones on a fun-fueled adventure.

0:11.0

Some fun, some food, it's all inside this Happy Meal.

0:16.2

Until the 2nd of February from 11am includes one pre-selected book or toy whilst it's last.

0:20.4

Hey everyone. Today I'm replaying one of my all-time favorite episodes of this podcast. It's about

0:26.5

how the teddy bear kicked off a national moral panic in 1907 and why it just might be history's

0:32.8

most subversive toy. Next month, I'll have a new episode inspired by this one because a toy historian

0:38.8

recently heard this episode, then reached out to share the untold story of the action figure

0:43.9

that'll make you think differently about the toys you grew up with. I am really excited about

0:48.8

it. But first, let's get into teddy bears. This is Build for Tomorrow, a podcast about the smartest solutions to our most misunderstood

0:58.5

problems.

0:59.6

I'm Jason Pfeiffer, and in each episode, I take something that seems concerning or confusing

1:03.4

today and figure out where it came from, what important things we're missing, and how

1:07.0

we can create more opportunity tomorrow.

1:09.2

We don't know a ton about Reverend Michael G. Esper, but we know that he was loved.

1:14.4

He was a Michigan man, born in a town called Springwell that no longer exists,

1:19.0

and Father Esper built a local life for himself.

1:22.0

In the year 1902, he was hired as the fourth ever pastor of a little church across the state

1:26.7

called St. Joseph Parish,

1:28.3

and the place was a bit of a fixer-upper. He oversaw improvements on the edifice and rectory.

1:33.2

He put up a school building and cleaned up the cemetery. He took out a $20,000 life insurance

...

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