The Dumbest Mobster Ever Tried To Steal Ruby Slippers

Ridiculous History

iHeartPodcasts

History, Society & Culture

4.3 • 4.4K Ratings

🗓️ 9 October 2025

⏱️ 53 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

There are few pieces of film history more iconic than Dorothy's magic ruby slippers from 1939's The Wizard of Oz. Yet, at first, the studio had no idea how valuable these would become. The multiple pairs of slippers languished in obscurity until costume department worker named Kent Warner launched a mission to save them. Yet the story doesn't stop there: as Ben, Noel and Max learn in today's episode, one of history's dumbest mobsters actually stole the shoes... because he mistakenly believed they were covered in actual rubies.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Ridiculous History is a production of IHeart Radio. Welcome back to the show fellow ridiculous historians.
0:29.6	Thank you, as always so much for tuning in.
0:33.1	Shout out to Las Vegas's The Sphere.
0:36.2	Shout out to our super producer, Mr. Max Williams.
0:42.1	Max, there's no place like home.
0:44.0	There's no place like Home Williams.
0:45.9	There we go.
0:46.8	Love it.
0:47.3	That's Mr. Noel Brown, return from some adventures.
0:50.5	They call me Ben Bowlin in this part of the world due to some ongoing litigation.
0:55.8	Look, no, once upon a time, as our pal Jordan told us,
1:00.2	uh, the Wizard of Oz was a big deal. Did you ever read the, uh, the old books by
1:06.8	it was a book? Yeah. No, I doubt. I am aware of the book. And apparently in the book, the slippers are silver.
1:13.1	But that didn't, I wouldn't have translated to the silver screen as well as red for some reason.
1:18.7	In the infinite wisdom of the pictures.
1:21.7	The Golden Age of Hollywood.
1:23.8	Yeah.
1:24.1	No, I do love the story.
1:27.4	You know, if the Frank L. Balm series of books, which No, I do love the story.
1:46.8	You know, if the Frank L. Balm series of books, which also, I believe, encompass a lot of the lore that went into the utterly terrifying children's film Return to Oz. Yes. I'm glad you mentioned that. And there's some ruby slippers. And that one, too, worn by the Gome King. And the most unfriendly rollerbladers.
1:44.3	The wheel. and there's some ruby slippers and that one too worn by the Gnome King. And the most unfriendly rollerbladers in all the film history.
1:49.4	Nightmare stuff, my friend.
	...

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