Welcome to America, Suckers: Selling the Brooklyn Bridge

Ridiculous Crime

iHeartPodcasts

History, Comedy, True Crime

4.5 • 1.4K Ratings

🗓️ 19 February 2026

⏱️ 59 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

It's become shorthand for someone being gullible, thinking they can buy the Brooklyn Bridge (and at a discount!). But the idea had to start somewhere. Turns out selling the bridge and other landmarks to those newly arrived on U.S. shores was a lucrative con in the early 1900s. But such cons are not sustainable, and eventually bad guys go to prison.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This is an I-Heart podcast.
0:02.6	Guaranteed Human.
0:04.8	Ridiculous crime is a production of IHeart Radio.
0:08.1	Zarin.
0:10.5	Zeran, over here.
0:11.8	Zeran, Zeran, quick question.
0:12.6	I was talking to the intern, sorry.
0:14.2	Are they good?
0:15.4	They're good.
0:15.8	They were licking my hand.
0:17.4	Oh.
0:17.8	That sounds wrong.
0:18.8	They don't tell AH.
0:20.1	No, I won't. The four-legged ones. How are we? Oh, because I was going to say, like, for the other ones, for like, Braden Lynn. And Jaley? And Jaley. I was like, those two? Oh, my God. I don't want to give them the college credits that they're supposed to be earning.
0:37.8	No. Braden Lynn erased all the emails again. Again. Yeah. Yeah. I think that they've lost their car, or at least lied to me and said they couldn't come into work because they lost their car. I don't know which one it is. No, I can't tell them. I can't tell them apart. Yeah. I'm like, is that a lie or just an admission of your stupidity?
0:55.5	I know.
0:56.0	We're both.
0:57.3	Do you know what's ridiculous? one it is. No, I can't tell them. I can't tell them apart. Yeah. I'm like, is that a lie or just an admission of your stupidity?
0:55.5	I know.
0:56.0	Well, both.
1:09.6	Do you know what's ridiculous? I do, Elizabeth. Yeah. This is kind of a little bit more serious and a heartfelt plea for the world to slow down and stop changing because I'm not a fan of all these changes. Oh, I know. You and me both, sister.
1:10.9	No, but for real.
	...

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