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Spectacular Failures

American Public Media

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4.8

(23)

Corporate crookedness. Family feuding. Hilariously half-baked decisions. Host Lauren Ober tackles some of the most spectacular business failures of all time, and what could have been done to avoid them. Some of these stories are shocking. Some are funny. Some are just downright sad. But each one will give you a totally new perspective on big business... and big failure. From American Public Media.
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21 Listeners

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4.8

(23)

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1 Comment

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Top 10 Spectacular Failures Episodes

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Toys R Us goes bust

Spectacular Failures

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08/12/19 • 36 min

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4.0

No amount of nostalgia could save Toys R Us from the private equity firms that owned it.


You can follow Spectacular Failures on Twitter and Facebook using @failureshow. We're @failure_show on Instagram. Follow Lauren Ober on Twitter and Instagram at @oberandout.


Spectacular Failures is powered by you. Support the show with a donation at spectacularfailures.org/donate.

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08/12/19 • 36 min

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12 Listeners

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9 Comments

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Sqirl finds itself in a jam

Spectacular Failures

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10/05/20 • 37 min

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5.0

The Los Angeles restaurant Sqirl had lines down the block for brunches that featured its famous house-made jams on toast. But then a photo of discarded mold scraped from the jam, snapped by someone in the Sqirl kitchen, blew up the internet...and led to a reputation crisis Sqirl is still dealing with.


Our sponsors this week:


Bombas - Bombas.com/spectacular


Ourcrowd - Ourcrowd.com/spectacular


Sign up to receive our brand new newsletter, featuring weekly recommendations from Lauren and the rest of the team at spectacularfailures.org/newsletter.
Read the transcript of the episode at spectacularfailures.org.
You can follow Spectacular Failures on Twitter at @failureshow and like us at Facebook.com/failureshow. We're @failure_show on Instagram. Follow Lauren Ober on Twitter and Instagram at @oberandout.

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10/05/20 • 37 min

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6 Listeners

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1 Comment

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09/28/20 • 37 min

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5.0

Even before Uber and Lyft pulled into town, NYC yellow cabs were having a rough ride. Reckless lending practices and inflated taxi medallion prices racked up profits for the city and debt for drivers. Then, the bubble did what bubbles do.


Our sponsors this week:


Policy Genius - policygenius.com


Betterhelp - betterhelp.com/spectacular


Sign up to receive our brand new newsletter, featuring weekly recommendations from Lauren and the rest of the team at spectacularfailures.org/newsletter.
Read the transcript of the episode at spectacularfailures.org.
You can follow Spectacular Failures on Twitter at @failureshow and like us at Facebook.com/failureshow. We're @failure_show on Instagram. Follow Lauren Ober on Twitter and Instagram at @oberandout.

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09/28/20 • 37 min

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4 Listeners

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1 Comment

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Kodak misses its moment

Spectacular Failures

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07/15/19 • 32 min

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5.0

The world's largest photography company pioneers the snapshot, invents the digital camera and... declares bankruptcy.


You can follow Spectacular Failures on Twitter and Facebook using @failureshow. We're @failure_show on Instagram. Follow Lauren Ober on Twitter and Instagram at @oberandout.


Spectacular Failures is powered by you. Support the show with a donation at spectacularfailures.org/donate.

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07/15/19 • 32 min

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3 Listeners

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2 Comments

2

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08/19/19 • 41 min

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5.0

By the time the final dice were thrown, Trump's Atlantic City casino operations had gone bankrupt six times. Despite that, Trump won the long game.


You can follow Spectacular Failures on Twitter and Facebook using @failureshow. We're @failure_show on Instagram. Follow Lauren Ober on Twitter and Instagram at @oberandout.


Spectacular Failures is powered by you. Support the show with a donation at spectacularfailures.org/donate.

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08/19/19 • 41 min

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3 Listeners

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1 Comment

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Lincoln Savings loses it all

Spectacular Failures

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08/05/19 • 37 min

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5.0

Charles Keating robbed working people of their life savings and cost taxpayers billions of dollars. All under the watch of powerful politicians.


You can follow Spectacular Failures on Twitter and Facebook using @failureshow. We're @failure_show on Instagram. Follow Lauren Ober on Twitter and Instagram at @oberandout.


Spectacular Failures is powered by you. Support the show with a donation at spectacularfailures.org/donate.

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08/05/19 • 37 min

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3 Listeners

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2 Comments

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06/24/19 • 29 min

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4.0

Unlimited movie theater tickets for $9.99 a month? It sounds too good to be true and, well... it might be.


You can follow Spectacular Failures on Twitter and Facebook using @failureshow. We're @failure_show on Instagram, where you can see photos from Lauren's tour of the former Heritage USA property. Follow Lauren Ober on Twitter and Instagram at @oberandout.


Spectacular Failures is powered by you. Support the show with a donation at spectacularfailures.org/donate.

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06/24/19 • 29 min

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3 Listeners

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2 Comments

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Pan Am hits major turbulence

Spectacular Failures

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09/14/20 • 39 min

Pan Am made air travel cool—from chic crew uniforms to exotic locations to square-jawed flyboy pilots. But a couple of bad business deals, massive deregulation, and a devastating terrorist attack sunset the airline for good.
Our sponsors this week:


Betterhelp: betterhelp.com/spectacular
The Great Courses Plus: thegreatcoursesplus.com/spectacular


Sign up to receive our brand new newsletter, featuring weekly recommendations from Lauren and the rest of the team at spectacularfailures.org/newsletter.
Read the transcript of the episode at spectacularfailures.org.
You can follow Spectacular Failures on Twitter at @failureshow and like us at Facebook.com/failureshow. We're @failure_show on Instagram. Follow Lauren Ober on Twitter and Instagram at @oberandout.

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09/14/20 • 39 min

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3 Listeners

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2 Comments

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07/08/19 • 26 min

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5.0

A family-owned business fights a billion-dollar, multinational company. And wins.


You can follow Spectacular Failures on Twitter and Facebook using @failureshow. We're @failure_show on Instagram. Follow Lauren Ober on Twitter and Instagram at @oberandout.


Visit our website for this week’s BizWiz link at spectacularfailures.org


Spectacular Failures is powered by you. Support the show with a donation at spectacularfailures.org/donate.

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07/08/19 • 26 min

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2 Listeners

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06/17/19 • 31 min

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5.0

How Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker’s wildly popular Christian theme park was upended by fraud, scandal and lavish spending.


You can follow Spectacular Failures on Twitter and Facebook using @failureshow. We're @failure_show on Instagram, where you can see photos from Lauren's tour of the former Heritage USA property. Follow Lauren Ober on Twitter and Instagram at @oberandout.


Spectacular Failures is powered by you. Support the show with a donation at spectacularfailures.org/donate.

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06/17/19 • 31 min

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2 Listeners

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2 Comments

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FAQ

How many episodes does Spectacular Failures have?

Spectacular Failures currently has 24 episodes available.

What topics does Spectacular Failures cover?

The podcast is about Management, Podcasts and Business.

What is the most popular episode on Spectacular Failures?

The episode title 'Toys R Us goes bust' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Spectacular Failures?

The average episode length on Spectacular Failures is 31 minutes.

How often are episodes of Spectacular Failures released?

Episodes of Spectacular Failures are typically released every 7 days.

When was the first episode of Spectacular Failures?

The first episode of Spectacular Failures was released on May 30, 2019.

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4.8

out of 5

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23 Ratings

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#13

@orderjackalope

Apr 15

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