The Wild Wild Death

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The history of the Wild Wild West is a saga of grit, glory, endurance and independence; of the people who faced the challenge of the West head-on and survived.

We’re here to tell the stories of those who did not.

2222 Media presents The Wild Wild Death, a history podcast about the fatal side of the Old West. Join us as we share true stories of appalling ignorance, questionable medical practices, and ridiculously poor choices.

The Wild Wild Death: so many ways to die, its a miracle anyone survived.
KEYWORDS:

• Wild West fatalities
• True stories of Old West deaths
• 2222 Media history podcast
• Appalling ignorance in the Old West
• Old West medical mishaps
• Wild West survival and death
• Fatal mistakes in frontier history
• History of Old West tragedy
• Old West survival odds
• Ridiculous choices in history
• Frontier death stories
• The Wild Wild Death podcast series
• Fatal side of the Wild West

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In this episode of The Wild Wild Death, we explore the hilariously tragic saga of Elmer McCurdy, the outlaw who was better at botching robberies than being a criminal mastermind. But Elmer’s story didn’t end with his final, drunken shootout. Instead, his mummified body embarked on a posthumous career more successful than anything he managed while alive. From sideshows to movie sets, and even a stint as a funhouse prop, Elmer’s corpse had a more eventful afterlife than anyone could’ve imagined. Tune in for the strange, darkly funny journey of the outlaw who became famous in death after failing spectacularly at life.
If you'd like more information about the history behind this episode of The Wild Wild Death , check out these links:

• https://www.cowboysindians.com/2018/10/25-mysteries-of-the-west/
• https://blogs.loc.gov/headlinesandheroes/2018/07/elmer-mccurdy-traveling-corpse/
• https://www.npr.org/2015/01/09/376097471/the-long-strange-60-year-trip-of-elmer-mccurdy
• https://www.kcrw.com/news/shows/greater-la/halloween/elmer-mccurdy
• https://www.okterritorialmuseum.org/ELMERMC.html
• The Misadventures in Life and Afterlife of an American Outlaw (Svenvold, 2002)

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In this episode of The Wild Wild Death, we explore the strange and tragic story of James King of William, a crusading newspaper editor who was shot in broad daylight. When a group of esteemed doctors race to save his life, their medical choice led to his doom. Tune in to hear how a sponge became the most lethal weapon in San Francisco.
Interested in the history behind this episode of The Wild Wild Death ? Check out the links below:

• https://history.library.ucsf.edu/sponge_case.html
• history.library.ucsf.edu/toland.html
• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12715059/james-king
• https://www.jstor.org/stable/42656511
• https://hdl.huntington.org/digital/collection/p9539coll1/id/23425/
• https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2019/07/02/dice-roll-civilization-dawns-in-san-francisco/
• https://web.archive.org/web/20131231005303/http://www.norcalmediamuseum.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73&Itemid=139
• https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/23990-subclavian-artery
• https://sfmuseum.org/hist6/hang.html

KEYWORDS:
James King of William shooting

Newspaper editor killed in San Francisco

19th-century true crime

Medical malpractice tragedy

San Francisco historical crime

Lethal sponge mishap

Wild West murder mystery

James King of William assassination

Medical choice leads to death

Crime and medical error

Strange historical murder

True crime in San Francisco

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In this episode of The Wild Wild Death, we journey back to 1884 in Corsicana, Texas, when the grand opening of a Dry Goods Emporium turned into a day of tragedy. A tightrope walker, known only as “The Rope Walker,” attempts a daring feat—crossing a high wire with a 300-pound cast iron stove strapped to his back. But gravity had other plans. Over a century later, his true identity and the life that led him to that fateful day are finally uncovered. Join us as we explore the life, death, and mystery of the enigmatic Rope Walker.

Want to know more? Check out the links below:

• https://www.shapell.org/civil-war-soldier-database/soldier/3630
• https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/fort-worth/article249868098.html
• https://travsd.wordpress.com/2022/02/06/step-right-up-and-pay-your-respects-to-the-one-legged-jewish-tightrope-walker-of-texas/
• https://www.dmagazine.com/publications/d-magazine/2021/april/corsicana-mysterious-one-legged-jewish-rope-walker/
• https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-grave-of-rope-walker-corsicana-texas
• https://texascooppower.com/the-rope-walker-of-corsicana/
• https://synagogues-360.anumuseum.org.il/the-last-jew-and-the-rope-walker/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tightrope_walking

KEYWORDS:
The Rope Walker identity

Tightrope walker fatal accident

1884 Corsicana tragedy

Dry Goods Emporium grand opening disaster

High wire act gone wrong

Cast iron stove tightrope disaster

Forgotten performers of history

Tragic high wire accident story

Historical crime and mystery podcast

Gravity-defying stunt turned deadly

Uncovering the Rope Walker's life and death

Corsicana Texas historical tragedy

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Find out what happened when “The Pathfinder” John C. Fremont loses his way, taking 35 men and 120 mules with him.

If you’d like to know more about the history behind this episode, check out the sources below:

Frémont’s Fourth Expedition: A Documentary Account of the Disaster of 1848–1849
Edited by LeRoy R. Hafen and Ann W. Hafen.
Taos County Historical Society – The Lost Men of Frémont (1987)
Pueblo Chieftain – Tragic Expedition (1998)
GJ Sentinel – Disaster Struck When the Pathfinder Got Lost in Colorado (2020)
http://backpacker.com/stories/fremonts-wrong-turn/
https://www.nps.gov/grsa/learn/historyculture/john-fremont-expeditions-1848-and-1853.htm