December 17th isn’t just the day the Wright brothers changed the world forever — it’s also packed with forgotten betrayals, doomed rebellions, buried monuments, missing explorers, tragic disasters, and pop-culture milestones that somehow slipped through the cracks of history.

In this episode of What You Didn’t Hear, we dig beneath the famous headlines and uncover the strange, overlooked, and often disturbing events that also happened on December 17th. From ancient Rome to feudal Japan, from the depths of the ocean to the birth of modern aviation, this date proves history is far messier — and far more interesting — than textbooks admit.

We begin with the Wright brothers’ first successful powered flight in 1903, then rewind over a millennium to 546 AD, when Rome fell to the Ostrogoths through betrayal and starvation. Along the way, we explore assassinated dukes, papal scandals, inquisitors accused of serving Satan, teenage emperors, violent religious uprisings in Japan, and a massive Aztec monument deliberately buried to erase the past.

You’ll also hear about:

• The assassination of William Longsword, Duke of Normandy
• The rise and brutal end of the Shimabara Rebellion in Japan
• The rediscovery of the Aztec Sun Stone
• A lost Australian explorer who vanished without a trace
• France offering a cash prize for communicating with aliens
• The birth of diesel-electric locomotives in New York
• A haunting submarine disaster where sailors tapped out their final question: “Is there any hope?”
• The premiere of James Bond: Goldfinger, Diamonds Are Forever, and the first-ever airing of The Simpsons

If you love on-this-day history, bizarre historical events, forgotten stories, and the kind of facts that make you sound dangerously well-informed at parties, this episode is for you.

History didn’t forget these stories — it just didn’t want to talk about them.

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What You Didn’t Hear, the podcast where we dive into the overlooked stories that happened on the same days as history’s biggest events. While the world was watching one headline, countless other stories quietly unfolded—some fascinating, some tragic, and some that changed lives in ways we’ve never heard about.

In each episode, we’ll take you beyond the front page and shine a light on the moments history forgot. Because every day holds more than one story—and it’s time those voices were heard.

Connect with me on Social Media! Comment your favorite parts, something interesting that you learned, or a topic that you would live a deeper dive into!

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If you have any questions or recommendations for Deep Dive episode topics that you would like to hear, I can be reached by e-mail at whatyoudidnthear.podcast@gmail.com