Summary
Overview
The No Such Thing As A Fish team welcomes QI elf and children's author Anne Miller to discuss fascinating facts ranging from Ben-Hur's unfortunate dedication mishaps to the remarkable biology of naked mole rats. Topics include Greek mythology, American comic strip history, ancient gods of beans, and the social hierarchy of underground rodent colonies.
Ben-Hur's Dedication Disasters and Lou Wallace's Remarkable Life
Lou Wallace, author of the bestselling 19th-century novel Ben-Hur, created confusion with his book's dedication. His wife Susan chose 'To the wife of my youth,' which readers interpreted as meaning she had died, prompting marriage proposals. When they tried to correct it to 'who still abides with me,' it sounded even more like a memorial. Wallace himself had an extraordinary life as a Civil War general, investigator of Lincoln's assassination conspirators, territorial governor of New Mexico, and the man who arrested Billy the Kid.
- Ben-Hur was the biggest-selling novel of the 19th century until Gone with the Wind
- The dedication 'To the wife of my youth' led people to send condolence letters and marriage proposals
- Wallace corrected it to 'who still abides with me,' which sounded equally like she had died
- Wallace investigated Lincoln assassination co-conspirators and was a Civil War general
- He served as territorial governor of New Mexico where Billy the Kid's people shot at his candles while he wrote
- Wallace patented eight inventions including a retractable fishing rod reel
" I would not give a tuppence for the American who has not tried to do at least one of these things: paint a picture, write a book, get a patent or try to play a musical instrument. That is the genius of the true American in those four: art, literature, invention and music. "
Greek Gods: From Olympian Majesty to the God of Beans
Ancient Greek mythology featured not just major deities like Zeus and Aphrodite, but also obscure figures like Chiomites, the god of beans. The pantheon operated like a government hierarchy with senior gods and junior deities responsible for specific domains. Greek worship was illegal in Greece until 2006, and the first temple to Greek gods in modern times was built in 2025, opening on March 8th.
- Chiomites was the mysterious god of beans, specifically broad beans, who hung around with Demeter
- Aphrodite may have originated from Uranus's severed testicles being thrown into the sea
- A 360 BC vase depicts Aphrodite giving Eros a spanking with a slipper, possibly the first instance of this punishment
- Worshipping Zeus and Greek gods was illegal until an Athens court ruling in 2006
- The first modern temple to Greek gods was built in the Peloponnese and opened in March 2025
- Pythagoras feared beans because they were thought to contain souls of dead people
" Whoever has been initiated in Eleusis or has read what I called the Orphika knows what I mean. "
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