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Hey, Wowzer fans, Mindy here.
And before we start the show, I gotta let you know that this November, with a special new episode featuring our friends at Circle Round and Terrestrials on Radiolab for Kids,
And don't miss when Elmo from Sesame Street stops by Wow in the World to make us all belly laugh on November 24th.
Oh, but that's not all, Reg.
On December 1st, we are sharing our 250th episode of Wow in the World with all of you.
We think this one is going to be music to your ears.
Literally.
Did I mention it's a musical?
And if you're a member of the World Organization of Wowzers...
Oh boy, do I have a surprise for you.
You can listen to our 250th episode early with me and other members from around the world on Saturday, November 22nd, at 7 pm.
Eastern.
That's right, we are throwing another listening party.
Join us as we dance along to our new songs.
React to the episode with other members in the chat and more.
Grownups.
If you want your wowzer to join this members-only listening party, you can sign up to become a member today at Tinkercastcom.
Slash wow.
Already a member?
Well, you can find the link and password to join the event when you sign in at Tinkercastcom.
Slash wow.
That's it.
It's going to be a November to remember.
But for now, let's get on with the show.
Woo!
It's Wee Wow Week.
This has been so much fun, Guy Raz.
Ready for day three of our week-long Wee Wow podcast party in the Wow On Wheels?
Well, maybe we could take a break, Mindy.
I kind of feel like doing something.
I think we should go on an adventure.
But I was just starting. get the hang of this whole sitting still and listening thing.
I know, Mindy, you're getting really good at that, but don't you want to go on an adventure?
I mean, just yesterday, you wanted to invent stuff.
Was that yesterday?
How long have we been in this rolling thunder of wow and wonder?
You mean this ice cream truck?
It is not an ice cream truck anymore, Guy Raz.
I renovated it.
Well, whatever this thing is, we've been sitting in it for two days now.
Come on.
You love adventures.
Okay, fine.
But I should probably grab my adventure toolkit first.
Oh, I'm way ahead of you.
All right.
Let's see here.
Careful, Guy Raz.
There are... What in the... There are cats living in my adventure toolkit.
Mindy, why do you always have cats living in your adventure toolkit?
Well, who to make sure that my snowshoes stay in working order.
And someone has to water the fern that I keep in that thing.
You know, these snowshoes in here give me an idea, Mindy.
Do you know who Matthew Henson is?
Sure do.
He's one of the stray cats that likes to climb into my adventure toolkit.
Uh, no.
Matthew Henson was a famous Arctic explorer.
He was the first man to ever reach the North Pole.
Oh, yeah.
Matthew Henson, the explorer.
Isn't there a Who, When, Wow episode about Matthew Henson?
Yes.
How did you know?
I may have been browsing podcasts and looking through your guide phone.
Mindy.
By the way, did you mean to download that many weather apps?
Yes.
I like to follow high pressure systems.
Hand it over.
Here you go.
And don't worry.
I already followed Who, When, Wow on there for you so you never have to miss an episode.
Oh, yeah?
How did you do that?
I just searched for Who, When, Wow like this.
And then I clicked on the three little dots in the upper right-hand corner like this.
And then I clicked Follow Show like this.
There.
And now adventure is just a play away.
Ooh.
Guy Raz. and enjoy the most adventure-filled episode of Who, When, Wow, Yet?
The story of explorer Matthew Henson.
I'm ready, Mindy.
It's 1909 on the Arctic tundra, a massive expanse of ice and snow way up north, where an explorer named Robert E Perry is about to change history.
Or so he thinks.
Even though it's April, This far north, the temperature is a bone-chilling 29 degrees below zero.
So, as Perry addresses his team of men, he's all bundled up in bearskin pants, fur-lined mittens and sealskin boots.
Listen up, men.
As one of the world's most intrepid adventurers, I have brought you on this mission to do something no one has ever done before.
To reach the northernmost point on Earth, the so-called Rooftop, The one spot on our planet where every other direction, no matter which way you turn, is south.
In other words, the North Pole!
This is Robert E. Perry's eighth time trying to reach the North Pole.
Seven times he's attempted it, and seven times he's failed.
But this time... This time, I am certain I will succeed.
The pole is closer than ever.
I can feel it in my bones.
Perry reaches into his bag and takes out his sextant, a special tool for figuring out your exact location on Earth.
With his eyes glued to the sextant, Perry begins to slowly walk away from his men.
All right.
Not quite at the pole.
Not quite at the pole.
Not quite at the pole.
When he reaches a spot a little ways off, He comes to a halt.
He lets out a gasp.
Then he lets out a cheer.
I've done it!
I'm the first person ever to reach the North Pole!
My dream and ambition for 20 years!
Mine at last!
You know that last thing Perry said?
My dream and ambition for 20 years!
Mine at last!
That's an exact quote.
We actually took it from Perry's diary.
And indeed, many history books will tell you that the pole was Robert E. Perry's.
That he was the first person to reach it.
Thing is, though, that might not be true.
Credit might go to someone else entirely.
To a self-educated black man who overcame racism and discrimination to become a world adventurer, a published author and an expertly able assistant who, Robert E Perry, depended on so much that he once had to admit.
I can't get along without him.
I'm Rebecca Shear, and this is Who, When, Wow.
Our past is vast and wild.
Many things have brought us to this day.
As history has been compiled, some important details have slipped away in our spectacular shared existence.
We consider It's Mindy and Guy Raz here from Wow in the World.
Mindy and I have some brand new Wow in the World toys out in the world just in time for the holidays.
Made for the kids who love science and for the ones who don't yet.
From our 100 experiments, that Wow kit to the telescope and astronomy kit.
Our Wow in the World toys help your wowzer learn about their world through play.
Plus, you can hear exclusive audio content from me and Guy Raz to help your wowzer discover even more wows.
Grownups.
Give the gift of wow and wonder this holiday season with our latest Wow in the World toys designed with your curious wowzer in mind.
You can shop our Wow in the World toys at Tinkercast.com slash toys.
That's Tinkercast.com slash toys.
Matthew Alexander Henson was born 3500 miles south of the North Pole in Charles County Maryland, on August 8 1866.
The Civil War had just ended and even though the 13th Amendment had outlawed slavery, Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall exist within the United States.
Racism was still alive and well in Maryland, where Henson's mother and father made a meager living as tobacco farmers.
His parents knew things would be better in nearby Washington, D.C.
So when Henson was still in diapers, they moved the family to the nation's capital to find a better life.
Come on, kids.
We're moving to the nation's capital.
To find a better life.
Sadly, mother and father's lives didn't last long.
Both died before Henson's 14th birthday.
With no one to take care of him, he dropped out of school and headed to the bustling port city of Baltimore to seek his fortune.
He met up with an old captain by the name of Childs, who invited Henson to be a cabin boy on a ship called the Katie Hines.
You'll clean my room, do my laundry, that sort of thing.
Are you game?
Aye, aye, sir.
As the Katie Hines circled the globe...
Sailing from China to Japan, to France Africa, even far northern Russia and the Arctic Sea, the crew realized how much potential this hardworking Henson kit had.
So they took him under his wing.
The carpenter taught him to build.
The mechanic taught him to repair engines.
The medic even taught him first aid.
Clear!
Just kidding.
Electronic defibrillators aren't invented for another 50 years.
But how cool is that sound?
Captain Childs, meanwhile, taught Henson navigation, or how to find his way on the open seas.
Polaris, the North Star, is closest to the North Pole, Henson.
So if you see Polaris rising in the sky, you're heading north.
He also taught Henson history, math, and how to read and write.
Remember, Henson, I before E, except after C, or E.
Except after S-H in the case of our narrator's last name.
Isn't that right, Rebecca Shear?
It is!
S-H-E-I-R.
No one ever gets it right.
They will now.
After some years on the Katie Hines, Henson had grown from a shy, scrawny boy to a confident young man and a respected member of the crew.
But when Captain Childs died and the ship returned to Baltimore, Henson had trouble finding work on another ship.
So he found himself drifting from odd job to odd job.
He worked as a messenger.
Special delivery.
A chauffeur.
Where to, sir?
A bellhop.
Your luggage, ma'am.
But he wasn't happy.
He dreamed of traveling the world again, like he did on the Katie Hines.
And then he finally landed a gig that would help his dream come true.
He was working as a clerk at B.H.
Steinmetz & Son, a hat and fur shop in Washington, D.C., when one bright spring day...
Greetings, B.H.
Steinmetz and son.
Greetings, Robert E. Perry.
Well, actually, it's Lieutenant Robert E. Perry now.
The U.S.
Navy hired me as an engineer.
Congratulations.
Thank you.
My first assignment is to lead an expedition through the jungles of Nicaragua.
In Central America?
Indeed.
It's my job to find the best place for digging a canal or waterway to connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
That's right.
Because, at this point in history, ships need to sail all the way around the tip of South America if they want to get from one ocean to the other.
And airplanes haven't been invented yet.
That's right.
It is only 1887, after all.
But listen, B.H.
Steinmetz and... Oops.
Son, I came here today because I need a hat to wear in the jungle.
I also need a valet.
Someone to do my cleaning, my laundry, that sort of thing.
Might you know a fellow who'd be right for the job?
Well, it just so happens that B.H.
Steinmetz- And son!
Knew exactly the person.
Well, we'd hate to let him go, but our clerk, Matthew Henson, is a lightning-fast learner who loves to travel.
Henson, what do you say?
Gosh, I'm honored to be asked.
So, Mr. Peary, let me just say that it would be my pleasure... Lieutenant Perry.
Right, right.
Lieutenant Peary, let me just say that it would be my pleasure and privilege to.
Before you answer, Mr Henson, I should warn you trekking through the jungles of Nicaragua will be hot.
Well, Lieutenant, back on the Katie Hines, I sailed around Africa...
So trust me, heat won't be a problem at all for this year.
It will be hazardous.
Then it's a good thing I know first aid.
On the Katie Hines, the medic taught me exactly what to do if someone breaks a bone or-.
But if you join me on this journey, Mr Henson, you will be part of history in the making.
So, you in?
Matthew Henson knew he was overqualified to be just a servant.
But he also knew a golden opportunity when he saw one.
I'm in, Lieutenant.
I'm in.
And with that, Matthew Henson and Robert E. Perry kicked off... Lieutenant Robert E. Perry?
Right.
Matthew Henson and Lieutenant Robert E Perry kicked off a partnership that would span decades and continents.
And in the process it would lead to mind-blowing adventures, narrow escapes from death, even worldwide fame.
Well, for one of them, anyway.
We'll find out which one after a quick break.
What?
No!
You can't take a break now!
I have to know what happens next!
Literally.
And no storyteller does cliffhangers quite like Who Win Wow's Rebecca Shear.
We'll catch the rest of the episode tomorrow, but in the meantime I was thinking we'd get your adventure toolkit ready for adventure.
Oh, yeah.
And maybe the Wowzers of the world will want to make their own adventure toolkits, too.
Guy Raz, hand me my megaphone.
Okay, where is it?
It's in my adventure toolkit.
You want me to put my hand in that thing?
It's fine, Guy Raz.
The cats are tamed.
Okay.
Ah, you found my megaphone.
Thanks, buddy.
Anytime.
Attention, wowsers of the world.
The first step to being a great adventurer is to make sure you have the right equipment.
And that means you will need your very own adventure toolkit.
And you'll find some tips on making your own adventure toolkit at Tinkercast.com.
And meet us back here tomorrow for part two of Matthew Henson's story on Who Went Well.
Until then, who wows?
We wow.
Nope, not you cats.
Get back.
Grownups, if you like Wow in the World, you can listen early and ad-free right now on Wondery Plus.
Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Wondery Kids Plus on Apple Podcasts.
Prime members can listen ad free on Amazon Music.
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