The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Badass Women in History

Episode Date: March 22, 2022

In this collection, The Daily Show correspondents Desi Lydic and Dulcé Sloan explore innovations, activism, and audacity from trailblazing women throughout history. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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egos and accounts of the extraordinary power of decency. Listen on the IHart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. I know a lot of men might think women's history doesn't affect them, but it turns out, women throughout history have invented some of men's favorite things. For example, Trevor, what's the number one thing that men can't live without? I'll give you a hint. It starts with the bee, you whip him out during spring break. Boops? Yeah, beer. No, no, boobs is a brand of South African beer. Okay. Well beer is a 530 billion dollar industry mostly thanks to men. And who tre, tre, tr, tr, tr, tr, tr, tr, tr, the tre, tre, tre, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, the, the, th- th- th- th- th- th- thre, thre, thre, thre, thre, th- th- th- th- th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thre, thre-s, threa, threa, threa, threa, threa, threa, threa, threa, threa, threa, thre-s, thre-s530 billion industry, mostly thanks to men. And who can blame

them for loving beer with all those macho ads full of sexy women, desperate to have sexy sex. Ooh, Grandpa, your social security check is so big. But it turns out, Mesopotamian women were the ones who invented this man juice. Wait, sorry, no, that doesn't sound right. This man fluid. Yeah, that's better. But it's true, 7,000 years ago, beer was considered a gift from a goddess,

and only women were entrusted with making it, which is why I no longer pay for beer when I go out. You know, instead of signing my bar tab, I just write, you're welcome. That's actually a really cool thing. I mean, not you stealing drinks, but the invention of beer. Yeah, no, and that's not all. A woman helped create one of the things men think they can do when they're drunk. Kung Fu. You know, society has always told us what that it's meant for men and pand that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's meant for that it's meant for that it's meant for that it's meant for men that it's meant for men that it's meant for men that it's meant for men that it's meant for that it's meant for that it's that it's meant for that it's meant for that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's that it's meant for that it's meant for that it's meant for that it's meant for th. that. that. the. thean. thean. thean. thean. thean. theananananananananananananananananananananananananananananan. that what? Bruce Lee, the most famous Kung Fuer of all time, got his whole style of Kung Fu from a woman. In the 1700s, a nun by the name of Inmoi

developed her method after teaching a female student how to fight off a creepy guy. You know, these days you can just swipe left, but back then you had to literally swipe left. That's, yeah, yeah, that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's thi. swipe left. That's yeah that's so amazing. Wow. I didn't know all of these things. For a lot of women's history month like I didn't know that a nun helped invent Kung Fu. Yeah well I mean it's not that crazy. Nons are badass. Remember that nun in the 90s who took down one of Reno's biggest mobsters and she still had time

to teach our choir some Motown classics. Isn't that sister act? Yeah, it's my favorite documentary. And speaking of fighting, it was this woman, Lisa Maitner, who discovered nuclear fission. I'm sorry, Desi, nuclear fission, what is that? Oh my god. Seriously? Trevor, you don't know what nuclear fission is? I mean, everyone knows it's when you fission the nuclear, you know, whatever. Okay, the point is, her discovery of nuclear fission became the basis for all nuclear weapons. So without her, there are no nuclear bombs. And without nuclear bombs, world leaders would have no way of proving how big their dicks are. Listen, fellas, the next time you're butt-chugging a PBR or start a bar fight or drop a nuke, remember all of the women who made it possible and honor them by not doing any of

that dumb shit in the first place. Athletes. They're good at running, jumping, and getting hit in the head. But some athletes are also trailblazers for justice and pioneers for change. Like Muhammad Ali protesting the Vietnam War, or Colin Kaepernick kneeling during the anthem, or J.R. Smith missing all those jump shots. I see what you're saying, J.R. No missing all those jump shots. I see what you're saying, J.R. No justice, no threes. But today, I want to talk about the activist female athletes who have been erased from the history books.

Women like track star Rose Robinson. Long before Cap Neil to protest police brutality, Rose refused to stand for the flag and anthem during the 1959 Pan American Games because she felt they represented war, injustice, and hypocrisy. Her activism was another example of black women in the 1950s perfecting the art of sitting when and where they weren't supposed to, whether it was sitting at the front of the bus, the whites-only section of a restaurant, or just sitting around judging white people dancing. Basically, we were experts at using our behinds to say fuck you to the

system. It wasn't long after the protest that the IRS came for roads for tax evasion. Mm-hmm. Of course they did. She ended up going to jail and missing the 1960 Olympic game. The same games where a young unknown athlete named cash as clay broke out onto the world stage. History may have been different if the government hadn't Wesley Snipe Robinson over $380. Fast forward to a couple of Olympics later and another brave athlete would have her protest overlooked.

Wyoming Attis was the first athlete in Olympic history, male or female, to win gold medals in consecutive hundred meter events. An accomplishment that took two decades to beat. And that's before all these modern improvements in science and nutrition and vegetables. When Tyan set this record, they hadn't even invented kale yet. And in the 1968 Olympics, Wyoming protested racial segregation by wearing black shorts instead of her uniform shorts. Unfortunately, her protest did not get the coverage it should have and no one noticed. And part of that was the media's fault. But maybe she could have done something a bit more flashy.

If your protest involves clothes, it's either got to be loud clothes or no clothes. If you're running with no bottoms, oh you've got people's attention. Finally, let's talk about Alice and Felix, one of the greatest sprinters to ever compete in the Olympics. Felix was good enough to get a Nike sponsorship until 2018 when she got pregnant. Then during contract negotiations, Nike offered her a brand new deal with a 70% pay cut, which is some bullshit. They should have given her 100% more. She's literally growing another sprinter.

If it was me, I would have rolled up the Nike and burned that bitch to ground. But Allison is classy, you know. So she wrote an op-ed in the New York Times to let the sneaker heads know what was up. The resulting outrage forced Nike to stop reducing endorsements based on an athlete getting pregnant. There was even a congressional inquiry into Nike's maternity policies for athletes. And if you're Nike, you know you need to make changes to policy

when Congress is the one telling you to just do it. So the next time you think about athletes taking a stand, don't forget the ladies. They're racking up the bling and fighting the power at the same time. Now, if it'll excuse me, I'm about to go do my own bottomless protest outside Idris Elba's house. What am I protesting? His wife. I like to celebrate the stories of impressive women that have been overlooked. It's not history, it's history.

Took me forever to come up with that. You know, Desi, I honestly have learned so much already this month about women who have done great things in history. Okay, yeah. But you see, everyone pays attention to the women who did great things. But no one speaks about women who did bad things. For example, everyone's heard of Benedict Arnold, right? He was the general who betrayed America during the Revolution, the greatest treason in our history up until Tristan Thompson.

But you probably haven't heard of Benedict's wife, Peggy Ship and Arnold. Now, she was actually the one who encouraged him to turn on America and help plan his treason treason with British officials officials. th officials. th officials. th officials. th officials officials officials officials officials officials officials. th officials. th officials. th. You officials. You th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho thoom. thoom. thoom. thoom. th. th. th. th. th. the their, their, their, their, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to toe toe toe toe toea to to thea. thea. the the the the the who encouraged him to turn on America and help plan his treason with British officials. You know, it's like they say, the couple that betrays together stays together. And there is nothing hotter than treason sex, trust me. I don't even know what that means, but that is really fascinating, Desi I had no idea about the role that she played. Oh, of course you didn't. You're a man. I didn't know either. I saw it on a Snapple cap at lunch today. That's a weird Snapple cap. Yeah.

Here's another one. We all know who Alexander the Great was. The ruthless king, bloodthirsty conquer, sideburns, of that because of a woman, his mom, Queen Olympias. She wanted her son to be king so bad, she had her husband and his other wife assassinated. She schemed so her child could have a better life, like a Macedonian Aunt Becky. You know, actually Olympias inspired me to break into my son's school and destroy the other kid's science projects.

Sorry someone trashed your volcano, Timmy, but I too am raising a king. Desi, you can't break into a school and vandalize children's homework. Oh, wow. Trevor, you're going to tell a woman what she can and can't do with her body? Wait, no, no, no, what you did was a crime. Well, you know, you know what else used to be a crime? Women voting, huh? Right, ladies? Yeah. But you know what, I'm glad you brought up crime, because women can do that too.

People always talk about machine gun Kelly. One of the most notorious gangsters during Prohibition. But nobody's ever heard of his wife, Catherine Kelly. She helped him scheme. She helped plan his kidnappings. She even gave him the gun he was named after. You know, before her, everyone called him Fingerguns, Kelly. Wow, this is really fascinating. You're opening my eyes. Like, even when it comes to bad things, we tend to erase the contributions of women from history. Yeah, and it's still happening today. Just look at Facebook. Fake news scandals, helping Russia spread propaganda.

They even sold all our dick picks to Steve Bannon. And every time something goes wrong, people blame Mark Zuckerberg, but their COO Cheryl Sandberg deserves just as much credit. Everyone's dragging his name through the mud. I am so sick of people refusing to say something bad about women on the internet. Desi, it almost sounds like you admire these bad women. I admire all women. But there is one woman I admire above all. She is my number one evil heroine. I mean, I guess heroine is is my number one evil heroine.

I mean, I guess heroine's the number one evil heroine, but this lady comes close. Trevor, when you think of pirates, you think a blackbeard, Captain Kid, or whoever's to captain now. But the most successful pirate of all time was actually a woman. Jung Ysau. In the 1800s, she had 80,000 sailors, 1,500 ships, and took more pirate fortune than Johnny Depp's lawyers.

But get this, when the Chinese Navy finally caught her, she talked her way out of jail, got Amnesty, and then opened a casino, boom. She wed from being a criminal tyrant to a legal casino owner. A move historians call the reverse Donald Trump. Trevor, have you ever wondered why women don't get the historic credit they deserve? Uh, sexism? Statues, Trevor. Women don't have as many statues as men. In fact, nationwide, only 8% of outdoor statues are of women.

Wow. How did you know that statistic? I drink snapple. I read. What? Internet? Come on, dog. And I've seen it for myself. I was walking through Central Park the other day. What? Internet? Come on, dog. And I've seen it for myself. I was walking through Central Park the other day, under duress. And I saw statues of Alexander Hamilton, Christopher Columbus, William Shakespeare, all famous men from history. But it comes to women, there's only two statues in Central Park. Alice in Wonderland and Mother Goose, which makes no damn sense.

Alice is just a white girl who took Molly. And why does Mother Goose get a statue? All she did was a ghost! I don't think that's right. Fine, she made love to a goose! No, that's no way. Okay, anyway, Dulce, I'm lost. How does having more statues help? Because, Trevor, statues help us remember history. When you walk past the statue and you're like, oh yeah, MLK did have a dream.

Thomas Jefferson was a complicated individual. And when you don't honor women the same way you honor men, you're leaving them out of history. That's true. That's true. That's true. Well, at least, at least women have the statue of liberty. That's one of the most famous statues in the world.

That doesn't count. We need statues of real women, not some giant French bitch holding an ice cream. No, someone like Tony Morrison, the first black woman to win, the Nobel Prize for Literature, or someone like Francis Perkins, the first woman appointed to a presidential cabinet. Or someone like Bionse. The first woman to be Bionse. The first woman to be Bionse. Why doesn't she have a statue?

I mean, she's already standing like a statue. She's right. This is actually a great idea. But I hope you understand. Building thousands of statues of women is going to be difficult. I mean, statues are expensive. You know, this is going to be a the the like the like the like the like the like the like the like the like thi the thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thioan like thi thi thi thioan like thian like thian like thian like thian like thi thi thi thi thi. thi. thi. thi thi. thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi theanananananananananananananananananananananananan theaaaa-ss theananananananananananananananananananananananan understand, building thousands of statues of women is going to be difficult. I mean, statues are expensive, you know, this is going to be a project that's going to take a lot of time. Oh, I've already done it, Trevor. What? I've designed one statue to symbolize all women.

Their power, their beauty, their mystique. A flawless avatar of womanhood that anyone can look at and see themselves. Don't say that that's a statue of you. Oh Trevor. I'm touched that you can see me in that art. No, it's literally you. It has your name on it. And also why are you holding a baby? You don't have kids. That baby symbolizes America, okay?

Which women have been carrying for far too long! Awesome. Now, I'm kidding. It's Idges, Elvis baby. Because that's some history I want to make. Welcome to CP Time. The only show that's for the culture. As we end Black History Month, we look back on the accomplishments of black women. And joining me for this episode is Dulce Sloan.

Thank you, Roy. But I've been here for every episode. Oh, I think you must be mistaken. CP Time is a solo show. No, no, no, no. Check the tape. I was there when you talked about actors and black politicians, and I was right in front of you during the last one.

I apologize my peripherals are not what they used to pee. Don't blame the cataracts, Roy, you forgot. Like a bitch. But it's okay. Black women have been overlooked in American history, but we've still accomplished great things. Like Madam Caj-J Walker, America's first black woman to be a self-made millionaire. No, no, no, I do believe that's Aretha Franklin dual-sense. Just because Aretha's been in a first since 1973 doesn't mean she was the

first millionaire. Madam C.J. Walker earned her millions in the early 1900s. That's old money. And she did it with hair care products, hair grower, scalp ointment, and of course she revolutionized the hot comb. Ah, the smell of hot grease and laid edges on a Saturday morning. You know, I have her to thank for all these scars on my ears. There's also Marie Van Britten Brown, an innovator who in 1966, during the heart of the Civil Rights Movement, invented the home security system. Before her, when someone broke in, people just yelled,

A man, don't take my shit! But while her invention might have dramatically decreased theft, it didn't stop ADT from stealing the idea from her. We also can't forget May Carol Jemison, the first black woman to travel in space. You know what I've always said, Doolsey, is that more black people should go to space. Not even for science, just for safety. There's no police up there. Ooh, facts, facts. And I just want to thank you for bringing these wonderful pieces to the show.

We often forget what black women did in American history. History? We're forgetting black women now. Quick. Tell me who founded the Black Lives Matter movement? Well, that's very easy. Everyone knows that's D-ray, the man in the blue vest. D-ray? No, no. The original founders were Elisa Garza, Patrice Colors, and Opel Tometti.

Were they ever wearing a blue vest? No. Okay, well how was I supposed to know? Sound like a fashion problem. Well, wait, there's only 30 minutes left here in Black History Month. And who knows? Maybe next year there won't be a need for this program because we would have reached the mountain top. Ha that is funny every year.

I'm Roywood Jr. And I'm Dulce Sloe. And this has been CP time. And remember, we're for the culture. It's no secret that women's on-screen portrayals have evolved throughout history. We've gone from playing secretaries being saved by James Bond, all the way to nuclear scientists being saved by James Bond. But I want to focus on one specific aspect of female depictions. The orgasm.

It's when a woman is stimulated to the point of climax, causing a physical and neurological response that scientists refer to as bang-tastic. And over the years, depicting female pleasure on screen is something that's changed more than the batteries in your vibrator. The first known female orgasm on the silver screen was in the 1933 German film Ecstasy, when Hedy Lamar took the Broughtwurst Express all the way to Pleasure Berg. Turns out, the world wasn't ready for this. Everyone denounced it from Hitler to the Pope. And if you ask me, the Pope has no place weighing in on sex scenes. He's celibate. I. I. I. their. their. their. their. their, th. their, th. their, their, th. thi. their, their, thi, th. thi, thi, th. their, th. I, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, th, th, th, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, th. the, the, the. the. the. the. the. the.e. the. the. the.e. the. the. their, their, their, their, their, the Pope. And if you ask me, the Pope has no place weighing in on sex scenes. He's celibate. I mean, when we need your opinion on the best stain

removers for white fabrics, then we'll call you. Unfortunately, being the first actress to climax on screen, followed Hedy Lamar for the rest of her career. She was typecast as the seductress even though she was literally the smartiress. Yeah, as her the the the the th. th. th. thus, thu. thus, thus, thus, thus, thus, thus, thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. the, the, thi. thi. the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thr-in. thr-s is toean. toean. toean. toean. toean. toean. toean. toean. toean. thean. theananeanane a brilliant scientist who invented the basis for all modern wireless technology. Without her, no one would be orgasming because we wouldn't be able to watch porn on our cell phones in the bathroom. And that was the last big on-screen female orgasm for a while, because around the same time the haze code was enforced in Hollywood. This was a set of censorship guidelines that banned movies from explicitly showing or discussing sex. Even married couples had to be shown in separate beds, or as it's now called, the reverse chocolate factory. With a four-you bedridden for the past 20 years,

it takes a lot of work to keep this family going. No one was getting off. The Hayes Code finally ended in the late 60s, which, as timing goes, is like having your dry January and at an open bar in Cabo. America was embarking on a sexual revolution, so female pleasure came back on screen. Unfortunately, it was often treated as a novelty that existed for men's amusement, so you got scenes like the one in 1968 Barbella. Where evil doctor eyebrows over here traps Jane Fonda in a machine that's supposed to give her orgasms until she dies, except that she climaxes so hard she breaks the machine. My goodness. At the time it was considered a campy, sexy

thing, but looking at it now it's a violation. Remember everyone, if you're going to put a woman in a machine that orgasms her to death, you need consent first. Another major moment came a few years later thi to to to to to to to to to to tha to thi to thi to thoes thoes thoes tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho the tho their the their the same the the same tho-a. the same the same the same the same the same the same the same the same the same the same the same the same the same the same the same the same the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. I I I I. I. I. Ia. Ia. I'm to put a woman in a machine that orgasms her to death, you need consent first. Another major moment came a few years later with the movie Deep Throat. It tells the story of a woman who keeps giving men oral sex because her pleasure zone is in her throat. That is not how it works. But Deep Throat became the first porno film to go mainstream and inspired both my uncles to become Dennis. The female orgasms in Barberella and Deep Throat were basically male fantasies about how women experienced pleasure.

So it was appropriate that the next on-screen orgasm to make a splash totally debunked those fantasies. the 1980s when Harry met Sally famously includes an extended scene of Meg Ryan faking an orgasm in a deli to prove to Billy Crystal that maybe he wasn't the cunning that he thought he was. Oh, oh, yes, yes, yes! Oh, God. This scene was groundbreaking for a few reasons.

It told all the women watching who had faked orgasms that they weren't alone. It taught men to try to be attentive to their partner's needs, and catapulted Pastrami to become the top aphrodisiac of 1989. It also started a conversation about the performative nature of the female orgasm. Women face far too much pressure to satisfy their partner's ego instead of themselves. I mean no one ever has to fake it for their vibrator. If they don't get the job done, they just go back into the drawer and they think about what they did. In the years that followed, female pleasure became more and more common on screen, but they were still often treated as punchlines, like Jennifer Aniston getting unexpected magic climaxes in Grouse Almighty, or Catherine Hegel accidentally orgasming at dinner

when a little boy grabbed her remote-controlled vibrating underwear. Okay, there is so much. th. th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thi thi thi thi thi thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi-a thi-a thi, thi, thi-a, thi-a, thi, thi, thi, and thi, and thi, in thi, in th. In th. In th. In thi, in thi, in their thi, in their their their their their their their, and their their, and their, and their thi, and thi, thi, thi, thi, thi-n, thi-n, thi-ni-ni-s, theeeeeatuuiolioliole, the-njooooooooooo-njo-njo-njo-nj vibrating underwear. Okay, there is so much wrong with this. It's non-consensual. It's a kid doing it, and it perpetuates the dangerous myth that vibrating underwear gives you anything but a five-alarm electrical burn. And even when orgasms weren't meant to be funny, it could be hard to take them seriously. Like in 40 days and 40 nights when Josh Hartnett makes his partner orgasm by caressing her with flowers, which, believe me, is not that easy. Not to be a size queen, but you're going to have to use at least a sunflower. The aughts weren't a step forward for orgasms, but they weren't a step back either. They still needed to step a little to the side. Now the other side.

Then back and forth. Yeah, right there. Thankfully in the present day, we're starting to see much more realistic and positive depictions of women popping their turkey timers. These days you can hardly turn your TV on without seeing a woman getting off. And finally, movies and shows are doing this through the female gaze. And if you don't know what that would look like, then you haven't seen Bridgerton. It's a show about 19th century British society taking care of their little women. She's a Beth in the streets but a Joe

in the sheets. Thanks to Bridgerton, there haven't been this many female orgasm since..., since everyone started watching Bridgerton. So, that's the history on the female orgasm on screen. And who knows what the future holds. But it is important because the way women are portrayed on screen holds a mirror up to how they're treated in real life. And as all women know, sometimes holding up a mirror to something is the only way to get a good look and figure out how it works.

The Daily Show with Cover Noa, Ears Edition. Watch the Daily Show Week Nights at 11, 10 Central on Comedy Central and the Comedy Central app. Watch full episodes and videos at the Daily Show. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and subscribe to the Daily Show on YouTube for exclusive content and more. Do Nice Guys Really Finish Last. I'm Tim Harford, host of the Cautionary Tales podcast, and I'm exploring that very question. Join me for my new miniseries on the Art of Fairness. From New York to Tahiti will examine villains undone by their villainy. Monstrous, self-devaring egos and accounts of the extraordinary

power of decency. Listen on the IHart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.