# Anybody else notice The History Detectives sucks? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 9, 2005, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280 "2005-08-09T15:12:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/21 "2005-08-10T00:12:45Z")
CAN’T STAND THEIR THEME SONG!! Otherwise, just as lame as other history shows on History channel. ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/22 "2005-08-10T02:31:23Z")
> [@Lissa](#): > > They want “mysteries” that are easily solved by a trip to the local archives. Their “research” seems to consist of browsing through microfilm, most likely handed to them by a librarian who knew exactly where it was stored. That’s my problem with it. I want my mysteries to need more than two steps to solve. They set up something at the beginning that always seems interesting, but it never is. I just feel like if these records were digitized, most of the mysteries could be Googled. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/23 "2005-08-10T12:46:44Z")
> [@](#): > > Looks like it must be - The second episode from the 2005 season > A San Francisco toy collector, however, believes his small mouse figurine may turn the legend of Mickey on its ears. With a red label on its chest that reads “Micky” and a patent label on the bottom of one foot that says “Pat. Aug. 17, 1926,” the figure appears to have been produced two years before Walt Disney created Mickey Mouse. > You can get the transcript of the “mouse story” as a pdf. I’m sorry i missded that (Pepper Mill loves History Detectives). I saw a picture of what was almost certainly that toy in a stiory on Walt Disney in Life magazine _decades_ ago. They stuck that toy in among a bevy of franchised Mickey Mouse toys, noting that it didn’t really look like Mickey, wasn’t spelled right, and appeared too early, so it probably wasn’t a real Mickey Mouse knock-ff. Sounds like the History Detectives didn’t really have a lot of woerk to do on that one. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Lance\_Murdoch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/47e85d/32.png) [@Captain\_Lance\_Murdoch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Lance_Murdoch)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/24 "2005-08-10T14:34:18Z")
I like the song on its own, but it doesn’t make sense in the context of the show. They might as well have picked They Might Be Giants’ (She Was A) Hotel Detective for the theme song. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_Bowe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df788c/32.png) [@Doug\_Bowe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_Bowe)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/25 "2005-08-10T16:36:30Z")
May I throw out a thought? I was disappointed in History Detectives, too, and agree that Secrets of the Dead is a much better program. The thought: History Detectives is not aimed at the demo represented by members of this board. If the show makes you feel like you’re in a 4th grade classroom… maybe that’s it’s target. ---
**Author:** ![lhovis73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecd19e/32.png) [@lhovis73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lhovis73)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2005, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/26 "2005-08-11T08:22:36Z")
I just saw this show for the first time tonight. I’d probably watch another episode, seems pretty interesting. Did I learn anything about history? Um… That Elyse woman was a bit hard to take…seems like she belongs behind the counter at an Orange Julius, and not doing research at historical societies. My guess is that they ship these items off to real experts and then have the show’s talking heads go through the motions of discovering the truth behind each item (“pretend to read this book with great interest, Elyse…”). One thing that was kind of suspicious in this episode: they’ve got an old cannon that was supposedly involved in the American Revolution. They find an old newspaper article that describes the cannon…and one of the facts doesn’t match up (it says that it’s a 3-pounder and not a 4-pounder like they’ve got, or something like that). So they say “well, newspapers back then often got the facts wrong, so that doesn’t mean anything.” But then they use the same newspaper to authenticate other details of the cannon. I don’t know…it just seemed kind of shady how they say at one point “don’t believe what you read in old newspapers” and the next minute they say, “aha! this newspaper proves that we’ve got the real thing here!” I guess you’d have to see it… Still, the best thing that was available to me tonight (I only get a couple of channels…) ---
**Author:** ![waits](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/df788c/32.png) [@waits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waits)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2005, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/27 "2005-08-11T15:08:16Z")
I didn’t even realize this show was still on. I think my PBS affiliate may have dropped it. I also gave up after a short while. Being a research librarian can be interesting. Watching one on TV… not so much. Oh, and > [@mobo85](#): > > “Check this out! In 1927, the New York Times said that Kaiser Wilhelm’s left arm was stolen by a French soldier in Belgium during World War I!” I believe you meant to say “19-dickety-seven” because, of course, the Kaiser stole our word “twenty” (Abe Simpson reference). ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2005, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/28 "2005-08-11T21:07:33Z")
Worst show ever on PBS. Even worse than “Methulesa Tree”. I know, I spelled it wrong. As for Elyse Luray being “hot”: If by “hot” you mean so annoying in voice, habit, dress and acting you want to beat her with a sack of doorknobs, then, a resounding YES! She is “hot”. Anyone catch the recent one where they track some schlub who did time in an English POW camp during the Rev War? They find an entry in a book confirming his time spent there, including the fact HE WAS RELEASED AND SENT HOME!! Then the “detectives” waste the rest of the segment trying to find out if EVER GOT RELEASED AND SENT HOME!! :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/29 "2005-08-12T00:27:41Z")
> [@waits](#): > > Oh, and I believe you meant to say “19-dickety-seven” because, of course, the Kaiser stole our word “twenty” Good point. I didn’t realize Kaiser Wilhelm didn’t die until 1941. I once tried to chase him to get the word “twenty” back, but gave up after dickety-six miles. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/30 "2005-08-12T11:50:57Z")
I kinda like it - at least 1 of the 3 segments usualy interest me. I do agree it is lightweight. I particularly like the WWI art. The artist was most famous for his WWII art, and the signatures on the 4 pieces were different from each other. But when they looked at some of his other early work and his signature varied. And they found one drawing that was very close to one of the pieces. Ok so it is not a huge leap to look at the artist’s early work, but you would have to know WHERE such work exists. Anyhow, I found thge story interesting. Brian ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/31 "2005-08-12T15:28:46Z")
A better show in the same vein is the [History Channel’s Weird U.S.](http://www.historychannel.com/weirdus/) It’s the history channel’s Mythbuster knock off. Pretty good and entertaining in that it doesn’t take itself too seriously. I am sometimes left wanting more information though- They aren’t exactly indepth or substantive pieces, I assume because of time restraints. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280/32 "2005-08-12T21:55:47Z")
> [@devilsknew](#): > > A better show in the same vein is the [History Channel’s Weird U.S.](http://www.historychannel.com/weirdus/) It’s the history channel’s Mythbuster knock off. I wouldn’t call _Weird U.S._ a “knock-off” of either _Mythbusters_ or _History Detectives_. It basically involves pointing out unusual sights across the United States. The only segment on the show that was similar to either program was a story involving a Frenchman who was hanged in New Jersey and whether or not his skin was made into wallets afterwards (answer: yes). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-notice-the-history-detectives-sucks/316280.md?page=1)