House cats are astonishing, fascinating, and at-times frustrating little creatures -- yet they've made a comfortable home with humans, spreading in step with every civilization they join. In today's episode, Ben, Noel and Max explore an intriguing theory that busts more than a few stereotypes: What if Vikings were responsible for spreading cats even farther around the world?

House cats are astonishing, fascinating, and at-times frustrating little creatures -- yet they've made a comfortable home with humans, spreading in step with every civilization they join. In today's episode, Ben, Noel and Max explore an intriguing theory that busts more than a few stereotypes: What if Vikings were responsible for spreading cats even farther around the world?

History is beautiful, brutal and, often, ridiculous. Join Ben Bowlin and Noel Brown as they dive into some of the weirdest stories from across the span of human civilization in Ridiculous History, a podcast by iHeartRadio.

Ridiculous History

Are the Vikings to Blame for Cats?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/87ae74dc-bc40-45c4-9fdb-b22c0180f0f7/transcript

Born as Jennie Hodgers with a female sex assignment on December 25th, 1843, Albert Cashier emigrated to the United States lived as a man from his early teens on through the rest of his life. Despite the massive prejudices of the time, he managed to find support in his local communities, his friends and his fellow soldiers from the 95th Illinois Infantry both during and after the war, when the US government temporarily tried to revoke his pension.

Born as Jennie Hodgers with a female sex assignment on December 25th, 1843, Albert Cashier emigrated to the United States lived as a man from his early teens on through the rest of his life. Despite the massive prejudices of the time, he managed to find support in his local communities, his friends and his fellow soldiers from the 95th Illinois Infantry both during and after the war, when the US government temporarily tried to revoke his pension.

CLASSIC: Meet Albert Cashier, the Trans Man Who Fought for the Union in the Civil War

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/0a89e829-1ce7-43b7-b9e3-b4de00e7493e/transcript

How much do you know about the inner chaos of Carvel or Ben Cohen's quest to free Ben and Jerry's? Why are apple trees so different from one seed to the next? In the second part this special two-part series, Ben, Noel and Max explore more of the Ridiculous History they didn't get to in this year's previous episodes.

How much do you know about the inner chaos of Carvel or Ben Cohen's quest to free Ben and Jerry's? Why are apple trees so different from one seed to the next? In the second part this special two-part series, Ben, Noel and Max explore more of the Ridiculous History they didn't get to in this year's previous episodes.

Ridiculous Stuff We Didn't Get To in 2026, Part Two: Apple Trees, Ice Cream Wars and Weird Nuclear Gadgets

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/5abfbf66-39cb-477c-b018-b4d6015929ed/transcript

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/76210b33-9a87-435d-97d8-b4d6015829d4/transcript

Are the Vikings to Blame for Cats?

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