Drunk History (2013–…): Season 4, Episode 6 - Siblings - full transcript

Katharine Wright tells
the Wright Brothers,

you guys got to believe in yourselves,

and also let me help you,

because I'm smarter than both of you.

Oh, I just spilled all
over the couch and myself.

Constance Kopp says,

yo, what the [bleep]
happened to my buggy?

And that's a fact.

And the Fox sisters
were the first mediums.

I just crossed some sort
of drunken threshold.

You're... you're okay.



Do you have any siblings?

I have a brother.

- Older or younger?
- He's three years older.

- Oh, he's older.
- Yeah.

Do you have any siblings?

One. He's older.

He's a brother, but,
like, we hated each other,

and now we're best friends.

Oh, yeah, we got along

- when we were little.
- Really?

Now we [bleep] hate each other.

- Oh, switchies.
- [Bleep] you.

No, we get along.

- To siblings.
- Whoo!



- Hey, guys.
- Hold up.

Oh, no, you want me to say hello?

I like "Hey, guys."

It's very podcast-y.

But maybe say,

- "Hello, I'm Lauren Lapkus..."
- Hello.

- "And today..."
- Okay.

Hello, I'm Lauren Lapkus,

and today we're gonna discuss

the Wright brothers

and the Wright sister.

Am I right?

Okay, so everyone's really familiar

with the Wright brothers.

Everyone knows about their planes

and their whole thing,
but they didn't know

that there's a younger
sister, Katharine.

So basically, our story begins in 1874

in Dayton, Ohio,

and basically she and Orville and Wilbur

were, like best friends,
and they'd do, like,

all kinds of old-timey activities

that were fun for people then.

Like, they would collect bones

and sell them to fertilizing plants.

Classic thing to do.

You know, classic, like bone collecting.

And they made a pact together

that they were never gonna get married.

Like, the brothers were
like, let's not get married.

Why don't we all just,
like, be together?

We'll just be, like, a
unit. And Katharine's like,

maybe I'll meet someone I actually like.

Like, you guys are my brothers,
and I don't really feel

like that about you guys,
and I don't think I should

feel like that about you
guys. And they're like,

no, no, no, no, no.
Let's just stick together

and be, like, a thing.

And she's like, fine, I guess.

And then basically, like, the brothers

started getting really into
the idea of manned flight,

and so they're like... like,
I don't care about school.

I want to work on my
planes. And he's like,

I want to work on my planes too.

I want to work on planes with you.

I love you. And Katharine was like,

I believe in you.

And they didn't graduate high school.

They were just really focused
on the whole plane situation,

so meanwhile, Katharine graduated

from Oberlin College in 1898,

so she was very, like,
smart and successful

in her own "Wright."

- Oh, man.
- I didn't want to do that,

- but I had to.
- Okay.

So when she graduates from college,

Orville's like, I
have a present for you.

It's a diamond ring.

And she's like, okay.

Are you proposing to me, or what is it?

He's like, no, it's like
a brother-sister thing.

Like, it's just, like, a
ring. Like, it'll just...

it'll just be like...
it's like our pact.

And she's like, okay,
that's kind of weird,

but I guess I'll wear it

until I meet someone.

He's like, no, you'll never meet anyone.

She's like, I might meet someone.

He's like, you won't meet anyone.

Oh, I just spilled all
over the couch and myself.

- That's okay.
- Okay.

Moving right along.

So in 1901,

Orville and Wilbur
build the Wright glider,

and they go to Kitty
Hawk, North Carolina,

and they're like, we're gonna
fly the first plane ever.

But then it goes really horribly.

It, like, falls apart, and
it was a complete disaster,

and basically they had a horrible time.

So basically they're
just like, forget this.

Like, this is a nightmare.

Like, I'm never gonna be good at this.

Not within a thousand years

will man ever fly a plane.

And Katharine's like, you guys
got to believe in yourselves.

No one's ever done this.

Why would you think
it would work perfectly

the first time? You have to try again,

and also let me help you,

because I'm smarter than both of you.

And so they got reinvigorated,

and basically they decided

they were gonna fly
planes again, because...

You have to drink every
time you say "basically."

New rule.

Okay.

So their family had,
like, a bicycle shop,

and so, like, they were
working in this shop,

trying out all these different ways

to make planes.

And Katharine's like,
let's look at research

from other people
who've done this before.

You guys aren't... you're just
making it up at this point.

And so she's, like,
translating from German

and all these languages, and she's like,

this says you need to fly like this.

You have to go and make
the wings, like, bigger.

Make the wings, like, taller, and...

and go and believe in it
more and all this stuff.

And they created a
whole new plane together.

And so basically...

Uh, you got to drink.

- Basically.
- Oh, shit.

Okay, so December 17, 1903,

they try it again at Kitty Hawk,

and Orville Wright fow... fowered...

powered the first flight.

20 feet above the ground,

and it's epic,

and I don't like the word "epic,"

but I have said it here
because it's accurate.

It's a really big deal,

and they have, like,
700 successful flights.

They're up, and the they're down.

They're all over the place.

So, like, Katharine flies in the plane

for the first time ever,

and she was like,

I feel like a bird,

and birds are so happy,

and birds sing because they're happy.

So Wilbur's like, we couldn't
have done it without you.

I love you.

So then, years later,

Katharine is like, all
right, [bleep] this.

I'm getting married. I'm 52.

I might as well get
married at this point.

I feel like the pact is over.

Meanwhile, Orville's like,

no, the pact's not done. I hate you.

I'm not gonna speak to you ever again,

and she's like, whatever.
I have this dude now,

and I don't really care if
you don't talk to me anymore.

And they, like, make
out in front of Orville.

It's really rude.

It's so dumb.

- It's really rude.
- It's so rude.

Orville's like, damn, this blows.

We all have known
about Orville and Wilbur

for as long as we all have lived,

but if they didn't have Katharine,

they wouldn't have had
the belief in themselves.

They wouldn't have confidence,
and they wouldn't have had

the ability to translate
things to know what...

how things really work.

There's always someone
else behind the scenes

who's helping people.

No, I bet that's not
true. I take it back.

But sometimes there is.

You got that right.

You got that right.

You got the right one, baby, uh-huh.

Uh-huh.

Whenever you're ready, buddy.

Hello, I'm Mike Still,

and today we're gonna talk
about the Kopp sisters,

the original lady badasses.

- Cheers.
- Cheers.

So our story starts in 1914
in Paterson, New Jersey,

and Constance Kopp and her
sisters Norma and Fleurette

go out to lunch.

They're eating sandwiches
and 1914 drinks,

and all of of a sudden,
they hear this loud noise.

Beep, beep!

So their horse-and-carriage
cart was smashed

by an automobile.

Who was driving this automobile?

It was Henry Kaufman.

He was a mean little guy

who owned the Paterson
silk-dyeing corporation.

Constance comes out and she's like, yo!

What the [bleep] happened to my buggy?

Ah, I don't know.

Who cares?

You're a woman.

I'm Henry Kaufman. I'm the king of silk.

I'm not gonna worry about
some horse and buggy bullshit.

[Bleep] you.

So he drives off in his car,

but Constance was just like, no.

We're not gonna let
this guy walk over us.

We're going to e-mail...

We're gonna write him a letter
and say, "Give me 50 bucks.

Give us 50 bucks," so
they go home to their farm

and she sends a letter to Henry Kaufman.

Doesn't hear a response.

So a few weeks go by,
and a brick goes through

their farmhouse window.

Oh, my God. What's that?

I don't know, a brick.

Who would do it? I don't know.

A week later, Norma
went out to the outhouse

behind the farmhouse

and boom! Boom!

She was getting shot at!

She runs back inside.

Guys!

I was trying to take a dump

and I was getting shot at!

So the Kopp sisters are
starting to get so pissed off

about this, so they go
to the county prosecutor,

and they say, "Look,
we're getting harassed,

"we're getting threatened.

"You need to help us out here.

You need to send some
people over to our farm."

And he's like, I don't know.

I don't believe you.

There's no proof. There's no proof.

But the sheriff of Bergen
County, Robert Heath,

overheard what they were talking about,

and Sheriff Heath was like,
I'll help you, little ladies.

I'll teach you how to help yourself.

So Sheriff Heath gives all
three of the Kopp sisters

a gun.

So he taught them how to use the guns.

Aim up.

Aim at your target.

He let them hold the guns

and kiss guns.

Whatever you do to guns.

And that's a fact.

So the media

- heard about the Kopp sisters,
- _

and they became a sensation.

So you'd think that these
people would give up.

Like, these ladies are armed.

They're dangerous. No.

The Kopp sisters got
an extortion letter,

and it said, "Bring $1,000

"to the corner of Broadway and
Carol and meet a man in black.

"We know where you live.

"We're gonna kill your farm

"and kill the cows

"and kill you.

We're gonna murder you."

"We're gonna smash you up.

Signed, H.K. and company."

Which that... I mean,
that's Henry Kaufman.

That's his initials.

Like, it's clearly Mr. Silk himself.

So Constance wasn't gonna have this.

She's like, I'm taking
this into my own hands.

So she goes to the corner
of Broadway and Carol

and a man in black shows
up, but she's not alone.

She has backup from Sheriff Heath,

and he's like...

And then he realizes the jig is up

and he runs!

And Sheriff Heath's like, go!

Go! Go!

And they capture him, and they're like,

well, how do we prove
it was Henry Kaufman?

New science,

handwriting analysis.

They hired William J. Kingsley
to examine the handwriting,

and William J. Kingsley
said, "Oh, my God.

This is the same as Henry Kaufman."

"We know that he is the criminal

that went after the Kopp sisters."

And because it was his handwriting

and he used the Post Office,
it became a federal crime,

and we went to jail
for abusing the mail.

So Constance Kopp
brought down this kingpin

everyone was scared of in New Jersey.

And Sheriff Heath was
so impressed, he said,

"Well, Henry Kaufman's under arrest.

And I want you to be under
sheriff of Bergen County."

She became American's
first female sheriff.

And then the Kopp sisters

started their own detective agency,

and they solved cases
and they found out...

there were crimes and everything.

So Constance's achievements...

wait.

Sorry.

So Constance's achievements
became world-renowned,

so when Constance passed
away, everyone was very sad.

The others, did they
continue as detectives?

They didn't continue as detectives.

Fleurette was really into,
like, fashion and music

and singing and stuff,

and you know her as Madonna.

No, that's not true.

That's not true.

Have you ever seen a ghost?

Of course not.

Why you say, "Of course not"?

I enjoy hearing ghost stories...

- You do like ghost stories.
- Yeah, and I enjoy hearing

other people's accounts,
but that's all garbage.

Okay.

How's it going? I'm
Hollywood's JD Ryznar,

and today we're gonna
talk about the Fox sisters

and all the ghosts they talked to.

I'm gonna prove you wrong tonight.

So...

our story begins in the
1840s in a small farmhouse

of the Fox family.

And it's a spooky house.

They hear sounds at
night, knocks on the door,

phantom steps on the stairs.

And young Maggie and Katie Fox
run into their parents' room

and say, "Mom, Dad, there's
a fricking ghost in our room.

You got to come check it out."

And the mom runs into the room,

and the girls are like,
ghost, are you there?

Tap, rap, ghost. Are you there?

Rap two times for yes,
three times for no.

And the ghost goes...

And the mom's like,
oh my... holy smokes!

It's a ghost in our house!

What they learned from
the rapper once they...

once they figured out a special code

was that this ghost was
a peddler who was murdered

and buried in their cellar.

And the mom, she starts
bringing neighbors over,

and everybody was like, oh
my... these girls can talk

to ghosts, to the spirits of the dead.

This is the real deal.

So fearing for their daughters' souls,

Ma and Pop Fox sent Maggie
and Katie off to live

with their sister Leah
in Rochester, New York,

and when Leah saw their skills
with communicating to ghosts,

she was like, I want...
I want to be your manager,

and we're gonna make a lot of money.

So she invites the press,
and the press comes,

and they are... they're skeptical.

They're like, these ghost
girls can't talk to ghosts.

This is garbage, but Maggie
and Katie are so good,

they convince the press, like...

Your sister has three dead babies.

And he's like, my sister
has three dead babies!

I believe you.

And all of a sudden,
everybody believes it.

And the Fox sisters
were the first people

ever to be called mediums.

And so this new thing
thing called spiritualism

lights a blaze across the
United States of America.

But wait! Stop the reenactment

because guess what.

- There was...
- Mm-hmm.

It's all bullshit.

You ever see "Wayne's World"?

Of course I've seen "Wayne's World."

That's what they do
when they do a flashback.

We're gonna do one now.

This is gonna be good.

Make the picture look wavy.

So here's what really happened,

Maggie and Katie are pulling
pranks on their parents

on April Fool's Eve.

The girls are tying apples
to strings and making sounds

up the stairs.

Woop, boop, boop, boop, boop.

Katie says to Maggie,

You know how you can snap your toes

like you snap your fingers?

You should do that,

and they'll think it's the ghost

because they're dumb.

So they were cracking
their toe knuckles,

and snapping their toes like this,

and that was the raps
that the ghosts made.

These little kids were
[bleep] with their mom.

Next they knew, they were making money.

But Maggie says to Katie, like,

hey, this is not quite a good idea,

'cause we're kind of
fooling people into this.

And Katie's like, we
should keep doing this,

'cause this is fun.

We're making people
believe anything they want.

We're making people feel good.

Pause. The next thing is

when you go to commercial break.

Okay.

You want to do a commercial for...

Commercial.

Comedy Central will go to commercial.

All right, anyway.

Okay. Here we go.

Um...

Okay.

Okay, so where were we?

It's 1888.

Once the girls got super rich

ripping people off with
their fancy ghost stories,

they're just drinking booze
and talking to each other.

Going like, I feel so shitty

that we're ripping people off,

making 'em feel good about
talking to dead people.

And so Maggie sells tickets

to a show at a theater

where she's gonna expose
spiritualism as a fraud.

People file in. They're like,

let's hear what's happened.

So Maggie takes the
stage at this theater

and is like, here's how we do it.

And she takes off her stocking,

and she's like, I click my toes

like this.

Blap, blap, blap.

I can't do it.

If I could do it, I'd be
making a thousand dollars a week

as a stupid medium, making people think

they're talking to their dead babies.

Boop, boop, boop.

Give me a thousand dollars.

Boop, boop, boop.

Give me another thousand dollars.

Boop, boop. I'm rich.

Maggie gives this big presentation.

She gives away all her secrets.

At the end of her speech, she says,

spiritualism is the greatest curse

mankind has ever known.

And the audience is like,

[bleep] her.

We like talking to ghosts.

Spiritualism has taken
off at that point,

and so basically what
Maggie Fox has done

is made her and her sisters irrelevant.

So after Maggie realizes
that her life is nothing

when she's not a medium,

she just drank a bunch
of booze till she died.

Decades later, after
the girls were dead,

after it was all over
sometime in the 1900s...

the early 1900s,

some fan of theirs

was snooping around the foundation

of their old farmhouse,

and they found some bones.

The bones of the ghost they
were initially talking to?

Oh, shit.

A lot of people said
it was chicken bones

and other bones,

so it was not really...

you can't really take a lot out of it,

but maybe it's the bones of people.

I don't know. I don't know.

It's maybe real. It might be fake.

I don't know.

I just crossed some sort
of drunken threshold.

- Hey, JD?
- Mm.

Let's talk ghosts.

All right, so this meter

detects hot or cold.

So when it feels cold,

it goes blue.

A true spirit really only

energizes through blue.

I'm gonna have a couple of names

that I'm gonna bring up here.

John Van Pelt.

You created this house.

Your wife... you
remember his wife's name?

Myra Marsh.

Very good.

Myra Marsh Van Pelt

lived here.

Are you still here?

If so, let us know.

Ghost stories... puking history.

Look at that. You got to see this.

The color is changing.