For much of the 70s inflation was bad. Prices rose at over 10 percent a year. Nothing could stop it. President Gerald Ford tried to cut inflation by asking Americans to spend less.
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10 Planet Money episodes to explain economics
These 10 cerebral episodes from Planet Money chart the vast and varied landscape of economics — from the marketing genius that kicked off the premium vodka craze to the story behind how the U.S. finally got a minimum wage. All that and more, in fascinating deep dives of a half hour or less.
Desi Arnaz made television history on I Love Lucy. Then he made business history.
We journey to the site of an epic battle between two warring clans. We see ghosts, goblins, and demons. And we find out how hyperinflation in one collapsing economy led to a deadly battle in a beloved video game.
People in La Crosse, Wisconsin are used to talking about death. In fact, 96 percent of people who die in this small, Midwestern city have specific directions laid out for when they pass. That number is astounding.
A ship with 3,186 tons of garbage sailed up and down the East Coast in 1987, and was rejected at every stop. It became a symbol for America's problem with trash — and got the country recycling
In 1955, an onion farmer made a fortune cornering the market in the United States. By the time he was done, there were literally onions flowing through the streets.
People argue about what the minimum wage should be. But for most of U.S. history, there was no minimum. Here’s how it started.
Marvin Horne was known as the raisin outlaw. His crime: Selling 100 percent of his raisin crop.
If you ever see vodka packaging making grand, fanciful claims, don’t believe it.
Bobby Bonilla Day is the greatest American holiday. On this show, we find out why by talking to Bobby Bonilla himself.
