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Episode 551 – Dog Days, Part 3

October 25, 2024 Isaac Meyer

This week, we conclude our look at canine history in Japan with the nation’s most famous dog: Hachiko. You might…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: dogs, History, Japan, prewar

Episode 550 – Dog Days, Part 2

October 18, 2024 Isaac Meyer

This week we continue our footnote on the history of dogs in Japan. How did  public perceptions of dogs change…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: dogs, History, Japan, Meiji, Politics

Episode 549 – Dog Days, Part 1

October 11, 2024 Isaac Meyer

In the final footnote for our Revised Introduction, we turn our attention to a little discussed subject that is a…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: dogs, History, Japan, Meiji

Episode 548 – The Five Mountains, Part 2

October 4, 2024 Isaac Meyer

This week’s footnote is a continuation of last week’s discussion of the gozan, or five mountain system for the ranking of…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Ashikaga, Buddhism, History, Japan, religion, Zen

Episode 547 – The Five Mountains, Part 1

September 27, 2024 Isaac Meyer

This week on the Footnotes to the Revised Introduction to Japanese History: many describe Zen as the religion of the…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Buddhism, History, Japan, Kamakura, religion, Samurai, Zen

Mickey Cohen, part 2

September 26, 2024 Isaac Meyer

Mickey Cohen had friends in high places, from celebrities to televangelists to the LAPD. So what happened when one of…

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Posted in: Criminal Records Podcast

Episode 546 – The Extreme Right in Postwar Japan, Part 2

September 20, 2024 Isaac Meyer

This week, we’re continuing last week’s footnote on the postwar ultraright. How did the fall of the Soviet Union affect…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: extremism, History, Japan, Politics

Episode 545 – The Extreme Right in Postwar Japan, Part 1

September 13, 2024 Isaac Meyer

This week’s footnote: the first of two parts on the postwar extreme right. This week, we’re mostly focusing on the…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: Anpo, extremism, Fascism, History, Japan, Postwar

Episode 544 – A Day in the Life of Meiji Japan, Part 2

September 6, 2024 Isaac Meyer

This week, we’re continuing last week’s footnote on daily life in Meiji Japan. Topics covered this week include life as…

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Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: army, cuisine, Film, History, Japan, Kabuki, Meiji

Mickey Cohen, part 1

September 5, 2024 Isaac Meyer

It’s an illegal gambling, Nazi-punching, tax-paying good time with Mickey Cohen, a gangster who rose through the ranks during one…

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Posted in: Criminal Records Podcast

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About Me

My name is Isaac Meyer, and I’m a  former PhD student at the University of Washington, specializing in modern Japan (with sub-specializations in modern China, modern Europe, and international relations). Today, I work as a teacher at an independent school in the Seattle area.

I also have a tendency to go off on random historical tangents. One day, I decided to combine these two traits in podcast form, and thus was born the History of Japan Podcast!

In 2018, I decided start the Criminal Records Podcast with my wife, Demetria Spinrad. This podcast gives me the chance to talk about world history–and the weird, wonderful world of historical crime and punishment.

Support the Show

Support the Facing Backward network on Patreon to get access to our bonus features, including our bonus episodes about historical fiction.

The History of Japan Patreon is still live, and subscribers will be able to get the weekly newsletter there as well.

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Recent Posts

  • Episode 631 – An Interview with Evelyn Iritani
  • Episode 629 – Flowering Fortunes, Part 4
  • Episode 628 – Flowering Fortunes, Part 3
  • Episode 627 – Flowering Fortunes, Part 2
  • Episode 626 – Flowering Fortunes, Part 1
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