1 00:00:04,588 --> 00:00:09,176 Remember when cooling off meant taking the long way down? 2 00:00:10,219 --> 00:00:11,677 Whoever can jump from the highest spot 3 00:00:11,678 --> 00:00:14,722 was definitely like the toughest person you knew. 4 00:00:14,723 --> 00:00:17,975 You run, you hold your nose, and you hope you don't die. 5 00:00:17,976 --> 00:00:20,228 Or when the neighborhood playground 6 00:00:20,229 --> 00:00:24,398 came with exposed nails and live wires? 7 00:00:24,399 --> 00:00:27,526 I think the forbidden, naughty nature of doing it 8 00:00:27,527 --> 00:00:29,362 increased its appeal. 9 00:00:29,363 --> 00:00:33,366 Or when childhood pranks came with a short fuse? 10 00:00:33,367 --> 00:00:35,743 It contains 80 grains of powder, 11 00:00:35,744 --> 00:00:38,162 and that's 100 times more explosive 12 00:00:38,163 --> 00:00:40,456 than any firework available today. 13 00:00:40,457 --> 00:00:41,749 Parents don't care. 14 00:00:41,750 --> 00:00:43,000 They're in on it. 15 00:00:43,001 --> 00:00:45,169 Hey, we grew up with blowing things up. 16 00:00:45,170 --> 00:00:46,213 You should too. 17 00:00:47,756 --> 00:00:52,094 These are the things we used to do for fun, for money, 18 00:00:52,469 --> 00:00:56,681 or maybe out of boredom, that we'll never see again. 19 00:00:56,682 --> 00:00:58,266 Were they dangerous? 20 00:00:58,267 --> 00:00:59,475 Certainly. 21 00:00:59,476 --> 00:01:00,351 Deadly? 22 00:01:00,352 --> 00:01:01,310 Occasionally. 23 00:01:01,311 --> 00:01:03,939 But boy, wasn't it exciting? 24 00:01:14,449 --> 00:01:16,784 Remember your first bicycle? 25 00:01:16,785 --> 00:01:21,455 It wasn't just transportation, it was independence. 26 00:01:21,456 --> 00:01:23,374 And if you grew up in the seventies, 27 00:01:23,375 --> 00:01:25,793 it was how you proved yourself, 28 00:01:25,794 --> 00:01:28,672 and the danger ramped up pretty quickly. 29 00:01:30,507 --> 00:01:32,592 By the time the bicycles became big, 30 00:01:32,593 --> 00:01:33,884 at the turn of the 19th century, 31 00:01:33,885 --> 00:01:36,345 all the way to just about the 1960s, 32 00:01:36,346 --> 00:01:38,014 it was just about transportation 33 00:01:38,015 --> 00:01:40,391 to get you from point A to point B, 34 00:01:40,392 --> 00:01:42,852 maybe use them on your paper route. 35 00:01:42,853 --> 00:01:47,858 But then in 1965, a dude comes along and changes everything. 36 00:01:50,402 --> 00:01:54,113 Evel Knievel is the greatest daredevil to ever live. 37 00:01:54,114 --> 00:01:56,032 The one and only Evel Knievel. 38 00:01:56,033 --> 00:01:58,868 I mean, in the sixties and seventies, 39 00:01:58,869 --> 00:02:01,663 he was like a God walking amongst us. 40 00:02:03,915 --> 00:02:06,250 Evel Knievel. 41 00:02:06,251 --> 00:02:08,835 He's on magazines and lunchboxes, 42 00:02:08,836 --> 00:02:11,130 and even has a toy version of himself 43 00:02:11,131 --> 00:02:12,716 that can jump over things. 44 00:02:15,677 --> 00:02:18,429 But playing with an action figure isn't enough. 45 00:02:18,430 --> 00:02:21,349 Kids want in on the action themselves. 46 00:02:21,350 --> 00:02:24,435 Suddenly kids want bikes that look more badass 47 00:02:24,436 --> 00:02:29,441 with chopper handle bars and really sick forks and frames. 48 00:02:30,359 --> 00:02:31,901 Bicycle, motorcycle, who cares? 49 00:02:31,902 --> 00:02:33,611 I'm Evel Knievel, baby. 50 00:02:33,612 --> 00:02:36,781 This 1968 model, the Stingray, this thing was amazing. 51 00:02:36,782 --> 00:02:39,200 It had a smaller front wheel for maneuverability, 52 00:02:39,201 --> 00:02:42,036 a five speed gear shift right on the frame, 53 00:02:42,037 --> 00:02:43,496 and front and rear suspension, 54 00:02:43,497 --> 00:02:47,625 which just made it perfect for jumping things. 55 00:02:47,626 --> 00:02:49,627 Kids wanted to jump something that would 56 00:02:49,628 --> 00:02:50,878 draw a crowd. 57 00:02:50,879 --> 00:02:53,005 Okay, they don't have a line of school buses 58 00:02:53,006 --> 00:02:56,384 like Evel Knievel, but you might have a friend or two 59 00:02:56,385 --> 00:02:59,136 that might be willing to lay down. 60 00:02:59,137 --> 00:03:00,763 Kids being kids, they're bringing stuff 61 00:03:00,764 --> 00:03:02,098 out of the garage. 62 00:03:02,099 --> 00:03:05,226 they're getting boards, they're getting ramps. 63 00:03:05,227 --> 00:03:06,268 You didn't have a helmet, you know, 64 00:03:06,269 --> 00:03:07,645 knee pads or shoulder pads. 65 00:03:07,646 --> 00:03:09,730 You're jumping on your little stunt bike 66 00:03:09,731 --> 00:03:11,190 without anything at all. 67 00:03:11,191 --> 00:03:14,069 It's just kids versus the pavement. 68 00:03:15,278 --> 00:03:18,322 Parents are fully behind their children 69 00:03:18,323 --> 00:03:23,370 copying Evel Knievel, who broke bones and fractured himself 70 00:03:24,788 --> 00:03:26,205 and you know, just all of these various injuries, 71 00:03:26,206 --> 00:03:28,207 and they're like, "Yeah, that sounds like something 72 00:03:28,208 --> 00:03:30,042 we want our kids to be doing. 73 00:03:30,043 --> 00:03:33,587 What do you need out of the garage to help you do that?" 74 00:03:33,588 --> 00:03:35,881 Just how supportive our parents? 75 00:03:35,882 --> 00:03:37,800 Enough to call the local news. 76 00:03:37,801 --> 00:03:40,886 In 1976, one Indiana station 77 00:03:40,887 --> 00:03:45,724 makes a kid's death defying leap their featured programming. 78 00:03:45,725 --> 00:03:48,394 13-year-old Terry Evel Knievel Bollinger, 79 00:03:48,395 --> 00:03:50,396 who set aside today to prove to all 80 00:03:50,397 --> 00:03:52,940 he could jump over 10 trash cans. 81 00:03:52,941 --> 00:03:55,192 The report builds up every detail, 82 00:03:55,193 --> 00:04:00,198 a rickety plywood ramp and 10 very beat up trash cans. 83 00:04:01,283 --> 00:04:02,658 He's nervous but confident, right? 84 00:04:02,659 --> 00:04:04,160 This is gonna be the coolest moment of his life. 85 00:04:04,161 --> 00:04:06,495 The big moment comes, he is huffing, he's puffing. 86 00:04:06,496 --> 00:04:07,706 He takes off. 87 00:04:11,293 --> 00:04:14,253 Once Terry falls, there's not like an adult 88 00:04:14,254 --> 00:04:16,004 who rushes in and is like, "Hey, are you okay, buddy?" 89 00:04:16,005 --> 00:04:17,256 They're all just kinda like, 90 00:04:17,257 --> 00:04:20,177 "Oh, well I guess he didn't make it, hmm. 91 00:04:21,136 --> 00:04:22,636 What's for dinner?" 92 00:04:22,637 --> 00:04:25,181 Terry has no helmet, no protection. 93 00:04:25,182 --> 00:04:27,391 If someone did something like this today, 94 00:04:27,392 --> 00:04:29,643 there would be a lot of people being sued. 95 00:04:29,644 --> 00:04:30,603 Didn't hurt yourself, did you? 96 00:04:30,604 --> 00:04:31,562 No. 97 00:04:31,563 --> 00:04:32,438 What happened? 98 00:04:32,439 --> 00:04:33,647 Maybe my arm. 99 00:04:33,648 --> 00:04:34,982 What happened? 100 00:04:34,983 --> 00:04:36,358 Couldn't get going fast enough. 101 00:04:36,359 --> 00:04:38,527 What I love is the reporter seems more concerned 102 00:04:38,528 --> 00:04:41,155 about Terry's safety than Terry's parents, 103 00:04:41,156 --> 00:04:44,450 and she's already planning a follow up story. 104 00:04:44,451 --> 00:04:45,826 When you gonna try it again? 105 00:04:45,827 --> 00:04:47,536 Next Monday. 106 00:04:47,537 --> 00:04:48,914 That's good journalism. 107 00:04:50,123 --> 00:04:51,415 Throughout the 1970s, 108 00:04:51,416 --> 00:04:53,918 it was something like 60,000 kids a year 109 00:04:53,919 --> 00:04:55,836 would end up in the ER 110 00:04:55,837 --> 00:04:58,964 due to injuries from failed bike stunts, 111 00:04:58,965 --> 00:05:02,593 concussions, broken bones, lacerated livers. 112 00:05:02,594 --> 00:05:04,386 But by the end of the seventies, 113 00:05:04,387 --> 00:05:06,847 the inspiration for so many young daredevils 114 00:05:06,848 --> 00:05:08,683 is losing his mojo. 115 00:05:10,227 --> 00:05:12,269 You start to see the decline of Evel Knievel's 116 00:05:12,270 --> 00:05:16,315 popularity, for one the novelty of it has kind of worn off, 117 00:05:16,316 --> 00:05:19,443 but also he's older, and throughout his career, 118 00:05:19,444 --> 00:05:23,531 Evel Knievel has sustained over 400 bone injuries. 119 00:05:23,532 --> 00:05:25,658 And then in 1980, 120 00:05:25,659 --> 00:05:29,079 Evel Knievel, the all time great, retires. 121 00:05:30,413 --> 00:05:33,415 The whole extreme jumping fad fades pretty 122 00:05:33,416 --> 00:05:35,668 quickly, and partly because suddenly, 123 00:05:35,669 --> 00:05:37,878 safety was more important to parents, 124 00:05:37,879 --> 00:05:40,297 and then they started actually parenting 125 00:05:40,298 --> 00:05:42,175 and paying attention to their kids. 126 00:05:43,218 --> 00:05:45,094 Now, parents may have given their kids 127 00:05:45,095 --> 00:05:48,180 more freedom to roam the streets back in the day, 128 00:05:48,181 --> 00:05:51,016 but there was still one ironclad rule: 129 00:05:51,017 --> 00:05:53,853 don't play in traffic. 130 00:05:53,854 --> 00:05:55,771 But mom and dad never said anything 131 00:05:55,772 --> 00:05:58,149 about playing with traffic. 132 00:05:59,693 --> 00:06:00,818 Most of the 20th century, 133 00:06:00,819 --> 00:06:02,319 children are playing in the street. 134 00:06:02,320 --> 00:06:05,656 Very few communities have the money or the wherewithal 135 00:06:05,657 --> 00:06:08,492 to provide a recreational space. 136 00:06:08,493 --> 00:06:09,869 We played stickball in the streets. 137 00:06:09,870 --> 00:06:11,412 We played kickball in the streets. 138 00:06:11,413 --> 00:06:13,497 You just relied on one other kid to be like, 139 00:06:13,498 --> 00:06:17,294 "Car, car coming," and then everybody would go to the side. 140 00:06:18,753 --> 00:06:20,880 But for some young danger junkies, 141 00:06:20,881 --> 00:06:24,342 the fun isn't dodging cars, it's catching them. 142 00:06:25,427 --> 00:06:26,802 It's called skitching, 143 00:06:26,803 --> 00:06:29,013 and the words a portmanteau of skate hitching. 144 00:06:29,014 --> 00:06:33,225 So you would be on a skateboard, 145 00:06:33,226 --> 00:06:35,936 grab onto a bumper or a fender, 146 00:06:35,937 --> 00:06:39,857 and you would let the car pull you wherever you were going. 147 00:06:39,858 --> 00:06:41,775 And then "Back to the Future" comes, okay, 148 00:06:41,776 --> 00:06:46,113 and, oh my God, I was nine years old 149 00:06:46,114 --> 00:06:48,741 when Marty McFly got on the back of that Wrangler 150 00:06:48,742 --> 00:06:50,784 with a skateboard and took the ride in, right? 151 00:06:50,785 --> 00:06:52,369 And you're like, "This is instantly something 152 00:06:52,370 --> 00:06:53,245 I wanna do. 153 00:06:53,246 --> 00:06:54,163 This is the coolest thing." 154 00:06:54,164 --> 00:06:55,706 Kids are into it. 155 00:06:55,707 --> 00:06:57,916 There's even like a skitching video game on Sega. 156 00:06:57,917 --> 00:06:59,501 It's all over the place. 157 00:06:59,502 --> 00:07:02,212 It's all in the spirit of eighties adventure, 158 00:07:02,213 --> 00:07:03,798 but hang on tight. 159 00:07:04,966 --> 00:07:06,508 Well, the big danger of skitching 160 00:07:06,509 --> 00:07:08,260 is that the driver doesn't know that you're back there. 161 00:07:08,261 --> 00:07:11,639 And so a driver, even in a low speed environment, 162 00:07:11,640 --> 00:07:14,475 like in a built urban area, might have to slam on his brakes 163 00:07:14,476 --> 00:07:16,602 because a car pulls out in front of him, 164 00:07:16,603 --> 00:07:19,188 or because the yellow light suddenly turns red. 165 00:07:19,189 --> 00:07:21,357 The drivers would see you in the rear view 166 00:07:21,358 --> 00:07:23,942 and some of them would even slam on the brakes. 167 00:07:23,943 --> 00:07:25,194 So if you're holding on, 168 00:07:25,195 --> 00:07:26,570 you'd go into the back of the truck, 169 00:07:26,571 --> 00:07:29,531 or you'd whip around and hit the side of the truck. 170 00:07:29,532 --> 00:07:31,241 Oh my God, how did we make it? 171 00:07:31,242 --> 00:07:34,203 How am I actually sitting here? 172 00:07:34,204 --> 00:07:36,080 In 1988, a 17-year-old 173 00:07:36,081 --> 00:07:38,290 in Orange County, California is skitching. 174 00:07:38,291 --> 00:07:40,084 He's hanging on for dear life. 175 00:07:40,085 --> 00:07:42,127 He is struck by another vehicle. 176 00:07:42,128 --> 00:07:43,796 He's knocked to the ground, 177 00:07:43,797 --> 00:07:47,049 and then a third vehicle rolls over his legs. 178 00:07:47,050 --> 00:07:48,967 That kid actually survives, 179 00:07:48,968 --> 00:07:51,345 but another kid two years later is not so lucky. 180 00:07:51,346 --> 00:07:53,889 Also in Orange County, he has an accident, 181 00:07:53,890 --> 00:07:56,059 falls down, he dies from head injuries. 182 00:07:57,519 --> 00:08:00,646 In the end, it's not fear that ends skitching, 183 00:08:00,647 --> 00:08:03,607 but technological advancement. 184 00:08:03,608 --> 00:08:05,776 With the technology that new cars have, 185 00:08:05,777 --> 00:08:07,778 you've got backup cameras, 186 00:08:07,779 --> 00:08:09,863 rear bumpers that are flushed to the car, 187 00:08:09,864 --> 00:08:11,490 nothing to really hold onto. 188 00:08:11,491 --> 00:08:14,202 So it's kind of impossible in today's standards. 189 00:08:15,620 --> 00:08:17,496 But kids in the eighties and the nineties 190 00:08:17,497 --> 00:08:20,040 find a way to top skitching anyway, 191 00:08:20,041 --> 00:08:22,793 ditching the bumper for the roof, 192 00:08:22,794 --> 00:08:26,296 and you can trace it back to the same movie star. 193 00:08:26,297 --> 00:08:28,006 Michael J. Fox was in "Teen Wolf." 194 00:08:28,007 --> 00:08:30,426 He was the one on top of the van doing the dance. 195 00:08:30,427 --> 00:08:33,387 He is the reason I got top of a car too. 196 00:08:33,388 --> 00:08:34,971 Of course, he doesn't invent the stunt 197 00:08:34,972 --> 00:08:36,473 of riding outside a car. 198 00:08:36,474 --> 00:08:37,850 People have been riding outside of cars for a long time. 199 00:08:37,851 --> 00:08:40,018 There's actually a running board on a Model T. 200 00:08:40,019 --> 00:08:41,228 You might stand on the running board, 201 00:08:41,229 --> 00:08:42,479 hold onto the side of the car. 202 00:08:42,480 --> 00:08:43,647 You might do that 'cause the car's just too small 203 00:08:43,648 --> 00:08:44,606 to fit a lot of people. 204 00:08:44,607 --> 00:08:45,859 It's a matter of convenience. 205 00:08:47,318 --> 00:08:48,652 By the nineties, 206 00:08:48,653 --> 00:08:51,238 kids are actually jumping on to moving cars 207 00:08:51,239 --> 00:08:53,032 and riding cars that way. 208 00:08:53,033 --> 00:08:54,241 Teens are doing all sorts of things. 209 00:08:54,242 --> 00:08:55,117 They're in the bed of a truck. 210 00:08:55,118 --> 00:08:56,243 They're on the roof of the car. 211 00:08:56,244 --> 00:08:57,828 They're on the hood of the car. 212 00:08:57,829 --> 00:08:59,329 Sometimes the car starts out, 213 00:08:59,330 --> 00:09:00,831 you know, stop, and you get on. 214 00:09:00,832 --> 00:09:03,375 Other times, you're jumping on to a moving car, 215 00:09:03,376 --> 00:09:06,086 and that's just all sorts of crazy risk. 216 00:09:06,087 --> 00:09:07,921 I cannot believe 217 00:09:07,922 --> 00:09:11,467 that this was just like casually happening. 218 00:09:11,468 --> 00:09:15,054 If you leave me to my own devices and I'm 12 years 219 00:09:15,055 --> 00:09:16,430 old, I'm gonna do these things 220 00:09:16,431 --> 00:09:18,015 because it doesn't seem dangerous to me. 221 00:09:18,016 --> 00:09:20,851 Of course, I can get on top of a car and hold on. 222 00:09:20,852 --> 00:09:23,062 Physics, physics don't matter to me. 223 00:09:23,063 --> 00:09:24,314 I'm young and immortal. 224 00:09:25,774 --> 00:09:28,067 It's the kind of thrill you don't see anymore 225 00:09:28,068 --> 00:09:30,444 because it can be a short ride. 226 00:09:30,445 --> 00:09:32,362 Between 1990 and 2008, 227 00:09:32,363 --> 00:09:35,282 there are 58 deaths and 41 injuries 228 00:09:35,283 --> 00:09:37,409 as a result of car surfing. 229 00:09:37,410 --> 00:09:40,622 More people are dying than being injured by it. 230 00:09:41,956 --> 00:09:44,625 Law enforcement ultimately gets involved in this. 231 00:09:44,626 --> 00:09:47,086 The fad kind of fades out in the 2000s. 232 00:09:47,087 --> 00:09:48,962 Virtually every state has some sort of law 233 00:09:48,963 --> 00:09:52,007 that makes this action illegal. 234 00:09:52,008 --> 00:09:56,428 Eventually, law enforcement decided it had gone too far, 235 00:09:56,429 --> 00:09:58,639 but for the kids hitching the rides, 236 00:09:58,640 --> 00:10:00,266 the whole point was to get carried away. 237 00:10:04,604 --> 00:10:06,730 If jumping off a high dive can win you an Olympic medal, 238 00:10:06,731 --> 00:10:10,025 what does it get you at a public pool in town? 239 00:10:10,026 --> 00:10:12,194 If you were a kid back in the old days, 240 00:10:12,195 --> 00:10:17,033 it could make you a local legend or land you in hot water. 241 00:10:18,368 --> 00:10:20,994 During the Great Depression of the 1930s, 242 00:10:20,995 --> 00:10:23,205 President Roosevelt put many people to work 243 00:10:23,206 --> 00:10:25,124 building public swimming pools across the US, 244 00:10:25,125 --> 00:10:27,084 as part of the New Deal. 245 00:10:27,085 --> 00:10:30,337 This ushers in this golden age of public pools. 246 00:10:30,338 --> 00:10:32,798 These pools are often big and elaborate, 247 00:10:32,799 --> 00:10:34,258 and in a lot of towns, 248 00:10:34,259 --> 00:10:37,719 they almost become like the central recreational spot. 249 00:10:37,720 --> 00:10:39,304 Most of the massive pools 250 00:10:39,305 --> 00:10:41,723 come equipped with a typical diving board, 251 00:10:41,724 --> 00:10:44,852 but a real showstopper that you might not expect: 252 00:10:44,853 --> 00:10:46,688 the high dive. 253 00:10:48,189 --> 00:10:52,484 These are towers that start at 10 feet, a basketball hoop, 254 00:10:52,485 --> 00:10:54,528 and go to over 30 feet, 255 00:10:54,529 --> 00:10:57,531 which is like jumping out of a third story window. 256 00:10:57,532 --> 00:11:00,075 These are Olympic height diving boards. 257 00:11:00,076 --> 00:11:01,618 In fact, some of these pools 258 00:11:01,619 --> 00:11:04,037 are even used for Olympic trials, but when they're not, 259 00:11:04,038 --> 00:11:06,874 they are open to pretty much everybody. 260 00:11:06,875 --> 00:11:10,419 Hands down, the most impressive of these era pools 261 00:11:10,420 --> 00:11:13,088 is that of Astoria Park Queens. 262 00:11:13,089 --> 00:11:17,384 It can accommodate up to 6,000 swimmers at once, 263 00:11:17,385 --> 00:11:22,432 and its centerpiece is a spine like high dive complex 264 00:11:23,099 --> 00:11:25,058 with three platforms, 265 00:11:25,059 --> 00:11:29,980 the tallest of which is 32 feet from the water surface. 266 00:11:29,981 --> 00:11:33,358 In the golden days of the Astoria Park pool, 267 00:11:33,359 --> 00:11:35,361 it's just come one, come all. 268 00:11:36,946 --> 00:11:40,157 There were lifeguards, but basically no rules. 269 00:11:40,158 --> 00:11:43,952 So if you had the guts to jump off that 32 foot tower, 270 00:11:43,953 --> 00:11:45,871 nobody was gonna stop you. 271 00:11:45,872 --> 00:11:48,707 You climb up this 30 foot high ladder 272 00:11:48,708 --> 00:11:51,210 and this enormous crowd of your neighbors and friends 273 00:11:51,211 --> 00:11:52,252 are watching you. 274 00:11:52,253 --> 00:11:53,879 Now you see how high you are, 275 00:11:53,880 --> 00:11:55,714 but the only thing worse than jumping 276 00:11:55,715 --> 00:11:58,592 is crawling back down that ladder in shame. 277 00:11:58,593 --> 00:12:00,093 So you're jumping in the water, 278 00:12:00,094 --> 00:12:02,638 and you're a kid, so you're crazy. 279 00:12:02,639 --> 00:12:05,933 If you've ever jumped off a 32 foot diving platform, 280 00:12:05,934 --> 00:12:08,936 you fall at roughly 30 miles per hour. 281 00:12:08,937 --> 00:12:12,314 You have about a second and a half before you hit the water. 282 00:12:12,315 --> 00:12:14,483 At that speed, if you don't hit 283 00:12:14,484 --> 00:12:16,026 at a pretty near perfect angle, 284 00:12:16,027 --> 00:12:18,320 where you kind of slice through the water, 285 00:12:18,321 --> 00:12:22,115 it's like slamming into a concrete wall. 286 00:12:22,116 --> 00:12:25,953 So you land the wrong way, you're gonna have a broken leg, 287 00:12:25,954 --> 00:12:29,498 a ruptured eardrum, bruised internal organs. 288 00:12:29,499 --> 00:12:32,334 It's like getting hit by a pro football player, 289 00:12:32,335 --> 00:12:33,962 except you're in your swimsuit. 290 00:12:35,004 --> 00:12:36,255 And slamming into the water 291 00:12:36,256 --> 00:12:38,632 is the best case scenario, 292 00:12:38,633 --> 00:12:41,009 next to crashing into the concrete deck below 293 00:12:41,010 --> 00:12:43,387 or the diving board itself. 294 00:12:43,388 --> 00:12:47,267 The possibilities are endless and so is the freedom. 295 00:12:48,935 --> 00:12:52,354 These pools are notoriously understaffed. 296 00:12:52,355 --> 00:12:56,275 As late as the 1970s, they might only have five lifeguards 297 00:12:56,276 --> 00:12:59,027 for as many as 5,000 people. 298 00:12:59,028 --> 00:13:01,029 Kids are gonna be kids and nothing's stopping them 299 00:13:01,030 --> 00:13:03,490 from sneaking into the park after hours 300 00:13:03,491 --> 00:13:06,536 and climbing that high dive to be the coolest kid there. 301 00:13:07,620 --> 00:13:09,121 The New York City Parks Department 302 00:13:09,122 --> 00:13:13,000 is reporting multiple injuries and deaths and drownings 303 00:13:13,001 --> 00:13:16,461 at city park pools at night. 304 00:13:16,462 --> 00:13:18,630 I grew up not too far from this location, 305 00:13:18,631 --> 00:13:20,048 and I used to kind of wonder, 306 00:13:20,049 --> 00:13:22,384 "Mom, why don't we go to this pool? 307 00:13:22,385 --> 00:13:25,053 It seems like," and yeah, that was a hard no. 308 00:13:25,054 --> 00:13:26,764 My mother was a very smart woman. 309 00:13:28,391 --> 00:13:33,271 By the 1980s, the high dive begins its downfall. 310 00:13:34,397 --> 00:13:35,939 These high dives start disappearing from pools, 311 00:13:35,940 --> 00:13:38,775 and that is due not to children's lacking 312 00:13:38,776 --> 00:13:40,402 of desire for thrills, 313 00:13:40,403 --> 00:13:43,281 but rather because of insurance premiums and lawsuits. 314 00:13:44,741 --> 00:13:46,825 Today, many municipalities don't allow 315 00:13:46,826 --> 00:13:49,828 diving boards to be more than three feet from the pool, 316 00:13:49,829 --> 00:13:51,122 even in your backyard. 317 00:13:52,415 --> 00:13:54,458 Astoria Park closes up its dive platform 318 00:13:54,459 --> 00:13:56,710 citing liability and risks. 319 00:13:56,711 --> 00:13:59,838 Today, a few publicly funded pools still have them, 320 00:13:59,839 --> 00:14:01,006 but they're usually associated 321 00:14:01,007 --> 00:14:03,175 with universities or swim clubs. 322 00:14:03,176 --> 00:14:05,093 The average person trying to use one of these things 323 00:14:05,094 --> 00:14:08,430 is like somebody walking onto a D1 basketball arena 324 00:14:08,431 --> 00:14:09,681 and trying to shoot. 325 00:14:09,682 --> 00:14:11,267 You're gonna get kicked off really fast. 326 00:14:13,311 --> 00:14:15,103 Remember when your parents would say, 327 00:14:15,104 --> 00:14:17,439 "Hey, if your friends jumped off a bridge, 328 00:14:17,440 --> 00:14:19,191 would you do it too?" 329 00:14:19,192 --> 00:14:20,734 Well, there was a time 330 00:14:20,735 --> 00:14:24,113 when the most common answer was, "Yeah." 331 00:14:25,656 --> 00:14:28,575 Although public pools were popular by the 20th 332 00:14:28,576 --> 00:14:31,161 century, a lot of smaller cities didn't have them. 333 00:14:31,162 --> 00:14:34,831 So if you live away from a big city, 334 00:14:34,832 --> 00:14:38,169 you probably don't have a public pool, so a quarry is it. 335 00:14:40,004 --> 00:14:43,507 A quarry is a place where they have mined some sort of rock 336 00:14:43,508 --> 00:14:45,300 and they dig out, and over time, 337 00:14:45,301 --> 00:14:47,844 it makes this gigantic hole in the earth. 338 00:14:47,845 --> 00:14:50,806 After a mining activity stops at the site, 339 00:14:50,807 --> 00:14:52,641 they flood with rainwater. 340 00:14:52,642 --> 00:14:55,769 And so what you end up with is a pool. 341 00:14:55,770 --> 00:14:57,479 In a limestone quarry, 342 00:14:57,480 --> 00:14:59,773 the water that gets washed down into this hole 343 00:14:59,774 --> 00:15:01,233 and starts to fill it up, 344 00:15:01,234 --> 00:15:03,485 ends up being this bright, brilliant blue color, 345 00:15:03,486 --> 00:15:04,736 almost a turquoise. 346 00:15:04,737 --> 00:15:05,946 They're so inviting, 347 00:15:05,947 --> 00:15:08,032 but it's like a playground for teenagers. 348 00:15:09,158 --> 00:15:11,409 When I was in my twenties in Alabama, 349 00:15:11,410 --> 00:15:13,913 jumping into quarries was a thing that we did. 350 00:15:14,997 --> 00:15:17,082 We would have a competition 351 00:15:17,083 --> 00:15:19,459 to carry out the more spectacular dive 352 00:15:19,460 --> 00:15:20,836 in front of the girls. 353 00:15:20,837 --> 00:15:22,505 That was the most fun ever. 354 00:15:23,881 --> 00:15:26,133 Anybody could just jump into a swimming pool, 355 00:15:26,134 --> 00:15:28,093 but to swim a quarry, 356 00:15:28,094 --> 00:15:30,095 you had to prove yourself worthy of it. 357 00:15:30,096 --> 00:15:31,430 You had to earn it. 358 00:15:33,224 --> 00:15:34,641 The distance from the top of the cliff 359 00:15:34,642 --> 00:15:37,144 down to the water surface, in some cases, 360 00:15:37,145 --> 00:15:39,229 can be as much as 80 feet. 361 00:15:39,230 --> 00:15:41,606 That's a pretty treacherous dive. 362 00:15:41,607 --> 00:15:42,691 I was terrified. 363 00:15:42,692 --> 00:15:43,567 That's what I would say. 364 00:15:43,568 --> 00:15:44,901 I didn't like heights, 365 00:15:44,902 --> 00:15:46,361 but everybody's standing there looking at me 366 00:15:46,362 --> 00:15:48,363 and I wasn't gonna be the one that said no. 367 00:15:48,364 --> 00:15:50,699 And so you just, you run, you hold your nose, 368 00:15:50,700 --> 00:15:52,201 and you hope you don't die. 369 00:15:53,202 --> 00:15:54,494 An 80 foot jump 370 00:15:54,495 --> 00:15:57,873 puts a local pool's high dive to shame. 371 00:15:57,874 --> 00:16:00,793 It's more like jumping off an eight story building. 372 00:16:02,086 --> 00:16:04,838 The dive at a quarry, especially from a high 373 00:16:04,839 --> 00:16:06,506 place, I mean it's like a badge of honor. 374 00:16:06,507 --> 00:16:08,842 Whoever can jump from the highest spot 375 00:16:08,843 --> 00:16:11,554 was definitely like the toughest person you knew. 376 00:16:12,805 --> 00:16:14,723 The thing about quarries, you know, you're 377 00:16:14,724 --> 00:16:16,266 there, you're wearing your cutoff jeans, 378 00:16:16,267 --> 00:16:17,976 all your friends are there. 379 00:16:17,977 --> 00:16:20,937 Maybe the girl you have a crush on is there. 380 00:16:20,938 --> 00:16:23,566 You don't want to be the one who chickens out. 381 00:16:24,692 --> 00:16:26,401 Quarries are really perfect spots 382 00:16:26,402 --> 00:16:28,945 for teenagers looking for something to do in the summer 383 00:16:28,946 --> 00:16:30,363 because they're in remote spots. 384 00:16:30,364 --> 00:16:32,157 They're a lot of times abandoned. 385 00:16:32,158 --> 00:16:33,325 That's really cool. 386 00:16:33,326 --> 00:16:34,993 But it also means if you needed help 387 00:16:34,994 --> 00:16:38,705 from some sort of safety team, you're also really far away, 388 00:16:38,706 --> 00:16:41,000 which is not a good thing if you were injured. 389 00:16:42,793 --> 00:16:45,003 It was just forbidden, which means for a teenager, 390 00:16:45,004 --> 00:16:46,213 that's exactly what you wanted, 391 00:16:46,214 --> 00:16:47,881 someplace where you're not supervised, 392 00:16:47,882 --> 00:16:49,382 where you can make your own choices, 393 00:16:49,383 --> 00:16:51,761 and yet, you know you're doing something wrong. 394 00:16:52,929 --> 00:16:54,137 What's crazy about quarries 395 00:16:54,138 --> 00:16:55,972 is the water can look so inviting, 396 00:16:55,973 --> 00:16:57,599 but it's what is underneath 397 00:16:57,600 --> 00:16:58,934 that's actually the most dangerous 398 00:16:58,935 --> 00:17:01,686 because there could be old mining equipment, 399 00:17:01,687 --> 00:17:04,105 there could be jagged rocks. 400 00:17:04,106 --> 00:17:06,524 That water is discolored and murky enough 401 00:17:06,525 --> 00:17:09,236 to where something that's even five feet below the surface 402 00:17:09,237 --> 00:17:11,279 is invisible to you. 403 00:17:11,280 --> 00:17:14,406 From these heights, when you jump off, 404 00:17:14,407 --> 00:17:17,410 you could actually hit 45 miles an hour 405 00:17:17,411 --> 00:17:20,039 before you hit the water. 406 00:17:21,290 --> 00:17:23,040 It's like being thrown off of a motorcycle 407 00:17:23,041 --> 00:17:25,336 and hitting the pavement at highway speeds. 408 00:17:26,628 --> 00:17:27,796 There's a cluster of quarries 409 00:17:27,797 --> 00:17:29,256 around Quincy, Massachusetts. 410 00:17:29,257 --> 00:17:31,800 Between 1960 and 1998, 411 00:17:31,801 --> 00:17:34,678 at least a dozen people die quarry diving, 412 00:17:34,679 --> 00:17:36,137 in addition to the untold numbers 413 00:17:36,138 --> 00:17:37,847 who might have been injured. 414 00:17:37,848 --> 00:17:39,474 But how do you get kids 415 00:17:39,475 --> 00:17:42,644 to stop jumping into enormous holes in the ground? 416 00:17:42,645 --> 00:17:47,400 Well, in Boston, the solution is a $15 billion project. 417 00:17:48,276 --> 00:17:49,734 For the quarries in Quincy, 418 00:17:49,735 --> 00:17:51,903 they eventually fill them back in, 419 00:17:51,904 --> 00:17:55,991 and they use soil that was excavated in Boston's big dig. 420 00:17:55,992 --> 00:17:58,827 It's something like 800,000 tons of soil, 421 00:17:58,828 --> 00:18:01,539 and then use it to backfill these abandoned quarries. 422 00:18:02,498 --> 00:18:03,915 Now if you find a quarry, 423 00:18:03,916 --> 00:18:05,417 it's going to have a very good fence around it 424 00:18:05,418 --> 00:18:07,877 that's gonna say no trespassing. 425 00:18:07,878 --> 00:18:10,088 There's something to be said for growing up in a life 426 00:18:10,089 --> 00:18:11,715 where there were risks, 427 00:18:11,716 --> 00:18:14,509 and most of us came out with all our fingers and toes. 428 00:18:14,510 --> 00:18:18,138 Taking a plunge off a steep rocky cliff with your friends 429 00:18:18,139 --> 00:18:20,432 was a classic rite of passage, 430 00:18:20,433 --> 00:18:21,976 back when a good story was worth the risk. 431 00:18:26,606 --> 00:18:28,023 When you were a kid, 432 00:18:28,024 --> 00:18:29,149 did you ever pretend that you were the sheriff 433 00:18:29,150 --> 00:18:31,276 of a frontier town full of bad guys? 434 00:18:31,277 --> 00:18:34,946 Well, there was a time when those imaginary shootouts 435 00:18:34,947 --> 00:18:36,866 were a little less imaginary. 436 00:18:38,534 --> 00:18:41,911 Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, westerns are everywhere. 437 00:18:41,912 --> 00:18:44,956 They're in film and radio serials, comic strips, 438 00:18:44,957 --> 00:18:47,125 and, of course, television. 439 00:18:47,126 --> 00:18:51,504 Of course, every hero and every bad guy has a gun. 440 00:18:51,505 --> 00:18:53,840 The toy aisles, they are full of cap guns. 441 00:18:53,841 --> 00:18:56,092 When you shoot them, they make loud cracks. 442 00:18:56,093 --> 00:18:57,552 They even emit smoke. 443 00:18:57,553 --> 00:18:59,971 They are very fun, but at a certain point, 444 00:18:59,972 --> 00:19:03,391 pretend firepower just isn't enough. 445 00:19:03,392 --> 00:19:05,393 Kids want something bigger and cooler. 446 00:19:05,394 --> 00:19:06,561 They really wanna up the ante 447 00:19:06,562 --> 00:19:08,773 and that next step is the BB gun. 448 00:19:10,441 --> 00:19:12,484 The BB gun uses compressed air 449 00:19:12,485 --> 00:19:15,612 to fire tiny round projectiles. 450 00:19:15,613 --> 00:19:19,491 It gets its start in Michigan in 1886 451 00:19:19,492 --> 00:19:22,077 for adults to practice shooting, 452 00:19:22,078 --> 00:19:26,248 but soon the BB gun finds a new target audience. 453 00:19:27,541 --> 00:19:30,001 Ads are marketing BB guns directly to kids, 454 00:19:30,002 --> 00:19:32,003 and you've got pictures in magazines 455 00:19:32,004 --> 00:19:36,007 of little boys happily hoisting their little BB gun rifles. 456 00:19:36,008 --> 00:19:37,175 I had a BB gun. 457 00:19:37,176 --> 00:19:38,927 It was the pump rifle type. 458 00:19:38,928 --> 00:19:41,805 It was given to me with no rules other than, 459 00:19:41,806 --> 00:19:43,724 you know, don't shoot your brothers. 460 00:19:45,226 --> 00:19:49,605 As a kid, it feels like so much power and responsibility. 461 00:19:50,272 --> 00:19:51,606 It's also tricky, 462 00:19:51,607 --> 00:19:53,274 like if you have an older sister like I did, 463 00:19:53,275 --> 00:19:54,818 you have to prove 464 00:19:54,819 --> 00:19:57,737 you're not gonna shoot your older sister with a BB gun 465 00:19:57,738 --> 00:20:01,533 every chance you get, even though as a kid you're thinking, 466 00:20:01,534 --> 00:20:03,743 "I'm gonna shoot my older sister with this BB gun 467 00:20:03,744 --> 00:20:05,121 the first chance I get." 468 00:20:06,205 --> 00:20:07,914 These BB guns weren't expensive. 469 00:20:07,915 --> 00:20:09,416 They were mass produced. 470 00:20:09,417 --> 00:20:12,001 In fact, they were sold on the back of comic books 471 00:20:12,002 --> 00:20:14,379 like cut out this coupon, send it in with a check, 472 00:20:14,380 --> 00:20:15,631 and you get your BB gun. 473 00:20:17,091 --> 00:20:18,967 Today, there is zero tolerance 474 00:20:18,968 --> 00:20:21,928 for any students having a gun at school. 475 00:20:21,929 --> 00:20:25,223 It was made federally illegal in 1990. 476 00:20:25,224 --> 00:20:28,393 But back then, it was perfectly normal for a kid 477 00:20:28,394 --> 00:20:31,104 to have a BB gun in their locker at school. 478 00:20:31,105 --> 00:20:33,231 Before 1990, anything kind of goes, 479 00:20:33,232 --> 00:20:35,442 and during recess or after school, 480 00:20:35,443 --> 00:20:37,569 they're gonna play cops and robbers. 481 00:20:37,570 --> 00:20:40,447 They're firing these BBs in each other's vicinity 482 00:20:40,448 --> 00:20:42,532 and their parents wouldn't think a thing of it 483 00:20:42,533 --> 00:20:44,535 'cause that's how they grew up as well. 484 00:20:45,995 --> 00:20:48,037 You might think about the movie, "A Christmas Story," 485 00:20:48,038 --> 00:20:50,123 where the kid wants the BB gun, 486 00:20:50,124 --> 00:20:52,208 but you could shoot somebody's eye out. 487 00:20:52,209 --> 00:20:54,127 Well, that happened. 488 00:20:54,128 --> 00:20:58,256 By 1981, 8 million pump action BB guns have been 489 00:20:58,257 --> 00:21:00,425 sold, and in that same year, 490 00:21:00,426 --> 00:21:04,387 emergency rooms report receiving 22,800 people 491 00:21:04,388 --> 00:21:06,347 injured by BB guns. 492 00:21:06,348 --> 00:21:08,516 When kids started getting hurt with BB guns, 493 00:21:08,517 --> 00:21:12,228 the solution proposed was not to stop selling them, 494 00:21:12,229 --> 00:21:14,564 or to modify them, or don't sell 'em to kids. 495 00:21:14,565 --> 00:21:16,983 The solution was just to put a sticker on 'em that said, 496 00:21:16,984 --> 00:21:18,151 "Not a toy." 497 00:21:18,152 --> 00:21:20,654 My guess is that was not effective. 498 00:21:22,156 --> 00:21:25,575 By the late 1990s, 13 states have limited BB gun 499 00:21:25,576 --> 00:21:27,660 sales to people 18 and over. 500 00:21:27,661 --> 00:21:30,705 In recent decades, a safer alternative has emerged 501 00:21:30,706 --> 00:21:32,874 and that is the paintball gun. 502 00:21:32,875 --> 00:21:34,876 The advent of paintball has supplanted the BB 503 00:21:34,877 --> 00:21:36,711 gun fervor. 504 00:21:36,712 --> 00:21:38,171 Paintballing is super fun 505 00:21:38,172 --> 00:21:40,925 and it does mimic the act of shooting somebody. 506 00:21:42,134 --> 00:21:44,636 Manufacturers and marketers in stores 507 00:21:44,637 --> 00:21:47,472 are now treating a BB gun, not like a toy. 508 00:21:47,473 --> 00:21:50,725 They're treating it like what it really is: a kind of gun. 509 00:21:50,726 --> 00:21:52,811 Maybe not one that uses gunpowder, 510 00:21:52,812 --> 00:21:54,730 but one that's still a gun. 511 00:21:56,273 --> 00:21:57,774 Back in the day, 512 00:21:57,775 --> 00:22:01,903 the line between toy and weapon was always kind of blurry. 513 00:22:01,904 --> 00:22:03,905 Take the slingshot. 514 00:22:03,906 --> 00:22:08,493 With one small tweak, that Y shaped piece of wood 515 00:22:08,494 --> 00:22:12,790 could go from a harmless placing to a mini missile launcher. 516 00:22:14,166 --> 00:22:15,542 In the late 1940s, 517 00:22:15,543 --> 00:22:18,169 one of the most popular genre of dime novels 518 00:22:18,170 --> 00:22:19,879 was the survival story, 519 00:22:19,880 --> 00:22:23,383 and World War II is nothing but a wellspring 520 00:22:23,384 --> 00:22:24,802 of survival stories. 521 00:22:26,220 --> 00:22:29,681 So in 1946, there's an article in "Popular Science" 522 00:22:29,682 --> 00:22:31,599 about a guy named Jim Gask 523 00:22:31,600 --> 00:22:35,270 who uses a slingshot to hunt small game. 524 00:22:35,271 --> 00:22:36,688 After that article comes out 525 00:22:36,689 --> 00:22:38,314 and kids see that around the country, 526 00:22:38,315 --> 00:22:40,568 every kid wants a slingshot. 527 00:22:41,986 --> 00:22:44,571 Slingshots, before the invention of rubber, 528 00:22:44,572 --> 00:22:49,200 were called slings, and go back thousands of years. 529 00:22:49,201 --> 00:22:52,829 By the 1940s, they're still do it yourself 530 00:22:52,830 --> 00:22:54,914 and haven't changed much. 531 00:22:54,915 --> 00:22:57,333 I actually recently found a black and white photo 532 00:22:57,334 --> 00:22:59,544 of my dad holding one. 533 00:22:59,545 --> 00:23:03,006 You get a forked branch that looked like the letter Y. 534 00:23:03,007 --> 00:23:04,465 You would cut notches 535 00:23:04,466 --> 00:23:07,594 or you would tie the ends of that rubber around it. 536 00:23:07,595 --> 00:23:10,430 Pick up a rock and fire. 537 00:23:10,431 --> 00:23:12,724 They're powerful enough to break a window 538 00:23:12,725 --> 00:23:14,100 or maybe leave a bruise, 539 00:23:14,101 --> 00:23:15,936 but they're not that accurate or strong. 540 00:23:17,187 --> 00:23:18,980 So the toy industry says, 541 00:23:18,981 --> 00:23:24,069 "Let's give kids a slingshot that really hits the bullseye." 542 00:23:24,653 --> 00:23:26,446 In 1948, Wham-O, 543 00:23:26,447 --> 00:23:28,239 the company that would later eventually bring us 544 00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:29,824 the hula hoop and the Frisbee, 545 00:23:29,825 --> 00:23:32,785 their very first product is a slingshot. 546 00:23:32,786 --> 00:23:34,370 They actually name their company 547 00:23:34,371 --> 00:23:37,081 after the sound a slingshot makes when it hits its target, 548 00:23:37,082 --> 00:23:39,208 which is "Wham." 549 00:23:39,209 --> 00:23:40,168 The Wham-O slingshot just looks really 550 00:23:40,169 --> 00:23:42,086 cool and sleek. 551 00:23:42,087 --> 00:23:44,631 It's this high quality, vulcanized rubber. 552 00:23:44,632 --> 00:23:48,217 It's this really uniform, thick, polished wood. 553 00:23:48,218 --> 00:23:51,137 And when it shows up on store shelves, 554 00:23:51,138 --> 00:23:54,307 kids go crazy for it. 555 00:23:54,308 --> 00:23:57,226 Soon, other manufacturers flood the market 556 00:23:57,227 --> 00:24:00,271 with their own versions, some as cheap as like 10 cents, 557 00:24:00,272 --> 00:24:03,024 which is like just a couple of bucks in today's money. 558 00:24:03,025 --> 00:24:05,276 And before parents even notice, 559 00:24:05,277 --> 00:24:08,696 supercharged slingshots are on the scene. 560 00:24:08,697 --> 00:24:10,865 The rubber bands get much better, 561 00:24:10,866 --> 00:24:12,992 and the construction of the slingshots themselves 562 00:24:12,993 --> 00:24:14,369 get a little more advanced. 563 00:24:14,370 --> 00:24:16,287 Some have a wrist brace 564 00:24:16,288 --> 00:24:18,498 so that you could pull back with greater force, 565 00:24:18,499 --> 00:24:22,001 generating even more highly dangerous velocity. 566 00:24:22,002 --> 00:24:23,628 Some of these slingshots now 567 00:24:23,629 --> 00:24:27,131 can fire a projectile like 170 miles per hour. 568 00:24:27,132 --> 00:24:28,508 That's more than double 569 00:24:28,509 --> 00:24:31,427 of what a previously old school slingshot could do. 570 00:24:31,428 --> 00:24:32,720 Parents, they're not aware. 571 00:24:32,721 --> 00:24:34,597 They're buying these kids slingshots, 572 00:24:34,598 --> 00:24:35,765 and they're sending 'em out the door, 573 00:24:35,766 --> 00:24:37,392 and saying, "Listen, go have fun. 574 00:24:37,393 --> 00:24:38,810 Don't kill the dog." 575 00:24:38,811 --> 00:24:40,853 Kids do what kids do. 576 00:24:40,854 --> 00:24:42,188 They were shooting at birds. 577 00:24:42,189 --> 00:24:43,523 They were shooting at squirrels. 578 00:24:43,524 --> 00:24:45,817 They were shooting at each other. 579 00:24:45,818 --> 00:24:47,527 It turns the suburban environment 580 00:24:47,528 --> 00:24:49,487 into artillery testing ranges, 581 00:24:49,488 --> 00:24:52,532 where kids are running renegade with no supervision, 582 00:24:52,533 --> 00:24:54,742 armed with slingshots. 583 00:24:54,743 --> 00:24:56,369 We would take firecrackers, light it, 584 00:24:56,370 --> 00:24:58,247 and then slingshot it at our friends. 585 00:24:59,248 --> 00:25:01,374 And that's how we treated friends. 586 00:25:01,375 --> 00:25:03,835 It's the glory days of slingshots, 587 00:25:03,836 --> 00:25:08,381 until one unlucky launch changes everything. 588 00:25:08,382 --> 00:25:10,967 In 1977, a 12-year-old boy and his friend 589 00:25:10,968 --> 00:25:12,802 are going down to the ponds to, you know, 590 00:25:12,803 --> 00:25:14,762 shoot some frogs with their slingshot, 591 00:25:14,763 --> 00:25:17,807 and the pellet ricochets off and hits this boy in the eye 592 00:25:17,808 --> 00:25:19,767 and causes permanent vision loss. 593 00:25:19,768 --> 00:25:21,561 The family naturally goes crazy. 594 00:25:21,562 --> 00:25:24,272 They sued the friend, they sued the manufacturer. 595 00:25:24,273 --> 00:25:26,190 The case eventually escalates 596 00:25:26,191 --> 00:25:28,819 all the way to the Michigan Supreme Court. 597 00:25:30,320 --> 00:25:32,739 The manufacturers decide they wanna lower their 598 00:25:32,740 --> 00:25:34,699 liability, so the easiest way for them to do that 599 00:25:34,700 --> 00:25:37,160 is they lower the tension on the bands themselves 600 00:25:37,161 --> 00:25:39,954 for any slingshots sold to kids. 601 00:25:39,955 --> 00:25:43,416 After that, toy slingshots lose a lot of their punch. 602 00:25:43,417 --> 00:25:45,794 When it's less dangerous, it's a lot less fun. 603 00:25:47,755 --> 00:25:49,630 You don't usually see slingshots 604 00:25:49,631 --> 00:25:51,466 in the toy stores anymore. 605 00:25:51,467 --> 00:25:54,469 Picking up a high powered weapon at the five and dime 606 00:25:54,470 --> 00:25:56,138 is just another experience kids are missing out on today. 607 00:26:01,268 --> 00:26:02,769 Way back when, there was no such thing as age limits. 608 00:26:02,770 --> 00:26:04,520 We let our kids have access 609 00:26:04,521 --> 00:26:06,564 to all sorts of dangerous things, 610 00:26:06,565 --> 00:26:08,816 from automobiles to cigarettes. 611 00:26:08,817 --> 00:26:12,487 So why would explosives be any different? 612 00:26:12,488 --> 00:26:14,489 The tradition of fireworks at July 4th, 613 00:26:14,490 --> 00:26:18,493 Independence Day, doesn't start in 1776. 614 00:26:18,494 --> 00:26:21,996 It starts a year later, July 4th, 1777. 615 00:26:21,997 --> 00:26:25,083 Every celebration features them since. 616 00:26:25,084 --> 00:26:26,751 Initially fireworks are something 617 00:26:26,752 --> 00:26:30,004 that the aristocratic class, they have access to it. 618 00:26:30,005 --> 00:26:32,215 They can afford to purchase these things. 619 00:26:32,216 --> 00:26:34,509 But in the late 1800s, 620 00:26:34,510 --> 00:26:37,428 factories start mass producing them. 621 00:26:37,429 --> 00:26:40,098 It's all the old Civil War ordinance plants 622 00:26:40,099 --> 00:26:42,225 that in the aftermath of the Civil War, 623 00:26:42,226 --> 00:26:43,142 they got nothing to do. 624 00:26:43,143 --> 00:26:45,311 We then hit hard economic times, 625 00:26:45,312 --> 00:26:47,814 and they go back into some of these old ammunition plants 626 00:26:47,815 --> 00:26:49,566 and begin making fireworks in them. 627 00:26:51,026 --> 00:26:52,652 Suddenly, the average Joe 628 00:26:52,653 --> 00:26:54,529 can afford to plunk down a few pennies 629 00:26:54,530 --> 00:26:56,281 and get some real firepower. 630 00:26:58,617 --> 00:27:01,202 Fireworks aren't just for the 4th of July. 631 00:27:01,203 --> 00:27:02,995 They're a way of life. 632 00:27:02,996 --> 00:27:05,248 At every backyard barbecue, 633 00:27:05,249 --> 00:27:07,875 bored teenagers are lighting these things up. 634 00:27:07,876 --> 00:27:10,128 They're easy to get, they're cheap to buy, 635 00:27:10,129 --> 00:27:13,464 and back then, nobody's really checking IDs. 636 00:27:13,465 --> 00:27:14,715 They're ubiquitous. 637 00:27:14,716 --> 00:27:17,552 Roadside stands, the local five and dimes, 638 00:27:17,553 --> 00:27:20,763 they're selling all kinds of pyrotechnics. 639 00:27:20,764 --> 00:27:22,932 Little kids are running around with sparklers. 640 00:27:22,933 --> 00:27:24,934 Black Cats are lit on tables, 641 00:27:24,935 --> 00:27:27,354 bottle rockets held in soda bottles. 642 00:27:28,939 --> 00:27:31,649 As fireworks become more and more popular, 643 00:27:31,650 --> 00:27:34,987 people start looking for even more bang for their buck. 644 00:27:36,113 --> 00:27:38,823 Cherry bombs are created in the late 1920s. 645 00:27:38,824 --> 00:27:41,534 These are little red spheres with the green stem, 646 00:27:41,535 --> 00:27:45,038 and they were used mostly for noise in firework shows. 647 00:27:46,164 --> 00:27:47,832 Kids get interested in cherry bombs real quick 648 00:27:47,833 --> 00:27:50,585 because it's catnip, it's bigger, it's more powerful. 649 00:27:50,586 --> 00:27:53,212 Of course, children are going to be attracted to that. 650 00:27:53,213 --> 00:27:55,673 Then World War II comes along. 651 00:27:55,674 --> 00:27:58,759 To help train the troops, defense contractors 652 00:27:58,760 --> 00:28:02,680 make these small, cylindrical, explosive devices 653 00:28:02,681 --> 00:28:06,309 that will simulate the sound and flash of grenades. 654 00:28:06,310 --> 00:28:07,978 The M-80 is born. 655 00:28:09,187 --> 00:28:11,647 M is for a military explosive, 656 00:28:11,648 --> 00:28:14,859 80 because it contains 80 grains of powder, 657 00:28:14,860 --> 00:28:17,278 and that's 100 times more explosive 658 00:28:17,279 --> 00:28:19,655 than any firework available today. 659 00:28:19,656 --> 00:28:21,073 At the end of the conflict, 660 00:28:21,074 --> 00:28:23,868 the American military surpluses the item, 661 00:28:23,869 --> 00:28:26,412 sells them off to dealers and distributors, 662 00:28:26,413 --> 00:28:29,123 and they begin selling them to the American public 663 00:28:29,124 --> 00:28:30,583 and everyone loves them. 664 00:28:30,584 --> 00:28:32,710 The bigger the explosive, the bigger the bang. 665 00:28:32,711 --> 00:28:33,629 They love it. 666 00:28:35,547 --> 00:28:36,882 By the fifties, 667 00:28:37,007 --> 00:28:40,760 M-80s are available to any kid who wants them. 668 00:28:40,761 --> 00:28:43,012 These fireworks are like the grandsons 669 00:28:43,013 --> 00:28:44,931 of military grade explosives. 670 00:28:44,932 --> 00:28:47,058 The military had all this extra stuff lying around. 671 00:28:47,059 --> 00:28:48,935 They were like, "Let's just sell it to people." 672 00:28:48,936 --> 00:28:50,561 And the public doesn't realize 673 00:28:50,562 --> 00:28:53,105 that they're dealing with military grade explosives 674 00:28:53,106 --> 00:28:55,441 and stuff like that, and that can be dangerous. 675 00:28:55,442 --> 00:28:57,985 That can cause one or two problems. 676 00:28:57,986 --> 00:29:01,155 With access to military grade explosives, 677 00:29:01,156 --> 00:29:06,244 the pastime of childish pranks suddenly blows up. 678 00:29:07,037 --> 00:29:09,163 Mailboxes, obliterated. 679 00:29:09,164 --> 00:29:11,707 Watermelons, emulsified. 680 00:29:11,708 --> 00:29:14,168 Your Ken or Barbie doll, no longer. 681 00:29:14,169 --> 00:29:16,379 It's just a smoking head. 682 00:29:16,380 --> 00:29:17,588 Parents don't care. 683 00:29:17,589 --> 00:29:18,881 They're in on it. 684 00:29:18,882 --> 00:29:21,008 Hey, "We grew up with blowing things up. 685 00:29:21,009 --> 00:29:22,593 You should too." 686 00:29:22,594 --> 00:29:23,886 There's a buddy of mine named Mike 687 00:29:23,887 --> 00:29:26,973 who brought an M-80 to school 688 00:29:26,974 --> 00:29:28,892 and lit it and put it in the toilet. 689 00:29:31,645 --> 00:29:35,690 If you wanted to blow up a mailbox or a toy car, 690 00:29:35,691 --> 00:29:38,359 allegedly, all it would take is an M-80. 691 00:29:38,360 --> 00:29:42,238 I don't know that firsthand, but that's what I've heard. 692 00:29:42,239 --> 00:29:44,949 Even the smaller fireworks turn dangerous 693 00:29:44,950 --> 00:29:46,659 in teenage hands. 694 00:29:46,660 --> 00:29:49,829 Fuses burn too fast, paper tubes rupture, 695 00:29:49,830 --> 00:29:52,499 sending fireballs out sideways. 696 00:29:53,917 --> 00:29:56,919 Oh man, look, I've had explosives blown up in my hands. 697 00:29:56,920 --> 00:29:58,921 We used to take bottle rockets, break the stick off, 698 00:29:58,922 --> 00:30:00,965 which loses the stability, 699 00:30:00,966 --> 00:30:02,591 and it just flies off in a direction. 700 00:30:02,592 --> 00:30:04,802 We'd stand in a circle and break it off and light it 701 00:30:04,803 --> 00:30:06,846 and just wait to see who it'd hit. 702 00:30:06,847 --> 00:30:08,765 Oh man, I wanna do this right now. 703 00:30:10,267 --> 00:30:11,934 It's a miracle that these are all here and still work 704 00:30:11,935 --> 00:30:14,895 because there was a whole lot of tinkering with fireworks 705 00:30:14,896 --> 00:30:16,439 in my childhood, 706 00:30:16,440 --> 00:30:19,150 and it was often under the supervision of an adult, 707 00:30:19,151 --> 00:30:21,694 although, that adult was intoxicated at the time. 708 00:30:21,695 --> 00:30:24,238 I remember the first time I was in a Roman candle fight 709 00:30:24,239 --> 00:30:27,074 and I thought to myself, "This is really dangerous." 710 00:30:27,075 --> 00:30:29,410 So you're running around screaming the whole time. 711 00:30:32,831 --> 00:30:36,000 It is real fun, wildly dangerous. 712 00:30:36,001 --> 00:30:37,835 That's how this happened. 713 00:30:37,836 --> 00:30:41,130 I'm fine, I'm fine, it was right there the whole time. 714 00:30:41,131 --> 00:30:43,090 Boys will be boys, adults say, 715 00:30:43,091 --> 00:30:45,051 but the injuries pile up, 716 00:30:45,052 --> 00:30:48,345 burns, missing fingers, ruptured eardrums, 717 00:30:48,346 --> 00:30:50,723 even permanent blindness. 718 00:30:50,724 --> 00:30:52,141 In the mid-seventies, 719 00:30:52,142 --> 00:30:54,560 you're still seeing about 5,000 injuries a year 720 00:30:54,561 --> 00:30:55,854 in kids under 15. 721 00:30:57,397 --> 00:31:01,484 In 1976, just in time for the bicentennial 722 00:31:01,485 --> 00:31:03,110 celebrations, the federal government steps in 723 00:31:03,111 --> 00:31:05,446 to limit the amount of explosive powder 724 00:31:05,447 --> 00:31:08,324 that can be used in all consumer fireworks. 725 00:31:08,325 --> 00:31:10,618 Too many children were losing fingers 726 00:31:10,619 --> 00:31:12,578 because of these supercharged fireworks 727 00:31:12,579 --> 00:31:14,997 that they could get their hands on so easily. 728 00:31:14,998 --> 00:31:19,168 The golden age of kids using fireworks is passed. 729 00:31:19,169 --> 00:31:22,421 I mean, today the explosives are so much less explosive, 730 00:31:22,422 --> 00:31:24,048 so much less dangerous. 731 00:31:24,049 --> 00:31:26,717 They're saving a lot of kids' fingers. 732 00:31:26,718 --> 00:31:28,636 That's probably a good thing. 733 00:31:28,637 --> 00:31:31,639 Turns out back then, supervision was 734 00:31:31,640 --> 00:31:32,307 more of a suggestion. 735 00:31:35,977 --> 00:31:37,520 Did you know that there was a time 736 00:31:37,521 --> 00:31:39,688 when kids could walk into somebody else's house uninvited, 737 00:31:39,689 --> 00:31:43,651 literally bounce off the walls, and no one would stop them? 738 00:31:43,652 --> 00:31:44,902 How? 739 00:31:44,903 --> 00:31:47,114 Well, we actually made it pretty easy. 740 00:31:48,615 --> 00:31:52,409 Today, construction sites big and small are locked down. 741 00:31:52,410 --> 00:31:55,538 They're protected by chain link fences, warning signs, 742 00:31:55,539 --> 00:31:59,959 24 hour video surveillance, so it's hard to imagine a time 743 00:31:59,960 --> 00:32:04,130 when half built houses are open invitations for kids. 744 00:32:04,131 --> 00:32:06,465 There was a time when construction zones 745 00:32:06,466 --> 00:32:09,553 were actually open, just free for kids to play in. 746 00:32:12,514 --> 00:32:15,558 Starting with the suburban sprawl of the 1950s, 747 00:32:15,559 --> 00:32:17,518 all the way through the 1980s, 748 00:32:17,519 --> 00:32:20,479 for kids, a new house construction 749 00:32:20,480 --> 00:32:22,566 is nowhere near off limits. 750 00:32:23,608 --> 00:32:25,109 From the fifties to the eighties, 751 00:32:25,110 --> 00:32:27,945 suburban neighborhoods were popping up all over the place, 752 00:32:27,946 --> 00:32:29,905 which basically meant these woods 753 00:32:29,906 --> 00:32:31,615 that so many of us kids had played in, 754 00:32:31,616 --> 00:32:32,992 suddenly had to go, 755 00:32:32,993 --> 00:32:34,618 and now they're gonna build houses there. 756 00:32:34,619 --> 00:32:38,665 So construction sites sort of become a big playground. 757 00:32:40,041 --> 00:32:43,586 I grew up in an era of great expansion of housing 758 00:32:43,587 --> 00:32:45,921 on Staten Island, so there was always houses being built, 759 00:32:45,922 --> 00:32:50,051 and as a kid, when you see that, you gotta go in. 760 00:32:51,261 --> 00:32:53,012 The front door is wide open 761 00:32:53,013 --> 00:32:55,764 because there is no front door. 762 00:32:55,765 --> 00:32:57,016 After the workers go home, 763 00:32:57,017 --> 00:32:59,185 then the kids can go in and play. 764 00:32:59,186 --> 00:33:01,812 It's a fort, it's a playhouse. 765 00:33:01,813 --> 00:33:04,023 You can have little battles and wars in there. 766 00:33:04,024 --> 00:33:05,274 The most mundane things 767 00:33:05,275 --> 00:33:06,650 that a construction worker might throw away, 768 00:33:06,651 --> 00:33:08,527 you're like, "Oh, that's so cool." 769 00:33:08,528 --> 00:33:10,196 You found a spark plug. 770 00:33:10,197 --> 00:33:12,489 It was like you found the treasure of Sierra Madre. 771 00:33:12,490 --> 00:33:15,284 I found a pair of safety goggles once, 772 00:33:15,285 --> 00:33:17,954 and I was Cyclops and the X-Men. 773 00:33:19,080 --> 00:33:21,290 And there are treasures to be found. 774 00:33:21,291 --> 00:33:22,875 There are treasures to be found. 775 00:33:22,876 --> 00:33:26,503 Oh man, I built at least two clubhouses 776 00:33:26,504 --> 00:33:29,548 by going into construction zones at night 777 00:33:29,549 --> 00:33:32,384 after everybody went home, and taking the cast off wood, 778 00:33:32,385 --> 00:33:33,802 building yourself a clubhouse. 779 00:33:33,803 --> 00:33:35,888 It was pretty great. 780 00:33:35,889 --> 00:33:38,432 You could write your name in a concrete slab 781 00:33:38,433 --> 00:33:41,352 or leave thumbprints or hand prints or footprints. 782 00:33:41,353 --> 00:33:43,771 My initials are on Homecrest Avenue 783 00:33:43,772 --> 00:33:46,106 in Brooklyn, New York to this day. 784 00:33:46,107 --> 00:33:47,524 May not have made it to the Chinese Theater, 785 00:33:47,525 --> 00:33:50,611 but Homecrest Avenue is locked down. 786 00:33:50,612 --> 00:33:55,074 We didn't have laser tag, we had half built buildings. 787 00:33:55,075 --> 00:33:57,910 Parents know that they all go there, 788 00:33:57,911 --> 00:34:00,246 but they figure it's just part of being a kid. 789 00:34:00,247 --> 00:34:01,580 It's curiosity. 790 00:34:01,581 --> 00:34:03,999 Hey, maybe our son or daughter's gonna grow up 791 00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:06,418 to be the next architect or engineer. 792 00:34:06,419 --> 00:34:07,336 It's educational. 793 00:34:07,337 --> 00:34:08,629 It's a learning opportunity. 794 00:34:08,630 --> 00:34:11,298 Hey, that's how a house is built. 795 00:34:11,299 --> 00:34:15,636 Adults are not hanging out in construction sites, 796 00:34:15,637 --> 00:34:17,513 unless they're getting paid to be there. 797 00:34:17,514 --> 00:34:21,433 So when the clock strikes five and they went home, 798 00:34:21,434 --> 00:34:23,060 it was you and your friends 799 00:34:23,061 --> 00:34:26,981 and you were alone in your own house-sized clubhouse. 800 00:34:26,982 --> 00:34:28,774 For the young neighborhood kids, 801 00:34:28,775 --> 00:34:30,693 it's a daytime playground. 802 00:34:30,694 --> 00:34:34,196 For the older ones, it's a nighttime playground. 803 00:34:34,197 --> 00:34:37,241 I think the forbidden, naughty nature of doing it 804 00:34:37,242 --> 00:34:39,033 increased its appeal, I'm sad to say. 805 00:34:39,034 --> 00:34:39,869 Sorry, mom. 806 00:34:40,745 --> 00:34:42,037 Now the teenagers come in. 807 00:34:42,038 --> 00:34:44,540 Now, it's a different level of fun. 808 00:34:44,541 --> 00:34:46,082 Now, it's like Caligula in there. 809 00:34:46,083 --> 00:34:47,584 Now, you got a date in there, you're having fun, 810 00:34:47,585 --> 00:34:49,837 you got a six back in there, you're having a blast. 811 00:34:49,838 --> 00:34:52,006 Everybody's having parties in there. 812 00:34:52,007 --> 00:34:54,925 It's part clubhouse, part funhouse, 813 00:34:54,926 --> 00:34:57,637 but maybe a little rougher around the edges. 814 00:34:59,014 --> 00:35:00,681 These aren't playgrounds. 815 00:35:00,682 --> 00:35:05,227 Sharp corners, unfinished stairwells, basements, rebar, 816 00:35:05,228 --> 00:35:09,523 concrete, falling objects, floors with holes in them. 817 00:35:09,524 --> 00:35:12,651 Exposed nails, open wiring. 818 00:35:12,652 --> 00:35:14,945 You could fall through an unfinished floor 819 00:35:14,946 --> 00:35:18,115 or step off a half built staircase and break a leg. 820 00:35:18,116 --> 00:35:19,992 These aren't playgrounds. 821 00:35:19,993 --> 00:35:22,911 They're accidents waiting to happen. 822 00:35:22,912 --> 00:35:24,663 And there are court cases to prove it. 823 00:35:24,664 --> 00:35:26,999 Like in 1961 in Connecticut, 824 00:35:27,000 --> 00:35:30,794 a 9-year-old boy attempts to cross a plank 825 00:35:30,795 --> 00:35:35,257 across an unfinished basement and falls to his death. 826 00:35:35,258 --> 00:35:37,176 There's another case where this kid is injured 827 00:35:37,177 --> 00:35:40,638 by this caustic construction material, hydrated lime, 828 00:35:40,639 --> 00:35:42,014 that's been left around. 829 00:35:42,015 --> 00:35:43,349 Finally by the 1980s, 830 00:35:43,350 --> 00:35:45,934 insurance companies start taking notice. 831 00:35:45,935 --> 00:35:48,812 These sites have to be monitored and protected. 832 00:35:48,813 --> 00:35:51,023 We've gotta keep the kids out. 833 00:35:51,024 --> 00:35:53,192 Guards, security cameras, 834 00:35:53,193 --> 00:35:55,486 and it's not for the safety of the kids. 835 00:35:55,487 --> 00:35:57,488 It's so I don't get sued. 836 00:35:57,489 --> 00:36:00,407 That's not gonna happen on my watch. 837 00:36:00,408 --> 00:36:02,493 Sure, kids are safer now, 838 00:36:02,494 --> 00:36:05,163 fewer splinters, fewer scars, and a little less fun. 839 00:36:09,751 --> 00:36:10,918 Childhood friendships are some of the strongest bonds 840 00:36:10,919 --> 00:36:12,586 we will ever forge, 841 00:36:12,587 --> 00:36:15,798 and back in the day, kids would make that official 842 00:36:15,799 --> 00:36:18,842 in a way that was bloody intense. 843 00:36:18,843 --> 00:36:21,095 The concept of having a best friend 844 00:36:21,096 --> 00:36:23,722 is part of everyone's childhood. 845 00:36:23,723 --> 00:36:26,433 The idea of having a fellow adventurer 846 00:36:26,434 --> 00:36:29,770 on this thing called life, that's a special thing. 847 00:36:29,771 --> 00:36:31,563 Anyone can say they're best friends, 848 00:36:31,564 --> 00:36:34,733 but some kids came up with a ritual 849 00:36:34,734 --> 00:36:37,487 to really elevate that status. 850 00:36:38,697 --> 00:36:40,614 Popular books from Mark Twain's, 851 00:36:40,615 --> 00:36:44,201 "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" to Stephen King's, "It," 852 00:36:44,202 --> 00:36:46,787 show kids eagerly taking part 853 00:36:46,788 --> 00:36:51,668 in a once common childhood ritual called a blood oath. 854 00:36:52,919 --> 00:36:56,088 A blood oath is when you cut your own skin 855 00:36:56,089 --> 00:36:57,965 and then your friend does the same thing, 856 00:36:57,966 --> 00:36:59,842 and then you combine your blood 857 00:36:59,843 --> 00:37:01,720 and you become blood brothers. 858 00:37:02,971 --> 00:37:05,764 Just the idea of blood brothers is so weird to me. 859 00:37:05,765 --> 00:37:08,559 I think I saw it in a movie once when I was a kid 860 00:37:08,560 --> 00:37:11,645 and I just thought, "Gross." 861 00:37:11,646 --> 00:37:13,480 In today's world, it looks crazy. 862 00:37:13,481 --> 00:37:16,150 If your knife is dirty, you could get tetanus, 863 00:37:16,151 --> 00:37:19,069 and let's not even talk about bloodborne pathogens 864 00:37:19,070 --> 00:37:21,280 that you can transfer from one to another. 865 00:37:21,281 --> 00:37:24,659 But back then, you weren't aware. 866 00:37:25,910 --> 00:37:28,328 And it's not happening in secret. 867 00:37:28,329 --> 00:37:30,665 Adults encourage it. 868 00:37:31,875 --> 00:37:34,168 In the 1930s and 40s, 869 00:37:34,169 --> 00:37:37,379 a special honor society within the Boy Scouts of America 870 00:37:37,380 --> 00:37:39,381 called the Order of the Arrow 871 00:37:39,382 --> 00:37:42,385 regularly conducts this brotherhood ceremony. 872 00:37:43,845 --> 00:37:46,764 They take an arrow and they slice the palm of their 873 00:37:46,765 --> 00:37:48,056 hands and then put 'em together, 874 00:37:48,057 --> 00:37:50,976 and that's their blood brother oath. 875 00:37:50,977 --> 00:37:54,856 This sanctioned blood ritual goes on for decades. 876 00:37:56,232 --> 00:37:57,357 Back when the Scouts started, 877 00:37:57,358 --> 00:37:58,317 the whole bloodletting thing, 878 00:37:58,318 --> 00:38:00,486 the idea of bloodborne pathogens 879 00:38:00,487 --> 00:38:03,197 really didn't cross people's mind. 880 00:38:03,198 --> 00:38:04,615 There was a lot of issues 881 00:38:04,616 --> 00:38:07,826 with having kids cut themselves to draw blood. 882 00:38:07,827 --> 00:38:09,161 By the mid-20th century, 883 00:38:09,162 --> 00:38:11,872 people understand that disease is passed on 884 00:38:11,873 --> 00:38:13,208 through the blood. 885 00:38:14,709 --> 00:38:16,794 In 1956, the Boy Scouts actually rewrite 886 00:38:16,795 --> 00:38:20,297 this whole thing and banned bloodletting, 887 00:38:20,298 --> 00:38:22,591 so instead they would just draw a little blood on their hand 888 00:38:22,592 --> 00:38:25,887 with a marker and then they would bond that way. 889 00:38:26,971 --> 00:38:28,388 By the seventies and eighties, 890 00:38:28,389 --> 00:38:30,849 there's more and more fear of bloodborne diseases, 891 00:38:30,850 --> 00:38:33,560 and now parents and scout leaders and coaches 892 00:38:33,561 --> 00:38:36,104 are warning kids against doing this. 893 00:38:36,105 --> 00:38:38,607 Nowadays, if you wanna be best friends with 894 00:38:38,608 --> 00:38:40,234 someone, you just kind of say, "Hey, we're best friends." 895 00:38:40,235 --> 00:38:41,443 You don't really have to do 896 00:38:41,444 --> 00:38:44,863 this gross sharing of blood pathogens 897 00:38:44,864 --> 00:38:47,115 to seal that friendship. 898 00:38:47,116 --> 00:38:49,326 Oh, it's so gross. 899 00:38:49,327 --> 00:38:53,080 A lot of risky behavior that we engaged in as kids 900 00:38:53,081 --> 00:38:55,249 was due to peer pressure. 901 00:38:55,250 --> 00:38:58,627 Take smoking, it was hard to resist taking a puff 902 00:38:58,628 --> 00:39:00,295 when all your friends were doing it, 903 00:39:00,296 --> 00:39:02,631 but sometimes that temptation 904 00:39:02,632 --> 00:39:04,842 didn't come from the other kids. 905 00:39:04,843 --> 00:39:06,761 It came from a machine. 906 00:39:08,304 --> 00:39:11,390 Smoking is a deeply normalized thing 907 00:39:11,391 --> 00:39:13,058 in mid-century America. 908 00:39:13,059 --> 00:39:15,435 If a teen wants a cigarette back then, 909 00:39:15,436 --> 00:39:16,771 they don't have to try that hard. 910 00:39:16,896 --> 00:39:18,689 All you have to do is look between the jukebox 911 00:39:18,690 --> 00:39:20,148 and the soda machine 912 00:39:20,149 --> 00:39:22,568 to this memorial to American commercialism 913 00:39:22,569 --> 00:39:25,738 in the form of the cigarette vending machine. 914 00:39:27,282 --> 00:39:29,074 For the price of a milkshake, 915 00:39:29,075 --> 00:39:33,078 you can buy a pack of cigarettes from one of these machines. 916 00:39:33,079 --> 00:39:36,081 By the 1950s, they're at bowling alleys, 917 00:39:36,082 --> 00:39:38,792 they're at movie theaters, they're even in hospitals. 918 00:39:38,793 --> 00:39:42,379 Like anywhere where you need quick access to a cigarette 919 00:39:42,380 --> 00:39:44,090 and where there might be children, 920 00:39:45,091 --> 00:39:46,926 there's a cigarette vending machine. 921 00:39:47,969 --> 00:39:49,720 At restaurants, I was given the money 922 00:39:49,721 --> 00:39:52,097 and sent, "Go over there and get me a pack of cigarettes," 923 00:39:52,098 --> 00:39:55,058 and I go, pull the thing, chink, chink, 924 00:39:55,059 --> 00:39:56,935 and let the pack fall to the bottom and get out, 925 00:39:56,936 --> 00:40:00,314 and then proudly walk back and present it to my father. 926 00:40:00,315 --> 00:40:03,942 The machines are designed with sleek chrome, 927 00:40:03,943 --> 00:40:07,279 glowing lights, and glass knobs. 928 00:40:07,280 --> 00:40:10,365 To kids, it's almost a game. 929 00:40:10,366 --> 00:40:14,578 It's estimated that 50% of teen boys were smokers 930 00:40:14,579 --> 00:40:16,496 and some of those estimates are even higher. 931 00:40:16,497 --> 00:40:19,708 And then a minority of girls were also smoking. 932 00:40:19,709 --> 00:40:22,044 The vending machine provides this huge loophole 933 00:40:22,045 --> 00:40:24,755 to the age restrictions because it can't tell. 934 00:40:24,756 --> 00:40:26,965 There's no mechanism for it to ascertain 935 00:40:26,966 --> 00:40:29,676 whether or not you are above 18 years of age. 936 00:40:29,677 --> 00:40:33,138 And so if you have the correct number of quarters, 937 00:40:33,139 --> 00:40:35,182 you can get a pack of cigarettes out of the machine, 938 00:40:35,183 --> 00:40:37,643 even though you may be 15 years old. 939 00:40:37,644 --> 00:40:40,562 Of course, we find out that it is way more dangerous 940 00:40:40,563 --> 00:40:44,066 than the tobacco companies let anybody know. 941 00:40:44,067 --> 00:40:46,944 Smoking is particularly damaging for 942 00:40:46,945 --> 00:40:48,278 adolescents because it interferes 943 00:40:48,279 --> 00:40:50,323 with brain development and lung development. 944 00:40:52,241 --> 00:40:54,952 It's wild to think that cigarette vending machines, 945 00:40:54,953 --> 00:40:56,995 which saw their peak in the 1950s, 946 00:40:56,996 --> 00:41:01,250 puttered along, until literally the 90s. 947 00:41:02,460 --> 00:41:04,670 By 2010, these things are basically extinct, 948 00:41:04,671 --> 00:41:07,089 and the only place where they might still exist 949 00:41:07,090 --> 00:41:10,468 by federal law is places that are restricted to adults. 950 00:41:11,886 --> 00:41:15,180 Thinking back on the things we did when we were young, 951 00:41:15,181 --> 00:41:18,308 from jumping our bikes to playing chicken in traffic, 952 00:41:18,309 --> 00:41:22,604 to blowing things up for fun, ignorance was bliss. 953 00:41:22,605 --> 00:41:25,482 And what we didn't know could kill us, 954 00:41:25,483 --> 00:41:28,735 but somehow we made it through our hazardous history, 955 00:41:28,736 --> 00:41:30,989 and we've got the scars to prove it.