Prompt Cast
The History and Popularity of Sliced Bread
TLDR Sliced bread, invented in 1928, faced challenges initially but became popular in the United States, leading to the rise of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. It was banned during World War II but continued to be hailed as a major advancement in the baking industry.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
Sliced bread is considered the greatest thing, but this podcast explores what was considered great before sliced bread and why sliced bread is so amazing.
01:33
Humans have been baking bread for thousands of years and it has played a central role in many civilizations, but for as long as humans have been eating bread, they have been slicing or cutting it with a knife.
02:40
In July 1928, an inventor named Otto Frederick Rowewetter successfully created a device that could cleanly cut a loaf of bread into slices of equal thickness, leading to the arrival of pre-sliced bread.
03:37
Sliced bread initially faced challenges with faster staling and aesthetic concerns, but after further refinements and the sale of bread cutting machines to the Continental Baking Company, sliced bread became popular.
04:35
Sliced bread became popular in the United States, leading to the rise of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, but faced a setback during World War II when a ban was placed on sliced bread for the war effort.
05:37
Comparing things to sliced bread became popular in the 1950s, with examples like an English actor and television being referred to as the "greatest thing since sliced bread."
06:38
Sliced bread was hailed as the greatest step forward in the baking industry since bread was wrapped.
