Hidden Histories - Hidden Histories Foundations of Community
46:47 Min
What secrets lie within the walls of Goodwood Park Hotel? In this episode, Reuben Dhanaraj uncovers the rich and hidden history of this iconic building. From its origins as a German club to its confiscation during World War I and its crucial role during the Japanese Occupation, Reuben reveals the untold stories behind the hotel's changing fate. He follows the trail of a mysterious portrait tied to post-war intrigue, war crimes trials, and the shifting tides of history. As Reuben explores the hotel's layers of history, he brings to light the forgotten moments and hidden remnants of a past that shaped Singapore's legacy.
About the show:
What secrets lie hidden in plain sight? In this captivating four-part documentary series, we uncover the forgotten stories buried within Singapore's most iconic landmarks and abandoned sites. From derelict military forts to repurposed power stations, grand hotels to historic courtrooms, each episode peels back layers of history to reveal lost secrets, hidden passageways, and pivotal moments that shaped the nation. These places are more than just remnants of the past – they are silent witnesses to ambition, resilience, and transformation, waiting to be rediscovered.
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Straits Times
5 days ago
- Straits Times
As her 1962 song Pretty Little Baby goes viral, singer Connie Francis, 87, joins TikTok
American singer-actress Connie Francis' song Pretty Little Baby, which she has described as "obscure", is a TikTok hit. PHOTO: CONNIE FRANCIS/INSTAGRAM NEW YORK – Sixty-four years ago, American singer-actress Connie Francis recorded Pretty Little Baby as one of dozens of songs in a marathon recording session that yielded three albums within two weeks. It did not, at the time, feel like a song that had the makings of a hit, so it landed on the B-side of the 1962 single I'm Gonna Be Warm This Winter that was released in Britain. Since then, it was more or less overlooked. Then came TikTok and its canny ability to resurrect decades-old songs for a new generation. Over the past few weeks, Pretty Little Baby has been trending on the social media app – it has been featured as the sound in more than 600,000 TikTok posts, and soared to top spots in Spotify's Viral 50 global and US lists – bolstered by celebrities and influencers. These include German model Nara Smith and American reality TV stars Kylie Jenner and Kim Kardashian, who have posted videos of themselves lip-syncing to it. Swedish pop group Abba's singer Agnetha Faltskog used the song for a clip on TikTok in which she said Francis had long been her favourite singer. And Broadway actress Gracie Lawrence, who is playing Francis in Just In Time – a play about American singer-actor Bobby Darin, Francis' one-time romantic partner – also posted a video of herself lip-syncing to it, in her 1960s costume and hair. Pretty Little Baby's current popularity is an unexpected twist to Francis' long and illustrious career. In 1960, she became the first female singer to top the Billboard Hot 100. By the time she was 26, she had sold 42 million records and had two more singles top the Billboard charts. But this particular song, which she recorded in seven languages, remained so obscure that Francis, now 87, told People magazine that she had forgotten ever recording it and 'had to play it to remember it'. Amid the frenzy of the unexpected attention, she is trying to figure out how to turn this sudden attention into opportunities for herself. She and her publicist Ron Roberts enlisted Roberts' son to help them set up a TikTok account for her. And in a recent telephone interview, she said she had been mulling the idea of emerging from retirement to do some kind of show in the next few months. How does it feel now that this song is having a kind of resurgence? Well, it's not a resurgence because it never happened in the first place. It's an obscure song on an album that I did – it wasn't even a single record. It went unnoticed. Now, it has 10 billion views. How do you feel about that? On top of the world and overwhelmed that a whole new generation of people know me and my music now. You once mentioned that you had forgotten recording this song. What were your thoughts hearing it again? It's a cute song. I couldn't imagine that it has the effect that it has worldwide on people – it's hard to believe. I wanted something for the B-side of a single, and I chose something that wouldn't give my A-side any competition. I don't even know the name of the record that I put it on. But I think it has a ring of innocence in this chaotic time and it connects with people. You now have a TikTok account. Can we expect posts from you? Yes, when my publicist said I went viral on TikTok, I said: 'What's that?' That was my reaction. 'What's viral? What's that?' I thought my computer had a virus or something. I didn't know what he was talking about. Are you using TikTok regularly now? Yes. I think it's great. I'm going to be putting a lot of different things on my TikTok now. Thank you, TikTok. NYTIMES Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
29-05-2025
- Straits Times
MHA to conduct social experiments in June to test public's response to terror threats
MHA said the authorities will be around to ensure public safety. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH MHA to conduct social experiments in June to test public's response to terror threats SINGAPORE – Several social experiments will be conducted in the heartland from early to mid-June to test how the public responds to terror incidents. These planned scenarios will involve actors and realistic props, said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on May 29. Declining to publicise details about the experiments, it said precautions will be taken to ensure that they cause minimal disruption to the public. MHA said the authorities will be around to ensure public safety. Reactions from members of the public will be recorded, and the footage will be used to create an educational web series to raise awareness about key SGSecure advisories, such as 'Run, Hide, Tell' and 'Press, Tie, Tell'. The first episode will premiere on July 30. SGSecure is a national movement launched in 2016 to prepare Singaporeans to deal with terrorist attacks and equip them with skills to handle a crisis. Run, Hide, Tell involves moving away from danger, staying out of sight, and informing the authorities. When dealing with casualties during emergency situations, members of the public can stop a victim from bleeding by applying pressure to the wound (press), securing it with a strip of cloth (tie), and calling 995 for help (tell). In its statement, MHA advised members of the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities to the authorities. During an SGSecure roadshow at Suntec City in July 2024, Minister for Home Affairs K. Shanmugam had said: 'We have kept Singapore safe and secure so far. So as a result, people don't think that there will be a terror attack. 'It's not in people's minds. But that doesn't mean an attack won't happen here.' In 2024, the Internal Security Department (ISD) said in its annual report that terrorism threats here have increased since the Gaza war began. Said ISD: 'While there is no indication of an imminent attack, the terrorism threat to Singapore remains high. Global developments and conflicts have generated emotive responses worldwide, including acts of violence, and terrorist elements have leveraged such conflicts to call for attacks. These developments have impacted Singapore's internal security.' A 2023 report by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) found that lone wolves were the main terror threat to Singapore. In October 2024, a 17-year-old boy was arrested before he could carry out an attack on non-Muslims in Tampines during the September school holidays. Lone wolves have also been responsible for violent incidents abroad, using everyday objects as weapons. On May 23, a German woman was arrested after stabbing 18 people at a train station in Hamburg. In October 2023, a 14-year-old boy with a handgun opened fire at Siam Paragon in Bangkok, killing a Chinese tourist and a Myanmar national. Five others were injured. And in the latest incident involving a public security threat on May 26, a 53-year-old British man drove his vehicle into a crowd of Liverpool fans during a parade celebrating the football club's Premier League title, injuring around 50 people. Claudia Tan is a journalist at The Straits Times covering the crime and court beat. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Straits Times
20-05-2025
- Straits Times
Adidas, Puma family feud to be turned into TV series
The series will delve into one of the most fascinating fraternal blow-ups in corporate history. PHOTOS: REUTERS CANNES, France - The bitter brotherly feud that sparked the creation of sports-shoe brands Adidas and Puma in the same small German town in the 1940s is to be turned into a television series with the help of family archives, its producers announced on May 18. Hollywood-based film producer No Fat Ego is backing the project, which has the blessing of the family behind the Adidas empire founded by Mr Adolf 'Adi' Dassler. It will delve into one of the most fascinating fraternal blow-ups in corporate history, which pitted Mr Adi against his brother Rudolf ('Rudi'), who went on to create rival Puma. The two men jointly ran a family-owned footwear company before falling out during World War II, with their post-conflict animus splitting their town of Herzogenaurach to this day. Scriptwriter Mark Williams, behind the hit Netflix series 'Ozark', has been hired to lead the project and is currently going through Dassler family home videos and memorabilia to work on the story. 'Everybody knows the brands, but the story behind them is something we don't really fully know,' Mr Williams told AFP at the Cannes film festival. One of the most sensitive areas – particularly for the reputations of the multi-billion-dollar footwear companies today – will be how the brothers are portrayed during the war period. Both became members of the Nazi party in the 1930s, as was customary for the business elite at the time. Mr Rudi went to fight, however, and was arrested by Allied forces on his return to a defeated Germany. 'Adi stayed home and tried to keep the company alive,' Mr Williams added. Their factory was seized as part of the war effort and converted into a munitions plant. The series promises to be a 'Succession-type drama between the family' set over several generations, Mr Williams explained, comparing it with the earlier hit HBO series. The head of No Fat Ego, Mr Niels Juul, who has produced Martin Scorsese's most recent movies, said he was originally drawn to the story after learning about the Dassler brothers' collaboration with legendary black American runner Jesse Owens. Partly thanks to their innovative spiked shoes, Mr Owens became one of the stars of the 1936 Berlin Olympics which Hitler had hoped would showcase white German supremacy. No Fat Ego intends to develop the series with full editorial independence before offering it to streaming platforms. 'We want to have the creative control, and Mark has to have absolute silence and quiet to do what he does,' Mr Juul told AFP. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
