Who decides which snacks are in your office’s vending machine? How much is a suburban elm tree worth, and to whom? How did Girl Scout Cookies become a billion-dollar business? In bite-sized episodes, journalist Zachary Crockett looks at quotidian things and finds amazing stories. Join the Freakonomics Radio Plus membership program for weekly member-only episodes of Freakonomics Radio. You’ll also get every show in our network without ads. To sign up, visit our show page on Apple Podcasts or go to freakonomics.com/plus.
https://freakonomics.com
episode 9: Bowling Alleys (Replay)
Once America’s favorite recreational activity, bowling has been in the gutter for decades. But some surviving alleys are resetting the pins. Zachary Crockett laces up.
- SOURCES:
- Mike Leong, owner of Bel Mateo Bowl.
- Devon Stewart, head coach of Florida State University bowling team, C.E.O. of Bowl Connect, and consultant with the Hansell Group.
- RESOURCES:
- "Cornhole and Bowling Are the Sports Most Americans Played Last Year," by Mallory Newall, Johnny Sawyer, Charlie Rollason, and Tyler Ivey (Ipsos, 2023).
- "Overview of the Bowling Industry," by The Hansell Group (2022).
- "How Bowling Alleys Made a Comeback," by Justin Fox (Bloomberg, 2019).
- "New Look Keeps Bel Mateo Bowl Thriving," by Curtis Driscoll (The Daily Journal, 2017).
- "Inside the Ugly Road Bowlmor Took to Make Bowling Cool," by Gabrielle Fonrouge (New York Post, 2017).
- "The (Short) History of the National Bowling League," by Bob Johnson (United States Bowling Congress News, 2015).
- EXTRAS:
- "Is It Harder to Make Friends as an Adult?" by No Stupid Questions (2023).