Episode 664: The Great Inflation

Listen 24:45

• Playlist
• Download
• Embed Embed" /> Close embed overlay iframe src="http://www.npr.org/player/embed/456855788/456855857" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
• Transcript

Chick Harrity/AP Save this episode to Stitcher: Listen to this later on Stitcher

For much of the 70s inflation was bad. Prices rose at over 10 percent a year. Nothing could stop it. President Gerald Ford tried to cut inflation by asking Americans to spend less.

NARA

As you might guess, the campaign did not work. Then, a tall man who smoked cheap cigars did something very unpopular. Today's show: How we beat inflation.

Music: Jon Dix's "Geometry." Find us: Twitter/ Facebook/ Tumblr.

Copyright 2015 NPR. To see more, visit NPR.