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Oh, Florida!: How America's Weirdest State Influences the Rest of the Country
A New York Times Bestseller
Oh, Florida! That name. That combination of sounds. Three simple syllables, and yet packing so many mixed messages. To some people, it’s a paradise. To others, it’s a punch line. As Oh, Florida! shows, it’s both of these and, more important, it’s a Petri dish, producing trends that end up influencing the rest of the country. Without Florida there would be no NASCAR, no Bettie Page pinups, no Glenn Beck radio rants, no USA Today, no “Stand Your Ground,” . . . you get the idea.
To outsiders, Florida seems baffling. It’s a state where the voters went for Barack Obama twice, yet elected a Tea Party candidate as governor. Florida is touted as a carefree paradise, yet it’s also known for its perils-alligators, sinkholes, pythons, hurricanes, and sharks, to name a few. It attracts 90 million visitors a year, some drawn by its impressive natural beauty, others bewitched by its manmade fantasies.
Oh, Florida! explores those contradictions and shows how they fit together to make this the most interesting state. It is the first book to explore the reasons why Florida is so wild and weird-and why that’s okay. Florida couldn’t be Florida without that sense of the unpredictable, unexpected, and unusual lurking behind every palm tree. But there is far more to Florida than its sideshow freakiness. Oh, Florida! explains how Florida secretly, subtly influences all the other states in the Union, both for good and for ill.
Oh, Florida! That name. That combination of sounds. Three simple syllables, and yet packing so many mixed messages. To some people, it’s a paradise. To others, it’s a punch line. As Oh, Florida! shows, it’s both of these and, more important, it’s a Petri dish, producing trends that end up influencing the rest of the country. Without Florida there would be no NASCAR, no Bettie Page pinups, no Glenn Beck radio rants, no USA Today, no “Stand Your Ground,” . . . you get the idea.
To outsiders, Florida seems baffling. It’s a state where the voters went for Barack Obama twice, yet elected a Tea Party candidate as governor. Florida is touted as a carefree paradise, yet it’s also known for its perils-alligators, sinkholes, pythons, hurricanes, and sharks, to name a few. It attracts 90 million visitors a year, some drawn by its impressive natural beauty, others bewitched by its manmade fantasies.
Oh, Florida! explores those contradictions and shows how they fit together to make this the most interesting state. It is the first book to explore the reasons why Florida is so wild and weird-and why that’s okay. Florida couldn’t be Florida without that sense of the unpredictable, unexpected, and unusual lurking behind every palm tree. But there is far more to Florida than its sideshow freakiness. Oh, Florida! explains how Florida secretly, subtly influences all the other states in the Union, both for good and for ill.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published July 26, 2016
178 people are currently reading
1524 people want to read
About the author
Craig Pittman
11 books216 followersCraig Pittman is the author of seven books about Florida, including "Oh, Florida! How America's Weirdest State Influences the Rest of the Country," (2016) which became a New York Times bestseller, and "Cat Tale: The Wild, Weird Battle to Save the Florida Panther" (2020). His most recent book is "Welcome to Florida: True Tales from America's Most Interesting State" (2025). He writes a weekly column for the Florida Phoenix and also co-hosts the popular "Welcome to Florida" podcast. He is a native Floridian and graduated from Troy State University in Alabama, where his muckraking work for the student paper prompted an agitated dean to label him "the most destructive force on campus." Since then he has covered a variety of newspaper beats and quite a few natural disasters, including hurricanes, wildfires and the Florida Legislature. In 2020 he was named a Florida Literary Legend by the Florida Heritage Book Festival and in 2022 the national Sierra Club gave him its Rachel Carson Award. He lives in St. Petersburg, Fla., with his wife and two children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 197 reviews
August 17, 2016
Very entertaining, and, simultaneously, horrifying. I grew up in Florida (moved to NC ten years ago, but Florida is still “home”), so much of the book is to some extent familiar, but Pittman tells fine stories, and there were many people and events here that I was glad to learn about in more detail.
Though much of this is loosely connected “weird Florida” trivia, Pittman really does try in each chapter to tie things together and show how Florida events influenced the rest of America. I found this particularly fascinating in chapters 16 & 17, when he talks about how events in St. Augustine and Miami influenced the civil rights and gay rights movements, respectively. The story of activists, both black and white, wading into the Atlantic to protest the “whites only” St. Augustine beaches in 1964, and the white swimmers leaping out of the water, apparently in fear of black skin color transferring to them, reminded me of my mom's story of my grandmother worrying that young black neighbors would swim in our pool while we were away when I was a very small child and we lived in Coconut Grove. My mom thought she was worried, reasonably, about unsupervised children drowning, but was dismayed to learn that my grandmother was specifically concerned about whether black skin might not be “colorfast.” I always thought this was really bizarre (well, I still do), but it turns out that my grandma was expressing a common (if racist) concern of the time (I was born in 1965, so my mom and grandma probably had this conversation in '67 or '68). The story of Anita Bryant and her anti-gay activism in Miami in 1977 also clarified some memories for me, as I remember Bryant and her “a day without orange juice is like a day without sunshine” commercials, but also, vaguely, that there was something that we (my liberal family) didn't like about her. Actually, we were politically liberal, especially on environmental issues, but socially more conservative (and especially in the topics to be discussed, which did not include sex), so I imagine my parents never mentioned to us why we didn't like Ms. Bryant. Anyway, these chapters were especially enlightening for me.
The whole book is interesting, though. Florida's contribution to the founding of the National Hurricane Center isn't much of a surprise, and I knew that the first national wildlife refuge, Pelican Island, which we regularly floated past when I was a kid fishing on the Indian River, was in Florida, but I hadn't realized that Florida's “Sunshine Law,” requiring public access to government meetings and records, was so groundbreaking. Of course, we've also contributed the “Stand Your Ground” legislation, “Cops,” and “hanging chads,” not to mention abortion center bombings. And then there are Indian casinos, space rockets, O'Connor v. Donaldson (mental health Supreme Court ruling), USA Today and the National Enquirer. A mixed bag, to be sure, but Pittman certainly establishes Florida's (often weird) influence, for good and for evil, on the rest of the country!
My only real complaint with this one is that Pittman is apparently something of a frustrated stand-up comic and too often indulges his taste for wearisomely bad jokes and puns. “Every state has sleazy politicians, but Florida's pols really take the cake – as well as the knife, the plate, and all the candles.” These probably seem less tiresome in blog posts (apparently his “Oh, Florida” blog was the inspiration for this book), but they detract from his book. (Given the outrageousness of his material they would be coals to Newcastle even if they were funny.) And I do wonder whether readers who don't have a strong Florida connection would find this interesting. I found stories about various Florida governors, crooks, and crooked politicians engaging because they were mostly at least slightly familiar, but I doubt whether the history of the antics of politicians in, say, Nebraska, to be so fascinating for me. Still, I guess loads of people have been to Florida to visit the beaches or Disney, so maybe...
I picked this because I was feeling homesick, but I wound up learning a lot that I'd somehow missed in my 40 years in Florida. Four stars.
Though much of this is loosely connected “weird Florida” trivia, Pittman really does try in each chapter to tie things together and show how Florida events influenced the rest of America. I found this particularly fascinating in chapters 16 & 17, when he talks about how events in St. Augustine and Miami influenced the civil rights and gay rights movements, respectively. The story of activists, both black and white, wading into the Atlantic to protest the “whites only” St. Augustine beaches in 1964, and the white swimmers leaping out of the water, apparently in fear of black skin color transferring to them, reminded me of my mom's story of my grandmother worrying that young black neighbors would swim in our pool while we were away when I was a very small child and we lived in Coconut Grove. My mom thought she was worried, reasonably, about unsupervised children drowning, but was dismayed to learn that my grandmother was specifically concerned about whether black skin might not be “colorfast.” I always thought this was really bizarre (well, I still do), but it turns out that my grandma was expressing a common (if racist) concern of the time (I was born in 1965, so my mom and grandma probably had this conversation in '67 or '68). The story of Anita Bryant and her anti-gay activism in Miami in 1977 also clarified some memories for me, as I remember Bryant and her “a day without orange juice is like a day without sunshine” commercials, but also, vaguely, that there was something that we (my liberal family) didn't like about her. Actually, we were politically liberal, especially on environmental issues, but socially more conservative (and especially in the topics to be discussed, which did not include sex), so I imagine my parents never mentioned to us why we didn't like Ms. Bryant. Anyway, these chapters were especially enlightening for me.
The whole book is interesting, though. Florida's contribution to the founding of the National Hurricane Center isn't much of a surprise, and I knew that the first national wildlife refuge, Pelican Island, which we regularly floated past when I was a kid fishing on the Indian River, was in Florida, but I hadn't realized that Florida's “Sunshine Law,” requiring public access to government meetings and records, was so groundbreaking. Of course, we've also contributed the “Stand Your Ground” legislation, “Cops,” and “hanging chads,” not to mention abortion center bombings. And then there are Indian casinos, space rockets, O'Connor v. Donaldson (mental health Supreme Court ruling), USA Today and the National Enquirer. A mixed bag, to be sure, but Pittman certainly establishes Florida's (often weird) influence, for good and for evil, on the rest of the country!
My only real complaint with this one is that Pittman is apparently something of a frustrated stand-up comic and too often indulges his taste for wearisomely bad jokes and puns. “Every state has sleazy politicians, but Florida's pols really take the cake – as well as the knife, the plate, and all the candles.” These probably seem less tiresome in blog posts (apparently his “Oh, Florida” blog was the inspiration for this book), but they detract from his book. (Given the outrageousness of his material they would be coals to Newcastle even if they were funny.) And I do wonder whether readers who don't have a strong Florida connection would find this interesting. I found stories about various Florida governors, crooks, and crooked politicians engaging because they were mostly at least slightly familiar, but I doubt whether the history of the antics of politicians in, say, Nebraska, to be so fascinating for me. Still, I guess loads of people have been to Florida to visit the beaches or Disney, so maybe...
I picked this because I was feeling homesick, but I wound up learning a lot that I'd somehow missed in my 40 years in Florida. Four stars.
August 12, 2016
A few years ago I attended a signing/reading by one of my favorite Florida writers and columnists Carl Hiaasen. A member of the audience asked him where he got his wacky ideas for his novels of strange goings on in my home state of Florida. "Simple", says Carl, "pick up a newspaper!". Another Florida writer, Tim Dorsey, he of the 20+ novels featuring the serial killer Serge who only kills folks who harm Florida or Floridians and who dispenses Florida trivia as he travels the state with his drug addled partner Coleman, was also an editor columnist for the Tampa Tribune for a dozen years. So, I guess basically, the newspaper folks know where to find goodies. And Florida has lots of goodies as shown in this great book by Craig Pittman, yet another newspaper reporter and columnist. The difference is, his book is non-fiction and goes back many years attesting to Florida weirdness in categories from sin to politics (not necessarily mutually exclusive), religion (also not mutually exclusive) natural and unnatural dangers, rip-offs and scams as well as the occasional truly good thing -weather, for example.
I have now lived here for more than 34 years, more than half my life so I guess that makes me at least a "semi-native" and as Pitmann puts it, "If you live here already, or are planning a move here, I encourage you to embrace our weirdness, to celebrate our funky fun state, dig into our history, grab hold of our culture with both hands, and take a big old whiff of the sin, scandal and screwball silliness."
As he also notes "You want peace and quiet?" Go to one of those boring rectangular states like Nebraska. [While he often brings up the arguments of which body part the state of Florida resembles, or is it just a gun?] You want to greet every day's news with a raised brow and widening eyes? Then come on down to the Sunshine State ... and bring your cash and credit cards. We're waiting for you!"
A great, fun read about our weird state! 4 stars!
I have now lived here for more than 34 years, more than half my life so I guess that makes me at least a "semi-native" and as Pitmann puts it, "If you live here already, or are planning a move here, I encourage you to embrace our weirdness, to celebrate our funky fun state, dig into our history, grab hold of our culture with both hands, and take a big old whiff of the sin, scandal and screwball silliness."
As he also notes "You want peace and quiet?" Go to one of those boring rectangular states like Nebraska. [While he often brings up the arguments of which body part the state of Florida resembles, or is it just a gun?] You want to greet every day's news with a raised brow and widening eyes? Then come on down to the Sunshine State ... and bring your cash and credit cards. We're waiting for you!"
A great, fun read about our weird state! 4 stars!
September 9, 2016
Second book about Florida and its craziness that I read in the last month (first was Dave Barry’s “Best. State. Ever”). While Barry’s book was funny, it left me feeling like there was more to the story. Pittman’s work tells the rest of the story. We know we’re the land of the Mouse and NASA and Gatorade but did you know that the Sierra Club has malaria from Florida to thank for its existence? What about a pug named Princess Penny Pickles that helped solve a murder? Cool Hand Luke, Miami Vice, the USA Today, National Enquirer, the last two Presidents of the US, Indian gaming, the cigar industry, the lottery, Bettie Page, Jim Bakker’s downfall, a mayor who banned Satan, and many, many more fun stories about the place I call home.
Neither Barry nor Pittman need my rave reviews of their books. I loved them both in their own special ways, but I liked Pittman’s more. Read them both and decide for yourself.
A few of my favorite lines:
“Does it seem strange to you that the beloved figure of Walt Disney would wind up working with a guy tied to the CIA, drugs, Cuban revolutionaries, and the Mafia? Does that odd juxtaposition make you feel uncomfortable? In Florida, we call that feeling “Tuesday.” – p. 196
“I am a big fan of Florida letting its freak flag fly high, because that’s who we are.” – Epilogue
Neither Barry nor Pittman need my rave reviews of their books. I loved them both in their own special ways, but I liked Pittman’s more. Read them both and decide for yourself.
A few of my favorite lines:
“Does it seem strange to you that the beloved figure of Walt Disney would wind up working with a guy tied to the CIA, drugs, Cuban revolutionaries, and the Mafia? Does that odd juxtaposition make you feel uncomfortable? In Florida, we call that feeling “Tuesday.” – p. 196
“I am a big fan of Florida letting its freak flag fly high, because that’s who we are.” – Epilogue
December 26, 2017
Florida has a certain reputation in the United States: an armpit, a cesspool of weirdness, a haven for retirees who can't drive even though their lives depend on it. And, Pittman argues, it is an unusual state, a battleground for a lot of cultural movements in the U.S., from the civil rights movement to the gay rights movement to 2000 election to the pro-life movement and, perhaps most recently, the opiate crisis. Pittman, a lifelong resident of the state, is a connoisseur of Florida's weirdness, and he presents it elegantly, from the history of Florida's political corruption (extensive) to the reasons for the number of strange news stories coming out of Florida (the unusual transparency of Florida's government in supplying public records to the press).
Oh, Florida! is an extensively researched, funny, and ultimately loving portrait of an underrated state, so packed with state trivia that is almost overwhelming. If you plan to visit the state anytime soon, I highly recommend it as vacation reading to appreciate the weirdness and greatness of the place you're visiting. I read it while visiting Florida and found it the perfect funny read for a winter holiday in a tropical locale.
Oh, Florida! is an extensively researched, funny, and ultimately loving portrait of an underrated state, so packed with state trivia that is almost overwhelming. If you plan to visit the state anytime soon, I highly recommend it as vacation reading to appreciate the weirdness and greatness of the place you're visiting. I read it while visiting Florida and found it the perfect funny read for a winter holiday in a tropical locale.
July 21, 2018
As a 15 year Florida resident, this was a bunch of fun facts, but I definitely think think this is more of a “it’s me, not you” kind of thing...
I’m not a great reader of non fiction, and I found this topic for me might have been better suited to a stocking stuffer/bathroom kind of book as a list of facts to dip in and out of. I can totally see how people might love this, but it’s just not my thing. I tired of it pretty quickly, reading 300+ in a few sittings for a book club. Not a bad book, but just not the style of book I enjoy to read.
I’m not a great reader of non fiction, and I found this topic for me might have been better suited to a stocking stuffer/bathroom kind of book as a list of facts to dip in and out of. I can totally see how people might love this, but it’s just not my thing. I tired of it pretty quickly, reading 300+ in a few sittings for a book club. Not a bad book, but just not the style of book I enjoy to read.
March 6, 2025
Craig Pittman has a brilliant wit. Biting commentary and observations that sometimes sadly are spot on. Unfortunately the reader of this book sounded like a radio announcer and made it hard to listen to for long stretches.
July 31, 2021
Outstanding Would recommend this book for all Floridians and transplants to Florida.
January 10, 2017
Puts the Fun back in the Funshine State
I was once a reporter in Florida. While there, I met a man who had run for office 40+ times before being elected Supervisor of Elections in Hillsborough County. The county commissioners had him committed to a mental institution. Three weeks later, doctors there released him for lack of evidence. He later ran for Governor, declaring himself "the only candidate to be declared sane." While on the campaign trail, he regularly faced the audience and mooned them. (I asked him not to do so on the television show I hosted, and he cheerfully complied.)
I knew another man, a folk singer, who erected a giant statue of a phallus on his front lawn. He was arrested when neighborhood children were found dancing around it.
Neither story made this book. These stories are even more outrageous. Toward the end, the author gets serious and tells the most important Florida stories, those about racism. It's an excellent balance to the portrait of a state that influences so many of us, for better or worse.
I was once a reporter in Florida. While there, I met a man who had run for office 40+ times before being elected Supervisor of Elections in Hillsborough County. The county commissioners had him committed to a mental institution. Three weeks later, doctors there released him for lack of evidence. He later ran for Governor, declaring himself "the only candidate to be declared sane." While on the campaign trail, he regularly faced the audience and mooned them. (I asked him not to do so on the television show I hosted, and he cheerfully complied.)
I knew another man, a folk singer, who erected a giant statue of a phallus on his front lawn. He was arrested when neighborhood children were found dancing around it.
Neither story made this book. These stories are even more outrageous. Toward the end, the author gets serious and tells the most important Florida stories, those about racism. It's an excellent balance to the portrait of a state that influences so many of us, for better or worse.
Read
August 9, 2016As a resident of Florida for 35 years, I was very intrigued by the title. After reading the first couple chapters, I was hooked. Craig Pittman is a wonderful writer and presents the facts with a humorous approach. As I was reading, I found myself laughing out loud many times. If I was not a Florida resident and did not know some of the history and news stories that were so unbelievable, I would question some of the information presented. However I am aware that these are the truths. I was a little disappointed that Mr. Pittman did not give further details about on the purchase of the land by Walt Disney to create Disney World. I find this story alone so ingenious that I do believe that it is the largest real estate purchase in the history of our country to purchase property on an option. I would recommend this book to non-Florida and Florida alike. This book is very entertaining as well as informative.
December 15, 2018
Oh, Florida! opens with a compendium of deadly incidents and ever-present dangers that lurk and threaten Florida residents and visitors alike - deadly hurricanes, sinkholes, shark bites, alligator attacks, lightning strikes, etc. - begging the question veteran Florida journalist Craig Pittman proceeds to answer in the ensuing pages.
"You might wonder why people keep on moving here. The answer is simple, really. It's because we lie to them."
Tune into the local news and you'll agree that in Florida, truth is way stranger than fiction. There seem to be more scam artists, ambulance-chasing lawyers, hapless criminals, and bizarre accidents per square mile here than in other states. Oh, Florida! recounts scores of wacky anecdotes from the early days of the state's recorded history through the early months of the Trump administration. Although misfortune is the basis of many, if not most, of the events, Pittman's ironic wit and embrace of the absurd makes his book a LOL hoot!
"You might wonder why people keep on moving here. The answer is simple, really. It's because we lie to them."
Tune into the local news and you'll agree that in Florida, truth is way stranger than fiction. There seem to be more scam artists, ambulance-chasing lawyers, hapless criminals, and bizarre accidents per square mile here than in other states. Oh, Florida! recounts scores of wacky anecdotes from the early days of the state's recorded history through the early months of the Trump administration. Although misfortune is the basis of many, if not most, of the events, Pittman's ironic wit and embrace of the absurd makes his book a LOL hoot!
Read
July 9, 2018Interesting read and I’m not sure how to rate this having lived in lots of weird places before. I look forward to discussing with our book group because everyone will have a Oh Florida story! The audio version was narrated by Mike Chamberlain with an almost gleeful tone of how messed up it is in Florida.
Some of the facts in this book were entertaining or surprising and many were cringe worthy enough to make me feel like a fool for buying property here and moving here without researching more about the state.
Some of the facts in this book were entertaining or surprising and many were cringe worthy enough to make me feel like a fool for buying property here and moving here without researching more about the state.
October 19, 2016
I got about 3/4 of the way through this book, when I realized I just couldn't go on. Pittman needed a ruthless editor to cut at least 1/3 of the material for each chapter, if not a chapter or two entirely. It just goes on and on at a relentless pace, where only another Florida journalist could keep up!
August 8, 2018
Highly entertaining compact survey of my state’s oddities and colorful wacky characters. Craig Pittman is a terrific writer.
October 19, 2017
This was quite a fun and fascinating read. I love the wide swath of history here (giving me jumping off points for finding more books/historical Florida things to research). I also think Pittman does a great job at arguing how Florida - for good, for bad, or for worse - affects the national stage. I both love and hate my weird, ironic home state.
February 25, 2020
This book is a must-read for any fans of weird Florida, Florida history, or general oddball knowledge of this fantastically bizarre state. Packed full of fascinating information, both personal and collected stories, and written with Craig Pittman's trademark humor and wit, I would challenge even the most knowledgeable person to finish this book without learning a few hundred new things. And if you are anything like me, you'll fall in love with this strange and wonderful state all over again.
November 18, 2016
If you have ever lived in Florida, visited Florida, known anyone from Florida whom you thought was a little bit off, or even heard jokes about Florida, then you need to read this book. The author, Craig Pittman, a native Floridian, made his reputation as probably the best environmental reporter in Florida (he works for the Tampa Bay Times, formerly the St. Petersburg Times), but he has also collected stories about weird things that have happened here. He has compiled his encyclopedic knowledge of Florida into a coherent sort of social history, often funny, often tragic, always strange, of his native state. If you are a fan of the outrageous fiction of Carl Hiaasen, this book provides the background that shows that Carl Hiaasen isn’t as outrageous as you might have thought.
Much of what happens in Florida can be summarized in three steps: Hustlers overhype Florida, the government is complicit, and gullible people are left holding the bag. This is certainly the story of how non-Floridians were enticed to move to Florida in the first place, but it also describes the cozy relationship between business and government that has allowed such things as Florida’s largest utility company recently charging customers in advance for the costs of a new nuclear power plant, deciding not to build the plant, then being allowed by the government to keep the money and not refund the customers. The book is chock full of stories of high-flying crooks, corrupt officials (all parties), and plain ol’ weird regular folks. He knits these stories together to form larger themes (land development, gun laws, environmental stories, crime and punishment, civil rights, etc.) and explains how much of what Florida does is adopted by others (for better or worse). Hence we have streaking, stand your ground gun laws, Jeb Bush’s education reforms, and the National Inquirer, all originating in Florida and metastasizing to the rest of the country.
The book is not just for Floridians. It’s entertaining and both humorous and serious, even scary in parts. It is the most fun I’ve had reading non-fiction in years, and I wholeheartedly recommend it. I rarely recommend books to friends, but occasionally will do so with the guarantee that if they buy the book, read it and don’t like it, I will refund their purchase price. No one has ever asked for a refund for my rare recommendations. This is one of those books that I would recommend to a friend with my guarantee. Try it. You’ll like it.
Much of what happens in Florida can be summarized in three steps: Hustlers overhype Florida, the government is complicit, and gullible people are left holding the bag. This is certainly the story of how non-Floridians were enticed to move to Florida in the first place, but it also describes the cozy relationship between business and government that has allowed such things as Florida’s largest utility company recently charging customers in advance for the costs of a new nuclear power plant, deciding not to build the plant, then being allowed by the government to keep the money and not refund the customers. The book is chock full of stories of high-flying crooks, corrupt officials (all parties), and plain ol’ weird regular folks. He knits these stories together to form larger themes (land development, gun laws, environmental stories, crime and punishment, civil rights, etc.) and explains how much of what Florida does is adopted by others (for better or worse). Hence we have streaking, stand your ground gun laws, Jeb Bush’s education reforms, and the National Inquirer, all originating in Florida and metastasizing to the rest of the country.
The book is not just for Floridians. It’s entertaining and both humorous and serious, even scary in parts. It is the most fun I’ve had reading non-fiction in years, and I wholeheartedly recommend it. I rarely recommend books to friends, but occasionally will do so with the guarantee that if they buy the book, read it and don’t like it, I will refund their purchase price. No one has ever asked for a refund for my rare recommendations. This is one of those books that I would recommend to a friend with my guarantee. Try it. You’ll like it.
April 8, 2019
My three positives and a negative, because the world needs more positivity:
+ Educated me on the hidden truths of Florida (almost 900 people move here EACH DAY - great for the economy, not great for elections and fixing some of our issues)
+ Made me laugh out loud multiple times about politics. Seriously, I almost skipped the chapter as I loathe the topic. So glad I did not. Horrifying and humorous
+ Contained a potpourri of fun facts:
* In 1845, when Florida became a state, the first state flag that flew over the capital bore the slogan ‘Let Us Alone.’”
* Sweetwater, Florida is a town founded by a troupe of Russian circus midgets whose bus broke down
* Carl Tanzler, aka “Count Carl von Cosel,” was a Key West X-ray technician who in 1930 fell in love with a tuberculosis patient named Maria Elena Milagro de Hoyos. His love transcended death, by which I mean that when she died, he dug up her body and slept with the corpse for nine years, until her sister found out. Put on trial for grave robbing, he was exonerated—because the statute of limitations had expired
* Although we are the sunshine state, the truth is that other states get more sunshine than we do: Arizona is first, then California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas
* On another occasion, a group of settlers found a shipwreck carrying hundreds of coconuts. They planted them, and the trees grew so well that their crop gave Palm Beach its name.
* Helliwell arranged for Disney to buy twenty-seven thousand acres in Orange and Osceola Counties, his identity cloaked by several phony corporations. (Later some of those companies’ names would adorn the fake storefronts that line Disney World’s Main Street USA.)
* Dr. John Gorrie, who was looking for a way to cool down his yellow fever and malaria patients, is credited with inventing a precursor of air-conditioning. He patented his system in 1851 and was promptly hailed by his contemporaries as a crank and a fraud.
- My only negative is that while the chapters are grouped into topics, by nature, the book doesn't have a unifying plot. Well, other than this is one messed up state (as evident by the recent popularized challenge of googling Florida Man plus your birthday)
Read this if you live in Florida, know someone who lives in Florida, or have visited Florida and like random fun facts.
+ Educated me on the hidden truths of Florida (almost 900 people move here EACH DAY - great for the economy, not great for elections and fixing some of our issues)
+ Made me laugh out loud multiple times about politics. Seriously, I almost skipped the chapter as I loathe the topic. So glad I did not. Horrifying and humorous
+ Contained a potpourri of fun facts:
* In 1845, when Florida became a state, the first state flag that flew over the capital bore the slogan ‘Let Us Alone.’”
* Sweetwater, Florida is a town founded by a troupe of Russian circus midgets whose bus broke down
* Carl Tanzler, aka “Count Carl von Cosel,” was a Key West X-ray technician who in 1930 fell in love with a tuberculosis patient named Maria Elena Milagro de Hoyos. His love transcended death, by which I mean that when she died, he dug up her body and slept with the corpse for nine years, until her sister found out. Put on trial for grave robbing, he was exonerated—because the statute of limitations had expired
* Although we are the sunshine state, the truth is that other states get more sunshine than we do: Arizona is first, then California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas
* On another occasion, a group of settlers found a shipwreck carrying hundreds of coconuts. They planted them, and the trees grew so well that their crop gave Palm Beach its name.
* Helliwell arranged for Disney to buy twenty-seven thousand acres in Orange and Osceola Counties, his identity cloaked by several phony corporations. (Later some of those companies’ names would adorn the fake storefronts that line Disney World’s Main Street USA.)
* Dr. John Gorrie, who was looking for a way to cool down his yellow fever and malaria patients, is credited with inventing a precursor of air-conditioning. He patented his system in 1851 and was promptly hailed by his contemporaries as a crank and a fraud.
- My only negative is that while the chapters are grouped into topics, by nature, the book doesn't have a unifying plot. Well, other than this is one messed up state (as evident by the recent popularized challenge of googling Florida Man plus your birthday)
Read this if you live in Florida, know someone who lives in Florida, or have visited Florida and like random fun facts.
September 21, 2016
I guess you could call me a lapsed Floridian. I grew up in Florida (Collier County) and really could not wait to get out of there. I left when it was time to go to college in 1971. Now at 63 years old, I am trying to understand the place, trying to visit as many sites as possible and trying to learn some history. So, that might be why I was so taken with Oh, Florida! I was starved for information about Florida and Pittman really delivered. I learned four or five things every chapter. Some times I would be saying, "yea, I remember that (name or story) " but most of the time I'd be asking myself how I could be so stupid not to already know something or not to have at least asked about it. My lack of historical and cultural information about my home state is embarrassing! I wonder, does any other Floridian feel this way? (That was a rhetorical question.) Aside from all the information I just poured into my head, I was thoroughly entertained by this book. Pittman is very funny. Even though Pittman is funny, many of the things he writes about are not. For instance, the book covers topics like the early (and maybe not so early) treatment of gays, blacks and the mentally ill in Florida, which wasn't so great and not something you ever read about. He writes about greed and crooked politicians and even more crooked politicians. There have been a whole lot of crooked politicians in Florida. And Pittman does have a way of connecting the dots to show how small facts make the big picture. He also does make a credible case that what happens in Florida influences the rest of the country. Right now, I would have to say that Pittman is one of those treasures in a pile of garbage. If you read the book, you will understand that this is a huge compliment.
October 26, 2016
This is the best book I've read about Florida history. It breaks a lot of well researched history into a range of subjects, with an engaging tone that ranges from humorous to head-shaking chagrin. The many faults of characters are displayed, leavened with an underlying positive belief that Yes, Florida is weird, but overall most people are good and life is good.
One thing that I enjoyed was that Craig Pittman clearly loves the natural beauty of the Florida outside of the metropolitan areas. Politicians, developers, business men get their due in this book, but so also the harshness of this tropical paradise with its springs and rivers and woods. It's fun to recognize so many out of the way places, and make mental notes to visit the ones I don't recognize!
Oh Florida! is also a great reference, with an extensive bibliography and notes supporting everything in the book. You want to read more about anything in the book? No problem, the notes will tell you where to find it. Thank you, Craig, for a real keeper!
One thing that I enjoyed was that Craig Pittman clearly loves the natural beauty of the Florida outside of the metropolitan areas. Politicians, developers, business men get their due in this book, but so also the harshness of this tropical paradise with its springs and rivers and woods. It's fun to recognize so many out of the way places, and make mental notes to visit the ones I don't recognize!
Oh Florida! is also a great reference, with an extensive bibliography and notes supporting everything in the book. You want to read more about anything in the book? No problem, the notes will tell you where to find it. Thank you, Craig, for a real keeper!
February 1, 2017
I knew this was a collection of crazy Florida stories, but it turns out to be a lot more than that. Craig Pittman has collected not just crazy stories, but distinctive events in Florida history and woven them seamlessly together in a narrative that tells you a tremendous amount about how we got to where we are today. He is, I decided, an absolute master of the segue, moving from one story to the next with perfect ease and a delightful sense of humor.
While there are many, many stupid criminal stories, you also learn a lot about corrupt politicians, the days of bolita in Tampa, Anita Bryant's anti-gay crusade and the court cases that gave felony defendants the right to a lawyer and native American tribes the right to run casinos. From air conditioning to Gatorade and USA Today, Florida has had a big impact on our culture. Pittman leaves a lot out--our good but boring governors like Reubin Askew don't merit his attention. However, this book would make great reading for any Florida history class as both highly informative and a relief from the standard textbook stuff.
While there are many, many stupid criminal stories, you also learn a lot about corrupt politicians, the days of bolita in Tampa, Anita Bryant's anti-gay crusade and the court cases that gave felony defendants the right to a lawyer and native American tribes the right to run casinos. From air conditioning to Gatorade and USA Today, Florida has had a big impact on our culture. Pittman leaves a lot out--our good but boring governors like Reubin Askew don't merit his attention. However, this book would make great reading for any Florida history class as both highly informative and a relief from the standard textbook stuff.
September 17, 2016
I always thought I would hate Florida until I went there. To my shock, I loved it. It's a place steeped in contradictions and weirdness -- so, exactly my kind of place. I don't know that I could live there, but it sure is fun to visit.
Craig Pittman is an excellent armchair tour guide in Oh, Florida!, which covers how the state's oddities have influenced the rest of the nation and offers up loads of fun stories. Pittman, a newspaper reporter, has never met a pun he didn't like, which gives this book a sort of old-school humor that I really enjoyed. He doesn't shy away from pointing out his home state's major faults -- seriously, could there be a collection of worse politicians? -- but the book still made me long to go back.
Next year, on Anna Maria Island!
Craig Pittman is an excellent armchair tour guide in Oh, Florida!, which covers how the state's oddities have influenced the rest of the nation and offers up loads of fun stories. Pittman, a newspaper reporter, has never met a pun he didn't like, which gives this book a sort of old-school humor that I really enjoyed. He doesn't shy away from pointing out his home state's major faults -- seriously, could there be a collection of worse politicians? -- but the book still made me long to go back.
Next year, on Anna Maria Island!
July 26, 2016
Whether you binge read this book or consume it in small bites, it is a tasty meal. Because I am a long time Florida resident and was a reporter and editor at six newspapers, I was familiar with many of the tales Pittman tells in his eminently readable book. Seeing all the weirdness chronicled in one place gave me an entirely -- and not always comfortable -- perspective on my home state. There's no place like home.
August 23, 2016
A must read for anyone thinking of moving to Florida. You just might have second thoughts! Author Craig Pittman writes in a breezy informative style that Is engaging and funny. The sad or scary part is everything he writes about is true. It all happened. No exaggeration needed. That all said, Pittman does not just focus on the crazies and the weird. While the state has more than its share of both some good and smart people have emerged and the author gives them their due.
February 11, 2022
I came into this book thinking I'd learn all the good things about Florida like tourist attractions and sceneries all i got is politics and how bad republicans and religious people are. I don't look to read a book about crappy stuff I pick up a book to enjoy and forget the things and problems in this world.
July 7, 2016
Wonderful! Hilarious! Educational! Should be required reading for every Florida resident or visitor. I'm a fifth generation Floridian and thought I knew a great deal about Florida but I really learned a lot from this book.
July 24, 2016
Loved the book. Read a Chapter a Day and keep the Doldroms away. A funny, scary, refreshing book that keeps this insane election season in perspective. Should be a coffee table book or library book for anyone who lives in Florida of VISITS Florida! Enjoy. A great gift as well!
August 30, 2016
Florida is so completely bizarre and unique. I miss it every single day.
February 15, 2017
This is a fun book, but I admit I waffled between three and four stars for it. It's a compendium of stories about Florida, some enlightening, some tragic, and many, many kind of wacky. But other than an epilogue trying to tie the stories together enough to justify the subtitle ("how America's weirdest state influences the rest of the country"), there's no narrative thesis here. Instead, this feels like a series of columns edited together with segues. As a Florida semi-native (in California now but having lived around Tampa Bay for three decades), I wanted something a bit deeper than a series of "Yeah, but wait 'till you hear THIS one" vignettes.
Even so, it may be a great resource for a series of short stories I've been thinking about set in 1970s Florida...
Even so, it may be a great resource for a series of short stories I've been thinking about set in 1970s Florida...
March 7, 2018
Link to review: http://www.sawpalm.org/craig-pittmans...
"Truth be told, if the subtitle of Craig Pittman’s entertaining, eminently well-researched, occasionally freaky, and often laugh-out-loud funny book were a thesis, it’s one that the author only partly proves. Should we call it a half truth, like the come-ons issued by developers during the Florida land boom of the 1920s who offered sun-baked acreage on the cheap, failing to mention that the actual lots were located in alligator-packed, mosquito-infested swampland?
The Sunshine State, as Pittman, a longtime reporter for the Tampa Bay Times, handily demonstrates, in a book crammed full of Florida history and pop culture, indeed is demonstrably weird. And its people apparently have been proud of that home-grown quality from the start: the state’s first flag, in 1845, featured the slogan “Let Us Alone,” as Pittman points out in the prologue. That combo, “beauty and the bizarro,” has bestowed on Florida a special status, at home and even abroad.
But there’s not exactly an ocean of evidence that the strange and wonderful, and sometimes strangely wonderful, goings-on in everyone’s favorite gun-shaped state have greatly influenced the rest of America. California and New York historically can stake a greater claim to significantly more impactful social and political movements.
Pittman, arranging his breezy, 300-page book topically, with chapters variously titled “Trading Gators for Beer,” “The Gunshine State” and “God’s Waiting Room,” shines a light deep into the bowels of a region marked by a history that has long fascinated residents as well as tourists; the latter come south for the sun and fun at the staggering rate of 100 million annually, as the author points out. Ever warmed to the comic fiction of Carl Hiassen, Dave Barry or Tim Dorsey? Pittman offers a veritable fun-filled Florida studies course on the real-life incidents that sparked storylines in novels by those authors, and others.
Florida-bred trends may not have changed the world. But plenty of famous, soon-to-be-famous, or simply notorious folks have nestled at least temporarily on the shores or in the interior of the state, an oddly shaped land mass stretching 800 miles from Key West on the Southern tip northwest to Pensacola in the panhandle. A few of those real-life characters, as discussed by Pittman: Muhammad Ali (Miami Beach), Anita Bryant (Miami), Jim Bakker (Clearwater Beach), Edna Buchanan (Miami), Jeb Bush (Coral Gables), Ray Charles (St. Augustine), Walt Disney (Orlando), Billy Graham (Tampa), Ernest Hemingway (Key West), John D. MacDonald (Sarasota), Bettie Page (Miami), Tom Petty (Gainesville), Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (Cross Creek), Terri Schiavo (Clearwater), Donald Trump (Palm Beach), and Aileen Wuornos (Port Orange).
Still, it’s the lesser-known people, places, incidents and facts that make for some of the most fascinating reading in Oh, Florida! (St. Martin’s Press, 2017). In the tradition of the listicles, the quickly digested factoid features created by Al Neuharth, the colorful newspaper man who created USA Today after starting Cocoa Today (later Florida Today, where I worked as a reporter in the mid-‘80s), here are a few of the weirdest:
A man choked to death while winning a roach-eating contest at a Deerfield Beach pet store.
A rhesus macaque, an escapee from Silver River State Park near Silver Springs, dubbed the “Mystery Monkey of Tampa Bay,” was finally caught after three years on the loose in the area.
A Fort Pierce woman was arrested for driving around at night while wearing only her undies, explaining to a cop that “it’s real, real, real, real, real, real, real hot.”
A woman visiting St. Petersburg Beach was charged with a misdemeanor for riding an endangered manatee after bystanders snapped cell phone pictures of the woman’s adventure.
A Seffner man disappeared forever when he and the mattress he was sleeping on vanished into a sinkhole that suddenly opened up beneath his bedroom.
The number of accidental shootings in Florida is twice the national average.
Waldo, a tiny burg near Gainesville, for years required its police officers to meet a monthly quota for handing out speeding tickets.
A Tampa woman working a bogus tax refund scam was caught after calling herself “the Queen of IRS Tax Fraud” on Facebook.
A Port Richey man was arrested for the crime of attacking his girlfriend with a banana.
A study showed that Florida, during the decade ending in 2010, boasted more total convictions (781) of officials and staff who broke federal corruption laws than any other state.
“Full half of the tourists and travelers that come to Florida return intensely disappointed, and even disgusted,” wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin author Harriet Beecher Stowe, who lived on the St. John’s River and penned a series of newspaper articles credited with sparking the state’s tourism industry.
Blessed, or burdened, with seemingly endless months of tropical heat and humidity, mosquitoes, sinkholes, sharks, unrestrained development, overpopulation, crowded roadways, subpar public transportation, often dysfunctional state and local governments, and the annual threat of devastating hurricanes, Florida may well not be for everyone.
Longtime residents, though, have made peace with the place, a land of extreme beauty, savage nature, and straight-up weirdness. Pittman gets it, and explains it all with an infectious mix of affection, sarcasm, and sheer wonder."
"Truth be told, if the subtitle of Craig Pittman’s entertaining, eminently well-researched, occasionally freaky, and often laugh-out-loud funny book were a thesis, it’s one that the author only partly proves. Should we call it a half truth, like the come-ons issued by developers during the Florida land boom of the 1920s who offered sun-baked acreage on the cheap, failing to mention that the actual lots were located in alligator-packed, mosquito-infested swampland?
The Sunshine State, as Pittman, a longtime reporter for the Tampa Bay Times, handily demonstrates, in a book crammed full of Florida history and pop culture, indeed is demonstrably weird. And its people apparently have been proud of that home-grown quality from the start: the state’s first flag, in 1845, featured the slogan “Let Us Alone,” as Pittman points out in the prologue. That combo, “beauty and the bizarro,” has bestowed on Florida a special status, at home and even abroad.
But there’s not exactly an ocean of evidence that the strange and wonderful, and sometimes strangely wonderful, goings-on in everyone’s favorite gun-shaped state have greatly influenced the rest of America. California and New York historically can stake a greater claim to significantly more impactful social and political movements.
Pittman, arranging his breezy, 300-page book topically, with chapters variously titled “Trading Gators for Beer,” “The Gunshine State” and “God’s Waiting Room,” shines a light deep into the bowels of a region marked by a history that has long fascinated residents as well as tourists; the latter come south for the sun and fun at the staggering rate of 100 million annually, as the author points out. Ever warmed to the comic fiction of Carl Hiassen, Dave Barry or Tim Dorsey? Pittman offers a veritable fun-filled Florida studies course on the real-life incidents that sparked storylines in novels by those authors, and others.
Florida-bred trends may not have changed the world. But plenty of famous, soon-to-be-famous, or simply notorious folks have nestled at least temporarily on the shores or in the interior of the state, an oddly shaped land mass stretching 800 miles from Key West on the Southern tip northwest to Pensacola in the panhandle. A few of those real-life characters, as discussed by Pittman: Muhammad Ali (Miami Beach), Anita Bryant (Miami), Jim Bakker (Clearwater Beach), Edna Buchanan (Miami), Jeb Bush (Coral Gables), Ray Charles (St. Augustine), Walt Disney (Orlando), Billy Graham (Tampa), Ernest Hemingway (Key West), John D. MacDonald (Sarasota), Bettie Page (Miami), Tom Petty (Gainesville), Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (Cross Creek), Terri Schiavo (Clearwater), Donald Trump (Palm Beach), and Aileen Wuornos (Port Orange).
Still, it’s the lesser-known people, places, incidents and facts that make for some of the most fascinating reading in Oh, Florida! (St. Martin’s Press, 2017). In the tradition of the listicles, the quickly digested factoid features created by Al Neuharth, the colorful newspaper man who created USA Today after starting Cocoa Today (later Florida Today, where I worked as a reporter in the mid-‘80s), here are a few of the weirdest:
A man choked to death while winning a roach-eating contest at a Deerfield Beach pet store.
A rhesus macaque, an escapee from Silver River State Park near Silver Springs, dubbed the “Mystery Monkey of Tampa Bay,” was finally caught after three years on the loose in the area.
A Fort Pierce woman was arrested for driving around at night while wearing only her undies, explaining to a cop that “it’s real, real, real, real, real, real, real hot.”
A woman visiting St. Petersburg Beach was charged with a misdemeanor for riding an endangered manatee after bystanders snapped cell phone pictures of the woman’s adventure.
A Seffner man disappeared forever when he and the mattress he was sleeping on vanished into a sinkhole that suddenly opened up beneath his bedroom.
The number of accidental shootings in Florida is twice the national average.
Waldo, a tiny burg near Gainesville, for years required its police officers to meet a monthly quota for handing out speeding tickets.
A Tampa woman working a bogus tax refund scam was caught after calling herself “the Queen of IRS Tax Fraud” on Facebook.
A Port Richey man was arrested for the crime of attacking his girlfriend with a banana.
A study showed that Florida, during the decade ending in 2010, boasted more total convictions (781) of officials and staff who broke federal corruption laws than any other state.
“Full half of the tourists and travelers that come to Florida return intensely disappointed, and even disgusted,” wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin author Harriet Beecher Stowe, who lived on the St. John’s River and penned a series of newspaper articles credited with sparking the state’s tourism industry.
Blessed, or burdened, with seemingly endless months of tropical heat and humidity, mosquitoes, sinkholes, sharks, unrestrained development, overpopulation, crowded roadways, subpar public transportation, often dysfunctional state and local governments, and the annual threat of devastating hurricanes, Florida may well not be for everyone.
Longtime residents, though, have made peace with the place, a land of extreme beauty, savage nature, and straight-up weirdness. Pittman gets it, and explains it all with an infectious mix of affection, sarcasm, and sheer wonder."
July 9, 2025
Nonfiction, information packed with a side of humor.
This was an entertaining read and I can't wait to discuss it with my book club. I highly recommend the physical book (because pictures) but I did listen to a decent chunk while getting ready for work and it was enjoyable.
Most folks like to joke about the villages, but what I want to know is how are we not talking about the Christian swingers group or the Christian nudist colony down here?? That was news to me!
This was an entertaining read and I can't wait to discuss it with my book club. I highly recommend the physical book (because pictures) but I did listen to a decent chunk while getting ready for work and it was enjoyable.
Most folks like to joke about the villages, but what I want to know is how are we not talking about the Christian swingers group or the Christian nudist colony down here?? That was news to me!
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