The hope of influencing the weather is as old as civilization itself. Tribal medicine men invoked the help of their rain gods. Napoleon and other military men thought that cannon fire or explosions could bring rain, while others tried sending artificial lightning or chemicals into the sky. In 1891, Congress actually allocated $20,000 to test some of these rainmaking theories, but none proved useful.

Nevertheless, in the early 20th century, many opportunistic individuals representing companies with fancy names such as "The Interstate Artificial Rain Corporation" would travel from one rain-starved town to another, promising to open the clouds for a fee. Tomorrow night, I'll introduce you to the most famous rainmaker of them all.