<p>In 1987, there was a news event that brought the entire world together. People did not stop watching their TVs for days - the First Lady of the United States even postponed surgery until she knew the outcome. Eighteen-month-old Jessica McClure had fallen down an old well and was wedged almost ten metres underground for 60 hours. Every news channel that existed had cameras in that tiny backyard in Texas, while the world watched - live - and waited in suspense to see if she’d come out alive.&nbsp;</p><p>.</p><p>CW: This episode contains a brief mention of suicide. If you need, please contact (Australia):</p><p><a href="https://www.lifeline.org.au/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lifeline</a> (24 hours: 13 11 14)</p><p><a href="https://www.13yarn.org.au/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">13YARN - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Crisis Support</a> (24 hours: 13 92 76)</p><p><a href="https://blueknot.org.au/survivors/blue-knot-helpline-redress-support-service/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Blue Knot Helpline</a> (1300 657 380)</p><p>.</p><p>We give you Just The Gist, but if you want more, there's Breakin' Nooz, JTG After Show AND Bonus eps! You can access them by joining the Gistener Club via the<a href="https://www.patreon.com/justthegist" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Just The Gist Patreon</a> or Apple Premium Subscriptions.</p><br><p>Watch Just The Gist episodes on<a href="https://www.youtube.com/@JustTheGistPodcast" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Youtube @JustTheGistPodcast</a></p><p>Follow Just The Gist on<a href="https://www.instagram.com/justthegistpodcast" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Instagram</a> and<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@justthegistpodcast" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> TikTok</a> @JustTheGistPodcast</p><p>Follow Rosie in all the places at @RosieWaterland</p><p>Want to give us a SuGISTion? Tell Rosie to stop singing so much? Email us at <a href="mailto:[email protected]" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[email protected]</a>&nbsp;</p><p>Just The Gist is a Just The Network production. Executive Producer and Host: Rosie Waterland | Senior Producer and Editor: James Joseph | Producer: Kate Leaver | Additional production support: Hayley Staveley | Acast Legends: Guy Scott-Wilson and Simon McDermott | Production Assistant: Pocket</p><p>Don't forget to follow and give us 5 stars, which means something apparently!</p><p>Thank you, as always, for Gistening. Now go say something impressive at a dinner party.</p><p>.</p><br><p>‘Baby Jessica on the 30-year anniversary of her rescue from a well: Her life as a wife and mom’ (<em>People Magazine</em> 2017):&nbsp; <a href="https://people.com/human-interest/baby-jessica-on-the-30-year-anniversary-of-her-rescue-from-a-well-her-life-as-a-wife-and-mom/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://people.com/human-interest/baby-jessica-on-the-30-year-anniversary-of-her-rescue-from-a-well-her-life-as-a-wife-and-mom/</a>&nbsp;</p><br><p>‘Baby Jessica’s Rescue From a Well Capped Off a Terrifying Week in US History’ (<em>Time Magazine</em> 2017): <a href="https://time.com/4980689/baby-jessica-30th-anniversary/?amp=true" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://time.com/4980689/baby-jessica-30th-anniversary/?amp=true</a>&nbsp;</p><br><p>1987 archive footage of Jessica McClure being rescued (<em>Film Archives NYC </em>2012):&nbsp; <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afSChsWNcbQ" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afSChsWNcbQ</a>&nbsp;</p><br><p>‘Baby Jessica rescued from a well as the world watches’ (<em>History</em> 2011, updated 2025): <a href="https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/October-16/baby-jessica-rescued-from-a-well-as-the-world-watches" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/October-16/baby-jessica-rescued-from-a-well-as-the-world-watches</a>&nbsp;</p><br><p>‘Helping to pull little Jessica McClure from a Texas well made firefighter Robert O’Donnell a star. But the limelight soon turned to darkness.’ (<em>Los Angeles Times</em> 1995): <a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-05-24-mn-5474-story.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-05-24-mn-5474-story.html</a>&nbsp;</p><br><p>‘Death on the CNN Curve’ (<em>The New York Times Magazine</em> 1995): <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1995/07/23/magazine/death-on-the-cnn-curve.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/1995/07/23/magazine/death-on-the-cnn-curve.html</a>&nbsp;</p><br><p>Baby Jessica (Jessica McClure) wikipedia: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rescue_of_Jessica_McClure" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rescue_of_Jessica_McClure</a> </p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>