The Backstory with Patty Steele

The Backstory: Stealing George Washington’s head Feb 21, 2025

George Washington’s 293rd birthday is this weekend, and his death in 1799 was a shock to the brand-new United States of America. Everybody loved him and a lot of people wanted a piece of him…literally. That led to the plot to steal George Washington’s head.

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The Backstory: Lucky Luciano: From mob boss to war hero Feb 18, 2025

How does a guy go from running with gangs on the Lower East Side to reinventing the mafia to going to prison as a convicted felon…to finally working with the U.S. government to protect NYC’s waterfront during World War II?

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The Backstory: My bloody valentine! Feb 14, 2025

Emotional attachment is thousands of years old, but it actually started off with apes! For humans, Valentine’s Day started off as a blood-soaked pagan fertility festival loaded with alcohol, nudity, and blood! On the flip side, the romance element is a pretty recent invention. You can thank the Victorians for that. Plus, find out who sent the first Valentine!

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The Backstory: Did Shakespeare steal the Romeo and Juliet story? Feb 11, 2025

It’s called the most famous love story of all time: William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. But was it a true story or did it come completely from Shakespeare’s brilliant creative mind? Maybe neither.

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The Backstory: The real American psycho Feb 07, 2025

The Wisconsin countryside in autumn during the 1950s sounds idyllic. But it was the scene of a horrifying series of murders and body-snatching cases. Ed Gein, in “The Butcher of Plainfield,” was the loner who inspired movies like Psycho and Silence of the Lambs. So…what’s his story?

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The Backstory: How one woman helped ignite the Civil War Feb 04, 2025

Who wrote the best-selling book in the U.S. in the 1800s? Why was she attacked from both sides for her story? And finally, how did she come to write the same exact book, word for word, 40 years later?

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The Backstory: Nxivm: A Hollywood sex cult Jan 31, 2025

Hollywood, cults, sex, and crime. It all seems like the perfect set up for a Netflix multi-season series. But this is the real story of the rich and famous getting brain washed into a criminal sex club that ultimately led to convictions on charges of conspiracy, sex trafficking, child porn, and more.

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The Backstory (Replay): A middle-class kid rises to the top of the ad world Jan 28, 2025

We all dream, but what stops us from making those dreams a reality? This is about a middle-class kid from Ohio who never stopped believing in the future.

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The Backstory: The Mariana Trench: A hundred horrible ways to die Jan 24, 2025

Explorers are a special breed—fear of the unknown and of the awful possibilities of failure don’t seem to deter them. Perfect example: the handful of people who have explored the Mariana Trench, the deepest place on Earth.

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The Backstory: Beyond the Hamilton duel: Aaron Burr’s rise and fall Jan 21, 2025

Some people are wildly talented but just can’t get out of the way of their own ego and ambition. Take Aaron Burr. He destroyed his political career by killing Alexander Hamilton in a duel, went on to treasonously plot a land grab to create his own empire, and wound up dying alone in a boarding house on Staten Island.

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The Backstory: Why did these two presidents have 2 nonconsecutive terms? Jan 17, 2025

Donald Trump and Grover Cleveland are the only two presidents to get elected to two nonconsecutive terms. Their personalities and lifestyles explain a lot; neither liked having their opinions questioned, neither cared what others thought of them, and both had beautiful, much younger wives.

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The Backstory: The fire was master Jan 14, 2025

Take a look back, and you’ll see how similar human reaction is over the centuries to so many things that happen to us today. Take the recent fires in LA and the great Chicago fire of 1871. How do people decide what to save, and what matters most, when faced with a catastrophic event?

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The Backstory: Our world on fire Jan 10, 2025

The fires in California are terrifying to watch. But fire has a deep history…and there are lessons to be learned.

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The Backstory: Barbie dolls: boobs, Mickey Mouse club, and fraud Jan 07, 2025

Success doesn’t always come easy. We’re talking boobs, plastic, marketing directly to little kids…and getting indicted for corporate fraud. Who knew there was all that drama surrounding Barbie dolls and their creator, Ruth Handler?

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The Backstory (Replay): A hero emerges from a 19th century insane asylum Jan 03, 2025

On this replay episode of The Backstory: Did you know that as recently as the Victorian era, somebody could have you committed to an insane asylum just because you disobeyed a husband, were too opinionated, were caught masturbating, and so much more? The treatment ranged from being chained to a wall, beaten...and more. And no one had to prove your insanity! This is the story of how one woman, post-lock-up, changed the status quo.

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The Backstory: Looking good at any price Dec 31, 2024

We’ll do anything to look fabulous these days—Ozempic, Botox, plastic surgery—but we have nothing on our ancestors. Sounds unpleasant, but they used face creams made from animal and human pee. They glued animal pelts on surprising body parts. And they literally poisoned themselves in their quest for perfect skin and hair.

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The Backstory: Making a statement with A Christmas Carol Dec 27, 2024

Was Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" inspired by political outrage? That’s the story and it makes sense when you hear what he went through and what he was seeing in London back in 1843.

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The Backstory (Replay): How did Christmas turn into trees and egg nog? Dec 24, 2024

On this replay episode of The Backstory: We all have our Christmas traditions, but how did Santa Claus, Christmas trees, and George Washington’s recipe for heavily spiked eggnog rule the season?

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The Backstory: The charming spy who got away with it all Dec 20, 2024

Espionage in the mid-1900s was very much like what you see in the early James Bond movies. Kim Philby, a British aristocrat and a notorious double agent lived a life a lot of us fantasize about. He was never arrested. But why…and what happened to him?

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(Replay) The Backstory: The 9-year-old Union soldier Dec 17, 2024

In this re-release episode: War is a terrible thing under any circumstance. But imagine the Civil War. There were more deaths than the combined total in WW1 and WW2. Food, uniforms, medical supplies, working weapons, and more, all in short supply with con artists stealing as much as 25% of government war funds. But the passion and ideology so many soldiers brought to battle was astounding. This is the story of Johnny Clem who desperately wanted to fight for the Union. He joined the military at 9 years old and retired as a general 55 years later after marrying a Confederate’s daughter!

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(Replay) The Backstory: Where did all the dinosaurs go? Dec 13, 2024

In this re-release episode: Have we really only known about dinosaurs for less than 200 years? They roamed the earth for almost 200 million years and were wiped out in a matter of months. Where did they go and how did we find out about them?

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The Backstory: The big movies their stars hate Dec 10, 2024

We’ve all had jobs that we’re less than proud of but took out of a lack of judgment or, most probably, a need to make a buck. But what happens when you make a bad choice and the whole world is watching? Stars like Brad Pitt, Jacob Elordi, Julia Roberts, and lots more weigh in.

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The Backstory: Drinking the Kool-Aid – the Jonestown massacre Dec 06, 2024

Ever heard the term “drinking the Kool-Aid”? It all started with Jim Jones and his people’s temple cult in the 1970s. After outspoken support from people like Jane Fonda and First Lady Roselyn Carter, he led his followers to the jungles of Guyana in South America in 1978. In the end, over 900 people drank his cyanide-laced Kool-Aid.

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The Backstory: The American fashion model in Hitler's bathtub Dec 03, 2024

Lee miller, the subject of a fascinating new Kate Winslet film, lived a glamorous but troubled life. Abused as a child, she went on to become a star fashion model in the 1920s. Then, as a wartime photographer, found herself taking a bath in Adolf Hitler’s tub the day he committed suicide.

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The Backstory: Thanksgiving from another point of view Nov 29, 2024

Many of us see Thanksgiving, most importantly, as a day to express gratitude. What’s amazing is how many Native Americans also celebrate gratitude on that day—even though for them, it’s also a national day of mourning. But they still believe every day is a day to give thanks. This is a peek into another perspective.

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The Backstory: Unpacking Thanksgiving Nov 26, 2024

Thanksgiving is the best. Whether you celebrate with family, friends, or even on your own, what makes it the best is the focus on gratitude. But what about all those traditions? When we celebrate, how we celebrate, what we eat, and even the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade! Where did all those traditions come from and how have they evolved?

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The Backstory: The Human Zoo Nov 22, 2024

It might shock you to know how recently human beings were kidnapped and used as exotic displays at world fairs, museums, zoos, and all sorts of shows for public entertainment. This is one man’s story about being trapped…in a human zoo.

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The Backstory: Did Leonardo da Vinci invent robots and the helicopter?? Nov 19, 2024

We revisit the life of the greatest artist in history as Ken Burns releases his new documentary “Leonardo da Vinci.” Leonardo da Vinci was one of the greatest artists in the history of the world. And he loved understanding how things worked, coming up with designs for helicopters, robots, a self-propelled car, and machine guns centuries before they got made. He was also one wacky guy!

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The Backstory: Date raped by a superstar in classic Hollywood Nov 15, 2024

Loretta Young was a superstar during Hollywood’s golden age. But after her death, in her memoir, she admitted that her daughter was fathered by Clark Gable. Her family later said she’d told them it was date rape.

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The Backstory: Surviving a grizzly attack Nov 12, 2024

Attacked by a grizzly bear in 1823 and left for dead by his companions, Hugh Glass crawled for 200 miles through the wilds of South Dakota. The true story behind Leo DiCaprio’s 2015 flick The Revenant is one of the wildest survival stories ever told.

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The Backstory: From prostitute to queen of the pirates Nov 08, 2024

You think the pirates of the Caribbean ruled the seas? They had nothing on the pirate queen who commanded the largest and most powerful pirate fleet in history. 250 years ago, she controlled more than 70,000 pirates…and never had to answer for her crimes.

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The Backstory: Politics meets The Purge Nov 05, 2024

We think the political scene these days is intense...let’s go back to the 19th century and see how political passion led to legal murder!

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The Backstory: Searching for the killer called the Axeman Nov 01, 2024

New Orleans was terrorized in 1918 and 1919 by the Axeman. He targeted the families of Italian grocers, broke into their homes in the dead of night, and went after them with an axe...or whatever else he could find. Who was he and why did he do this?

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The Backstory: Back from the dead to take the gold Oct 29, 2024

At age 16, Betty Robinson ran in the 1928 Olympics, the first games that allowed women to compete in track and field. She won gold and tied a world record. Three years later, she was in a horrific plane crash. Thought to be dead, she was taken to an undertaker. But her incredible determination and unbelievable recovery led her to another Olympic gold medal.

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The Backstory: Demons to moon landings – the story that inspired The Exorcist Oct 25, 2024

The Exorcist was a best-selling book and an iconic movie over 50 years ago. But the true story that inspired it is even more chilling…and still unexplained. And the story of the child who at the center of the exorcism is even more amazing.

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(Replay) The Backstory: Cannibalism on the wild frontier Oct 22, 2024

In this re-release episode: The Netflix hit film Society of the Snow is the true story of South American athletes trapped in the snowy mountains after a plane crash…with some surviving by eating their dead teammates. Now we look at the Donner party of pioneers in 1846, trapped in 22 feet of snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains…and the even more gruesome way some of them survived.

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The Backstory: All the money in the world…and a torturous upbringing Oct 18, 2024

You’d think having the richest father in America would make you fabulously happy. But for Consuelo Vanderbilt, it meant a cruel childhood and a forced marriage to a jerk with a title.

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The Backstory: Fatal obsession with a rising star Oct 15, 2024

We’ve seen it too many times: A young star begins the climb to the top, only to be murdered by an obsessed lover or fan. Dorothy Stratten burst onto the Hollywood scene when she was just 19 years old…and she was dead by 20.

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The Backstory (Replay): Mass murder at the home of an icon of tranquility Oct 11, 2024

On this replay episode: Frank Lloyd Wright, the most famous architect in American history, brought nature and tranquility to design. So how did his chaotic personal life lead to a mass murder at his home?

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The Backstory: Getting inked…5,000 years ago Oct 08, 2024

Body art...tattoos...are pretty ubiquitous these days. But where did it all start…and why? The first documented evidence of tattooing goes back over 5,000 years. But why did they do it? It’s not what you think.

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The Backstory: Weird trends: from live ornamental hermits to garden gnomes Oct 04, 2024

Ever been in a spot where you'd do almost anything to make money? Imagine somebody putting out a want ad to hire an old seedy looking guy to live in the garden at their home. It's true! The ornamental hermit was all the rage among rich folks in the 18th century.

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The Backstory: Spiderman and…presidential corruption?! Oct 01, 2024

Presidential corruption…and Spiderman? It all boils down to the maxim “With great power comes great responsibility.” But not all of our leaders have taken that to heart.

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The Backstory (Replay): Immortality: young blood and monkey testicles Sep 27, 2024

In this replay episode: What would we do to live better, longer, or maybe even forever? Lots of quests for immortality involved mystical potions or objects. And one very popular fad in the 1920s involved transplanted monkey testicles!

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The Backstory (Replay): Illicit sex in old Hollywood Sep 24, 2024

In this replay episode: Sex scandals are as constant in Hollywood as gorgeous people, glittering clothes, and scads of money. But while the paparazzi these days use every trick to give us an inside look at the private lives of the stars, they have nothing on the stars of Hollywood’s golden age. Sex, shocking divorces, and even murder—there’s nothing new under the Hollywood sun.

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The Backstory (Replay): The unexplained blast that shook the world Sep 20, 2024

In this replay episode: On a beautiful summer morning in 1908, a massive explosion hit Siberia. It downed 80 million trees and lit the night sky 3,000 miles away in Sweden. But to this day, no one knows what caused it.

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The Backstory (Replay): Cold War condoms and undercover kitties Sep 17, 2024

In this replay episode: In the race to become the reigning superpower, nations have resorted to all sorts of bizarre tactics. Some of them were pretty humorous. And that reached new heights during the Cold War.

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The Backstory (Replay): The most powerful and hated man in the world Sep 13, 2024

On this replay episode of The Backstory: Born into complete poverty and now, by some accounts, the richest man in the world, Vladimir Putin has also become an enemy of most of the world. Here's where he came from, how he got a stranglehold on power, and what he’s doing with it.

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The Backstory: When teaching was tougher than being a nun Sep 10, 2024

It’s never been easy to be a teacher, and yet their value is immeasurable. But imagine a time when teachers couldn’t date, dye their hair, go to a barber shop, or even enjoy a trip to an ice cream shop.

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The Backstory: You are part of a government experiment Sep 06, 2024

Did you know there was a period of time when the U.S. government secretly used the public to test biological weapons? Some sites included rural Georgia, San Francisco Bay, and the New York City subway system.

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The Backstory: A movie inspires the thrill of the kill Sep 03, 2024

There have been plenty of killers who admitted they were inspired by violent movies, TV shows, and video games. This is the story of a couple of teenagers from the Midwest who robbed and murdered folks just to recreate their favorite movie: Natural Born Killers. And there's a powerful celebrity connection in this saga.

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The Backstory: Choosing your poison Aug 30, 2024

We all know major public figures who drive us crazy because they loudly share opinions we don’t agree with. But that’s democracy, right? So, the iconic Greek philosopher Socrates was exactly that kind of big mouth 2,400 years ago in Athens, where democracy was just being originated. Problem is, he angered the wrong big shots and wound up being executed in a really unusual way.

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The Backstory: Power parties: Orgies, flaming genitals, and other uncomfortable surprises Aug 27, 2024

Partying is supposed to be all about providing entertainment for family, friends, or people you want to impress. But frequently, it’s about entertaining yourself. Some of history's wildest parties involved setting guests on fire, making them eat until they vomited, or making them have sex with strangers.

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The Backstory: Pablo Escobar: Drugs, blood, and $30 billion Aug 23, 2024

Maybe you’ve seen Sicario, Scarface, Narcos, or Blow, but they have nothing on the bloody and intense real-life story of Pablo Escobar, the king of cocaine. Starting out as a kid in the slums of Medellin, Columbia, he went on to run the Medellin drug cartel in the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s. In his short life, Escobar’s cartel made him the 7th richest man in the world, with a net worth of $30 billion. And then…it all collapsed.

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The Backstory: Steve Jobs: Not such a genius father Aug 20, 2024

How does someone with such a brilliant mind and fierce work ethic turn out to be a world-class jerk as a dad? Steve Jobs knew how to create the world’s most valuable company. But when it came to his daughter, he admitted at the end of his life he’d failed her.

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The Backstory: The female Paul Revere: A gutsy 16-year-old Aug 16, 2024

We all know about the midnight ride of Paul Revere at the onset of the Revolution. But what about Sybil Ludington, the female Raul Revere? She was just 16 years old when she made her little-known 40-mile ride to warn about approaching British troops in Connecticut.

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The Backstory: Sexual healing brought Marvin Gaye no healing Aug 13, 2024

A father hates his son for being everything he’s not: gentle and wildly talented. That hatred culminates in murder. The tragic family story of Marvin Gaye, where a life of pain goes unaddressed.

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The Backstory: The 9-year-old Union soldier Aug 09, 2024

War is a terrible thing under any circumstance. But imagine the Civil War. There were more deaths than the combined total in WW1 and WW2. Food, uniforms, medical supplies, working weapons, and more, all in short supply with con artists stealing as much as 25% of government war funds. But the passion and ideology so many soldiers brought to battle was astounding. This is the story of Johnny Clem who desperately wanted to fight for the Union. He joined the military at 9 years old and retired as a general 55 years later after marrying a Confederate’s daughter!

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The Backstory: Violence and heat on the campaign trail Aug 06, 2024

We had an attempted assassination on the campaign trail this summer. But in addition to the four U.S. presidents who were assassinated, there have been attempts on the lives of presidents or candidates nine other times...one of them was successful. What motivates the would-be killers? And how do we turn down the heat?

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(Replay) The Backstory: Cannibalism on the wild frontier Aug 02, 2024

Re-release: The Netflix hit film Society of the Snow is the true story of South American athletes trapped in the snowy mountains after a plane crash…with some surviving by eating their dead teammates. Now we look at the Donner party of pioneers in 1846, trapped in 22 feet of snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains…and the even more gruesome way some of them survived.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Backstory: A middle-class kid rises to the top of the ad world Jul 30, 2024

We all dream, but what stops us from making those dreams a reality? This is about a middle-class kid from Ohio who never stopped believing in the future.

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The Backstory: The influencer who packed up the White House as it burned! Jul 26, 2024

George Washington never lived in the White House or Washington, DC. The White House wasn’t white when it was built, and it wasn’t called the White House for its first 100 years. The famous portrait of George Washington that hangs in the East Room isn’t the original. Those stories...and the famous DC influencer who saved the day when the White House burned.

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The Backstory (Replay): ETs? Time travelers? Trying to explain the unexplained Jul 23, 2024

Are you intrigued by the thought of aliens visiting Earth and leaving behind signs like cave drawings and pyramids and geoglyphs? Did you know that many of these ancient sites are part of what’s called the Great Circle, appearing along an exact circle within a tenth of a degree of each other?

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The Backstory: Marilyn Monroe: The ultimate sex symbol…and victim Jul 19, 2024

She was the sexiest, most beautiful actress in Hollywood during her short career. But Marilyn Monroe had a heartbreaking childhood with a mentally ill mother. Her upbringing destroyed her self-confidence. And that allowed Hollywood and dozens of men to use and abuse her.

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The Backstory: Charming, popular, and maybe the worst president ever Jul 16, 2024

Scandal, fraud, embezzlement, wild parties, and illicit affairs—sounds very presidential, right? Not only was that the name of the game in the roaring 20s, a lot of it was essentially covered up by the press during Warren Harding’s short presidency. It was pure historical drama. With his sudden death, conspiracy theorists pointed at the ultimate insider.

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The Backstory: The great stink of 1858 Jul 12, 2024

So we’re all sweltering from the heat…air so thick and hot you can feel it go down your throat as you breathe. But heat waves are nothing new. They killed thousands in 1898 and thousands more in the early 1900s. But the one that hit London 166 years ago, changed the city forever. It was “the great stink of 1858.”

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The Backstory: Body snatching for profit Jul 09, 2024

They say knowledge is power. But is it more important than ethics…or law? Over the centuries, researchers' quest to understand what’s under our skin, the human anatomy, has motivated scientists—as well as money-hungry grave robbers—to become body snatchers. But more than that, it sometimes inspired murder.

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The Backstory: Trapped in the most inhospitable place on Earth Jul 05, 2024

Polar explorer Ernest Shackleton and his crew spent almost 2 years trapped in sub-zero desolation after their ship, The Endurance, was ice-bound and finally sank, stranding them on an ice floe. This is their story of survival and endurance.

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The Backstory: A man’s man…and his colony of pussy cats Jul 02, 2024

When you meet a guy dripping with testosterone who loves hunting, war, alcohol, and women, you don’t expect that he’s going to be obsessed with kittens and cats…and have dozens of them all over his home and office. That’s the paradox of Pulitzer and Nobel Prize-winning author, Ernest Hemingway.

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The Backstory: Do it my way: Politics bust up a Founding Father’s family Jun 28, 2024

You think politics bust up our families? It’s hard to believe that, like us, politics could fracture a Founding Father’s family. Ben Franklin was incredibly close to his son William, then NJ’s royal governor, until he declared his allegiance to the king.

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The Backstory: Brando family: Drugs, murder, and Academy Awards Jun 25, 2024

He was an Academy Award-winning mega movie star. He had scores of affairs with women and men, 11 children by a variety of women, and a family story dominated by illness, mental illness, addiction…and murder.

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The Backstory: Prostitution and murder in the old west Jun 21, 2024

Belle Cora went from minister’s daughter, to prostitute, to San Francisco’s richest madam, to wife of a man hung for the murder of someone who insulted her—all that before her death at 34.

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The Backstory: The Grandmother of Juneteenth Jun 18, 2024

An angry mob vandalizes a new home and then burns it to the ground. A young family barely escapes. Now 85 years later, after a lifetime of public service, the oldest daughter, now 97, moves back to that same piece of land, where another new home has been built as a gift from the community. It’s the full-circle life story of the Grandmother of Juneteenth, America’s second Independence Day.

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The Backstory: Alarms: Mooing, peeing, and knocker-uppers Jun 14, 2024

We all have to regularly be somewhere on time. But what did people do before cell phone alarms or even alarm clocks? Animals, body cues, and knocker-uppers were just a few of the methods.

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The Backstory: A hero emerges from a 19th century insane asylum Jun 11, 2024

Did you know that as recently as the Victorian era, somebody could have you committed to an insane asylum just because you disobeyed a husband, were too opinionated, were caught masturbating, and so much more? The treatment ranged from being chained to a wall, beaten...and more. And no one had to prove your insanity! This is the story of how one woman, post-lock-up, changed the status quo.

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The Backstory: Eliza Hamilton: Cheating husband, family deaths, and triumph Jun 07, 2024

Hamilton the musical tells us the story of Alexander Hamilton, a brilliant guy who had a fiery temperament and a cheating heart. Imagine being his wife and raising eight fatherless kids, resurrecting her dead husband’s reputation, and being a tireless champion of widows and orphans. Plus, before her death at 97, Eliza Hamilton also became the toast of NYC and Washington. What a life!

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The Backstory: The mysterious death of Edgar Allan Poe Jun 04, 2024

Politics is a nasty business. But it always has been. And it may have played a role in the death of a literary genius. You know the Edgar Allan Poe story called The Tell-Tale Heart, about the heart of a murder victim that never stops beating? Maybe Poe is still trying to tell us something 175 years after his mysterious death.

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The Backstory: The history of jokes May 31, 2024

We all love to laugh, no matter when, where, or how we’ve lived. Amazingly, there are a handful of topics that have given us the giggles for at least 5,000 years. And a lot of them involve 6th-grade humor.

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The Backstory: James Brown: Drugs, toilets, and guns May 28, 2024

James Brown, the godfather of soul, had some anger issues. In fact, he went to prison after threatening agents at an insurance seminar with a gun because he thought they used his private bathroom.

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The Backstory: Bloody politics May 24, 2024

Think politics today are the most angry and violent they’ve ever been? What about the days when senators and congressmen came to work armed with guns and knives? Or the murder of one congressman by another just because they had an ideological disagreement? That’s when politics were bloody.

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The Backstory: Radiant heat & working toilets 2,000 years ago May 21, 2024

We think the world just keeps evolving. But what happens when a civilization like Rome collapses and all that technology disappears?

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The Backstory: Meeting your children…from a past life May 17, 2024

Imagine meeting your children…and they're way older than you! But you've been obsessed since your earliest memory with the idea that you were the mother of eight kids. But you died, leaving them orphaned. And your guilt was palpable, even as a three-year-old! You may not believe in reincarnation, but it’s hard to ignore Jenny Cockell’s story.

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The Backstory: What in the heck did I just say?!?! May 14, 2024

We use words and phrases every day, and usually never question why we say what we say. Why do we say “she’s on a wild goose chase” or “we laughed our heads off”? The surprising origin of ordinary phrases.

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The Backstory: Paradise lost May 10, 2024

You’d think being a princess (and ultimately the queen) of the Hawaiian islands would be an uncomplicated dream life. But the last queen of the kingdom of Hawaii dealt with an unfaithful husband, racism, death threats, and being placed under house arrest for over a year as her kingdom was overthrown by a coup and annexed to America.

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The Backstory: The #%$@ history of cursing May 07, 2024

Swearing, cursing, cussing, giving somebody the finger…they’re kind of ubiquitous these days, but they’ve been around for thousands of years. And now researchers say that yelling out your favorite four-letter word can even lower your blood pressure. But where in the &^%* did it all start and how has it evolved?

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The Backstory: The most powerful and hated man in the world May 03, 2024

Born into complete poverty and now, by some accounts, the richest man in the world, Vladimir Putin has also become an enemy of most of the world. Here's where he came from, how he got a stranglehold on power, and what he’s doing with it.

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The Backstory: When famous folks are crummy parents Apr 30, 2024

Being successful at what you do in business doesn’t seem to guarantee you’ll be a successful spouse or parent. Thomas Edison is a clear example of a genius businessman who was a bit of a failure as a father. Most of his children shared stories of their difficult relationship with the Wizard of Menlo Park.

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The Backstory: The dark side of Hollywood’s bright lights Apr 26, 2024

Thousands of young people, dreaming of stardom, head to Hollywood. A few make it, but so many more are victimized by predators who specifically prey on the most vulnerable types. This is the story of the Digital Entertainment Network, aka DEN, among the first companies with plans to stream digital content to young adults. That blew up because of its owner's lust for young boys.

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The Backstory: The first temporary insanity defense Apr 23, 2024

Seemingly strait-laced Washington, D.C. in the 19th century was actually filled with illicit affairs. One of them involved some powerful players (and a very young wife). It also involved the son of Francis Scott Key, who wrote the Star Spangled Banner and it led to a murder that was the talk of pre-Civil War Washington…and beyond.

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The Backstory: From Reefer Madness to wellness trend Apr 19, 2024

The lord of bhang, Reefer Madness…weed has a checkered past. But for thousands of years it was used and celebrated by most cultures. It wasn’t until one pivotal moment in the early 20th century that it became demonized. Now its benefits have been rediscovered and its reputation somewhat salvaged.

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The Backstory: Mom's death bed confession about hijacker D. B. Cooper Apr 16, 2024

There are some mysteries that we never quite figure out. One of them is about the 1971 hijacking of a jetliner by a guy called D. B. Cooper. He got $200,000 from the FBI and parachuted out of an airliner into the stormy wilderness of Washington state. They’ve never found him or even figured out who he was. But one man has stepped forward with a likely answer, thanks to his mom.

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The Backstory: The evolution of TV Apr 09, 2024

From a 2-inch wide blurry, black-and-white image, to a giant piece of clear glass that transforms wirelessly into an exquisite screen, television has almost magically evolved. In 100 years, for better or for worse, screens have become one of the most important, controlling devices in our lives. How did it start? And where is it taking us?

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The Backstory: Lindbergh: a flawed hero and notorious murder Apr 05, 2024

The kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby 90 years ago led to the execution of a man a few years later. But researchers say there are plenty of reasons to suspect that there was a rush to judgment. And then there’s Charles Lindbergh’s fascination with Aryan superiority, which led him to have seven children with three German women, in addition to the six he had with his wife.

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The Backstory: Dogs: from predator to fur baby in 20,000 years (Replay) Mar 29, 2024

How did ferocious, man-eating wolves evolve into Labrador Retrievers, St. Bernards, and even teacup poodles—not to mention become our best friends? It's an amazing story of genetics and mutual need. But it's also a story of love.

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The Backstory: History’s craziest trends Mar 26, 2024

Why do so many of us have the need to be trendy, to do or say things we think make us look as cool as the people we’re copying? Trends through the ages have included everything from style statements to full-on body modification.

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The Backstory: Abe Lincoln, battered husband Mar 22, 2024

It’s hard to imagine that one of the most powerful presidents in U.S. history was the victim of domestic violence. Abe Lincoln was physically and emotionally battered by Mary Todd Lincoln, primarily due to her mental illness.

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The Backstory: The sinister death of movie star Natalie Wood Mar 19, 2024

Talent, glamour, fame, sex, and possibly murder. What really happened to Natalie Wood more than 40 years ago? One guy who was there has been talking about her death. But nobody’s listening.

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The Backstory: The 1893 World’s Fair murder castle Mar 15, 2024

He’s been called the devil, the monster. But H.H. Holmes was America’s first known serial killer. Even he said killing was his destiny. His victims were men, women, and even little children, many coming to Chicago and his hotel for the great 1893 World’s Fair. The tabloid press described his murders and then embellished the story.

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The Backstory: Finding Amelia Earhart…maybe Mar 12, 2024

Anybody who took to the sky in the early days of aviation had nerves of steel. Amelia Earhart was pure cast iron, and her disappearance over the Pacific Ocean in 1937 made her legendary. But despite all the wild theories about what happened to her, we may soon discover the truth.

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The Backstory: Female spies: fascinating secret heroes Mar 08, 2024

Want to be fabulously successful? Just make sure everybody notices you. Wanna be a fabulously successful spy? Just make sure nobody notices you.

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The Backstory: Illicit sex in old Hollywood Mar 05, 2024

Sex scandals are as constant in Hollywood as gorgeous people, glittering clothes, and scads of money. But while the paparazzi these days use every trick to give us an inside look at the private lives of the stars, they have nothing on the stars of Hollywood’s golden age. Sex, shocking divorces, and even murder—there’s nothing new under the Hollywood sun.

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The Backstory: The unelected female president Mar 01, 2024

Despite the fact there have been well over 125 female presidents and prime ministers around the world, the U.S. has never had a woman who ran the country. Or did we?

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The Backstory: Crazy stuff we eat, from bugs to beaver tails Feb 27, 2024

Food plays so many roles in our lives. Obviously, it keeps us alive, but it also satisfies desires and brings us closer to the people we share it with. But over thousands of years, we’ve eaten some pretty weird stuff. From flaming, feathered peacocks to all sorts of bugs and “unexpected” animal secretions.

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The Backstory: Cannibalism on the wild frontier Feb 23, 2024

The Netflix hit film Society of the Snow is the true story of South American athletes trapped in the snowy mountains after a plane crash…with some surviving by eating their dead teammates. Now we look at the Donner party of pioneers in 1846, trapped in 22 feet of snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains…and the even more gruesome way some of them survived.

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The Backstory: From slave to congressman Feb 20, 2024

This is the remarkable story of Robert Smalls. In 1862, he was a young slave who managed to commandeer a rebel warship in Charleston, South Carolina’s heavily fortified harbor, turn it over to the North and go on to have a spectacular business and political career.

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The Backstory: Maniacs and mysticism Feb 16, 2024

The Nazis not only had a deluded belief in their own racial superiority, some of their top leaders believed they were superhumans descended from the inhabitants of the lost city of Atlantis. (They had a whole branch of the military dedicated to proving that.)

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The Backstory: Romance: Roses, chocolates, and bloody animal skins Feb 13, 2024

Human attachment is thousands of years old but Valentine’s Day started off as a blood soaked pagan fertility festival, and it wasn’t much fun for women. On the flip side, the romance element is a recent invention. You can thank the Victorians for that.

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The Backstory: An unbelievable touchdown in the upper deck Feb 09, 2024

Sports, whether they're big-time or small-time, make an awful lot of people happy. They can also push folks to pull some crazy stunts.

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The Backstory: From freedom fighter to tribal genocide Feb 06, 2024

We’re all a contradiction at times, but nothing like Civil War general Oliver Howard. He was a medal of honor winner, he worked to get freed black men the right to vote, and was the founder of historically black Howard University. But after the war he chased down and killed or captured hundreds of Native Americans in the Nez Perce War with the U.S.

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The Backstory: Immortality: young blood and monkey testicles Feb 02, 2024

What would we do to live better, longer, or maybe even forever? Lots of quests for immortality involved mystical potions or objects. And one very popular fad in the 1920s involved transplanted monkey testicles!

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The Backstory: Cold War condoms and undercover kitties Jan 30, 2024

In the race to become the reigning superpower, nations have resorted to all sorts of bizarre tactics. Some of them were pretty humorous. And that reached new heights during the Cold War.

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The Backstory: Radio: A voice in the dark Jan 26, 2024

Stop and think about the impact of radio on our world. For thousands of years, storytelling, music, news, and entertainment were all in person. Suddenly, this gadget arrives and opens up the world to us. What did we hear, and how did it change us?

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The Backstory: Mafia murder in mid-century Las Vegas Jan 23, 2024

You love gangster TV shows and movies like The Sopranos, The Godfather, and Goodfellas? You love Las Vegas? Bugsy Siegel was the mobster/visionary who created Las Vegas with his spectacular Flamingo Hotel and Casino in 1947. But it cost him his life.

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The Backstory: The Big Exit Jan 19, 2024

It seems like iconic, larger-than-life folks should meet larger-than-life demises. But that's not always the case. There are huge names who died from all sorts of ridiculous and messy mistakes.

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The Backstory: Surviving a 35,000-foot free fall Jan 16, 2024

Hearing about a panel on an Alaska Airlines jet popping off mid-air gives us all a serious case of the creeps. But imagine you’re in a jet at almost 35,000 feet when a terrorist’s bomb blows it into pieces. You free fall to Earth…and survive.

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The Backstory: The unexplained blast that shook the world Jan 12, 2024

On a beautiful summer morning in 1908, a massive explosion hit Siberia. It downed 80 million trees and lit the night sky 3,000 miles away in Sweden. But to this day, no one knows what caused it.

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The Backstory: The upside of having the blues Jan 09, 2024

Depression is nothing new, although we call it by a different name than they did centuries ago, and we have some new ways of treating it. But some of our greatest minds, like JFK, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Abe Lincoln have been strengthened by their battles with depression.

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The Backstory: Gruesome mementos of the wild west Jan 05, 2024

It’s the Wild West and the first democratic governor of Wyoming, as well as the state's first female doctor, have ties to vicious train robber Big Nose George Parrott. And you won’t believe the mementos they kept.

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The Backstory: Suffering for beauty Jan 02, 2024

We’ll do anything to look fabulous these days, but we have nothing on our ancestors. They used face creams made from animal and human pee. They glued animal pelts on unusual body parts. And they literally poisoned themselves in their quest for perfect skin and hair.

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The Backstory: How did Christmas turn into trees and egg nog? Dec 22, 2023

We all have our Christmas traditions, but how did Santa Claus, Christmas trees, and George Washington’s recipe for heavily spiked eggnog rule the season?

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The Backstory: Hitler's obsession with beauty Dec 19, 2023

Beauty intrigues everyone, but a desire for control, massive ego, and hatred drive some to steal beauty belonging to others. That was Hitler’s motivation as he rampaged through Europe attempting to steal art, architecture, and even a spectacular race car.

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The Backstory: Let’s get in bed Dec 15, 2023

We take our beds for granted. But how and where we slept, as well as who we were with and what we did while in bed, has changed dramatically over the centuries.

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The Backstory: The last thing they saw Dec 12, 2023

Criminal forensics has seen some pretty amazing advances over the past decade. But less than a century ago, investigators were attempting to nab killers through "optography," a process that involved dissecting a murder victim's eyes to harvest an actual image of the last thing the victim saw.

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The Backstory: Where did all the dinosaurs go? Dec 08, 2023

Have we really only known about dinosaurs for less than 200 years? They roamed the earth for almost 200 million years and were wiped out in a matter of months. Where did they go and how did we find out about them?

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The Backstory: The concealed Kennedy Dec 05, 2023

The sister of a president and two senators, Rosemary Kennedy was subjected to surgery that destroyed her brain and her life...simply because she didn’t fit the mold.

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The Backstory: He did WHAT while President?! Dec 01, 2023

Being President doesn't mean you don't have some pretty weird personal quirks...everything from what they did in their free time, to some of the odd ways they took care of themselves. Wait until you hear the one about LBJ and "Jumbo"!

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The Backstory: The First Female Serial Killer? Nov 28, 2023

Fake news has cost a lot of people their reputations...and even their lives. Was that the case for America's so-called first female serial killer?

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Celebrities and their world-changing inventions Nov 24, 2023

Mark Twain invented the modern bra strap? A ventriloquist who was a huge star in kids’ television and in Vegas invented the first artificial heart? A rock star’s invention saved model train giant Lionel?

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Inventing Thanksgiving Nov 21, 2023

There's lots of tradition when it comes to Thanksgiving. But a lot of how and when we celebrate, what we eat, and what we look forward to about the long holiday weekend sort of evolved on the fly.

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Napoleon’s complicated sex life Nov 17, 2023

Napoleon Bonaparte, legendary general, legendary emperor, legendary lover…or was he? It seems his feelings about sex were all over the map. He was an insecure guy who’s love life with Josephine ran the gamut from red hot to ice cold.

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ADHD…from Mozart to Musk Nov 14, 2023

Here’s a surprise! It seems lots of our icons have something in common. We’re talking about Albert Einstein, Walt Disney, Mozart, Abe Lincoln, Thomas Edison, John F. Kennedy, John Lennon, Michael Jordan, Olympic stars Simone Biles and Michael Phelps, as well as Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and Elon Musk. What’s their common thread? ADHD!

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The unbelievable life of Leonardo da Vinci Nov 10, 2023

Leonardo da Vinci was one of the greatest artists in the history of the world. And he loved understanding how things worked, coming up with designs for helicopters, robots, a self-propelled car, and machine guns centuries before they got made. He was also one wacky guy!

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Sex and Corn Flakes Nov 07, 2023

Sex has been a complicated topic throughout history...at times celebrated as a life force, and at other times vilified. Some of the items invented to discourage sex included the pricking ring and, believe it or not, Corn Flakes.

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Three decades lost in the South Pacific Nov 03, 2023

It’s 1944 and a 22-year-old Japanese soldier is left to defend a South Pacific island during World War 2. But he’s never told the war ended, so he stays on the job for 30 years.

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From murderer to media darling...and back again Oct 31, 2023

The problem with psychopaths is they're incredibly charming...until they go in for the kill. This is the story of Edgar Smith, a killer who managed to convince publisher/TV star political commentator William F. Buckley Jr., that he was completely innocent. Buckley took up his cause until the unthinkable happened.

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New York’s secret subway…blown up Oct 27, 2023

NYC streets in the 1860s were filthy, bumpy, and fiercely crowded. Then an ingenious guy built a working demo of a wind-driven underground railroad…the first subway. But corruption let the air out of his idea.

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The bloody Halloween origin story Oct 24, 2023

We love Halloween, but how did it all start? Turns out its origins go back thousands of years to ancient Ireland and a holiday that involved human sacrifice.

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The thrill of horror Oct 20, 2023

Do you love the blood and gore of a great horror flick? What is that about?! Why we love abject fear and how the movies cashed in on it.

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Was Jack the Ripper a woman? Oct 17, 2023

Jack the Ripper murdered and dismembered at least 5 women in London 135 years ago and was never found. Was it faulty profiling? There are experts with evidence who believe Jack the Ripper was actually a woman.

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A tale of the last pardoned witch Oct 13, 2023

The witch trials in Salem Massachusetts ended over 300 years ago. In Europe, the last witch was executed in 1782. But in both cases, the last of those accused weren't exonerated until as recently as a year ago.

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Can you put a pope’s corpse on trial? Oct 10, 2023

We’re all intrigued by political rivalries. But how far can rivals go? This is all about a medieval pope whose body was exhumed, dressed up, and put on trial by his opponents.

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Marie Antoinette: her worst moments (other than getting her head chopped off) Oct 06, 2023

Marie Antoinette, the last queen before the French revolution, has a pretty bad rap. Falsely accused of the infamous “let them eat cake” quote, she was given to the French king in a political deal, stripped naked in front of the king’s advisors at 14 before her wedding, and massively attacked by both pro-royalists and revolutionaries before facing the guillotine at 37. Lots of riches, but not an easy life.

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Thomas Edison did not invent the light bulb Oct 03, 2023

Thomas Edison was a lot of things – genius businessman, incredible marketing guy, someone with an insane work ethic and no need of sleep. But he an inventor? Not so much. He and his team borrowed the light bulb, perfected it and mass produced it. Then his business and marketing skills did the rest.

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A Hollywood insider nailed as a compulsive liar Sep 29, 2023

How often do you tell little lies in order to look good or protect somebody’s feelings? Researchers say we all do it at least twice a day. But compulsive liars are another story. They dig really deep holes. This is an unbelievable story about a hotshot producer/writer on Grey’s Anatomy who destroyed her career and her personal life lying about her cancer battle and her brother’s suicide.

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Charlie Manson and Good Vibrations Sep 26, 2023

Charles Manson and his "family" of followers went on a gruesome killing spree in L.A. during the summer of 1969. He claimed that his inspiration for some of it was the music of the Beatles (Helter Skelter in particular). But Manson had a much deeper connection to Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys. It destroyed Dennis's reputation and his health, and changed his life forever.

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Dogs: from predator to fur baby in 20,000 years Sep 22, 2023

How did ferocious, man-eating wolves evolve into Labrador Retrievers, St. Bernards, and even teacup poodles—not to mention become our best friends? It's an amazing story of genetics and mutual need. But it's also a story of love.

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Dying for a drink? Sep 19, 2023

During the prohibition era of the 1920s and early 1930s, speakeasies and gin joints were the place to be to get ahold of “evil booze.” How did the government try to control access? They purposely poisoned industrial alcohol that was being repurposed for cocktails.

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The awful backstage truth about The Wizard of Oz Sep 15, 2023

We all love The Wizard of Oz, right? So why was it a box office flop when it came out? And why was production so horrible for the cast and crew? It’s a story of what people put up with (and still put up with) to make it in Hollywood.

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ETs? Time travelers? Trying to explain the unexplained Sep 12, 2023

Are you intrigued by the thought of aliens visiting Earth and leaving behind signs like cave drawings and pyramids and geoglyphs? Did you know that many of these ancient sites are part of what’s called the Great Circle, appearing along an exact circle within a tenth of a degree of each other?

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Murder on the Madison Square Garden rooftop Sep 08, 2023

The “unofficial” first Me Too case of the 20th century exploded across the press with the murder of star architect Stanford White. His wild love affair with a 15-year-old showgirl ultimately led to her rich husband shooting White six years later in 1906, in front of a crowd of theatergoers. It was the trial of the century with a lot of “firsts” both in the press and in the courtroom.

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How one woman survived the Titanic and 2 more shipwrecks Sep 05, 2023

The Titanic disaster has fascinated us for over a century, including those on board the doomed Titan submersible who lost their lives just trying to get a close-up look. Equally entranced was a 23-year-old ship’s nurse—a Titanic survivor who amazingly also survived the wrecks of both of Titanic’s sister ships and continued to work on cruise liners for 40 years.

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Did Ben Franklin discover electricity? Nope! Sep 01, 2023

He gets credit for it, but Ben Franklin was not the first guy to discover electricity. It goes back thousands of years. But how was it used? We tapped into those jolts for everything from feeling better to feeling REALLY good. It's a shocking story!

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Smoky skies: the year without a summer Aug 29, 2023

We've been dealing with smoky skies in North America lately. But in 1816, the eruption of the largest volcano in modern history led to smoke and ash blocking the sun for over a year. The eruption, illness, and famine killed more than 100,000 people and there were fears that the earth was ending. But it did inspire some iconic paintings, poetry, and novels—like Frankenstein.

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The scandalous life of a presidential wild child Aug 25, 2023

Alice, the untamed daughter of Teddy Roosevelt, was constantly on the cover of every newspaper. Alice LOVED being the original influencer. And the public couldn't get enough of the scandalous, beautiful teenager in the White House.

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How we slept before the light bulb Aug 22, 2023

How did the light bulb change the way the entire world slept? The old-fashioned joy of waking up at 11pm to party...and get stuff done!

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Iconic monuments, from reviled to revered Aug 18, 2023

Did you know the Eiffel Tower, the Washington Monument, and the Statue of Liberty were all hated by the public for decades before they became cherished destinations?

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The stolen invention that changed the world Aug 15, 2023

When someone is credited with a world-changing invention and we find out years later they stole the idea, does that change history?

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Nude olympics and (literal) sweat equity Aug 11, 2023

Turns out that ancient Olympic athletes competed totally in the nude. And they had a fascinating way of making a living off their sweat.

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Mass murder at the home of an icon of tranquility Aug 08, 2023

Frank Lloyd Wright, the most famous architect in American history, brought nature and tranquility to design. So how did his chaotic personal life lead to a mass murder at his home?

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From hiding women's bodies at the beach to the thong...in 100 years Aug 04, 2023

If women in the 1800s wanted to take a swim, they were pulled into the surf in a cabana on wheels, wearing 30 pounds of wet wool. So how did we get to the bikini, much less the thong?

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Who was sitting with Abe Lincoln when he was shot? Aug 01, 2023

What happens to your life if you sit next to a president when he's assassinated?

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Introducing: The Backstory with Patty Steele Jul 24, 2023

Love a good, juicy story that goes beyond what we already know? We're talking scandalous presidential family members, a mass murder at a world-famous architect's home, stolen inventions, nude athletes at the first Olympics, compulsive liars, the arrival of the bikini, and so much more. History fanatic Patty Steele tells you the inside backstories you didn’t know you needed to know.

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