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The RAF Airman Who Fell 18,000 Feet Without a Parachute and Survived: The Remarkable Story of Nicholas Alkemade
When you think of aerial combat, the first things that might come to mind are the dogfights of Spitfires and Messerschmitts or the heavy...
405 views

The Ladies of Llangollen: Love, Liberty, and a Cottage in Wales
At first glance, the Gothic cottage of Plas Newydd in Llangollen, North Wales, may seem like a quaint remnant of the 18th century. But...
228 views

Saparmurat Niyazov: The Eccentric Despot Who Turned Turkmenistan into His Personal Playground
Saparmurat Niyazov, affectionately self-styled as Türkmenbaşy—or "Head of the Turkmen" if you're feeling formal—was the leader of...
2,437 views

Robert Hanssen: The FBI Agent Who Became America's Most Damaging Spy
On a chilly afternoon, February 18, 2001, Robert Hanssen parked his car at Foxstone Park in Vienna, Virginia, a quiet suburb of...
866 views

The Hidden Heroine of WWI: How Anna Coleman Ladd Restored Faces and Lives
In 1917, amid the devastation of World War I, an American sculptor quietly boarded a ship to France, unaware she would soon transform...
7,915 views

Max Jacobson: The Intriguing Life and Legacy of the Original "Dr. Feelgood"
Born in July 1900 in Fordon, Bromberg—then part of the German Empire (modern-day Poland)—Max Jacobson became notorious as "Dr. Feelgood,"...
1,563 views

The Ides of March and the Assassination of Julius Caesar
March 15th—otherwise known as the Ides of March—has become synonymous with bad luck, treachery, and political upheaval. In ancient Rome,...
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The Cat’s Meat Man: London’s Forgotten Street Trader
In the bustling streets of Victorian London, amidst the cacophony of street vendors hawking everything from flowers to fresh fish, one...
868 views

Frank Sinatra’s Early Years: The Making of an Icon (1915–1935)
Before the legendary crooner, before the Rat Pack, before the tumultuous marriages and Hollywood scandals, Frank Sinatra was just another...
74 views

Frank Sheeran: The Irishman and His Secrets
Frank Sheeran’s life reads like a crime thriller—except the violence, betrayals, and backroom dealings weren’t fiction. Known as The...
1,091 views

Sutherland Macdonald: The Michelangelo of Victorian Tattooing
In the heart of Victorian London, amidst a society obsessed with propriety, decorum, and rigid social structures, an unusual profession...
888 views

Francis James Mortimer: The Adventurous Eye of Early British Photography
Francis James Mortimer was not just a photographer; he was a pioneer in pictorial photography, an adventurer at heart, and an artist with...
511 views

Garry Hoy: The Man That Fell Out A Skyscraper Window To His Death While Trying To Prove It Was Unbreakable
If there were ever a case of an unfortunate yet bizarre workplace mishap, the story of Garry Hoy would be at the top of the list. A...
573 views

The WWII Spy Manual That Transformed Inept Middle Management into a Covert Sabotage Strategy
When you think of Allied espionage, you probably picture daring spies with hidden explosives, sneaky wiretaps, or maybe even weaponised...
160 views

The Roma: Survival, Stereotypes, and the Fight to Be Seen
For centuries, the Romani people have existed on the fringes of European society, a people without a homeland, constantly moving,...
609 views

Arlene Gottfried: The Wandering Eye of New York
Some people take pictures of sunsets, flowers, and perfectly plated meals. Arlene Gottfried? She took pictures of life—raw, unfiltered,...
3,675 views

Marjoe Gortner: The Evangelist Who Pulled Off the Ultimate Hustle
If you’ve never seen Marjoe , the 1972 Academy Award-winning documentary, consider this your sign from on high to watch it. Produced and...
2,004 views

The Mirage Tavern: Chicago’s Undercover Sting That Exposed Rampant Corruption
If you found yourself in Chicago in 1977 and wandered into a small drinking establishment at 731 N. Wells Street, you might have thought...
122 views

Archduke Ludwig Viktor: A Habsburg Rebel in a Conservative Era
In the heart of the 19th-century Habsburg Empire, Archduke Ludwig Viktor Joseph Anton of Austria stood out as a nonconformist in one of...
957 views

Mary Jane Rathbun AKA Brownie Mary: The Grandmother of Medical Cannabis
In the heart of San Francisco, where activism and counterculture have long thrived, an elderly woman in polyester pantsuits became one of...
1,536 views

That Time The NRA Fought For Tougher Gun Control (When The Black Panthers Had Guns)
The debate surrounding gun control continues to be one of the most contentious and polarising issues in the United States. Today, the...
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Dame Edith Sitwell: The Grand Eccentric of English Letters
There are eccentrics, and then there is Dame Edith Sitwell—an aristocratic poet, critic, and all-around formidable presence in...
508 views

The Hidden Cousins of Queen Elizabeth II: The Tragic Story of Nerissa and Katherine Bowes-Lyon
Royal families have long been known for carefully controlling their public image, often keeping anything deemed unseemly out of sight....
4,406 views

The Mitford Sisters: Scandal, Wit, and Unwavering Eccentricity
The Mitford sisters were an aristocratic anomaly: six daughters of Lord and Lady Redesdale ( Farve  and Muv  to their children), raised...
2,261 views
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