Meg Ryan has been a Hollywood fixture for the better part of four decades. Best known for rom-com romps such as Sleepless in Seattle and You’ve Got Mail, the actress’s off-screen life has been equally romance and comedy-filled....
The House of Tudor had more than its fair share of scandalous figures, from Henry VIII’s many marriages to the intrigue and plots of the court of Elizabeth I. But few remember the twisted tale of Mary Tudor—the English princess who briefly became Queen of France. From her secret marriage to her bitter rivalry with Anne Boleyn, Mary packed a lot into her short life.
Francis I of France is inevitably compared to Henry VIII. Both kings had big personalities, big love affairs, and big scandals that rocked the face of Europe. But there’s a lot more to Francis than just the similarities to the Tudor counterpart. From his unlikely ascension to the throne to his brutal defeats and torturous later years, Francis did not languish in his neighbor's shadow.
A gentleman to some and a menace to others, John Dillinger put America in a frenzy with a spree that led to the formation of the FBI itself—until his luck ran out.
Marie Skłodowska Curie was born into humble circumstances in Russian-occupied Poland. Facing hurdles like poverty, repression, and rampant sexism, she found the odds stacked highly against her. But the determined young genius would defy all obstacles and become one of the most famous and accomplished scientists of all time. Her pioneering work on radiation would change the world forever—and, unbeknownst to her, end up the cause of her relatively premature demise.
Audie Murphy was, on the surface, the pinnacle of an all-American life: after becoming the most decorated enlisted man in US Army history and a WWII hero, he went on to hit it big in Hollywood in a classic rags-to-riches tale. But all that came at a devastating cost to his mental health. Though he would meet a grisly and premature end, Murphy stuck around long enough to become the perfect case study for the under-discussed consequences of modern warfare on the soul of man.
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In 1974, Dolly Parton was faced with an utterly heartbreaking choice—one that, decades later, would net her millions of dollars.
Olive Oatman was the first white American woman to be tattooed. If her name isn’t well known today, maybe that’s because of her disturbing backstory.
The Lennox sisters became infamous for their shocking romances, royal connections, and family scandals that rocked Georgian England.
Doctors thought they understood ulcers. Then two Australian doctors came along with a very different idea. But when much of the medical world still refused to believe them, one of the doctors stopped arguing and did something much, much harder to ignore.
James Taylor is renowned for his heart-wrenching songs like “You’ve Got a Friend” and “Fire and Rain”—but few know his shocking backstory.
While her uncle Oscar Wilde was a famous wit, the socialite and bon vivant Dorothy "Dolly" Wilde gave her famous relative a run for his money.
We may be standing on the shoulders of giants—and, if some legends are believed, that phrase might be shockingly literal.
The world is filled with spectacular, bizarre, and iconic buildings—but these structures often have a surprisingly dark history.
So notorious that its name is synonymous with madness, the history of Bethlem Royal Hospital, or Bedlam, is filled with some of humanity's darkest moments.
The history of Mexico City stretches back almost two centuries before the Spanish ever set foot in the Americas. Rather, the Spanish built their capital on top of the ashes of one of the most beautiful and unique cities in history: Tenochtitlan.
Alcatraz was only in operation for less than 30 years, but in that time it gained the reputation as one of the most notorious prisons in American history.
Area 51's workers don't drive there. They fly in on a classified US Government airline known only as "Janet."
Powered flight has evolved four separate times, in totally different ways: Insects, pterosaurs, birds, and bats. But who did it the best?
Every generation seems to discover a technology that is definitely, absolutely, positively going to wreck civilization. Sometimes the worries contain legitimate concerns. Other times, they age about as gracefully as predictions that nobody would ever need a computer at home. Somehow, society kept going—and usually bought millions of the supposedly dangerous gadgets.
History class has a habit of turning complicated events into wonderfully tidy stories. One hero rides through the night. One inventor has a light-bulb moment. One explorer proves everyone else wrong. The trouble is that memorable stories aren’t necessarily accurate ones. Archaeology, surviving documents, scientific research, and generations of historical scholarship have dismantled plenty of “facts” that once seemed unquestionable.
Sleepwalking has fascinated humans throughout history—and yet, even today, this particular disorder remains as mysterious as ever.
The world is filled with spectacular, bizarre, and iconic buildings—but these structures often have a surprisingly dark history.
How exactly did a single asteroid strike cause the dinosaurs to go completely extinct? Let's go back to that day and find out.
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