Karen Hill

Almost everyone agrees that the Mafia started as a shadow organization in Sicily. What’s amazing is that historians can’t seem to agree on what the name means. Most historians also can’t tell us whether it started in the ninth century, the 18th century, or somewhere in between. The Mafia is also known as “Cosa Nostra” … Read more

The ancient Egyptians had more than 2,000 gods. The greatest of these was the sun god, Ra. According to the Egyptians’ creation story, the ocean was all that existed in the beginning. Then from the water came an egg, some versions say a flower. Ra emerged from it, eventually drying the lands, and in Egypt’s … Read more

Good question. Here’s what our biblical consultants say about how the Israelites crossed the Red Sea in a night while running from the Egyptians. “Red Sea” was apparently a translation error from the days when scholars were rendering the Bible into English for King James I. The original Hebrew called it a “sea of reeds,” … Read more

If you’re an avid cat person, the answer to why the ancient Egyptians worshiped cats of course is self-evident: Because cats are divine. Egyptians literally believed that to be true, to the point that if a household cat died, its owners would shave their eyebrows in mourning and lovingly transport the cat carcass to one … Read more

Considering both the church/state and God/mammon issues, it’s not surprising that some people have objected to the phrase “In God We Trust” on U.S. coins. In 1996, the Freedom from Religion Foundation sued to have the slogan removed from United States money. A federal judge ruled against them, arguing somewhat illogically that ” ‘In God … Read more

Since the idea is so simple, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”, most religions and philosophies have some variation of the Golden Rule. However, the earliest known rendition came from Confucius (551-479 B.C.): “What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others.” In other words, don’t screw … Read more

The phrase “In God We Trust” first appeared on U.S. coins during the Civil War. The idea came from a letter that Treasury Secretary Salmon Chase got from an influential Pennsylvania minister named Reverend M. R. Watkinson. “You are probably Christian,” Watkinson wrote. “One fact touching our currency has hitherto been seriously overlooked. I mean … Read more

Vice President Martin Van Buren always had a pair of pistols beside him when he presided over the Senate. Martin Van Buren was born on December 5, 1782 and was the eighth President of the United States from 1837 to 1841. Buren was also the first president to be born an American citizen.

Like most English words, the term “pagan” is Latin in origin. The word comes from the root word paganus, which means “peasant.” During the mass conversion of Rome to Christianity, the peasants and farmers were the last to be converted, and so the childish name-calling began. Lots of childish folks back then. Lots of childish … Read more

With the notable exception of one who was born in a manger, a disproportionate number of founders of major religions had anything but humble beginnings. The founder of Buddhism, Siddhartha, was a prince in what is now Nepal, who abandoned opulent wealth, not to mention a wife and baby, to wander as a holy man. … Read more

Literally hundreds of people and organizations were on U.S. President Richard Nixon’s “Enemies List”. The list was given to government agencies, like the IRS, with quiet presidential orders to harass the people on it. He wanted payback. Some of the more famous names on the list included movie stars, politicians, and media folks, including Carol … Read more

We don’t know yet who “Deep Throat” was. There are those who believe that Deep Throat didn’t really exist, that Bob Woodward’s crucial Watergate informant was a composite of several Washington insiders who knew the ins and outs of Richard Nixon’s White House. This is denied by Woodward. He is one of only four people … Read more

Both his wife and mother died on Valentine’s Day in 1884. He was so distraught that he retired from politics for two years.

It was during the second half of John Adams’s administration, which has become known as the Federalist Reign of Terror, that it a crime to criticize the president. Under the Alien and Sedition Acts, it became a crime to criticize the president or the government. It got so bad that his vice president, Thomas Jefferson, … Read more

President David Rice Atcheson slept through most of his term in presidency. He was president for one day, March 4, 1849. James Polk’s term ended then, but Zachary Taylor refused to be sworn in on a Sunday so the job went automatically to the senate president pro tern. “I slept most of that Sunday,” Atcheson … Read more

William Henry Harrison had died a month into his term on April 6, 1841 when John Tyler was told he had become president. John Tyler was found deep in a game of aggies or marbles when given the news that he was the first vice president to succeed a dead president. Two decades later, Tyler … Read more

Franklin D. Roosevelt threw the most opening-day baseballs, as he was president for more opening-day baseball seasons than any other president.

Three U.S. presidents didn’t even graduate from grade school. They were Andrew Jackson, Andrew Johnson, and Zachary Taylor.

A “score” is equal to 20. Abraham Lincoln gave his speech in 1863. We’ll let you do the math to find the famous year because if we just gave you the answer you wouldn’t learn anything.

The phrase “A house divided against itself cannot stand” originally came from the Bible. “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself shall not stand” (Matthew 12:25). Abraham Lincoln popularized the verse in his speech accepting the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate from Illinois in June of … Read more

America’s most infamous duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr took place on July 11, 1804, in Weehawken, New Jersey. Burr and Hamilton had become political rivals when Burr won a Senate seat that had belonged to Hamilton’s father-in-law. When Burr left the vice presidency and ran an unsuccessful campaign for New York governor, he … Read more

Well, George Washington won 1000/0 of the electoral votes when his name was put up for election. Second-best was Richard Nixon in 1972, who got 520 electoral votes against George McGovern’s 17. John Hospers of the Libertarian Party also won 1. This took place less than two years before Nixon was forced to resign from … Read more

The most unpopular U.S. president in history was probably John Tyler, who took over Harrison’s presidency following his death. After Tyler vetoed key points of his own Whig Party’s program, his entire cabinet resigned, except one member. An armed mob stormed the White House and threw rocks through its windows, and members of his party … Read more

U.S. president Grover Cleveland was nicknamed “Big Steve”. He was a big man, weighing about 280 pounds, and his first name was Stephen. Grover was his middle name. He was also called “Uncle Jumbo,” presumably not by his friends.

Yes. Ulysses S. Grant’s wife, Julia Dent Grant, is also buried Grant’s Tomb. The presidential memorial in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. The General Grant National Memorial was designed by architect John Duncan, and was completed in 1897. The National Park Service claims that it is the largest mausoleum in … Read more

No, Camp David was not named after the guy in the Bible who killed Goliath. Camp David is the presidential retreat that was founded by Franklin Roosevelt, who named it Shangri-La. Dwight Eisenhower renamed it in honor of his grandson, David Eisenhower. That name stuck. David’s only other claim to fame since was that he … Read more

Ronald Reagan was the first presidential candidate to be endorsed by TV Guide. TV Guide can also be remembered as the first print venue to publish the conservative Republican coalition’s “Contract With America,” which helped Newt Gingrich capture the House in the 1996 campaign.

U.S. President Grover Cleveland was twenty-eight years older than his wife Frances. She was 21, and he was 49. Cleveland was the first and only president to marry in the White House. The public went crazy over the couple. They saw her as the young gal who put the reigns on an old codger, their … Read more

Sorry to burst your bubble, but the George Washington’s cherry tree story is just a myth. Where have you been, my friend? It doesn’t mean George Washington wasn’t ethical as a child, however. As a matter of fact, there’s evidence George was extremely moral in his formative years. As a schoolboy, he wrote rules of … Read more

A guy named Abraham Zapruder, owner of a Jennifer Juniors clothing store, recorded the footage of the John F. Kennedy assassination on an amateur camera. His receptionist stood nearby in case his vertigo made him dizzy and he had to sit down. He just wanted a shot of the president and had no idea his … Read more

If you judge the U.S. presidents by the fruits of their actions, we suppose someone could make a case that a number of them were not Christians, regardless of what faith they claimed. However, Abraham Lincoln was one who specifically rejected Christianity, even writing a pamphlet called Infidelity, which sought to disprove the Bible generally … Read more

The chances of a U.S. President being assassinated on the job are not that bad. Only four of the 43 so far have been killed by assassins, which is fewer than 10 percent. Tell your mom that it’s about the same odds as working for the post office. Okay, we’re kidding about that last part. … Read more

Lucretia Garfield was recuperating from a nasty bout with malaria in their summer home. She survived; president James Garfield did not. James Abram Garfield was born on November 19, 1831 in Orange Township, Ohio, and was the 20th President of the United States. On July 2, 1881, Garfield was shot by Charles J. Guiteau, who … Read more

A state motto? What are the choices? “I have found it!”; “The crossroads of America!”; “Famous potatoes!” We don’t think so. Actually, it was Virginia’s motto John Wilkes Booth shouted when he jumped onto the stage after shooting Abraham Lincoln: “Sic semper tyrannis!” (“Thus always to tyrants!”).

Of the four vice presidents who had left office during the month of April in their first terms, Vice President Andrew Johnson held it the shortest at 40 days. But William Rufus Devane King is the only vice president to die within months of taking the office. He also holds the honor of being the … Read more

John Wilkes Booth was an actor. Booth was born on May 10, 1838 in a four-room log house in Harford County, Maryland. He was an American stage actor who was most famous for assassinating President Abraham Lincoln at Ford’s Theatre, in Washington, D.C. John Wilkes Booth was outraged by the South’s defeat in the American … Read more

Yes, Abraham Lincoln had seen his assassin John Booth perform on stage. John Booth was not quite as celebrated as his brother Edwin, who was the most famous actor in the country at the time. Nor was he as respected as his father Junius, who had been the country’s premiere Shakespearean actor. Still, John was … Read more

U.S. president Gerald Ford was born Leslie King, Jr. His mother remarried and renamed him after her new husband. Leslie Lynch King, Jr. was born in Omaha, Nebraska on July 14, 1913 and was the 38th President of the United States from 1974 to 1977. Gerald Ford was remembered for granting a presidential pardon to … Read more

The first eight presidents were born in the American colonies before the Constitution was written. In fact, legally before the United States even existed. So technically, the first eight U.S. presidents were not actually born in the United States.

Okay, pay attention, because this is confusing if you don’t. Kennedy at 43 was the youngest person elected president, but he wasn’t the youngest president. Roosevelt was vice president when McKinley was assassinated, elevating Teddy to the presidency when he was a mere 42. That makes Teddy Roosevelt the youngest American President in U.S. history. … Read more

Only one U.S. president has resigned from office, Richard Nixon. Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States from 1969–1974, and was born in 1913. Nixon was born in Yorba Linda, California and graduated from Duke University School of Law in 1937. Nixon was remembered best for the Watergate scandal, when illegal … Read more

Two U.S. vice presidents have resigned from office. John Calhoun resigned in a policy dispute with the president, and Spiro Agnew resigned after it was discovered he’d been taking bribes. Spiro Theodore Agnew was the 39th Vice President of the United States, serving under President Richard Nixon. Agnew was under investigation by the United States … Read more

Believe it or not, George Bush was the first U.S. vice president to officially become acting president when the real president was incapable of performing his duties. On July 13, 1985, while Reagan was having a tumor removed from his colon, he transferred presidential power to his vice president, George Bush. Officially, the switch occurred … Read more

Zero of the first five U.S. presidents were born in England. Of the first five, George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe, John Adams was the only one not born in the colony of Virginia. He was from the Massachusetts Bay colony. Back then, it was important that U.S presidents were … Read more

Jimmy Carter was the first U.S. president born in a hospital. Until well into the 20th century, most people were born at home. James Earl “Jimmy” Carter, Jr. was born on October 1, 1924 and served as the 39th President of the United States from 1977 to 1981. President Carter was also the recipient of … Read more

Yes, several U.S. presidents have adopted kids. Including Martha Washington’s children that George Washington adopted, there were two others: Andrew Jackson and Ronald Reagan. Unlike the trend with celebrities today, adopting kids back then wasn’t in vogue. We highly doubt the kids adopted by these Presidents were Chinese or of ethnic decent.

John F. Kennedy was quite sick during his presidency. During his childhood, back problems, jaundice, and other ailments kept Kennedy scrawny and weak. He suffered from two other serious problems: Addison’s disease, in which the body can’t produce sufficient amounts of the crucial immunity-boosting hormone cortisol, and a degeneration of the spine, probably due to … Read more

A disproportionate number of U.S. presidents named James didn’t have kids: James Madison, James Polk, and James Buchanan. George Washington had no children of his own, but raised Martha’s children from her previous marriage. Her children certainly considered him a father, as is evidenced by the fact that they allowed him and Martha to raise … Read more

The skull and crossbones image which the Jolly Roger flag is based on was used to represent death long before the era of pirates. It was seen a lot during plagues to warn that someone inside a house, ship, or room was afflicted. Because the skull-and-crossbones had come to mean “danger, stay away,” it seemed … Read more

You’ve got the instincts of a pirate all right if you’ve asked yourself this question. It turns out that pirates did indeed toss prisoners overboard, and they didn’t really make them walk the plank. The walking-the-plank myth was first introduced in Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic Treasure Island and has since been reinforced by pirate literature … Read more

Sir Francis Drake was a pirate all through his career, actually. Drake made his living by smuggling slaves and pirating Spanish ships. His entire “voyage around the world” was funded by Queen Elizabeth and was, in essence, a thinly-veiled privateering racket to plunder Spanish ships and settlements. It was only because the British hated the … Read more

Captain William Kidd was a privateer, not a pirate. There’s a difference, believe it or not. England’s East India Company was one of his financial backers, and French ships were considered fair game. However, in the course of his tour, Kidd took a French ship that was sailed by Moors. To preserve ties with India, … Read more

Captain William Kidd had two kids. Sara and Elizabeth Kidd lived with their mother, Sara Oort Kidd, on 56 Wall Street in New York City when William Kidd was put to death in 1701. While waiting to be hung, Kidd confessed no crimes to the chaplain, only that his greatest sorrow was dying without the … Read more

The infamous Blackbeard, whose real name was Edward Teach, was a sort of hybrid, a cross between a pirate and a privateer. Blackbeard was ruthless and illegally terrorized ships of all nations off the eastern coast of the United States, but he had a deal with the colonial governor of North Carolina, Charles Eden. This … Read more

There isn’t much difference between a Pirate and a Buccaneer in theory. There was once a distinction, a much clearer one than we draw these days. There were three types of men we commonly call pirates: privateers, buccaneers, and genuine pirates. Pirates were first on the scene toward the end of the 14th century. They … Read more

The Dry Tortugas are a small group of islands, in what is now known as the Cayman Islands, and is also known as the Pirate Republic. It started out as a stopover for buying preserved meat, but eventually the meat curers decided that looting and pillaging was more profitable than making beef jerky. France had … Read more

One count puts it at 106 bullets that hit Bonnie and Clyde when they were ambushed by lawmen. Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were well known outlaws who traveled the Central United States with their gang during the Great Depression. The gang is believed to have killed at least nine police officers and many more … Read more

You mean the Disney ride right? Not all pirates as bad as they have been portrayed in the Pirates of the Caribbean. Some of them were worse, and they didn’t sing so well, either. Pirates gained a naughty reputation because, in essence, they were pretty naughty. Money was the overwhelming motivator in this line of … Read more

Gruesome, yes, and also very possible to acquire a stained handkerchief that has gangster John Dillinger’s blood on it. We do know that ghoulish souvenir hunters dipped handkerchiefs and newspapers into the pool of Dillinger’s blood on the sidewalk. It’s possible that your grandmother was one of these ghouls, but we’d rather believe she’s joking. … Read more

Bonnie and Clyde didn’t work with any other bank robbers, many whom were true professionals, who weren’t too impressed with them. “They’re giving bank robbery a bad name,” complained John Dillinger. For one thing, Clyde was a little too quick on the trigger finger. The FBI blamed 13 murders on them during their two-year crime … Read more

Clyde Barrow the gangster wrote a fan letter to Henry Ford about his cars. On April 10, 1934, Barrow sat down and addressed a letter to Mr. Ford from a hideout where he and Bonnie Parker were holed-up in Florida. The letter, stamped “Received” by the Ford Motor Company three days later, read, mistakes and … Read more

At least John Dillinger saw a good movie before he died. Manhattan Melodrama, starring Clark Gable, William Powell, Myrna Loy, and Mickey Rooney, was the name of the movie. It’s about two boyhood pals, one of whom becomes a gangster, and the other a policeman. The movie’s still good fun. We give it 37 stars, … Read more

Immediately after John Dillinger’s death, rumors quickly spread about a mysterious “Lady in Red” who had betrayed Dillinger by pulling out a handkerchief as she left the theater. Ironically, the lady dressed in red wasn’t Anna Sage, Dillinger’s real betrayer, but his unsuspecting date, Polly Hamilton, who was wearing a dark orange dress. Another irony: … Read more

It’s true that the Latin word centum means hundred, which is why “C” was used in Roman numerals to mean a hundred. It’s also the reason why American dollar bills once had a C on them. That’s the reason gangsters called them C-notes, not because a bunch of wise guys were out late one night … Read more

John Dillinger was not a nice guy, and he was the first criminal ever to be designated “Public Enemy Number 1” by the FBI. In one year, he had yielded about half a million dollars from daring bank heists. Half a million in 1934 would be more than $3 million now. He was brazen, even … Read more

Al Capone ordered the Valentine Day’s Massacre. Here are more questions and answers. What did Al Capone claim was his real business? His business card identified him as a secondhand furniture dealer. Were any of Al Capone’s brothers also gangsters? No. In fact, his brother Vince was a policeman in Omaha. Where did “Scarface” Al … Read more

The J. in J. Edgar Hoover stood for John. Johnny Hoover chose to go by his middle name. What did the “G” stand for? It is anybody’s guess. Born on January 1, 1895, John Edgar Hoover was the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation or FBI. Hoover is credited with building and success … Read more

Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegal, who hated his nickname by the way, was a young Jewish punk when “Lucky” Luciano discovered him. While Siegal wasn’t from any particular crime family originally, Luciano was an equal-opportunity sort of guy. Together with Luciano and another Jewish kid named Meyer Lansky, Siegal formed one of the most powerful crime syndicates … Read more

Kate “Ma” Barker, despite a popular myth that emerged after her death, wasn’t really the brains behind the crimes of the Barker boys. Her biggest crime was harboring, excusing, and overindulging her criminal children—Freddy, Herman, Lloyd, and Doc—and their delinquent friends. Elmer H. Inman, a glasses-wearing, professor type, was the real mastermind. Others were Glen … Read more

Less-evolved people have been acting like thugs and gangsters for most of human history. However, the word “gangster” wasn’t coined until 1896. The word first appeared in a newspaper in Columbus, Ohio, in April of that year. The word “Mobster” didn’t appear until 1917, although the word “mob” first showed up in the 17th century, … Read more

The Mafia doesn’t even come close to being world’s biggest criminal organization. The Mafia has a few thousand active members worldwide. The ancient, even more mysterious Six Great Triads of China has close to 100,000. The Mafia is also known as “Cosa Nostra” is a criminal organization, and is believed to have created in Sicily … Read more

The word “assassin” comes from hashshashin, meaning hemp-eaters, a name given to a secretive band of Muslims in Persia and Asia Minor in the 11th through the 13th centuries. The shadowy group, officially called the Nizari Isma’ilites, supposedly smoked hashish and killed their enemies while under its influence. Led by Hasan-e Sabbah, who believed that … Read more

The word “Thug”, meaning criminal or gangster in today’s context, has its origins in honor of the Thugs, a centuries-old criminal society in India. Its members robbed and murdered in honor of Kali, the Hindu goddess of destruction, who was the wife of Shiva. The Thugs always murdered by strangling because spilling blood was against … Read more

No one knows for sure if Robin Hood and his Merry Men really existed, but there isn’t much evidence that he did. All we know is that he should have existed as a heroic outlaw, archer and swordsman in English folklore, along with his Merry Men. Whether fact or fiction, the first mention of him … Read more

Nobody knows who Jack the Ripper was, but there are plenty of theories. In London, from August 31 to November 9, 1888, five prostitutes were killed and mutilated. Based on the precision with which “Jack” practiced his murders, some people believed that Jack the Ripper was a surgeon. One suspect was the royal physician, Sir … Read more

That would be the Kelly Gang, four “bushrangers” (outlaws) led by Ned and Dan Kelly, who robbed banks in Australia in 1879 and 1880. Their most interesting contribution to the art of bankrobbing was their suits of armor, fashioned out of plow blades they’d stolen from farmers. Three of the gang were caught by police … Read more

Yes, Jesse James had a nickname. His friends called him Dingus. Born in September 5, 1847, Jesse Woodson James was an American outlaw, gang leader, and murderer from Missouri. During the Civil War, Jesse and his brother Frank James were Confederate guerrillas. After his death, Jesse James became a legendary figure of the Wild West … Read more

Bat Masterson was also known as Bartholomew Masterson. He later called himself William Barclay. Born in 1853, William Barclay “Bat” Masterson of the American Old West was a buffalo hunter, U.S. Army scout, gambler, frontier lawman, U.S. Marshal, and columnist for the New York Morning Telegraph. Masterson was the brother of lawmen James Masterson and … Read more

When Wyatt Earp’s gun-slinging Doc Holliday wasn’t drillin’ people in other ways, he worked as a dentist. John Henry “Doc” Holliday was born on August 14, 1851 and died in 1887 and was an dentist, gambler and gunfighter in the American Old West. Doc Holliday was most well known for his association with Wyatt Earp … Read more

The same thing that once made young American men go west decided if a house was a manor: No, not gold, land. A manor, in most cases, was an estate or part of one. It usually held a main, large house or small castle, a church, an apothecary, granaries, stables, etc. It also had enough … Read more

Perukes or Periwigs were really tall wigs worn in the royal courts by 18th-century by both men and women. Incidentally, the wigs and the behavior of the elite that wore them were the inspiration for the term “bigwig.” When King Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660 after being exiled to France, Periwigs … Read more

Before John Wesley Hardin reformed and took up honest work as a gunfighter, he was a lawyer. Born in Bonham, Fannin County, Texas, Hardin claimed to have killed 42 men when he went to prison in 1878. James G. Hardin, a Methodist preacher, and Elizabeth Hardin were John’s parents, and was he described as being … Read more

“Billy the Kid” got his nickname partly because he was 17 when he committed his first murder and was dead before he was 22. Mostly, though, the nickname was because he looked a lot like a goat. Regardless, calling him “the Kid” in front of his goatish face would’ve been a mistake because Henry McCarty, … Read more

Both czar or Tsar (Russia) and kaiser (Germany) were derived from the name of Julius Caesar, leader of ancient Rome. Czar is a title used to designate certain monarchs or rulers, and is a Slavic term with Bulgarian origins which is derived from the word Cæsar, meaning Emperor in the European medieval context. The first … Read more

The various distinctions and differences between a duke, lord, sir, earl, baron, baronet, and prince were drawn long ago, but still hold true today. Here they are in order from top to bottom: Prince Duke Marquess Earl Viscount Baron is the lowest rank of the upper classes, having earned this title by faithful duty to … Read more

Rumor had it that Catherine the Great accomplished the feat with a special harness. The horse was lowered onto her from above, and that she died when the harness broke and the horse crushed her. It’s one of the naughtier sex stories in history, and it’s completely, entirely untrue. Catherine the Great was the German-born … Read more

That’s slander and a damnable lie that the king never bathed. Historians tell us King Louis XIV of France bathed once a year, whether he needed it or not. The Sun King probably was ruler of France after all, and could do whatever he wanted.

“Recent” is relative, no pun intended. The noted Victorian queen, Queen Victoria, married her first cousin. For years she had refused to consider marriage. It was rumored she had a serious crush on the first prime minister, a Whig named Lord Melbourne, during these reluctant years. In 1840, she gave into parental pressure and married … Read more

King Louis XIV of France chose the sun as an emblem of his rule over France. He had it incorporated into decorations around the palace, within portraits and emblems, such as royal stamps, his crown, and scepter. He also had a picture of a sun traced into the palace gardens. Why the sun? It was … Read more

French King Louis XVIII was reinstated to the throne after Napoleon was deposed from leadership. What an ending to the French Revolution. After going to the trouble of killing the ruling class, the people ended up with a dictator, Napoleon. When he was exiled the first time, they got another king; then Napoleon came back … Read more