Weird History

Many people regard Charles Manson as the boogie man -- one of the most terrifyingly evil men in history. But when you really delve deep into the history of Manson and how he ended up becoming the leader of a murderous cult of teenagers in the 1960s, you'll realize that he was just a lonely, dumb criminal that got way in over his head.

Think a teenager can't build a nuclear breeder reactor without getting caught? Think again. David Hahn, aka the Radioactive Boy Scout, was able to easily collect radioactive and highly dangerous materials to experiment with nuclear energy. Just when you think the story can't get crazier, it does.

Back in 1960, the US government began a series of horrifying experiments on black cancer patients who were just hoping for life-saving treatments. While the tests were started with good intentions, the amount of radiation pumped into the unknowing patients had catastrophic consequences.

President Andrew Jackson was known as a man of the people, so what was he supposed to do when he was gifted a giant block of cheese that weighed a whopping 1400 lbs? Keep it? Throw it out? How would he deal with the stench? We've got all the answers to this bonkers Presidential story.

When it comes to true bravery, there's no greater example than Deborah Sampson, a hero of the American Revolution who disguised herself as a man so she could join the Patriot forces. Not only was she the only woman to earn a full military pension for her participation in the Revolutionary army, but she continued to fight despite numerous injuries and difficulties. Her story is truly remarkable.

If you watched sports games between the 70s and 80s, there's no doubt Rollen Stewart, aka The Rainbow Man, serves as a familiar face. Often seen carrying his iconic "John 3:16" sign and wearing a rainbow colored wig, Rollen became a fixture in American sports culture. But the truth to his life, and where he is today, is far darker than his smiling face on the jumbotron would have you believe.

If you need a quick Bible refresher, in Exodus chapter 14, Moses helps the Israelites escape Egypt, and more importantly, slavery. But could there be actual proof this fantastic story was, in fact, true? Some experts claim that evidence now exists proving this miracle truly happened.

Western superstar John Wayne became the bizarre target of a murder plot by none other than communist leader, Joseph Stalin. Never shy with his criticisms and downright hatred of the Communist party, John Wayne quickly appeared on Stalin's radar and a plan to execute him was put in the works. But how did all this come to light? The story gets even crazier.

Rain Main is the 1988 American road comedy-drama film starring Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman. It tells the story of Raymond (Dustin Hoffman), an autistic savant with extraordinary abilities. But the real life Rain Man, Kim Peek - the man the film was inspired by - was even more incredible. Despite having an IQ that hovered around 87, Peek could read entire books under an hour. His memorization and ability to spout random facts was impressive, so impressive screenwriter Barry Morrow felt compelled to tell his story in the form of Rain Man.

First found in 2011, the Baltic Sea Anomaly is the bizarre, mysterious item that has baffled scientists since its discovery. Theories on the 60 foot long object have ranged from as normal as an old rock formation to a crashed UFO.

After being accused of arson and the grisly murder of his former boss, John "Babbacombe" Lee was sentenced to death in 1885. Lee, while maintaining his innocence, stood at the gallows with his neck in the noose prepared for his punishment, hanging. However, the trapdoor refused to open. By all accounts, it should have worked, but after three failed attempts, Lee's life was spared. Was it mechanical failure or divine intervention? Here's the crazy true story.

Half human, half bat, Bat Boy first came to prominence in the early 90s after appearing in the American supermarket tabloid Weekly World News. Both fascinated and disturbed, people found themselves drawn to Bat Boy and he soon become a pop culture phenomenon. But what's happened to Bat Boy since he first rose to fame? You might be surprised.

This grisly and tragic landmark has become a haunting reminder of danger in hiking Mount Everest. Known as Green Boots because of the body's bright, green boots, this frozen corpse still exists on the mountain today.

In the 2015 film 'The Revenant', we follow the harrowing journey of Hugh Glass in a semi-autobiographical story of incredible survival. The real Hugh Glass, an American frontiersman, fur trapper and trader, hunter, and explorer is even more extraordinary than the film portrays. The details of what he endured will blow your mind.

Conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton were born in the early 1900s and led incredibly tragic lives. Abandoned by their birth mother, they were forced at early ages to perform by their new caretakers, also known as their "controllers". As a result, fame found them. But at a price.

Rube Waddell was a Major League Baseball pitcher who was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1946. But Waddell's impressive athleticism wasn't the only thing that made him fascinating. For example, during professional games, if a firetruck went by Waddell would immediately leave the field and chase after it. So what else made Waddell stand out? Find out as we explore this unique character.

10 cents for a beer at a baseball game might sound like a dream come true. But the reality of that scenario unfolded on June 4, 1974 during a Major League Baseball game between the Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers. What transpired was a night full of nudity, violence, and total chaos.

Of all things you'd expect to rain down from the sky, meat is probably not high on the list. But that's exactly what happened on March 3, 1867 in Kentucky. For several minutes, mysterious red chunks and flakes of what appeared to be beef fell from the sky.

On February 17th, 1974, Robert Preston, a maintenance worker, decided to take one of the helicopters for a joy ride and land at the White House. Because apparently that's what you do when you're bored and want to prove to the world your impeccable flying skills.

Today's story is one that's almost too twisted to believe. But believe it. Georgia Tann was a prolific human trafficker who ran the Tennessee Children's Home Society, an unlicensed home that served as a front for black market baby adoptions. Tann is estimated to have sold a whopping 5,000 babies and often threatened poor single mothers into handing over their children for her to profit from. Wouldn't have guessed all this from looking at her, would you? Looks can be deceiving.

One of the most famous Egyptian Pharaohs, King Tut, has become a worldwide phenomenon since the discovery of his tomb in 1922. But was he how ancient images and depictions portrayed him? A virtual autopsy says not so much, revealing King Tut had various physical disfigurements from the practice of incest. Previously, experts thought Tut died in a chariot accident, but this new evidence tells a different story.

The granddaughter of former slaves, Sarah Rector was born in 1902 in Oklahoma in the nearly all-black town of Taft. As a result of the Treaty of 1866, Sarah's family was entitled to land allotments. This land would eventually make Sarah Rector the first black millionaire, all at age 12. Her story is incredible.

To say Carry Nation wasn't a fan of alcohol would be the understatement of the century. Carry A. Nation was a member of the temperance movement and adamantly opposed alcohol before Prohibition was introduced. Seeing it as her Godly duty to rid the world of such an evil, Carry picked up a hatchet and got to work. Seriously. She started smashing things. Here's the wild story.

While Michael Rockefeller's disappearance in New Guinea remains an unsolved mystery, theories have emerged that he might have met an unpleasant end at the hands of Asmat people.

What at first appears to be an optical illusion, the Mirny Mine is in fact very real and one of the largest man-made holes in existence. But this open pit diamond mine located in the Siberian region of eastern Russia has an interesting ability -- the ability to suck aircrafts into it.

Emily Davison was a radical suffragette who tirelessly fought for women's right to vote up until her abrupt death in 1913. While attending the Derby, Davison unannounced walked out onto the field during a race and was immediately struck by King George's horse. The reasoning behind why she stepped out is still unclear, but many theories have emerged about what may have transpired.

French inventor Franz Reichelt, aka the Flying Tailor, took a major leap of faith and jumped off the Eiffel Tower in hopes of showing off the wearable parachute he designed. The result ended in tragedy...and ended up on camera.

A devastating solo expedition in Antarctica by explorer Henry Worsley led to tragedy. But even more haunting, he left behind a series of selfies documenting his final days.

Who would have thought that Coca Cola, the world's most popular soda, came into existence because of a morphine addiction? Well, that's exactly what happened when John Pemberton, a licensed pharmacist, began experimenting with recipes to hopefully shake his unhealthy habit.

Kaspar Hauser is one of history's most mysterious figures with a bizarre and conflicting past. Claiming to have grown up in a darkened cell, many of Hauser's claims sparked debate about his real identity. After dying due to stabbing, Hauser's bizarre life continues to leave historians with unanswered questions.

Bloodsport, the film starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, was based on a real man, Frank Dux. The catch is, nothing about the story was actually real. The truth of Frank Dux's life and the elaborate lies he told are even more bananas than the film itself.

On January 28, 1986, tragedy struck the Space Shuttle Challenger when it broke apart 73 seconds into the flight, killing all seven crew members onboard. In a bizarre turn of events, the disastrous flight almost included one of Sesame Street's most beloved characters, Big Bird.

When NBC's "Today Show" first aired, it struggled to find its audience and ratings suffered. Through an interesting chain of events, J. Fred Muggs, a chimpanzee, joined the show as host Dave Garroway's right-hand monkey. The chimp was a hit, and ratings soared. But behind the scenes, jealousy and tension began to rise.

Long before the wildly popular Titanic movie with Kate and Leo, another film about the ill-fated ship was shot in 1912 only ONE month after the actual crash. Even crazier, the film starred a real life passenger who survived the tragic night.

While started with good intentions, Balloonfest '86 quickly became an absolute disaster. Hosted by United Way of Cleveland in Ohio, the premise of Balloonfest was simple, set the world record by releasing one and a half million balloons. Sounds fun, but it resulted in chaos, damage, and even two deaths.

Think film stunts today are insane? Just wait until you see what silent film era stars were doing. Prepare to be blown away.

If you're thinking that a car race from New York to Paris doesn't sound like a good idea because, you know, ocean and all, you'd be right. But that didn't stop the Great 1908 Automobile Race that started in New York and ended in Paris. The details of what went down are even crazier than the idea itself.

British engineer Barnes Wallis invented a bouncing bomb meant to bounce on water. As ridiculous as that may sound, this bouncing bomb was highly effective and became pivotal during WW2. Here's exactly why this technique was so innovative.

One of the most profitable and well-known horror films of all time, The Exorcist is a 1973 American supernatural thriller adapted from William Peter Blatty's novel of the same name. The film centers around the demonic possession of a 12-year-old girl and her mother's attempts to rid her daughter of the evil spirit through an exorcism conducted by priests. A chilling and frightening film, the true story of Roland Doe, the young man the novel was based on, is even more haunting.

In a story of incredible survival, Juana Maria spent 18 years alone on an island after missionaries abducted every other person of her tribe. She lived on San Nicolas, part of the channel islands just off the coast of California. Her tale, both tragic and inspiring, fascinated so many and even served as inspiration for Scott O'Dell's children's novel, Island of the Blue Dolphins.

Agafia Lykov had no interaction with the outside world until she was 35 years old. Her story begins back in 1936 with her family belonging to a splinter sect of the Russian Orthodox church known as as "The Old Believers." Eventually, the Lykovs left Russian society and headed into the wilderness to live in isolation. What happens next is fascinating.

In the 1800s, the Vanderbilt family ruled supreme as the wealthiest family in America known for luxurious homes, lavish parties, and extreme philanthropy. Their riches in today's market would come out to be a stunning 185 billion net worth. But the money did not last. So how did such a prominent family lose it all? And in what way is Anderson Cooper connected to the famous Vanderbilt name? All that and more, in today's Weird History Explainer.

Krampus, the horned half-goat half-demon hybrid sent to torture naughty children and drag them to Hell isn't exactly the stuff of good holiday cheer. But this anti-Santa creature's history is as fascinating as it is terrifying. With roots in Paganism and Norse mythology, Krampus has been reminding children they better be good for ages. Remember, it's not just Santa who knows if you've been bad or good.

What are the Bible secret texts? What texts were cut out of the Bible? Over the course of the last 2 millennia, the church has systematically edited out of the Bible what historians refer to as the Gnostic Gospels, which contain some extremely explosive ideas—and were a part of the texts that originally comprised the Bible. For one, the Gnostic Gospels tells of two gods: the vengeful and scornful one of the Old Testament, and the benevolent father of Jesus Christ of the New Testament. Several traditional Bible stories are contradicted by the Gnostic Gospels: the serpent in the story of Adam and Eve is the hero in the Gnostic Bible; the Holy Spirit was a flesh and blood woman who lived and breathed on Earth; a baby Jesus struck people blind and killed them in wrathful vengeance.

From 1920 to 1933, the United States placed a nationwide constitutional ban on the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages. But that didn't stop people from smuggling booze in a variety of creative ways. In today's Weird History explainer, we explore interesting facts about the prohibition era and how Americans snuck around the no booze rule.

On December 7, 1941, a military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service hit the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. In 2001, the film 'Pearl Harbor' by Michael Bay was released. The drama follows American friends Rafe McCawley (played by Ben Affleck) and Danny Walker (played by Josh Hartnett) as they enter World War II as pilots.Though roughly based on real events, the movie is full of historical inaccuracies. Issues like segregation, "the surprise" attack, and many other glaring errors have caused many historians to dismiss the film as wildly off base.

On October 20, 1977, three days after releasing their album Street Survivors, southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd performed at the Greenville Memorial Auditorium in Greenville, South Carolina, and boarded a Convair CV-240 airplane to take them to Baton Rouge, where they were to perform at Louisiana State University. The plane, known for having mechanical issues (a fact that terrified many of the band members), ran out of fuel nearing the end of the flight. The pilot attempted a crash landing, ending in a heartbreaking tragedy.

Braveheart, the 1995 award-winning epic war film is home to one of the most recognizable quotes of all time. Mel Gibson's iconic line, "they may take away our lives but they'll never take our freedom!" might ring a bell. However, the film is chock full of historical inaccuracies about the Scottish rebels and resistance against the English including timelines, actual characters, and a number of other details. Today, we take a deeper dive into the true story behind Braveheart.

Photos are snapshots of a moment. Sometimes these moments are intimate and precious, tiny to some but impactful to those within them. Others are historic and grand -- the kind of moments that will live on for years, for decades, for centuries to come. Every photograph tells an incredible story. They tell us about history, about relationships, about the world as a whole. Today's slideshow showcases 30 stunning and moving colorized photos from history that you won't want to miss.

After being brutally attacked in a hate crime outside of a club, Mark Hogancamp was left with brain damage that meant he had little memory of his previous life. In order to cope with the trauma he had experienced, Mark built a ⅙-scale World War II-era Belgian town that he named "Marwencol". Both a documentary and upcoming film starring Steve Carell have explored Mark's story, but the truth of his fascinating, heartbreaking, and inspiring tale is even more incredible.

It's the most wonderful time of the year! But which Christmas myths are we being told that don't exactly ring true? From when Jesus was born, to evergreen trees in pagan rituals, there's quite a few details popularized Christmas legends have wrong. Today we're taking a deeper dive into true Christmas origins.

Sir Alfred Hitchcock was a film director and producer, and widely regarded as one of the most influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Known for his innovative film techniques and mastery of suspense, Hitchcock was often photographed looking rather serious. These photos from history show a side of Alfred Hitchcock you've never seen before.

Actress and ex-Scientologist Leah Remini is an outspoken critic of her former religion. In July 2013, Remini left the Church and started speaking out about church leader David Miscavige and reported abuse of members in the Sea Org religious order. Since then, she's exposed some of the most insane, wild, and unthinkable Scientologist practices.

Palm Springs, CA, has been a hideaway for celebrities since the 1920s; the desert location, with its unique microclimate and dry weather, was seen as a "tonic" for those looking to escape the stress and pressure of Hollywood. In the early and mid-1900s, there was a "two-hour rule," meaning stars couldn't live further than two hours away from set in case they were called back to work unexpectedly. Palm Springs became the perfect destination for celebrities who needed to stay close but desired privacy. There was no shortage of celebrities in Palm Springs, with Humphrey Bogart, Frank Sinatra, Marilyn Monroe, Charlie Chaplin, Lauren Bacall, Bing Crosby, Dinah Shore, Sonny Bono, and briefly Elvis Presley as residents. Even Walt Disney owned a home in Palm Springs. Many of the famous residents lived in the Movie Colony neighborhood or had their own custom houses built. Futuristic then and nostalgic today, celebrity homes in Palm Springs stand apart from the usual mid-century modern look.

These historical events are things you've heard about -- whether you learned them in school or have taken a personal interest in them. But you might not have realized that they were actually happening at the exact same time. Take a look back into the archives at these rare and shocking images from unbelievable history and be stunned by the things that you never realized were going on at the same time.