Weird History

Today's alcoholic beverages range from canned Strawberritas to expertly crafted cocktails, but modern bartenders aren't the first people to invent adults-only drinks. In fact, there are plenty of types of weird ancient liquors that have survived in the historical and archaeological records. These ancient alcohols don't always sound appetizing, but they're definitely fascinating.

Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution is perhaps the most famous, and certainly the most controversial, scientific theory ever developed. First published in 1859 in a book titled, On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life, the theory proposed that human beings - and all living creatures for that matter - had arrived at their current state through a process called natural selection, which is the result of millions of years of adaptation. Darwin found his ideas solidified when on a trip to the Galapagos Islands where evolution had run rampant, and he later put those thoughts into words that almost anyone could understand.

World War II is inarguably one of the darkest periods of human history. It can be difficult to wrap your head around the sheer number of lives lost, families separated, and cities decimated. From the ashes of destruction rise heroes - some recognized, and others deserving of recognition they never receive. Freddie Oversteegen is one of those overlooked heroes from unknown WWII stories. Once you learn about her life, you'll never forget her, and you'll also wonder why no one has made a movie about this incredible woman.

Here's the standard high school history class summary of the Soviet Union: The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was a communist state from 1922 to 1991 and was a big rival of the US from WWII to the end of the '80s. But what was the Soviet Union really like? What was it like living in the Soviet Union? That same history class probably told you that it was awful, but it's a lot more complicated than that.

The crash of the Concorde in 2000 was a shock. Also known as the Air France 4590 crash, it resulted in the deaths of more than 100 people, and Concorde crash victims included several people who weren't even on the plane. It was the only fatal incident involving the supersonic jet, and, before the crash, the Concorde was considered a relatively safe aircraft – with a history of zero deaths. The crash that effectively ended its nearly three decades of commercial use was caused by tire debris, which hit the fuel tank and caused it to explode.

You likely know the name Commodus as the bad guy from Gladiator, the Best Picture winner from 2000. Played as a pervy psychotic by Joaquin Phoenix, Emperor Commodus is portrayed as a man with insecurities motivating his actions. And while that may be an accurate, historical understanding of the emperor's persona, there's a lot more to Commodus’ biography than the made-up bits starring Russell Crowe. But, who was Commodus?

Living like a royal means working like a royal. Though they enjoy unimaginable privileges - like getting to live in extravagant palaces - members of the British royal family have duties to perform. These various tasks and responsibilities keep Queen Elizabeth II's family busy. Ever since she became queen in 1952, Elizabeth II has been a royal workhorse. Unlike weird royals in history who may have ignored their responsibilities, she completes all of the duties expected of a British monarch on a daily basis and takes her work seriously. The queen isn't the only working royal.

As tragic as Richard Pryor's life story may appear at a glance, his struggles and misfortune helped create and fuel the comedy in his act. Not until Pryor played himself on stage did his rise to the top truly begin. Without the pain and heartbreak he experienced, he may not have gotten there. Richard Pryor began his career in the 1960s, a time of change for civil rights as well as comedy, which was previously all about jokes. When Pryor got on stage and shared his observations, especially about the experiences of Black Americans, he was forging a revolutionary path in comedy.

What is a molly boy? In the 18th century, Londoners began calling young gay men and male pros "molly boys," using the term as a derogatory term for those men they found effeminate or soft. Molly boys might walk the streets of London looking for johns (clients), while others visited molly houses - secret and discreet meeting places for gay men. In molly houses, men could dress in drag, have relations with other men, and even perform play marriages and pretend to give birth, all while avoiding society's condemnation. Molly house culture led to the flourishing of London's LGBTQ+ community - at least until the police raids started.

You many not be familiar with the name Vasili Arkhipov, but maybe you should be. He's the Soviet Navy man who stopped nuclear war during the Cuban Missile Crisis in the '60s. Arkhipov, AKA the man who avoided nuclear war, somehow persuaded fellow officers not to fire at the United States during an extremely tense time. According to Thomas Blanton, former director of the National Security Archive, Arkhipov "saved the world."

The tragic romance between Inês de Castro and Dom Pedro of Portugal caused a civil war and ended with the nobility kissing the hand of a dead woman. In the 14th century, Inês de Castro's affair with and secret marriage to the heir to Portugal's throne enraged Dom Pedro's father, who hired men to slay her. When the hired blades struck, finishing de Castro in front of her children, Pedro went into a rage and declared war against his father. Years later, after he became King Peter I of Portugal, revenge was the only thing on Pedro's mind. He had his wife posthumously declared Queen of Portugal and propped her decaying body on a throne so the nobility could honor her.

In 1978, Gunter Wetzel and Peter Strelzyk decided they could no longer live in the communist state of East Germany. So, the two men proceeded to put together an epic project, creating a hot air balloon that would facilitate their flight to freedom over Germany's inner border – that's right; they were going to get their families out of the oppressive, communist state by flying over the border wall that separated East and West Germany. Of all the escape attempts made by East German citizens during the Cold War, the Wetzel and Strelzyk families have one of the most exciting stories.

The Trail of Tears, the forced migration of Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw, Cherokee, Seminole tribe members, and many others, from their ancestral lands in the US Southeast to allowed territory in Oklahoma, resulted in the deaths of over 4,000 Native Americans along the way. What was everyday life on the Trail of Tears like? Thanks to many surviving first-hand accounts of the Trail, we have records of the harsh, brutal realities of daily life during over 1,000 miles of hard traveling.

Did you know that outlaw Jesse James's body was preserved on ice and people were able to look at his corpse before it was buried? A famous photo has made the rounds over the years showing the true, historical Jesse James body on ice, surrounded by a marshal and two deputies from St. Joseph, Missouri. There's nothing to debunk about this image - it's 100% what it seems like.

As China's only female emperor, Wu Zetian worked her way up to a position of power and prominence during the Tang Dynasty, establishing a legacy that would last thousands of years. One of history's most successful and controversial rulers, Wu Zetian married two emperors, birthed a couple more, and got rid of anyone that stood in her way. The line between fact and fiction with Wu Zetian is blurry, but stories about her life and rule are fascinating.

How did WWI soldiers keep clean in the trenches? The answer lies somewhere between "with great difficulty" and "they didn't." Although WWI was known as the Great War, trench hygiene was anything but great. Soldiers in the trenches spent their time in unsanitary conditions among open latrines, others who went days without bathing or changing their clothes, and the remains of many men who lost their lives. Although WWI hygiene and medical issues were notoriously inadequate, the lessons learned during WWI helped improve conditions and responses to sanitation and medicine for future generations, both on and off the battlefield.

So, who exactly were the Picts? They were a mysterious group of people who resided in what is now northern England and southern Scotland and popped up in the annals of Roman history in the first few centuries CE. Although not a great deal is known about the Picts, historians do know that they caused quite a bit of trouble for the Romans, who were trying to conquer every inch of land they could get their spears on. However, there are plenty of Pict facts aside from their Roman relationships.

Why do engagement rings exist? And why do engagement rings have diamonds? It turns out, betrothal rings are much older than diamond engagement rings. Before the late 19th century, diamond engagement rings were uncommon, even though royals sometimes exchanged diamond rings.

What are Soviet Gulags? What happened in Gulags? And what did they accomplish? The word "Gulag" is actually an acronym of its official bureaucratic name, Glavnoe Upravlenie Ispravitel'no-trudovykh LAGerei. When translated from Russian, it roughly means "the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps." The gut-wrenching system of forced labor camps was first established following the Russian Civil War. By the 1950s, the Gulags would stretch across the entirety of the Soviet Union's territory. It was arguably one of the darkest periods of 20th-century history.

Yo dawg, this may be painful to hear, but a lot of the Pimp My Ride episodes were actually a TV disaster. Of course, the show gave the audience many gifts, like rapper Xzibit memes that just keep giving. And while fans will treasure the show forever, Pimp My Ride car fails are alarmingly common. Many contestants still regard the auto body shop from Seasons One to Four, West Coast Customs, as garbage reality TV people who aren't the real deal.

Ken Rex McElroy was murdered on July 10, 1981, in one of the most bizarre cases authorities had ever encountered. It should have been open and shut - there were dozens of witnesses, and the shooting occurred in broad daylight - but it wound up being anything but. Despite the facts, the residents of Skidmore, MO, weren't so eager to talk and point fingers; in the end, no one came forward.

What was medieval junk food like? If you're picturing knights eating Big Macs and Twinkies, you're not far off from the truth. Just substitute a meat pie for the Big Mac and a funnel cake for the Twinkies, and you'll have a good idea of what medieval people bought on the street. But knights didn't ride their horses to medieval drive-throughs. Instead, medieval junk food usually catered to the poorest people and travelers.

Chain mail and suits of armor were some of the most recognizable parts of medieval warfare. Created in response to swordplay, the dominant form of combat at the time, they've become somewhat legendary for their striking appearance on the battlefield. A good suit of plate armor was considered invincible in many ways, but there were several tactics combatants could use to kill their opponent.

You're probably more likely to know Charles Lutwidge Dodgson as British author Lewis Carroll. He wrote Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass. But what you may not know is how close a relationship he forged with a young girl named Alice Liddell, the real Alice in Wonderland, and the inspiration behind his novels. This relationship has been heavily studied and scrutinized, with many believing it had Lolita-esque aspirations.

Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia was Czar Nicholas II's youngest daughter and a member of the Russian Imperial Romanov family. The family was placed under house arrest during the Bolshevik Revolution, and Anastasia was brutally murdered alongside her family by the secret police in 1918. But Anastasia lived on after death in a very bizarre way: a few years later, a woman named Anna Anderson convinced many people that she was Anastasia, and had somehow survived the massacre.

The Ottoman Empire is one of the most important and influential major empires in history, though it is sometimes overlooked in the West (which may have something to do with the Christianity-versus-Islam bent of Western historical education). This lack of recognition extends to the empire's elite and unique military units known as the Janissaries.

Three hundred million years ago, the largest insect ever known to humankind hunted in fern jungles and boasted an enormous wingspan of nearly 2.5 feet. Different from modern dragonflies in its size and other attributes, the Meganeura earned the title "prehistoric griffinfly" from scientists. The first Meganeura fossil, discovered in 1880, eventually led researchers to a group of mega-insects, including Meganeuropsis permiana and other massive dragonflies. These creatures hunted prey using their enormous eyes, toothed mandibles, and sharp legs.

Buboes, black spots, and bloody froth: it was all in a day’s work for Black Death body collectors. The plague, which may have killed as many as 200 million people worldwide, changed everything—including body disposal. During the plague, millions of bodies piled up in Europe. Bubonic plague body collectors risked their lives to clear out the streets, all for a hefty paycheck—and sometimes the chance to extort people out of their money.

For hundreds of years, history left us wondering what disease killed the Aztecs in the mid-1500s. Many assumed the Aztecs were one of many Central American groups to be wiped out by European diseases like smallpox. However, DNA testing has unearthed new evidence about what really killed 80% of the Aztecs.

On September 1, 1939, nearly seven years after Hitler became chancellor, Germany invaded Poland. Over the next six years, Nazis invaded, occupied, and brutalized a considerable amount of Europe and Northern Africa. The German brand of military-industrial fascism imposed radical changes in the daily life of all those who came under its reign, though these changes were often specific to context. For instance, life in occupied France was very different from life in Poland under German occupation, which was different than the experiences of Norway or the Balkans. There were, however, some consistencies: food shortages, rape committed by German soldiers, the persecution of Jews, shipping Jews who weren't killed on the stop to concentration camps, and random acts of senseless violence.

The yakuza of Japan are often compared to other underground organizations like the Mafia or a Mexican drug cartel. With numerous organizations, syndicates, and participants, the yakuza are much more than that, with a history that goes back for centuries and extends throughout Japanese cultural, political, and economic foundations. Many of the details are relatively unknown to the Western world.

On March 13, 1973, photographer Slava 'Sal' Veder captured the moment that Vietnam war veteran and POW Lt. Col. Robert Stirm was reunited with his family. Stirm had been held in Vietnam for nearly six years, and this photograph came to represent not only his personal victory in returning home, but also the path to healing the United States needed to embark on after the Vietnam War. Yet the real story behind this photograph, titled "Burst of Joy," is far from the happy, joyful depiction Veder captured. The reality behind the photo was a very different story.

Perfume came a long way before Chanel N°5. These days, many people dab on a touch of perfume or cologne every morning, but perfume in the past was a luxury item associated with deities. Egyptians even called perfume the sweat of the sun god, and Romans believed perfume connected them to the divine. In truth, however, perfume history isn't all roses.

Three Mile Island is a nuclear power plant located in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, on the eastern side of the state. It was the site of the Three Mile Island nuclear meltdown, which occurred on the morning of May 28, 1979. Although no one outside of the plant was harmed, the workers inside were exposed to high levels of radiation, and the public became worried that nuclear power was unsafe. The story of Three Mile Island shows that nuclear incidents can be prevented, as long as the right safety measures are in place and the employees are trained properly. What happened on Three Mile Island was small in comparison to the Fukushima Disaster in Japan or the Chernobyl Incident in Russia. However, it still serves as a cautionary tale about how small mistakes and errors in judgment can add up to major disasters.

The Templo Mayor excavation in present-day Mexico City has unearthed an exciting site; in March 2019, archaeologists found a cache of sacrifices and offerings that may indicate the burial of royalty. The trove was discovered near the holiest temple in the Aztec world, Templo Mayor, which has been described in historical accounts as the resting place of the Aztec kings. Archaeologists have never found an Aztec royal burial despite decades of excavations, but this recent discovery may lead to the first.

Everyone who's ever watched an MTV reality TV show probably knows that some of that so-called "reality" is a little bit unreal. For every celebrity that totally lied on MTV's Cribs, there's a producer or two who faked a scene on Pimp My Ride. Reality TV lies are a dime a dozen – but then there was Punk'd. Punk'd was arguably one of the realest reality shows on MTV. But producers had no qualms about cutting up their actual reactions and making it look like host Ashton Kutcher could not be beat.

Rich families of the Gilded Age lived lives nearly unimaginable today. How so? One need only look around one's hometown and see where the enormous, glorious mansions of the late 19th century have either been turned into private or public museums – or are peeling and rotting away – to get a glimpse. In most cases, it is simply too costly to maintain them as private residences anymore. So, imagine just how incredibly rich the handful of mid- to late 19th-century families had to be to keep up such lavish appearances. The Gilded Age wealth disparity was so extreme that people today often compare them to what modern society terms the "one-percent" class.

In Ottoman history, Sultan Ibrahim I is known as one of the most extravagant rulers. Though he only ruled for a period of roughly eight years, his reign was defined by decadence, nepotism, sensuality, and, according to some, outbursts. Like many of the most captivating historical figures and celebrities, Ibrahim's life was tragic and curious.

Courtship during the Regency period was serious business. Finding a partner involved a series of practical and romantic considerations as well as a strict adherence to Regency courting etiquette. The Regency era - which technically lasted in Great Britain from 1811 to 1820, but was part of the larger social and cultural era of the late 18th and early 19th centuries - might have had a reputation for licentiousness when it came to matters of the heart. But it also was an era of politeness and gentility, and rules governed how middle- and upper-class couples should interact with one another.

On October 23, 2002, militant Chechen separatists took over the Dubrovka Theater in Moscow, Russia. For three days, they held some 800 hostages, demanding their voices be heard. The Nord Ost Siege, as it is called on account of the show at the theater that night, was just another chapter in the long, violent relationship between Russia and Chechnya. During the 1990s, the separatist government of Chechnya, an Islamic state within the Russian Federation, called for Russia to withdraw its troops from Chechen borders. When the Chechen rebels entered the theater in 2002, they echoed this sentiment and brought about the wrath of the Russian government. To end the Moscow theater hostage crisis, Russian police piped gas into the Dubrovka Theater, but the end results were more devastating than the world – watching it live on television – could have imagined.

Vikings told the story of Ragnar Lothbrok, his first wife, Lagertha, and a host of other notable Scandinavians who lived, worked, and fought their way through the earliest part of the so-called Viking Age. The show depicted real men, women, and children with a mix of historical truth and fictional fodder through six seasons - but it only scratched the surface of the fascinating world of the Vikings.

In the violent and dramatic history of the English monarchy, the story of Lady Jane Grey stands out as one of the most tragic. She was a teenage Queen of England who ruled for only nine days before she was deposed and ultimately executed. But there is a lot more to Lady Jane’s story than the fact that she had the briefest reign in English history.

Young girls in America grew up with the squeaky-clean image of Barbie, but the truth is that the history of Barbie and Europe's Bild Lilli doll go hand in hand. Bild Lilli is a doll with heavy makeup, a fierce backstory, and a curvy body eerily similar to Barbie's and some have described her as "Barbie’s ballsy European precursor." Mattel co-founder Ruth Handler first encountered Bild Lilli in Switzerland in the mid-1950s, and saw the doll's potential for American consumers. But Lilli was a very different kind of doll than what Barbie eventually became.

Czar Peter the Great of Russia casts a long shadow over history. A giant of a man, with appetites for learning and adventure to match, he did more to modernize his country than pretty much any other ruler before or since. But who was Peter the Great as a man, a father, and a reformer?

Grigori Rasputin is one of the most notorious names in Russian history - and his piercing eyes, creepy gaze, greasy hair, and bushy beard only add to the mystique surrounding him. The Mad Monk, as he has been called, was a figure of both fascination and outrage in the years leading up to the Russian Revolution. And in the century since the revolution, time has done little to diminish interest in the Black Monk.

Americans know the Pledge of Allegiance very well – the great majority of US states require school children to recite it every single morning. But not many of us know the true history of the Pledge of Allegiance, or that of its author, Francis Bellamy. While it's true that the Pledge of Allegiance was created as a way to instill patriotism in American kids, it's also so much more than that. The Pledge has gone through several transformations, each of which provides a really interesting insight into the fears and desires of the United States at a particular point in history.

By the mid-1990s, Saturday Night Live was a mainstay of popular culture, one entering its third decade of programming. Despite some ups and downs over time, SNL introduced viewers to famous characters like Jake and Elwood Blues, Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar, and a host of others. The show's "Weekend Update" segment offered comedic takes on the news, infusing some laughs into current events.

Why didn't people smile in old photos? For one, early cameras sometimes required a 15-minute exposure time, and holding a smile for that long was no small feat. But that's not the only reason Victorians donned dour expressions in photographs. Some avoided smiling because they were frightened by the process, since photo studios were often called "operation rooms." Others kept their mouths closed to hide their rotting teeth. Instead of telling people to "say cheese," photographers quite literally instructed subjects to "say prunes" to make their mouths look smaller.

MTV Cribs was one of the most beloved and outrageous shows of the early '00s. From Mariah Carey's lavish, 11,000 square-foot penthouse to Redman's Staten Island shack, the show gave everyday people an inside glimpse of what it's really like to be a celebrity. Cribs was renowned for showing glamorous mansions and luxury cars, a trend standard for many past MTV shows that took the place of actual music. Without the show, the phrase "this is where the magic happens" would have never been used to describe a bedroom.

When it comes to vanity projects, there are bad ideas, and then there are catastrophes. Some stars open restaurants with their windfalls or even finance their own movies, but Bruce Willis isn't just some star. He's the action hero from Die Hard, and he doesn't do anything small. Throughout the '90s, Bruce Willis and Demi Moore lived in the small town of Hailey, ID, which they transformed into their idea of paradise. Willis invested in a diner, a club, and even his own theater. Moore filled a renovated Victorian mansion with her doll collection. The small town with a population of less than 10,000 became so flush with Willis's cash that people started calling it "Planet Haileywood."

Let's talk Cheese History. Weird History is taking you on an epic food journey as we reveal the History of Cheese. We're going from the very beginning and seeing where cheese began and what it is today. We'll make stops through various points in history and see some of the surprising origins of your favorite cheeses. Sit back and enjoy this cheesy history.

On April 15, 1912, one of the 20th century's most famous and state-of-the-art steamships hit an iceberg and sank in the frigid waters of the Atlantic Ocean, taking around 1,500 lives with it. Despite this tragic ending, the story of the Titanic captured the imaginations of many, inspiring myths, artwork, books, and movies. The story is always the same: An enormous ship thought to be the epitome of human accomplishment collides with an iceberg at sea and sinks in less than three hours. While this story is widely accepted, the nuances of why the Titanic hit the iceberg and exactly how this led to its rapid demise remains something of a mystery.

The rise and fall of the Joe Camel cartoon is a lesson in disastrous advertising. As a marketing ploy, Joe was allegedly created to draw smokers away from Camel's competitors. The Joe Camel advertising campaigns utilized a masculine camel, or “smooth character,” to create an association between the brand’s cigarettes and the high life. However, when suspicions arose concerning the true audience impacted by these campaigns, attitudes about the smoking ads quickly shifted.

When the Black Plague struck Europe in the 14th century, people didn't have much time to worry about their diets. Still, doctors warned that the most popular food and drinks in medieval England, such as fresh fruit and vegetables, could make people sick. Deemed healthy were items like meats, vinegar, and cooked fruit. For roughly three centuries afterward, millions of Europeans succumbed to sickness. The effects of the Black Plague influenced medieval food culture and directly shaped the way we live now.

Also known as the Great War, World War I was a horrific world conflict that lasted for roughly four years (1914-1918). You know a bit about WWI from history class: the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, "the War to End All Wars," Allied powers vs. Central powers, trench warfare, Europe forever changed, millions upon millions of lives lost. But do you really know how World War I changed the world?

Life in the Middle Ages was dangerous. Whether living in a communal setting, fighting abroad, or simply tending a field, there were numerous challenges that could bring it all to an end. Life inside a castle or a monastery may have offered some protection, but you were just as exposed to horrible, contagious diseases as everyone else.

Across all eras of human history, people have craved luxurious and extravagant foods not only to excite the palate, but also to show off social status. The aristocrats of the Middle Ages (the fifth to 15th centuries) may not have thought of themselves as "foodies," exactly, but they certainly were obsessed with exotic and delectable fare.

For over a century, European men refused to go outside without first donning an enormous wig. At the time, the headpiece was better known as a peruke or periwig, and just like other bizarre fashion trends, the peruke wig has a fascinating history. It turns out that powdered wigs weren't as innocent as they look - there's a surprising secret hidden in peruke history.

To understand the Paul Getty kidnapping, you need to know a little bit about Getty family history. Paul, also known as John Paul Getty III, was the grandson of J. Paul Getty, the man who began making money from oil leases in the 1910s and became extremely wealthy. Despite his vast wealth, however, he was a very frugal man. He had all the money in the world but was very particular about how it was distributed among his children and grandchildren.

Barbers in the Middle Ages were excellent multi-taskers. It’s true: a lot of surgery in the Middle Ages was done by so-called barber-surgeons, a medieval precursor to the old dude with the combs in the blue water down the street. But they did a whole lot more than just cut people open. The list below features some of the surprising - and often disgusting - things that medieval barbers did besides just cut hair.

Many of us can probably remember hearing "Bad boys, bad boys, whatcha gonna do? Whatcha gonna do when they come for you?" playing in the background at some point while Cops was on TV for more than 30 seasons. The reality show was the first of its kind and captured the attention of millions of viewers as it portrayed crimes across the US from a different point of view.

Who were the real Peaky Blinders? On the BBC show, boss Tommy Shelby (Cillian Murphy) violently dominates the streets of Birmingham, England, while wearing tailored, fashionable clothes. And in reality, the gang members did wear a signature dressy look, complete with silk scarves, to class up their extralegal enterprise. But they also sewed razor blades in their caps to injure the faces of their rivals and victims, causing a crime wave that infuriated the police. The Peaky Blinders were one of many groups in Birmingham that resorted to their enterprises because of the city's industrialized poverty, but their tactics made them the most feared gang in all of Britain

It was years in the making, but when it actually came, the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 occurred suddenly. In the immediate aftermath, the Russian people hoped for blue jeans and other Western goods - and the freedom that came with them. Their hopes were not fulfilled as Russia underwent a dramatic transformation from a planned economy to the market economy via a highly controversial “shock therapy” process. Amid the wild fluctuations in currency value came a constitutional crisis, a widely condemned invasion of Chechnya, and the rise of a new breed of politician.

While many factors led to the fall of the Roman Empire, the Crisis of the 3rd Century embodied the turmoil that eventually ended Rome's centuries-long rule. More than 20 barracks emperors - men who came to power thanks to their military prowess and their troops' support - rose in quick succession to control imperial Rome. The first of those military emperors was Maximinus Thrax, Roman emperor from 235 to 238 CE.

What happened during the Crusades? What were the Crusades? This time is one of the most misunderstood periods of Western history. From 1095 to 1291, successive waves of Christian knights and royals, called to action by the Catholic Church, quested to the Holy Land in an effort to capture (or re-capture) it from Muslim armies. But facts about the Crusades are much more complicated than that. The Crusades weren't just one movement, but dozens, led by hundreds of knights, kings, and dukes, and not always bent on capturing Jerusalem. They tried to free Jerusalem, but also claimed a number of ancient cities, destroying priceless artifacts and culture.

There are approximately 2,900 prisoners currently experiencing life on death row. The death penalty is a legal option in 31 states, and it's also utilized in some cases by the U.S. military and government. People on death row are most likely to face lethal injection as their execution method, but there are plenty of ways to die on death row.

In 1961, Michael Rockefeller went missing on the island of New Guinea. The 23-year-old heir to the Rockefeller fortune was gone without a trace. While on a trip to document native New Guinea tribes and collect carvings for his father's art museum, the boat he was traveling in capsized. He tried to swim to shore for help, and that was the last time anyone saw him alive.

Most people put on their outfits every day without questioning the history of clothing as they do it. You're clearly not one of these people, since you've landed on this page! Here's a list of things we still wear today and why we started wearing them. The history of clothing is a very strange story with a lot of twists and turns.

The Holocaust was indisputably one of the most horrific events in human history. It also showcased moments of defiance, and inspirational stories about escaping the Holocaust affirm the endurance of the human spirit, even in the bleakest times. It wasn't easy to escape a concentration camp - they were prisons designed to detain and kill. Guards didn't hesitate to shoot prisoners who stood too close to fences or appeared to flee. They also interrogated, tortured, and executed people who they believed were plotting an escape. The decision to escape a camp was thus incredibly risky.

The Victorian era may be heavily represented in pop culture, through stately period dramas, rollicking novels, and gritty television series, but it's also one of the most misunderstood periods in history. From prudish queens to macabre mourners, myths about the Victorian era persist. These myths and inaccuracies oversimplify a ridiculously complex historical era, as well as its inhabitants.

LEGO history is almost as fascinating as the toys themselves - but the globally renowned, multi-billion-dollar company went through decades of setbacks in an attempt to preserve itself. Created by Ole Kirk Christiansen in Denmark in the 1930s, the toy company's evolution has been shaped by tragedy in many ways. Though LEGO sets are now beloved and ubiquitous toys - and sometimes incredible rare collectibles - they began humbly, as the product of one Danish carpenter who originally crafted items like ironing boards and ladders for a living.

In 1851, the US government passed the Indian Appropriations Act, creating reservation lands for Native Americans. For decades prior, the US government had forcefully moved and abused Native American tribes, most notably through the Indian Removal Act and subsequent Trail of Tears under President Andrew Jackson. In placing them on reservations, the US government often forced Native Americans to live on subpar lands under harsh conditions. Reservation rules were also oppressive and unfamiliar. By 1887, the government took further action with the Dawes Act. President Grover Cleveland signed the act, which aimed to assimilate Native Americans into white culture and improve their lives. It did the opposite. By taking more land away from Native Americans, splitting up land they already held, depriving them of productive and profitable farmland, and sending them into abject poverty, the US government only made matters worse.

Thanks to an unknown beast seemingly roaming the countryside and tearing innocent people limb from limb, the years 1764-1767 were not a great time to be a citizen of rural France. The Beast of Gévaudan, named after the southern province of France it dominated, terrorized small farming villages and, eventually, the entirety of France, even capturing the attention of King Louis XV.

As much as you may want to believe them, most rumors about famous celebrities are often completely false. Considering all the sex, drugs, and rock and roll in rock music, it's not surprising that almost every rock star has a few rumors that surround them. But, again, most of these simply aren't true. However, don't despair, because in the midst of the countless made-up or exaggerated tales out there, some of these rock star rumors are actually true!

The Milton Bradley corporation produced some of the most memorable family-friendly board games in history, like Operation, Candy Land, and Chutes and Ladders, before being purchased by Hasbro. Their games aren't as innocent and carefree as everyone believes, though; they have weird histories. In fact, there are strange stories behind many children’s games.

Wiping out large portions of populations in the areas affected, the worst droughts and famines in history date back several centuries and chronicle some of the worst natural disasters on record. Droughts and famines still occur to this day, with starvation and malnutrition an unfortunate reality in many parts of the world. Famine and droughts differ from other devastating natural disasters like the worst earthquakes and the most destructive tornadoes in the extent of suffering and loss of life. Tornadoes, earthquakes, and tsunamis are short-lived, while famine and drought can last years at a time. Most natural disasters cannot be prevented, however, some historical famines could have been.

In 1938, aliens attacked. Well, that's at least what Americans heard over the radio. Orson Welles and a group of actors interrupted a radio broadcast to warn the public that the planet had been invaded by aliens - really, they were just reading a script based off the novel, The War of the Worlds, by H.G. Wells. Unlike successful real-life alien hoaxes, this '38 fake news story spiraled the entire country into mass hysteria... Or did it?

US presidents and first ladies must often make important decisions. A White House staffer's 1988 memoir alleged that Nancy and Ronald Reagan used astrology in making many of these decisions. Though decades have passed since the Reagan administration, it is mystifying how the former leader of America used the location of the stars and planets to inform decisions that impacted millions of citizens. This only adds to the plethora of weird facts about Ronald and Nancy Reagan.

A strange child-eating statue stands in the center of the scenic Alpine city of Bern, Switzerland. Set between quaint sandstone buildings and the picturesque River Aare, the man in the statue stuffs a child into his gaping maw. He’s clearly ready to move on to more children once he’s finished his appetizer. Who is the mysterious child eater of Bern? He has been standing in Bern since the 1500s, creating a nearly 500-year-old mystery about the meaning of the statue. In Bern, they call him the Kindlifresser – literally “child eater.” He is also known as the ogre.

It's not every day that human appendages are found in animals. But in 1935, a 14-foot tiger shark regurgitated a human arm at an Australian aquarium and prompted a legal investigation. The shark was caught by a fisherman when it got tangled in his line, and the animal was brought it to the Coogee Aquarium Baths for show. And what a show it turned out to be. The mangled arm was vomited out along with a bird and a rat, and investigators were immediately called to the scene.

When thinking about World War II, it's really easy to focus solely on the fighting in the Atlantic or Pacific theaters. But there were other theaters of war that were just as harsh, and the Finnish warriors of the Winter War prove it. When faced with an overwhelming invasion from the Soviet Union, the Finns stayed and fought to defend their homeland with little more than grit and determination on their side. The Winter War lasted less than a year but resulted in more horrors than other entire regions saw during the duration of WWII. The Finns stopped at nothing to beat their enemies.

Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged in New York was never meant to be a big deal. It was a lark, an afterthought, something recorded in roughly an hour that the band didn’t plan to release. It was ultimately Nirvana’s final album, giving fans one of the most unbelievable Kurt Cobain performances, as well as a strange foreshadowing of Cobain’s passing. In hindsight, the show mirrors Cobain’s life, one that was complicated by mental health issues and substance dependency. The performance, recorded on November 18, 1993, has been called “personal" and “raw,” but it’s just Nirvana doing what they do best.

On July 12, 1979, the term "disco inferno" took on a whole new meaning. As the "disco '70s" drew to a close, Chicago radio DJ Steve Dahl decided to speed up the process by promoting a Demolition Disco Night in between games at a White Sox double-header at Comiskey Park. He invited the listeners of his popular radio show to come out to the game and set some records on fire, and tens of thousands showed up to burn a farewell to disco. But during the event, things got seriously out of hand; after a sluggish baseball season, the stadium hadn't seen crowds like this for quite some time.

Weird History's Timeline is back and is taking you all the way back to 1970. Coming out of the hippie '60s, 1970 would immediately take a turn, quickly shaping into its own identity. From the rise of Black Sabbath to the Beatles breaking up, to the Apollo 13 mission, 1970 would have America (and the world) on its toes. Take a ride with Timeline as we go back to '70.

The Russian Revolution resulted in the establishment of the first Communist state in history and was the work of Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin - that's the general story told to history students in textbooks, an incredibly simplified version of the events that took place between 1905 and 1925 in Russia. The revolutionary period actually comprised numerous uprisings, a deadly civil war, and brought about the end of a centuries-long dynasty. By the time the Russian Revolution was over, the government, economy, and social framework of Russia were under a new order that would lead to decades of global divisiveness.

The Bermuda Triangle isn't the only watery region with a reputation for unexplainable events and tragedies. For centuries, a triangular portion of Lake Michigan has been ground zero for sunken ships, disappearing crews, and vanishing aircraft. As if these incidents aren't creepy enough, what is now known as the Lake Michigan Triangle is also notorious for UFO sightings and strange lights appearing on the horizon.

Daily life for Chinese-American immigrants in the 1800s was made difficult by dangerous, low-paying jobs and discrimination from white Americans. Chinese-American immigrants first came to the States in the 1840s during the California Gold Rush, after which they settled into cities, creating the first American Chinatowns. Later on, they were recruited to help construct the railway system, during which Chinese workers faced hunger, death, and long working hours. Domestic conditions were also difficult, as very few Chinese women had immigrated to the US and those who did were often brought over as sex slaves and forced into prostitution. Nineteenth century Chinese immigrants played an important role in uniting the two coasts of the United States, even though the country itself, in many ways, turned its back on them.

Jamestown, Virginia, arose as the first permanent English settlement in the New World, largely thanks to the strength and resilience of the Jamestown colony brides. The initial group of settlers, all male, arrived and built James Fort in 1607, a private, corporate adventure. Much opportunity, along with much risk, lay waiting in the New World. But within a year, the men already complained about the lack of female company. To satisfy the colonial men, the Virginia Company sent over the bride ships of 1619, enticing the women with hopes for a better life while satiating the men's demands.

What was hygiene like during the Civil War? By contemporary standards, it was pretty grim for both Union and Confederate troops. Confronted by unsanitary living conditions and the ever-present risk of disease, many soldiers were unwittingly locked in a fight not only for the nation but their own health as well. The American Civil War was fought between 1861 and 1865, before the advent of antiseptics or a full understanding of how diseases spread.

Weird History's Timeline is taking you back to 1971 to revisit all the crazy news, politics, culture, and sports events. From the Watergate scandal heating up, to DB Cooper's infamous disappearance, to the premiere of Soul Train, 1971 had its share of crazy happenings. Hop on and let's take a trip together back to the groovy 70s on the Timeline train.

Edward I (actually the fourth, but who's counting?) is familiar to most as the antagonist in the 1995 film Braveheart. Played to malevolent perfection by veteran Irish actor Patrick McGoohan, Edward is typically remembered as a tyrannical but brutally effective ruler. A more restrained portrayal of an aging ruler by Stephen Dillane can be seen in 2018's Outlaw King, but there have been no major portrayals of Edward's rule as a whole or of him in his prime. The real Edward I was one of the most influential monarchs to ever take the English throne. His lengthy reign shaped the course of not only English history, but also Scottish and Welsh history for years to come. He lived an eventful life full of adventure, intrigue, innovation, and savage cruelty against those who opposed him. This collection showcases some of the most interesting details of Edward's life that haven't been shown on screen. Yet.

Who was Mata Hari? Exotic dancer, courtesan, seductress, spy, and femme fatale: Mata Hari was many things to many different people. But she is perhaps best remembered for the fact that she was executed during World War I for espionage. “Mata Hari” was actually a stage name - and an invented persona. She was born Margaretha “Gertha” Zelle in the Netherlands in 1876 to a wealthy, if unexceptional, family. At the age of 18, she fled her boring life in the Netherlands for the Dutch East Indies where she became an officer’s wife. The new Mrs. MacLeod didn’t find happiness there, but she did develop an interest in Indonesian dance...

Perhaps nothing was more decadent about aristocrats before the French Revolution than their over-the-top meals; the things French aristocrats ate even make modern Americans looks like humble cuisine ascetics. Foods before the French Revolution were a dizzying array of savories and sweets. Aristocrats of the ancien regime - or "old order," the elite French world before the revolution - tended to have elaborate meals, thanks to the fact that they could afford it; they could buy expensive ingredients and hire master chefs to create mouth-watering dishes.

In the late 19th century, nefarious groups ruled the streets of London, but one stood out: the Forty Elephants, London's all-female organization. Contemporaries of the real Peaky Blinders, these women were the best shoplifters in London, able to hide multiple fur coats in their skirts and bloomers; and their queen, Diamond Annie, ran the outfit with ruthless precision in the 1910s and '20s. Dressed in expensive furs and arriving by limousine, Diamond Annie walked into high-end department stores and swiped fortunes' worth of merchandise in under an hour.

If you're ever visited London and caught a glimpse of the guards outside of Buckingham Palace, you know the uniformed men are all business. Life inside the royal residence is fascinating, but have you ever wondered what the guards protecting the queen see on a daily basis? What kind of rules do they have to follow? What's the craziest thing to happen on their watch? Some former members of the Queen's Guard shared their experiences on Reddit. Their stories may change your understanding of the stoic boys in red and black.

Weird History's Timeline is taking you back to 1972. '72 would be groovin' in about every topic; from the Watergate scandal heating up, to the release of Neil Young's most iconic album, to Franco Harris' immaculate reception. Take a trip on the Timeline train back to 1972 and experience the news, culture, sports, entertainment and all that was weird in the seventies.

Hollywood often paints a romanticized vision of space travel, but living in a gravity-free environment has dirty downsides. It takes a lot of extra work for an astronaut to tend to their personal hygiene in space. Sometimes, they're even instructed to do some not-so-sanitary things, like wear the same pair of underwear for a week. When thinking about hygiene in space, the first thing to consider is that there are no showers or sinks. Gravity makes common earthly devices like sinks totally impractical. Think about it: water falls down a faucet and into a drain. In space, the water would float away - and ultimately endanger both an astronaut’s health and a spacecraft’s expensive equipment.

The American West stirs up grand images from movies: daring escapades, shootouts at high noon, tough sheriffs and marshals keeping the peace, and the cavalry riding in to save the day. The history of the Wild West is full of myths and stereotypes, but the truth about justice in the West is often more complicated - and more unsettling. Violence plagued the American West. Settlers faced rising numbers of illegal acts as people poured into the frontier searching for new lives, and communities had to handle justice on their own.

Have you ever wondered what it would really be like to be inducted into one of the Five Families? In Hollywood, movies like The Godfather, Casino, Goodfellas, and Scarface make being affiliated with organized crime seem like a lucrative, adventurous, and glamorous endeavor. And while some depictions of La Cosa Nostra ("Our Thing") in these films are accurate, they also include many fallacies for the audience's entertainment. In reality, the day-to-day operations of the Mafia are often much duller than the action-filled dramas we see play out on the silver screen.

On April 30, 1945, Adolf Hitler took his life in his subterranean Berlin bunker. The impact of his suicide on the war was more emotional than strategic. He killed himself because he understood that surrender and capture were inevitable. Still, in the aftermath of Hitler's suicide, there were many consequences and reactions on an individual and a collective level. Individual German government figures and the German people had radical and diverse reactions to the news of his demise. Some officials rightfully anticipated that it was time to vanish to avoid arrest and responsibility for the unspeakable crimes of the Third Reich. Here are some of the causes of the things that happened immediately after.

As the original Renaissance Man, Leonardo da Vinci did it all; the polymath was interested in everything from art to science to writing. The famous Renaissance artist's paintings, sculptures, and architectural achievements are as stunning as his intellectual contributions to history, anatomy, and mathematics. One of the areas where Leonardo truly excelled was inventing. While observing the world around him, Leonardo took copious notes and made sketches detailing his surroundings. In the process, he came up with practical and impractical mechanisms alike, many designed to be used as tools of destruction.

Weird History presents Timeline 1973. Hop back on the nostalgia train, because Weird History's Timeline is taking you back to 1973. It would be a year of Elvis in Hawaii, the sad demise of Bruce Lee, and Marlon Brando's refusal to accept an Oscar. Get your pet rock ready because Timeline: The '70s is going retro.

It can be a fascinating exercise to trace the final moments of historical figures' lives. Their final steps reveal an intimate look at what exactly happened during their last days, something only hindsight allows us to experience. Whether an individual died unexpectedly at a young age or met their end late in life, their lasts say a lot about them. When it comes to music legends, the sudden deaths of figures from drug overdoses, tragic accidents, and the like may compound the sense of loss. There's often a feeling of lost potential, a desire to know what work they may have left behind, and to understand exactly what went wrong. As part of the attempts we may make to wrap our heads around these deaths, learning about their last meals gives us an insight into their very human nature.

The 1930s were a time of great change that saw many milestones that would come to define the decade. The Great Depression affected millions across America, the Graf Zeppelin completed a historic journey, and the New Deal ushered in an era of social support programs we still use today. And pinball emerged as a popular new pastime, although it quickly drew the ire of New York City mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, who went to war with the Silverball because of its alleged ties to the underworld and illegal gambling.

In 1897, the US was at the tail end of an economic recession now known as the Panic of 1893. Many Americans were struggling to feed their families or keep a roof over their heads. So when news got out that gold has been found in the Klondike region of Canada's Yukon, thousands of people hastily uprooted themselves and headed north to take part in rushing to remote northwestern Canada.

Led Zeppelin's legendary drummer John Bonham passed away from pulmonary aspiration on September 25th, 1980 after a day-long bout of binge drinking. Despite his reputation as a wild man, the rock star’s final days were full of anxiety, depression, and uncertainty that ultimately proved too much for him to bear.

When called to battle during the Middle Ages in Europe, soldiers expected to be surrounded by unpleasant, if not downright unspeakable, sights. Much like medieval executioners, medieval soldiers witnessed blood, carnage, and death on an up-close-and-personal level. Accounts of the great medieval battles not only detail soldiers' lives and the conditions they faced, but also reveal the damage they inflicted on their enemies and noncombatants alike.

Weird History presents Timeline 1974. Timeline is going back to the '70s and revisiting some of the most poignant news, sports, culture and entertainment stories from 1974. From the debut of the Six Million Dollar Man, to Richard Nixon's resignation to Hammerin' Hank Aaron breaking MLB's Home Run record, a little bit of everything happened in '74.

Emperor Elagabalus was the Roman emperor for a brief time from 218 to 222, but he packed a lot of scandal into those years. When it comes to the weirdest royals throughout history, Elagabalus might be the wildest of all. It's hard to separate the fact from the fiction in these legends about him, but with tales this eye-popping, who would want to?

What did people eat on Titanic? You know, before all that stuff went down? It all very literally depended on where you sat. First-class passengers had options that allowed for an array of flavor combinations. Second- and third-class passengers had fewer choices, but no one went hungry.... Not even the iceberg.

Let's set the scene. You're livid, you want to scream at someone. But for some reason, you can't speak. What gesture do you give them? That's right - the good ol' middle finger comes immediately to mind, right? The middle finger has been known as a way to display anger for a very long time - going all the way back to ancient Greece. In fact, it's "one of the most ancient insult gestures known,” according to anthropologist Desmond Morris.

From the empowering story of Rosie the Riveter to their pivotal role in manufacturing during World War 2, American women were a vital part of the war effort at home and abroad. Six million women joined the workforce during World War 2. They helped keep the country running and ultimately played a pivotal role in helping secure victory.

Romano Full was a well-known jazz musician in Italy during the second half of the twentieth century. But for a time, few people knew he was actually a son of one of the world's most infamous dictators, and he'd changed his name in order to protect himself and his career. Full's father, Benito Mussolini, created the Italian Fascist Party in 1915 and became prime minister of the country in 1922. He made sweeping social changes, reduced unemployment, and for a time, earned the respect of his countrymen who nicknamed him "Il Duce" (The Leader). Mussolini made a military pact with Adolf Hitler in 1939, forcing the country into World War II in 1941.

Although the Vietnam conflict lasted for 20 years - from 1955 to the Fall of Saigon in 1975 - the United States government never officially declared war. Over 3 million people perished in the conflict, and hundreds of American and Vietnamese citizens were held in prison camps as unofficial POWs. The North Vietnamese captured American troops and the South Vietnamese held hundreds of North Vietnamese soldiers. These POWs were treated in different but perhaps equally awful ways. Americans suffered terrible treatment and years-long solitary confinement, while the South Vietnamese left their captives in miserable health conditions that ended many lives.

Since the first official state dinner was held in 1874, American presidents have hosted kings, queens, and heads of state from around the world at grand, elegant affairs. They've also brought together rulers and comparable government leaders for less-than-stunning meals. Presidential state dinner meals have ranged from plain and simple fare to gourmet entrees, often influenced by social and economic factors as much as who was in the executive office. State dinner dishes have included favorite presidential foods such as Harry S. Truman's beloved watermelon pickles, as well as personal creations like Mamie Eisenhower's gelatin mint desserts. What was served at state dinners often reflected the preferences of honored guests or sent a political message to diners about how Americans liked to eat, drink, and be merry.

The life of Henry "Box" Brown is so notable because he was an Antebellum-Era Virginia plantation slave who managed to mailed himself to freedom in a wooden box. The big question here is: how did he do it? Easy! He had the help of abolitionists on both ends of his journey. However, his story does not end there. What did Henry "Box" Brown do once he reached freedom? He spoke out against the institution of slavery, worked as a magician, and lived a very interesting life. Among other Henry "Box" Brown facts are his marriage to a white Englishwoman as well as the fact that Frederick Douglass didn't like him.

Weird History is hopping on the 1975 Timeline train and taking you on a trip. 1975 would be a crazy year with Gerald Ford narrowly missing a Manson Family Member, Wheel of Fortune's debut, and Jimmy Hoffa's disappearance. Hang on to your bell bottoms because '75 is gonna get funky. Timeline 1975 is going to fly over the cuckoo's nest.

There are many strange and fascinating facts buried in the long, bizarre history of the Olympics. The Summer Olympics of 2016 look almost nothing like those from a century ago, and it’s not just the slick presentation and technological advancements in the individual events. Everything about the Summer and Winter Olympics used to be a whole lot weirder and, well, pretty backwards. In many ways, the games have acted as a microcosm of what was happening in the world at the time, for better or for worse.

When we think of the evilest rulers in history, names like Joseph Stalin, and Benito Mussolini rush to mind. But it's important to remember that brutality existed in rulers well before the 1930s. Others, like Attila the Hun or Chinese Empress Wu, may seem like obvious choices. But after looking deeper at the effects of their rule and how they were perceived by those they reigned over, it becomes clear that they're not the worst rulers in history. Instead, they suffered from then-contemporary historians' ire (Attila because he wasn't Roman, and Wu because she was a woman).

Although settlements on the American frontier existed for hundreds of years prior to the Civil War, when historians talk about life in the Old West, they are generally referring to the period between 1865 and 1890. Outlaw activity in the “Wild West” extended into the early 20th century and the vocation - although not the actual term - of “bounty hunter” existed both prior to the Civil War and in other areas of the country.

Almost everyone has heard of Marilyn Monroe, but fewer people are familiar with the ambitious actress who once beat her in popularity polls. Jayne Mansfield left a lasting mark on the celebrity sphere, and used techniques to gain publicity that are still practiced by today's reality and social media stars. Born in 1933 as Vera Jayne Palmer, Mansfield grew up in Texas and was reportedly extremely intelligent. Stories claim she learned several languages as a child, took lessons in dancing and singing, and enjoyed playing the violin for strangers. As an actress and model, Mansfield oozed sexiness during a time when pinups were all the rage and curvaceous women were idolized. Over the course of her career, she leaned into the role of "blonde bombshell" like no other.

At the time of the Civil War, battlefield medicine was still in its infancy. This led to many injuries becoming severely infected and many of the injured receiving hasty, dangerous surgeries. In fact, Civil War battlefield surgery was a major cause of death during the war. Many surgeons cared for the wounded right on the battlefield, and many Civil War medics performed amputations and open surgeries during the heat of battle. Furthermore, because field doctors were under massive amounts stress, they had to perform speedy surgeries that would never meet today’s medical standards.

Both history and conventional wisdom hold that Scandinavians and their descendants adorned their bodies with symbols, sigils, and staves - all with specific meanings and importance. Runes were also used to convey information. The characters of the Younger Futhark system were prominent during the 9th, 10th, and 11th centuries and are most closely connected with the so-called Viking Age. They have their origins in the aptly named Elder Futhark and gave way to derivatives like Anglo-Saxon runes. But what did these sigils and runes look like? And what did they mean?

The biography of Marco Polo tells the story of one of the most famous explorers of all time. Leaving Venice with his father and uncle, he spent 24 years going all the way from Israel to China, where he lived for 17 years. His life story involves working for the great Kublai Khan personally, surviving perilous journeys, and eventually writing one of the greatest travelogues of all time.

If you've heard of Pazuzu at all, it's because you paid attention while watching The Exorcist. Pazuzu was the demon that possessed young Regan in the film. However, this fascinating character has a long history that goes back several centuries, far before he ever appeared in a movie. Regardless of whether or not you think that demons are actually real, belief in Pazuzu has definitely influenced the actions of countless people. In conflict with the film's representation, some historians have pointed out that Pazuzu is a bit of a conundrum as he doesn't easily fit into the modern day interpretation of a demon.

Weird History's Timeline is taking you back to 1976. Sit back on your bean bag chair and take a trip back to the '70s. 1976 would be the debut of some famous TV shows, including "Charlie's Angels", "What's Happening", and "The Family Feud", as well as major events, including the election of Jimmy Carter to the White House. Grab your TV Dinner and dial your neighbor up on your rotary phone because we're getting groovin' on 1976.

When A League of Their Own was released in 1992, it brought attention to a women's professional baseball league that had disbanded nearly 40 years earlier. Based on the true story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, which existed from 1943-1954, the film attempts to put the AAGPBL - which went from being a gimmick to save baseball from going extinct during WWII to a respected league that drew sizable crowds for years - in some sort of context.

Thank you to Wondrium for sponsoring today’s video! Signup for your FREE trial to Wondrium here: http://ow.ly/QeTT50L98aL What is now Greenwood Cemetery, in Decatur, Illinois, was first used as sacred burial grounds by Native Americans of the Illiniwek Confederation hundreds of years before any Europeans lived there. It is one of the most haunted places on Earth. Its dark and sordid history has helped make it one of the most infamous burial sites on the planet. But what did this humble boneyard do to earn such a spooky reputation?

Well, at one point in the early 19th century, everyone and their mother was taking opium (quite literally - mothers were specifically targeted by opium marketers). Over the decades, however, and through sensationalized media and literature, the Victorian era opium dens took on a life of their own.

The ancient hobbies of years gone by are fascinating and fraught with interesting facts that many of us might not know today. People of the past didn’t have the modern luxuries most of the developed world has now, so for entertainment, a fair amount of imagination had to be invoked. Bizarre and outrageous hobbies arose during the time of ancient Egypt, the Middle Ages, 19th-century Victorian England, and even during the 1950s in America.

After Christian Europeans successfully seized Jerusalem from Islamic infidels during the Crusades of the Middle Ages, various entities originated in the Holy Land to exert influence over this contested region. One of these was the Order of the Knights Templar, initially a group of only nine knights who were intent on protecting pilgrims making their way along the dangerous roads that led to Jerusalem.

Weird History presents Timeline 1977. We're going all the way back to the '70s and showing you all the weird stuff that happened in '77. From the debut of Star Wars to Fleetwood Mac taking over FM radio, the year would see some huge pop culture shifts. We're pretty sure Mikey will like this Life trip back to 1977.

Though the United States dollar was officially adopted in 1785, paper currency didn't fully enter circulation until the Civil War. The current appearance of modern US bills developed only after a long period of economic development based on commodities and coinage. The earliest form of currency used on the North American continent includes Native American beads and coins minted in Europe. Given the choice, which form of currency would you want to revisit? Does the barter-based wampum appeal to your sensibilities, or perhaps a gold and silver system that would literally weigh you down?

Mark Twain once said, "It is the prohibition that makes anything precious." The United States learned that lesson the hard way not long after January 17, 1920, when it made the nation’s fifth-largest industry largely illegal. Smuggling alcohol during Prohibition became its own industry, inciting the growth of illicit activity and organized crime. But necessity, as they say, is the mother of invention, and some of the ways people hid alcohol during Prohibition were very inventive. If it hadn’t all come to an end in 1933, hiding liquor might have become another major industry.

Throughout both its Republican and Imperial periods, Rome was one of the most dominant cultures in the history of the world. That dominance was mainly based on the military strength of Roman Legions -- but if the Legionnaires powered Rome, what powered the Legionnaires?

When most people think of the Spanish Inquisition, they typically think of torture (or Monty Python), and for good reason. Between 1478 and 1834, Catholic monarchs in Spain and Spanish territories used the tribunal to combat heretics, torturing and executing thousands. While modern historians say the Spanish Inquisition's reputation as a torture-fest is a bit exaggerated, the facts are clear: Some pretty gnarly stuff definitely went down.

For centuries, troops have marched off to fight, risking their lives in combat. But what did soldiers eat in different eras? And which conflict offered the tastiest military foods? From blood soup to fermented horse milk, soldiers' rations throughout history have contained some unappetizing options. There have even been military provisions so disgusting that they actually took the lives of soldiers. Some armies would have been happy to get any food.

Weird History presents Timeline 1978. We're going all the way back to 1978 to revisit the Blizzard of '78, you know the one that your uncle still talks about to this day. Timeline will also cover 1978 highlights such as Animal House, the death of Keith Moon and the debut of Scared Straight. Sit back on your Beanbag chair and enjoy this trip back to the '70s.

Before email, there was snail mail. And before snail mail, there was horse mail - the Pony Express. Yes, when it came to staying in touch with folks back east, residents of the wild west had to rely on a team of riders whose job was as dangerous as it was fascinating.

When the National Socialist German Workers’ Party assumed control of Germany, it immediately set out to spread its influence into every aspect of German society. And the lives of German children were no exception. And what better way to get kids excited about fascism than by turning it into a fun summer camp?

Let’s face it, it takes a pretty uncommon person to become president. That probably means that there are going to be more than a few US presidents with weird hobbies. Given that a good number of presidents didn’t have television or even radio, they had to find something to do with all their time. Some of the hobbies of US presidents were more ordinary, like playing piano or collecting stamps. But some great men just can’t have regular hobbies. No, those men have to do things to the extreme.

Long before the first Europeans set foot on American soil, the native people who lived there had spent centuries perfecting the art of combat. Even after visitors arrived from across the vast oceans with superior technology and weaponry, Native American guerilla tactics prevailed so thoroughly that the invaders were forced to adopt similar strategies. From the Mourning Wars tactics to the tactics of the French and Indian War, Native American soldiers and scouts proved themselves capable of immense cunning and incredible feats of military prowess.

Timeline is taking you back to 1979. We're going to jump into our decoupage time machine for a nostalgic trip back to '79. 1979 would be the last hurrah of the Seventies where we would see the decade setting the stage for the 1980s. From the rise of Reagan to the popularity of The Village People, 1979 would end on a cliffhanger. So sit back, grab yourself a Lite Beer and enjoy Timeline 1979

As a special bonus to our Timeline 1970s videos, we talked to some people who lived during the 1970s to get an idea of how life really was during that groovy time. Those '70s kids brought their younger relations to the talk about similarities and differences between the '70s and their generation.

The tradition of two people joining together in matrimony is a tale as old as time - you get married, you throw a party, and you live happily ever after (hopefully). But how did the customs of wedding cakes, bridesmaids, bouquet tosses, and white wedding dresses come to be? Some are closely related to wedding superstitions, while others have surprisingly deep historical roots. Nevertheless, weddings are still as popular today as they were thousands of years ago, as are the wedding traditions that we still carry on.

The holidays are a time for friends, family, festivities, and food. Lots and lots of food. Before the days of vegan eggnog, gluten-free gingerbread houses, and sugar-free sugar cookies, holiday foods from yesteryear included temptations such as savory Jell-O molds, mayonnaise cakes, and piping-hot Dr. Pepper. Vintage cookbooks would recommend condiments as main ingredients while housewives from the Atomic Age and home cooks from the '60s bravely experimented with ham and marshmallows.

France fell to Germany in June of 1940. The United States hadn’t yet entered World War 2, and while isolationism remained politically popular, the country was growing wary. The prospect of being drawn into the European conflict was starting to feel inevitable, and Americans sensed they would soon have to send their army to fight.

Numerous outlaws throughout history came back around from their rabble-rousing and trouble-causing days to serve as lawmen, government leaders, and agents of criminal-catching agencies. From the Middle Ages to the Wild West to the Information Age, historical and geographical boundaries need not apply when it comes to outlawry. Some outlaws – mostly men but not always – are famous, but others are obscure historical figures. Their motivations on both sides of the legal fence varied, as did their successes when it came to breaking, making, or working with the law. Whether they were traitors, sell outs, or simply switched to the other side, messing with any of these outlaws was never a very good idea regardless of where they stood on a particular day.

The Middle Ages spanned from roughly 500 to 1500 CE. For much of that time, the people of England lived under a feudal system in which both the laws, and the penalties for breaking them, were significantly more bizarre than the ones we are familiar with today.

For a few dozen Alaskan Iñupiat natives, it is possible to see Russia from their house. Just below the Arctic Circle lie two land masses between Russia and Alaska, the Diomede Islands. Small, rugged, and surrounded by ice and harsh seas, the islands are located off the Alaskan coast in the middle of the Bering Strait. Little Diomede is considered Alaskan territory, while Big Diomede, the Russian island, has remained uninhabited since the Cold War.

On September 7th, 1978, Keith Moon, the legendary hard-partying drummer of The Who, was found dead in his London apartment. In the end, his life was as much defined by his self-destructive behavior and addictions as it was for his unique style of drumming.

The fashion choices of the 16th and 17th centuries differed drastically from those of centuries past. During the medieval period, outfits were chosen to keep the wearer slim; however, the fashion of the 16 and 17th centuries was all about making the wearer as big and rotund as possible. Bombast, usually made up of cotton, wool, horsehair, or even sawdust, was the material they used to achieve this bold look.

Two Guns, AZ, is one of the many cursed ghost towns scattered throughout the Southwest. It's a long-abandoned town, but tourists still stop to see its ruins along Old Route 66. Set on the rim of a canyon, the strange little town was the sight of a tragedy involving two Native American tribes. A man named Harry E. Miller showed up in the late '20s, leased property from the Cundiffs, and constructed a full-blown tourist trap. He played up the area's turbulent history and claimed he was full-blooded Apache. It's unclear if this claim was true. But some wonder: was the downfall of Two Guns Miller's fault alone, or did the land have a curse long before he blew into town?

What was daily life like for a king or queen during the Middle Ages? Contrary to what you might imagine, it didn't involve lounging in robes of silk and satin and indulging in lots of feasting. In reality, the life of medieval royals involved a lot of incest, sickness, and cold castles. You'll probably feel better about your own situation after learning what life for royalty in medieval times was like. Women were married off to very close relatives for diplomatic purposes; on many occasions, they were only in their early teens at the time. Sadly, the death rates for mothers and children were quite high, and the general lack of hygiene most definitely didn't help.