

The Backstory: Steven Spielberg: The Kid Who Literally Snuck Into Hollywood
Believing in yourself is key to success. One of the best examples of that is Steven Spielberg. At the age of 18 he sneaked onto the Universal Studios lot and literally created a job for himself while nobody was looking. Eventually they noticed him, paid him, and he never left. Feel free to DM me i…

The Backstory: Creepy but True: The Gruesome Story of the Castrati
The angelic sounds of choirs from 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th centuries often featured the angelic voices of boy sopranos. But sometimes those angelic voices came from full grown male bodies. They were the castrati, little boys castrated so they’d grow up with powerful soprano voices. Where did they …

The Backstory: Black Bart: 3 Years as the John Gotti of Pirates
Love a good pirate story? This is a real life story of the most successful pirate in history. Black Bart Roberts was a gentleman who reluctantly became a pirate . . but who ultimately was a cold blooded killer as he plundered 400 ships in just 3 years, 10 times as many as Blackbeard! He was finally…

The Backstory: America’s Most Notorious Hacker
We’ve all dealt with scammers or hackers when it comes to our business or personal info. It can be mildly irritating . .or horrifying depending on what they get. One of the earliest and best hackers was Kevin Mitnick. But his life did an astounding 180 after he was finally caught and convicted. Fe…

The Backstory: Terror and Survival at 24,000 Feet
Almost 40 years ago, the roof of a jetliner blew off at 24,000 feet. Amazingly, after a harrowing 13 minutes, the pilots managed to land the plane safely. All but one person survived. This was the flight that changed airline safety forever. Feel free to DM me if you have a story you’d like me to …

The Backstory: Choosing Your Poison
We’re all pretty fascinated with the summer blockbuster ”The Odyssey” right now. So it’s a good time to revisit an unusual story about Socrates, Homer’s compatriot. Although he was born several hundred years later, Socrates admired Homer. But he was a different sort of guy. We all know major public…

The Backstory: When the Sun Disappeared
A total solar eclipse is coming on August 12th. They're awe inspiring. But imagine it’s a normal day in ancient times and suddenly the sun begins to get dimmer and dimmer. Is it the end of the world? Are we being punished by Mother Nature? These folks had no way to explain an eclipse so they turned…

The Backstory: Did Woody Harrelson's Father Help Kill JFK?
Woody Harrelson has been outrageously successful as an actor. But the story of his father is even more unbelievable. A charming hustler and gambler, Charles Harrelson was also an armed robber, a hitman and convicted killer, and he claimed to be involved in the assassination of President Kennedy. F…

The Backstory: The Women Behind Rock & Roll Legends
The term muse seems pretty straight forward when it comes to rock & roll. Some of the most enduring love songs like Layla, Something, and Woman . . have been inspired by these women. But each had very complicated and very different kinds of relationships with stars like Eric Clapton, George Harriso…

The Backstory: Why Year Round Daylight Saving Time Failed 50 Years Ago
Lots of folks, including a majority in Congress, want to see year round daylight saving time. But it actually has been tried before. The results were not what you’d expect. Feel free to DM me if you have a story you’d like me to cover . . on Facebook it’s Patty Steele and on Instagram Real Patty S…