Byte Sized Biographies…

J. D. Salinger, Time Magazine, 1961 Original dust jacket of The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger eventually demanded that his photo be removed. J. D. Salinger, on the streets of Windsor, Vermont, later in life. Joyce Maynard, later in life. J.D. Salinger: The Reclusive Genius Behind "The Catcher in the Rye" Discover the untold story of J.D. Salinger, the enigmatic author who captivated a generation wi...

  Admiral Gunther Lutjens Hitler on naval inspection tour of the "Deutschland," in 1934. Crew of Bismarck on deck, its 15 inch guns visible Spitfire reconnaissance photo near Bergen, Norway. Bismarck during the Battle of the Denmark Strait Gunther Lutjens: The Admiral Behind the Bismarck's Fateful Voyage Discover the untold story of Admiral Gunther Lutjens and the nine-day voyage of Nazi Germany's...

Captain Ernst Lindemann HMS Prince of Wales Admiral John Tovey on the deck of the George V Swordfish Torpedo dive bomber Swordfish returning to the Ark Royal after attacking the Bismarck Ark Royal and Renown from HMS Sheffield Bismarck survivors being rescued by the Dorsetshire Hitler and Raeder, 1943 Gunther Lutjens: The Admiral Behind the Bismarck’s Fateful Voyage Discover the untold story of Ad...

Today, no more than thirty-seven paintings are attributed to Jan Vermeer. Still, he remains one of the greatest artists who ever lived.   Burial Marker for Vermeer, Oude Kirk, Delft The Astronomer in the Altaussee salt mine Two paintings at 2023 Rijksmuseum exhibit St. Praxedes Diana and her Companions Christ in the House of Mary and Martha The Procuress A Girl Asleep A Girl Reading a Letter by an...

Today, no more than thirty-seven paintings are attributed to Jan Vermeer. Still, he remains one of the greatest artists who ever lived. Young Woman With A Water Pitcher Woman With a Lute The Music Lesson The Concert Woman in Blue Reading a letter Woman With a Pearl Necklace Woman with a Balance A Lady Writing Mistress and Maid Girl With a Pearl Earring Study of a Young Woman Girl With a Red Hat Gi...

Christopher Boyce on Australian 60 Minutes Christopher Boyce, after his rearrest in the state of Washington. Timothy Hutton, who played Boyce in "The Falcon and the Snowman." Sean Penn, who played Daulton Lee in the "The Falcon and the Snowman." Arrested for selling secrets to the Russians, their incarceration and Christopher Boyce’s subsequent escape from a Federal prison was headline news.  Ulti...

  Christopher Boyce, testifying before Congress, 1985 Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam Kathleen "Cait" Mills Boyce, 2003 Recent photo of Boyce in Oregon Cait and Chris Boyce on CNN, 2014 Arrested for selling secrets to the Russians, their incarceration and Christopher Boyce's subsequent escape from a Federal prison was headline news.  Ultimately, the Falcon and the Snowman spent decades beh...

  Theodore Roosevelt as a young man Campaign literature, 1900 Leon Czolgosz, McKinley assassin Roosevelt ranch house, South Dakota Roosevelt's first wife, Alice Roosevelt's second wife, Edith Roosevelt with his family Roosevelt in Rough Rider uniform Roosevelt, in store bought frontier wardrobe with Tiffany silver knife Theodore Roosevelt: Nobel Laureate, Medal of Honor Winner, Political Progressi...

  Theodore Roosevelt Home known as Sagamore Hill, Oyster Bay, NY Roosevelt speaking in 1910 Roosevelt in safari garb in Africa Photo from the book African Game Trails Roosevelt visiting Cambridge Roosevelt assassin, John Schrank, under arrest Mount Rushmore Theodore Roosevelt Grave, Oyster Bay, Long Island Theodore Roosevelt: Nobel Laureate, Medal of Honor Winner, Political Progressive, Executor o...

Carlota, Empress of Mexico Maximillian I, Emperor of Mexico Schoenbrunn, Hapsburg palace, Vienna and Maximillian's boyhood home Maximillian and Charlotte, newlyweds Franz Josef, 1865 Miramare, Trieste The Novara Maximillian as Emperor Benito Juarez Like something out of a fairy tale, in 1864, a European power installed an Austrian nobleman as Maximillian I, Emperor of Mexico, ultimately resulting...

  Carlota, in Mexican garb Pope Pius IX Napoleon III and his wife, the Empress Eugenie, 1865 The chapel built on the Hill of the Bells, Maximillian's execution site in Queretaro Eduard Manet's, "Execution of the Emperor Maximillian," inaccurately depicting Maximillian in the center, wearing a sombrero. His executioners are symbolically wearing French infantry uniforms and the soldier loading his r...

Frank Morris John Anglin Clarence Anglin Allen West Ralph Roe Theodore Cole Doc Barker The true story Of Frank Morris, John and Clarence Anglin and their remarkable escape from Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary. Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers orchestrated one of the most daring prison escapes in history from Alcatraz, the notorious "escape-proof" island fortress. This episode delves into the fas...

  Alcatraz with Angel Island in the background. Utility corridor behind the escapees' cells. The four dummy heads used during the escape. Escapee cell with fake grill removed. John Paul Scott Fort Point, Golden Gate, near where John Paul Scott washed ashore Alcatraz, with Little Alcatraz visible, lower left Alcatraz Lighthouse at night. The true story Of Frank Morris, John and Clarence Anglin and...

The General today, on display, Southern Museum, Kenesaw, (formerly Big Shanty) Georgia. James J. Andrews General Don Carlos Buell General Ormsby Mitchel Plaque in Atlanta, Georgia denoting the spot where James J. Andrews was hanged on June 7, 1862 One of the most incredible stories of the Civil War Discover the thrilling true story of James Andrews, the Union spy who orchestrated one of the Civil...

  Rendition of the execution of seven of the Andrew's Raiders The General, refurbished for a celebration with some of the original raiders and William Fuller, conductor, leaning on post. Edwin Stanton, Secretary of War John Scott's Medal of Honor, awarded posthumously after Scott was hanged. The monument to Andrew's Raiders at Chattanooga National Cemetery, James J. Andrews grave is in the left fo...

  Olivier in Wuthering Heights Jill Esmond Leigh and Marlon Brando in A Streetcar Named Desire Hattie McDaniel, Olivia De Havilland and Vivien Leigh in Gone With the Wind   Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable, Gone With the Wind.   Poster for one of the many revivals that made Gone With the Wind the most profitable film ever made. Publicly,  perceived as one of the great romances of the 20th century, pri...

Olivier in Rebecca with Joan Fontaine The Oliviers in Australia, the smiles would eventually fade Vivien Leigh, 1957 Olivier’s costume in Spartacus Olivier in, “The Entertainer,” with Joan Plowright Olivier and Joan Plowright visiting the Reagan’s in the White House in the 80’s Olivier’s grave in Westminster Abbey Publicly,  perceived as one of the great romances of the 20th century, privately the...

  Butch Cassidy's boyhood home, Circleville, Utah Butch Cassidy, Wyoming prison mugshot Telluride location of first Cassidy holdup, bank building was actually the white building to the right Montpelier, Idaho, site of Cassidy holdup Sundance and Etta, shortly before they left for Argentina In 1969, the 20th Century Fox film, “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” established these two outlaws as po...

  Butch and Sundance's Argentine cabin today. Posse containing Joe Lefors The house used in the film "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," in which Katherine Ross lives and Paul Newman rides a bicycle during the song "Raindrops Keep Falling ON My Head." Entrance to the Hole In the Wall near Kaycee, Wyoming Location near Durango, Colorado where Newman and Redford jump into the river to escape the L...

  Norsk Hydro Plant, Vemork Leif Trondstadt Heavy water produced at Telemark British glider on tow rope Reichskomisar Joseph Terboven General Nicholas Van Falkenhirst SS Officer Frederich Fehlis Shortly after the conquest of Norway by Nazi Germany, Allied intelligence determined that an electrical plant at Rjukan, Norway was providing a crucial element in a potential German atomic bomb. As a resul...

  Leif Transtad with King Haakon VII, 1944 Lake Tinnsjo, sight of the SF Hydro sinking The ferry SF Hydro King Haakon VII congratulating Telemark commandos. Shortly after the conquest of Norway by Nazi Germany, Allied intelligence determined that an electrical plant at Rjukan, Norway was providing a crucial element in a potential German atomic bomb. As a result, Norwegian commandos embarked on one...

Discover the fascinating life of Isabella Stewart Gardner, a trailblazing art collector and socialite who left an indelible mark on Boston's cultural landscape. This episode delves into Gardner's journey from New York socialite to renowned art patron, her creation of the iconic Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, and the shocking 1990 heist that rocked the art world. Learn how Gardner's unconventiona...

Discover the fascinating life of Isabella Stewart Gardner, a trailblazing art collector and socialite who left an indelible mark on Boston's cultural landscape. This episode delves into Gardner's journey from New York socialite to renowned art patron, her creation of the iconic Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, and the shocking 1990 heist that rocked the art world. Learn how Gardner's unconventiona...

IN 1911, an American explorer, Hiram Bingham, re-discovered the Incan ruins at Machu Picchu, helping to popularize this site, which today is one of the seven modern wonders of the world. Hiram Bingham, at Harvard, with wife Alfreda Church built on the former site of the Coricancha, Cuzco, Peru Francisco Pizarro Capture of Atahualpa by Pizarro at Cajamarca Execution of Atahualpa by Pizarro, Cajamar...

IN 1911, an American explorer, Hiram Bingham, re-discovered the Incan ruins at Machu Picchu, helping to popularize this site, which today is one of the seven modern wonders of the world. Hiram Bingham, 1912 Machu Pichu, Hayna Picchu in the background Machu Picchu, photographed by Hiram Bingham Hiram Bingham, Air Corps during WWI Bingham, US Senator Bingham with other members of President's Coolidg...