The Backstory with Patty Steele

Watching TV shows or movies, you'd think big jewelry heists depend on all sorts of high-tech gadgets. But it turns out, some of the biggest thefts in history actually relied on one thing: simplicity. But a simple mistake, like a half-eaten sandwich, can foil the perfect plan. 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...

Stevie Nicks has been in the spotlight this week after performing at the Madison Square Garden wedding of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelcie. But . . that wasn’t just an entertainment decision on the bride and groom’s part. This is the behind the scenes story. 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 P...

The time honored saying goes . . never discuss politics or religion in polite company. That seems truer today than ever. But is it? You think politics breaks up family ties now more than ever? It’s hard to believe that, like us, politics could fracture a Founding Father’s family. Ben Franklin was incredibly close to his son . . until William, then NJ’s royal governor, declared hi...

It’s the nation’s 250th birthday! It’s a time to celebrate . . . like the Founding Fathers, who certainly knew how to tip a few back. This is a look at their drinking habits. And it’s next on The Backstory. 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 Steele. See omnystudio.com/list...

As we head out for our summer vacations, some of us are lucky enough to be headed to the ocean. Blue skies, sunshine, blue water to the horizon. But there's always that nagging fear, as Jaws taught us, that underneath those frothing white waves, sharks may be lurking. This is the story of the deadliest shark attack in history. Feel free to DM me if you have a story you'd like me to cover . . On Fa...

Watching the NBA Finals, a Lot of Us Became Mesmerized by the Size of These Athletes. A Lot of Those Guys Are 7 Feet or More. But Imagine Somebody Who Was a Full 2 Feet Taller Than Those Players. This Is Robert Wadlow’s Life. 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 Steele. See omnystudio.com/liste...

We all love The Wizard of Oz, right? So why was it a box office flop when it came out? And why was production so horrible for the cast and crew? It’s a story of what people put up with (and still put up with) to make it in Hollywood. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This time of year, we're reminded that freedom is what America is all about. But as recently as 1972, there was still a living person who had been born into slavery. And another man lived to share his story of the very first Juneteenth . . . when freedom was finally brought to every state in the Union. Feel free to DM me if you have a story you'd like me to cover . . . on Facebook, it's Patty Stee...

We know over the course of decades, centuries, and millennia landscapes change... sometimes dramatically. But how can entire towns literally disappear overnight? 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, it's Real Patty Steele. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you realize it was only a little over 140 years ago that the world began to adopt standardized time zones? You could take a 10am train to another town and arrive at 9:50am . . because most towns had their own clocks. For thousands of years we basically looked at the sun to tell time but transportation and communications changed everything. This is how they did it. Feel free to DM me if you have...

Ever wonder what movies were like before the ratings codes kicked in back in the 1930s? Some were so wild, so bloody, and so sexy, Hollywood quickly realized they had to police themselves or the feds would move in! 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 Steele. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy i...

Marilyn Monroe was the ultimate bombshell. This week she would have turned 100 years old, but she’s still the iconic sex symbol of mid 20th century Hollywood. Despite her carefully crafted dumb blonde persona, she was also wildly intelligent. She had a library filled with books by authors like James Joyce and Dostoevsky. So . . how did she use that intelligence and what was her Achilles heel...

The royals can seem like a bunch of people with too much money but with good intentions for their nation and their people. The scandals involving Charles and Diana . . and Harry and Megan are great tabloid fodder. But the 1936 abdication of King Edward VIII had a much darker backstory. It turns out he had a deeply close relationship with Adolf Hitler and the Nazis during World War II, and the roya...

How are we gonna survive the craziness of our world . . the politics, out of control social media, and especially A.I.? Well . . it’s nothing new. Every period of rapid technological evolution in history has made folks fear that the end is near. This is a peek at the craziness of the 1920s. Feel free to DM me if you have a story you’d like me to cover . . on Facebook it’s Patty S...

Ever wish you could simply disappear? Maybe you’re sick of a job, a relationship, or responsibilities you can’t see your way past. More than a few folks have done it, though admittedly it takes money and the ability to disconnect from everything in your life, not just the difficulties. It’s all about former masters of the universe creating a new domain. Feel free to DM me if you...

Sometimes failure is actually the mother of success. Take Walt Disney, who at the age of 21 had one animation company go bankrupt. By 27, his taste of success with a cartoon rabbit named Oswald was stolen by a partner who made a deal with an unscrupulous movie studio. So, it turns out Mickey Mouse was born out of desperation and the determination to never give up. Feel free to DM me if you have a...

As humans, our most serious drive is survival. So when we start worrying about apocalyptical events from what we do to ourselves or what others do to us, we make a plan. Doomsday bunkers of all sorts are popping up to protect everything from seeds to regrow our food supply . . to insanely luxurious underground escape spots for the one percenters. Feel free to DM me if you have a story you’d...

Do You Get Stressed Over News Stories About a Bunch of People Getting Sick With a Disease You’ve Never Even Heard Of? Lately, It’s the Hantavirus. But Here’s the Thing. These Outbreaks Have Been Around for Thousands of Years. Problem Is, You Can’t Ignore What’s Happening, but the Anxiety Can Really Gnaw at You. So It’s Better to Know the Origin Story, Because Li...

Ever Get the Feeling That Your One Big Moment . . Might Be All There Is? That Was the Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the Second Man to Walk on the Moon . . and as He Shared . . Also the First to Pee on the Moon. But His Return to Earth and the Struggle He Faced Trying to One Up That Footstep on the Lunar Surface, Is an Inspiration. Feel Free to DM Me If You Have a Story You’d Like...

On first blush, most of us say we’d like to live forever. But how far are you willing to go? How about freezing your body cryogenically so it can be resuscitated decades from now? The first guy did that almost 60 years ago. Folks like PayPal founder Peter Thiel have signed on, as have Britney Spears and Paris Hilton. But the big question is... what happens when you wake up? You’re a ti...

Even if we don’t love it, most of us rely on Amazon for a lot of our basic shopping needs. But 140 years ago, the Victorian version of Amazon arrived on the scene. The Sears catalog was just as huge as Amazon, at one point reaching 2/3rds of all Americans and accounting for 1% of the entire U.S. economy. They sold and delivered everything... even heroin! Feel free to DM me if you have a stor...

We comfort ourselves by thinking that murder is something that happens to people when they aren’t careful about when, where, and who they mix it up with. But sometimes, as in these two cases, the scariest stories are actually the ones you don’t see coming. 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 P...

What Did History . . Taste Like? Do You Ever Stop to Wonder Why We Eat Certain Foods? There Are Some Pretty Strange Bites Looking Back Over the Millennia. Not Just Unusual… Not Just Exotic… But Foods That Make You Stop, Tilt Your Head Like a Puppy, and Ask, Who on Earth Thought Eating That Was a Good Idea? It's All in the Marketing. We’re Talking Beaver Tails, Bird Tongues, and...

Humans are fascinated by space. We gaze up at the night sky and ask what and who is up there? Ancient cave drawings illustrated those thoughts thousands of years ago. Even “Disclosure Day” poses the question. But recently we’ve added one more question: does the government know something they’re not telling us? Feel free to DM me if you have a story you’d like me to co...

We watched the tragic story of JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette in the FX series “Love Story.” But while the love story of John’s parents, JFK Sr. and Jackie Kennedy, had major differences, it also had some striking similarities. 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 Steele See omnystudi...