Old Hollywood icon Rock Hudson was best known for his dashing looks and roles in Giant and All That Heaven Allows. Behind Rock Hudson's fame was a tragic childhood, a manipulative Hollywood agent, and a struggle with his gay identity. Hudson was the first major celebrity to die with AIDs in 1985.
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Our modern impression of the 1980s wouldn't be very familiar to the people who actually lived through the decade. Here are some things people get wrong about the 1980s.
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Michael Landon was a star, popular for his roles on Little House on the Prairie and Highway to Heaven. However, his life had some ups and downs.
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The Moulin Rouge has survived fire, two World Wars, and a near riot over a kiss. This is the untold truth of the Moulin Rouge.
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His final Instagram birthday post to Wolfgang featured a photo of the newborn. "The Best Day Of My Life. Happy Birthday Wolf! I Love You So Much!! Your Pop," the legendary shredder posted. As it would turn out, Eddie Van Halen's last Instagram post would be a similar message of love for his family.
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Even though he wears his heart on his musical sleeve, Bruce Springsteen is less known as a person than he is as an artist. But today, we'll attempt to fix this by taking a long, hard look at the moments that not only made him Bruce Springsteen the artist but also made him Bruce Springsteen the man.
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When the Pilgrims first set sail on the Mayflower in August 1620 to the New World, they expected a month-long trip. However, what it was really like sailing on the Mayflower was far different. Pilgrims on the Mayflower ran out of fresh food, water, and had to occupy themselves with games.
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The electric guitar is the definitive instrument of rock 'n' roll, and Eddie Van Halen was one of the greatest. This is the untold truth of Eddie Van Halen.
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The stars of Old Hollywood dealt with alcoholism, erratic behavior, and sometimes, a bad end. Here are tragic stories about Old Hollywood's legendary actresses.
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Long a mystery, numbers stations are radio stations that play coded messages and anyone with a shortwave radio can listen in. The bizarre mystery behind the numbers stations is that nobody knows who transmits them. Numbers stations broadcast numbers or codes for intelligence officers and spies.
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Tuberculosis, caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is one of the deadliest infections a human can get. Here's the messed up history.
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The fictional Game of Thrones universe is based on the late medieval period of Western Europe. The time was exciting and romantic in some ways—if you were rich and powerful. For the vast majority of humanity, it was a miserable time to be alive. Here's what living in Westeros would actually be like.
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While Merle Haggard had an illustrious career as a country musician, he led a rocky, tumultuous life. This is the tragic real-life story of Merle Haggard.
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The curse of the pharaohs is a long-held belief that archaeologists and others who come into contact with Egyptian artifacts will be caused by the spirits of pharaohs. The curse of the pharaohs originated after the death of Lord Carnarvon, who helped open the tomb of King Tutankhamun in 1922.
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The beginning of a new year has always been cause for celebration, introspection, and superstition, but as we saw in 1999 when Y2K was a thing, it's also a time for fear, uncertainty, and doubt. It wasn't so different 1,000 years ago. Here's what it was really like on New Year's, 1000 AD.
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Living in the Wild West wasn't easy, but doctors did their best to save their patients. Here's what life was like for doctors in the Wild West.
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Vestal Virgins in ancient Rome were typically upper-class women selected to serve the goddess of the hearth, Vesta. What it was really like to be a Vestal Virgin included keeping the sacred flame at the Temple of Vesta going, performing rituals, and taking a vow of chastity for 30 years.
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Cholera is a bacterial infection that causes severe diarrhea, vomiting, and leg cramps and is transmitted through contaminated food and water.
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Certain U.S. vice presidents would have done better staying away from Pennsylvania Avenue. And some of them found themselves promoted to the highest office in the world and failing just as much as they did as vice presidents. These are the worst vice presidents in American history.
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Lord Byron was a Romantic poet, aristocrat, and British politician best known for the works of Don Juan and Childe Harold's Pilgrimage in the 19th century. The crazy true story of Lord Byron includes fame, fortune, and a wild string of affairs across Europe until his death at age 36 in Greece.
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Thanks to Hollywood, modern people think being a medieval knight would be cool. But we are wrong, oh so very wrong. You may want to hold off on teleporting back through time to claim your title as Sir Whatever until after you've read about what it was really like to be a medieval knight.
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1997's Titanic, starring a young Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, was a phenomenon upon release. But nothing is perfect, except perhaps Leo's hair. Despite Cameron's eye for detail, there are still a few things wrong with the film. Here are things Titanic got wrong about the real-life disaster.
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Pies today come in every shape and size and have transformed in every culture they've come into contact with. This is the long history of pie explained.
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Music and television changed forever in 1981, when MTV began broadcasting over America's nascent cable television systems. The very first music video played on MTV was "Video Killed the Radio Star" by the Buggles. This is what it was really like to be the first music video on MTV.
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Actress and humorist Carrie Fisher had an incredibly unusual life story. As the daughter of Eddie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, Carrie Fisher earned an iconic role in the original Star Wars trilogy. But behind Princess Leia was the tragic story of drug addiction, bipolar disorder, and sour marriages.
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Plague doctors were scary guys in dark robes and long, beaked masks under hats ... right? Here's what it was really like being a plague doctor.
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Queen Elizabeth I had to think very carefully about how she presented herself. She had to appear powerful in order to uphold her royal status and push back against the stereotype of a weak woman, alone and unfit to rule. This is the truth about Queen Elizabeth I's iconic look.
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