American Shadows

In the 1950s the United States launched a witch hunt, and it's not at all what you think.

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What would you do when faced with a life-or-death situation? Alferd Packer had to answer this question for himself, and do something that is -- for many -- unthinkable. 

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The story of a man who loved his mother. Too much.

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When the bicycle was invented it did more than simply change people's lives, leisure and mobility. It ignited a controversy over traditional gender roles. One woman set out to change all that.

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The fight for equal rights was long and slow until one day a fight broke out with police, culminating in a riot. What happened next is history.

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Prussian immigrant Louis Wagner came to America hoping to make a better life for himself. Working as a fisherman in the Isle of Shoals it seemed he was living the dream, until he found himself down on his luck.

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The Gilded Age was a time of opulence and opportunism, an age that turned businessmen into household names. But it also created some of the biggest rivalries in the rush to unearth the past.

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Thomas Neill Cream wanted nothing more than to leave the family shipping business to become a medical doctor. Having graduated with honors, his future seemed promising -- until the bodies began to appear. 

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Spirits were high that summer?s day as everyone boarded the General Slocum. The passengers were looking forward to their annual picnic just up river? but as fate would have it, they?d never arrive

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In 1918, the US Government created a plan to track, detain, and imprison women for the STIs brought home from soldiers.

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In the mid 1930s an unidentified killer stalked Kingsbury Run, Ohio. It's a mystery that even Elliott Ness couldn't solve.

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When we think of American outlaws, we often think of cowboys and dusty trails in the Wild West. Meet the Ashley Gang who operated out of the Florida Everglades.

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Every once in a while, there are news stories that are stranger than fiction. In this episode, we meet Ruth and Judd, possibly the worst murders of the 1920s. 

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Hawaii didn't become a state until 1959. Before then, it was a Republic, but not by choice. A coup by an American fruit corporation staged a coupe and took control. 

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The story of Andrew Kehoe and his opposition to taxes, namely school taxes and the disaster that followed.

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Only one thing stood between a town's survival: 674 miles of unforgiving terrain in the worst arctic weather conditions in 20 years. Boats, planes, and trains could not get through. And that left the town with one hope: sled dogs. 

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Timothy Dexter was many things ? at least to himself. But mostly, he was lucky in the strangest of ways.

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William Beadle had everything he'd dreamed of: a pretty and good-hearted wife, beautiful children, social status, and plenty of wealth. But when he lost his fortune, William lost his mind. 

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Edmonia Lewis always loved art. In the 1800s, there weren't many women sculptors. Edmonia wasn't interested in what she couldn't do. She was only interested in what she could. 

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When men went off to fight in WW II, women did their own part. They worked in factories, played in a women's baseball league, and raised families. One woman's family was bigger than the rest. Meet Margaret Chung, who called thousands of military men her sons.

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The mysogenistic article, 'What Are Girls Good For' infuriated Elizabeth Cochrane. Her well-written response to the newspaper did more than get her point across. It started her career as Nellie Bly, award-winning investigative reporter. 

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The story of Aaron Burr, who's legendary battle with fellow Founding Father began long before the duel.

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Georgia Tann believed the rich were better than those without means. She also believed lower-income couples should not have children This is the story of how thousands of children were stolen and sold in the black market. 

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During times of war and difficulties, people turned to sports and clubs as a way to enjoy friends, a good time, and to forget about their troubles and the headlines for a while. And sometimes, those same nightclubs made the headlines. 

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For many tourists, Coney Island was the epitome of summer. However, the carnivals and fun houses revealed another side of human nature. 

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Before electricity, those who walked the night were looked down on ? and feared. Murderers, thieves, and sex walkers were frightening enough. But those who roamed the night involuntarily?they were feared above all. 

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Our quests for love can be disappointing. Maddening, even. When the love story that plays out is different than the one imagined ? or the one you had wished for ? the results can be devastating... or even deadly. 

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Sometimes, life will change in an instant, in a flash, or... in the case of the 1944 Hartford Circus... with a spark. 

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This summer, Grim & Mild Presents continues its journey into the strange, the unusual, and the fascinating. For our newest season, we?ll be taking to the high seas to explore one of history?s most notorious types of criminal: pirates.

From naval battles and buried treasure, to deadly sword fights and stolen rum. Prepare to raise anchor! Grim & Mild Presents: Pirates sets sail on Friday, July 8th.

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If something seems too good to be true it often is, from snake oil to opiates the American medical system has tried some radical treatments to heal the sick and make a quick buck. But who stands between us and disaster, quietly uncovering the darkest aspects of so called medical miracles?

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If I were to tell you that some of the things you know about health and wellness come from behind the veil, would you believe me? There was one man -- a reluctant sleeping prophet -- whose lasting imprint is still felt today. 

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There were those who exploited the cracks in the American dream, and took advantage of others -- and then there was one man who used it to become everyone he wished he ever could have been.

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Growing old isn't for the faint of heart. It's true that none of us will get out alive -- but we can all hope that no one takes that truth into their own hands for us. 

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They say that "clothes make the man" -- but in the case of these violent few days in Los Angeles, clothes also became man's undoing.

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There's a darkness in the human soul when it comes to survival.

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Get rich quick schemes have been around forever. But one con man not only made history, but became a household name. 

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Daredevils. They are on a quest to go higher, faster, and bigger than anyone else. Some think they are foolish for tempting death. But for those in this story, testing their mortal limits has given them reason to live.

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Sometimes, it's true what they say about karma.

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On March 25, 1911, a fire broke out in the garment district. Within 18 minutes, 146 people were dead. Though the factory owners were acquitted of wrong doing, the fire paved the way for safety regulations. 

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In 1587, 115 people arrived on Roanoke. The newly appointed governor left for England, promising to return with supplies. When he returned, all that remained of the colony was a single word carved in a wooden gate post: Croatoan. 

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When life got tough, Kate Warn got tougher. She became a spy and agent at 23. And in 1861, her boss tasked her with saving the president elect's life. 

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The Wild West. Home to legends ? and one of the most bizarre stories of an outlaw ever told.

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Arsenic was called the inheritance poison - and for good reason. And killers who tried it once were likely to try it again.

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The people of Peshtigo, WI knew the dangers and ignored the signs until it was too late. 

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Sometimes, everyday heroes come from the most unusual places. 

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America's dark history of a time when society turned to eugenics in an attempt to stamp out mental illness.

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In the 1950s, the CIA was on a quest to create a method of mind control using LSD. Over the next 20 years, the experiment added torture, emotional and sexual abuse, and murder to the experiment. 

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Prohibition, extortion, and street gangs were common in New York during the 1930s. But none caught the attention of the American public the way Murder Inc did.

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A day of sunshine and picnics turns into one of the deadliest boating accidents in American history.

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Robert E. Lee's plans laid out in Orders 191 would have won the war. Then a Union corporal finds a lost copy which should have also ended the war. Along the way to Antietam, mistakes were made.

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