HISTORY

12 Novels Inspired by Real Events

Novelists have used everything from real killers to newsworthy hostage situations to literal white whales to craft their fiction.

The Backstreet Boys in a late ’90s portrait session.

“I Want It That Way”: How Max Martin’s ‘Melodic Math’ Led to This Enduring (and Confusing) Backstreet Boys Hit

The Backstreet Boys’ 1999 smash “I Want It That Way,” which celebrates its 25th anniversary in April 2024, is among the definitive songs—if not the definitive song—of the ’90s teen-pop explosion.

An aerial view of icebergs in Greenland.

10 Fascinating Facts About the Arctic

It’s more than ice and polar bears.

The humble bacon, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich is a more recent phenomenon than you might think.

The Delicious History of the Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Sandwich

‘New York Times’ restaurant critic Pete Wells once said the humble bacon, egg, and cheese was “designed to satisfy practical needs rather than voluptuary desires.“ But is that selling the sandwich short?

11 Fascinating Facts About Jackson Pollock’s ‘No. 5, 1948’

Even if you can’t appreciate this masterpiece's aesthetic, it has a history that’s worth its weight in house paint and stacks of cash.

8 Historical Accounts of Werewolves

Turning into a werewolf was a popular pastime in 16th-century France.

Sometimes a picture doesn’t tell the whole story.

The Stories Behind 8 Famous Photos

From Elvis Presley wearing a velvet suit to meet Richard Nixon to the migrant mother who unwittingly became the face of the Great Depression, these are the true stories behind a few iconic photographs from history.

The OED features 600,000 words over a thousand years of the English language.

13 Fascinating Facts About the Oxford English Dictionary

It took more than 70 years and tons of volunteer labor to create “the definitive record of the English language”—including an assist from a murderer. Get to know the Oxford English Dictionary better.

Never underestimate the power of belief.

‘Dogged by Death’: The True Story Behind the Bizarre Syndrome That Inspired ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’

Here’s how a wave of mysterious deaths in the late 1970s and early 1980s among Southeast Asian refugees living in America inspired Wes Craven to pen his 1984 horror classic, “A Nightmare on Elm Street.”

A freaky downspout carved in the form of a gargoyle on the Church of Saint Severin in Paris, France.

10 Fanciful Facts about Gargoyles

Technically, only the figures that function as water spouts are actual gargoyles.

Guinness Storehouse Crowned Europe’s Best Tourist Attraction of 2023

The best thing you can do in all of Europe is treat yourself to an Irish pint.

When Did Vampires and Werewolves Start Hating Each Other?

Their (often literal) blood feud is a relatively modern creation. So how did vampires and werewolves end up at each other’s throats?

The Surprisingly Long History of the Word ‘Yo’

The word ‘yo’ was around long before Rocky movies and rap songs.

Andrew Ridgeley and George Michael in ‘Wham!”

The 20 Best Documentaries on Netflix Right Now

The best documentaries prove that truth is not only stranger than fiction—it's frequently more entertaining.

A surgeon waving a dismembered arm might have sparked the Doctor’s Riot of 1788.

The Anatomy Riots: When Americans Protested Grave Robbing by Taking to the Streets

In the 18th and 19th centuries, robbing graves of their corpses for dissection at medical schools was an all too common practice—and sometimes, enraged citizens rose up in protest.

21 Old and Odd Directional Words

The rich history of the English language is full of similar directional words that are cool but uncommon, like ‘pancakewards,’ ‘couchward,’ and ‘pocketwards.’

The cover of Emily Wilson’s translation of ‘The Iliad.’

A New Translation of ’The Iliad’ Is Bringing a Truer Ancient Greece to Modern Readers

This all-new translation of the Homer epic is six years in the making.

‘Avocado’ doesn’t mean what you think it means.

11 Common English Words That Come From Native American Languages

‘Avocado’ comes to us from Nahuatl—and it doesn’t mean what you might think it means.

A Cathedral in England Is Home to One of the World's Oldest Cat Doors

Exeter Cathedral in England has had cats on the payroll since the 14th century.

The Eerie Legend of the ‘Old Leatherman,’ Connecticut’s Silent Wanderer

For decades, a man dressed head to toe in leather moved through Connecticut and New York. Who was he, and what did he want?

A Brief History of the Ouija Board

The Ouija board has terrified countless slumber party children and served as a plot vehicle in a number of Hollywood films. Here’s where it came from.

Where did this phrase come from, anyway?

Why Do We Say “Trick or Treat” on Halloween?

The origins of the phrase (indirectly) involve smelly cabbage, Donald Duck, and several Canadian journalists.

10 Facts About Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios

In the weeks leading up to Halloween, the family-friendly characters that normally populate Universal Studios are replaced with killer clowns and chainsaw-wielding maniacs.

How Phone Hackers Paved the Way for Apple

The ‘phone phreakers’ of the 1960s and 1970s indirectly led to the tech boom of today.

Prev Next