If ancient Mesopotamia was the cradle of civilization, Babylon was arguably its favorite baby. Nowadays, its name is synonymous with opulence and moral decay, but to quote the Evening Standard, "Babylon wasn't so bad."
Read MoreAfter a police raid on the Stonewall Inn, patrons took up whatever they could find and fought back against their oppressors, and amid the chaos, the Gay Rights movement was born. This is the untold truth of the Stonewall Riots.
Read MoreThere have been many popes who kept their birth name when they were elected to the papacy, though the last one was in 1555 -- Marcellus II. Here's why they change them.
Read MoreThe Mythbusters, among other unrealized dreams, and much to their own disappointment, will never turn the world into their own personal Hot Wheels track.
Read MoreNearly 30 years ago, in 1991, Guns N' Roses released "November Rain," a nine-minute ballad full of sweeping orchestral accompaniments, soaring guitar work, and a music video that grew as much notoriety as the song itself.
Read MoreThe San Juan Bautista, "St. John the Baptist" -- one of America's first slave shipments -- originally had 350 slaves on board, bound for Vera Cruz in the colony of New Spain. About 150 of them died en route; apparently a pretty standard rate of loss for such trips.
Read MoreIn 1969, protesters took over Alcatraz, hoping to turn it into a Native American cultural center. This is the crazy true story.
Read MoreThe world's most dangerous tree takes the form of the manchineel, typically found in Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and of course, Florida.
Read MoreMatisyahu struck an interesting figure in the mid-2000s music scene. After all, he was the Hassidic reggae artist from New York, who looked and acted the part. Since then, where has he been?
Read MoreDespite settling in what became the US long before Christopher Columbus was even born, Native Americans did not become US citizens until the 1920s. Here's why.
Read MoreEven well-paid actors can spend more money than they make, and the following action stars went broke or came close to it.
Read MoreThe Peter Parker school of ethics teaches that with great power comes great responsibility. If Spider-Man had consulted a lawyer, he'd know that U.S. courts often hold people with great power less responsible for wrongdoing, especially public officials, a legal protection called qualified immunity.
Read MoreIt's not all that unusual for people with similar endgames to disagree about the strategy to get there. Even really smart people. Even the Founding Fathers.
Read MoreEmmett Till loved to laugh."He would pay people to tell him jokes," according to his cousin, Wheeler Parker. He also "loved to tell jokes," said childhood friend Richard Heard, who remembered Emmett being "a funny guy all the time."
Read MoreThe Pentagon, headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, is a remarkable feat of architectural design and structural engineering. And it's got a ton of bathrooms.
Read MoreBaba Yaga is Russian, she's scary, and she wants to eat you, but there's so much more. How do you know when you've found a Baba Yaga and not just a generic forest witch? Is she definitely going to eat you? Can you go to her for a solid deal on a good horse? This is the legend of Baba Yaga explained.
Read MoreAmerica's tragic history of racism is rooted at least in part in the nation's sordid history of slavery. Enter the Clotilda -- a poignant reminder of injustice.
Read MoreEvery time a metalhead throws up the devil horns and casts a protective ward against the evil eye, we're saying a small thank you to Ronnie James Dio. Here's how he passed.
Read MoreAn 1884 song observed that "A Boy's Best Friend is His Mother." It perfectly describes the relationship of King Henry VII of England -- father of the future Henry VIII, grandfather of Queen Elizabeth I -- and his mother, Margaret Beaufort.
Read MoreYes, 300 is based-ish on real events, but it portrays those events through a deeply goofy lens. As it turns out, the Spartans, the real Spartans, weren't what you'd call "TV ready."
Read MoreNevertheless, there are those who manage to cut a truly unique swath through the world of popular culture, even art, and sustain that unique place for the course of a career. By anyone's estimation, at the head of the pack would be the songwriter/director/actor/performer known as Prince.
Read MoreAxl Rose might be one of the last people you'd expect to say something uplifting or positively thought-provoking. But even if you consider him a malignant carbuncle on the otherwise un-chafed butt cheeks of human happiness, he's said some fairly inspiration things.
Read MoreFinding success in the music industry is hard, and some rockers nearly missed out. These are rock stars who almost weren't in the bands that made them famous.
Read MoreGenuine, committed, dyed-in-the-wool dog owners are like golfers: They're really easy to shop for. But there's one thing dog owners are split down the middle about -- dog beds? To buy or not to buy?
Read MoreNo Doubt rocketed into mainstream fame with their third album, 1995's Tragic Kingdom, and the song "Don't Speak." It's no surprise that the quintessential nineties rock band who found success because of a breakup will be subject to constant rumors of splitting up.
Read MoreIn the scant few months since its official unveiling, America's sixth military branch, the United States Space Force, has faced many battles. But its biggest foe of all may turn out to be ... Netflix.
Read More"Bruce Lee was my friend and teacher," Kareem Abdul Jabbar states simply, yet powerfully. The basketball superstar had started studying martial arts growing up in New York, and when he was a student at UCLA sought to continue that growth.
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