Byte Sized Biographies…

Long before Harry and Meghan, a much more serious crisis and scandal enveloped the British monarchy and the House of Windsor, the abdication of Edward VIII The future Edward VIII, known within his immediate family by the nickname of David, was born on June 23, 1894.  His father, George V, did not become the king until 1910, then anointing David, his eldest son, with the title of Prince of Wales, next in the line of royal … Continue reading The Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Love and Scandal (Part One) →

Long before Harry and Meghan, a much more serious crisis and scandal enveloped the British monarchy and the House of Windsor, the abdication of Edward VIII By mid-1934, even British high society insiders were aghast at what, “the little man,” as David was scornfully known as behind his back, had actually taken up with.  When the Royal family deliberately deleted the Simpsons from the Royal guest list for the wedding of David’s brother, George, in November … Continue reading The Duke And Duchess of Windsor, Love and Scandal (Part Two) →

In July of 1954, an obscure milk shake mixer salesman walked into a fast food restaurant in San Bernardino, CA. The restaurant was operated by two brothers named McDonald, the result of this interaction profoundly changed American culture, business and nutrition forever. Ray Kroc first interacted with Prince Castle as the Chicago based account manager for Lily-Tulip and sensing the enormous potential of the Multimixer device, he secured the national distribution rights for the machine … Continue reading Ray Kroc, McDonald’s Mastermind (Part One) →

In July of 1954, an obscure milk shake mixer salesman walked into a fast food restaurant in San Bernardino, CA. The restaurant was operated by two brothers named McDonald, the result of this interaction profoundly changed American culture, business and nutrition forever. Despite four decades and many years of dealing with a virtual absentee husband and serious anxiety over their household debt, Eleanor Kroc was still hanging in on the marriage.  That is until, in 1961, … Continue reading Ray Kroc, McDonald’s Mastermind (Part Two) →

In 1770, the French people greeted Austrian Marie Antoinette as the beautiful and future French queen. Twenty-three years later they guillotined her as the most reviled woman in France. In Europe, with most political powers ruled by monarchies, the best method of insuring a stable alliance with another ruling dynasty was through marriage.  Maria Theresa aggressively forged alliances with the French Bourbons dynasty through marriages of her daughters Maria Amalia and Maria Karolina to the … Continue reading Marie Antoinette, Deadly Splendor (Part One) →

In 1770, the French people greeted Austrian Marie Antoinette as the beautiful and future French queen. Twenty-three years later they guillotined her as the most reviled woman in France. The affair of the Diamond Necklace had its origin in a piece of jewelry that was commissioned by Louis XV in 1772 and meant as a gift for his mistress, the Madame Du Barry.  He requested that the royal jewelers Charles Boehmer and Paul Bassenge create … Continue reading Marie Antoinette, Deadly Splendor (Part Two) →

An enduring American legend, hear what actually happened at the Battle of the Alamo By 1817, after emerging from the military, David situated his family in Lawrence County, Tennessee as one of the area’s first inhabitants.  Making a living as a professional hunter, mostly of wild bears, Crockett also began to involve himself in local politics, serving as a county commissioner and eventually as a state appointed justice of the peace.  He also served several terms in … Continue reading Crockett, Bowie and Travis, Defenders of the Alamo (Part One) →

An enduring American legend, hear what actually happened at the Battle of the Alamo. Fannin’s typically sluggish retreat left him out in the open and resulted in a March 19 battle near Coleto Creek only a few miles east of Goliad.  Fannin’s men successfully repulsed repeated Mexican attacks but suffered many wounded troops that they could neither treat or transport.  The following morning, with another Mexican attack imminent, Fannin surrendered with Urrea only promising that he would … Continue reading Crockett, Bowie and Travis, Defenders of the Alamo (Part Two) →

The true story about the man who contributed mightily to the destruction of one of America’s greatest 20th century icons. According to Colonel Tom Parker personally, he was born in early 1900, in Huntington, West Virginia and began working in touring carnivals at a very young age.  He served in the military, eventually developed and promoted his own carnival acts and graduated to first promoting and then managing country musicians until obtaining the exclusive management … Continue reading Elvis Presley’s Manager: Colonel Tom Parker (Volume 5, Episode 11) Part One →

The true story about the man who contributed mightily to the destruction of one of America’s greatest 20th century icons. The Colonel, understanding that the lack of international touring was a major irritant for Elvis, then devised an ingenious plan to circumvent his personal abhorrence of such a tour.  He made a deal with various television networks all over the world for Elvis to appear in a live format for live international satellite transmission to … Continue reading Elvis Presley’s Manager: Colonel Tom Parker (Volume 5, Episode11) Part Two →