In thinking through which classic to watch this holiday season, I landed on the Mario Puzo - Francis Ford Coppola masterpiece, The Godfather. That got me wondering about Corleone, Sicily and who that city was actually named after. Professor Enzo Tontodonato of St. Bonaventure University took me down a very unexpected path, to the life and times of a 15th century "family" man, named 3 Ball Bartolomeo Colleoni. 

Who invented the first parachute, when was that, what were the circumstances, and why would anyone ever want to step out of a flying machine thousands of feet in the air using an untested accessory? There are a lot of people who own a piece of designing the first parachute, including Taccola, DaVinci, and a French fella named Andre-Jacques Garnerin.

Who doesn't love a big juicy burger? But where did this glorious gastronomic culinary creation come from? Who invented it and how did they dream it up? And what about that go-to condiment mix of mayo and ketchup? Or how did Thousand Island Dressing land on a Big Mac? And what about McDonald's and Ronald McDonald? Doucette de la Croix, the Provost of the Culinary Arts University of America filled me in on all of this need to know history for every hamburger fan.

Based on the research of Dr. Louis Pazgassian, a professor of Colonial North American and U.S. History and chair of Georgetown University’s history department, we're sharing the totally true facts of the First Thanksgiving, including a cast that includes Squanto, Massasoit, William and Mary Brewster, Edward and Susan Winslow, and the unheralded hero of the day, Olaf Dijksgeffen.

Ian Fleming created epic bad guys – Auric Goldfinger, Odd Job, Paco Scaramanga, Mr. Big… but in my mind, the best of them all was that Nehru-jacket wearing, scar-faced, kitty lover, Ernst Stavro Blofeld. I wondered if Fleming drew that character from his past in British Naval Intelligence. What I found, surprised and shocked me, as the basis for this character traced to our current times.

Back in 1947 in Roswell, New Mexico, a flying saucer crash landed in the desert. The surviving aliens, including a petulant toddler alien, and the government decided to make the event a social experiment. Problem is, it became entangled with Bugsy Siegel, Roy Cohn and a mechanic who is now telling all.

Totally True Facts #1 – The Totally True Story of Chicago's Bubbly Creek and a Guy Named Jeff Chłapowski, Based on Real Facts

Term limits are long overdue, and it's never been more clear that age limits also need to be imposed on our office holders. Here are some common sense ideas on how to change things, as well as some startling facts about the paychecks and pension plan for the lifetime appointees that sit as justices and judges in our courts.

My recent visit to the 9/11 Memorial was as moving as you might expect. I met someone there. Someone who, I also imagine, was a lot like me, her name was Valsa Raju, and now I remember her every day.

My sister, Amy Wagner, lost her family home of nearly 30 years to a fire in the spring of 2020. She's sharing her story of loss, community support, and rebuilding, and how that experience drove her to pay it forward by founding The Wagner Family Fire Fund.

I recently visited both The National Baseball Hall of Fame and The Pro Football Hall of Fame. The difference in the feel of them was like going to a family reunion versus a corporate Powerpoint presentation…

The count on mass shootings and gun violence just keeps growing. I'm breaking down the arguments and offering realistic solutions on how to amend the 2nd amendment.

When Mark Davis started to look at the details of the Grimes sisters murders, an inconsistency in a person of interest’s account made him dig deeper… and zero in on the prime suspects.

A journey of nearly 80 years leads Elizabeth, a transgender woman, to finally being comfortable in her skin and welcoming people into her truth.

If Muhammad Ali lived in these times, he would be canceled… which would deny us his greatest gift. Canceling people who dissent or drop vile comments and perspectives doesn’t solve anything. Maybe it’s time to cancel cancel-culture.

Once upon a time a kid opened a gallery in her parents’ garage. Her neighborhood supported her by buying her work and encouraging her. Now she’s returning the favor by leading the way to support and foster the arts in her own back yard.

I recently re-discovered Strat-O-Matic baseball, after nearly 40 years. The game – and the one played on The Field of Dreams - has reignited my love for baseball.

We have a compulsion… getting more stuff. Now we pay for stuff, and we don’t even care what’s in the box. I’ve got a better idea! Plus, an update on my new dog, Lucy!

I recently lost my dog, Nub, to cancer. I’m sharing my thoughts on that experience and working through that grief and loss. But there’s hope…

I’m talking with a former Catholic nun, my aunt, Reneta Webb, about her own story and the source of faith in a messy world.