Tom Waits and the Story Behind “I Hope That I...

On this episode of Our American Stories, in 1964, Leon Hess set out to give children something fun and affordable at his gas stations—and ended up creating a toy truck that lit up, rolled out, and quickly sold out. Sixty years later, Hess Trucks have become a holiday tradition, w ...  Show more

On this episode of Our American Stories, on Christmas Eve 1968, the crew of Apollo 8 became the first humans to orbit the Moon. Joined by astronomer and broadcaster Steve Kates, known as Dr. Sky, they recall the moment the astronauts read from the Book of Genesis, uniting million ...  Show more

Husband and father, Larry O’Brien, loved the freedom his job as a long-distance lorry driver gave him. But on March 6th 1987, that freedom was almost lost in the horror of the Zeebrugge ferry disaster, in which almost 200 people lost their lives. Larry – who could not swim – risk ...  Show more

 In moments of survival, people have claimed to sense a mysterious presence that helps them through hard times and leads them to safety. From expeditions through the Arctic to escaping the World Trade Center during 9/11, what’s come to be known as the Third Man Factor has repo ...

For decades, a piece of his skull sat in a Russian archive - our most decisive proof that the most evil man of the 20th century died in 1945. When scientists finally tested the bone in 2009, they discovered it belonged to a woman under 40. The evidence we trusted for over 60 year ...  Show more

Life was pretty good for Paul Brady. He had just got engaged to Emma and the big day was set for the following spring.

Paul was a foreman responsible for security at a number of local site and one sunny Saturday morning he met up with a joiner, David Collier, and hea ...