American TV series or program
History's Greatest Mysteries is an American
documentary television series that aired on the
History Channel.
Overview
The 154
episodes of the series were produced from 1998 to 2011.
[1] Each season consisted of 12 to 14 one-hour episodes that focused on
historical events or subjects considered to be mysterious by the general public. Episodes typically begin with Kent giving a broad overview of the subject followed by what is commonly accepted as explanation. During the main segments, experts on both sides of the issue present their evidence and opinions. Before commercial breaks, Kent would give the audience bits of trivia relating to the subject; episodes also included a timeline which would give important events occurring around the time of the events discussed in the show.
Subjects covered on the show ranged from the beginning of
human history to modern subjects such as
Carlos the Jackal,
The Amityville Horror, and
Area 51, as well as
political conspiracies and
conspiracy theories such as
MK ULTRA and the
JFK Assassination. Common aspects of history covered on the show include
religion,
crime, the
supernatural,
archaeology,
mythology, and
folklore.
Some episodes of the show were repackaged as part of a series called "Incredible But True?", which aired episodes of History's Mysteries as well as other shows (including In Search of History and UFO Files, also narrated by Ackroyd). The show's last episodes were an anthology of clips from previous episodes (such as Mysteries of the High Seas).
Although new episodes are no longer being produced, re-runs of History's Mysteries are regularly shown on the
History Channel. Additionally, they are available on
DVD.
Episode list
Notes: (alternate name); some of these names are exactly the same as
Decoding the Past episodes.
Season 1
Episode # - Original Air Date - Title
- "The Death of Marilyn Monroe" (
topic)
- "Project Underworld: The Military and the Mafia" (
topic)
- "Navajo Code Talkers" (
topic)
- "The Wright Brothers Controversy" (
topic)
- 01-01-01 "
Prophecies": Civilizations seek their destinies through prophetic visions. (
topic)
- "Hells Angels" (
topic)
- "Japan's Mysterious Pyramids" (
topic)
- "Ancient Aliens" (
topic)
- "Sodom and Gomorrah" (
topic)
Season 2
- "Ghost Ships" ("The Mary Celeste"): Some of the Maritime's deep rooted mysteries are of ships that disappear only to reappear as ghostly apparitions upon the waves. Discusses famous "ghost ships" such as the
Flying Dutchman, as well as derelict vessels like the
Mary Celeste and
Carroll A. Deering.
- "Doomed Sisters of the
Titanic": discusses the fate of the less famous sisters of the Titanic:
HMHS Britannic and
RMS Olympic.
- "Chain Gangs" (
topic)
- "The True Story of Gladiators" (
topic)
- "Cain and Abel: A Murder Mystery" (
topic)
- "Shark Attack 1916" (
topic)
- "America's Stonehenge" (
topic)
- "The Holy Grail" (
topic)
- "The Civil War Draft Riots"
- "The Five Points Gang" (
topic)
- "Hoax of the Ages: Piltdown Man"
- "Roswell: Secrets Unveiled"
- "Spies of the
Revolutionary War"
Season 3
Episode # - Original Air Date - Title
- 2. 06-13-01 "Fatima Secrets Unveiled": The Virgin Mary reveals three prophecies to children in 1917 Portugal. (
topic)
- 3. "The Essex: The True Story of Moby Dick" (
topic)
- 8. "Buried Treasure" (
topic)
Season 4
- 2. "The Shroud of Turin" (
topic)
- 5. "The True Story of the Fighting Sullivans" (
topic)
- 6. "The Search for Noah's Ark" (
topic)
- 7. "Drake's Secret Voyage" (
topic)
- 8. "The True Story of Mutiny on the Bounty" (
topic)
Season 5
- 7. "Secret Plunder: G.I. Looters" (
topic)
- 8. "Raise the Hunley" (
topic)
Season 6
- 2. "Where's Jimmy Hoffa?: The Life and Disappearance of A Labor Legend" (
topic)
- 3. "The Bloody Tower of London" (
topic)
- 4. "Ghost Plane of the Desert: Lady Be Good" (
topic)
- 10. "Amityville: Horror or Hoax?": examines investigations, both credulous and skeptical, of the Amityville haunting (
topic)
Season 7
- 1. "Amityville: The Haunting" (
topic)
- 5. "Hitler's Perfect Children" (
topic)
- 9. "Natural Mummies" (
topic)
Season 8
- "Body Snatchers" (
topic)
- "The Onion Field With Joseph Wambaugh" (
topic)
- "FBI's Ten Most Wanted" (
topic)
- "Lost City of Atlantis" (
topic)
- "Dr. Guillotin and His Execution Machine" (
topic)
Season 9
- 6. "
Vanished!": discusses the mysterious disappearances of individuals during the 20th Century, including
Judge Crater and
D. B. Cooper.
- 8. "
Alaska's
Bermuda Triangle" - Alaska natives say that
shape-shifting spirits kidnap lost travelers.
Season 10
- "Mysteries of
Easter Island"
Season 11
- 7. "The
Spanish Armada"
Season 12
- 1. "The True Story of
Braveheart"
- 2. "The Hunt for
Jack the Ripper"
- 3. "
Amazon Women"
- 7. "
Secret Societies"
- 8. "
Exorcising the Devil"
- 10. "
Crypts,
Coffins and
Corpses"
Season 13
- 1. "
Superstitions"
- 4. "
Carlos the Jackal"
- 10. "
Devil's Island:
Hell on Earth"
Season 14
Episode # - Original Air Date - Title
- 3. "The Strange Case of
Lizzie Borden"
- 4. 12-04-00 "
Circus Freaks and
Sideshows": Circus and sideshow performers share their memories of the magical midway.
- 5. "The True Story of
Rasputin"
- 7. "The Real
Dr. Crippen"
- 8. "The
Bible Code: Predicting
Armageddon"
- 9. 11-14-00 "
Nazi Ghost Train": The Resistance prevents Nazis from sending a train full of prisoners to Germany.
- 10. "
Cults"
Season 15
- 2. "Silent Witnesses: The
Kitty Genovese Murder"
- 3. "
Vikings, Fury from the North"
- 4. "
Smallpox: Deadly Again?"
- 5. "The
Children's Crusade"
- 6. "The
Inquisition"
- 7. "Samurai Warrior"
[2]
- 8. "The True Story of Rob Roy"
- 10. "Ancient Monster Hunters": The cyclops, Amazon warriors, and the ferocious griffin may have a place in the fossil record.
Season 16
- 2. "
Monsters of the Sea": Huge and mysteries sea animals breaking the surface have always been part of sailors' folklore.
- 3. "
Nazi Bomb": How close were the Nazis to developing an atomic bomb? Focus on
Werner Heisenberg's involvement in interviews with
Hans Bethe.
- 16. "Contaminated: The
Karen Silkwood Story"
Season unknown
Episode # - Original Air Date - Title
- "Terror in the Heartland: The Black Legion"
- "The True Story of
The Untouchables"
- "
Quantrill's Raiders"
- "
Judas: Traitor or Friend?" (
topic)
- "Failed
Assassinations": focuses on failed assassination attempts on US Presidents, including
Andrew Jackson,
Theodore Roosevelt,
Gerald Ford, and
Ronald Reagan.
- "The Mysterious
Howard Hughes"
- "The
Abominable Snowman"
- "U.S. Invaded!"
- "Killer
Submarine"
- "
Alamo Scouts"
- "The Mysteries of
King Tut"
- "
Salem Witch Trials"
- "The True Story of the
Philadelphia Experiment"
- "Secret Brotherhood of
Freemasons"
- "
Ancient City: Found and Lost"
- "The
FBI Celebrity Files"
- "The
Cavemen"
- "
Werewolves": The werewolf myth holds a prominent place in history.
- "Roman Roads: Paths to Empire"
- "The
End of the World"
- "Where is
Jimmy Hoffa?"
- "
Jack Ruby on Trial": discusses Jack Ruby and explores the possibility of a conspiracy to kill
John F. Kennedy.
- "
Vigilantes"
- "
Area 51: Beyond
Top Secret"
- "The
Occult and the
Third Reich"
- "
Witchcraft"
- "
Zombies"
- "The Real
Dracula"
- "The Boy Who Gave Away
the Bomb"
- "The
Hitler Youth"
- "The Real
Robinson Crusoe"
- "Tales of the FBI:
Operation Solo"
- "Cliff Mummies of the
Andes: Unwrapped
- "Secrets of the
Dinosaur Hunters"
- "The Mafia at War": discusses the US government's efforts to
enlist the Mafia for assistance in fighting
World War II.
- "
San Quentin"
- "
King Herod's Lost City"
- "Lost Colony of
Roanoke"
- "Secret
UFO Files": examines the modern era of UFO sightings, and the US governments reaction to and knowledge of the subject.
- "
Ship of Gold"
- "The Legacy of
Al Capone"
- "
Infamous Murders:
Horror on the
Highways"
- "
Infamous Murders:
Mass Murders"
- "A Question of Conspiracy: The
RFK Murder"
- "
Infamous Murders: Trapped by
Forensics"
- "
Infamous Murders: Intent on
Murder"
- "Infamous Murders: Streets of
Fear"
- "
Infamous Murders: The
Cannibals"
- "
Outlaws: The Ten Most Wanted"
- "Infamous Murders:
Stalking the Innocent"
- "
Organized Crime: A World History:
Sicily"
- "
Alcatraz"
- "
Sex in the Real
West"
- 06-19-01 "
The War Illusionist": A British magician fools Hitler's generals and pilots.
- "
Infamous Murders: Killing for Thrills"
- "The Enduring Mystery of
Stonehenge": It stands on a wide plain in southern England, a circular formation of over 160 massive stones, creating an endless mystery for historians.
- "The Mysteries of
Devil's Triangles": discusses unexplained disappearances of ships and planes in the
Bermuda Triangle and the
Great Lakes. Focuses particularly on
Flight 19 and the
Edmund Fitzgerald.
- 01-17-03 "
England's Lost Castles": Timber castles dot England during the Middle Ages.
- "The
Knights of Camelot"
- "
England's Great Wall"
- "
Scotland Yard's Greatest Investigations"
- "
Asteroids"
- "The
Greensboro Massacre"
- "
Bigfoot and Other Monsters": examines popular subjects of
cryptozoology, including
Bigfoot,
Mokele mbembe, the
chupacabra, and others.
- "
Crop Circle Controversy"
- "Infamous Murders: The
Poisoners"
- "The
Loch Ness Monster"
- "
The Odessa File"
- "
Bounty Hunters: Relentless Pursuers"
- "The Most Ancient
Taboo: Cannibalism"
- "The
Great Train Robbery"
- "Born Killers:
Leopold and Loeb"
- "
Roswell: Final Declassification"
- "Alien Hunters"
- "The Search for
Life on Mars"
- "The
Manson Family Murders"
- 10-25-00 "The
Roman Emperors": The heads of Ancient Rome lead lives of increasing depravity.
- "
Infamous Murders:
Women Who Kill"
- "A Secret Story"
- "
American-Italian Internment: A Secret Story"
- "
Lost Worlds"
- "Mysteries on the High Seas"
- "Monsters"
- "
Miracles,
Mystics, and Prophecies"
- "Mysteries of the
Bible"
- "Buried Secrets: Digging For
DNA"
- "The
Catacombs of Rome"
- "Getting High: A History of
LSD"
- "Hidden Tomb of
Antiochus"
- "History of
Prostitution: Sex in the City"
- "
Human Bondage"
- "
Mind Control: America's Secret War": discusses
MK ULTRA and other Cold War projects to create mind-controlling substances.
- "Ancient
Drugs": Humans indulge in many frightening and often
toxic substances;
altered states of consciousness,
shamanism,
trance dancing,
mind-altering substances,
visions,
soma,
wine,
beer,
opium,
Demeter cult (
Mysteries of Elysis),
alcohol,
chocolate,
tobacco,
coca,
San Pedro cactus rites (
mescalin),
cocaine,
heroin,
ayahuasca; features interviews with
Douglas Sharon (Director of
San Diego Museum of Man),
Huston Smith,
Andrew Weil, professor
Carole Fontaine (
Andover Newton Theological School),
Wade Davis, artist
Pablo Amaringo
- 08-09-03 "
UFOs: Then and Now?: Nightmare": Alien abductions.
References
External links