Shortly after midnight on June 5, 1968, a 17-year-old bus boy named Juan Romero knelt on the concrete floor of the Ambassador Hotel pantry in Los Angeles and cradled the head of a dying senator. Bobby Kennedy lay on his back beneath fluorescent lights, blood pooling beneath him, a set of rosary beads pressed into … Read more
On December 19, 1944, a jeep pulled up to the main gate of Supreme Headquarters in Versailles, France. Inside were three men in American military police uniforms, with correct insignia and perfect English. The guard raised his hand and asked for the password. The driver smiled and answered, "Patton." But something felt wrong. The uniforms … Read more
Gudrun Himmler was born on August 8, 1929, in Munich, Germany. She entered the world as the National Socialist movement was entering its prime. Her father was Heinrich Himmler, the leader of the SS and one of the most important men of the Third Reich. Her mother was Margarete Siegroth, a nurse. Gudrun was the … Read more
Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis treated jewelry as more than ornament. Every brooch, pearl strand, and diamond carried a story of love, ambition, grief, or quiet rebellion. Her collection remains one of the most scrutinized and celebrated in American history. The drama began with an engagement ring. When John F. Kennedy proposed in 1953, Jackie's left … Read more
A newly surfaced investigation into the life of Rose Kennedy, the matriarch of America’s most storied political dynasty, has reignited explosive questions about the family’s darkest secret and the woman at its center. Drawing on her own 1974 memoir, declassified medical records, and decades of biographical reconstruction, the account paints a portrait of a mother … Read more
When "State of Grace" arrived in theaters on September 14, 1990, critics praised its grit and audiences left shaken. The film starred Sean Penn, Gary Oldman, and Ed Harris, and it has since been reappraised as a forgotten classic of the gangster genre. But the movie softened a story that was far worse in real … Read more
For more than fifty years, Clint Hill carried a burden he rarely discussed in public. As the Secret Service agent assigned to Jacqueline Kennedy, he stood closer to some of the twentieth century's most defining moments than almost anyone else alive. Only later in life did he begin to speak openly about what he witnessed … Read more
Chicago, Illinois, May 7, 1927. Two men step off an eastbound train at Union Station. They carry leather bags and wear low fedora hats. Their names are Anthony Torchio and Vincent Spicuzza. They are hired killers from St. Louis. Each has been promised $25,000 to kill Alphonse Capone. The station is crowded with travelers. Torchio … Read more
In March 1945, a destroyed brick road cut through the frost of the German Rhineland. The air was thick with brick dust, shattered glass, and the sharp metallic smell of gunpowder. Private First Class Thomas Miller, a 20-year-old soldier, moved slowly past a collapsed bakery. He carried an M1 Garand rifle, its wooden stock damp … Read more
In August 1945, Berlin was a city of formal celebrations and underlying tensions. The war in Europe had been over for three months, and senior American and Soviet officers gathered for an official victory dinner in the Soviet sector. The hosts controlled everything: the hall, the menu, the seating, and the order of toasts. General … Read more