History's Mysteries

History's Mysteries
Created by Patrick T. Gattis
Presented by Arthur Kent
Narrated by David Ackroyd
Country of origin  United States
No. of seasons ~16
No. of episodes ~154
Production
Running time 1 hour
Broadcast
Original channel The History Channel
Original run 1998? – 2006?
External links
Website

History's Mysteries is an American documentary television series that aired on the History Channel.

Overview

The 154 episodes of the series were produced from 1998-2006. 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 accepted as a common 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

  1. "The Death of Marilyn Monroe" (topic)
  2. "Project Underworld: The Military and the Mafia" (topic)
  3. "Navajo Code Talkers" (topic)
  4. "The Wright Brothers Controversy" (topic)
  5. 01-01-01 "Prophecies": Civilizations seek their destinies through prophetic visions. (topic)
  6. "Hell's Angels" (topic)
  7. "Japan's Mysterious Pyramids" (topic)
  8. "Ancient Aliens" (topic)
  9. "Sodom and Gomorrah" (topic)

Season 2

  1. "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.
  2. "Doomed Sisters of the Titanic": discusses the fate of the less famous sisters of the Titanic: HMHS Britannic and RMS Olympic.
  3. "Chain Gangs" (topic)
  4. "The True Story of Gladiators" (topic)
  5. "Cain and Abel: A Murder Mystery" (topic)
  6. "Shark Attack 1916" (topic)
  7. "America's Stonehenge" (topic)
  8. "The Holy Grail" (topic)
  9. "The Civil War Draft Riots"
  10. "The Five Points Gang" (topic)

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

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

  1. "Body Snatchers (topic)
  2. "The Onion Field With Joseph Wambaugh" (topic)
  3. "FBI's Ten Most Wanted" (topic)
  4. "Lost City of Atlantis" (topic)
  5. "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

  1. "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"
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 with interviews with Hans Bethe.

Season unknown

Episode # - Original Air Date - Title

External links