Before he was the Colonel, Harland Sanders sold insurance, tires, and gas before he stumbled into the fried chicken business and became a household name.

Hedy Lamarr was known in Hollywood as "the most beautiful woman in the world," and she also invented the technology that ultimately led to WiFi.

Rosemary West seemed like an unassuming British mother, but her home concealed brutal incest, beatings, and the remains of numerous young women — including her own daughter.

The bright snapshot of her suburban life belied a dark negative — Kristen Gilbert was a serial killer who preyed on the weakest victims: those she nursed.

Due to his non-stop partying, James Buchanan was nearly expelled from Dickenson College. Twice.

A highly alcoholic spirit originating from Switzerland, absinthe is legendary for its strength. But its potency also led to absinthe being banned in several countries for its perceived link to crime and debauchery.

In 1981, a crew of American and Canadian neo-Nazis and KKK members plotted a violent overthrow of the Dominican government, but their ship never made it out of New Orleans.

After Emperor Nero allegedly kicked his second wife Sabina to death in 65 A.D., he met a slave boy named Sporus who looked like her. So Nero had him castrated and took him as his bride.

During the Golden Age of Piracy, some buccaneers engaged in matelotage, a form of civil union. Sometimes these arrangements were purely financial — but often they were affectionate, romantic, or sexual.

As a powerful man in ancient Rome, Julius Caesar probably had sex with both men and women, but it was his taste in partners that threatened to ruin his reputation.

In 1613, Hasekura Tsunenaga set out from Japan on an expedition that would take him to California, Mexico, and most of Europe.