Tag: contemporary history
-
In Order to Live by Yeonmi Park/Maryanne Vollers
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for In Order to Live: North Korea is worse than I thought, amazingly. Quick synopsis: The story of Yeonmi Park, who escaped North Korea only to end up being human trafficked in China. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Children are taught that Kim Jong Il wrote fifteen hundred books while at…
-
The Book Was Better: Catch and Kill
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Catch and Kill: Movie producers are perverts? Who knew? Except literally everyone. Quick synopsis: The story of how Ronan Farrow took down Harvey Weinstein. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Ronan Farrow is also a lawyer and clearly an overachiever. Fun Fact for History Nerds: Weinstein actually reached out to Woody…
-
Val (Amazon)
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Val: The Iceman shows his softer side. Quick synopsis: A video autobiography of actor Val Kilmer. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Val Kilmer went to Julliard and is the youngest person ever accepted into their drama school. Fun Fact for History Nerds: Kilmer didn’t want to be in Top Gun…
-
The Holly by Julian Rubinstein
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Holly: Denver is a damn mess. Quick synopsis: The story of Terrance Roberts and the gang war he both participated in and fought against. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Rick Ross, the rapper, is actually using the name of “Freeway” Rick Ross, the convicted drug dealer. The drug dealer…
-
Columbine by Dave Cullen
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Columbine: It’s worse than you remember. Quick synopsis: The Columbine school massacre of 1999. If you were alive, I am sure you remember where you were. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Columbine is only the 5th most deadly school shooting in U.S. history. Fun Fact for History Nerds: One of…
-
Operation Odessa (TV)
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Operation Odessa: I’m mad my parents didn’t buy me a helicopter when Soviet Russia fell. Quick synopsis for Operation Odessa: Three gangsters try to sell a nuclear submarine to a drug cartel. It’s so much more than that but honestly, it’s really hard to sum this up quickly. Fun Fact Non-History…
-
The Lady and the Dale (HBO)
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Lady and the Dale: A three-wheeled car looks no less ridiculous than those three-wheel motorcycles. Quick synopsis: The story of Elizabeth Carmichael and her three-wheeled car, the Dale. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Liz Carmichael was born Jerry Dean Michael in 1927 in Indiana. Well, allegedly as she had…
-
Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe
Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Empire of Pain: The Sacklers suck. Quick synopsis: The history of the Sackler family, who projected themselves as philanthropists to the world while their painkillers were sending thousands on the road to death. Reminder: they suck. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: Medical schools (even the fancy ones) previously limited the…
-
Ballad of the Whiskey Robber by Julian Rubinstein
Book cover of Ballad of the Whiskey Robber