Losers, Pretenders & Scoundrels

In this second installment on the life and times of John Romulus Brinkley, quack, we follow his incredible career trajectory as he becomes a radio tycoon, political force in the great state of Kansas, and eventually gets driven from America's border by the Mexican Army.

John Romulus Brinkley became wealthy, famous, and powerful as one of America's most colorful, ludicrous quacks. He made his fortune by "curing" male impotence by sewing goat testicles into clients. As well as becoming a radio tycoon, politician, and more. 

What could you get away with if you looked the part? What if you're trying to trick a bunch of German soldiers with a sense of blind obedience? Wilhelm Voigt managed to commandeer a whole squad and take over a city hall long enough to grab a boatload of cash. Heaton and Young dive into how he did it.

Saparmurat Niyazov was a Soviet thug turned insane dictator of Turkmenistan. And as their leader he made sure to hit all the classics. Built a religion around himself, wiped out the free media and syphoned money away from his people. But what about his great ideas like...the ice palace in the desert. Or his beloved golden statue that turned to face the sun. Heaton and Young explore this insane dictator.

Maximillian I was the "other" Hapsburg son. The one who was born second and didn't get to be Emperor of Austria. But he thought he'd found the next best thing! Emperor of a country across an ocean who he had no common heritage or connection with. Unfortunately, the people of Mexico didn't agree. Heaton and Young explore this charismatic but ill-fated monarch.

Most of us have heard about the Ponzi Scheme. But what of the man who gave it his name? Charles Ponzi, was an Italian immigrant who never quite got on the right side of the law. But his greatest claim to fame was a tangled web of financial lies that almost brought down the Boston banking system. Unlicensed historians, Andrew Heaton and Andrew Young bring this fellow down to size.

Was Zorro real? You bet he was! Except he was Irish. And didn't wear a mask. And Probably couldn't carve a "Z" with his sword. And proclaimed himself king of Mexico.  But other than that, William Lamport is the spitting image of Zorro, who was actually based on him. Heaton and Young take a look at what gave this redhead the cahones to try to take the Mexican throne, and what stopped him.

In popular film Mary, Queen of Scots is lionized or victimized or both. However there's some good evidence she A) killed a lot of people and B) did some serious plotting. Unlicensed historians Andrew Heaton and Andrew Young investigate

The best con man can sell you anything. A car, a boat, a Nigerian fortune. But what about a bridge connecting Manhattan to Brooklyn? Well, George C. Parker did it. And he kept doing it for forty years. Heaton and Young discuss the scant details we have on this swindler and what makes the Irish so damned charming.

The Pirate Life was a tough life for the most hardened of men in the 1700s. But what if you were a woman on the high seas? Zheng Yi Sao was just such a pirate, and arguably one of the most successful pirates in the history of lootin'. Heaton and Young explore her knack for negotiation and her rather non-traditional relationship with her...um...son?