Admiral William “Bull” Halsey was a tough talker and a fighter, but was also a deeply flawed commander.
Posted inFeature
The Unconventional Burt Rutan
In a career that has flouted convention, Burt Rutan made advances to the stall-resistant canard wing and designed SpaceShipOne, the first privately funded aircraft to achieve suborbital flight.
Posted inUncategorized
Daily Quiz for September 20, 2009
On July 4, 1777, George Rogers Clark reportedly told merrymakers at this location, "You may go on with your fun, but remember you are now dancing under the flag of Virginia, instead of that of Great Britain."
Posted inUncategorized
Daily Quiz for September 19, 2009
This man said America’s post–Civil War navy could be defeated by "a single ironclad mounting four (4) heavy rifled guns."
Posted inInterview
Interview: Joe Quattrone / Barber to Capitol Hill
Interview with Joe Quattrone—’Joe Q’—who has been helping the very powerful in Washington, D.C., to look their very best for nearly 40 years.
Posted inWeapons & Gear Manual
The Spitfire’s Finest Hour
The Supermarine Spitfire was designed by R. J. Mitchell in 1934 as an agile,
high-speed British fighter. The Spitfire name covers 24 different variants—planes that differ greatly in firepower, armor, engine power, and airframe design. Late Spitfires bore little resemblance to their forebears.
Posted inStories
How General Patton and Some Unlikely Allies Saved Austria’s Fabled White Horses
Something had to be done to get the valuable Lipizzaners out of the path of the Red Army—and soon.
Posted inStories
In Sicily, A Son Retraces His Father’s Footsteps
A son retraces his father’s wartime steps, and Patton’s, in Sicily.
Posted inStories
A Promise Fulfilled
The Emancipation Proclamation all but guaranteed the death of slavery, but exactly what that document did–and did not–do remains the subject of heated debate
Posted inStories
The Madness of John Brown
In the 150 years since Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry, historians have struggled to come to grips with his mental state.