Historian Hampton Sides describes one of the most brutal ground battles ever fought – the 17-day Battle of Chosin Reservoir, which began on the 27th of November 1950. The conditions were relentlessly difficult – frigid temperatures, frozen, rocky ground, and an enemy that kept coming in waves. And they weren’t the North Koreans who General MacArthur had expected. No this was Mao's Red Army. More than 120,000 Chinese soldiers surrounded 30,000 US Marines and UN troops. What was a desperate situat...
Mar 17, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Season 4Ep. 12
When Alfred Brenner enlisted in the Marines, he was told that the K-9 unit got to travel with air conditioning so he volunteered, even though he didn’t really know anything about dogs. He was assigned a German shepherd named Grief and these two forged a bond during four months of training and in combat in Afghanistan. Alfred explains the role of a K-9 team as part of a platoon, how they train the dogs to detect explosives and bravely lead the way on patrol in enemy territory. This highly dangero...
Mar 10, 2025•1 hr 12 min•Season 4Ep. 11
"Desert Storm" vet and Army Times reporter Kelly Kennedy leapt at the chance to embed with an infantry unit to work on a story about PTSD. What Kelly couldn't have known is that her unit, Battalion 1-26, Charlie Company, was one of the first to serve 15 months in combat conditions. (A decision later reversed by the U.S. Army.) Kelly's unit was placed in a "hot spot" and given the impossible mission to win hearts and minds. In fact, these soldiers faced almost daily IED incidents, earning them th...
Mar 03, 2025•1 hr 6 min•Season 4Ep. 10
Retired Commander Mark Divine served for over 15 years as a U.S. Navy Seal around the world in Asia Pacific, Africa, Bahrain, and Iraq. A native of upstate New York, and a lifelong student of karate and zen meditation, Mark entered the U.S. Navy in 1989 and entered the Seals’ BUDS training in 1990. As an outgrowth of his training and his service, he ultimately developed his own systems for mental and physical fitness, described in his books "SEALFIT" and “ Unbeatable Mind .” In his latest book "...
Feb 24, 2025•51 min•Season 4Ep. 9
Our remarkable guest from Season One returns explaining how a small group of powerful men create celebrities out of abused children: Anneke Lucas was only a small child growing up in a little town in Belgium, when her mother began taking her to adult parties, and trafficking her to be abused as part of an organized system. When she was nine, she was spotted at one of these events by none other than David Rockefeller, who made her his own special project, whisking her away to America and presenti...
Feb 17, 2025•1 hr 24 min•Season 4Ep. 8
Re-airing a Season One fan favorite: The most secretive mission of World War II ended in the largest scale shark attack of all time. The U.S.S. Indianapolis’ mission was so secret, the entire crew was unaware of their cargo: the components of the atomic bomb ‘Little Boy’ which was dropped on Hiroshima. Thus, when the cruiser was sunk by a Japanese torpedo, no one knew, and 900 sailors were left floating in shark-infested waters for four days. HBH is excited to welcome Doug Stanton, author of ‘In...
Feb 10, 2025•42 min•Season 4Ep. 7
This is the first part of a series of interviews with 87-year-old CIA contract pilot William “Tosh” Plumlee in which he describes being recruited into a top-secret military intelligence unit with other juvenile delinquents at the age of 16. Among the colorful incidents he relates are supplying weapons to Fidel Castro in the mountains of Southern Cuba at age nineteen, and attending the School of Illusionary warfare with Lee Harvey Oswald. Heroes Behind Headlines Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo ...
Feb 03, 2025•1 hr 7 min•Season 4Ep. 6
Military historian Patrick O’Donnell puts a spotlight on America’s original Special Forces units: Founded in Missouri by Major General John C. Fremont, (and ‘named’ after his wife) the Jessie Scouts were a valuable intelligence cadre for President Lincoln during the Civil War. On the other side were Mosby’s Rangers and the Confederate Secret Service. Created to infiltrate and disrupt, these groups operated behind enemy lines, sometimes disguised as women or opposing soldiers, taking huge risks t...
Jan 27, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Season 4Ep. 5
A fantastic WWII adventure: On June 16, 1944, the storied 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions accidentally dropped U.S. paratroopers off-target behind enemy lines in France near the ancient town of Graignes, Normandy, as part of the D-Day offensive. At great risk to themselves, including penalty of death, the 900 townspeople of Graignes determined to protect the paratroopers and fight the Nazis as a combined force, using the weapons the paratroopers had brought with them. What transpired could be ...
Jan 20, 2025•59 min•Season 4Ep. 4
Part two of our interview with Don Haase: Don joined the U.S. Army in 1966, and ultimately became crew chief with the 195th Assault Helicopter Company in the 2nd Platoon (“Ghostriders”) that —beginning in December 1967 — supported top-secret MACV-SOG Recon teams during the deadly secret war fought during the Vietnam War. Don received 12 Air Medals over 300 combat missions, and the Presidential Unit Citation. Don and his unit participated in the defense of Plantation Airfield during the 1968 Tet ...
Jan 14, 2025•46 min•Season 4Ep. 3
Don Haase joined the U.S. Army in 1966, and ultimately became crew chief with the 195th Assault Helicopter Company in the 2nd Platoon (“Ghostriders”) that —beginning in December 1967 — supported top-secret MACV-SOG Recon teams during the deadly secret war fought during the Vietnam War. Don received 12 Air Medals over 300 combat missions, and the Presidential Unit Citation. Don and his unit participated in the defense of Plantation Airfield during the 1968 Tet offensive and the subsequent counter...
Jan 13, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Season 4Ep. 2
Prior guest Martha LaGuardia-Kotite is back with three U.S.C.G. Rescue Swimmer vets: John Whitten, Jason "Quitty" Quinn, and Ashley Ulbrich—who each share their adventures piloting helicopters over swimmers struggling to save people, leaping out of helicopters into the brink, or saving stranded folks in a hurricane. This lesser-known band of heroes are the brave people who come to our aid in often frigid or stormy seas, within 300 miles of the U.S. coastline, including Alaska. Heroes Behind Head...
Jan 06, 2025•1 hr 5 min•Season 4Ep. 1
As a toddler, Quan Huynh came to the U.S. as a Vietnamese refugee. A few years later he lost his father to cancer, and as an angry teenager joined up with the Vietnamese gangs of Los Angeles. He quickly got into trouble, shooting three people and killing a fourth. Quan was sentenced to 15 years to life, and sent to prison. Quan shares his story of redemption and inner discovery during his incarceration, built upon the principle of taking responsibility, as detailed in his book " Sparrow In The R...
Dec 30, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Season 3Ep. 59
A riveting account of a true crime, the criminal justice system, and unlocking a decades-old cold case: In 1964, David Miraldi's father Ray L. Miraldi was a prominent Ohio former city prosecutor and then a private attorney when he jumped at the chance to defend tavern keeper Caspar Bennett of the lurid bathtub murder of his wife, Florence Bennett, believing him to be innocent. Attorney Miraldi won an acquittal but oddly never spoke of this professional triumph to his family. Years later while go...
Dec 23, 2024•48 min•Season 3Ep. 58
When he joined the U.S. Navy during the Korean War, Jerry Blaine thought that that his service in the underwater demolition teams (UDTs) would be his life's biggest adventure. Instead, he returned stateside to a career as a Secret Service Special Agent accompanying Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, and LBJ. Jerry shares his memories, including his closeness with the Kennedy family and that fateful trip to Dallas. Heroes Behind Headlines Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo Produced & Engineered b...
Dec 16, 2024•1 hr•Season 3Ep. 57
Frederick Rutland was nothing short of a navy hero in the UK following WWI, but his own charisma, quirks, and opportunism led him to Hollywood to spy for Japan in the years leading to Pearl Harbor, playing a key role in the Japanese attack. Though British officials knew what he was doing, they quietly sidelined him to avoid the public embarrassment of revealing one of their own as a traitor. Author Ron Drabkin shares the outrageous story of Rutland, including his friendships with Hollywood stars...
Dec 09, 2024•52 min•Season 3Ep. 56
A Fan-Favorite Reprise Episode From Season One: Prior to May 5, 1980, the world was largely unaware that the UK’s SAS (Special Air Service), or any elite special operations units, existed at all. Six days earlier, terrorists had stormed the Iranian Embassy in London and taken 21 hostages. As the situation was being covered on live TV around the world, the SAS attacked the embassy. HBH is honored to be joined by two members of that elite SAS team, Pete Winner and Sekonaia ‘Tak’ Takevisi. The terr...
Dec 02, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Season 3Ep. 55
Run by the Venezuelan regime and military, the Cartel del Sol is currently the largest transnational criminal organization in the world, earning trillions of dollars per year from drug and human trafficking, and other crimes. The name derives from the fact that the Venezuelan military wear suns on their uniforms in place of epaulets. In fact, this cartel oversees better-known criminal groups, including the Tren del Aragua (recently, Colombia's Cali cartel, and Mexico's Sinaloa cartel. Ex-CIA Ope...
Nov 25, 2024•56 min•Season 3Ep. 54
Shot down October 1965, Lt. Commander and naval aviator Porter Halyburton, who was part of Fighter Squadron 84, was helped by local villagers and then taken into custody by the North Vietnamese Army. He was then imprisoned in the infamous Hanoi Hilton and moved to other prisons throughout North Vietnam. Initially declared dead, Porter describes how he and his fellow POWs forged friendships and developed unique mental exercises to help them cope and survive the deprivation and torture during thei...
Nov 19, 2024•43 min•Season 3Ep. 53
Shot down October 1965, Lt. Commander and naval aviator Porter Halyburton, who was part of Fighter Squadron 84, was helped by local villagers and then taken into custody by the North Vietnamese Army. He was then imprisoned in the infamous Hanoi Hilton and moved to other prisons throughout North Vietnam. Initially declared dead, Porter describes how he and his fellow POWs forged friendships and developed unique mental exercises to help them cope and survive the deprivation and torture during thei...
Nov 18, 2024•52 min•Season 3Ep. 52
While patrolling the waterways in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta as Operations Officer, Bill Retz nearly lost his life. Doctors advised him that his navy career was over yet—defying the odds after a difficult recovery—he ultimately rose to the rank of Rear Admiral. Among his commands were the destroyer USS Stump and the Naval War base at Pearl Harbor. As Destroyer Squadron commander he was closely involved in anti-submarine warfare and in early tests of the Tomahawk cruise missile system. Heroes Behind ...
Nov 11, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Season 3Ep. 51
Heroes Behind Headlines Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo Produced & Engineered by Mike Dawson Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com
Nov 05, 2024•1 hr•Season 3Ep. 50
Special Forces legend "Tilt" Meyer is back in a special two-part episode, sharing stories from his new book “On The Ground!” If you joined MACV-SOG–-the Studies and Observations Group—in the 1960s for America's "Secret War" in Laos and Cambodia, the first thing you did was sign an oath to never speak about what happened for 20 years. Now able to speak freely, Tilt shares the sheer adventure and reality of jungle combat. Each SOG team was named after a U.S. state, and they were comprised of both ...
Nov 04, 2024•56 min•Season 3Ep. 49
Retired CIA Operative and government whistleblower Gary Berntsen continues to share insights and details from the results of a four-year investigation into election tampering. His team’s conclusion: Enemies of the United States including Venezuela, Cuba, China and Serbia have been determining the results of elections in the U.S. since 2006 through the use of electronic systems that they have developed. Using these systems, they now manipulate the results of elections in 72 countries around the w...
Oct 28, 2024•58 min•Season 3Ep. 48
Retired CIA Operative and government whistleblower Gary Berntsen reveals the results of a four-year investigation into election tampering. His team’s conclusion: Enemies of the United States including Venezuela, Cuba, China and Serbia have been determining the results of elections in the U.S. since 2006 through the use of electronic systems that they have developed. Using these systems, they now manipulate the results of elections in 72 countries around the world. Gary Berntsen is arguably the m...
Oct 21, 2024•1 hr 25 min•Season 3Ep. 47
An Inspiring Reprise Episode From Season One: Human trafficking is a $150 billion-a-year business that thrives in war zones and is arguably more lucrative than arms sales. Lurata Lyon joins HBH and bravely tells her unimaginable story of survival during the Balkan Wars across Eastern Europe in the 1990s. Lurata was kidnapped into human trafficking as a teenager when the war engulfed her home country of Serbia. She was destined for a life of sex-trafficking and organ-harvesting. Miraculously, she...
Oct 14, 2024•1 hr 26 min•Season 3Ep. 46
Mikael Cook served as a U.S. Army engineer in the reserves. He was sent to Afghanistan in 2019 helping to build out infrastructure for U.S. military camps, working with local translators and other workers. He befriended his Afghan co-workers, especially an interpreter, Muhammad, and his brother Abdul. Following the Trump administration’s decision in 2020 to withdraw from Afghanistan after nearly 20 years, it fell to the Biden administration to execute the withdrawal which they did very abruptly ...
Oct 07, 2024•53 min•Season 3Ep. 45
Former Florida police investigator James Byrd-Williams, Sr. recounts the story of his son's murder in 2020. 44-year-old Michael Williams was an African-American man living in the mostly White college town of Grinnell, Iowa, to be near his ex-wife and kids. Occurring just weeks after the George Floyd incident, Michael Williams’ body was found strangled and burned in a ditch outside of town. Three people were later convicted. J.B. expresses his frustration with the thoroughness of the investigatio...
Sep 30, 2024•59 min•Season 3Ep. 44
Becky Ellis was one of her father’s eight children by four wives, and the chaos of her childhood, dominated by a haunted and difficult father, marked her and all her siblings. As a child, she suffered through her father’s paranoia about Nazis attacking them; trips to the dentist without anesthesia; and other irrational behaviors. Only at age 89, when Becky was a grown wife and mother, did her father Staff Sgt. Louis K. Boswell finally share his wartime recollections as part of the legendary ‘Tim...
Sep 23, 2024•58 min•Season 3Ep. 43
Admiral Robert Stiles Harward, Jr. grew up in a Navy family, living overseas, and eventually joined up himself as a means to pay for college. Adm. Harward ultimately went on to an amazing career and leading the U.S. Navy Seals, and the Naval Special Warfare Group Task Force KBAR. He explains his amazingly positive view of the world and philosophy of team collaboration and information sharing, which he calls "The Gouge," with our host and in his book of the same name. Heroes Behind Headlines Exec...
Sep 16, 2024•56 min•Season 3Ep. 42
