Unlike most kinds of petty crime, a confidence game, or con, takes an enormous amount of skill and forethought to pull off. When done right, in many cases the grifters who perpetrate them have not actually done anything overtly illegal–they’ve simply used lies and manipulation to get their victim, or “mark,” to willingly hand over [...]

There’s no more iconic scene in Western movies than the good old-fashioned pistol duel, where the lawman and the outlaw meet at high noon to see who’s faster on the draw. In actuality, this kind of thing very rarely occurred, and the true life Western stories—like Wild Bill Hickok being shot in the back while [...]

These writers, musicians, and painters created masterpieces in the realms of literature, music, and art. At different stages of their lives, every person on this list suffered from severe hardships, mental illness and feelings of loneliness and despair. All of them suffered for their art in order to create legacies of great imagination and epic [...]

At their best, sports are a tribute to the human spirit and an honorable competition between two athletes or teams. At their worst, however, they can expose sports figures as unethical, filled with greed and willing to anything it takes to win. Here’s a look at the worst incidents in professional sports history. Keep in [...]