7254: Queen Christina of Sweden — How One Royal Name Conquered the World | pplpod
Queen Christina of Sweden was raised as a prince, ruled one of Europe's most powerful kingdoms, then stunned the continent by abdicating her throne, converting to Catholicism, and moving to Rome. She ...
17 Jun 17min
7253: Ivan the Great — The Quiet Tsar Who Forged Russia from Scattered Fragments | pplpod
Ivan III inherited a small principality that paid tribute to the Mongols and turned it into Russia. He did it not through dramatic battlefield heroics but through patient diplomacy, strategic marriage...
17 Jun 24min
7252: Francois Truffaut — The Delinquent Orphan Who Invented Modern Cinema | pplpod
Francois Truffaut was a juvenile delinquent, a school dropout, and a military deserter before he became the most important film critic in France. Then he picked up a camera and made The 400 Blows, a f...
17 Jun 18min
7251: Ferdinand II of Aragon — The King Who Invented the Global Superpower | pplpod
Ferdinand II of Aragon married Isabella of Castile, completed the Reconquista, expelled the Jews and Muslims from Spain, and financed Columbus. In doing so he created the first truly global empire and...
17 Jun 17min
7250: Robert De Niro — How Bobby Milk from Little Italy Became Hollywood's Greatest Actor | pplpod
Robert De Niro grew up in Little Italy so pale and skinny that neighborhood kids called him Bobby Milk. He transformed himself into Travis Bickle, Jake LaMotta, and Vito Corleone through a method acti...
17 Jun 19min
7249: Henri Cartier-Bresson — The Eye That Hunted the Decisive Moment | pplpod
Henri Cartier-Bresson coined the concept of "the decisive moment" and spent fifty years proving it existed. He photographed Gandhi hours before his assassination, documented the fall of the Kuomintang...
17 Jun 19min
7248: Gustavus Adolphus — The Lion of the North Who Changed Warfare Forever | pplpod
Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden transformed a minor Baltic kingdom into a European superpower and revolutionized military tactics in the process. He combined infantry, cavalry, and mobile artillery in way...
17 Jun 21min
7247: Frank Lloyd Wright — Architectural Masterpieces and Personal Mayhem | pplpod
Frank Lloyd Wright designed Fallingwater, the Guggenheim Museum, and over a thousand other structures that redefined American architecture. He also abandoned his family, saw his mistress and her child...
17 Jun 21min
