The History Channel

Dig into the sumptuous stories of great inventors, innovators, dreamers, and wizards who made eating into an industry and transformed the American table. Clarence Birdseye really did invent modern frozen food; John Harvey Kellogg reinvented breakfast; Milton Hershey turned an elite sweet into a treat for the common man; and yes, there really was a Chef Boyardee! We also explore the roots of barbecue, Jell-O, and Spam--and meet the originator of nacho chips, Frank Liberto from San Antonio.

Pintsized as a pea or big as a bowling ball, nutritional, durable, and versatile, nuts have been a staple of the human diet since time began, and archaeological evidence places them among our earliest foods. For that, the ancients worshiped them. And because they were relatively non-perishable, nuts sustained the imperial armies of Rome and China, the royal navies of England and Spain, and the native tribes that roamed the American wilderness. Today, we think of nuts as mere snacks, but in a poignant segment, we feature how a peanut product is used by organizations like UNICEF to reverse malnutrition in starving children in less than four weeks. And a powder ground from walnut shells cleans everything from ship hulls to the Space Shuttle. From ancient traditions of tree-picking and hand-gathering to today's powerful machine shakers, sophisticated irrigation techniques, and the latest bio-science, we'll provide a spread of history that's just as smooth as your peanut butter!

The sugar industry came of age on the backs of slaves toiling in Caribbean fields, and British desire to control production of sugar and its byproduct, rum. Sugar also played a surprisingly critical part in America's battle for independence. Tour a sugar plantation on Maui, Hawaii to get an inside look at how cane sugar is produced today and learn how the sugar stalks are put through an extensive process of extraction and purification--and how a ton of harvested cane results in 200 pounds of raw sugar. Learn the technology behind creating the sweetener in all of its permutations, including corn syrup, brown sugar, powdered sugar, and cube sugar, and how it's used in candies, soda, and sauces as well as more exotic uses such as in pipe tobacco and processed meat.

It pulls, stretches, bubbles, hardens, crunches, and melts! We eat about 7-billion tons of it yearly. We're talking about Candy--loved by kids and savored by adults. Candy-making evolved from a handmade operation to high-tech mass production. Nowhere is that more apparent than at Hershey's. On a tour of their newest production facility, we learn how they process the cocoa bean. At See's Candy, we see how they make their famous boxed chocolates--on a slightly smaller scale than Hershey's. We get a sweet history lesson at Schimpff's Confectionery, where they still use small kettles, natural flavors, and hand-operated equipment. Then, we visit Jelly Belly, purveyors of the original gourmet jellybean. Saltwater-taffy pullers hypnotize us on our sweet-tooth tour; we gaze at extruders making miles of licorice rope; and watch as nostalgia candy bars Abba-Zaba and Big Hunk get packaged. And in this sugary hour, we digest the latest sensations--gourmet chocolates and scorpion on a stick!

Do you ever wonder what happens to your body after you die? You might be surprised to discover that the human body is host to a multitude of hidden secrets. Discover how coroners and forensic anthropologists use a body to both save lives and catch killers. Visit the University of Tennessee's famed "Body Farm," a crematorium, and one of the largest tissue banks in the United States.

The Pawn Stars have an opportunity to buy a huge gold bar believed to be from a 1500s shipwreck. Will the gang dig in and strike it rich or will they end up on a fool's errand? Then Rick has a chance to shoot for the moon with a celestial navigation dome from a World War II B29 bomber. Will his offer take flight or come crashing down? And later, a woman brings a mint condition collection of golden era American League baseball field passes. Can Rick hit the deal out of the ballpark, or will he strike out looking?

The Pawn Stars are ready for Halloween when a 19th century vampire killing kit stakes out the shop. Complete with a gun and silver bullets, will Rick try to hunt down these terrifying tools or will an eternal negotiation spook the deal? Then, a couple appears in the store with a set of equipment used for paranormal investigations. Everything for recording evidence of spirits, will this ghostly gear capture Rick's attention, or will lack of proof leave him feeling skeptical? And later, Rick tries to get the guys into the holiday spirit when he holds a costume contest in the shop. Will they dress to impress, or will this haunted holiday become a bust?

Ours is a universe of energy, from powerful jets ejected from black holes to the raw nuclear fury of our Sun. But, the total amount of energy in the universe maintains perfect equilibrium--no more can be added or taken away. Because of this, there are enormous amounts of energy being transferred...electric, thermal, kinetic and magnetic energy are just a few that keep our universe balanced--and create awesome cosmic events and stellar displays.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Examines how the average soldier coped with life on and off the battlefield. Features recently-found collections of rare photographs that vividly depict the soldiers' sufferings and their diversions as well, which included drinking and gambling, music, and even a new game called baseball.

Dig into the sumptuous stories of great inventors, innovators, dreamers, and wizards who made eating into an industry and transformed the American table. Clarence Birdseye really did invent modern frozen food; John Harvey Kellogg reinvented breakfast; Milton Hershey turned an elite sweet into a treat for the common man; and yes, there really was a Chef Boyardee! We also explore the roots of barbecue, Jell-O, and Spam--and meet the originator of nacho chips, Frank Liberto from San Antonio.

Pintsized as a pea or big as a bowling ball, nutritional, durable, and versatile, nuts have been a staple of the human diet since time began, and archaeological evidence places them among our earliest foods. For that, the ancients worshiped them. And because they were relatively non-perishable, nuts sustained the imperial armies of Rome and China, the royal navies of England and Spain, and the native tribes that roamed the American wilderness. Today, we think of nuts as mere snacks, but in a poignant segment, we feature how a peanut product is used by organizations like UNICEF to reverse malnutrition in starving children in less than four weeks. And a powder ground from walnut shells cleans everything from ship hulls to the Space Shuttle. From ancient traditions of tree-picking and hand-gathering to today's powerful machine shakers, sophisticated irrigation techniques, and the latest bio-science, we'll provide a spread of history that's just as smooth as your peanut butter!

The sugar industry came of age on the backs of slaves toiling in Caribbean fields, and British desire to control production of sugar and its byproduct, rum. Sugar also played a surprisingly critical part in America's battle for independence. Tour a sugar plantation on Maui, Hawaii to get an inside look at how cane sugar is produced today and learn how the sugar stalks are put through an extensive process of extraction and purification--and how a ton of harvested cane results in 200 pounds of raw sugar. Learn the technology behind creating the sweetener in all of its permutations, including corn syrup, brown sugar, powdered sugar, and cube sugar, and how it's used in candies, soda, and sauces as well as more exotic uses such as in pipe tobacco and processed meat.

It pulls, stretches, bubbles, hardens, crunches, and melts! We eat about 7-billion tons of it yearly. We're talking about Candy--loved by kids and savored by adults. Candy-making evolved from a handmade operation to high-tech mass production. Nowhere is that more apparent than at Hershey's. On a tour of their newest production facility, we learn how they process the cocoa bean. At See's Candy, we see how they make their famous boxed chocolates--on a slightly smaller scale than Hershey's. We get a sweet history lesson at Schimpff's Confectionery, where they still use small kettles, natural flavors, and hand-operated equipment. Then, we visit Jelly Belly, purveyors of the original gourmet jellybean. Saltwater-taffy pullers hypnotize us on our sweet-tooth tour; we gaze at extruders making miles of licorice rope; and watch as nostalgia candy bars Abba-Zaba and Big Hunk get packaged. And in this sugary hour, we digest the latest sensations--gourmet chocolates and scorpion on a stick!