Heroes Behind Headlines

Janina Melberg was a brilliant mathematician posing as a Polish Countess Janina Suchodolska to hide her Jewish identity during the Nazi occupation in WWII Poland. She simultaneously joined the both the Polish Welfare Council (RGO)--and secretly the Polish Underground--and bravely organized food and relief supplies for Poles incarcerated in the infamous Majdanek Concentration Camp.

Co-authors Elizabeth B. White and Joanna Sliwa trace the long-hidden history of this remarkable and previously unknown woman, and how they posthumously discovered and researched her story for their book, "Counterfeit Countess." (Publisher) Janina ended up escaping to the U.S. following the war, ultimately finishing her academic career at the University of Chicago.



Heroes Behind Headlines
Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo
Produced & Engineered by Mike Dawson
Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com

Jim “Wild Carrot” Shorten-Jones served as a team leader (One-Zero) in MACV-SOG during the height of Vietnam War, and ultimately in the Army, Navy and Air Force. In another exciting chapter in America's "secret war" in Laos and Cambodia, Jim shares his adrenaline-fueled war stories  as team leader of RT-Delaware, and also recounts the non-stop life of adventure he has led since--including his work as a  U.S. Air Force Pararescueman (PJ) saving people stranded far out at sea. 

Heroes Behind Headlines
Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo
Produced & Engineered by Mike Dawson
Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com

Jim “Wild Carrot” Shorten-Jones served as a team leader (One-Zero) in MACV-SOG during the height of Vietnam War, and ultimately in the Army, Navy and Air Force. In another exciting chapter in America's "secret war" in Laos and Cambodia, Jim shares his adrenaline-fueled war stories  as team leader of RT-Delaware, and also recounts the non-stop life of adventure he has led since--including his work as a  U.S. Air Force Pararescueman (PJ) saving people stranded far out at sea. 

Heroes Behind Headlines
Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo
Produced & Engineered by Mike Dawson
Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com

When FBI Special Agent Nikki Badolato arranged a live meetup with a man looking to 'rent' her infant daughter as part of a sting, she was shocked to see how presentable and 'normal' this 30-something man was. Now, after a two-decade career, Nikki  and Rolling Stone journalist Alex Morris lay out the state of domestic human trafficking, how pedophile rings work, and what we should all know about the fight to save hundreds of thousands of children trafficked in the U.S. every year.


Heroes Behind Headlines
Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo
Produced & Engineered by Mike Dawson
Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com

U.S. Coast Guard Veteran Martha La Guardia-Kotite shares inspiring stories of bravery from her book, “So Others May Live—Coast Guard’s Rescue Swimmers: Saving Lives, Defying Death.” These brave men and women put their lives at risk to rescue people in the greatest peril. Among the stories is that of a baby rescued from a boat in the middle of a hurricane.

Heroes Behind Headlines
Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo
Produced & Engineered by Mike Dawson
Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com

One dark night in Austin, Texas, onlookers watched in horror as musician Gary Wimmer was struck head-on by a speeding car, ramming his head into the front grill and hurtling him into the air until he landed on the pavement. When he stood up minutes later, seemingly unharmed, people were confused and unbelieving at his lack of injury. So were the emergency room doctors.

While unconscious, Gary experienced a near-death experience, or NDE. What Gary experienced in that minute or two changed his life forever, sending him on a voyage beyond space and time, giving him a glimpse of the secrets of the universe and bringing back a message of hope and positivity.

Heroes Behind Headlines
Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo
Produced & Engineered by Mike Dawson
Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com

In part two of this interview, Roger Lockshier lays out his dramatic experiences as a helicopter pilot serving in Vietnam. In 1968, at the height of the war, he was routinely sent in on his Huey gunship to support or rescue MACV-SOG Green Beret soldiers secretly operating in Laos and Cambodia. Roger shares his 'birdseye' perspective on several missions—including the most dramatic helicopter rescue you’ve ever heard. He also expresses his admiration of the incredible bravery of his “Huey” crew and his comrades-in-arms, including the Montagnards, Brus, and Vietnamese he befriended. 
 
Like many of those who served in these operations, Roger was sworn to silence for decades. We're honored to share his story.


Heroes Behind Headlines
Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo
Produced & Engineered by Mike Dawson
Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com

In this two-part interview, Roger Lockshier lays out his dramatic experiences as a helicopter pilot serving in Vietnam. In 1968, at the height of the war, he was routinely sent in on his Huey gunship to support or rescue MACV-SOG Green Beret soldiers secretly operating in Laos and Cambodia. Roger shares his 'birdseye' perspective on several missions—including the most dramatic helicopter rescue you’ve ever heard. He also expresses his admiration of the incredible bravery of his “Huey” crew and his comrades-in-arms, including the Montagnards, Brus, and Vietnamese he befriended. 
 
Like many of those who served in these operations, Roger was sworn to silence for decades. We're honored to share his story. (Part II airs 2/28)



Heroes Behind Headlines
Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo
Produced & Engineered by Mike Dawson
Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com

We've re-released this episode, as an homage to Chuck Mawhinney, who we learned passed away last week. Chuck was our guest in Season Two (September 2023.) We were honored to have had a chance to speak with him and hear his story...Here it is again in case you missed it....

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Chuck Mawhinney grew up hunting in the Oregon woods on his grandfather's farm, and was selected for sniper training his first day of shooting practice in the Marines. Serving in Vietnam for 16 months, he went on to post the Corps' highest number of confirmed kills (103), and the highest number of probable kills (216).  Hear his journey of skill, survival and helping his fellow soldiers.

When he returned to the U.S. he was released from the Corps as part of the Reduction in Force policy. He returned to his native woods and made a stateside career in the U.S. Forestry Service. 

Chuck is a legend in the Marines and an inspiration to many in the armed services. His own authentic account of his experience is a uniquely American one. Read more about his experience in Vietnam and afterward in his biography "The Sniper" by Jim Lindsay.

Military veteran and author Stephen M. Rusiecki describes the process of how and why Americans developed a standing narrative of the WWII operation known as D-Day, based upon a common, press-enabled, thematically framed narrative. Steve describes how the radio and newspaper networks of the day cooperated in this effort, and how this version of events has dominated the consciousness of Americans ever since. 

Heroes Behind Headlines
Executive Producer Ralph Pezzullo
Produced & Engineered by Mike Dawson
Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com