25 years ago the normally peaceful town of Lincoln, Montana was suddenly transformed from a serene mountain retreat into a bustling center of the news media universe. That’s when authorities nabbed a recluse named Ted Kaczynski from his infamous cabin. Hardly anyone in the quiet community had a clue that the Unabomber was living among them. Matt Flanders of Helena was living in California at the time. Like many with ties to Big Sky Country, he was amazed that one of the world’s most wanted domestic terrorists had made the Treasure State home. Fast forward a quarter century and Matt finds himself as a successful New York filmmaker, wrapping up work on "Ted K." The film is a look at the life of Kaczynski, unlike any other dramatization of the Montana hermit. 

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Jamie Ford awoke from a nap in Milwaukee to find out he was New York Times best-selling author.  His acclaimed novel, "Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet" spent 130 weeks on the New York Times list.  In an interview with Tim McGonigal, he talks about the writing process and challenges of being an author.  And he talks about the path that led him to Great Falls, Montana and he chose to make the Electric City his home. 

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From the fertile farmland of Central Montana to the blood stained sands of the Middle East. Nada Bakos was able to live her childhood dream of working overseas thanks to a 10-year career in the CIA as an analyst and later a targeting officer.  The Denton, MT native talks about the challenges of tracking terrorists and the frustrations of trying to make a connection between Iraq and Al Qaeda.  She also answers the assertion that she was the inspiration for Jessica Chastain's character in the film Zero Dark Thirty.

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During a more than 25 year career in law enforcement, John Cameron saw a lot.  Including working closely on the case of Nathaniel Bar-Jonah, the main suspect in the disappearance of a young Great Falls boy in 1996.  It was after Cameron had retired from the GFPD that his investigative nature led him to a man named Ed Edwards, a criminal mastermind who Cameron believes is responsible for some of the most highly publicized murders in history.

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Dava Newman has been reaching for the stars ever since she was a little girl growing up in Helena, Montana.  The Capital High graduate earned degrees from Notre Dame and M.I.T.  She's known for her work developing revolutionary space exploration suits and she served as a Deputy Administrator for NASA.  Her latest endeavor is taking over as the Director of the Prestigious M.I.T. Media Lab.  

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Welcome to McGonigal's Chronicles: Making Montana Connections.  Longtime Montana Television Network anchor and reporter Tim McGonigal shares the stories of some amazing people with ties to the TreasureState.  From tales of innovation to investigation, life inside the CIA to life as a New York Times bestselling author, Montana has had a major role in helping shape these individuals on their incredible journeys.  This first episode previews the series.

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