Season 10: All Episode Talk

[Yeah No]

12 hours ago, iMonrey said:

That was a disappointing finish to the season IMO. And I say that as someone who is interested in the Salem witch trials. But this story was very similar to one of Sarah Jessica Parker's. Her ancestor was likewise spared from execution because the executions were halted while she was waiting in jail. 

And this was another episode where it felt like the show just searched for something to give us a little history lesson about that had no real immediate connection to the celebrity - I'm sure if our family trees could be established far back enough, any of us could find someone back there that could serve as a grounding point in a history lesson. It just doesn't feel personal - you could pretty much just drop the celebrity altogether and do straightforward history lessons every week.

I couldn't agree more.  The Salem with trials have been done to death on genealogy shows as has the Civil War, so I'm over-saturated with that by now.  You'd think they could find something fresher by now.  I don't know, maybe my tree is rare, but I have a lot of spectacular stories in my tree that would make fantastic television, especially if professional researchers could dig and find more details to round out the stories.  They tie into history but are also personal tales of courage, achievement and struggle.  So I know how interesting it could be, but especially this season it's just been ho-hum on this show.  I remember the first couple of seasons I was "oh wow" about a lot of stuff.  This season was just a big disappointment altogether with some small exceptions.  There's no excuse for this - they could do much better.

It kind of bugged me how teary-eyed Jean Smart got for her 8th GGM.  Sure, I've felt for my ancestors, but even though I know of relatives from that far back that suffered some tough stuff, I have never cried over someone from that long ago.  I don't think I've cried over anyone.

[Suzn]

10 hours ago, Yeah No said:

I couldn't agree more.  The Salem with trials have been done to death on genealogy shows as has the Civil War, so I'm over-saturated with that by now.  You'd think they could find something fresher by now.  I don't know, maybe my tree is rare, but I have a lot of spectacular stories in my tree that would make fantastic television, especially if professional researchers could dig and find more details to round out the stories.  They tie into history but are also personal tales of courage, achievement and struggle.  So I know how interesting it could be, but especially this season it's just been ho-hum on this show.  I remember the first couple of seasons I was "oh wow" about a lot of stuff.  This season was just a big disappointment altogether with some small exceptions.  There's no excuse for this - they could do much better.

It kind of bugged me how teary-eyed Jean Smart got for her 8th GGM.  Sure, I've felt for my ancestors, but even though I know of relatives from that far back that suffered some tough stuff, I have never cried over someone from that long ago.  I don't think I've cried over anyone.

The show prompted me to look up my connection to the Salem witch trials - the brother of my 7G grandfather was a judge, but you are right, that topic has been done enough.  Which brings me to something I think - the stories from non-celebrities could be every bit as interesting, if not more, than many of these people. Also, there are so many other subjects that have not been done that I remember.  I would love to see the fleshed out  story of many of my ancestors who pioneered in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Kansas.

I've never cried over an ancestor, but I certainly have had deep emotional reactions to various things.  When I saw the England census for 1841 and see the little boys listed with coal miner as occupation, I felt that one.

[ChicagoCita]

One of my ancestors was killed by a car driven by one of the local society boys. Clearly the young man's fault. He got away scott-free and lived a life of wealth and glamour for the rest of his days. My ancestor was not a Reputable Citizen (he was a cheat and a con man), and I think the two men's reputations fed the verdict. I cried real tears when my research turned that up. I get Jean Smart crying about her ancestor. To me, these shows make history real and relatable. To her, the Salem Witch Trials weren't "done to death." They involved someone whose life made hers possible. I liked this episode very much.

[Yeah No]

9 hours ago, ChicagoCita said:

One of my ancestors was killed by a car driven by one of the local society boys. Clearly the young man's fault. He got away scott-free and lived a life of wealth and glamour for the rest of his days. My ancestor was not a Reputable Citizen (he was a cheat and a con man), and I think the two men's reputations fed the verdict. I cried real tears when my research turned that up. I get Jean Smart crying about her ancestor. To me, these shows make history real and relatable. To her, the Salem Witch Trials weren't "done to death." They involved someone whose life made hers possible. I liked this episode very much.

Yeah, but that was far closer to the present than 8 generations ago.  I can understand shedding a tear for someone maybe 4 or 5 generations ago, but 8 generations is a bit much in my opinion.  And keep in mind I'm someone that went to Plimouth Plantation to learn about my Mayflower ancestors and I cry at Hallmark commercials, so I'm not exactly hard hearted and I can relate to having strong emotions about ancestors.  I just think Jean Smart's reaction went a little overboard under the circumstances.  I suspect some of these people are using their show business skills to make more dramatic TV.

To put this in perspective, everyone has 1,024 8th great grandparents.  That's an awful lot of people because the number increases exponentially every generation.  We only have 64 4th great grandparents.  At 7 generations, you are likely to inherit less than 1% of DNA from any ancestor.  That's not much.

Edited June 21, 2018 by Yeah No

[Blergh]

13 hours ago, Yeah No said:

 V.

To put this in perspective, everyone has 1,024 8th great grandparents.  That's an awful lot of people because the number increases exponentially every generation.  We only have 64 4th great grandparents.  At 7 generations, you are likely to inherit less than 1% of DNA from any ancestor.  That's not much.

No, that's not entirely true- because that would mean there would be over 1000 TIMES the current population of 7 Billion folks eight generations ago and I don't even think our planet had 1 billion people until about 1800. The answer is that quite a few cousin marriages occurred especially in isolated and small communities.

 

 While I can't fault Miss Smart for getting upset at her distant ancestor's fate, I do agree it's a bit much that she seemed to have reacted as though the woman had raised her!

[Yeah No]

44 minutes ago, Blergh said:

No, that's not entirely true- because that would mean there would be over 1000 TIMES the current population of 7 Billion folks eight generations ago and I don't even think our planet had 1 billion people until about 1800. The answer is that quite a few cousin marriages occurred especially in isolated and small communities.

OK so I neglected to factor in relative marriages but still the number is quite huge and this information was gotten off of genealogy websites.  In the past there's been far more agreement that the reactions of the stars on this show tend to be a little overdone, so forgive me if that's somehow not in vogue now.  My opinion still stands.

Edited June 21, 2018 by Yeah No

[Suzn]

1 hour ago, Blergh said:

14 hours ago, Yeah No said:

 V.

To put this in perspective, everyone has 1,024 8th great grandparents.  That's an awful lot of people because the number increases exponentially every generation.  We only have 64 4th great grandparents.  At 7 generations, you are likely to inherit less than 1% of DNA from any ancestor.  That's not much.

 

No, that's not entirely true- because that would mean there would be over 1000 TIMES the current population of 7 Billion folks eight generations ago and I don't even think our planet had 1 billion people until about 1800. The answer is that quite a few cousin marriages occurred especially in isolated and small communities.

It is true that there is not a true doubling each generation back because of intermarriages of relatives, the genetic contribution from each generation is a diminishing amount.  I have 3G ancestors who were first cousins, so their grandparents were my 5Gs twice - meaning that instead of having 128 5Gs, I have 126.  That is a small genetic contribution.

However, that does not diminish my interest in them - they, all of them, are still where I came from.

[iMonrey]

Quote

To put this in perspective, everyone has 1,024 8th great grandparents.  That's an awful lot of people because the number increases exponentially every generation.  We only have 64 4th great grandparents.  At 7 generations, you are likely to inherit less than 1% of DNA from any ancestor.  That's not much.

Fuzzy math or no, this illustrates why I don't find it terribly compelling when they go back too far. I mean . . . if you go back far enough, aren't we all related to the same person? I just think it's silly to say "this is where I must have inherited my predisposition to {fill in blank}" when you're talking about your mother's father's mother's father's father's mother's father's mother's mother. I get that for a lot of people it's fun to think "this is where I came from, this is what makes me me" but it's . . . not really true, for the most part. There are much more immediate factors that make up your circumstances and sense of self. I can only go back about four generations with any certainty and I can tell you I have a big fat zero in common with my 3x great grandfather. Heck, his nationality didn't even turn up in my Ancestry DNA test results. 

Edited June 22, 2018 by iMonrey

[kassa]

They covered it by showing a sign, but unless you freeze framed to read it, I thought it was weird that they glossed over the fact that the "hey, innocent people are getting accused now - this has gone too far!" tipping point was when the very same Rev. Hale's wife was accused. The one Dorcas stole from. They only lightly touched on the way the early accusations targeted the socially marginalized (like Dorcas) and then to inter-neighbor score settling over old grievances. When it worked its way up to people who had the ability to stop it, lo and behold, it stopped. 

[ShelleySue]

I finally saw the Jean Smart episode.  I was excited when I saw the name "Hoar" and looked on my husband's tree.  His "Hoars" came directly from England to Concord, MA (Middlesex County)-- not to Essex County.  They were very illustrious and include a Harvard president and an Attorney General of the US  I assume my husband's Hoars and Jean Smarts Hoars were related in England, but I cannot find the connection.

 

BTW - I have been to the museum in Salem.  I was there a while ago, before the memorial was built. I have absolutely no relatives who were involved in the witch trials and I still cried.  You just have to have empathy for what people went through, not necessarily a close family connection.

[Emily Thrace]

On 2018-06-22 at 2:22 PM, iMonrey said:

Fuzzy math or no, this illustrates why I don't find it terribly compelling when they go back too far. I mean . . . if you go back far enough, aren't we all related to the same person? I just think it's silly to say "this is where I must have inherited my predisposition to {fill in blank}" when you're talking about your mother's father's mother's father's father's mother's father's mother's mother. I get that for a lot of people it's fun to think "this is where I came from, this is what makes me me" but it's . . . not really true, for the most part. There are much more immediate factors that make up your circumstances and sense of self. I can only go back about four generations with any certainty and I can tell you I have a big fat zero in common with my 3x great grandfather. Heck, his nationality didn't even turn up in my Ancestry DNA test results. 

I think just because the show isn't what you would like it to be doesn't mean the show is doing it wrong. Its always been a mix of older and newer stories. Its all history and genealogy. 

By that same token I don't think being affected by these stories is silly. The stories are meant to be affecting. I don't think getting upset is odd some of these stories are terrible. I regularly get upset reading stories about people I have never met.

I also don't think its completely true that things that happened generations ago don't affect people today. Megan Mullaly's family was probably still being affected by the famine. Slavery has affected everything from how African-Americans form families to thier blood pressure rates. Some things do repeat themselves like all the actors in Bryan Cranstons family tree. That's one of the most interesting aspects of the show for me.

[morgan]

I agree, Emily Thrace!  I also have noticed in real life some people seem to relate to those further back and some just don’t feel a connection.  I’ve been working on my and my husband’s family trees and he really is t all that interested/doesn’t feel a connection (mostly doing his along with my daughter because she is).  I, on the other hand, get really interested and involved with my ancestors.  I do feel a connection to them, even the ones I am sure would in reality have little or nothing to do with me if we met up in real time (some huge political divides).  

I find that in the show too.  Some people seem far more into it than others.  And some seem to take to heart the history far more than others.  I love that it is a mix of old and new stories.  Famous and not famous.  For me the famous would be more interesting only because the amount of information would be more prolific.  

[Bridget]

On 6/12/2018 at 9:50 PM, Mom2twoNonna2one said:

My 2nd great grandparents came to the US in 1848. They were 21, married and boarded a ship out of that famine. They were from North Ireland (Newry, County Down) and I, too, do alot of research in hope of finding their village and/or "wee cottage." Here's  hoping Mr. Chips finds his.  In my research I found the great niece of my 2nd great grandfather (his sister is the great grandmother of the relative I found). It's a tremendous joy to find someone in your research. I live in PA, she grew up in OH and now lives in Canada. But, we met and found the cemetery were our relatives are buried together.

 

I liked how Molly's story had a much closer relationship. We've complained about how they had to go back so many generations to find something interesting. Finding living relatives who knew your grandparents and great grandparents is much more interesting to me.

My father is from Mayobridge (a village within Newry) - maybe we are distant cousins? ? I’ll meet you in Gorman’s for a pint when we’re both there at the same time. He didn’t leave N. Ireland until the 1970s, but you never know!

if you haven’t been to N. Ireland  yet, you must go. Especially as it’s one of the most beautiful parts of the country; it’s legitimately breathtaking. 

When you go, avoid the summertime if you can (too many tourists) and go between September & October. 

[Bridget]

On 6/13/2018 at 10:43 AM, meep.meep said:

I enjoyed this a lot.  It is more interesting to focus on recent history (compared to Robert the Bruce), and to have living relatives to meet was fantastic.

The one thing that was never touched on is why he changed his name.  If he came back to Ireland to talk about how smart his daughter was, presumably he mentioned that he was no longer called by the family name, but by Keating.

I haven’t watched the episode yet, but I can confirm firsthand that name changes are quite common, especially in N. Ireland. Even if Molly’s people aren’t from the North, it wouldn’t shock me to learn about a name change in her family to either fit into a preferred category (religion) or for cultural purposes. Maybe he wanted to sound more American? I’ll update my two cents after I watch the episode.

My father’s family’s original last name sounded too much like a Protestant name and we’re Catholic, so my grandfather changed his last name in the early 1900s.  The surname was originally McGowan, but he turned it into something else that still used the M, the hard G and N. It’s two syllables and if when it’s said/pronounced in the beautiful lilt of a N. Irish accent, I can see how he easily came up with the new family surname.

Edited June 29, 2018 by Bridget

[chitowngirl]

The second half of the season starts up again tonight with Mandy Moore. The rest of the season features Josh Duhamel, Matthew Morrison, and Regina King.

[Ina123]

I've followed Regina King's career from her first TV show, 227. She's become a fine actress. I've heard of Mandy Moore but just barely. I've never even heard of the other two. With a program like this it really doesn't matter. I just enjoy the stories.

I did notice last night that there was no narrator. The guest told their own story, only being prompted at times by the genealogists. It seemed a bit awkward since the guest isn't really addressing the audience but appears to be talking to someone who you never see. I'll have to wait and see if this style gets more comfortable.

It was a good story. How wonderful that the woman got out of the workhouse and managed to have a better life.

Edited December 4, 2018 by Ina123
mispelling

[alexa]

I liked this one--and they went all of the way to Australia :-)  Although I found it odd the person just dumped off the info for Mandy at the library.  The show goes all of the way to Australia and they can't bother to have someone sit with her and explain the document?  And then she has to go to the counter for more help?  I just found it odd--yes in the real world that is how it would go, but this is a show that goes out of its way to help the celebrity find the info...

Edited December 4, 2018 by alexa

[Jadzia]

This episode was a little boring to me. Mandy Moore was likable but her super enthusiasm over the slightest little detail started to wear on me.

Also, I hate how this show will produce easy to find documents much later on like they are some big discovery. For instance they only showed Mandy the 1861 census at the beginning, then later on after she went galavanting across the world "Oh look! We found her in the 1881 census!" When really that would have been one of the first documents they had found. They just try and hide things at first to try and tell a better story.

[alexa]

1 hour ago, Jadzia said:

This episode was a little boring to me. Mandy Moore was likable but her super enthusiasm over the slightest little detail started to wear on me.

Also, I hate how this show will produce easy to find documents much later on like they are some big discovery. For instance they only showed Mandy the 1861 census at the beginning, then later on after she went galavanting across the world "Oh look! We found her in the 1881 census!" When really that would have been one of the first documents they had found. They just try and hide things at first to try and tell a better story.

Well to be fair to the show, though, if this were a celebrity just trying to get information, they would not need to fly all over the world to get the information either--I am sure they could work with people long distance to get what they want.  So though there are extra little things like what you described, they couldn't make it a TV show without doing many of the things they do--in order to make it all somewhat interesting.

[Snickerdoodle]

9 hours ago, Jadzia said:

This episode was a little boring to me. Mandy Moore was likable but her super enthusiasm over the slightest little detail started to wear on me.

Also, I hate how this show will produce easy to find documents much later on like they are some big discovery. For instance they only showed Mandy the 1861 census at the beginning, then later on after she went galavanting across the world "Oh look! We found her in the 1881 census!" When really that would have been one of the first documents they had found. They just try and hide things at first to try and tell a better story.

I felt the same about Mandy. I did think it was interesting that her ancestor was an indentured servant that was sent to Australia.  And did Mandy really not know what an indentured servant was? That’s like 8th grade social studies. Then again, she was singing and touring at that age so maybe she really didn’t know.  

[BookThief]

43 minutes ago, Snickerdoodle said:

I felt the same about Mandy. I did think it was interesting that her ancestor was an indentured servant that was sent to Australia.  And did Mandy really not know what an indentured servant was? That’s like 8th grade social studies. Then again, she was singing and touring at that age so maybe she really didn’t know.  

I didn't get the idea that she didn't know what it was, but that she didn't know exactly what it meant in this specific context in Australia. When she was at the library alone (WTF!?) going through the books what she said implied she knew what it was but later it was more that she didn't know why she was indentured or the specifics surrounding it, not that she didn't understand the concept itself.

[riverblue22]

I missed the narrator going into a little more depth about things.  I found this show pretty boring--she must have more interesting ancestors somewhere!

[Yeah No]

I found this episode boring too.  I fell asleep for the last 5 minutes.  I also found her reactions out of proportion to what she was discovering, although I've complained about others doing that in previous seasons as well.

I didn't read that this was the second part of the previous season.  Everything I read says it's season 11 with only 4 episodes - the fewest they've ever had.  Sadly, this show is a shell of its former self.

[Yeah No]

Sorry, double post 5 minutes later?  How did that happen?

Edited December 5, 2018 by Yeah No

[Suzn]

On 12/4/2018 at 9:28 AM, Jadzia said:

This episode was a little boring to me. Mandy Moore was likable but her super enthusiasm over the slightest little detail started to wear on me.

 

 

23 hours ago, Yeah No said:

I found this episode boring too.  I fell asleep for the last 5 minutes.  I also found her reactions out of proportion to what she was discovering, although I've complained about others doing that in previous seasons as well.

I didn't read that this was the second part of the previous season.  Everything I read says it's season 11 with only 4 episodes - the fewest they've ever had.  Sadly, this show is a shell of its former self.

Her extreme over-reaction to everything sucked the air out of the episode.  The ancestor's story should have been interesting, but somehow the presentation of it seemed to make it dull.  I think so much time spent traveling to one place after another is not interesting.  I can't exactly put my finger on it, because I've seen people really seem to connect to an ancestral area, but I think the travel is pretty boring.

[Lovecat]

On 12/4/2018 at 7:39 PM, Snickerdoodle said:

I felt the same about Mandy. I did think it was interesting that her ancestor was an indentured servant that was sent to Australia.  And did Mandy really not know what an indentured servant was? That’s like 8th grade social studies. Then again, she was singing and touring at that age so maybe she really didn’t know.  

"Tour Bus School," as I call it.  See also:  Spears, Britney; Timberlake, Justin.

It was a shame they couldn't track down her 4x (?) great-grandfather, who went to America.  I wonder if he didn't also leave Ireland as an indentured servant, with the intent of eventually bringing the rest of his family over.  It doesn't appear that Mandy's 3x great-grandmother ever left Ireland once she returned, so I wonder if she ever saw her father again.  

[Lugal]

Considering he left in the late 1840s, my theory is he may have gone to America for the Gold Rush.  And he probably didn't strike it rich and maybe hearing his wife was dead and his children were scattered he may have seen no point in returning.  As for finding him, I can speak firsthand how difficult it is tracking down ancestors with common names.

[Mom2twoNonna2-3]

My 2x gg left Ireland in 1848. (First family of my last name who came here that can be found, according to one of those Genealogy papers you get at fairs. They list the first known "D" to come to the US was Steven, who happens to my 2xgg). They ended up in Pittsburgh. I have no idea of family beyond them, but, best I can see is they married in January, boarded a ship and arrived here July 7th. Fortunately, all 9 of their children were born here.

Mandy's 4x gg may not have come for the gold rush, but, just to find a better life. Did they say exactly when in the 1840's he left? I don't recall.  Wasn't the 3x ggmother the one who married in Australia and made her way here? I got a little confused. Those work houses were so sad. I'm sure I have family who lived, and possibly died in them. 

Ireland in the 1840s was not the place to be, at all.  I'm sure a great many of those of us with Irish heritage can trace their arrival to that era. 

[Blergh]

I wonder if Mandy Moore's 4 times great-grandfather Flynn may have sired another family in 'America' (which was most likely the US but possibly could have also referred to Canada back then) or could he have simply told his family wife and daughters that this was his intended destination- but perhaps died on the way there or maybe simply abandoned them altogether but stayed in the British Isles?  Even if they beat the odds and somehow were literate in a time and place where few of their neighbors were, the postage alone would have made any attempts to send word a luxury. Also, quite tragic that 4 times great-grandmother Mary wound up dying in that workhouse with not even any attempt at a funeral much less a marker for her. Those workhouses were quite bleak and overcrowded to the point that I seriously doubt anyone had anything more than a spot on the floor to sleep ( although I've heard of 'sleep benches' in which folks would sit all night on benches with a dozen or so others leaning on a rope and try to sleep that way) much less more than one set of filthy rags and no shoes of their own.  No doubt 3 times great-grandma Ellen Flynn (later Barney) and her sister considered those cots and those changes of clothes provided for them by the transition house  in Australia to have been virtually like becoming royalty after having been treated as less than human. I wonder how they got selected to go with the Earl Grey deal  and did they hear about it and apply or were they just randomly chosen? It's interesting that after her 5 year indenture was finished, she married Mr.Barney a year later but one has to wonder why they decided to emigrate BACK to Great Britain within six years of their marriage -especially considering not only the duration of the journey that Ellen had already endured, but also the fact that, unlike the previous passage of Mrs. Barney's part, the voyage back would have entailed them paying for it themselves! Sad that she was widowed at a relatively early age but Mrs. Barney appeared to have been comfortably provided for by their grown children to the end of her (then) long life. I wonder what became of her older sister and  were they at least able to stay in touch? Also, it may seem ironic that the distance between Ireland and England is far shorter than either place to Australia but I seriously doubt Mrs. Barney would have had any real motivation to return to the homeland where she'd been orphaned and in a terrible state for so long . In any case, I had fun watching Miss Moore find out these things and wonder if her maternal grandmother knew any of this.

[tvrox]

I was glad this show is back. The story of the indentured servant in Australia was interesting, but it seems like this show has featured a lot of stories about the Irish Famine. Maybe its just there are a lot of people with Irish descent in the US? But stories about different countries and cultures would be great.

[DNR]

S10e2- The Josh Duhamel ( singer Fergie ex husband ) was very interesting ! He discovered some amazing info. Good episode . In his words ‘a roller coaster’

Edited December 11, 2018 by DNR
Xtra words

[Linderhill]

I enjoyed Josh's story. for some reason I expected him to have French roots. It was an interesting journey for him, a Catholic to find out so much about a Protestant ancestor.

[BusyOctober]

I know it is very difficult to look at history without present day attitudes/biases/knowledge.  We would all be horrified to find out an ancestor was a "Rack Master" like Josh Duhmel discovered, or if our 4xGG was a slave owner or a plantation overseer or helped the US Army lead Native Americans on the Trail of Tears.  But historical events DID happen and they happened as a result of the attitudes/biases/knowledge of THAT period.  That doesn't mean those events were right (or wrong).  They are events that occured, and it upto us & future generations to learn from and build on them to avoid them (or improve upon them).  That said, as despicable as the torture over religion has been through the centuries (on every continent and in every culture), I was intrigued by Josh's ancestor, Robert Norton.  He was a pretty powerful guy during one of the most politically unsettling periods in England.  

[rhys]

I thought the letter or document they read about the 12(?)x ggfather was curious. Something like: "I am the meanest rack master..." But that was sort of translated to the "lowest rack master...I'm just following orders."

I didn't understand how they got from "meanest" to "lowest."

i never knew how Josh's last name was pronounced. Lots of silent letters.

[Lovecat]

I loved the part where Josh asked (the first) British Peter if he could touch the book from the 1500's, and Peter was all, "I would prefer that you not..." but then proceeded to touch the book himself without gloves.  I guess he just wanted to keep Josh's meaty American hands off of it, but his delicate British touch was just fine :)

Interesting, Josh came off as a bit of a dudebro at the beginning, but as he got deeper into the story you could tell how much it affected him, and he did ask some pretty insightful questions.  He's got a little more going on upstairs than I gave him credit for.  And he's so, SO pretty...

[Eln5]

2 minutes ago, Lovecat said:

I loved the part where Josh asked (the first) British Peter if he could touch the book from the 1500's, and Peter was all, "I would prefer that you not..." but then proceeded to touch the book himself without gloves.  I guess he just wanted to keep Josh's meaty American hands off of it, but his delicate British touch was just fine :)

Interesting, Josh came off as a bit of a dudebro at the beginning, but as he got deeper into the story you could tell how much it affected him, and he did ask some pretty insightful questions.  He's got a little more going on upstairs than I gave him credit for.  And he's so, SO pretty...

That part with the British guy cracked me up. He got all flustered when Josh told him also not to touch the book.  Then Josh smacked him on the back like a total dude bro when he was leaving and I thought he was going to knock him over. 

Agree with your your comment that he is not just a pretty face.  Although I could see the one female genealogist blushing while she was talking to him, as I think I would have done too. 

[Chippings]

1 hour ago, rhys said:

I thought the letter or document they read about the 12(?)x ggfather was curious. Something like: "I am the meanest rack master..." But that was sort of translated to the "lowest rack master...I'm just following orders."

I didn't understand how they got from "meanest" to "lowest."

Ahh !  Not a mistake.  One definition of 'mean'' is "low in status, rank, or dignity" -- and evidently it was a very common use of the word in that time.  It's become very much less common over time, though.

This episode was a really interesting trail of research.  Probably there were a lot of stories along the way up where they could have stopped, but this was a very good one and good history lesson.  They were lucky to come across such an interesting guy!

It's always interesting when they go that far back for the 'main story' for a celebrity, and of course we take it very personally.  Who wouldn't!  But the numbers are clear about how remote ancestors are at that level.  A 12th great grandfather is  1/16,384th of your makeup.  You have 16,383 other people who were your ancestor at that level (except for the doubling up over time, probably - often mentioned here).  

Finally, I was a little put off at the very beginning when Jenn Utley of Ancestry had been flown to his home to show him the data, sat on his lovely terrace to see the specifics, and in leaving the long shot showed him walking four paces ahead of her, with her bringing up the rear.  It just seemed very rude and put me off on him for a bit.  Very soon he entirely got into the stories and it was okay.      Bottom line, though - good finding of a good story and great documentation!  

[Suzn]

14 minutes ago, Chippings said:

It's always interesting when they go that far back for the 'main story' for a celebrity, and of course we take it very personally.  Who wouldn't!  But the numbers are clear about how remote ancestors are at that level.  A 12th great grandfather is  1/16,384th of your makeup.  You have 16,383 other people who were your ancestor at that level (except for the doubling up over time, probably - often

Thank you for mentioning this. Some of the celebrities attribute their own characteristics to these distant gg parents and don't seem to understand that the genetic contribution is extremely diluted at that point.  It's interesting of course to connect to a famous or important person but has so little to do with who they are.

[rhys]

2 hours ago, Chippings said:

Ahh !  Not a mistake.  One definition of 'mean'' is "low in status, rank, or dignity" -- and evidently it was a very common use of the word in that time.  It's become very much less common over time, though

Ah, thank you for that. That explains a ton.

[wetmoregal]

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Finally, I was a little put off at the very beginning when Jenn Utley of Ancestry had been flown to his home to show him the data, sat on his lovely terrace to see the specifics, and in leaving the long shot showed him walking four paces ahead of her, with her bringing up the rear.  It just seemed very rude and put me off on him for a bit. 

I noticed that too,  He did it again with the Tower of London historian.  Stormed out, leaving her to run up the stairs behind him to catch up.  

[Lugal]

 Fascinating episode, and Josh really seemed interested in his history.  I thought he dealt well with being a Catholic and having an anti-Catholic ancestor and acknowledging "he would have come after me."

Quote

Quote

Finally, I was a little put off at the very beginning when Jenn Utley of Ancestry had been flown to his home to show him the data, sat on his lovely terrace to see the specifics, and in leaving the long shot showed him walking four paces ahead of her, with her bringing up the rear.  It just seemed very rude and put me off on him for a bit. 

 

I noticed that too,  He did it again with the Tower of London historian.  Stormed out, leaving her to run up the stairs behind him to catch up.

Speaking as a tall guy, it is really easy to outpace someone without even thinking about it.  As for him walking out of the Tower, Josh looked like he was about to have an anxiety attack.  Looking at the rack and knowing what happened to people on it and knowing his 12th Great Grandfather was putting people on it, I think he just couldn't take it anymore and had to get away.

Edited December 13, 2018 by Lugal

[Anothermi]

11 hours ago, Lugal said:

 Fascinating episode, and Josh really seemed interested in his history.  I thought he dealt well with being a Catholic and having an anti-Catholic ancestor and acknowledging "he would have come after me."

I appreciated Josh explaining that although he thought of himself as a Catholic that he didn’t adhere to all the rituals & trappings. He spoke about his spirituality being about his relationship with God.

However, with that approach to religion back then he would not have been accepted by Catholics as one of them. That approach was more in line with beliefs of the Protestants of the day.  He was correct that the beliefs of the Reformation and the subsequent abuses committed in its name were co-opted for a political agenda - and for money & power. That was Henry Vlll’s reason.

If he had articulated his religious beliefs back then it would have been more likely that Queen Mary would have come after him instead of his distant ancestor.

However it seems he was appalled at whomever used religious belief against others for political reasons.

[Yeah No]

On 12/11/2018 at 12:55 PM, Suzn said:

Thank you for mentioning this. Some of the celebrities attribute their own characteristics to these distant gg parents and don't seem to understand that the genetic contribution is extremely diluted at that point.  It's interesting of course to connect to a famous or important person but has so little to do with who they are.

Thank you.  The last time I voiced this opinion on this thread it wasn't very well received.  I said that some of the stars' reactions seemed out of proportion considering how many generations removed the ancestor was and how little they were really "related" to them at that point.

That said, I definitely do see trends in the families I descend from that seem to confirm things I know about myself.  But I'm not going back more than 5 generations with that at most.

[ChicagoCita]

I liked the Josh Duhamel episode a lot. I majored in Tudor-era history in high school, so it was something I knew a bit about, but actually seeing the rack was blood-curdling. Terrifying.

Also, the ancestor's insistence after the fact that he was a lowly man without much involvement in the horrors of the era... I'm sorry, dude, but one doesn't get nicknamed "The Rack Master" for being a nobody.

After last week's over-reactions by Mandy Moore, Josh was a nice contrast. He was a lot more serious, a lot less pretty-boy, and lot more willing to talk about his spiritual/religious beliefs than I'd expected. He impressed me a lot. I loved him talking about his relationship with his grandmother!

[chitowngirl]

FYI-Regina King And Matthew Morrison’s episodes are airing back to back this Monday.

[Suzn]

On 12/13/2018 at 1:45 AM, ChicagoCita said:

After last week's over-reactions by Mandy Moore, Josh was a nice contrast. He was a lot more serious, a lot less pretty-boy, and lot more willing to talk about his spiritual/religious beliefs than I'd expected. He impressed me a lot. I loved him talking about his relationship with his grandmother!

I was also impressed.  He listened carefully and asked intelligent questions and didn't grin and exclaim how amazing everything was every two minutes. 

I'm hoping for a couple of good ones tonight.

[rhys]

I found Regime's interesting and of course I got angry& dad along with her. And I'm white! Jeez I can't imagine how awful it would be to read that crap about your gggggrandad. Urg.

i could not get into M Morrison's.

[Jadzia]

I got really depressed last night reading some of the comments on WDYTYA's Facebook page. If you can watch a show about the KKK and your main takeaway was that it was "unfair to white people", you just might be a racist. There were also lots of comments from people denying that police kill black people. It's so sad how much denial people live in about things that don't directly affect them.

I also had a hard time getting into Morrison's story, but I may have just been emotionally exhausted from Regina's episode that his seemed rather lightweight.

[meep.meep]

Have they had the same reaction to the episodes where people find their relatives were killed by Nazi's?

I taped Regina King and watched Mathew Morrison's episode.  I found it pretty interesting.  We don't hear much about the Loyalist side in the revolutionary war.

[chitowngirl]

Rachel McAdams’ story had a Loyalist ancestor, but in her case, she was excited about it being Canadian.