Music
Bob Marley was shot. Then he brought two rivals together
Two days after a shooting at his Kingston home, Bob Marley played Smile Jamaica.
2:59 filmThis week's edition · The Nobel Prizes 2026
The Nobel Prizes, and the eight people behind them
A bus driver's daughter who became a judge. A telescope buried in the South Pole ice. A pond alga that switches brain cells on.
From the editor
Every October, the Nobel Prizes put a handful of people in the headlines for a day, and then the world moves on. This week I wanted to slow down and ask who they are: where the work began, what went wrong along the way, and what it took to keep going.
I hope one of them stays with you.
This week in history
- October 14, 1926
Winnie-the-Pooh is published. A.A. Milne named the boy in the stories after his own son, Christopher Robin.
- October 15, 1951
I Love Lucy airs for the first time on CBS, with Lucille Ball and her real husband, Desi Arnaz.
- October 18, 1926
Chuck Berry is born in St. Louis. He would help invent rock and roll.
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Lives Before Us, every Sunday
The week's remarkable lives, the films and the story behind each one. Free.
More lives worth remembering
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Sport
Muhammad Ali lost his title without losing a fight
Muhammad Ali lost his heavyweight title after refusing the Vietnam draft in 1967.
2:58 film
Adventure
Edmund Hillary and the photograph he isn't in
At 11:30 on 29 May 1953, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay reached the summit of Mount Everest.
2:36 film
Space
“30 seconds.” Then Neil Armstrong found a way to land
Computer alarms.
2:25 film
Sport
Billie Jean King took Bobby Riggs's $100,000 bet
In 1973, Bobby Riggs beat Margaret Court and challenged Billie Jean King to a $100,000 winner-take-all match.
2:58 film
Courage
Terry Fox and the run he couldn't finish
Terry Fox never reached the Pacific.
1:28 film
Courage
The man who helped save 669 children
Would you send your child away if it might save their life?
1:06 film
Space
NASA had computers. John Glenn asked for Katherine Johnson
NASA had electronic computers.
1:23 film
Showbusiness
They nailed Houdini in a box and dropped it into New York Harbor
They searched Harry Houdini for keys, fastened his restraints, nailed the packing case shut, and lowered it into New York Harbor.
2:18 film
Showbusiness
The man behind Kermit was terrified of live audiences
Jim Henson created characters known around the world—but speaking to a live audience terrified him.
2:00 film
Music
Freddie Mercury made clothes part of the performance
From flowing sleeves to a crown and cloak, Freddie Mercury made clothes part of the performance—and kept reinventing how the world saw him.
1:16 film
Music
Louis Armstrong, Little Rock and the tour he refused
In 1957, Louis Armstrong refused a proposed U.S.
1:31 film
Space
How Nichelle Nichols helped NASA find new astronauts
Nichelle Nichols didn't just imagine a more inclusive future as Lieutenant Uhura.
1:59 film
Space
Christa McAuliffe's lesson that waited 32 years
Christa McAuliffe was supposed to teach from space.
1:01 film
Music
Sister Rosetta Tharpe helped shape rock and roll
Sister Rosetta Tharpe brought gospel energy and commanding guitar playing to audiences far beyond the church.
1:07 filmReal recordsEvery film is built from archive footage, photographs and the person's own words.
Checked factsDates, names and quotes are checked against the original sources before we publish.
Credits listedPhoto and film credits and sources are listed with every film.
Family films
Every life leaves a story, including your family's
We make short films about parents and grandparents the same way we make these: from their photographs, their voice and the moments that mattered.
Ask for a consultation
Tell us who you'd like to remember. We'll talk through what's possible.
How it works
- Send us photographs and a few memories.By email, or we can talk it through on a call.
- We write and narrate the film.You read and approve the script before anything is made.
- You receive a film to keep and share.For a birthday, a reunion, a memorial or simply to remember.