1 00:00:04,633 --> 00:00:06,633 GATES: I'm Henry Louis Gates, Jr. 2 00:00:06,633 --> 00:00:09,533 welcome to "Finding Your Roots." 3 00:00:09,533 --> 00:00:13,500 In this episode, we'll meet Brendan Fraser and 4 00:00:13,500 --> 00:00:16,666 Valerie Bertinelli... 5 00:00:16,666 --> 00:00:20,200 Two actors who've spent years in front of the camera 6 00:00:20,200 --> 00:00:24,433 are about to meet ancestors whose stories never saw 7 00:00:24,433 --> 00:00:26,733 the light of day... 8 00:00:26,733 --> 00:00:28,500 BERTINELLI: That sparked my curiosity because I'm like, 9 00:00:28,500 --> 00:00:31,833 "What do I not know about my family?" 10 00:00:31,833 --> 00:00:33,633 GATES: What's it like to read that, to think that is your 11 00:00:33,633 --> 00:00:35,900 ancestor shooting another man? 12 00:00:35,900 --> 00:00:37,600 FRASER: Imagine thinking this through. 13 00:00:37,600 --> 00:00:38,900 This is what we're gonna do. 14 00:00:38,900 --> 00:00:40,166 GATES: Yeah. 15 00:00:40,166 --> 00:00:42,200 FRASER: We're gonna get a gun. We're going to ambush him. 16 00:00:42,200 --> 00:00:46,100 They had a plan. They, that's, that's criminal. 17 00:00:46,333 --> 00:00:50,700 GATES: To uncover their roots, we've used every tool available. 18 00:00:50,700 --> 00:00:53,666 Genealogists combed through the paper trail their families 19 00:00:53,666 --> 00:00:55,300 left behind... 20 00:00:55,300 --> 00:00:56,900 BERTINELLI: I've never seen this. 21 00:00:56,900 --> 00:00:58,100 This is amazing! 22 00:00:58,100 --> 00:01:01,200 GATES: While DNA experts utilized the latest advances 23 00:01:01,200 --> 00:01:05,466 in genetic analysis to reveal secrets hundreds of years old. 24 00:01:05,466 --> 00:01:06,733 FRASER: Okay, what just happened? 25 00:01:06,733 --> 00:01:08,400 (laughs) 26 00:01:08,400 --> 00:01:12,300 GATES: And we've compiled it all into a book of life... 27 00:01:12,300 --> 00:01:14,666 a record of all of our discoveries... 28 00:01:14,666 --> 00:01:16,433 FRASER: It's history come alive. 29 00:01:16,433 --> 00:01:19,133 GATES: And a window into the hidden past... 30 00:01:19,133 --> 00:01:20,933 BERTINELLI: They kept so many secrets. 31 00:01:20,933 --> 00:01:22,966 Who knows who knew what when. 32 00:01:22,966 --> 00:01:26,033 FRASER: I feel like it's a historical, seismic shift 33 00:01:26,033 --> 00:01:27,200 in the family. 34 00:01:27,200 --> 00:01:29,533 I, I'm, I'm really astonished. 35 00:01:29,533 --> 00:01:33,566 GATES: Brendan and Valerie both found fame when they were young, 36 00:01:33,566 --> 00:01:36,633 and left their roots behind. 37 00:01:36,900 --> 00:01:40,733 In this episode, we're going to recover what they lost 38 00:01:40,733 --> 00:01:44,666 along the way, introducing them to ancestors whose 39 00:01:44,666 --> 00:01:48,533 stories are every bit as dramatic as their own. 40 00:01:54,766 --> 00:02:08,833 (theme music plays) 41 00:02:08,833 --> 00:02:11,966 ♪ ♪ 42 00:02:11,966 --> 00:02:13,033 (book closes) 43 00:02:16,933 --> 00:02:29,233 ♪ ♪ 44 00:02:29,233 --> 00:02:32,900 (chatter, cameras clicking) 45 00:02:33,300 --> 00:02:37,166 GATES: Brendan Fraser is taking a victory lap. 46 00:02:38,066 --> 00:02:41,533 The one-time Hollywood golden boy spent years 47 00:02:41,533 --> 00:02:44,533 in a self-imposed exile... 48 00:02:44,533 --> 00:02:49,066 Then re-emerged in 2022 to star in an independent film 49 00:02:49,066 --> 00:02:51,200 called "The Whale", 50 00:02:51,200 --> 00:02:54,700 in which he played a 600-pound recluse... 51 00:02:55,566 --> 00:03:00,866 The performance won Brendan the Oscar for Best Actor, 52 00:03:00,866 --> 00:03:04,466 and reignited his career. 53 00:03:04,833 --> 00:03:07,766 But it wasn't the first time that he'd had to start over 54 00:03:07,766 --> 00:03:10,666 from scratch... 55 00:03:10,666 --> 00:03:12,333 When Brendan was 17, 56 00:03:12,333 --> 00:03:15,200 he was living in Seattle with his parents, 57 00:03:15,200 --> 00:03:17,966 and attending a school in Canada, 58 00:03:17,966 --> 00:03:21,933 until a family crisis forced him to improvise. 59 00:03:22,666 --> 00:03:24,500 FRASER: I, I couldn't pay the tuition. We didn't... 60 00:03:24,500 --> 00:03:25,800 GATES: Mm-hmm... 61 00:03:25,800 --> 00:03:27,566 FRASER: Our family didn't have my father's bursary with his 62 00:03:27,566 --> 00:03:29,666 government job, and, and the rules changed... 63 00:03:29,666 --> 00:03:31,600 GATES: Mm-hmm... FRASER: And I was crestfallen. 64 00:03:31,600 --> 00:03:32,633 GATES: Yeah. 65 00:03:32,633 --> 00:03:34,800 FRASER: But I picked up the yellow pages. 66 00:03:34,800 --> 00:03:40,400 I remember having seen an, um, a public-access commercial 67 00:03:40,400 --> 00:03:42,833 for a local school in Seattle called Cornish... 68 00:03:42,833 --> 00:03:44,000 GATES: Mm-hmm... 69 00:03:44,000 --> 00:03:46,400 FRASER: And, uh, it had ballerinas and people with 70 00:03:46,400 --> 00:03:49,866 painting brushes and guys with turtlenecks and, you know, 71 00:03:49,866 --> 00:03:52,100 acting and skull, you know, like that, and I went, 72 00:03:52,100 --> 00:03:53,466 "Hang on." 73 00:03:53,466 --> 00:03:58,166 That, I got the last audition that Labor Day weekend. 74 00:03:58,166 --> 00:03:59,466 GATES: Hmm. 75 00:03:59,466 --> 00:04:03,366 FRASER: And I had no idea that I would have been accepted, 76 00:04:03,366 --> 00:04:06,600 but for the phone call I made the following weekend morning, 77 00:04:06,600 --> 00:04:08,766 whether it was after that Labor Day weekend. 78 00:04:08,766 --> 00:04:10,300 I didn't know if I'd been accepted... 79 00:04:10,300 --> 00:04:11,366 GATES: Right. 80 00:04:11,366 --> 00:04:12,333 FRASER: Because they hadn't gotten around to 81 00:04:12,333 --> 00:04:13,433 shuffling the papers. 82 00:04:13,433 --> 00:04:14,966 So, I called the office and said my name and, 83 00:04:14,966 --> 00:04:16,800 and they said, you know, "Can I help you?" 84 00:04:16,800 --> 00:04:17,933 I said, "I just wanna know, 85 00:04:17,933 --> 00:04:20,366 what's the status of my application." 86 00:04:20,366 --> 00:04:21,633 They went, "Uh, hang on." 87 00:04:21,633 --> 00:04:23,533 And so, I heard the phone go and then somebody went 88 00:04:23,533 --> 00:04:25,500 "Waah-waah-waah." And... 89 00:04:25,500 --> 00:04:27,266 File cabinets opening and close, and somebody came back, 90 00:04:27,266 --> 00:04:29,533 just going, "Oh, yeah. You're in." 91 00:04:29,533 --> 00:04:33,333 "Um, can you be here at, like, you know, 9:00 for orientation?" 92 00:04:33,333 --> 00:04:34,933 I'm like, what? 93 00:04:34,933 --> 00:04:37,100 So, we were off to the races. 94 00:04:37,100 --> 00:04:41,100 GATES: Brendan's "race" was run at a breathtaking pace. 95 00:04:41,733 --> 00:04:46,333 After graduating from Cornish, he moved to Los Angeles... 96 00:04:46,333 --> 00:04:49,600 And within just two years, he was a leading man. 97 00:04:50,800 --> 00:04:54,666 A decade later, his star turn in "The Mummy" launched 98 00:04:54,666 --> 00:04:58,200 a juggernaut franchise, 99 00:04:58,200 --> 00:05:01,633 and made Brendan a pop culture icon... 100 00:05:04,266 --> 00:05:07,766 But off-screen, Brendan was struggling, 101 00:05:07,766 --> 00:05:12,400 both physically and emotionally, with the demands of his work. 102 00:05:13,266 --> 00:05:16,766 He needed operations on his knees, his back, 103 00:05:16,766 --> 00:05:19,366 and his vocal cords. 104 00:05:19,366 --> 00:05:23,300 But most of all, Brendan needed a break... 105 00:05:24,666 --> 00:05:26,833 FRASER: There was a lot of stunt work that I started doing. 106 00:05:26,833 --> 00:05:28,066 GATES: Mm-hmm. 107 00:05:28,066 --> 00:05:32,000 FRASER: And I started taking more risks... 108 00:05:32,000 --> 00:05:33,133 GATES: Mm-hmm. 109 00:05:33,133 --> 00:05:36,033 FRASER: Um, not the best creative ones, and it did 110 00:05:36,033 --> 00:05:37,766 a number on joints in my body. 111 00:05:37,766 --> 00:05:39,066 GATES: Yeah. 112 00:05:39,066 --> 00:05:43,433 FRASER: And, uh, I realized I needed to, um, I needed to, 113 00:05:43,433 --> 00:05:46,366 I needed to punch my card for a little while. 114 00:05:46,366 --> 00:05:47,933 GATES: And get those parts replaced. 115 00:05:47,933 --> 00:05:49,300 FRASER: Get them repaired. 116 00:05:49,300 --> 00:05:52,633 Yeah. Get some work done on them. 117 00:05:52,633 --> 00:05:57,566 And the good news is I did and, um, I got out of pain. 118 00:05:57,566 --> 00:06:01,400 I was in pain that I didn't know I was in. 119 00:06:01,400 --> 00:06:03,200 GATES: Oh. Until it stopped. 120 00:06:03,200 --> 00:06:04,633 FRASER: Like a smoke alarm. 121 00:06:04,633 --> 00:06:05,700 GATES: Right. 122 00:06:05,700 --> 00:06:07,000 FRASER: You hear it, but your brain tunes it out. 123 00:06:07,000 --> 00:06:08,100 GATES: Mm-hmm. 124 00:06:08,100 --> 00:06:10,266 FRASER: 'Cause you don't want to deal with it. 125 00:06:10,266 --> 00:06:11,500 Why do you want to listen to that? 126 00:06:11,500 --> 00:06:12,733 Why do you want to feel that way? You don't. 127 00:06:12,733 --> 00:06:14,933 So your brain tunes it out until someone turns it off, 128 00:06:14,933 --> 00:06:16,800 and then suddenly the silence is deafening, right? 129 00:06:16,800 --> 00:06:18,033 GATES: Yeah. That's right. 130 00:06:18,033 --> 00:06:20,333 FRASER: And you think I was walking around with that? 131 00:06:20,600 --> 00:06:23,766 GATES: In the end, Brendan decided to step away from his 132 00:06:23,766 --> 00:06:28,800 career for almost ten years, taking occasional small roles, 133 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:32,700 but largely disappearing from public view. 134 00:06:33,533 --> 00:06:36,633 Then came "The Whale"... 135 00:06:36,633 --> 00:06:40,800 Brendan's comeback was simultaneously shocking 136 00:06:40,800 --> 00:06:43,000 and delightful, 137 00:06:43,000 --> 00:06:47,800 eliciting rave reviews and an out-pouring of affection 138 00:06:47,800 --> 00:06:52,166 that few actors can ever even dream of... 139 00:06:53,600 --> 00:06:56,133 So, we know how the world feels about this moment. 140 00:06:56,133 --> 00:06:59,466 But how do you feel? Relief, redemption, renewal? 141 00:06:59,466 --> 00:07:02,066 FRASER: Um, anticipation. GATES: Mm-hmm. 142 00:07:02,066 --> 00:07:06,466 FRASER: Some, um, enthusiasm that I am not accustomed to 143 00:07:06,466 --> 00:07:10,633 feeling because this is not the experience of 144 00:07:10,633 --> 00:07:12,333 my professional life or has not been. 145 00:07:12,333 --> 00:07:13,566 GATES: Mm-hmm. 146 00:07:13,566 --> 00:07:16,433 FRASER: Um, and, uh, it's been 30-something years since 147 00:07:16,433 --> 00:07:18,733 I've been in the industry. 148 00:07:18,733 --> 00:07:20,833 And I've met many, many people and, you know, people come and 149 00:07:20,833 --> 00:07:22,400 go just like, you know, our friends. 150 00:07:22,400 --> 00:07:27,566 And, um, to have the ability to see each other again now 151 00:07:27,566 --> 00:07:29,733 and say, look, you know, we've grown a little older 152 00:07:29,733 --> 00:07:30,733 but we're still here. 153 00:07:30,733 --> 00:07:32,000 GATES: Right. 154 00:07:32,000 --> 00:07:33,733 FRASER: It really feels good. GATES: I'm happy for you. 155 00:07:33,733 --> 00:07:34,866 I mean, it's a new chapter for you. 156 00:07:34,866 --> 00:07:36,100 FRASER: Yes. 157 00:07:36,933 --> 00:07:40,833 GATES: My second guest is actor Valerie Bertinelli. 158 00:07:40,833 --> 00:07:43,900 Like Brendan, Valerie knows what it's like 159 00:07:43,900 --> 00:07:45,933 to live in the limelight. 160 00:07:45,933 --> 00:07:50,533 When she was 11 years old, her family moved to Los Angeles, 161 00:07:50,533 --> 00:07:54,366 where her mother was soon tasked with driving her 162 00:07:54,366 --> 00:07:57,800 to auditions for television commercials. 163 00:07:58,200 --> 00:08:02,233 Just four years later, Valerie landed a lead role on 164 00:08:02,233 --> 00:08:05,866 "One Day at a Time", 165 00:08:05,866 --> 00:08:09,666 a Norman Lear sitcom that became a huge hit, 166 00:08:09,666 --> 00:08:13,566 and made her a household name. 167 00:08:13,566 --> 00:08:17,600 But to hear Valerie tell it, acting never came easily, 168 00:08:17,600 --> 00:08:22,233 and she almost ended her career before it began... 169 00:08:23,633 --> 00:08:26,100 BERTINELLI: There's many times, after many interviews 170 00:08:26,100 --> 00:08:27,733 that my mom, uh... 171 00:08:27,733 --> 00:08:29,266 I would be, get in the car and go, "I'm not gonna get it 172 00:08:29,266 --> 00:08:31,200 because, you know, they don't want me." 173 00:08:31,200 --> 00:08:33,800 And my mom said, "Then let them. Don't do it." 174 00:08:33,800 --> 00:08:35,200 'You don't have to do this. 175 00:08:35,200 --> 00:08:36,666 You don't have to make yourself crazy." 176 00:08:36,666 --> 00:08:38,666 Like she was the opposite of a stage mom. 177 00:08:38,666 --> 00:08:40,866 She was like, "I don't feel like driving you," you know, so... 178 00:08:40,866 --> 00:08:42,133 Because I would get mad at her. 179 00:08:42,133 --> 00:08:43,766 She would take me out of Mr. Hamill's art class... 180 00:08:43,766 --> 00:08:45,033 It was my favorite class in school... 181 00:08:45,033 --> 00:08:47,300 and, um, take me to interviews. 182 00:08:47,300 --> 00:08:48,733 And I, I'd be mad at her. 183 00:08:48,733 --> 00:08:49,833 GATES: Mm-hmm. 184 00:08:49,833 --> 00:08:51,033 BERTINELLI: She's not doing anything. 185 00:08:51,033 --> 00:08:52,866 She's, like, just doing what I said I wanted to do. 186 00:08:52,866 --> 00:08:54,300 GATES: Yeah, but maybe that was her strategy. 187 00:08:54,300 --> 00:08:56,133 You know, she was psyching you out. 188 00:08:56,133 --> 00:08:57,133 BERTINELLI: Maybe. 189 00:08:57,133 --> 00:08:58,333 GATES: "Okay, you don't wanna do it? Okay." 190 00:08:58,333 --> 00:08:59,366 And you go, "No, no, I didn't mean that." 191 00:08:59,366 --> 00:09:00,433 BERTINELLI: Yeah, yeah. 192 00:09:00,433 --> 00:09:02,433 GATES: Yeah. BERTINELLI: Yeah, maybe. 193 00:09:02,433 --> 00:09:06,100 Well, when we moved to Oklahoma in 1975, um, I said, 194 00:09:06,100 --> 00:09:08,400 "Well, I guess that's it. I'm not gonna be an actress. 195 00:09:08,400 --> 00:09:10,933 I'm gonna move to Oklahoma and we'll see what happens there." 196 00:09:10,933 --> 00:09:14,100 And I was 15. And my dad, uh, whatever... 197 00:09:14,100 --> 00:09:16,266 It fell through, where he was working, 198 00:09:16,266 --> 00:09:17,533 and we moved right back, 199 00:09:17,533 --> 00:09:20,166 not just a few months later, and then I got the interview 200 00:09:20,166 --> 00:09:23,700 for "One Day at a Time" and my whole life changed. 201 00:09:23,700 --> 00:09:26,566 GATES: "One Day at a Time" is one of the most successful 202 00:09:26,566 --> 00:09:30,433 shows in the history of television. 203 00:09:30,433 --> 00:09:35,666 It ran for nine seasons, won Valerie two Golden Globes, 204 00:09:35,666 --> 00:09:38,766 and launched her career, 205 00:09:38,766 --> 00:09:43,333 leading to a string of roles in television movies and sitcoms. 206 00:09:45,366 --> 00:09:50,200 But living your life in public is a daunting challenge, and, 207 00:09:50,200 --> 00:09:52,366 after four decades of acting, 208 00:09:52,366 --> 00:09:55,833 Valerie made a surprising decision. 209 00:09:55,833 --> 00:10:00,500 She turned her focus to a more personal passion: cooking... 210 00:10:01,466 --> 00:10:04,900 BERTINELLI: My manager, Marc, just suggested that, you know... 211 00:10:04,900 --> 00:10:06,566 He, he knows how much I love cooking. 212 00:10:06,566 --> 00:10:07,733 And he said, "You should do a cookbook." 213 00:10:07,733 --> 00:10:09,466 GATES: Ah. BERTINELLI: "You'd love it." 214 00:10:09,466 --> 00:10:11,166 And so I started to write a cookbook. 215 00:10:11,166 --> 00:10:12,800 And I really did love it. 216 00:10:12,800 --> 00:10:15,166 And I started, it started my brain, like, 217 00:10:15,166 --> 00:10:16,800 really getting creative again. 218 00:10:16,800 --> 00:10:17,900 GATES: Mmm. 219 00:10:17,900 --> 00:10:19,333 BERTINELLI: And I was a big fan of Food Network. 220 00:10:19,333 --> 00:10:21,433 It was on my TV all the time. 221 00:10:21,433 --> 00:10:23,400 And, um, when I went there, I said, 222 00:10:23,400 --> 00:10:24,566 "I'd love to do something." 223 00:10:24,566 --> 00:10:26,933 They said, "How about an ITK?" 224 00:10:26,933 --> 00:10:29,200 And I went, "What's an ITK?" 225 00:10:29,200 --> 00:10:30,466 They said, "In the kitchen." 226 00:10:30,466 --> 00:10:31,700 GATES: Mm. 227 00:10:31,700 --> 00:10:32,800 BERTINELLI: And so, where I would cook on camera, like 228 00:10:32,800 --> 00:10:35,600 Rachael Ray and Ina Garten and, you know, like, 229 00:10:35,600 --> 00:10:36,966 I'd be able to do that. 230 00:10:36,966 --> 00:10:40,166 I'm like, "Really? I can do that?" 231 00:10:40,433 --> 00:10:43,700 GATES: Since that meeting, Valerie has hosted two shows 232 00:10:43,700 --> 00:10:48,166 for the Food Network, winning two Emmys and earning a 233 00:10:48,166 --> 00:10:51,266 legion of new fans. 234 00:10:51,600 --> 00:10:53,433 Yet, for all she's accomplished, 235 00:10:53,433 --> 00:10:58,400 Valerie considers her greatest successes to be private ones. 236 00:11:00,133 --> 00:11:02,966 She's been open about struggles with her body image 237 00:11:02,966 --> 00:11:07,166 and the pitfalls of celebrity culture. 238 00:11:07,166 --> 00:11:10,900 And she's worked hard to nurture a positive self-image, 239 00:11:10,900 --> 00:11:14,866 in a profession that can be brutally critical... 240 00:11:15,666 --> 00:11:17,866 BERTINELLI: To get rid of the people in your life that have 241 00:11:17,866 --> 00:11:19,166 said horrible things to you, 242 00:11:19,166 --> 00:11:21,233 and, and, I'm talking about online too... 243 00:11:21,233 --> 00:11:22,533 GATES: Mm-hmm. 244 00:11:22,533 --> 00:11:25,900 BERTINELLI: It, it really makes a difference. 245 00:11:25,900 --> 00:11:27,133 GATES: It does. 246 00:11:27,133 --> 00:11:29,300 You can't read all the crap about yourself online. 247 00:11:29,300 --> 00:11:30,366 BERTINELLI: No. 248 00:11:30,366 --> 00:11:31,366 GATES: You, you'll lose your mind. 249 00:11:31,366 --> 00:11:32,566 BERTINELLI: Yeah. 250 00:11:32,566 --> 00:11:34,300 Although I have, lately, when someone says something 251 00:11:34,300 --> 00:11:37,300 horrible to me, I'm like, "Oh, God, that poor person." 252 00:11:37,300 --> 00:11:38,533 GATES: Aw, that's good. 253 00:11:38,533 --> 00:11:40,300 BERTINELLI: How miserable must they be that they feel 254 00:11:40,300 --> 00:11:43,700 comfortable enough to lash out at me and, and, 255 00:11:43,700 --> 00:11:45,800 and say something horrible to me? 256 00:11:45,800 --> 00:11:47,066 GATES: Mm. 257 00:11:47,066 --> 00:11:49,000 BERTINELLI: So if I am a gift for them to be able to say 258 00:11:49,000 --> 00:11:51,300 that, so they feel a little less pressure in their life 259 00:11:51,300 --> 00:11:53,233 and they feel like they've gotten some nastiness out, 260 00:11:53,233 --> 00:11:55,800 okay, 'cause I'm not... I don't receive that. 261 00:11:55,800 --> 00:11:57,466 It's not for me. 262 00:11:57,466 --> 00:11:59,766 GATES: Can we post the number of your therapist on the screen? 263 00:11:59,766 --> 00:12:01,066 BERTINELLI: She's an amazing therapist. 264 00:12:01,066 --> 00:12:02,366 GATES: Yes. 265 00:12:02,366 --> 00:12:05,233 'Cause everybody in America needs to, needs to hear that. 266 00:12:05,233 --> 00:12:07,100 BERTINELLI: Yes. It's not for you. 267 00:12:07,100 --> 00:12:08,966 Don't receive it. It doesn't belong to you. 268 00:12:08,966 --> 00:12:10,733 What someone else says about you, thinks about you, 269 00:12:10,733 --> 00:12:13,300 the way they look at you, you, don't receive it. 270 00:12:13,300 --> 00:12:14,566 GATES: Mm. 271 00:12:14,566 --> 00:12:16,900 BERTINELLI: If it's negative, it doesn't belong to you. 272 00:12:16,900 --> 00:12:18,400 If it's positive, take it in. 273 00:12:18,400 --> 00:12:20,933 GATES: Right. BERTINELLI: You're allowed. 274 00:12:20,933 --> 00:12:23,933 GATES: My two guests have been on professional rollercoasters, 275 00:12:23,933 --> 00:12:26,633 riding waves of fame, 276 00:12:26,633 --> 00:12:30,200 while battling to stay healthy, and happy. 277 00:12:30,633 --> 00:12:32,133 In the process, 278 00:12:32,133 --> 00:12:35,333 they've had little time to reflect on the past, 279 00:12:35,333 --> 00:12:39,800 and both came to me with questions about their ancestors, 280 00:12:39,800 --> 00:12:44,133 questions that had gone unasked and unanswered 281 00:12:44,133 --> 00:12:46,800 for decades. 282 00:12:47,500 --> 00:12:50,333 I started with Brendan Fraser. 283 00:12:50,333 --> 00:12:53,600 He knew that his mother's roots lay in Ireland, but 284 00:12:53,600 --> 00:12:58,233 beyond that, her family tree was a blank slate, 285 00:12:58,233 --> 00:13:02,566 and Brendan was hoping that we would fill it in... 286 00:13:02,566 --> 00:13:06,300 In the 1920 census for Pennsylvania, we found the 287 00:13:06,300 --> 00:13:09,933 first of his Irish ancestors to be born in America: 288 00:13:09,933 --> 00:13:13,766 a man named Patrick F. Devine. 289 00:13:14,233 --> 00:13:17,533 Patrick is Brendan's great-grandfather, and he had 290 00:13:17,533 --> 00:13:20,633 an unusual occupation: 291 00:13:20,633 --> 00:13:24,000 in 1920, he worked as a salesman 292 00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:28,266 for what was known as a "confectionary" dealer... 293 00:13:29,266 --> 00:13:30,733 GATES: And you know what that means? 294 00:13:30,733 --> 00:13:31,766 FRASER: Candy store? 295 00:13:31,766 --> 00:13:33,333 GATES: He sold candies wholesale, 296 00:13:33,333 --> 00:13:35,033 to businesses and markets. 297 00:13:35,033 --> 00:13:36,100 Can you imagine? 298 00:13:36,100 --> 00:13:37,466 FRASER: What? 299 00:13:37,466 --> 00:13:38,533 GATES: Did you ever think you'd descended 300 00:13:38,533 --> 00:13:39,566 from a candy salesman? 301 00:13:39,566 --> 00:13:41,400 FRASER: My great-grandad? GATES: Yes. 302 00:13:41,400 --> 00:13:43,333 FRASER: Was a candy salesman? GATES: He was a candy man. 303 00:13:43,333 --> 00:13:46,200 FRASER: Yes! Do you know how much that explains? 304 00:13:46,200 --> 00:13:48,266 GATES: Why? You, you like candy? 305 00:13:48,266 --> 00:13:50,433 FRASER: Everybody does. 306 00:13:51,400 --> 00:13:54,966 GATES: As it turns out, Patrick's job was an indication 307 00:13:54,966 --> 00:13:58,633 of how much progress his family had made 308 00:13:58,633 --> 00:14:02,066 in just one generation. 309 00:14:02,600 --> 00:14:06,100 His father, the similarly named "Patrick Devine", 310 00:14:06,100 --> 00:14:10,400 was born in Ireland around 1844. 311 00:14:11,266 --> 00:14:14,633 And his application for American citizenship describes 312 00:14:14,633 --> 00:14:18,833 a life that was far removed from the candy business... 313 00:14:21,100 --> 00:14:24,400 FRASER: It says, "The petition of Patrick Devine respectfully 314 00:14:24,400 --> 00:14:29,133 represents that he arrived in the United States before the 315 00:14:29,133 --> 00:14:34,766 year 1853 being then under the age of 11 years. 316 00:14:37,000 --> 00:14:43,000 That he has now arrived at the age of about 24 years." 317 00:14:43,533 --> 00:14:45,366 He wrote this letter? 318 00:14:45,366 --> 00:14:47,033 GATES: Mm-hmm. 319 00:14:47,033 --> 00:14:50,000 FRASER: This is his application? 320 00:14:50,000 --> 00:14:51,300 GATES: This is... 321 00:14:51,300 --> 00:14:52,933 You are looking at your great-great grandfather's 322 00:14:52,933 --> 00:14:55,233 petition for naturalization. 323 00:14:55,233 --> 00:14:58,500 FRASER: Wow. So when he arrived, he was just a little boy. 324 00:14:58,500 --> 00:15:01,533 GATES: 11 years old. What's it like to see that? 325 00:15:01,533 --> 00:15:06,566 FRASER: It, it's, uh, it's making me feel tingly all over. 326 00:15:07,866 --> 00:15:09,666 GATES: According to this petition, 327 00:15:09,666 --> 00:15:14,000 Patrick immigrated in 1853, 328 00:15:14,000 --> 00:15:17,000 meaning that his childhood in Ireland 329 00:15:17,000 --> 00:15:20,266 overlapped with what we now call the Great Famine, 330 00:15:20,266 --> 00:15:24,300 a cataclysm that claimed the lives of approximately 331 00:15:24,300 --> 00:15:27,466 one million people... 332 00:15:28,533 --> 00:15:30,266 It's one of the worst famines in history, 333 00:15:30,266 --> 00:15:32,866 and your ancestors were right there. 334 00:15:32,866 --> 00:15:34,333 Did it ever occur to you... 335 00:15:34,333 --> 00:15:35,600 FRASER: No. 336 00:15:35,600 --> 00:15:36,833 GATES: That your family was caught up in the, potato famine? 337 00:15:36,833 --> 00:15:38,266 FRASER: Of course, I, I wondered, I speculated from, 338 00:15:38,266 --> 00:15:39,266 you know... 339 00:15:39,266 --> 00:15:40,333 GATES: Mm-hmm.. 340 00:15:40,333 --> 00:15:41,700 FRASER: What I know of historical events, but... 341 00:15:41,700 --> 00:15:42,966 GATES: Yeah. 342 00:15:42,966 --> 00:15:44,000 FRASER: This is why I wanted to come talk to you because 343 00:15:44,000 --> 00:15:45,933 I wanted to know how they coincide with... 344 00:15:45,933 --> 00:15:47,066 GATES: Yeah. 345 00:15:47,066 --> 00:15:49,833 FRASER: The, the families to give it context. So... 346 00:15:49,833 --> 00:15:52,166 GATES: That's why you did not grow up in... 347 00:15:52,166 --> 00:15:53,266 BOTH: Ireland. 348 00:15:53,266 --> 00:15:54,600 FRASER: They, they, they fled the potato famine. 349 00:15:54,600 --> 00:15:56,366 GATES: They fled and they came here. 350 00:15:56,366 --> 00:15:58,633 Your great-great-grandfather Patrick likely crossed the 351 00:15:58,633 --> 00:16:01,300 Atlantic with his family. 352 00:16:01,300 --> 00:16:02,933 What do you think it was like for him to 353 00:16:02,933 --> 00:16:04,333 leave his home behind, 354 00:16:04,333 --> 00:16:06,666 knowing he'd likely never see it again? 355 00:16:06,666 --> 00:16:08,900 FRASER: Heartbreaking. GATES: Yeah. 356 00:16:08,900 --> 00:16:11,333 FRASER: It makes me think of how fleetingly childhood goes. 357 00:16:11,333 --> 00:16:12,800 GATES: Mm-hmm. 358 00:16:12,800 --> 00:16:15,666 FRASER: And, and it hurts my heart. 359 00:16:16,800 --> 00:16:19,800 GATES: Patrick's traumatic childhood in Ireland gave way 360 00:16:19,800 --> 00:16:23,933 to a life in America that was by no means easy... 361 00:16:24,800 --> 00:16:28,200 We found him in the 1870 census for Pennsylvania, 362 00:16:28,200 --> 00:16:31,000 married to Brendan's great-great-grandmother, 363 00:16:31,000 --> 00:16:33,466 a woman named Margaret Murphy, 364 00:16:33,466 --> 00:16:37,433 and working as an engineer in a coal mine... 365 00:16:37,433 --> 00:16:40,800 Meaning that he likely spent his days in darkness, 366 00:16:40,800 --> 00:16:43,233 deep within in the earth... 367 00:16:43,900 --> 00:16:45,433 GATES: What's it like to see that, 368 00:16:45,433 --> 00:16:47,800 to think of him in that environment? 369 00:16:47,800 --> 00:16:50,333 FRASER: It makes me feel, uh... 370 00:16:50,333 --> 00:16:55,400 It makes me feel grateful that he would take a risk 371 00:16:55,400 --> 00:17:00,133 in going to this very dangerous place to provide for himself and 372 00:17:00,133 --> 00:17:02,366 his family and his loved ones. 373 00:17:02,366 --> 00:17:06,966 It makes me feel, uh, 374 00:17:06,966 --> 00:17:10,266 a great deal of admiration. 375 00:17:11,400 --> 00:17:14,533 GATES: Brendan's sense of admiration was about to be 376 00:17:14,533 --> 00:17:19,866 challenged as this story took an unexpected turn... 377 00:17:20,166 --> 00:17:23,766 When Patrick arrived in Pennsylvania, Irish coal miners 378 00:17:23,766 --> 00:17:27,833 were struggling in every area of their lives. 379 00:17:27,833 --> 00:17:32,900 On the job, they faced low wages and unsafe working conditions. 380 00:17:33,800 --> 00:17:38,266 At home, they often lacked clean water and social services. 381 00:17:39,133 --> 00:17:42,300 And in public, Irish immigrants were tarred 382 00:17:42,300 --> 00:17:44,700 by demeaning stereotypes, 383 00:17:44,700 --> 00:17:49,066 and subject to discrimination and abuse. 384 00:17:49,300 --> 00:17:52,500 Some turned to labor unions for help. 385 00:17:52,500 --> 00:17:56,200 But, at the time, the labor movement was in its infancy, 386 00:17:56,200 --> 00:18:00,966 and Pennsylvania coal country soon became an extraordinarily 387 00:18:00,966 --> 00:18:05,000 violent place where miners battled their bosses, 388 00:18:05,000 --> 00:18:07,433 and each other. 389 00:18:07,433 --> 00:18:11,300 There were strikes, fights, even murders... 390 00:18:11,300 --> 00:18:15,733 And Brendan's ancestor was in the thick of it all... 391 00:18:16,566 --> 00:18:20,066 FRASER: "The night engineer of pumping engine was fired upon 392 00:18:20,066 --> 00:18:24,100 by two men from door of engine house, 393 00:18:24,100 --> 00:18:25,466 but was not injured. 394 00:18:25,466 --> 00:18:27,433 The two former engineers, 395 00:18:27,433 --> 00:18:31,766 James McBrearty and Patrick Devine... 396 00:18:31,766 --> 00:18:35,700 had struck against a reduction of wages. 397 00:18:35,700 --> 00:18:41,300 And the man fired at had taken one of their places." 398 00:18:41,300 --> 00:18:42,833 Okay, what just happened? 399 00:18:42,833 --> 00:18:45,133 (laughs) 400 00:18:45,133 --> 00:18:47,066 GATES: It seems that your great-great-grandfather, 401 00:18:47,066 --> 00:18:50,433 Patrick was fired from his job for striking. 402 00:18:51,700 --> 00:18:53,333 And along with the former colleague, 403 00:18:53,333 --> 00:18:58,233 he shot at the man who had replaced him. 404 00:18:58,233 --> 00:19:01,600 Is this, uh, um, mode of behavior, 405 00:19:01,600 --> 00:19:03,566 has it been passed down? 406 00:19:03,566 --> 00:19:08,766 FRASER: Uh, maybe acting out impulsively, uh, but, um, 407 00:19:08,766 --> 00:19:11,500 I try to get, you know, contain that and do it in an imaginary 408 00:19:11,500 --> 00:19:13,333 way as an actor. 409 00:19:13,333 --> 00:19:15,233 That's about the most I can do. 410 00:19:15,233 --> 00:19:17,233 GATES: I have to ask you, man, what's it like to read that, 411 00:19:17,233 --> 00:19:20,166 to think that is your ancestor shooting another man? 412 00:19:20,166 --> 00:19:22,866 (laughs) 413 00:19:24,200 --> 00:19:25,400 FRASER: Wow. 414 00:19:25,400 --> 00:19:30,233 Like the, imagine thinking this through. 415 00:19:30,233 --> 00:19:31,433 This is what we're gonna do. 416 00:19:31,433 --> 00:19:32,700 GATES: Yeah. 417 00:19:32,700 --> 00:19:34,466 FRASER: We're gonna get a gun. We're going to ambush him. 418 00:19:34,466 --> 00:19:35,700 GATES: Yeah. 419 00:19:35,700 --> 00:19:39,400 FRASER: They had a plan. They, that's, that's criminal. 420 00:19:39,866 --> 00:19:42,200 GATES: Although many Irish miners were arrested during 421 00:19:42,200 --> 00:19:46,266 these turbulent years and some were even executed, 422 00:19:46,266 --> 00:19:48,866 it appears that no criminal case 423 00:19:48,866 --> 00:19:51,600 was ever brought against Patrick. 424 00:19:51,600 --> 00:19:54,966 So, we can only speculate about what he actually did, 425 00:19:54,966 --> 00:19:58,700 and whether it was an isolated incident... 426 00:19:58,700 --> 00:20:00,966 It could have been one of many. 427 00:20:00,966 --> 00:20:02,566 FRASER: I was gonna wonder, like, 428 00:20:02,566 --> 00:20:04,066 you know, if he did this once, 429 00:20:04,066 --> 00:20:05,766 what, what are we not finding out about whatever 430 00:20:05,766 --> 00:20:07,133 he got up to? 431 00:20:07,133 --> 00:20:08,166 GATES: What do you make of your 432 00:20:08,166 --> 00:20:09,900 great-great grandfather's actions? 433 00:20:09,900 --> 00:20:14,266 FRASER: Um, well, I'm gonna gather that he was a very 434 00:20:14,266 --> 00:20:17,566 strong-headed man, opinionated man, um, 435 00:20:17,566 --> 00:20:20,666 believed in what was right and what was wrong. 436 00:20:20,666 --> 00:20:26,733 Uh, had the, the, the wherewithal to stand up. 437 00:20:26,733 --> 00:20:28,166 GATES: Mm-hmm. 438 00:20:28,166 --> 00:20:29,366 FRASER: Um... 439 00:20:29,366 --> 00:20:31,000 GATES: You're proud of him? 440 00:20:31,000 --> 00:20:32,400 FRASER: I don't, I don't, I mean, look, 441 00:20:32,400 --> 00:20:33,566 it's a different time, 442 00:20:33,566 --> 00:20:36,500 and I don't believe you should fire guns at people 443 00:20:36,500 --> 00:20:38,033 to get what you need. 444 00:20:38,033 --> 00:20:42,600 But, um, but then again, it's, it's, 445 00:20:42,600 --> 00:20:44,966 it's not 1875 right now. 446 00:20:44,966 --> 00:20:47,666 Um, it makes me think, I don't know, 447 00:20:47,666 --> 00:20:49,166 did it really solve anything? 448 00:20:49,166 --> 00:20:50,800 Did it, did it help? 449 00:20:50,800 --> 00:20:53,200 Did it, did you, did he feel like he succeeded? 450 00:20:53,200 --> 00:20:55,666 I, I don't know. 451 00:20:55,933 --> 00:20:59,566 GATES: There's no way to answer Brendan's questions, 452 00:20:59,566 --> 00:21:01,700 but in the years that followed, 453 00:21:01,700 --> 00:21:04,766 the labor movement gained momentum, 454 00:21:04,766 --> 00:21:07,233 and a relative peace descended on 455 00:21:07,233 --> 00:21:09,766 Pennsylvania coal country. 456 00:21:10,100 --> 00:21:13,933 Patrick seems to have benefited from this peace. 457 00:21:14,566 --> 00:21:19,600 The 1900 census shows him working again in the mines, 458 00:21:19,600 --> 00:21:23,433 meaning that somehow he got himself re-hired, 459 00:21:23,433 --> 00:21:26,733 despite having fired shots at his replacement. 460 00:21:26,733 --> 00:21:28,700 FRASER: Wow. 461 00:21:28,700 --> 00:21:30,433 GATES: By the time that census had been recorded, 462 00:21:30,433 --> 00:21:32,000 Patrick, your ancestor, 463 00:21:32,000 --> 00:21:34,233 had likely been a coal miner for more than 30 years. 464 00:21:34,233 --> 00:21:35,800 FRASER: Right. 465 00:21:35,800 --> 00:21:37,933 GATES: As you can see, he and Margaret now had 466 00:21:37,933 --> 00:21:41,166 eight children ranging in age from 9 to 30, 467 00:21:41,166 --> 00:21:44,900 including your great-grandfather Patrick F. Devine, 468 00:21:45,433 --> 00:21:47,966 through his employment in the mines, 469 00:21:47,966 --> 00:21:50,066 your great-great-grandfather, an immigrant, 470 00:21:50,066 --> 00:21:52,266 was able to reach one of the cornerstones 471 00:21:52,266 --> 00:21:53,666 of the American dream. 472 00:21:53,666 --> 00:21:56,966 He purchased his own home. 473 00:21:57,633 --> 00:21:58,933 Isn't that amazing? 474 00:21:58,933 --> 00:22:00,300 FRASER: This is where he lived. 475 00:22:00,300 --> 00:22:01,666 GATES: Yeah. 476 00:22:01,666 --> 00:22:04,766 And 107 years later, I'm looking at his descendant. 477 00:22:04,766 --> 00:22:06,966 (laughs) 478 00:22:06,966 --> 00:22:08,366 Isn't that cool? 479 00:22:08,366 --> 00:22:10,800 FRASER: Yes. 480 00:22:10,800 --> 00:22:13,700 Also, it feels like it's just, 481 00:22:13,700 --> 00:22:16,266 it feels like it's just yesterday too. 482 00:22:16,266 --> 00:22:20,900 I mean, it somehow, like I, somehow, I, I don't see the 483 00:22:20,900 --> 00:22:25,200 difference of, um, what time has done. 484 00:22:25,200 --> 00:22:28,100 I mean, they, they want the same things that people 485 00:22:28,100 --> 00:22:29,966 basically want then as now... 486 00:22:29,966 --> 00:22:31,333 GATES: Yeah. 487 00:22:31,333 --> 00:22:32,633 FRASER: Wow. 488 00:22:33,600 --> 00:22:36,266 GATES: Much like Brendan, Valerie Bertinelli has an 489 00:22:36,266 --> 00:22:40,466 ancestor who realized the American dream in a rather 490 00:22:40,466 --> 00:22:43,333 unorthodox manner... 491 00:22:43,333 --> 00:22:46,166 The story concerns her paternal grandfather, 492 00:22:46,166 --> 00:22:49,533 a man named Nazzareno Bertinelli. 493 00:22:49,533 --> 00:22:53,200 Nazzareno passed away when Valerie was a child, 494 00:22:53,200 --> 00:22:56,000 following a debilitating illness, 495 00:22:56,000 --> 00:22:59,700 and Valerie came to me with an array of questions 496 00:22:59,700 --> 00:23:03,000 about the man she never really got to know... 497 00:23:04,400 --> 00:23:06,866 BERTINELLI: He lived with us for the last few years 498 00:23:06,866 --> 00:23:08,100 of his life. 499 00:23:08,100 --> 00:23:09,566 And I just remember we had to be quiet. 500 00:23:09,566 --> 00:23:11,833 We couldn't watch Saturday cartoons because Nono 501 00:23:11,833 --> 00:23:12,933 would get upset with us. 502 00:23:12,933 --> 00:23:14,066 GATES: Right. 503 00:23:14,066 --> 00:23:15,833 BERTINELLI: So I would love to know more about... 504 00:23:15,833 --> 00:23:19,800 I'm getting emotional, um... the young man. 505 00:23:19,800 --> 00:23:21,100 What brought him to America? 506 00:23:21,100 --> 00:23:22,233 GATES: Mm-hmm. 507 00:23:22,233 --> 00:23:23,666 BERTINELLI: And what was his life like before? 508 00:23:23,666 --> 00:23:24,866 GATES: Mm-hmm. 509 00:23:24,866 --> 00:23:26,166 BERTINELLI: I know that he has some secrets... 510 00:23:26,166 --> 00:23:27,433 GATES: Mm-hmm. 511 00:23:27,433 --> 00:23:28,800 BERTINELLI: That he left in Italy, 512 00:23:28,800 --> 00:23:30,266 because we got, we saw some letters after my dad passed... 513 00:23:30,266 --> 00:23:31,466 GATES: Mm-hmm. 514 00:23:31,466 --> 00:23:32,633 BERTINELLI: That were in Italian. 515 00:23:32,633 --> 00:23:34,033 GATES: Mm-hmm. 516 00:23:34,033 --> 00:23:35,233 BERTINELLI: So I'm curious about Nazzareno's past. 517 00:23:35,233 --> 00:23:36,400 GATES: Mm-hmm. Okay. 518 00:23:36,400 --> 00:23:37,633 Well, let's see what we were able to find. 519 00:23:37,633 --> 00:23:39,300 BERTINELLI: Oh my gosh. 520 00:23:40,266 --> 00:23:43,066 GATES: Our search began in the archives of Scheggia, 521 00:23:43,066 --> 00:23:45,533 a village in central Italy, 522 00:23:45,533 --> 00:23:50,966 Nazzareno was born here in January of 1898. 523 00:23:52,000 --> 00:23:55,366 His parents were farmers, and he likely would have become 524 00:23:55,366 --> 00:24:00,766 a farmer himself, but for forces beyond his control... 525 00:24:02,000 --> 00:24:03,766 BERTINELLI: "Last name and name. 526 00:24:03,766 --> 00:24:08,233 Bertonelli, Nazzareno, 1, March 1917, 527 00:24:08,233 --> 00:24:10,566 call to army and joined." What army? 528 00:24:10,566 --> 00:24:13,166 GATES: In 1917, your grandfather was conscripted 529 00:24:13,166 --> 00:24:16,500 into the Italian military at the age of 19. 530 00:24:16,500 --> 00:24:18,466 BERTINELLI: Oh my goodness. 531 00:24:18,466 --> 00:24:19,933 GATES: You know what was going on in the world? 532 00:24:19,933 --> 00:24:21,066 BERTINELLI: No. 533 00:24:21,066 --> 00:24:22,133 GATES: World War I. 534 00:24:22,133 --> 00:24:23,200 (gasps). 535 00:24:23,200 --> 00:24:25,400 He was conscripted to fight in World War I. 536 00:24:25,400 --> 00:24:28,000 BERTINELLI: Whoa. 537 00:24:28,000 --> 00:24:30,866 GATES: Nazzareno was assigned to an infantry regiment and 538 00:24:30,866 --> 00:24:34,600 sent off to Italy's border with what was then known as 539 00:24:34,600 --> 00:24:38,033 the Austro-Hungarian Empire. 540 00:24:38,033 --> 00:24:42,333 It must have felt like he was marching to his death. 541 00:24:42,966 --> 00:24:47,033 At the time, the armies of Austro-Hungary were routing 542 00:24:47,033 --> 00:24:51,600 the Italians, and inflicting heavy casualties. 543 00:24:52,100 --> 00:24:56,500 Nazzareno soon found himself on the Piave river, 544 00:24:56,500 --> 00:25:00,233 where an Austro-Hungarian offensive sought to crush 545 00:25:00,233 --> 00:25:03,666 the Italians once and for all. 546 00:25:04,433 --> 00:25:07,833 A journal written by one of his fellow soldiers offers 547 00:25:07,833 --> 00:25:12,600 a glimpse of what Nazzareno likely endured... 548 00:25:13,933 --> 00:25:16,233 BERTINELLI: "All night I am in the canal waiting for the 549 00:25:16,233 --> 00:25:19,233 enemy who until morning is not seen. 550 00:25:19,233 --> 00:25:21,866 In the evening they attack damnably, 551 00:25:21,866 --> 00:25:23,866 even with flamethrowers." 552 00:25:23,866 --> 00:25:25,166 GATES: With flamethrowers. 553 00:25:25,166 --> 00:25:27,933 On June 15th, at 3:00 in the morning, the Austro-Hungarian 554 00:25:27,933 --> 00:25:30,700 forces opened fire on the Italians, 555 00:25:30,700 --> 00:25:33,000 including your grandfather. 556 00:25:33,000 --> 00:25:35,800 And you can see photos of the battle on your left. 557 00:25:35,800 --> 00:25:37,066 BERTINELLI: Wow. 558 00:25:37,066 --> 00:25:39,466 GATES: Your grandfather likely lost many of his friends. 559 00:25:39,466 --> 00:25:40,533 BERTINELLI: Yeah. 560 00:25:40,533 --> 00:25:42,166 GATES: Did your father ever tell you stories, 561 00:25:42,166 --> 00:25:43,766 any of these stories? 562 00:25:43,766 --> 00:25:45,600 BERTINELLI: Mmm-mmm. 563 00:25:45,600 --> 00:25:47,433 GATES: We don't know what happened to Nazzareno 564 00:25:47,433 --> 00:25:49,333 during the battle. 565 00:25:49,333 --> 00:25:52,600 We only know that he survived. 566 00:25:52,600 --> 00:25:56,400 And we suspect that he was surprised at the outcome... 567 00:25:56,400 --> 00:26:00,400 learning from its defeats, the Italian army repulsed the 568 00:26:00,400 --> 00:26:05,000 Austro-Hungarian assault, winning a major victory. 569 00:26:07,566 --> 00:26:08,966 BERTINELLI: Nono was a part of that. 570 00:26:08,966 --> 00:26:10,566 GATES: And Nono was a part of that. 571 00:26:10,566 --> 00:26:12,033 (laughs) 572 00:26:12,033 --> 00:26:14,033 Your grandfather and his comrades forced the 573 00:26:14,033 --> 00:26:18,300 Austro-Hungarians back over the Piave River and the enemy 574 00:26:18,300 --> 00:26:20,966 retreated and he was there. 575 00:26:20,966 --> 00:26:22,233 BERTINELLI: Wow. 576 00:26:22,233 --> 00:26:24,633 GATES: This battle became a source of pride for Italy as 577 00:26:24,633 --> 00:26:26,600 a symbolic defense of their homeland. 578 00:26:26,600 --> 00:26:28,500 BERTINELLI: Wow. 579 00:26:28,500 --> 00:26:29,933 GATES: Valerie, how was his story lost? 580 00:26:29,933 --> 00:26:31,800 I mean, he was a hero. 581 00:26:31,800 --> 00:26:33,900 (sighs) 582 00:26:33,900 --> 00:26:35,233 BERTINELLI: I don't, yeah. 583 00:26:35,233 --> 00:26:38,133 I don't, I don't know how much he told my father. 584 00:26:38,133 --> 00:26:42,233 Um, or by the time he came to America that it was just... 585 00:26:42,233 --> 00:26:43,966 I don't know. 586 00:26:43,966 --> 00:26:45,533 I don't know how old he was when he came to America, 587 00:26:45,533 --> 00:26:48,833 but it's a shame 'cause my father did take pride in 588 00:26:48,833 --> 00:26:50,066 a lot of things. 589 00:26:50,066 --> 00:26:52,366 And I, I know that he loved his father and that's what 590 00:26:52,366 --> 00:26:53,500 he would tell me. 591 00:26:53,500 --> 00:26:55,000 "Please, he's not always been this way. 592 00:26:55,000 --> 00:26:57,133 He's just in pain." 593 00:26:57,566 --> 00:27:01,700 GATES: After the war, Nazzareno returned to his hometown. 594 00:27:01,700 --> 00:27:04,533 Valerie knew that he would eventually immigrate to 595 00:27:04,533 --> 00:27:06,966 America and marry her grandmother, 596 00:27:06,966 --> 00:27:10,333 a woman named Angelina Crosa. 597 00:27:10,900 --> 00:27:14,133 But the archives in Italy told us that Nazzareno 598 00:27:14,133 --> 00:27:17,633 did something else first... 599 00:27:18,800 --> 00:27:20,533 BERTINELLI: "Appeared, Nazzareno Bertonelli. 600 00:27:20,533 --> 00:27:24,166 Bachelor, age 24, and Dominica." 601 00:27:24,166 --> 00:27:25,733 GATES: Chelorani. 602 00:27:25,733 --> 00:27:26,800 BERTINELLI: "Chelorani." 603 00:27:26,800 --> 00:27:28,100 GATES: Mm-hmm. 604 00:27:28,100 --> 00:27:29,133 BERTINELLI: "I have pronounced in the name of the law that 605 00:27:29,133 --> 00:27:30,500 they are united in matrimony." 606 00:27:30,500 --> 00:27:31,600 GATES: That is, yes. 607 00:27:31,600 --> 00:27:33,633 BERTINELLI: Dominica. GATES: Uh-huh. 608 00:27:33,633 --> 00:27:34,766 BERTINELLI: That was, whoa, wait! 609 00:27:34,766 --> 00:27:36,133 GATES: Yes. 610 00:27:36,133 --> 00:27:37,966 BERTINELLI: That's not Angelina. 611 00:27:37,966 --> 00:27:42,333 GATES: Mmm-mm. No. BERTINELLI: Dominica. 612 00:27:42,333 --> 00:27:43,700 GATES: This is a record of your grandfather marrying a 613 00:27:43,700 --> 00:27:48,633 woman named Dominica Cellorani on September 14th, 1922, 614 00:27:48,633 --> 00:27:51,233 about two years after he left the military. 615 00:27:51,233 --> 00:27:53,166 This is your first time of hearing of Dominica? 616 00:27:53,166 --> 00:27:55,800 BERTINELLI: Yeah. 617 00:27:57,200 --> 00:28:00,166 GATES: We don't know how Nazzareno met his first wife, 618 00:28:00,166 --> 00:28:02,866 or how they felt about each other... 619 00:28:02,866 --> 00:28:06,900 But the relationship would not last long. 620 00:28:06,900 --> 00:28:10,033 The next record we found for Valerie's grandfather was the 621 00:28:10,033 --> 00:28:14,933 passenger list of a ship bound for New York City... 622 00:28:16,733 --> 00:28:18,566 BERTINELLI: "Nazzareno Bertinelli, 24, 623 00:28:18,566 --> 00:28:21,333 Married or single, single. 624 00:28:21,333 --> 00:28:25,166 Final destination, Scranton, Pennsylvania. 625 00:28:25,566 --> 00:28:30,033 Length of time alien intends to reside in the United States... 626 00:28:30,433 --> 00:28:31,833 Always." 627 00:28:31,833 --> 00:28:33,166 GATES: Always. 628 00:28:33,166 --> 00:28:36,033 BERTINELLI: He was fleeing Italy. 629 00:28:36,500 --> 00:28:40,333 GATES: Just one week after his marriage to Domenica. 630 00:28:40,333 --> 00:28:41,900 BERTINELLI: Wait. 631 00:28:41,900 --> 00:28:43,733 GATES: Just one week after... 632 00:28:43,733 --> 00:28:45,733 BERTINELLI: What the... 1922? What? What the heck? 633 00:28:45,733 --> 00:28:48,333 GATES: That's right. Look at that date. 634 00:28:48,333 --> 00:28:49,666 BERTINELLI: What is he doing? 635 00:28:49,666 --> 00:28:52,266 GATES: Just one week after he married Domenica, 636 00:28:52,266 --> 00:28:55,666 Nazzareno left to emigrate to the United States. 637 00:28:55,666 --> 00:28:57,133 BERTINELLI: Without taking her? 638 00:28:57,133 --> 00:29:00,133 GATES: On his own. But that was common. 639 00:29:00,133 --> 00:29:02,700 Often, people would go to the United States to 640 00:29:02,700 --> 00:29:05,366 make enough money, and then send for the... 641 00:29:05,366 --> 00:29:06,700 BERTINELLI: And send them. Okay, okay. 642 00:29:06,700 --> 00:29:07,966 GATES: Right? 643 00:29:07,966 --> 00:29:09,366 BERTINELLI: I'm gonna give him that benefit of the doubt. 644 00:29:09,366 --> 00:29:12,233 GATES: Yes, but I want you to read, uh, 645 00:29:12,233 --> 00:29:14,500 that statement again, and I'll tell you... 646 00:29:14,500 --> 00:29:15,833 BERTINELLI: Oh, he says, "single." 647 00:29:15,833 --> 00:29:16,933 GATES: Single. 648 00:29:16,933 --> 00:29:18,133 So that's the first thing that we notice. 649 00:29:18,133 --> 00:29:19,866 BERTINELLI: Dude. 650 00:29:21,000 --> 00:29:24,200 GATES: Nazzareno seems to have immigrated in order to start a 651 00:29:24,200 --> 00:29:26,800 completely new life, 652 00:29:26,800 --> 00:29:30,233 and he was leaving more than a wife behind. 653 00:29:30,666 --> 00:29:33,200 In the archives of his hometown, 654 00:29:33,200 --> 00:29:36,000 we discovered that roughly seven months after 655 00:29:36,000 --> 00:29:38,966 Nazzareno arrived in America, 656 00:29:38,966 --> 00:29:43,733 his father Andrea took his place at the birth of a child 657 00:29:43,733 --> 00:29:46,733 named Ernesto Bertinelli... 658 00:29:48,500 --> 00:29:50,300 BERTINELLI: "Appeared Andrea Bertinelli, age 55, 659 00:29:50,300 --> 00:29:53,066 resident in this municipality, who presents a baby boy. 660 00:29:53,066 --> 00:29:55,500 He declares that the baby boy was born to Domenica." 661 00:29:55,500 --> 00:29:57,333 GATES: Mm-hmm. 662 00:29:57,333 --> 00:29:58,633 BERTINELLI: "Wife of Nazzareno." 663 00:29:58,633 --> 00:30:00,033 GATES: That's right. 664 00:30:00,033 --> 00:30:01,666 BERTINELLI: "The declarer has reported that the birth of the 665 00:30:01,666 --> 00:30:03,733 baby boy, because he was present at the moment of the 666 00:30:03,733 --> 00:30:06,700 childbirth of Domenica, instead of her husband, 667 00:30:06,700 --> 00:30:09,200 who was away from home due to his job." 668 00:30:09,200 --> 00:30:10,866 GATES: Due to his job. 669 00:30:10,866 --> 00:30:12,066 BERTINELLI: So that's what he told her. 670 00:30:12,066 --> 00:30:13,366 "I'm gonna go get some work." 671 00:30:13,366 --> 00:30:15,333 GATES: That's right. And he's in America. 672 00:30:15,333 --> 00:30:16,933 BERTINELLI: He's in Scranton. 673 00:30:16,933 --> 00:30:19,266 GATES: And she in May has a baby. 674 00:30:19,266 --> 00:30:22,800 Remember, he comes in October. So she's obviously pregnant. 675 00:30:22,800 --> 00:30:24,366 She has a baby. 676 00:30:24,366 --> 00:30:25,500 BERTINELLI: So seven months later. 677 00:30:25,500 --> 00:30:26,800 GATES: Right. 678 00:30:26,800 --> 00:30:28,733 And this is the birth record for your grandfather, 679 00:30:28,733 --> 00:30:32,066 Nazzareno's son, Ernesto. 680 00:30:32,066 --> 00:30:33,866 BERTINELLI: Ernesto. Wow. 681 00:30:33,866 --> 00:30:35,466 GATES: Ernesto is your half-uncle, 682 00:30:35,466 --> 00:30:38,466 your father's half-brother. 683 00:30:38,966 --> 00:30:41,033 BERTINELLI: I wish I would've met him. 684 00:30:41,366 --> 00:30:45,400 GATES: Ernesto died in Italy in 2004, when was he was 685 00:30:45,400 --> 00:30:48,000 81 years old. 686 00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:51,400 Though he repeatedly tried to connect to his American family 687 00:30:51,400 --> 00:30:54,833 by writing the letters that Valerie found after her father 688 00:30:54,833 --> 00:30:59,300 passed away, there's no evidence that he ever even 689 00:30:59,300 --> 00:31:01,733 met his father... 690 00:31:01,733 --> 00:31:06,633 Leaving Valerie to grapple with Nazzareno's actions. 691 00:31:07,833 --> 00:31:10,966 BERTINELLI: I wonder if that ate at him and really, um, 692 00:31:10,966 --> 00:31:13,133 bothered him, and... 693 00:31:13,133 --> 00:31:14,666 GATES: It would've bothered me. 694 00:31:14,666 --> 00:31:16,700 BERTINELLI: Yeah. GATES: It would've bothered you. 695 00:31:16,700 --> 00:31:17,733 BERTINELLI: Yeah. 696 00:31:17,733 --> 00:31:19,100 GATES: I mean, your wife is pregnant. 697 00:31:19,100 --> 00:31:21,033 BERTINELLI: Yeah, I'm sad for the pain that 698 00:31:21,033 --> 00:31:24,066 they went through, the, the sadness, the, the, 699 00:31:24,066 --> 00:31:26,333 the feeling of not being lovable enough to keep 700 00:31:26,333 --> 00:31:27,966 your father there. 701 00:31:27,966 --> 00:31:30,833 Which isn't true, but yet that's what a child goes to 702 00:31:30,833 --> 00:31:33,033 when a child is abandoned. 703 00:31:33,433 --> 00:31:35,533 GATES: After arriving in America, 704 00:31:35,533 --> 00:31:38,433 Valerie's grandfather found work in a 705 00:31:38,433 --> 00:31:40,800 Pennsylvania coal mine. 706 00:31:40,800 --> 00:31:44,033 As we'd seen with Brendan Fraser's ancestor, 707 00:31:44,033 --> 00:31:47,700 this was a grueling way to make a living. 708 00:31:47,700 --> 00:31:51,066 But for Nazzareno, it offered a higher standard of living 709 00:31:51,066 --> 00:31:54,033 than he'd had in Italy. 710 00:31:54,033 --> 00:31:59,566 And on December 20th, 1930, he cemented his transformation, 711 00:31:59,566 --> 00:32:04,300 turning his back on his past one last time... 712 00:32:05,866 --> 00:32:07,600 BERTINELLI: "Application for marriage license. 713 00:32:07,600 --> 00:32:09,366 Nazzareno Bertinelli, 32. 714 00:32:09,366 --> 00:32:10,766 Occupation: Miner. 715 00:32:10,766 --> 00:32:14,366 Previous marriage or marriages? No." 716 00:32:14,366 --> 00:32:16,666 GATES: No. 717 00:32:16,666 --> 00:32:20,200 BERTINELLI: "Angelina Crosa, 22. 718 00:32:20,200 --> 00:32:22,866 Occupation: Homemaker." 719 00:32:22,866 --> 00:32:25,033 GATES: Your grandparents married eight years after your 720 00:32:25,033 --> 00:32:27,866 grandfather married his first wife, Domenica. 721 00:32:27,866 --> 00:32:30,700 We didn't find any divorce records for your grandfather. 722 00:32:30,700 --> 00:32:32,233 BERTINELLI: No, they weren't divorced. 723 00:32:32,233 --> 00:32:33,800 GATES: So, do you think your Grandmother knew that he had 724 00:32:33,800 --> 00:32:37,066 been married previously and had a child? 725 00:32:37,066 --> 00:32:38,966 BERTINELLI: No. I don't think she knew. 726 00:32:38,966 --> 00:32:40,900 GATES: I don't think this was, made him the most desirable 727 00:32:40,900 --> 00:32:43,266 bachelor floating around Scranton, Pennsylvania... 728 00:32:43,266 --> 00:32:45,766 BERTINELLI: No. GATES: In 1930, you know? 729 00:32:45,766 --> 00:32:47,733 BERTINELLI: Oooh! 730 00:32:47,733 --> 00:32:50,700 They can't speak, but there's so many questions. 731 00:32:51,666 --> 00:32:56,500 GATES: Nazzareno and Angelina were married for 37 years, 732 00:32:56,500 --> 00:33:00,533 right up until Nazzareno's death in 1968. 733 00:33:01,366 --> 00:33:03,600 They had three children together, 734 00:33:03,600 --> 00:33:05,866 including Valerie's father, 735 00:33:05,866 --> 00:33:09,200 and they raised them in stable home. 736 00:33:09,733 --> 00:33:14,066 Even so, Valerie found herself struggling to reconcile 737 00:33:14,066 --> 00:33:16,633 her grandfather's life in America 738 00:33:16,633 --> 00:33:20,633 with all that he left behind in Italy... 739 00:33:21,266 --> 00:33:25,966 BERTINELLI: I think what I really am doing in earnest 740 00:33:25,966 --> 00:33:28,366 right now is to have no judgment... 741 00:33:28,366 --> 00:33:29,500 GATES: Mm-hmm. 742 00:33:29,500 --> 00:33:30,766 BERTINELLI: Cause I don't know what was going on... 743 00:33:30,766 --> 00:33:32,866 GATES: No, we don't know. BERTINELLI: With Nazzareno. 744 00:33:32,866 --> 00:33:35,033 I know that his life was incredibly difficult. 745 00:33:35,033 --> 00:33:37,633 I don't know if Dominica brought him joy. 746 00:33:37,633 --> 00:33:40,100 I don't know if Nazzareno brought Dominica joy. 747 00:33:40,100 --> 00:33:41,233 GATES: Yup. 748 00:33:41,233 --> 00:33:42,966 BERTINELLI: But they had a beautiful little boy, 749 00:33:42,966 --> 00:33:44,200 Ernesto, who... 750 00:33:44,200 --> 00:33:45,433 GATES: Mm-hmm. 751 00:33:45,433 --> 00:33:47,800 BERTINELLI: Seems to me wanted to reach out and spread 752 00:33:47,800 --> 00:33:48,866 some of his love. 753 00:33:48,866 --> 00:33:50,000 GATES: Mm-hmm. 754 00:33:50,000 --> 00:33:52,133 BERTINELLI: So, um... GATES: Yeah. 755 00:33:52,133 --> 00:33:53,400 BERTINELLI: That all can't be bad. 756 00:33:53,400 --> 00:33:54,900 GATES: No. It all can't be bad. That's a good way to put it. 757 00:33:54,900 --> 00:33:56,433 BERTINELLI: Yeah. 758 00:33:57,633 --> 00:33:59,766 GATES: Turning back to Brendan Fraser, 759 00:33:59,766 --> 00:34:02,700 we uncover the story of another soldier 760 00:34:02,700 --> 00:34:05,366 who left his past behind... 761 00:34:05,366 --> 00:34:09,066 Growing up, Brendan had heard that his father's grandfather, 762 00:34:09,066 --> 00:34:12,133 a man named Herman Drobesch, 763 00:34:12,133 --> 00:34:14,266 had served in the artillery corps 764 00:34:14,266 --> 00:34:18,000 of the German army during World War I. 765 00:34:18,600 --> 00:34:21,700 But Brendan's efforts to learn more about Herman had all 766 00:34:21,700 --> 00:34:23,833 come up empty. 767 00:34:23,833 --> 00:34:26,300 And we soon saw why... 768 00:34:26,300 --> 00:34:28,300 In 1913, 769 00:34:28,300 --> 00:34:31,966 Herman married Brendan's great-grandmother in Essen, 770 00:34:32,833 --> 00:34:35,633 a city in western Germany, 771 00:34:35,633 --> 00:34:38,333 but the couple's marriage certificate shows 772 00:34:38,333 --> 00:34:41,733 that neither of them were actually German. 773 00:34:43,300 --> 00:34:45,266 Your great-grandfather, Herman was born in a place 774 00:34:45,266 --> 00:34:48,366 called Saint Peter, while your great grandmother, Anna Maria, 775 00:34:48,366 --> 00:34:51,166 was born in a place called Aibl. 776 00:34:51,166 --> 00:34:53,066 Take a look on that map, 777 00:34:53,066 --> 00:34:55,100 and we've indicated them on the left, right? 778 00:34:55,100 --> 00:34:56,400 FRASER: Yes. 779 00:34:56,400 --> 00:34:58,000 GATES: Saint Peter's a village in the southernmost Austrian 780 00:34:58,000 --> 00:35:00,333 state of Carinthia. 781 00:35:00,333 --> 00:35:03,566 Aibl is a municipality in the southeastern 782 00:35:03,566 --> 00:35:06,400 Austrian state of Styria. 783 00:35:06,400 --> 00:35:09,533 So, your great-grandparents were Austrian, not German. 784 00:35:09,533 --> 00:35:10,700 Did you know that? 785 00:35:10,700 --> 00:35:11,700 FRASER: No. 786 00:35:11,700 --> 00:35:12,733 GATES: Yeah. They were Austrian. 787 00:35:12,733 --> 00:35:16,733 FRASER: Oh. Wow. Okay. Go on. 788 00:35:17,833 --> 00:35:19,866 GATES: Learning Herman's true birthplace 789 00:35:19,866 --> 00:35:22,466 redirected our search, 790 00:35:22,466 --> 00:35:25,333 giving us access to the military records that 791 00:35:25,333 --> 00:35:29,266 Brendan had so wanted us to find... 792 00:35:29,266 --> 00:35:31,333 Now, Brendan, we retrieved this document from the 793 00:35:31,333 --> 00:35:33,800 Upper Austrian State Archives. 794 00:35:33,800 --> 00:35:36,933 Would you please read the translated section? 795 00:35:36,933 --> 00:35:39,900 FRASER: "Herman Drobesch, rank: Gunner. 796 00:35:39,900 --> 00:35:46,100 Joined ranks October 1, 1908, to Cannon Battery Number One. 797 00:35:46,100 --> 00:35:50,800 Presented for active service October 6, 1908. 798 00:35:50,800 --> 00:35:55,300 Promoted to Senior Gunner October 6, 1909. 799 00:35:55,300 --> 00:35:58,966 Promoted to Senior Gunner Telephonist... 800 00:35:58,966 --> 00:36:00,300 GATES: Mm-hmm. 801 00:36:00,300 --> 00:36:02,600 FRASER: July 16, 1910. 802 00:36:02,600 --> 00:36:07,100 Traits and temper of character: Calm and earnest." 803 00:36:07,100 --> 00:36:08,366 (laughs) 804 00:36:08,366 --> 00:36:09,733 GATES: Isn't that cool? 805 00:36:09,733 --> 00:36:11,100 What's it like to see that? 806 00:36:11,100 --> 00:36:12,766 FRASER: I was hopeful that this would be uncovered for me, 807 00:36:12,766 --> 00:36:19,133 but um, I just, to look at it, really, as, as face value here. 808 00:36:20,333 --> 00:36:22,233 Um, this is, like, 809 00:36:22,233 --> 00:36:28,366 bringing the past to life before my eyes. 810 00:36:30,466 --> 00:36:33,900 GATES: Herman's military file shows that he retired from 811 00:36:33,900 --> 00:36:38,733 active duty on December 31st, 1911. 812 00:36:39,566 --> 00:36:42,200 He moved to Germany just two years later, 813 00:36:42,200 --> 00:36:44,733 likely in search of economic opportunities 814 00:36:44,733 --> 00:36:48,633 that he couldn't find in rural Austria, 815 00:36:49,000 --> 00:36:52,200 but he didn't stay in Germany for long. 816 00:36:52,200 --> 00:36:56,000 In 1914, World War I erupted, 817 00:36:56,000 --> 00:36:58,266 and Herman was called back 818 00:36:58,266 --> 00:37:01,933 to serve the Austro-Hungarian Empire. 819 00:37:02,266 --> 00:37:04,800 We believe that he ended up fighting against Russian 820 00:37:04,800 --> 00:37:10,266 forces along what became known as the "Carpathian Front", 821 00:37:10,266 --> 00:37:13,733 a series of brutal battles in the foothills of the 822 00:37:13,733 --> 00:37:16,166 Carpathian mountains... 823 00:37:16,666 --> 00:37:18,533 GATES: These are depictions of soldiers 824 00:37:18,533 --> 00:37:20,300 on the Carpathian Front. 825 00:37:20,300 --> 00:37:22,666 Was this how you pictured your ancestor 826 00:37:22,666 --> 00:37:23,966 when you heard he served? 827 00:37:23,966 --> 00:37:29,466 FRASER: Yeah, I, this was what I, this, when, when, when it 828 00:37:29,466 --> 00:37:32,700 was artillery, I knew that it would be a lot of heavy lifting. 829 00:37:32,700 --> 00:37:34,066 GATES: Mm-hmm. 830 00:37:34,066 --> 00:37:37,066 FRASER: Um, a lot of mach, you know, machine operation. 831 00:37:37,066 --> 00:37:38,233 GATES: Yeah. 832 00:37:38,233 --> 00:37:43,766 FRASER: But um, that it's frigidly cold and, 833 00:37:44,066 --> 00:37:46,900 um, wow, 834 00:37:46,900 --> 00:37:49,600 those look like bitter conditions to fight in. 835 00:37:51,300 --> 00:37:54,566 GATES: The "bitter conditions" made the Carpathian Front 836 00:37:54,566 --> 00:37:59,066 one of the deadliest battlegrounds of the entire war. 837 00:37:59,066 --> 00:38:04,333 A killing zone in which many men simply froze to death. 838 00:38:05,533 --> 00:38:11,200 All told, the Austrians suffered close to 800,000 casualties. 839 00:38:12,333 --> 00:38:16,266 And the Russians are reported to have lost even more. 840 00:38:16,633 --> 00:38:19,066 But as was typical in the war, 841 00:38:19,066 --> 00:38:22,566 the Carpathian Front ended in stalemate. 842 00:38:22,966 --> 00:38:28,566 And in 1916, Herman's unit was sent south to Italy, 843 00:38:28,566 --> 00:38:33,133 where they would ultimately be defeated. 844 00:38:33,666 --> 00:38:36,433 FRASER: Wow. 845 00:38:36,433 --> 00:38:38,700 GATES: Can you imagine going through something like that? 846 00:38:38,700 --> 00:38:41,200 FRASER: I can imagine anything, but I don't want to. 847 00:38:41,200 --> 00:38:42,633 GATES: No. 848 00:38:42,633 --> 00:38:44,900 What's it like to think of your great-grandfather, 849 00:38:44,900 --> 00:38:49,933 a young man in his early 20s, from a small Austrian village, 850 00:38:49,933 --> 00:38:52,700 fighting across Europe? 851 00:38:52,700 --> 00:38:54,433 FRASER: Fighting Russians and Italians. 852 00:38:54,433 --> 00:38:56,233 GATES: Yeah. 853 00:38:56,233 --> 00:39:00,400 FRASER: It's so far removed from my own reality, but it, 854 00:39:00,400 --> 00:39:04,466 it, it makes me feel like, in some ways, 855 00:39:04,466 --> 00:39:06,700 I need to dry my eyes, you know? 856 00:39:06,700 --> 00:39:08,000 GATES: Yeah. 857 00:39:08,000 --> 00:39:10,100 And if he hadn't survived, poof, you wouldn't be here. 858 00:39:10,100 --> 00:39:12,966 FRASER: Absolutely correct. 859 00:39:13,933 --> 00:39:18,333 GATES: After the war, Herman moved his family to Canada. 860 00:39:18,766 --> 00:39:22,300 It wasn't hard to understand why he wanted to leave Europe. 861 00:39:22,300 --> 00:39:27,500 But in doing so, he left a great deal of family history behind. 862 00:39:28,533 --> 00:39:32,666 Indeed, Brendan's roots in Austria stretch back over 863 00:39:32,666 --> 00:39:38,533 300 years to the 1700s, and likely earlier. 864 00:39:39,400 --> 00:39:43,133 What's more: our researchers discovered that many of 865 00:39:43,133 --> 00:39:48,200 Brendan's Austrian ancestors, had something in common... 866 00:39:49,766 --> 00:39:51,633 FRASER: "Occupation... Vintner?" 867 00:39:51,633 --> 00:39:54,200 GATES: Vintner, buddy. You know what a vintner does? 868 00:39:54,200 --> 00:39:56,433 FRASER: He makes lovely red wines. 869 00:39:56,433 --> 00:39:57,466 GATES: Yeah. 870 00:39:57,466 --> 00:39:59,933 FRASER: Lovely, juicy Beaujolais. 871 00:39:59,933 --> 00:40:01,333 GATES: You got it. 872 00:40:01,333 --> 00:40:06,366 You come from a long line of Austrians by name, 873 00:40:06,366 --> 00:40:08,566 a continuous paper trail, 874 00:40:08,566 --> 00:40:11,133 and a long line of Austrian winemakers. 875 00:40:11,133 --> 00:40:12,900 It was a family tradition. 876 00:40:12,900 --> 00:40:14,400 FRASER: Wow. 877 00:40:14,400 --> 00:40:16,300 I wonder, I wonder, where did all this wine go? 878 00:40:16,300 --> 00:40:17,433 GATES: Right. 879 00:40:17,433 --> 00:40:18,533 FRASER: Uh... 880 00:40:18,533 --> 00:40:19,833 GATES: Well, I wanna show you where it came from. 881 00:40:19,833 --> 00:40:20,900 FRASER: Okay. 882 00:40:20,900 --> 00:40:22,533 GATES: In Austria... Please turn the page. 883 00:40:22,533 --> 00:40:24,633 FRASER: Okay. 884 00:40:25,233 --> 00:40:26,833 GATES: Brendan, we found the three towns where your 885 00:40:26,833 --> 00:40:28,333 ancestors were wine growers. 886 00:40:28,333 --> 00:40:29,700 FRASER: What? 887 00:40:29,700 --> 00:40:31,400 GATES: On that map in front of you, see... 888 00:40:31,400 --> 00:40:32,633 You find them? 889 00:40:32,633 --> 00:40:33,833 FRASER: Yes. 890 00:40:33,833 --> 00:40:37,633 GATES: Find Feisternitz, Wutschenberg, and Sterglegg. 891 00:40:37,633 --> 00:40:41,300 Your ancestors were making wine there as early as 1776. 892 00:40:41,300 --> 00:40:42,500 FRASER: What? 893 00:40:42,500 --> 00:40:43,900 GATES: This is the real deal. 894 00:40:43,900 --> 00:40:45,333 We didn't make this up. 895 00:40:45,333 --> 00:40:50,333 FRASER: Wow. Wow. 896 00:40:50,766 --> 00:40:53,433 GATES: And this was the, the... 897 00:40:53,433 --> 00:40:55,666 the space of continuity for your family. 898 00:40:55,666 --> 00:40:58,333 Your ancestors stayed put in this one region for a 899 00:40:58,333 --> 00:40:59,900 very long time. 900 00:40:59,900 --> 00:41:01,166 FRASER: Wow. 901 00:41:01,166 --> 00:41:04,066 GATES: It's amazing, and I bet your antecedents never 902 00:41:04,066 --> 00:41:06,366 imagined anybody would ever leave. 903 00:41:06,366 --> 00:41:08,166 They figured by the time they got to you... 904 00:41:08,166 --> 00:41:09,366 FRASER: Yeah? 905 00:41:09,366 --> 00:41:10,500 GATES: You'd be, like, stomping them grapes, too, baby. 906 00:41:10,500 --> 00:41:12,700 FRASER: Yeah. Yeah. 907 00:41:12,700 --> 00:41:15,666 GATES: What's it like to learn this? 908 00:41:17,066 --> 00:41:20,100 FRASER: It makes me feel, um, 909 00:41:20,100 --> 00:41:24,700 as if I'm connected to a place... 910 00:41:24,700 --> 00:41:26,500 GATES: Mm-hmm. 911 00:41:26,500 --> 00:41:28,700 FRASER: And it, it makes me feel like there's a sense of 912 00:41:28,700 --> 00:41:33,300 tradition and, um... 913 00:41:33,300 --> 00:41:38,833 and, and pride and ownership and... 914 00:41:38,833 --> 00:41:45,000 how much upkeep and care goes into 915 00:41:45,000 --> 00:41:48,100 putting grapes into a bottle so that we can drink them. 916 00:41:48,100 --> 00:41:49,366 (laughs) 917 00:41:49,366 --> 00:41:50,933 And it... It... It makes me... 918 00:41:50,933 --> 00:41:54,266 It makes me wonder at, um... 919 00:41:54,266 --> 00:41:56,733 I mean, they had to be doing pretty well financially if 920 00:41:56,733 --> 00:41:58,166 they were wine merchants, and... 921 00:41:58,166 --> 00:41:59,533 GATES: Well, and they, and they, um, 922 00:41:59,533 --> 00:42:01,066 kept it going down through the generations. 923 00:42:01,066 --> 00:42:02,433 So, they must have... 924 00:42:02,433 --> 00:42:04,900 FRASER: What did, what did they do with their fortunes I wonder? 925 00:42:04,900 --> 00:42:07,400 GATES: They... I'm tempted to say they drank it away. 926 00:42:07,400 --> 00:42:08,500 FRASER: They drank it away. 927 00:42:08,500 --> 00:42:09,766 (laughs) 928 00:42:09,766 --> 00:42:11,633 True Frasers. 929 00:42:13,966 --> 00:42:16,866 GATES: We'd already explored Valerie Bertinelli's 930 00:42:16,866 --> 00:42:19,033 paternal roots, 931 00:42:19,033 --> 00:42:24,033 revealing the hardships faced by her grandfather Nazzareno. 932 00:42:24,633 --> 00:42:29,000 Now, turning to Valerie's mother, Nancy Carvin, 933 00:42:29,000 --> 00:42:32,933 we confronted hardships of a very different kind. 934 00:42:33,700 --> 00:42:38,500 Nancy lost her own mother when she was just eight years old 935 00:42:38,500 --> 00:42:41,900 and her father remarried soon after, 936 00:42:41,900 --> 00:42:45,566 turning her world upside down... 937 00:42:46,900 --> 00:42:49,400 BERTINELLI: She said everything changed when her mother died. 938 00:42:49,400 --> 00:42:50,633 GATES: Hmm. 939 00:42:50,633 --> 00:42:51,766 BERTINELLI: And she became miserable. 940 00:42:51,766 --> 00:42:53,466 Such a young age to become miserable. 941 00:42:53,466 --> 00:42:54,600 GATES: Mm-hmm. 942 00:42:54,600 --> 00:42:56,033 BERTINELLI: Um, I remember so much joy when I was 943 00:42:56,033 --> 00:42:57,866 eight years old. 944 00:42:57,866 --> 00:43:02,566 Um, she said, um, she missed her. 945 00:43:02,566 --> 00:43:04,666 She wished she had had her around. 946 00:43:04,666 --> 00:43:07,066 Um, she thought she was absolutely beautiful. 947 00:43:07,066 --> 00:43:08,533 I've never seen a picture of her. 948 00:43:08,533 --> 00:43:09,800 GATES: Mm-hmm. 949 00:43:09,800 --> 00:43:10,766 BERTINELLI: She thought she was the most beautiful woman 950 00:43:10,766 --> 00:43:12,300 in the world. 951 00:43:12,300 --> 00:43:16,500 Um, yeah. 952 00:43:17,366 --> 00:43:20,600 My mom, uh, I felt my mom's yearning for her mother. 953 00:43:20,600 --> 00:43:22,100 GATES: Oh, I can't imagine losing your mother when 954 00:43:22,100 --> 00:43:23,166 you're eight years old. 955 00:43:23,166 --> 00:43:27,000 BERTINELLI: Yeah. What a horrible way to grow up. 956 00:43:27,600 --> 00:43:31,700 GATES: Her grandmother's early death effectively erased all 957 00:43:31,700 --> 00:43:36,533 knowledge of her roots, but we were able to recover some of 958 00:43:36,533 --> 00:43:40,700 what had been lost, tracing her family back three 959 00:43:40,700 --> 00:43:45,100 generations to Valerie's great-great-grandfather... 960 00:43:46,066 --> 00:43:48,300 GATES: Would you please read his name? 961 00:43:48,300 --> 00:43:50,600 BERTINELLI: "William David Chambers." 962 00:43:50,600 --> 00:43:52,500 GATES: And when was he born? 963 00:43:52,500 --> 00:43:55,533 BERTINELLI: "16th of July, 1847, 964 00:43:55,533 --> 00:43:59,433 1850, likely in Cecil County, Maryland." 965 00:43:59,433 --> 00:44:01,033 GATES: And you've never heard of him? 966 00:44:01,033 --> 00:44:02,400 And you've never heard of any of those ancestors 967 00:44:02,400 --> 00:44:03,566 all the way up? 968 00:44:03,566 --> 00:44:04,600 BERTINELLI: No. 969 00:44:04,600 --> 00:44:06,933 GATES: What's, what's it like to see that? 970 00:44:07,600 --> 00:44:09,500 BERTINELLI: It makes me miss my mother... 971 00:44:09,500 --> 00:44:10,600 GATES: Mm-hmm. 972 00:44:10,600 --> 00:44:12,166 BERTINELLI: 'Cause she would have loved this. 973 00:44:12,166 --> 00:44:14,166 GATES: Yeah. 974 00:44:14,166 --> 00:44:16,333 BERTINELLI: She would have really loved this. 975 00:44:16,333 --> 00:44:17,766 She missed having... 976 00:44:17,766 --> 00:44:19,066 I'm sorry. 977 00:44:19,066 --> 00:44:20,733 She missed having a connection with her mother. 978 00:44:20,733 --> 00:44:21,833 GATES: Mm-hmm. 979 00:44:21,833 --> 00:44:23,066 BERTINELLI: Oh, my God. 980 00:44:23,066 --> 00:44:28,433 I don't, she never even knew her grandfather's names. 981 00:44:28,433 --> 00:44:31,666 GATES: Mmm. Hmm. 982 00:44:31,666 --> 00:44:34,200 BERTINELLI: Wow. 983 00:44:34,200 --> 00:44:37,733 Oh, Mom. I wish you could see this. 984 00:44:39,000 --> 00:44:42,700 GATES: Valerie's mother would likely have especially enjoyed 985 00:44:42,700 --> 00:44:46,133 seeing what was coming next... 986 00:44:46,133 --> 00:44:51,566 We found her ancestor, William in the 1875 city directory for 987 00:44:51,566 --> 00:44:53,566 Wilmington, Delaware, 988 00:44:53,566 --> 00:44:57,700 working at a factory that made steel bolts for the railroads. 989 00:44:58,100 --> 00:45:02,200 At the time, the railroad industry was booming, and 990 00:45:02,200 --> 00:45:05,300 William's skills would have been in demand all across 991 00:45:05,300 --> 00:45:07,866 the United States. 992 00:45:07,866 --> 00:45:12,400 But William set his sights elsewhere... 993 00:45:13,966 --> 00:45:16,533 BERTINELLI: "List or manifest of all the passengers taken 994 00:45:16,533 --> 00:45:19,000 aboard the steam ship, City of Para"? 995 00:45:19,000 --> 00:45:20,233 GATES: Uh-huh. 996 00:45:20,233 --> 00:45:22,533 BERTINELLI: "At Rio de Janeiro"? GATES: Yes, that's right. 997 00:45:22,533 --> 00:45:23,533 BERTINELLI: "Name, William Chambers. 998 00:45:23,533 --> 00:45:24,733 Age 27 years old." 999 00:45:24,733 --> 00:45:26,133 He went to Rio? 1000 00:45:26,133 --> 00:45:28,600 GATES: Your great-great- grandfather went to Brazil. 1001 00:45:28,600 --> 00:45:31,000 BERTINELLI: Wow. 1002 00:45:31,000 --> 00:45:33,066 (laughs) 1003 00:45:33,066 --> 00:45:35,066 Wow. Obrigado. 1004 00:45:35,066 --> 00:45:37,500 It's the one word I know in Portuguese. 1005 00:45:37,500 --> 00:45:38,933 GATES: Obrigado, that's right. 1006 00:45:38,933 --> 00:45:42,766 Here he is on a ship sailing back from Rio de Janeiro. 1007 00:45:42,766 --> 00:45:44,566 You've never heard anything at all about this? 1008 00:45:44,566 --> 00:45:46,833 BERTINELLI: No! 1009 00:45:47,033 --> 00:45:49,700 GATES: Any idea what he may have been doing in Brazil in 1010 00:45:49,700 --> 00:45:51,366 the 1870s? 1011 00:45:51,366 --> 00:45:53,566 BERTINELLI: No. 1012 00:45:54,600 --> 00:45:59,700 GATES: William was in Brazil for one simple reason: money. 1013 00:46:00,166 --> 00:46:03,866 He'd joined an expedition to work on a railroad designed 1014 00:46:03,866 --> 00:46:07,933 to transport rubber, then an extremely profitable crop, 1015 00:46:07,933 --> 00:46:11,133 out of the Amazon jungle. 1016 00:46:11,133 --> 00:46:15,200 Labor shortages in the region led the project's funders to 1017 00:46:15,200 --> 00:46:19,433 try to lure American workers to the site with promises of 1018 00:46:19,433 --> 00:46:21,833 high wages. 1019 00:46:21,833 --> 00:46:24,333 William heard the call, 1020 00:46:24,333 --> 00:46:28,366 and ended up in what sounds like a nightmare. 1021 00:46:29,200 --> 00:46:31,100 BERTINELLI: "The forest is so dense that a person straying 1022 00:46:31,100 --> 00:46:35,733 100 feet from a given point is often unable to find his way 1023 00:46:35,733 --> 00:46:40,166 back and liable to get lost and die in the woods. 1024 00:46:40,166 --> 00:46:43,866 The vines grow so thick around the trees that the forest top 1025 00:46:43,866 --> 00:46:47,033 in some places is a regular network. 1026 00:46:47,033 --> 00:46:49,533 And when you want to remove one particular tree, you were 1027 00:46:49,533 --> 00:46:53,300 often obliged to cut down seven or eight others." 1028 00:46:53,300 --> 00:46:54,466 GATES: Mmm. 1029 00:46:54,466 --> 00:46:56,233 BERTINELLI: What a job. 1030 00:46:56,233 --> 00:46:58,766 GATES: Can you imagine cutting through the Amazon by hand? 1031 00:46:58,766 --> 00:47:00,066 BERTINELLI: No. 1032 00:47:00,066 --> 00:47:01,366 GATES: I bet he woke up and said, 1033 00:47:01,366 --> 00:47:02,800 "What the hell am I doing here?" You know? 1034 00:47:02,800 --> 00:47:05,133 BERTINELLI: Right. It better be worth it. 1035 00:47:05,133 --> 00:47:09,833 GATES: William spent roughly seven months in Brazil. 1036 00:47:09,833 --> 00:47:13,933 During that time, he and his fellow workers managed to lay 1037 00:47:13,933 --> 00:47:16,766 only four miles of track, 1038 00:47:16,766 --> 00:47:21,200 and they paid an extraordinary price: 1039 00:47:21,200 --> 00:47:23,700 the Americans in his group suffered a 1040 00:47:23,700 --> 00:47:29,100 mortality rate of roughly 24%... 1041 00:47:29,333 --> 00:47:32,266 Meaning, one in four died. 1042 00:47:32,266 --> 00:47:33,700 BERTINELLI: Wow. 1043 00:47:33,700 --> 00:47:37,000 GATES: So your ancestor was very lucky to get back home alive. 1044 00:47:37,000 --> 00:47:39,866 What do you imagine William felt when he got off that ship 1045 00:47:39,866 --> 00:47:41,933 and stepped onto US land? 1046 00:47:41,933 --> 00:47:43,400 BERTINELLI: Thank God. 1047 00:47:43,400 --> 00:47:46,066 Uh, I'm sure he was so happy to be home. 1048 00:47:46,066 --> 00:47:47,533 GATES: What do you think he did next? 1049 00:47:47,533 --> 00:47:49,533 BERTINELLI: I have no idea. 1050 00:47:49,533 --> 00:47:52,200 GATES: Please turn the page. 1051 00:47:52,833 --> 00:47:56,033 Valerie, these are city directories and census documents 1052 00:47:56,033 --> 00:48:00,300 for Camden, New Jersey, between the years 1897 and 1905. 1053 00:48:00,300 --> 00:48:02,833 Now will you please read what all of these documents say 1054 00:48:02,833 --> 00:48:05,300 about William's various occupations? 1055 00:48:05,300 --> 00:48:06,966 BERTINELLI: He kept looking for work. 1056 00:48:06,966 --> 00:48:08,066 "Occupation, insurance." 1057 00:48:08,066 --> 00:48:09,100 GATES: Mm-hmm. 1058 00:48:09,100 --> 00:48:11,066 BERTINELLI: "Occupation, superintendent Phila, 1059 00:48:11,066 --> 00:48:12,066 of Philadelphia?" I guess? 1060 00:48:12,066 --> 00:48:13,266 GATES: Yep. 1061 00:48:13,266 --> 00:48:15,300 BERTINELLI: "Business directory. Occupation, book agent. 1062 00:48:15,300 --> 00:48:17,600 Occupation, telephone worker. Occupation, real estate." 1063 00:48:17,600 --> 00:48:19,100 GATES: Yep. 1064 00:48:19,100 --> 00:48:20,466 BERTINELLI: He was a go-getter. 1065 00:48:20,466 --> 00:48:23,366 I guess one, I mean, either he was fired a lot or he just kept 1066 00:48:23,366 --> 00:48:25,900 trying to find something that he could do. 1067 00:48:25,900 --> 00:48:26,966 GATES: Mm-hmm. 1068 00:48:26,966 --> 00:48:28,266 BERTINELLI: Wow. 1069 00:48:28,266 --> 00:48:30,133 GATES: Now, as someone who's constantly trying new things, 1070 00:48:30,133 --> 00:48:31,733 Constantly reinventing herself... 1071 00:48:31,733 --> 00:48:33,366 BERTINELLI: Who are you talking about? 1072 00:48:33,366 --> 00:48:34,766 Wow, yeah. 1073 00:48:34,766 --> 00:48:36,266 GATES: Can you relate to your ancestor? 1074 00:48:36,266 --> 00:48:37,566 BERTINELLI: Absolutely. 1075 00:48:37,566 --> 00:48:39,266 I c, I can't even count all the jobs I've had since I was 1076 00:48:39,266 --> 00:48:42,366 12 years old, and I keep just doing new stuff. 1077 00:48:42,366 --> 00:48:43,966 Whatever interests me. It's, "Oh, this'll be fun." 1078 00:48:43,966 --> 00:48:44,966 GATES: Yeah! 1079 00:48:44,966 --> 00:48:46,833 BERTINELLI: "Let's do this." GATES: Mmm. 1080 00:48:46,833 --> 00:48:49,933 BERTINELLI: "Let's try this." GATES: How about that? 1081 00:48:49,933 --> 00:48:52,333 BERTINELLI: I'm like good old great-great-grandpa. 1082 00:48:52,833 --> 00:48:55,933 GATES: Valerie's connection to her ancestor was about 1083 00:48:55,933 --> 00:48:58,800 to deepen significantly: 1084 00:48:58,800 --> 00:49:02,100 another Camden business directory revealed that the 1085 00:49:02,100 --> 00:49:06,033 two shared more than just a talent for reinvention... 1086 00:49:06,400 --> 00:49:09,500 Valerie, would you please read the occupation 1087 00:49:09,500 --> 00:49:13,433 that your ancestor had in 1910? 1088 00:49:13,900 --> 00:49:16,266 BERTINELLI: Stop it! Wow! 1089 00:49:16,266 --> 00:49:18,900 (laughs) 1090 00:49:18,900 --> 00:49:20,333 He was a baker! 1091 00:49:20,333 --> 00:49:21,400 GATES: He was a baker. 1092 00:49:21,400 --> 00:49:22,600 BERTINELLI: He was a baker! 1093 00:49:22,600 --> 00:49:23,933 It goes down through my history. 1094 00:49:23,933 --> 00:49:26,466 GATES: You got it. He was a baker. 1095 00:49:26,466 --> 00:49:29,133 BERTINELLI: I'm, oh my God. He was a baker. 1096 00:49:29,133 --> 00:49:30,266 GATES: Yeah. 1097 00:49:30,266 --> 00:49:32,033 He was a baker, a professional baker. 1098 00:49:32,033 --> 00:49:33,333 How do you feel, 1099 00:49:33,333 --> 00:49:36,033 knowing that you and this guy shared a passion? 1100 00:49:36,033 --> 00:49:40,800 And how does it make you feel, having this unknown, 1101 00:49:40,800 --> 00:49:44,233 totally unknown branch of your family tree restored to you? 1102 00:49:44,233 --> 00:49:50,733 BERTINELLI: I'm grateful. I, I... I'm so grateful. 1103 00:49:50,733 --> 00:49:53,200 And I can't wait to share it with my family. 1104 00:49:53,200 --> 00:49:55,266 I mean, I wish Mom was here to hear it, 1105 00:49:55,266 --> 00:49:58,066 but I'm, I'm so grateful. 1106 00:49:58,866 --> 00:50:01,000 GATES: The paper trail had now run out for 1107 00:50:01,000 --> 00:50:02,666 Valerie and Brendan. 1108 00:50:02,666 --> 00:50:04,333 BERTINELLI: Whoa! Whoa! 1109 00:50:04,333 --> 00:50:08,400 GATES: It was time to show them their full family trees... 1110 00:50:08,400 --> 00:50:10,166 Now filled with ancestors 1111 00:50:10,166 --> 00:50:12,533 whose names they'd never heard before... 1112 00:50:12,533 --> 00:50:14,833 BERTINELLI: This is huge! 1113 00:50:14,833 --> 00:50:17,800 GATES: For each, it was a moment of wonder... 1114 00:50:17,800 --> 00:50:19,533 There's your mom. There's you at the bottom. 1115 00:50:19,533 --> 00:50:20,866 FRASER: Uh, there's me. 1116 00:50:20,866 --> 00:50:23,100 GATES: Providing a chance to reflect on the sacrifices made 1117 00:50:23,100 --> 00:50:26,200 by generation after generation, 1118 00:50:26,200 --> 00:50:29,566 to lay the groundwork for their own success. 1119 00:50:30,533 --> 00:50:35,133 BERTINELLI: What I really, really feel is their strength. 1120 00:50:35,133 --> 00:50:36,400 GATES: Mm-hmm. 1121 00:50:36,400 --> 00:50:39,300 BERTINELLI: I, I feel these are amazingly strong people 1122 00:50:39,300 --> 00:50:43,866 that went through a lot of hardships and, 1123 00:50:43,866 --> 00:50:46,066 and overcame a lot, 1124 00:50:46,066 --> 00:50:48,100 and didn't always believe in themselves... 1125 00:50:48,100 --> 00:50:49,300 GATES: Mm-hmm. 1126 00:50:49,300 --> 00:50:50,533 BERTINELLI: But that didn't stop them. 1127 00:50:50,533 --> 00:50:52,033 GATES: What are you going to tell your kids about this? 1128 00:50:52,033 --> 00:50:53,266 FRASER: Everything that I can remember. 1129 00:50:53,266 --> 00:50:54,700 GATES: What's the first thing, 1130 00:50:54,700 --> 00:50:57,366 the thing you remember most vividly right now? 1131 00:50:57,366 --> 00:50:58,600 (laughs) 1132 00:50:58,600 --> 00:51:01,466 FRASER: There's a candy salesman in the family. 1133 00:51:01,466 --> 00:51:03,833 There's a vintners line. 1134 00:51:03,833 --> 00:51:07,166 Um... 1135 00:51:07,166 --> 00:51:09,166 There's some pretty tough as nails guys 1136 00:51:09,166 --> 00:51:11,400 who fought on a frozen front. 1137 00:51:11,400 --> 00:51:13,633 GATES: Mm-hmm. 1138 00:51:13,633 --> 00:51:17,266 FRASER: There's men who went down and 1139 00:51:17,266 --> 00:51:19,933 into a crack in the earth, 1140 00:51:19,933 --> 00:51:22,700 scraped the walls, 1141 00:51:22,700 --> 00:51:27,866 likely sickened their bodies, 1142 00:51:28,666 --> 00:51:31,266 took their lives in their very hands each and every day 1143 00:51:31,266 --> 00:51:33,866 they did that. 1144 00:51:34,633 --> 00:51:36,600 It... 1145 00:51:36,600 --> 00:51:39,600 It makes me feel that, um... 1146 00:51:39,600 --> 00:51:43,766 I think I need to have some gratitude. 1147 00:51:43,766 --> 00:51:45,833 GATES: Mm-hmm. 1148 00:51:45,833 --> 00:51:48,266 FRASER: For all the good things I... 1149 00:51:48,266 --> 00:51:50,266 I have going on in my life right now. 1150 00:51:50,266 --> 00:51:53,033 That's what it makes me think. 1151 00:51:53,500 --> 00:51:56,000 GATES: That's the end of our journey with Brendan Fraser 1152 00:51:56,000 --> 00:51:59,266 and Valerie Bertinelli... 1153 00:51:59,266 --> 00:52:02,233 Join me next time when we unlock 1154 00:52:02,233 --> 00:52:03,533 the secrets of the past 1155 00:52:03,533 --> 00:52:04,966 for new guests, 1156 00:52:04,966 --> 00:52:06,966 on another episode of 1157 00:52:06,966 --> 00:52:09,566 "Finding Your Roots."