Welcome to Erin Mankie's Cabinet of Curiosity's, a production of I Heart Radio and Grimm

and Mild.

Our world is full of the unexplainable.

And if history is an open book, all of these amazing tales are right there on display,

just waiting for us to explore.

Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosity's.

Open up your high school yearbook and you might find a section called Senior Superlatives,

where certain members of the outgoing class are giving descriptive titles, such as Class

Clown or most likely to succeed.

Charles Dommery wasn't given a senior superlative upon graduating, but if he had, it probably

would have been something like, most likely to put an all-you-can-eat buffet out of business.

Born in Poland in 1778, Charles grew up in a house with eight other brothers, and all

nine children seemed to suffer from the same condition.

They loved to eat.

Actually, love is the wrong word.

Charles and his brothers had to eat constantly.

When he was 13, young Charles started gaining a reputation for his unusual appetite, which

involved eating his parents out of house and home.

And that's insatiable hunger often caused him to make unwise decisions.

Thirteen happened to be the age at which Charles joined the Prussian Army, which he quickly

regretted.

There was a food shortage at the time, and even though he'd been granted extra rations,

...