Megan Smolenyak

Thanks to this mother-daughter duo, she’s got cousins around the globe When it comes to genealogy, I prefer fresh territory, which is why I usually avoid the mega-famous. If someone is universally renowned, it’s a given that hundreds, if not…

By now, just about everyone knows how proud Joe Biden is of his Irish heritage. I began researching his roots even before he became Vice President and wrote about his 5/8 Irish ancestry in 2013. That same year, I had the opportunity to meet him when…

You have 2 free member-only stories left this month. Sign up for Medium and get an extra one. Manx, Music, Military, Moxie and More What can’t Hannah Waddingham do? I’m late to the party discovering her talents in her portrayal of team owner, Rebecca…

Which of the following describes the heritage of Peter Gene Hernandez, better known as Bruno Mars? Ukrainian American Filipino Hispanic Jewish Hawaiian Puerto Rican European Hungarian Asian Spanish The correct answer is all of the above. And though I…

It makes perfect sense that someone who has as much respect for history as Lin-Manuel Miranda would be well acquainted with his roots, but I couldn’t help but be curious about them myself, so decided to climb the branches of his family tree. And what…

It’s still hard to believe that Prince Rogers Nelson — better known simply as Prince — is no longer with us, though his music and talent will linger forever. As today would have been his 60th birthday, it seems a fitting time for a modest tribute…

He never knew it, of course, but Anthony Bourdain and I ever-so-lightly crossed paths once. Several years ago, he wrote about a roots-centered episode of Top Chef: I was the exhausted researcher who frantically dug into the family histories of a…

If I mention the movie When Harry Met Sally and your brain whispers “I’ll have what she’s having,” I’ve got good news for you. Meg Ryan, longtime rom-com queen thanks to her unforgettable performances in this and other favorites such as Sleepless in…

As both a genealogist and TRMS viewer, I suppose it was inevitable that I would peek into Rachel Maddow’s past, and now seems a fitting time to share a potpourri of gleanings since the g-word — genealogy — keeps popping up in political news, mostly…

Every one of us is an amalgamation not only of all our ancestors, but of their decisions, and in 1831, Ambrose Hawkins was contemplating moving his family from America to Africa. Had he done so, his son Joseph would have been raised in Liberia…

POLITICAL GENEALOGY America’s highest ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives, Hakeem Jeffries, recently made his presence known with his inaugural address in this role, a poetic A to Z inventory of values that inspires or schools, depending…

Easily one of the most popular and reliable box office performers today, actress, comedian, producer, and fashion designer Melissa McCarthy has a lot to be proud of. With a string of hits (Bridesmaids, Identity Thief, The Heat, Spy!, The Boss, Can…

An Irish genealogist digs into the iconic artist’s own Emerald Isle past I once had the pleasure of watching Bruce Springsteen accept the Ellis Island Family Heritage Award with his lively mother and aunts whose parents were Italian immigrants. I…

I should have known better when I decided to write an article about Barry Manilow’s Irish roots. As an Irish American fanilow, I wanted to know which town or city could lay claim to him (shout-out to Limerick!), but that’s not where the real story…

Damn, Jonesboro, Georgia! What’s in your water? I used to be impressed with the sprawling and highly intertwined French-Canadian family tree that leads to all those one-name women — Hillary, Madonna, Celine, Alanis, and Angelina, among others. But…

By Megan Smolenyak, Contributor August / September 2017 She came from a gold-obsessed family, so perhaps it wasn’t so surprising when the treasure bag was found in Hannah’s water closet. But what was this Galway girl even doing in San…

Fellow roots-enthusiasts know that when you research a family tree — even when it’s not your own — there are always one or two ancestors who call the loudest, and in this instance, it was Adelia. This is what I’ve been able to unearth of her…

She’s going back to her acting roots, so I took a dive into her ancestral ones. It’s been a while, but Meg Ryan, America’s rom-com queen, anointed through her memorable roles in When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle, and You’ve Got Mail, is…

Not long ago, a fan of Lin-Manuel Miranda expressed surprise at the fact that he was in Texas for a family reunion. In response, he tweeted: It shouldn’t be any surprise, but he’s right. While Miranda is rightfully proud of his three-quarters Puerto…

When Irish America requested that I research and write a piece on Hillary Rodham Clinton’s heritage (pages 50-52), I was concerned. Why? Because delving into the ancestral past of celebrities has become something of a sub-hobby in the world of…