GATES: I'M HENRY LOUIS GATES, JR.

WELCOME TO "FINDING YOUR ROOTS".

IN THIS EPISODE, WE'LL MEET ACTOR LAURA LINNEY AND JOURNALISTS LISA LING AND SOLEDAD O'BRIEN.

THREE WOMEN WHO ARE UNKNOWINGLY BOUND BY A COMMON THREAD.

EACH HAS ANCESTORS WHO MADE UP THEIR OWN RULES...

EVEN IF IT MEANT BREAKING THE LAW.

LING: ALL I KNOW IS THAT MY GRANDFATHER WAS KNOWN AS "THE BLACK DRAGON."

GATES: WHY?

LING: HE MIGHT HAVE BEEN AKIN TO A GANGSTER AT THE TIME, IS WHAT I'VE HEARD.

LINNEY: OH-HO-HO-HO.

GATES: HE IS BEING SENT INTO EXILE.

WANT TO GUESS WHAT WILLIAM DID?

LINNEY: I WANT TO KNOW.

WHAT DID HE DO?

WHAT DID HE DO?

O'BRIEN: OH MY GOSH.

I THINK WE'VE FOUND THE BAD LEG OF THE FAMILY HERE.

GATES: TO UNCOVER THEIR ROOTS, WE'VE USED EVERY TOOL AVAILABLE.

GENEALOGISTS COMBED THROUGH THE PAPER TRAIL THEIR ANCESTORS LEFT BEHIND.

WHILE DNA EXPERTS UTILIZED THE LATEST ADVANCES IN GENETIC ANALYSIS TO REVEAL SECRETS HUNDREDS OF YEARS OLD... THAT IS YOUR EIGHTH GREAT-GRANDFATHER.

LING: OH MY GOD.

GATES: AND WE'VE COMPILED EVERYTHING INTO A BOOK OF LIFE... LINNEY: OH MY GOD, I'VE NEVER SEEN THAT!

LING: FASCINATING, ABSOLUTELY FASCINATING.

I'M SO IMPRESSED WITH YOUR SLEUTHING SKILLS.

O'BRIEN: YOU KNOW, PEOPLE COMPLAIN ABOUT TODAY, THAT EVERYTHING CAN BE FOUND ONLINE AND YOU CAN NEVER CLEAR YOUR NAME.

HERE'S THIS POOR GUY, 1832.

GATES: THERE ARE A LOT OF SURPRISES WHEN YOU OPEN THE BOOK OF LIFE .

LINNEY: YES, I WOULDN'T WANT IT ANY OTHER WAY.

GATES: LAURA, LISA AND SOLEDAD ARE ABOUT TO TAKE A JOURNEY THAT VERY FEW OF MY GUESTS HAVE EVER TAKEN.

A JOURNEY TO MEET A ROGUES GALLERY OF ANCESTORS HIDDEN IN THE BRANCHES OF THEIR FAMILY TREES.

IN THIS EPISODE, THEY'RE GOING TO HEAR STORIES ABOUT TRICKSTERS, SCOUNDRELS AND WELL, CRIMINALS, WHO NEVERTHELESS LAID THE GROUNDWORK FOR THEIR SUCCESS.

(THEME MUSIC PLAYS).

♪ ♪ GATES: LAURA LINNEY IS ONE OF THE MOST RENOWNED ACTORS OF HER GENERATION.

LINNEY: IS A MAN WHO HAS OPENED THE DOOR TO OUR FUTURE.

GATES: A STAR OF BOTH STAGE AND SCREEN WITH THREE OSCAR NOMINATIONS AND FOUR EMMY AWARDS TO HER NAME.

FROM A DISTANCE, LAURA'S SUCCESS MIGHT SEEM PREORDAINED.

SHE WAS RAISED IN NEW YORK CITY, THE MECCA OF AMERICAN THEATER, AND HER FATHER ROMULUS LINNEY WAS A WELL-KNOWN PLAYWRIGHT.

IN A SENSE, SHE WAS BORN TO BE ON STAGE...

BUT THE REALITY IS MUCH MORE COMPLICATED.

I'M SURE THAT PEOPLE SAID THAT YOUR THEATRICAL INCLINATIONS, "IT'S IN YOUR DNA, IT COMES FROM YOUR DADDY."

LINNEY: YES.

YES.

GATES: "GIRL'S JUST LIKE HER DADDY."

AND YOU GO, "I AM LIKE MY DADDY."

LINNEY: YES.

BUT, HE WAS NOT ALWAYS THE HAPPIEST GUY SO THERE WERE TIMES WHERE IT WAS... GATES: HE'S A PLAYWRIGHT.

LINNEY: HE'S A PLAYWRIGHT.

GATES: THERE ARE NO HAPPY PLAYWRIGHTS.

LINNEY: NO HAPPY PLAYWRIGHTS.

THERE ARE A FEW BUT NOT MANY.

GATES: FEW, YEAH.

LINNEY: UM, YOU KNOW, AND HE DIDN'T HAVE THE EASIEST TIME, AND HE DIDN'T QUITE KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH A CHILD.

GATES: WHILE ROMULUS MAY HAVE GIVEN HIS DAUGHTER A GENETIC INCLINATION TOWARDS THE STAGE, HE DIDN'T PLAY AN ACTIVE ROLE IN GUIDING HER THERE.

HE AND LAURA'S MOTHER ANN DIVORCED WHEN LAURA WAS AN INFANT; LEAVING ANN A SINGLE PARENT AND FORCING LAURA TO DRIVE HER ACTING AMBITIONS FORWARD ON HER OWN.

DID YOU DO SKITS FOR YOUR MOM, FOR YOUR FAMILY?

I MEAN DID YOU... LINNEY: OH, SURE.

OH, OBNOXIOUSLY SO.

ABSOLUTELY.

OH, YES.

I WAS ONE OF THOSE OBNOXIOUS, YOU KNOW, THEATER BRATS.

UM AND I WAS, YOU KNOW, OBSESSED WITH EVERYTHING THAT, THAT CAME TO BROADWAY, AND ACTUALLY I HAD A VERY HARD TIME LEARNING HOW TO READ AND WRITE.

AND SO I WOULD SORT OF SWING DEALS WITH MY TEACHERS, YOU KNOW, ABOUT AND IT WAS THE SEVENTIES SO THEY WERE A LITTLE OPEN TO IT.

GATES: RIGHT.

LINNEY: ABOUT, YOU KNOW, LET ME ACT IT OUT, OR LET ME, YOU KNOW, DO SOMETHING CREATIVE.

LET ME MAKE A COLLAGE ABOUT THAT BOOK AS OPPOSED TO ACTUALLY WRITING A BOOK REPORT.

GATES: THAT'S PRETTY CLEVER.

LINNEY: IT WAS CLEVER.

GATES: AND IT WORKED.

LINNEY: IT WORKED.

IT WASN'T NECESSARILY THE GREATEST CHOICE IN THE LONG RUN, BUT IT WAS, IT WAS GOOD AT THE TIME.

GATES: LAURA IS SELLING HERSELF SHORT.

HER CHOICES HAVE WORKED OUT QUITE WELL IN THE LONG RUN.

SHE'S HAD INCREDIBLE SUCCESS WORKING AT A BREAKNECK PACE IN AN INDUSTRY FAMED FOR DISCARDING ITS OWN.

HER SECRET?

ACCORDING TO LAURA, HER UPBRINGING LEFT HER WELL-EQUIPPED TO DEAL WITH WHATEVER SHOW BUSINESS COULD THROW AT HER.

LINNEY: MY FAMILY IS MODEST.

YOU KNOW, EXPECTATIONS ARE, UM, REALISTIC, AND THAT'S HELPED ME TREMENDOUSLY.

GATES: EXPECTATIONS ARE REALISTIC?

YOU'RE A LITTLE GIRL ON THE EAST SIDE AND YOU GO, "I'M GOING TO GO TO BROADWAY."

LINNEY: I KNOW.

I KNOW.

GATES: THAT'S A FANTASY.

LINNEY: I KNOW.

ABSOLUTELY.

GATES: I MEAN, YOU SHOT FOR THE MOON.

LINNEY: THAT SORT OF WASN'T ON MY MIND.

I WASN'T THE KID WHO THOUGHT I'M GONNA BE ON BROADWAY OR I'M GOING TO BE IN THE MOVIES.

I JUST THOUGHT I REALLY LIKE BEING IN THIS CLASS.

GATES: OH.

RIGHT.

LINNEY: I REALLY LIKE, I WANT TO GO TO THAT SCHOOL.

GATES: THAT'S A BLESSING.

LINNEY: VERY MUCH SO.

GATES: IT IS.

LINNEY: I HAVE A, I HAVE A VERY GOOD DISPOSITION FOR THIS BUSINESS.

GATES: MY SECOND GUEST IS LISA LING.

AFTER MORE THAN TWO DECADES IN FRONT OF THE CAMERA, LISA IS NOT ONLY ONE OF AMERICA'S LEADING BROADCAST JOURNALISTS, SHE IS ALSO ONE THE MOST CELEBRATED CHINESE AMERICANS.

BUT GROWING UP, SHE DIDN'T SEE HER ANCESTRY AS ANYTHING TO CELEBRATE AT ALL.

LING: I SPENT THE FIRST SEVENTEEN YEARS OF MY LIFE BEING VERY ASHAMED OF BEING CHINESE AMERICAN, BECAUSE I LOOKED DIFFERENT.

MY HOUSE SMELLED DIFFERENT.

MY HOUSE ALWAYS SMELLED LIKE CHINESE FOOD.

GATES: WHICH SOUNDS LIKE A FANTASY TO ME BUT.

LING: IT WAS PRETTY GREAT IN RETROSPECT.

BUT YOU KNOW, I THINK WHEN YOU'RE, WHEN YOU'RE A KID, YOU DON'T WANT TO STAND OUT.

YOU WANT TO BE LIKE EVERYONE ELSE... AND I WAS TEASED MERCILESSLY.

GATES: HOW?

LING: UM, UH, PEOPLE WOULD CALL ME RISA RING.

GATES: THAT'S HORRIBLE.

LING: RIDICULOUS CHILDHOOD TAUNTS.

AND I DID GO HOME CRYING MANY A NIGHT.

GATES: SADLY, LISA'S HOME OFFERED LITTLE COMFORT.

HER PARENTS' MARRIAGE WAS TROUBLED EVEN BEFORE SHE WAS BORN.

THEY DIVORCED WHEN SHE WAS SEVEN.

AMIDST THE UPHEAVAL, LISA TOOK INSPIRATION WHEREVER SHE COULD FIND IT.

ANNOUNCER: THIS IS THE CBS EVENING NEWS WITH DAN RATHER AND CONNIE CHUNG.

CHUNG: TONIGHT, THE PRESIDENT AND HIS AIDES ARE TRYING TO CHART A NEW COURSE.

LING: THAT'S WHAT I WANTED TO BE.

I WANTED TO BE THE NEXT CONNIE CHUNG.

GATES: OH, INTERESTING.

LING: YEAH, SHE WAS THE ONLY ONE ON TELEVISION WHO LOOKED REMOTELY LIKE ME.

GATES: YEAH.

LING: THE TV WAS ALWAYS ON IN MY HOUSE, SO... GATES: YEAH, MINE TOO.

LING: I THOUGHT, YEAH, IF I COULD GET ON TV, MAYBE I CAN HAVE A BETTER LIFE ONE DAY.

UM, BUT BECAUSE THERE WAS NO ONE WHO LOOKED LIKE ME ON ANY OF THOSE SHOWS THAT I WATCHED, I NEVER THOUGHT I COULD DO IT.

UM, AND BECAUSE CONNIE CHUNG WAS A JOURNALIST, I THOUGHT, "THAT'S SOMETHING I MIGHT BE ABLE TO DO."

GATES: LISA'S INTUITION WOULD PROVE CORRECT TO A SPECTACULAR DEGREE.

LING: TOP STORY, THE FIRST CASUALTIES OF OPERATION: RESTORE HOPE... GATES: JOURNALISM WAS HER TRUE CALLING.

SHE HAS MOVED FLUIDLY BETWEEN THE ANCHOR'S DESK AND THE FIELD... LING: WE'RE GOING TO SHOW THE WORLD WHAT LIFE IS LIKE INSIDE NORTH KOREA.

GATES: IMBUING A WIDE RANGE OF REPORTING WITH AN EYE FOR INTIMATE DETAIL.

AND BY FINDING HER WAY IN HER PROFESSION, SHE'S NOT ONLY FOUND A "BETTER LIFE," SHE'S ALSO EXPERIENCED A DEEP SENSE OF FULFILLMENT.

LING: YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT BECAUSE I FELT LIKE A BIT OF AN OUTSIDER AS A KID GROWING UP, WHEN I DID GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO KNOW MORE ABOUT PEOPLE WHO ARE DIFFERENT THAN ME, I, I RECOGNIZE THAT I NOT ONLY BECAME SMARTER AS A RESULT, I BECAME A BETTER PERSON.

AND UH I'VE BEEN LUCKY ENOUGH TO, BEEN ABLE TO MAKE A CAREER OUT OF IT.

O'BRIEN: I'M SOLDAD O'BRIEN AND I'M IN TIMES SQUARE... GATES: MY THIRD GUEST IS SOLEDAD O'BRIEN.

LIKE LISA, SHE'S ONE OF AMERICA'S BEST-KNOWN JOURNALISTS.

A FORMER CNN ANCHOR NOW RUNNING HER OWN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION COMPANY.

SOLEDAD'S WON FAME FOR COVERING SOME OF THE BIGGEST STORIES OF OUR TIME, BUT HER FAMILY IS A STORY OF ITS OWN.

HER MOTHER IS AFRO-CUBAN HER FATHER AUSTRALIAN.

WHEN THEY WED IN WASHINGTON, DC IN 1959 INTERRACIAL MARRIAGE WAS ILLEGAL IN MANY AMERICAN STATES AND WOULD REMAIN SO FOR EIGHT MORE YEARS.

THE COUPLE EVENTUALLY SETTLED IN A PREDOMINANTLY WHITE TOWN ON LONG ISLAND, WHERE SOLEDAD GREW UP AND FOUND THAT HER MIXED RACE HERITAGE SET HER APART.

O'BRIEN: YOU'D HAVE THESE MOMENTS WHERE IT WOULD SUDDENLY BECOME VERY CLEAR TO YOU THAT YOU REALLY DIDN'T BELONG HERE.

GATES: LIKE, LIKE HOW?

O'BRIEN: OH, GOSH.

YOU KNOW, I REMEMBER, THERE WAS A BOY-OH, I HAD A VERY BIG CRUSH ON AND I REMEMBER HIS MOM TOOK ME ASIDE AND SAID, "I WANT YOU TO UNDERSTAND," AND SHE TOUCHED MY HAIR AND SHE GOES, "OH, YOUR HAIR IS SO INTERESTING."

GATES: OH, GOD.

O'BRIEN: SHE SAID, "IS THAT REAL?"

AND I SAID, I WAS LIKE IN EIGHTH GRADE, SO OF COURSE MY HAIR IS REAL.

AND SHE SAID, "I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW ADAM WILL NEVER DATE A GIRL LIKE YOU."

GATES: OH!

O'BRIEN: AND I JUST REMEMBER FEELING LIKE, "I CANNOT WAIT TO GET OUT OF THIS TOWN."

GATES: SOLEDAD WOULD "GET OUT" OF HER TOWN IN A BIG WAY.

WHILE STILL AN UNDERGRADUATE AT HARVARD, SHE BEGAN WORKING FOR A LOCAL TV STATION AND RAPIDLY MOVED UP.

BUT FOR ALL SHE'S ACCOMPLISHED, SOLEDAD HAS BEEN TOO FREQUENTLY REMINDED THAT SHE IS DIFFERENT FROM MOST OF HER PEERS.

AND IN THE TOUGHEST OF TIMES SHE STILL DRAWS STRENGTH FROM HER PARENTS' EXAMPLE.

O'BRIEN: I THINK IT'S VERY EASY WHEN YOU'RE ONE OF THE FEW AND MOST PLACES I'VE WORKED I'VE BEEN ONE OF THE FEW PEOPLE OF COLOR IN A RELATIVELY POWERFUL POSITION SO IF YOU SCREW IT UP YOU DON'T JUST SCREW IT UP FOR YOURSELF.

EVERY SINGLE PERSON WHO IS RELYING ON YOU FOR WHATEVER IT IS, YOU ARE A MOM WHO GETS TO GO TO A BREAKING NEWS STORY, YOU ARE A PERSON OF COLOR WHO GETS TO GO, YOU ARE A WOMAN WHO GETS TO GO, YOU HAVE MORE THAN JUST YOURSELF ON THE LINE.

IF YOU SCREW IT UP YOU WILL BE SCREWING IT UP FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE.

I REMEMBER COVERING THE SOUTHEAST ASIAN TSUNAMI AND I HAD THE FIRST GUY I MET, HE SAID, "LISTEN, I KNOW YOU'RE SOME BIG STAR AT CNN BUT YOU NEED TO KNOW IF YOU MESS THIS UP WE'RE GOING TO PUT YOU ON A PLANE BACK."

I WAS JUST LIKE, I COULD NOT BELIEVE THAT THIS WAS... GATES: WOW.

O'BRIEN: IT WAS CRAZY AND I HAD NO TRACK RECORD.

IT WASN'T LIKE HE WAS SAYING, "LISTEN, I KNOW THE LAST SIX TIMES YOU WERE OUT ON A STORY, YOU BAILED IN THE MIDDLE SO DON'T DO THAT."

UM AND I THINK THAT PEOPLE DO THAT TO WOMEN AND THEY DO THAT TO PEOPLE OF COLOR.

I DO NOT THINK YOU'RE... GATES: AND THEY DO IT MORE FREQUENTLY TO WOMEN OF COLOR?

DO YOU THINK?

O'BRIEN: ABSOLUTELY I THINK.

GATES: YOU HAVE A DOUBLE BURDEN.

O'BRIEN: YEAH.

I REMEMBER WHEN I WAS LITTLE MY MOM USED TO ALWAYS SAY, "DON'T LET ANYBODY TELL YOU YOU'RE NOT BLACK AND DON'T LET ANYBODY TELL YOU YOU'RE NOT LATINO," AND I'M LIKE, "WHO'S THE THEY?"

CRAZY PERSON.

LIKE THERE'S NO ONE IN THIS TOWN SAYING, "I'M NOT BLACK.

I'M NOT" THAT IS NOT THE PROBLEM I AM HAVING IN THIS TOWN.

AND I ALWAYS FELT VERY LUCKY THAT MY PARENTS WERE VERY ADAMANT, AT A TIME WHEN WE REALLY COULDN'T EVEN UNDERSTAND IT, IN A COMMUNITY THAT HAD NO PEOPLE OF COLOR PRACTICALLY, WERE ALWAYS LIKE, "THIS IS WHO YOU ARE."

GATES: MY THREE GUESTS COME FROM VERY DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS, YET THEY ALL SHARE SOMETHING UNUSUAL: ANCESTORS WHO CHALLENGED CONVENTIONS AND SOMETIMES EVEN BROKE THE LAW.

BUT PERHAPS UNDERSTANDABLY, THE STORIES OF THESE ANCESTORS HAD BEEN LOST OR WILLFULLY FORGOTTEN.

IT WAS TIME TO RECOVER THEM.

I STARTED WITH LISA LING.

SHE TOLD ME THAT HER MOTHER WHO IMMIGRATED TO AMERICA FROM TAIWAN AS A YOUNG WOMAN WAS FLEEING A DEEPLY UNHAPPY CHILDHOOD.

THE MAIN REASON FOR HER UNHAPPINESS?

HER FATHER, LISA'S GRANDFATHER, A MAN NAMED JIE-DE WONG.

WONG MADE HIS LIVING, IN PART, BY RUNNING A BROTHEL IN THE CITY OF TAINAN.

GATES: DID YOU EVER MEET HIM?

LING: I NEVER MET HIM.

GATES: HMM.

WHAT HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT HIM?

LING: ALL I KNOW IS THAT MY GRANDFATHER WAS KNOWN AS "THE BLACK DRAGON."

GATES: WHY?

LING: I THINK HE WAS INVOLVED IN THE, SORT OF, UNDERBELLY OF TAINAN.

HE MIGHT HAVE BEEN AKIN TO A GANGSTER AT THE TIME, IS WHAT I'VE HEARD, HAD A BROTHEL, WAS VERY PROMISCUOUS, DESPITE HAVING THREE WIVES, HAD A LOT OF KIDS.

GATES: NINETEEN CHILDREN BY THREE WIVES.

LING: YES, AND MY MOM DIDN'T HAVE MUCH OF A RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM.

SHE WOULD TALK ABOUT HOW, BECAUSE THERE WERE SO MANY KIDS, HE WOULD EVERY NOW AND THEN COME OUT, COME AROUND AND PAT HER ON THE HEAD AND GIVE HER SOME MONEY.

AND THAT WAS THE EXTENT... GATES: OH, THAT'S SO SAD.

LING: OF THE AFFECTION SHE RECEIVED FROM HER FATHER.

GATES: LISA HAD HEARD MANY STORIES ABOUT HER GRANDFATHER'S ESCAPADES...

BUT WHEN WE TURNED TO HIS ROOTS, THE STORIES BECAME SCARCE.

SHE TOLD ME THAT SHE KNEW ALMOST NOTHING ABOUT HIS ANCESTRY.

THAT WAS ABOUT TO CHANGE... GATES: I WANT YOU TO LOOK AT THIS VERY CAREFULLY.

HAVE YOU EVER SEEN THAT BEFORE?

LING: NO.

GATES: LISA, THIS IS YOUR FAMILY'S TOMB.

LING: WOW, WOW, IN TAINAN.

GATES: MMM-HMM.

LING: WOW, THAT'S A, A PRETTY IMPRESSIVE-LOOKING STRUCTURE.

GATES: THERE ARE TWO GENERATIONS OF YOUR FAMILY BURIED IN THAT TOMB.

YOUR GRANDFATHER AND YOUR GREAT-GRANDFATHER.

LING: UNBELIEVABLE.

GATES: LISA HAD NEVER IMAGINED THAT HER GRANDFATHER CAME FROM A WEALTHY FAMILY AND SHE WONDERED HOW HER ANCESTORS HAD AFFORDED SUCH A TOMB... WE CAN'T SAY FOR CERTAIN BUT WE HAVE A THEORY.

IT ARISES FROM AN UNUSUAL DETAIL ETCHED ON THE TOMB ITSELF...

THE NAME OF LISA'S GRANDFATHER'S OLDER BROTHER... SHIN YU TSAI.

THIS STOOD OUT BECAUSE HER GRANDFATHER'S SURNAME WAS "WANG".

HAVE YOU EVER HEARD THIS NAME BEFORE, TSAI?

LING: NEVER.

NEVER.

GATES: HAVE ANY IDEA WHY TWO BROTHERS HAVE TWO DIFFERENT SURNAMES, WONG AND TSAI?

LING: NO CLUE.

GATES: WELL, LET'S SEE.

WOULD YOU PLEASE TURN THE PAGE?

LISA, YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE HOUSEHOLD REGISTER FOR YOUR GREAT-GRANDFATHER, JIAN WONG.

WOULD YOU PLEASE READ THE TRANSLATED SECTION?

LING: "ON THE 2ND DAY OF THE 8TH MONTH, JIAN IS MARRIED AND ENTERED INTO THE TSAI FAMILY REGISTRY."

GATES: "MARRIED AND ENTERED INTO THE TSAI FAMILY."

ANY IDEA WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?

LING: NO IDEA!

GATES: THIS RECORD TURNED OUT TO BE THE KEY TO UNDERSTANDING LISA'S MOTHER'S FAMILY.

IT REVEALED THAT LISA'S GREAT-GRANDFATHER JIAN WANG HAD ENGAGED IN A TYPE OF MARRIAGE IN WHICH A MAN JOINS HIS WIFE'S HOUSEHOLD.

UNDER THE TERMS OF THIS ARRANGEMENT, JIAN'S FIRST SON BECAME A TSAI WHILE HIS SECOND SON CARRIED ON HIS NAME.

YOUR GRANDFATHER WAS A SECOND SON, THAT'S WHY HE AND YOUR MOTHER WERE WANGS, NOT TSAIS.

LING: THAT'S SO INTERESTING.

GATES: AND WHILE THIS WAS AN ACCEPTED FORM OF UNION, IT WASN'T AN HONORABLE ONE, AND THOSE WHO DID IT OFTEN LOST SOME SOCIAL STATUS WHICH MAKES SENSE IN A DEEPLY, DENSELY PATRIARCHAL SOCIETY.

LING: PATRIARCHAL, YEAH.

FASCINATING.

ABSOLUTELY FASCINATING.

GATES: AND WE DON'T KNOW WHY, BUT THE MOST LIKELY REASON IS THAT HE CAME FROM A VERY POOR FAMILY.

LING: SO, THE TSAI FAMILY WAS ACTUALLY THE WEALTHY FAMILY.

GATES: YEAH, COMPARED TO THE WANGS, AT THAT TIME.

LING: YOU KNOW, I ALWAYS WONDERED WHY MY GRANDFATHER WAS SO PHILANDEROUS, AND WHY HE TREATED WOMEN THE WAY HE DID, AND I WONDER IF HIS OWN FATHER, WHO WAS MARRIED INTO A WOMAN'S FAMILY, MAY HAVE FELT SOME INSECURITY ABOUT THAT.

GATES: SO, MAYBE HE'S COMPENSATING.

LING: MAYBE.

GATES: THE BLACK DRAGON, YOU KNOW?

LING: MAYBE.

GATES: "WHO'S THE MAN NOW, 19 KIDS, THREE WIVES?"

LING: EXACTLY.

GATES: YEAH.

LING: EXACTLY.

GATES: YEAH, COULD BE.

LING: I, I WONDER.

IT, IT SAYS A LOT ABOUT WHO MY MOM IS, AND, AND IT FILLS IN, UH, A NUMBER OF SORT OF MISSING PIECES FOR ME.

GATES: LIKE LISA, SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, WAS ABOUT TO ENCOUNTER A BRANCH OF HER FAMILY TREE THAT HAD BEEN FORGOTTEN OR PERHAPS CONCEALED.

THE JOURNEY BEGAN WITH HER 2ND GREAT-GRANDFATHER, A MAN NAMED WILLIAM HUNTER WIGHTMAN.

WILLIAM WAS BORN IN EDENBOROUGH, SCOTLAND IN 1805.

BUT WE FOUND HIM ARRIVING IN AUSTRALIA IN 1833 UNDER LESS THAN AUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES.

O'BRIEN: AH.

GATES: THIS IS A SHIP MANIFEST FOR PASSENGERS TRAVELING ON THE WATERLOO, FROM SCOTLAND TO NEW SOUTH WALES.

O'BRIEN: A LIST OF MALE CONVICTS VIA THE SHIP WATERLOO.

GATES: YOUR GREAT-GREAT GRANDFATHER WAS A CONVICT.

(SIGH) O'BRIEN: MY PARENTS WOULD BE SO ASHAMED.

THEY WOULD BE SO DISAPPOINTED.

GATES: THE BRITISH CROWN FOUNDED AUSTRALIA AS A PENAL COLONY IN 1788.

SOLEDAD'S ANCESTOR WILLIAM WAS ONE OF OVER 150,000 CONVICTS WHO WERE SHIPPED OFF TO THIS ISLAND PRISON.

HIS CRIME WAS SPELLED OUT IN DETAIL IN THE SCOTTISH NATIONAL ARCHIVES.

THIS IS A PAGE FROM YOUR GREAT-GREAT GRANDFATHER'S TRIAL PROCEEDINGS IN EDINBURGH.

O'BRIEN: "WILLIAM HUNTER WIGHTMAN PRESENT PRISONER, INDICTED AND ACCUSED OF THE CRIME OF THEFT BY HOUSEBREAKING."

GATES: THEFT BY HOUSEBREAKING.

O'BRIEN: HE WAS A BURGLAR.

GATES: HE WAS A BURGLAR.

O'BRIEN: NICE.

NICE.

YOU KNOW, PEOPLE COMPLAIN ABOUT TODAY, THAT EVERYTHING CAN BE FOUND ONLINE AND YOU CAN NEVER CLEAR YOUR NAME.

HERE'S THIS POOR GUY, 1832.

GATES: YEAH AND YOUR FAMILY THOUGHT THAT WAS BURIED.

WE SOON DISCOVERED THAT THIS WASN'T WILLIAM'S FIRST CONVICTION.

HE'D BEEN ARRESTED TWICE BEFORE FOR PETTY THEFT.

SOLEDAD WONDERED WHY HER ANCESTOR HAD TAKEN UP A LIFE OF CRIME AT SUCH A YOUNG AGE.

WE DON'T KNOW FOR SURE, BUT WE HAVE SOME SUSPICIONS: OUR RESEARCH REVEALED THAT WILLIAM'S PARENTS WERE LILLIAS AND JOHN WIGHTMAN AND COURT RECORDS SHOWED THAT LILLIAS WAS INTIMATELY INVOLVED IN HER SON'S CAREER.

NOW SOLEDAD, THIS IS A PAGE FROM A PRISON REGISTER FROM MARCH 30TH.

O'BRIEN: I THINK WE'VE FOUND THE BAD LEG OF THE FAMILY HERE.

OH MY GOSH.

OH MY GOODNESS.

"JAMES MCDONALD, 12 YEARS OF AGE, THEFT FROM A SHOP WINDOW.

CHARLES COFSAR, 14 YEARS OF AGE, DITTO.

DUNCAN MCARTHUR, 14 YEARS OF AGE, DITTO.

LILLIAS WIGHTMAN."

THAT WOULD BE MY GREAT-GREAT-GREAT GRANDMOTHER?

GATES: MHMM.

O'BRIEN: "FORTY-ONE YEARS OF AGE AND IN RECEIPT OF SAID THEFT."

SO SHE WAS HANDLING STOLEN GOODS.

GATES: I THINK IT MIGHT BE A BIT MORE COMPLICATED THAN THAT SHE WAS HANDLING STOLEN GOODS.

O'BRIEN: SHE WAS, OR SHE WAS LEADING A RING OF 12 YEAR OLD AND 14 YEAR OLD BOYS WHO WERE KNOCKING OVER SHOPS IN EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND.

GATES: YEAH.

O'BRIEN: YOU KNOW, I REALLY THOUGHT THAT ON MY DAD'S SIDE OF THE FAMILY.

GATES: MHMM.

O'BRIEN: LIKE THAT WAS A LONG LEGACY OF BUSINESS PEOPLE WHO RAN THINGS WELL.

GATES: MHMM.

O'BRIEN: I DIDN'T REALIZE ON THE WIGHTMAN SIDE, WHICH BY THE WAY, NOBODY TALKS ABOUT AND NOW I KNOW WHY BECAUSE THEY ALSO RAN THINGS LIKE SCAMS AND RINGS OF LITTLE TEENAGE THIEVES.

GATES: THERE WAS ONE MORE BEAT TO THIS STORY ONE THAT COMPLICATED IT FOR SOLEDAD.

AS WE DUG DEEPER, WE DISCOVERED THAT LILLIAS AND HER CHILDREN WERE MORE VULNERABLE THAN THEY HAD FIRST APPEARED.

O'BRIEN: "ON FEBRUARY 10TH, 1818, JOHN WIGHTMAN DIED OF A DECLINE.

AGE 39."

SO HER HUSBAND DIED AT AGE 39.

GATES: YEAH.

THE DEATH OF HER HUSBAND, THE BREADWINNER, WAS PROBABLY WHAT PUSHED LILLIAS AND WILLIAM INTO THE LIFE OF PETTY LARCENY.

O'BRIEN: THAT'S REALLY SAD.

GATES: THEY WERE STEALING TO SURVIVE.

O'BRIEN: I THINK IT REALLY DOES BRING TO LIFE A TIME WHEN THERE WERE NO OPPORTUNITIES CERTAINLY FOR WOMEN CERTAINLY FOR WIDOWS.

GATES: MHMM.

O'BRIEN: WIDOWS WHO HAD CHILDREN DIDN'T HAVE A LOT OF OPTIONS.

IT REALLY MUST HAVE BEEN JUST TERRIBLE.

GATES: OH!

TERRIBLE.

O'BRIEN: THAT'S SAD.

GATES: LIKE SOLEDAD AND LISA, LAURA LINNEY WAS ABOUT TO MEET AN ANCESTOR WITH A SORDID PAST.

BUT THIS ONE WOULD BE FOUND IN AN UNLIKELY PLACE.

GROWING UP, LAURA HAD HEARD THAT HER PATERNAL FAMILY WAS ILLUSTRIOUS.

AND AS WE TRACED IT BACK IN TIME, WE ENCOUNTERED A LONG LINE OF NOTABLE MEN INCLUDING NOT ONLY HER CELEBRATED PLAYWRIGHT FATHER, BUT ALSO A UNITED STATES CONGRESSMAN, AND A STATE SENATOR STRETCHING BACK IN AN UNBROKEN LINE TO COLONIAL VIRGINIA.

SO LET'S BEGIN WITH YOU AT THE BOTTOM, THEN YOU CAN SEE YOUR DAD.

LINNEY: RIGHT.

GATES: KEEP GOING UP.

LINNEY: RZ III, II, I, WILLIAM C. GATES: WILLIAM C. IS YOUR THIRD GREAT GRANDFATHER.

LINNEY: THEN THERE'S ZACHARIAH.

GATES: AND HIS FATHER, WHO IS YOUR FIFTH GREAT GRANDFATHER.

LINNEY: HOLY MACKEREL.

GATES: YOUR GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT- GRANDFATHER.

LINNEY: WOW.

WOW.

GATES: WAS NAMED WILLIAM LINNEY, AND WILLIAM LINNEY WAS BORN OCTOBER 7, 1739, LAURA.

LINNEY: GOOD LORD.

GATES: DEEP ROOTS.

LINNEY: YEAH.

I'M AMERICAN.

I'M AMERICAN.

GATES: WILLIAM LINNEY LAURA'S 5TH GREAT GRANDFATHER IS THE OLDEST LINNEY ANCESTOR WE COULD IDENTIFY ON HER DIRECT PATERNAL LINE.

BUT THAT ISN'T THE ONLY THING THAT MAKES WILLIAM SPECIAL.

LINNEY: "MR. LINNEY SERVED AS AN APPRENTICE SEVEN YEARS, THE BLACKSMITH TRADE.

HE THEN CAME TO AMERICA AND LANDED FROM THE NEPTUNE ON THE COAST OF VIRGINIA FEBRUARY 27, 1768."

WOW.

WOW.

SO IT STARTED WITH HIM?

GATES: YES.

HE WAS YOUR ORIGINAL IMMIGRANT ANCESTOR ON THIS LINE OF YOUR FAMILY TREE.

LINNEY: WOW.

GATES: YOUR FIFTH GREAT GRANDFATHER.

AND YOU HAD NO IDEA?

LINNEY: NO.

GATES: YOU DIDN'T KNOW WHERE THEY CAME FROM.

YOU PRESUMED ENGLAND?

LINNEY: I, I PRESUMED ENGLAND.

I HAD HEARD WALES, I'D HEARD, YOU KNOW, BUT IN MY FAMILY YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT'S, YOU KNOW, A THEATRICAL TALE AND WHAT IS, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S A FACT.

LOOK AT THAT.

GATES: AS IT TURNS OUT, WILLIAM LINNEY'S STORY MIGHT WELL HAVE BEEN INVENTED BY LAURA'S THEATRICAL FATHER.

RECORDS SHOW THAT WILLIAM WAS, IN FACT, BORN IN ENGLAND.

AND THAT HE DIDN'T EXACTLY LEAVE HIS HOMELAND UNDER THE BEST OF CIRCUMSTANCES.

GET READY FOR THIS.

(LAUGHTER).

THAT IS A PASSENGER LIST FROM THE SHIP ON WHICH YOUR ANCESTOR SAILED FROM 1768.

LINNEY: HOLY MACKEREL.

"FELONS TRANSPORTED FROM LONDON TO VIRGINIA BY THE NEPTUNE IN JANUARY 1768."

GATES: HE IS BANISHED FROM ENGLAND.

HE IS BEING SENT INTO EXILE.

NOW WE ALL KNOW ABOUT AUSTRALIA AND CONVICTS, BUT DID YOU KNOW THAT CONVICTS WERE SENT TO THE AMERICAN COLONIES?

LINNEY: NO.

UNITED STATES.

NO.

GATES: TRANSPORTATION OF CONVICTS TO THE AMERICAN COLONIES IN THE 18TH CENTURY WAS A WAY FOR ENGLAND TO RID THE COUNTRY OF CRIMINALS WITHOUT KILLING THEM.

LINNEY: WOW.

GATES: WANT TO GUESS WHAT WILLIAM DID?

LINNEY: I WANT TO KNOW.

WHAT DID HE DO?

WHAT DID HE DO?

GATES: WOULD YOU PLEASE TURN THE PAGE?

THIS IS A TRANSCRIPT OF HIS TRIAL FROM 1767.

LINNEY: "THOMAS DOLLYMORE WAS INDICTED FOR STEALING AND WILLIAM LINNEY FOR RECEIVING 54 IRON HOOPS FOR PAILS, ONE TRUSS-HOOP, AND ONE RIVETING TOOL, PART OF THE SAID GOODS.

WELL KNOWING THEM TO HAVE BEEN STOLEN.

THE JUSTICE SAID, "MR. LINNEY, YOU HEAR WHAT THE LAD HAS SAID.

HAVE YOU ANYTHING TO SAY?"

LINNEY SAID, "NO.

I OWN I HAD THE GOODS."

GATES: I OWN I HAD THE GOODS.

LINNEY: SO HE FESSED UP.

GATES: WILLIAM'S TRIAL TRANSCRIPT INDICATES THAT HE CONFESSED TO RECEIVING AND THEN SELLING STOLEN PROPERTY.

FOR HIS PUNISHMENT, HE WAS NOT ONLY BANNED FROM ENGLAND FOR FOURTEEN YEARS, BUT HE WAS REQUIRED TO FOOT THE BILL FOR HIS PASSAGE!

IT'S FASCINATING TO THINK THAT SUCH A DISTINGUISHED FAMILY GREW FROM SUCH HUMBLE ORIGINS.

LINNEY: WOW.

THAT'S UNBELIEVABLE.

GATES: IT'S UNBELIEVABLE.

WILLIAM LINNEY, FOR A GUY WHO SOLD PURLOINED GOODS HAD A PRETTY GOOD LINE OF DESCENDANTS.

LINNEY: YES.

YEAH.

I GUESS I HAVE THAT JUDGE TO THANK FOR THAT.

WOW.

AMAZING.

GATES: WHAT'S IT LIKE TO SEE THAT?

LINNEY: IT'S, IT'S, IT'S FANTASTIC AND IT'S, YOU KNOW, APPROPRIATELY JUICY FOR MY FAMILY.

SO IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT FITS IN WELL.

GATES: MY THREE GUESTS HAD NOW HEARD STORIES OF ANCESTORS WHO LIVED ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE LAW, BRINGING SORROW TO THEMSELVES AND TO THEIR CHILDREN.

IT WAS TIME TO SHARE STORIES OF ANOTHER NATURE.

STORIES ABOUT PEOPLE WHO BENT THE RULES BUT WITH VERY DIFFERENT RESULTS.

FOR LISA LING, WE BEGAN WITH AN EVENT THAT UTTERLY TRANSFORMED HER FATHER'S FAMILY: WORLD WAR II.

IN DECEMBER OF 1941, JAPAN INVADED HONG KONG.

LISA'S FATHER WAS FIVE YEARS OLD.

HE AND HIS YOUNGER SISTER ALONG WITH THEIR MOTHER SOON FOUND THEMSELVES TRAPPED INSIDE THE CITY.

ABOUT TO EXPERIENCE THE FULL HORRORS OF WAR.

LING: MY DAD'S NOT VERY TALL, BUT HIS FATHER WAS SIX-ONE.

GATES: OH, WOW.

LING: AND HE IS CONVINCED THAT THE REASON WHY HE'S SO SMALL IN COMPARISON, UH, IS BECAUSE HE WAS SO MALNOURISHED DURING THE WAR.

GATES: HE'S PROBABLY RIGHT.

LING: YEAH, HE SAID HE WENT DAYS WITHOUT EATING SOMETIMES, OR JUST EATING RICE.

GATES: THE FAMILY'S TROUBLES WERE COMPOUNDED BY THE FACT THAT WHEN THE JAPANESE INVADED, LISA'S GRANDFATHER WAS WORKING IN SOUTHEAST ASIA, OVER 1,000 MILES AWAY.

THIS MEANT THAT LISA'S GRANDMOTHER, A WOMAN NAMED LIEN CHIN CHONG WAS ON HER OWN AS HONG KONG DEVOLVED INTO CHAOS.

THERE WERE EXECUTIONS.

FOOD SHORTAGES...

EVEN CANNIBALISM.

LIEN REALIZED THAT TO SURVIVE, SHE WOULD HAVE TO FLEE.

SO SHE PACKED UP HER CHILDREN AND ABANDONED THE CITY ON FOOT.

YEARS LATER, SHE WOULD RECOUNT HER EXPERIENCE IN A HARROWING MEMOIR.

LING: "WE HAD ALREADY MARCHED THREE DAYS, PUTTING IN ABOUT FIFTEEN MILES EACH DAY.

MY SHOES WERE IN TERRIBLE CONDITION WITH THE SOLES WORN THROUGH.

BROKEN BLISTERS ON MY FEET CAUSED MUCH PAIN AND DISCOMFORT.

AFTER EACH REST I HAD TO CLENCH MY TEETH IN ORDER TO HOIST MYSELF UP FROM THE BENCH TO START WALKING AGAIN."

THAT'S MY GRANDMA'S BOOK THAT SHE WROTE.

GATES: YEAH.

LING: THAT I HAVEN'T LOOKED AT FOR DECADES AND DECADES.

AND I WAS MUCH YOUNGER WHEN I ACTUALLY READ THIS BOOK, SO NOW AT FORTY- FOUR... GATES: OH... LING: THINKING ABOUT HOW YOUNG SHE WAS AND MY LITTLE DAD.

GATES: YOU SEE THAT MAP OVER THERE?

LING: YEAH.

GATES: THAT'S WHERE THEY WERE.

YOU CAN SEE HOW THEY MADE THEIR WAY.

LING: I HAD NO IDEA THAT THEY WENT INTO CHINA.

GATES: HMM.

LING: I, I HAD NO IDEA.

I CAN'T EVEN IMAGINE HOW SHE WAS ABLE TO DO IT.

GATES: OH MY GOD, IT'S IMPOSSIBLE.

LING: SHE REALLY, I THINK, UM, CARRIED HER FAMILY ON HER BACK.

GATES: WHEN THE WAR ENDED, LISA'S GRANDPARENTS FOUND EACH OTHER THEN SETTLED IN THE CITY OF NANJING.

BUT THE FAMILY'S STRUGGLES WEREN'T OVER.

PEACETIME RE-IGNITED A CIVIL WAR IN CHINA... A CONFLICT THAT WOULD CLAIM OVER TWO MILLION LIVES.

SO ONCE AGAIN, THE LINGS TOOK FLIGHT.

IN 1947, LISA'S GRANDFATHER FOUND A JOB IN AMERICA AND THE FOLLOWING YEAR, HE SENT FOR HIS WIFE AND CHILDREN.

WE FOUND THEIR JOURNEY RECORDED IN A PASSENGER LIST.

LING: "CHONG, LIEN CHIN, AGE: 38, FEMALE.

LING, CHUNG CHIEH, AGE: 10, FEMALE.

LING, CHUNG TEH," MY DAD, "AGE 11, MALE."

GATES: THAT ELEVEN-YEAR-OLD BOY IS YOUR FATHER.

HERE HE IS ARRIVING IN THE UNITED STATES FOR THE FIRST TIME WITH HIS SISTER AND HIS MOTHER, YOUR GRANDMOTHER.

LING: WHAT AN AMAZING PHOTOGRAPH.

GATES: ISN'T THAT AMAZING?

LING: JUST THINKING ABOUT WHAT THOSE EYES HAD SEEN BEFORE TAKING THIS PICTURE.

GATES: SURVIVORS.

BIG-TIME.

LING: YEAH.

GATES: LISA'S FAMILY HAS FLOURISHED IN AMERICA...

BUT IN THE CHAOS OF THEIR FLIGHT, MANY OF THEIR FAMILIES STORIES GOT LOST.

WE WERE ABLE TO RESTORE THEM, TRACING HER ROOTS BACK FOURTEEN GENERATIONS TO THE MID-1500'S ALONG THE WAY, WE ENCOUNTERED ONE STORY THAT WAS ESPECIALLY COMPELLING.

LISA'S SIXTH GREAT-GRANDFATHER WAS A MAN NAMED HAO LING.

IN HIS YOUTH, HAO ATTEMPTED TO CLIMB CHINA'S BUREAUCRATIC LADDER BUT FAILED.

HE WAS UNABLE TO PASS WHAT WAS KNOWN AS A PROVINCIAL EXAM.

SO HE WAS GIVEN A MINOR GOVERNMENT POSITION IN A DISTANT PROVINCE.

HAO SEEMED DESTINED FOR OBSCURITY UNTIL FATE INTERVENED.

IN THE AUTUMN OF 1761, THE YELLOW RIVER OVERFLOWED THRUSTING HAO INTO THE SPOTLIGHT.

THIS IS AN ACCOUNT OF THE GREAT FLOOD OF 1761, AND HAO WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE SAFETY OF THE TOWNSPEOPLE.

LING: "HAO ORDERED THAT THE ABLE-BODIED MEN OF THE TOWN MOVE BASKET AFTER BASKET OF SOIL, AS WELL AS PADDED QUILTS, TROUSERS AND JACKETS FROM PAWN SHOP STOREHOUSES TO SEAL THE LEAKS IN THE TOWN WALLS."

GATES: SO, YOU THINK THIS WAS ENOUGH TO HOLD THE FLOODWATERS BACK?

LING: I CAN'T IMAGINE IT WOULD'VE BEEN.

GATES: IT WAS.

THE TOWN WAS SAVED.

AND GUESS WHO WAS THE HERO?

HAO.

LING: GRANDPA, GRANDPA HAO.

GATES: HE'S THE HERO.

ISN'T THAT AMAZING?

LING: AMAZING.

SO, HE'S IN THEIR HISTORY BOOKS?

GATES: YEAH, HE'S IN THE HISTORY BOOKS, 'CAUSE HE SAVED THE TOWN WITH HIS INGENIOUS METHOD.

LING: TROUSERS AND JACKETS FROM PAWN SHOPS.

SO, WHO NEEDED TO PASS THE EXAM?

GATES: YEAH.

YEAH, THAT'S RIGHT.

LING: AMAZING.

GATES: HAO'S HEROISM DID NOT GO UNNOTICED.

ACCORDING TO LISA'S FAMILY AND SUPPORTED BY RECORDS AT THE IMPERIAL ACADEMY IN BEIJING THE ALMOST FIFTY- YEAR-OLD BUREAUCRAT WOULD SOON SEE HIS LIFELONG DREAM COME TRUE... NOW, THE LOCAL RESIDENTS, ACCORDING TO YOUR FAMILY'S LORE, WERE SO THANKFUL THAT THEY WANTED TO GIVE YOUR SIXTH-GREAT-GRANDFATHER A GIFT.

AND HE CAME UP WITH AN INGENIOUS IDEA.

HAO ASKS HIS THANKFUL FRIENDS TO HELP HIM TAKE THE PROVINCIAL EXAM.

(LAUGHTER) LING: HAO... GATES: IN THEIR PROVINCE.

LING: WOW.

AND OF COURSE, HE PASSED IT.

GATES: AND HE PASSED IT.

LING: OH MY GOODNESS, THAT'S AMAZING.

GATES: I WONDER WHO GRADED THAT EXAM, SAID, "YOU GOTTA LET HAO, HAO'S OUR BOY, HE GOTTA PASS THE EXAM."

LING: THAT IS PRETTY CLEVER.

GATES: ISN'T THAT AMAZING?

LING: YES.

GATES: HE NOT ONLY PASSED, HE GOT THE FIFTH-HIGHEST MARKS THAT WHOLE YEAR.

LING: YOU KNOW, YOU SAVE, YOU SAVE A TOWN FROM THE YELLOW RIVER... YOU PASS THE EXAM.

GATES: YEAH, YEAH, THAT'S THE WAY IT IS.

THAT'S A GOOD SYSTEM, I LIKE THAT.

LING: I LIKE IT.

GATES: TURNING BACK TO LAURA LINNEY, WE FOUND OURSELVES MOVING FROM ANCIENT CHINA TO THE TINY TOWN OF NICHOLLS, GEORGIA.

LAURA'S MOTHER ANN LEGETT WAS BORN HERE IN 1937 AND HER ROOTS IN THE AREA STRETCH BACK WELL OVER A CENTURY.

BUT THE LEGETT FAMILY STORY IS NOT A HAPPY ONE.

ANN'S FATHER DIED WHEN SHE WAS A CHILD LEAVING HER MOTHER WITH FOUR YOUNG CHILDREN, STRUGGLING JUST TO SUPPORT HERSELF.

HOW DID YOUR MOM TELL YOU ABOUT THIS?

WHAT DID YOUR MOTHER SAY?

LINNEY: WELL, THERE WAS A SENSE THAT THEY WERE, YOU KNOW, ABANDONED, AND THAT THERE WAS GREAT FEAR, AND THAT THERE WAS NOT SECURITY AND THERE WERE PEOPLE FROM, I DON'T REMEMBER IF IT WAS THE ROTARY CLUB OR THE LION'S CLUB OR ONE OF THOSE COMMUNITY CLUBS THAT WOULD, WOULD HELP THEM FINANCIALLY OCCASIONALLY, AND THAT MY GRANDMOTHER OPENED A LAUNDRY IN THE BACK OF THE HOUSE IN ORDER TO PAY FOR THINGS.

I DON'T THINK THEY EVER FULLY RECOVERED QUITE FRANKLY.

GATES: YOUR MOTHER TOLD US THAT THE FAMILY WAS, QUOTE, "PLUNGED FROM HEAVEN TO THE RING OF HELL."

LINNEY: OH.

YEAH.

YEAH.

THAT DEATH IS STILL, UH, AROUND.

GATES: AS IT TURNS OUT, LAURA'S GRANDMOTHER WASN'T THE FIRST WOMAN IN HER FAMILY TO FIND HERSELF IN DIRE STRAITS.

MOVING BACK ONE GENERATION, WE CAME TO ANOTHER: LAURA'S GREAT-GRANDMOTHER, A WOMAN NAMED RUTH LEGGETT.

WE FOUND HER LIVING ON HER OWN FAR FROM THE FAMILY SEAT IN GEORGIA.

THIS IS A PAGE OF THE 1930 FEDERAL CENSUS, FOR A TOWN CALLED EUSTIS, FLORIDA.

LINNEY: FLORIDA?

GATES: YUP.

WOULD YOU PLEASE READ THE FIRST TRANSCRIPTION?

LINNEY: "S. RUTH LEGGETT."

GATES: MM-HMM.

LINNEY: "HEAD.

MARITAL CONDITION, W." GATES: YOU KNOW WHAT W... LINNEY: WIDOWED.

GATES: WIDOW.

THAT'S RIGHT.

SO YOUR GREAT-GRANDMOTHER, RUTH, THAT'S LISTED AS A 45-YEAR-OLD WIDOW LIVING WITH HER THREE CHILDREN... AND SO WE WANTED TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT RUTH'S HUSBAND, MILTON SR., WHO WOULD HAVE BEEN 47 YEARS OLD AT THE TIME.

ANY FAMILY STORIES ABOUT HOW HE PASSED AWAY?

LINNEY: NO.

I DON'T KNOW MUCH ABOUT THEM AT ALL.

GATES: WE SET OUT TO SEE WHAT HAPPENED TO MILTON AND RAN HEADLONG INTO A MYSTERY.

HIS DEATH CERTIFICATE IS DATED JUNE 21, 1962.

THAT'S MORE THAN THIRTY YEARS AFTER HIS WIFE RUTH REPORTED HERSELF AS A WIDOW IN THE 1930 CENSUS!

SO WAS THE DEATH CERTIFICATE WRONG?

OR WAS RUTH LYING TO THE CENSUS TAKER?

THE ANSWER WOULD REVEAL WHY MILTON WASN'T MUCH-DISCUSSED IN LAURA'S FAMILY.

LAURA, THIS IS THE CENSUS FOR RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA... LINNEY: RALEIGH.

GATES: FROM 1930, THE SAME YEAR THAT YOUR GREAT-GRANDMOTHER RUTH WAS LISTED AS A WIDOW.

WOULD YOU PLEASE READ THE TRANSCRIPTION?

LINNEY: "MILTON M. LEGGETT, ROOMER.

MARITAL CONDITION, SINGLE."

WOW!

GATES: WELL, MILTON WAS ALIVE AND WELL WHEN... LINNEY: IN RALEIGH.

KICKIN' UP HIS HEELS IN RALEIGH.

GATES: IN RALEIGH.

AND MEANWHILE HIS WIFE IS CLAIMING TO BE A WIDOW.

DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHY RUTH WOULD HAVE TOLD THE CENSUS TAKERS SHE WAS A WIDOW, MILTON WAS ACTUALLY STILL LIVING?

LINNEY: SHE WAS EMBARRASSED BY HIM.

IT HAD TO HAVE BEEN THAT.

GATES: YEAH.

I WOULD THINK SO, RIGHT?

LINNEY: SHE WAS EMBARRASSED BY HIM.

GATES: DIVORCE IN THE SOUTH IN THE 1930S WOULD HAVE BEEN A STIGMA.

LINNEY: YEAH.

WOW.

GATES: NOW WHAT DO YOU THINK THAT MUST HAVE BEEN LIKE FOR RUTH PRETENDING TO BE A WIDOW, KNOWING FULL WELL THAT YOUR HUSBAND WAS ALIVE AND WELL AND LIVING ANOTHER LIFE?

LINNEY: WELL, THAT'S WHY SHE MOVED TO FLORIDA.

GATES: MM.

RIGHT.

TO ESCAPE DETECTION.

LINNEY: YEAH.

BECAUSE EVERYBODY KNOWS, EVERYBODY KNOWS EVERYTHING IN SMALL TOWNS IN GEORGIA.

EVERYBODY KNOWS EVERYTHING.

GATES: IN SMALL TOWNS, PERIOD.

LINNEY: YEAH.

GATES: WHAT DO YOU THINK IT WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE FOR THE KIDS?

LINNEY: OH, I CAN'T IMAGINE.

BOTH: I WONDER IF THEY KNEW.

GATES: YEAH.

LINNEY: THEY HAD TO KNOW SOMETHING.

GATES: THEY DIDN'T GO TO A FUNERAL.

SO SHE HAS TO SAY, "YOU GOTTA KEEP THIS SECRET."

LINNEY: SOMETHING HAPPENED, YEAH.

GATES: YEAH.

"IF ANYBODY ASKS YOU, YOU SAY YOUR DADDY IS DEAD."

THAT'S A HEAVY THING TO HAVE TO LIVE WITH.

LINNEY: JEEZ, UNBELIEVABLE.

GATES: WE DON'T KNOW WHAT EXACTLY TRANSPIRED BETWEEN RUTH AND MILTON, BUT WE WEREN'T FINISHED WITH OUR STORIES OF HARDSHIP IN LAURA'S FAMILY TREE.

FOLLOWING THE PAPER TRAIL BACK, WE CAME TO HER THIRD GREAT-GRANDMOTHER JERUSHA BUSBEE WHOSE HUSBAND WILLIAM DIED FIGHTING FOR THE CONFEDERACY... LAURA WASN'T SURPRISED TO LEARN THAT SHE HAS CONFEDERATES AND EVEN TWO DOCUMENTED SLAVE OWNERS WITHIN HER SOUTHERN ROOTS.

BUT SHE NEVER HEARD OF JERUSHA OR WILLIAM OR CONSIDERED WHAT THEY EXPERIENCED... WE SHOWED HER A PENSION APPLICATION FILED BY JERUSHA WHICH DETAILS HER HUSBAND'S DEATH.

LINNEY: "THE APPLICATION OF THE UNDERSIGNED RESPECTFULLY SHOWS THAT SHE IS THE WIDOW OF WILLIAM BUSBEE, OH, WHO WAS A BONA FIDE SOLDIER IN THE SERVICE OF THE CONFEDERATE STATE AND WHILE IN SUCH LETTER LOST HIS LIFE AT FREDERICKSBURG."

GATES: YEAH.

LINNEY: BY A MUSKET BALL THROUGH THE BOWELS.

OH.

OOH.

SIGNED, JERUSHA BUSBEE.

MM.

YEAH.

NO.

YOU WOULDN'T SURVIVE THAT, WOULD YOU?

WELL... GATES: HE WAS 35 YEARS OLD WHEN HE DIED, LEAVING BEHIND YOUR THIRD GREAT GRANDMOTHER, JERUSHA AND SHE HAD TO CARE FOR YOUR GREAT-GREAT-GRANDFATHER GABRIEL ALONG WITH FOUR OTHER YOUNG CHILDREN.

LINNEY: SEEMS TO BE A THEME.

GATES: YOU HAVE A LEITMOTIF GOING IN YOUR FAMILY TREE.

LINNEY: YEAH.

GATES: SO WHEN YOU WATCHED YOUR MOM, STRUGGLING TO RAISE YOU SHE WAS PLAYING OUT A NARRATIVE LINE, SHE WAS LIKE THE THIRD ITERATION GENERATIONALLY.

LINNEY: YEAH.

YEAH.

YEAH.

THAT'S DEEP IN HER BONES.

GATES: YEAH.

LINNEY: YEP.

GATES: JERUSHA WAS ROUGHLY 39 YEARS OLD WHEN HER HUSBAND DIED.

SHE NOT ONLY HAD TO RAISE HER CHILDREN ALONE, SHE HAD TO RUN THE FAMILY FARM...

IT WAS A DAUNTING CHALLENGE, BUT JERUSHA WAS UP TO IT.

HER LAND REMAINS IN LAURA'S FAMILY TODAY, OWNED BY DISTANT COUSINS, WHO PRESERVED JESUSHA'S MEMORY AND HER IMAGE.

YOU EVER SEE THAT?

LINNEY: NO.

WHO IS THAT?

GATES: LAURA, YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE PHOTOGRAPH OF YOUR THIRD GREAT- GRANDMOTHER.

THAT IS JERUSHA BUSBEE.

LINNEY: THAT'S JERUSHA.

GATES: AND THAT IS FROM THE YEAR 1890.

LINNEY: WOW.

MY GOD.

HUH.

WOW.

GATES: SHE'S ABOUT 67 YEARS OLD.

LINNEY: SHE LOOKS A LOT OLDER THAN THAT, DOESN'T SHE?

GATES: WHAT'S IT LIKE TO SEE A PHOTOGRAPH OF YOUR... LINNEY: THAT'S UNBELIEVABLE.

WOW.

THAT IS NOT A FACE THAT'S HAD AN EASY TIME.

GATES: NO.

LIFE HASN'T BEEN FAIR TO WOMEN ON YOUR MOM'S SIDE.

LINNEY: YEAH.

THEY'VE HAD A HARD TIME.

GATES: THEY'VE HAD A HARD TIME.

LINNEY: YEAH.

GATES: BUT ON THE OTHER HAND, YOU'RE SITTING HERE.

LINNEY: YES.

YES.

YES.

THANK YOU.

AMAZING.

GATES: I HAD ALREADY SURPRISED SOLEDAD O'BRIEN BY REVEALING THAT HER FATHER'S GREAT-GRANDFATHER HAD ARRIVED IN AUSTRALIA FROM SCOTLAND AS A CONVICT IN 1833.

NOW, TURNING TO HER DIRECT O'BRIEN LINE, WE FOCUSED ON A PART OF HER FATHER'S FAMILY THAT SHE THOUGHT SHE KNEW WELL: THE ANCESTORS WHO CAME TO AUSTRALIA FROM IRELAND AND STARTED A FLOUR MILLING COMPANY CALLED DEFIANCE FLOUR.

GENERATIONS LATER, WHEN SOLEDAD WAS GROWING UP, DEFIANCE FLOUR WAS STILL THE FAMILY BUSINESS.

O'BRIEN: MY DAD TALKED A LOT ABOUT WANTING TO LEAVE AUSTRALIA SO THAT HE WOULDN'T GET A JOB AT DEFIANCE MILL.

GATES: MMM.

O'BRIEN: THEY WANTED HIM TO BE A CHEMICAL ENGINEER AND WORK IN THE MILL, WHICH WAS THE FAMILY BUSINESS... GATES: OF COURSE.

O'BRIEN: AND HIS DREAM WAS NOT THAT AND SO... GATES: HE SAID, "I WANT TO GO BE ENGINEER IN AMERICA."

O'BRIEN: YEAH, EXACTLY.

GATES: THOUGH SOLEDAD HAD HEARD A GREAT DEAL ABOUT HER FATHER'S DESIRE TO AVOID THE FAMILY MILL, SHE HAD NO IDEA HOW HER ANCESTORS HAD MANAGED TO BUILD SUCH A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS.

AS WE LOOKED INTO THEIR STORY, WE DISCOVERED THAT THE ROAD TO PROSPERITY WASN'T AN EASY ONE.

SOLEDAD'S GREAT-GRANDPARENTS PATRICK O'BRIEN AND ELLEN FITZGERALD ARRIVED IN AUSTRALIA IN THE 1870S.

THEY WERE PART OF A SMALL GROUP OF IRISH IMMIGRANTS WHO SETTLED IN THE RURAL TOWN OF TOOWOOMBA AND RECORDS SHOWED THAT THEY DID NOT ARRIVE WITH THE MEANS TO BUILD A BUSINESS.

GATES: THIS IS YOUR GREAT-GRANDPARENTS ELLEN AND PATRICK'S MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE FROM FEBRUARY 12, 1884 IN TOOWOOMBA.

O'BRIEN: THIS IS GREAT.

SO HE IS A LABORER AND SHE, ELLEN FITZGERALD, IS A SERVANT.

GATES: SERVANT.

O'BRIEN: AND THEY LIST HER AS "SPINSTER."

GATES: UH-HUH.

MEANING SINGLE.

O'BRIEN: SO 24 YOU'RE A SPINSTER.

GATES: SPINSTER.

O'BRIEN: THAT'S HARSH.

GATES: YEAH.

O'BRIEN: GOD.

GATES: ISN'T IT INTERESTING TO SEE HOW YOUR GREAT-GRANDPARENTS CAME FROM SUCH HUMBLE BEGINNINGS?

O'BRIEN: IT IS, YEAH.

GATES: WHEN THE O'BRIENS SETTLED IN TOOWOOMBA, THEY STARTED A GROCERY BUT SOON NOTICED A BETTER OPPORTUNITY.

LOCAL WHEAT FARMERS WERE UNHAPPY WITH THE PRICES BEING OFFERED BY THE NEARBY FLOUR MILLS.

THE O'BRIENS DECIDED TO USE THEIR SAVINGS AND START THEIR OWN MILL, APTLY NAMED DEFIANCE FLOUR.

THEY OFFERED THE FARMERS A BETTER DEAL AND QUICKLY BEGAN TO PROSPER.

BY THE TIME SOLEDAD'S GREAT-GRANDFATHER DIED IN 1906, HE WAS ONE OF TOOWOOMBA'S MOST PROMINENT RESIDENTS.

O'BRIEN: "MR. O'BRIEN TOOK A KEEN INTEREST IN CHURCH AFFAIRS AND IN POLITICAL MATTERS WIELDED A RECOGNIZED INFLUENCE.

THE FUNERAL WAS ONE OF THE LARGEST AND MOST REPRESENTATIVE CORTEGES EVER WITNESSED IN TOOWOOMBA."

GATES: YOUR GREAT-GRANDFATHER WAS A GREAT MAN.

REALLY A BRILLIANT MAN, AND THAT OBITUARY IS ADORING.

O'BRIEN: HMM.

WOW, I HAD NO IDEA.

GATES: THERE WAS ONE MORE TWIST TO THE STORY.

WHEN PATRICK DIED, HIS ESTATE CONTAINED VERY LITTLE CASH.

TO KEEP THE BUSINESS GOING, AND TO SUPPORT HER TEN CHILDREN, HIS WIDOW ELLEN DESPERATELY NEEDED A LOAN.

BUT THAT WAS EASIER SAID THAN DONE.

THE BANK WOULDN'T ADVANCE HER A LOAN BECAUSE... O'BRIEN: SHE WAS A WOMAN.

GATES: SHE WAS A WOMAN.

AND A WIDOW WITH 10 CHILDREN AND SHE WAS TOO MUCH, MUCH TOO MUCH OF A FINANCIAL RISK.

SO YOUR GREAT-GRANDMOTHER ELLEN O'BRIEN, QUICKLY FOUND HERSELF FACING BANKRUPTCY.

CAN YOU IMAGINE, YOU LOSE YOUR HUSBAND, AND YOU'RE ABOUT TO LOSE THE MILL?

O'BRIEN: AND YOU HAVE 10 KIDS.

GATES: IN A LAST-DITCH EFFORT TO SAVE HER FAMILY, ELLEN TURNED TO THE WHEAT FARMERS WHOM SHE AND HER LATE HUSBAND HAD SUPPORTED OVER THE YEARS AND ASKED THEM FOR HELP.

THANKS TO THEIR SMALL HANDSHAKE LOANS, ELLEN WAS ABLE TO PUT TOGETHER ENOUGH MONEY TO KEEP THE BUSINESS AFLOAT.

AND THESE FARMERS WOULD NOT REGRET THEIR DECISION.

ELLEN O'BRIEN'S OBITUARY REVEALED THAT SHE DID MORE THAN JUST KEEP DEFIANCE FLOUR GOING.

O'BRIEN: "THE MOST REMARKABLE PERSONALITY IN THE BUSINESS WORLD OF TOOWOOMBA WAS PROBABLY MRS. O'BRIEN.

BEING A DIRECTOR AND THE BIGGEST SHAREHOLDER OF NO FEWER THAN THREE OF TOOWOOMBA'S LEADING BUSINESSES IS A BIG ACHIEVEMENT FOR A WOMAN WHEN ONE CONSIDERS THAT 40 YEARS AGO SHE WAS PRACTICALLY PENNILESS; BUT HER FORESIGHT, HER ENERGY, AND HER PERSEVERANCE WERE MAINLY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE WONDERFUL RESULT."

GATES: WELL, GUESS WHAT?

UNDER HER HUSBAND'S OWNERSHIP IN 1901 THE MILL MADE 10,000 POUNDS.

O'BRIEN: UH-HUH.

GATES: UNDER HER, 21 YEARS LATER, IT MADE 150,000 POUNDS.

O'BRIEN: WOW.

GATES: NOW, THAT WAS KICKING BUTT.

O'BRIEN: I WAS PRETTY WELL AWARE THAT THEY WERE SUCCESSFUL IN BUSINESS.

I JUST DIDN'T REALIZE THAT IT DATED BACK SO FAR.

GATES: SOLEDAD HAD A FINAL QUESTION FOR ME.

SHE WONDERED HOW THE O'BRIENS HAD ENDED UP IN AUSTRALIA IN THE FIRST PLACE.

THIS ACTUALLY POSED A DAUNTING CHALLENGE.

WE KNEW THE FAMILY CAME FROM IRELAND, BUT THE VAST MAJORITY OF IRISH RECORDS WERE LOST IN THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY.

INDEED, WE COULD FIND NO TRACE AT ALL OF ELLEN BACK IN IRELAND.

BUT WITH HER HUSBAND PATRICK, WE GOT LUCKY.

WE FOUND HIS FATHER ANTHONY IN COUNTY CLARE.

THIS IS A PAGE FROM SOMETHING CALLED THE GRIFFITH VALUATION BOOKS FROM THE YEAR 1855, WHICH DETERMINED THE AMOUNT OF TAX EACH TENANT, HAD TO PAY.

O'BRIEN: UH-HUH.

GATES: CAN YOU SEE THE NAME OF THE OCCUPIER HERE?

O'BRIEN: ANTHONY O'BRIEN LEASING A HOUSE AND LAND AT DOONSALLAGH EAST IN THE AMOUNT OF 53 ACRES.

GATES: THAT IS YOUR GREAT-GREAT-GRANDFATHER.

O'BRIEN: THAT'S AMAZING.

GATES: LIKE THE MOST OF IRELAND'S POPULATION AT THE TIME, ANTHONY WAS A TENANT FARMER BEHOLDEN TO A BRITISH LANDLORD, WHO CHARGED HIM TAXES TO WORK THE LAND.

THIS SYSTEM KEPT THE IRISH IN POVERTY FOR GENERATIONS AND THE FAMILY'S PROSPECTS MUST HAVE SEEMED QUITE DIM.

BUT THERE WAS A WAY OUT.

POSTERS IN IRISH TOWN SQUARES ADVERTISED FREE PASSAGE TO AUSTRALIA AND THE CHANCE TO OWN LAND THERE.

AND IN 1875, ANTHONY'S SON PATRICK DECIDED TO TAKE THE RISK.

O'BRIEN: THAT'S PRETTY AMAZING THAT HE'S ABLE TO START A NEW LIFE IN AUSTRALIA.

IT REALLY MAKES ME THINK OF HOW MY PARENTS AS MODERN DAY IMMIGRANTS TO AMERICA THOUGHT OF AMERICA AS THIS NEW LAND WHERE ANYTHING COULD BE POSSIBLE AND THAT THEY WOULD CREATE A NEW BEGINNING AND WE WOULD BE ABLE TO WRITE OUR OWN HISTORY, OUR OWN LIVES.

GATES: THE PAPER TRAIL HAD RUN OUT FOR SOLEDAD, LAURA, AND LISA.

IT WAS TIME TO SHOW THEM THEIR FULL FAMILY TREES.

LING: OH MY GOD.

GATES: NOW FILLED WITH PEOPLE WHOSE NAMES THEY'D NEVER HEARD BEFORE... FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE.

YOU KNOW, AND I HAVE TO SAY YOU'RE OUR FIRST CRIMINAL.

O'BRIEN: OF THE SEASON OR JUST IN GENERAL?

GATES: OF THE WHOLE, ALL, EVERYTHING.

O'BRIEN: AM I REALLY?

GATES: YOU ARE.

O'BRIEN: I AM SO EMBARRASSED.

THAT'S TERRIBLE.

GATES: AND YOU NOT ONLY HAVE ONE, YOU HAD A LOT OF CRIMINALS.

O'BRIEN: OH MY GOD.

A WHOLE LINE.

GATES: IN FACT, WE WANT TO STUDY YOUR DNA FOR THE CRIMINAL GENE.

WOULD YOU PLEASE SIGN THIS FORM?

O'BRIEN: YOU THINK I'D BE BETTER AT SNATCH AND GRAB, RIGHT THAN... GATES: FOR EACH, IT WAS A CHANCE TO SEE HOW THEIR OWN LIVES FIT INTO A CHAIN FIRST FORGED A LONG TIME AGO.

A CHAIN MADE OF LINKS BOTH COMPLEX AND CONTRADICTORY.

THE SHEER RANGE OF IT ALL WAS STIRRING.

LINNEY: IT JUST GOES TO SHOW THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU THINK YOU'RE THIS AUTONOMOUS SORT OF THING AND THEN YOU REALIZE YOU HAVE ALL THESE PEOPLE TO THANK.

GATES: OH, THAT'S BEAUTIFUL.

LINNEY: YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE ALL OF THESE PEOPLE TO THANK AND ALL OF THESE PEOPLE WHO MEAN SOMETHING TO YOU AND YOU WOULD MEAN SOMETHING TO THEM, YOU KNOW, IT'S AMAZING, IT'S AMAZING, FAMILY.

GATES: FAMILY.

THIS IS YOUR FAMILY.

LINNEY: YEAH FAMILY.

LING: YOU KNOW, I SAID AS A KID, I REALLY, I HATED BEING CHINESE, SKIP, BECAUSE I FELT, YOU KNOW, I WAS SO DIFFERENT, YOU KNOW, AND I, I FELT NO CONNECTION WHATSOEVER TO CHINA.

I'D NEVER BEEN THERE.

I DIDN'T SPEAK THE LANGUAGE.

AND SO, TO KNOW THAT MY ROOTS THERE ARE SO STRONG.

AND EVEN THOUGH I DIDN'T KNOW THEIR STORIES REALLY UNTIL TODAY, LIKE, THEY HAVE BEEN PART OF, OF MY STORY, AND THEY LIVE WITH ME.

GATES: YEAH.

LING: AND NOW THAT I DO KNOW THEM, IT MAKES ME FEEL EVEN STRONGER.

GATES: I WAS NOW NEARING THE END OF MY TIME WITH MY GUESTS BUT I HAD ONE MORE SURPRISE TO SHARE: WHEN WE COMPARED THEIR DNA TO THAT OF OTHER PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN IN THE SERIES, WE FOUND A SIGNIFICANT MATCH FOR SOLEDAD.

EVIDENCE WITHIN HER OWN CHROMOSOMES OF A RELATIVE SHE DIDN'T KNOW SHE HAD.

YOU ARE COUSINS WITH ONE OF OUR PREVIOUS GUESTS.

O'BRIEN: OH, WHO'S THAT?

GATES: YOU WANT TO TAKE A WILD GUESS?

O'BRIEN: NO, I REALLY DON'T.

GATES: COULD YOU TURN THE PAGE?

O'BRIEN: THAT'S FUNNY.

GATES: YEAH.

O'BRIEN: BECAUSE HE DOES SO MANY SEGMENTS ON MY DIVERSITY ALL THE TIME.

COLBERT: DISCRIMINATION IS OVER.

I MEAN JUST LOOK AT CNN.

THE, THEY EMPLOY ON-AIR TALENT FROM ALL ETHNICITIES AND BACKGROUNDS.

AND THAT'S JUST SOLEDAD O'BRIEN.

O'BRIEN: IT WOULD DRIVE MY MOTHER CRAZY.

SHE DIDN'T REALIZE THAT HE WAS KIDDING.

GATES: OH.

O'BRIEN: AND SO SHE'S LIKE, "WHO IS THIS GUY WHO'S MOCKING YOU?"

GATES: STEPHEN IS SUPER IRISH, SUPER AND THAT IS HOW YOU'RE RELATED.

O'BRIEN: THAT'S HILARIOUS.

HE'S OUR COUSIN MOMMY.

GATES: THAT'S THE END OF OUR JOURNEY WITH LAURA, LISA AND SOLEDAD.

JOIN ME NEXT TIME WHEN WE UNLOCK THE SECRETS OF THE PAST FOR NEW GUESTS, ON ANOTHER EPISODE OF "FINDING YOUR ROOTS".