The Legend of Jefferson 'Soapy' Smith, Uncrow...

In January of 1881, the Cincinnati Examiner described Charles Lewis Blood as a "very affable" man, but questioned his right to the title M.D. And the Boston Globe described him as having a, "national reputation for crooked work.” In fact, he did have career in crooked work. "Dr." ...  Show more

You can't talk about confidence artists and their games without talking about one of the classics: the shell game. It's been called a lot of things over the decades, and during the time and place we're going to visit in this episode, it was 'thimblerig'. It's often portrayed as a ...  Show more

Forty years ago, cyanide-laced Tylenol capsules led to the deaths of seven people all around the Chicago area. America was gripped by paranoia and fear. Why was this happening? Who would be next? Police grasped for suspects who might be the so-called “Mad Poisoner.” We’re joined ...  Show more

Listeners, we’re popping back into your feed this week to share a special crossover episode from Serial Killers and Conspiracy Theories. Forty years ago, cyanide-laced Tylenol capsules led to the deaths of seven people all around the Chicago area. America was gripped by paranoia ...  Show more

This is the finale of our Serial Killers and Conspiracy Theories crossover: By 2011, the FBI was ready to reexamine the evidence. A theory emerged: What if the Mad Poisoner was actually the Unabomber? Ted Kaczynski had proven he was a revenge-seeking terrorist, and he had connect ...  Show more

Around 2013 heroin users in the US and other countries suddenly started dying from overdose in previously-unseen numbers. The culprit turned out to be the incredibly potent drug fentanyl and it soon created a massive new wave in the opioid epidemic.See omnystudio.com/listener for ...  Show more