True crime podcasts to bring out your inner sleuth
Let's get to the bottom of this.
In the mid-70s, Jon Armond was traumatized by a cartoon he saw on Sesame Street about a girl who goes on an adventure with happy little creatures formed by the cracks on her wall. But late at night, behind the door, a horrifying monster emerges from the cracks who calls himself the "Crack Master." Decades later, Jon was unsure if this cartoon actually existed until he found a subculture of internet users who remembered being terrified by the exact same thing. In this episode of Studio 360, host Kurt Anderson investigates the making of this nearly 40-year-old cartoon to unveil once and for all who created it and why.
When you were a kid, did you have a demon who lurked in your closet, or a bogeyman that hid under your bed? As someone who used to be afraid of the dark, I found strength and humour both in listening to this podcast and in revisiting my own (irrational) childhood fears. Here's hoping it does the same for you.
- Kelsey Cueva, Associate Producer, Podcast Playlist
Podcasts featured this week:
The Dropout: Convinced of her own destiny even as a young child, Elizabeth Holmes would drop out of Stanford in her late teens, intending to model herself after the great tech icons of our time. Her obsession with Steve Jobs – down to his signature black turtlenecks – would become particularly pronounced as she launched her company Theranos.
The Dream: Multi-level marketing companies often promise you part time work and high salaries. But according to The Dream, it seems very few participants successfully make a living. Katie worried her work as a daily news reporter would be challenging once she had a family. She thought that being a Mary Kay consultant would offer the flexibility she wanted. She shares her story.
Believed: How did Larry Nassar, a respected gymnastics doctor, get away with abusing hundreds of women and girls for two decades? Believed is an inside look at how a team of women won a conviction in one of the largest serial sexual abuse cases in U.S. history.
Studio 360: In the mid-1970s, Jon Armond was traumatized by something he saw on "Sesame Street." It was a cartoon about a little girl who encounters creatures formed by the cracks on her bedroom wall — including a horrifying, screaming face who called himself "The Crack Master." Decades later, Armond wasn't sure if the cartoon actually existed... until he discovered a subculture of obsessives who remembered the exact same thing.
Uncover: The Village: Host Justin Ling investigates Bruce McArthur and whether he's connected to nearly two dozen murders from Toronto's Gay Village.
Over My Dead Body: Dan and Wendi are two good-looking attorneys whose wedding was featured in the New York Times. But when this "perfect" couple falls apart, it leads to a bad breakup and a terrible divorce. Then, a murder case involving a menagerie of high-priced lawyers and unexpected co-conspirators.
Which investigative podcasts do you listen to? Email, tweet us @PodcastPlaylist, or find us on Facebook.
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