Plot Twist Podcast: A Grave Affair

Latest Episodes:

S2 E7: Taxidermied People May 06, 2023

Show notes

This episode, we're talking taxidermy- human taxidermy. We'll be covering two of the most famous examples of human taxidermy attempts in recent history, and discussing the ethics of the practice. "English Philosopher’s Dressed-Up Skeleton Goes on View in New Glass Display" by Theresa Machemer, Smithsonian Magazine"El Negro reburied in Botswana", news24.com"Auto-Icon"- Bentham Project, ucl.ac.uk"The History of Taxidermy", all-taxidermy.com"The Man Stuffed and Displayed like a Wild Animal" by Frank Westerman, BBC"Why Philosopher Jeremy Bentham's Severed, Stolen, and Poorly Preserved Head is Back on Display", CBC.ca"Why are there No Human Taxidermies?", technology.org Video: "The Man Who Had Himself Taxidermied: Jeremy Bentham", Tom ScottVideo: "Ask a Mortician: Human Taxidermy?", Ask a MorticianAshley Eve on YouTube

S2 E6: American Catacombs Apr 12, 2023

Show notes

Under the streets of the city that never sleeps, there is an underground burial room in the basement of an unassuming church. Join us as we explore the catacomb's dark tunnels and learn about the burial ban that led to its creation.Resources: "For $7M, spend the afterlife in a crypt at Nolita’s Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral" by Dana Schulz, 6sqft.com"No Burial Line of 1832" by Liz Volavka, History of Health in New York"19th Century Knock Seer Gets Grave of His Own at Old St. Patrick’s Cemetery" by Christie L. Chicoine, Catholic New York"New York’s First Cathedral: The Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral" by Joyce Mendelsohn and James E. Garrity, oldcathedral.org"Pierre Toussaint", slaveryandremembrance.org"Venerable Pierre Toussaint", Archdiocese of New York WebsiteDictionary.comMerriam-Webster Dictionary Notes from "Catacombs by Candlelight" Tour (https://takeawalk.com)

S2 E5: Pantry Poisons & Postmortem Toxicology Mar 29, 2023

Show notes

Learn how poisoning went from a household crime to having a branch of science dedicated to detecting it!Resources: "Arsenic's Afterlife: How Scientists Learned to Identify Poison Victims [Excerpt]" by Linda Stratmann, Scientific American"Poisoning Crimes and Forensic Toxicology Since the 18th Century" by Katherine D Watson, American Forensic Pathologist "Pick Your Poison—12 Toxic Tales" by Cathy Newman, National Geographic"History of Poison"- Wikipedia"Toxicology of Poisons"- Crime Museum"Guidelines on autopsy practice: Autopsy when drugs or poisoning may be involved "- Royal College of Pathologists"Poisoning in the Modern World"- Chapter "Forensic Toxicology" by Sahar Y. Issa"Assessment and Diagnosis of Poisoning with Characteristics Features in Living or Dead" by Lalit P Chandravanshi and Mamta Pal, Journal of Forensic Sciences and Criminal Investigation"Autopsy Limits Fail to Detect Rare Poisons" by John Johnson, Los Angeles Times

Remastered: St. Michan's Crypt- Dublin, Ireland Mar 18, 2023

Show notes

For St. Paddy's Day, we're throwing it back to our season 1 discussion of the mummies of St. Michan's crypts in Dublin, Ireland! We'll tell you about the history, some recent grave robberies, and most importantly, our own trip to the crypts.

Resources:

Jenelle's Ireland journal including quotes from St. Michan's tour guide

Atlas Obscura- Dublin, Ireland- St. Michan's Crypts

St. Michan's Official Website

"Head of 800-year-old 'Crusader' Mummy Stolen from Dublin Vaults" by Sorcha Pollak- the Irish Times

"Man who stole 800-year-old mummified head jailed for 28 months"- The Irish Times

Explore Dublin's Dark Side, the Mummies of St. Michan's Church- thefairytraveler.com

"Mummy's Head Returns to Dublin Church" by Mark Michael- living church.org

"Head of 800-year-old Mummy Stolen from Dublin Crypt" by Frances Mulraney- Irish Central

"800-year-old ‘Crusader’ mummy decapitated at Irish church" by Rob Picheta- CNN Travel

"Vandal Played Football with Skull" by Diarmid MacDiarmid- Independent.ie

"How Ghoul Got a Head" by Stephen Breen- The Irish Sun

S2 E4: Modern-Day Body Snatchers Mar 14, 2023

Show notes

We're bringing you more postmortem drama! This case combines shady funeral home business practices with sketchy body donation transactions. Find out what happened when these funeral home directors went to court earlier this year!

Resources:

**Information on body broker bill: https://nfda.org/advocacy/current-legislation/body-broker-bill

"Colorado funeral home operators sentenced for selling body parts without permission" by Phil Helsel, NBC News

"Funeral home operators sentenced after illegally selling body parts" by Paradise Afshar and Rebekah Riess, CNN

"Colorado Funeral Home Owner And Mom Convicted Of Selling Body Parts In 800+ Bodies" by Renée Jean, Cowboy State Daily

SB18-234: Human Remains Disposition Sale Businesses, Colorado General Assembly

HB20-1148: Offenses Committed Against A Deceased Human Body, Colorado General Assembly

"Colorado funeral home owners sentenced to federal prison for selling body parts without families’ permission" by Sam Tabachnik, The Denver Post

S2 E3: Dating Spirits of Death can be "Grim" Feb 28, 2023

Show notes

We're diving into death lore to meet its creatures throughout different cultures. Morgan will be introduced to some of these beings through Jenelle's limited-time game show, and we'll tell you all about Britain's graveyard guardian, the Grim!

Resources:

"Charon’s Obol: Putting Coins on the Eyes of the Dead" by Sam Tetrault, Cake Blog

"Charon's Obol and Other Coins in Ancient Funerary Practice" by Susan T Stevens, Pheonix Journal

"Where Does the Concept of a 'Grim Reaper' Come From?" by Amy McKenna, brittanica.com

"Mexico's grand dame of the Dead, the story of La Catrina" by Laura Rodriguez, Chicago Tribune

"La Catrina: The dark history of Day of the Dead's immortal icon" by Simon Ingram, National Geographic

"THE BANSHEE: history and meaning of the Irish ghost" by Kylie Noble

"Exploring Irish Mythology: The Banshee" by Harry Brent, The Irish Post

"Shinigami: The Grim Reaper and God of Death in Japanese Folklore" by Wu Mingran, Ancient Origins

"Anubis, God of Embalming and Guide and Friend of the Dead", Journey to Egypt

"Cizin", Brittanica

"The Mythology of Ah Puch, God of Death in Mayan Religion" by Austin Cline, worldreligions. com

"Mapping the Grimm" by Nick Stone, https://www.invisibleworks.co.uk/mapping-the-grim/

"The terrifying story of the 'hell hound'" by Katy Prickett, BBC

"The Ankou, Churchyard Guardians, Black Dogs and Memento Mori" by Charles E. S. Fairey, The Mystic Masque

S2 E2: National Parks: Six Feet Under Feb 14, 2023

Show notes

What happens to your body if you die in a National Park? How are bodies retrieved from precarious places? We'll walk you through the process of a wilderness body recovery!

Resources:

"An Analysis of Deaths in U.S. National Parks" -PSBR.law

"Mortality Dashboard Key Statistics CY2014 - CY2016"- National Parks Service

"Ranger Confidential" by Andrea Lankford

"Climber Madeline Baharlou-Quivey’s Body Recovered 5 Days After She Messaged for Help on Colorado Mountain" by Inside Edition Staff- Inside Edition

"Woman's body recovered from mountain after she sent message for help"- CBS News

Mount Desert Island Search and Rescue Facebook page

"Safety"- Acadia National Park, National Parks Service

"The USA’s Search And Rescue Hotspots" by Carl Borg, Outfordia

"Search-And-Rescue Missions Growing In National Park System" by Lori Sonken- National Parks Traveler

"Search and Recovery of Dead Bodies" - Kenyon Emergency Services

BeastRunners channel on Youtube

"What to do if you Find a Dead Body"- aftermath.com

mdisar.com

S2 E1: Pope Benedict's Funeral & Papal Corpse Catastrophes Jan 31, 2023

Show notes

We watched Pope Benedict XVI's funeral so you don't have to! We'll give you the rundown and also tell you some stories of papal embalming gone wrong.

Resources:

"Pope Francis leads funeral for predecessor Benedict XVI, a first in modern times" by By Sana Noor Haq, Sharon Braithwaite, Valentina Di Donato and Delia Gallagher- CNN

"Benedict XVI’s funeral: How to watch, what to expect" by Joe Bukuras- Catholic News Agency

"Pope Francis presides over historic funeral for Benedict XVI" by Gerard O'Connell- America Magazine

"Who’s that with Pope Francis? The seven kinds of people you meet in a papal entourage" by Dan Zak- Washington Post

"Pope Benedict XVI: Letterkenny woman reads at papal funeral", BBC News

"At funeral, pope remembers Benedict's 'wisdom, tenderness, devotion'" by Carol Glatz- usccb.org

"Pope Benedict's body solemnly, lovingly carried to St. Peter's Basilica" by Cindy Wooden, usccb.org

"Vatican’s secret, and deadly, project to mummify saints" by Theresa Potenza- New York Post

"An Alternative to Embalming for the Pontiff" by Laura King- LA Times

"Explosion Of Pope Pius XII" by Sandhya Ganesh- Medium

"OLD METHOD USED TO EMBALM POPE; Physicians Say Procedure Was Like That Employed on Body of Christ", New York Times

S1 E15: A Tale of the Two Bills- Holiday Special Jan 01, 2023

Show notes

We visited a small-town mortuary museum to see a hearse that was used in a film starring Bill Murray! We'll take you on a tour of the museum and give you a review of the movie "Get Low", about a man who decides to throw his own funeral party. Plus, we're making holiday treats using recipes printed on gravestones!

Resources:

"Peoples Mortuary Museum", https://www.cawleyandpeoples.com/peoples-mortuary-museum

"Get Low" film (2009), director Aaron Schneider

"On Jordan's Stormy Banks I Stand: The Extraordinary Last Rites of Felix Bushaloo Breazeale", clanbrezeale.com

"The Real Story Behind the Movie 'Get Low'" by Gail Robin, agoodgoodbye.com

S1 E14: Mysteries of the Mounds Dec 07, 2022

Show notes

What happens when an Indigenous burial mound is turned into a Revolutionary War cemetery? We're discussing the fine line between preservation and desecration at the Mound Cemetery in Marietta, Ohio.

Resources:

"Marietta Earthworks", Marietta: Ohio's First Adventure

"White Settlers Buried the Truth about the Midwest's Mysterious Mound Cities" by Sarah E Baires, Smithsonian Magazine

Mound Cemetery National Register of Historic Places nomination correspondence

"Marietta, Ohio’s Ancient Earthworks: Star Alignments as a Portal to the Path of Souls" by Dr. Greg Little, Alternate Perceptions Magazine

"Marietta Earthworks" - The Moundbuilders' Art: A Confluence of 'Ingenuity, Industry, and Elegance', openvirtualworlds.org

"Ancient History" by Marielle Murphy, Cincinnati Magazine

YouTube- "Mound Cemetery", Amanda Hawkins

"Middle Tennessee's Native American History: The Mississippian Period", Native History Association

"Adena Culture", Ohio History Central

"Hopewell Culture", Ohio History Central

"The Native American Mound Builders", Heritage Daily

'"Archaeology: Saga of Giant Mound Builders is a Tall Tale that Won’t Go Away" by Bradley Lepper, The Columbus Dispatch

"Adena Culture", Brittanica.com

"Hopewell Culture", Brittanica.com

"Missippian Culture", Brittanica.com

Plaques at Mound Cemetery- Marietta, Ohio

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