True Weird Stuff

Latest Episodes:

Prize Prison Jul 19, 2024

Show notes

Today's True Weird Stuff - Prize Prison

It's the wildest reality show in TV history. Susunu! Denpa Shōnen was known for placing contestants in extreme situations for entertainment purposes. This is the story of Nasubi, a comedian who spent 15 months naked and alone in an apartment. Cut off from the world, he was forced to enter magazine sweeptakes until he won $8,000 in prizes. He did this completely unaware that his challenge was being livestreamed 24/7.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pay Phone Bandit Jul 12, 2024

Show notes

Today's True Weird Stuff - Pay Phone Bandit

He didn't rob banks. He wasn't a serial killer. However, James Clark left the FBI dazed and confused for years as he stole $500,000 in quarters right under everyone's nose. He was known as the Pay Phone Bandit.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Deadly Circus Jul 05, 2024

Show notes

Today's True Weird Stuff - Deadly Circus

Gypsy the elephant had a temper. She was part of the W.H. Harris Nickle Plate Circus, and in 1902, Gypsy killed her trainer and went on a rampage through the streets of Valdosta, Georgia. Animals have long been used in circus performances, but no amount of training changes the fact they're still wild animals.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Camel Girl Jun 28, 2024

Show notes

Today's True Weird Stuff - The Camel Girl

Ella Harper was born with a rare orthopedic condition that caused her knees to bend backward. During a time when sideshows and oddities were extremely popular, Ella joined W. H. Harris's Nickel Plate Circus, becoming a featured act in the show. Because she walked on her hands and feet, she became known as The Camel Girl.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Footsie Jun 21, 2024

Show notes

Today's True Weird Stuff - Footsie

Elvis Presley. Quentin Tarantino. Jack Black. They're just a few of many people who admittedly have a foot fetish. But serial killer Dayton Leroy Rogers' love of feet took a gruesome turn. He murdered at least eight women in Oregon in the 1980s; some of the bodies were found with their feet severed because Rogers had a kink for killing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Baby Broker Jun 14, 2024

Show notes

Today's True Weird Stuff - Baby Broker

Georgia Tann was a social worker who ran a child kidnapping and adoption scheme starting in 1924. Georgia ran the Tennessee Children’s Home Society, and for over 20 years she would take children from poor families and sell them to wealthy families for a hefty profit. She would even steal newborns from mothers in prisons and mental wards. Georgia Tann stole over 5,000 children during the course of her black-market baby ring.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Secret City Jun 07, 2024

Show notes

Today's True Weird Stuff - Secret City

Sarov is a town in Russia that no longer exists...officially, that is. In the 1940s, Sarov was removed from all unclassified maps, and the entire town was transformed into a center for research and development of nuclear weapons. Dozens of cities like these popped up in the Soviet Union at the time, as Stalin led the charge to bolster their nuclear weapons program. But strict rules and harsh conditions meant...sometimes mistakes were made.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Mad Scientist May 31, 2024

Show notes

Today's True Weird Stuff - The Mad Scientist

Jack Parsons was one of the fathers of the American space age who helped put man on the moon. He invented solid rocket fuel, co-founded the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and he was also an occultist. He was written out of a lot of NASA's history because of his antics: he was the leader of a black-magic sex mansion, ate menstrual cakes, and was frenemies with L. Ron Hubbard. Jack Parsons was the definition of a mad scientist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Devil Went Down To Georgia May 24, 2024

Show notes

Today's True Weird Stuff - The Devil Went Down To Georgia

The Georgia Guidestones were a monument that stood in Elbert County, Georgia for 42 years. Often called the "American Stonehenge," the creators believed society would eventually collapse, and built the monument as a guide for humanity after the apocalypse. However, conspiracy theorists believed the Georgia Guidestones were tied to Satanism, and in 2022, the monument was destroyed by an explosive device...and the person or persons involved remain a mystery.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Teenage Nazi Hunters May 17, 2024

Show notes

Today's True Weird Stuff - Teenage Nazi Hunters

Meet Freddie and Truus Oversteegen. Freddie was a wife and mother. Truus was a sculptor and painter. But long before that, these two sisters spent their teenage years as part of the anti-Nazi Dutch resistance during WWII. They used their lethal skills and innocent charm to eliminate Nazi soldiers.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.