American Hysteria artwork

The Indiana Cyclone: America's First Munchausen Case with Sarah Marshall of 'You're Wrong About'

American Hysteria

English - January 15, 2024 08:01 - 1 hour - ★★★★ - 2.9K ratings
Society & Culture History Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed


In this episode I tell podcaster Sarah Marshall a truly wild story I uncovered about the first recognized case of Munchausen Syndrome (Factitious Disorder) in the United States. An alleged professional wrestler and American folk anti-hero called the Indiana Cyclone faked symptoms of injury and illness while blowing through hospitals across the country from the 1950s to the 1970s, leaving a bizarre kind of terror in his wake.

Catch Sarah and I at SF SketchFest on Feb 2nd and Feb 3rd!
Make sure you listen to You're Wrong About and You Are Good (duh duh duh!)
Check out our new merch line Folk Devils United
Become a Patron to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus content
Or subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple Podcasts
Leave us a message on our Urban Legends Hotline

Hosted Chelsey Weber-Smith
Produced and Edited by Miranda Zickler
Music direction by Riley Swedelius-Smith
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode I tell podcaster Sarah Marshall a truly wild story I uncovered about the first recognized case of Munchausen Syndrome (Factitious Disorder) in the United States. An alleged professional wrestler and American folk anti-hero called the Indiana Cyclone faked symptoms of injury and illness while blowing through hospitals across the country from the 1950s to the 1970s, leaving a bizarre kind of terror in his wake.


Catch Sarah and I at SF SketchFest on Feb 2nd and Feb 3rd!

Make sure you listen to You're Wrong About and You Are Good (duh duh duh!)

Check out our new merch line Folk Devils United

Become a Patron to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus content

Or subscribe to American Hysteria on Apple Podcasts

Leave us a message on our Urban Legends Hotline


Hosted Chelsey Weber-Smith

Produced and Edited by Miranda Zickler

Music direction by Riley Swedelius-Smith

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices