Strange Country
291 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 month ago - ★★★ - 170 ratingsWelcome to Strange Country, a podcast devoted to bizarre, surreal and extraordinary stories that make America the weird place it is. Co-hosts Kelly and Beth are former newspaper reporters turned school librarians who have always had a soft spot for a good story--the stranger the better. Discover the first woman to survive a barrel ride over Niagara Falls and the man who invented “complex marriage” in one of the most successful utopian experiments. Things get weird pretty quickly around here.
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Episodes
Strange Country Ep. 280: Gimme Some Credit
March 21, 2024 10:00 - 52 minutes - 72.6 MBDear Dash Hounds, join Beth and Kelly as we try to pull the curtain open on the Wonderful Wizard of credit scores. Do you know your credit score? Do you care? Has it ruined your life? We talk about many things on Strange Country from periods to sex to murder and now, the most secretive of things–money. ‘Mericans don’t talk openly about their money issues, and surprise! That is not good practice. We are stressed and worried and in debt, and there’s a reason why. Find out today on Strange Coun...
Strange Country Ep. 279: Robbers Cave Experiment
February 29, 2024 11:00 - 49 minutes - 68.7 MBThe mid-20th century was the heyday of figuring out why humans were the worst through the use of social psychological experiments. Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly talk about one such experiment, Muzafer Sherif’s Robbers Cave Experiment where Sherif gathered a group of 12 year old boys to see if he could pit the boys against one another. Sherif’s experiment is included in Psych 101 books about group dynamics, but did this hostility occur organically or was it more manufactured by the a...
Strange Country Ep. 278: Emma Goldman
February 08, 2024 11:00 - 49 minutes - 67.7 MBHey Dash Hounds, are you still there? Beth and Kelly are. Or are we? Has ChatGPT taken over? Can it? We are just women after all. What is our worth? In this episode, we will talk about women’s worth and Emma Goldman, a woman who fought for many things and has been forgotten like so many others. But Strange Country is doing its best to keep women’s work alive before AI eats us up? Thanks always for listening. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands. Works Cited Goldman, Emma. ...
Strange Country Ep. 277: The Sullivan Institute
January 18, 2024 11:00 - 1 hour - 91.4 MBHappy 2024! And Beth and Kelly are back with another tale of another cult on another year of Strange Country. What’s to say? It starts off with plans for communal living and burns out in abuse, financial malfeasance and weird sex awfulness. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands. Cite your sources: Hoban, Phoebe. “Psycho Drama: The Chilling Story of How the Sullivanian Cult Turned a Utopian Dream into a Nightmare.” New York Magazine [New York], 19 June 1989, pp. 41-53, https:...
Strange Country Ep. 276: OneTaste
December 28, 2023 11:00 - 1 hour - 84.2 MBYou’ve heard of six-minute abs, but how about the 15-minute orgasm? That’s what Nicole Daedone of OneTaste was touting; female empowerment through clitoris stimulation. Then like most high-demand groups, things go south pretty quickly. In this Strange Country episode, co hosts Beth and very uncomfortable Kelly talk about the rise and fall of OneTaste. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands. Cite your sources: Brown, Mick. “Inside Hollywood's Orgasm Cult - LAmag - Culture, Foo...
Strange Country Ep. 275: Henry Darger
December 14, 2023 11:00 - 50 minutes - 69.3 MBHenry Darger is one of the most profitable outsider artists out there. Unfortunately he didn’t reap the benefit of that while he was alive, spending much of it in abject poverty. He was compelled to make and write art during the time he was not working as a janitor or dishwasher. His artwork dealt with themes of child abuse and violence, subjects very familiar with Darger when he was put in an asylum at the age of 12. Strange Country cohost Beth with special pinch (or pitch) hitter Terry dis...
ENCORE: Strange Country Ep. 274: Bohemian Grove
November 30, 2023 11:00 - 53 minutes - 74.2 MBWelcome dash hounds to an old episode from the pre-covid days when men could be rich men and spend the weekend urinating on trees and ruminating on how they could make life miserable for the rest of us. Strange Country will be back soon with a brand spanking new episode. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands. Sources: Flock, Elizabeth. “Bohemian Grove: Where the Rich and Powerful Go to Misbehave.” The Washington Post, 15 June 2011, www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post...
Strange Country Ep. 273: Kary Mullis
November 16, 2023 11:00 - 45 minutes - 63.4 MBWe’re sure you’ve heard of the Nobel Prize although it’s hard to make the case Beth has since she mispronounces it quite a bit in this episode. But have you heard of Nobel Disease? It’s when people are labeled geniuses and go on to embrace some whackadoodle pseudoscience. In today’s Strange Country episode, Beth and Kelly discuss Kary Mullis, the only Nobel winner to be referred to as “generally barking mad.” He discovered the polymerase chain reaction, which we all regularly employed when w...
ENCORE: Strange Country Ep. 272: Killers of the Flower Moon
November 02, 2023 10:00 - 1 hour - 83.1 MBWelcome to a blast from the past. This is a re-release of ep. 59 The Osage Murders, repackaged as Killers of the Flower Moon to coincide with the new film by Martin Scorsese. Thanks for all your support, dash hounds. We’ll be back with a new episode soon. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: http://usdakotawar.org/history/newcomers-us-government-military-federal-acts-assimilation-policies/what-reservation Grann, David. Killers of the Flower Moon. ...
Strange Country Ep. 271: Candyman
October 19, 2023 10:00 - 38 minutes - 53.1 MBHey DashHounds, if you were listening last episode, we mentioned the true story of Candyman. This may be the very first time Beth and Kelly said “we should look into that” and actually did! Find out how haunting life was in Chicago in the 1980s if you lived in Cabrini Green housing. It is scary to think how people lived and even scarier to hear about how they died. Thanks always for your support and listening; it is an act of love. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite y...
Strange Country Ep. 270: The Man Who Killed Halloween
October 05, 2023 10:00 - 35 minutes - 48.8 MBHalloween is the time of year of ghouls, goblins and moral panic about candy. Could some neighbor be handing out candy full of pins? Or even worse, plain boxes of raisins? Where did this all come from? Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly talk about the origin of poisoned candy, stemming from one father who poisoned his own kid to collect insurance money. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: “DEA Warns of Brightly-Colored Fentanyl Used to Target Young ...
Strange Country Ep. 269: Vaccine Roulette
September 21, 2023 10:00 - 56 minutes - 78 MBIn the 1980s, whilst the media stirred up frenzies over Satanists in our midst or a nuclear bomb landing in Washington, a reporter made a documentary adding vaccines to the growing list of dangers. Vaccine Roulette claimed the pertussis vaccine caused brain damage in kids, which led to a drop in immunizations, a rise in whooping cough, and a near-end to the production of vaccines. On Strange Country, cohosts Beth and Kelly talk about this antivax movement spawned during the time of leg warme...
Strange Country ep. 268: Mabel Norris Reese
August 31, 2023 10:00 - 52 minutes - 72.9 MBMabel Norris Reese shone a light on racism and injustice in Lake County Fla. in the 1950s and 60s before the racist element drove the newspaper editor out of town. Strange Country cohosts and former reporters Beth and Kelly talk about this intrepid journalist and wish that Bugs Bunny gif of him sawing off Florida could somehow come true. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Explore Florida's Civil Rights History – US Civil Rights Trail.” Civil Rights Trai...
Strange Country Ep. 267: Ruth Handler
August 17, 2023 10:00 - 54 minutes - 74.5 MBWe are requiring all readers of Strange Country and their partners, families and friends and everyone else to watch the Barbie movie. That way you can fully enjoy Kelly and Beth’s homage to Ruth Handler, the creator of Barbie. Learn details about the woman who, really, all of us should have studied in school as an example of an entrepreneur. Women have it tough, people. That’s it. Listen with love and let’s keep holding each other and get through these BS challenges. And no, Greta Gerwig did...
Strange Country Ep. 266: Stone Mountain
August 03, 2023 10:00 - 54 minutes - 75 MBIf your site is like a video game health regenerator for the Ku Klux Klan, that might be a sign your site needs a facelift. Yet Stone Mountain, Ga., continues to exist as the the largest Confederate monument in the world. Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly discuss this paean to traitors and how the United Daughters of the Confederacy united to f*** up history so that we’re still discussing whether we should keep up Confederate monuments. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousand...
Strange Country Ep. 265: Anthrax Attacks of 2001
July 20, 2023 10:00 - 1 hour - 96 MBMaybe this got lost in the shuffle for you, dear readers, like it did for Beth who completely spaced about this, but in the weeks after 9/11, opening the mail was a terrifying act. That’s because someone was sending anthrax letters to the media and politicians. Five people died and another 17 were sickened in these attacks. It took eight years for the FBI to find their suspect, and even now some questioned whether or not they got the right man. Join Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly as ...
Strange Country Ep. 264: Goody Garlick
July 06, 2023 13:30 - 47 minutes - 64.9 MBJoin us this week on Strange Country as we go way back in time to the 1600s when life was grand, and if you lived to be a 50-year-old woman, you should just STFU. Because if you did decide to speak truth of any sort you would likely be accused of witchcraft. That’s what happened to Goody Garlick of Easthampton (originally one word), NY. Enjoy Goody Kelly and Goody Beth as we sweat like they did in the 17th century, and conjure up ways to make more money, and deal with this heat. Thanks alway...
Strange Country Ep. 263: The Curious Case of Natalia Grace
June 22, 2023 10:00 - 1 hour - 83.1 MBWhat is the youngest age a child can live on her own? In this episode, Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly discuss the absolutely bonkers documentary “The Curious Case of Natalia Grace” that premiered this year on Investigation Discovery. An Indiana couple petitioned a court to have their adopted child re-aged from 9 to 22 so she could be removed from their home and placed in an apartment. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: The Curious Case of Natal...
Strange Country Ep. 262: The Mattachine Society
June 08, 2023 10:00 - 52 minutes - 72.2 MBTwenty years before the Stonewall Uprising, another group fought for rights for LGBTQ Americans. Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly discuss The Mattachine Society, a group that sought dignity and respect for LGBTQ during a time when being gay was criminalized. Luckily things are chill now. Oh wait. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Chew, Rebecca, and Brian Nimens. “Opinion | States Are Stifling the Voices of Cities and Their Voters.” The New York ...
Strange Country Ep. 261: Purity Culture
May 18, 2023 10:00 - 58 minutes - 80.5 MBYou know how every little girl dreams of the day her dad signs a pledge promising to keep her vagina penis-free until she marries. Wait, you don’t? Well, sit back, slap on your purity ring, superglue your legs together and get ready for a Strange Country episode on purity culture. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Beaty, Katelyn. “Opinion | In wake of Atlanta shooting, Christian communities need to rethink purity culture.” The Washington Post, 18 March 2021, https://www.w...
Strange Country Ep. 260: History of Smiling
May 11, 2023 10:00 - 43 minutes - 59.4 MBHey Readers! You know, you look a little tired. Maybe you should. . . smile? While you’re at it, take a listen to Beth and Kelly as we learn the history of the smile. You will learn that Kodak had more to do with why we smile for the camera and don’t look as miserable as we are. Smiles are a funny thing or are they? Are they really a creepy thing? A submissive thing? Find out on today’s episode and thanks for listening; it’s an act of love. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands...
Strange Country Ep. 259: James Arthur Ray
April 20, 2023 10:00 - 56 minutes - 78.3 MBWhat is the main PSA of Strange Country? Trust your gut. Especially when self-proclaimed gurus tell you to suck it up inside a blistering hot sweat lodge. On this episode, cohosts Beth and Kelly discuss James Arthur Ray, another self-help platitude-spilling grifter, who hawked the law of attraction and The Secret, repackaged as Harmonic Wealth ™. His spiritual warrior retreat in October 2009 led to three people dying. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: ...
Strange Country Ep. 258: Pellegra
April 13, 2023 10:00 - 48 minutes - 67.2 MBHey Readers! Who has pellagra?? Would you know if you did? Don’t worry you won’t get it. But you will learn on this episode what pellagra was, why it killed 100,000 Americans, and took many dedicated hours to figure out the cure. Thank you for always listening and wondering alongside our stories. Why is it that Beth talks abut the taint so much? Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: “About Gail — Gail Jarrow.” Gail Jarrow, https://www.gailjarrow.com/about...
Strange Country Ep. 257: Waco Siege Part 5
March 30, 2023 10:00 - 48 minutes - 66.9 MBWe have finally reached the end of the Strange Country siege of covering the Waco Siege. In the final episode, cohosts Beth and Kelly discuss the aftermath of Waco and how the dots can be connected to such awfulness like Oklahoma City bombing and the Jan. 6 insurrection. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Benson, Eric. "At Bible Study With David Koresh's Last Followers." Texas Monthly (TX), sec. Religion, 26 Mar. 2018. NewsBank: Access World News – His...
Strange Country Ep. 256: Waco Siege Part 4
March 23, 2023 10:00 - 54 minutes - 75.1 MBWe’re almost there, gentle dash hounds, to the end of our siege. In part 4 of Waco, Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly talk about the 51-day standoff between the FBI and the Branch Davidians that ended disastrously. Cite your sources: Benson, Eric. "At Bible Study With David Koresh's Last Followers." Texas Monthly (TX), sec. Religion, 26 Mar. 2018. NewsBank: Access World News – Historical and Current, https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info%3Asi...
Strange Country Ep. 255: Waco Siege Part 3
March 16, 2023 10:00 - 52 minutes - 72.4 MBIn third installment of the Waco Siege, Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly discuss the ATF raid on Feb. 28, 1993. The ATF steamrolled ahead even when they heard the Branch Davidians knew they were coming. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Benson, Eric. "At Bible Study With David Koresh's Last Followers." Texas Monthly (TX), sec. Religion, 26 Mar. 2018. NewsBank: Access World News – Historical and Current, https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/ope...
Strange Country Ep. 254: Waco Siege Part 2
March 09, 2023 11:00 - 48 minutes - 66.8 MBIn this second installment of the Waco Siege, Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly discuss some of the features of being in David Koresh’s orb. If you were a young—like really young—girl, you’d likely find yourself including in the House of David. This is what his harem of women were called. Because of God or Jesus or the Holy Ghost—not sure which one wants all those wives. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Benson, Eric. "At Bible Study With David K...
Strange Country Ep. 253: Waco Siege Part 1
March 02, 2023 11:00 - 1 hour - 86.6 MBWelcome readers to part 1 of a possibly 144K episodes about the Waco Siege. Thirty years ago, federal agents raided the Mount Carmel Center to serve a warrant on David Koresh, and it did not go well. In this first part, cohosts Beth and Kelly explore the beginnings of the religion to William Miller who made some predictions the world would end leading up to Koresh taking over his group with a gun battle. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Burton, Tara ...
Strange Country Ep. 252: Munchausen Syndrome
February 16, 2023 11:00 - 58 minutes - 80.1 MBWhat drives someone to pretend to have a serious illness? In this episode of Strange Country, cohosts Beth and Kelly discuss two women who convinced friends, loved ones and colleagues that they were dying. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Kettler, Sara. “The Story of Gypsy Rose Blanchard and Her Mother.” Biography (Bio.), 3 June 2021, https://www.biography.com/crime/gypsy-rose-blanchard-mother-dee-dee-murder. Accessed 4 February 2023 Kiefer, Peter....
Strange County Ep. 251: Afong Moy
February 09, 2023 11:00 - 49 minutes - 68 MBHello dear readers! Happy Listening Love month! Join Beth and Kelly as we try to learn the real story of Afong Moy, the first Chinese woman immigrant in America. 1834 was the year when middle-class Americans were looking to spend some cash at Marshalls, but could only attend exploitative shows featuring Afong. Learn as little as possible about a woman who everyone was talking about, and no one really cared about. Welcome to ‘merica! Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite ...
Strange Country Ep. 250: Patterson-Gimlin Bigfoot Film
February 02, 2023 11:00 - 52 minutes - 72.1 MBAs librarians, Beth and Kelly know Bigfoot books are located in the nonfiction section; the 001s for the unexplained, yet to be definitively proved. But for Bigfootaphiles, the penultimate proof is a nearly minute-long shaky film of a sasquatch walking near a creek bed shot in 1967 in northern California. Strange Country delves into this film and other Bigfoot encounters in this episode. And answers the question, is the film legit. Short answer? No. Long answer? Nooooooooooooooo. Theme mus...
Strange Country Ep. 249: Henry Ford
January 26, 2023 11:00 - 40 minutes - 55.4 MBWelcome back, readers! Where the hell have you been? This episode--249, if you are counting—Kelly and Beth explore the side of Henry Ford that weirdly gets left out of his story. Ford, the innovator and 20th-century Elon Musk, is also Henry Ford the antisemite. He didn’t try to hide it, and neither are we. Welcome back to the podcast that reminds you ‘merica is strange, and women take up half the world but are still ignored, as are all the people who aren’t rich. Thanks for listening; it is ...
Strange Country Ep. 248: Shirley Jackson
December 08, 2022 11:00 - 56 minutes - 78.2 MBShirley Jackson has had a resurgence this century, her works being turned into successful series and movies. But when she was writing in the mid-20th century, she had to contend with sexism, a philandering husband, a cold mother, and male reviewers who didn’t get her writing about the plight of women. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Cooke, Rachel, et al. “Laurence Jackson Hyman on his mother Shirley: 'Her work is so relevant now….'” The Guardian, 12...
Strange Country Ep. 247: Mother Jones
November 17, 2022 11:00 - 37 minutes - 51.9 MBDearest Dashies: It’s time to learn about the Most Dangerous Woman in the World, aka, Mother Jones. Have you ever heard of her? Do you read the magazine that has her namesake? Mother Jones is a worthy woman to know and love and maybe resurrect from the dead. She stood up for what was right as far as labor rights and wrongs go. When she showed up, everyone listened. Not only did she have important things to say, she said it in an Irish brogue, which Beth and Kelly can almost do. Thanks for li...
Strange Country Ep. 246: Tony Costa
November 10, 2022 11:00 - 54 minutes - 75.1 MBFrom May 1968 to the following winter, Tony Costa went on a killing spree in Cape Cod. He claimed an alter ego egged him on to do the murderous deeds. Strange Country co hosts Beth and Kelly talk about this tiresome asshole and the problems of New Journalism in today’s episode. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Driscoll, Molly. “New errors are discovered in 'In Cold Blood.'” Christian Science Monitor, 12 February 2013, https://www.csmonitor.com/Books/...
Strange Country Ep. 245: Anthony Comstock
November 03, 2022 10:00 - 43 minutes - 59.9 MBDear Dash Hounds: Be thankful you can listen to Beth and Kelly today because, if ol’ misogynist Anthony Comstock had any say, we would have been shut down years ago. Our episode dives into the mayonnaise jar that is vice and the mailing of such materials. The Comstock Laws were created in 1873 and took until Roe v Wade in 1973 to be overturned. That’s a lot of suppression for one man to handle- but handle he did! Thanks always for listening—much love! Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast o...
Strange Country Ep. 244: Creepy Clowns
October 27, 2022 10:00 - 49 minutes - 68.2 MBKelly’s back!!! And just in time because in this episode of Strange Country, we send in the clowns—lots of em pouring out of that one tiny car. Cohosts Beth and Kelly dive into the Clown Panic of 2016 and recognize that Americans need some media literacy lessons stat. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Chan, Melissa. “Penn State Students Flood Streets to Hunt for Clowns.” TIME, 4 October 2016, https://time.com/4517709/penn-state-clown-hunt/. Accessed 1...
Strange Country Ep. 243: Horror Movies Inspired By Real Stories
October 13, 2022 10:00 - 55 minutes - 76.1 MBLife imitates art, as they say, and in these cases life inspired some famous horror films. In today’s episode, Strange country co-host Beth and guest host Terry talk about the inspiration behind Scream, Poltergeist and When a Stranger Calls. Don’t worry Dash Hounds, Kelly will be back. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Baby Sitter’s Slayer Sought in Missouri. Fort Wayne News Sentinel, CITY ed., 20 Mar. 1950, p. 28. NewsBank: America's Historical Newsp...
Strange Country Ep. 242: Axis Sally
October 06, 2022 10:00 - 51 minutes - 70.6 MBMildred Gillars was the American mouthpiece for Nazi Germany. Known by the GIs as Axis Sally, Gillars tried to derail the war effort by spewing garbage over the airwaves. Strange Country co-hosts Beth and Kelly discuss Gillars rise to fame in Nazi Germany and how she’d likely have a cozy spot in some right-wing fringe network today. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Applebaum, Anne. “Why Do Republican Leaders Continue to Enable Trump?” The Atlantic, ...
Strange Country Ep. 241: This One's For Da Birds
September 29, 2022 10:00 - 34 minutes - 47.8 MBDear Dash Hounds and Readers: Join us this week on a flight of fancy—not really—actually the opposite. Dead birds falling from the sky in Arkansas. Thousands. So what caused it? Can you figure it out faster than E.T. can phone home? This is all intentional word salad to keep you interested and intrigued and to make you give us your weekly listening love. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: City of Beebe: Home, https://www.beebeark.org/. Accessed 25 Sept...
Strange Country Ep. 240: Howard Hughes Hoax
September 22, 2022 10:00 - 47 minutes - 65.8 MBIn 1971, middling author Clifford Irving was able to convince a giant publisher that he landed the white whale—the autobiography of reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes. This was a guaranteed best seller. Problem was, Irving had made the whole thing up. Strange Country co-hosts Beth and Kelly discuss this literary con and how it all came crashing down. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Grimes, William. “Clifford Irving, Author of a Notorious Literary H...
Strange Country Ep. 239: Taliesin Massacre
September 08, 2022 10:00 - 44 minutes - 60.8 MBFrank Lloyd Wright is considered one of America’s most influential 20th century architects. While he built homes designed for family togetherness, he was blowing his own family apart. He and his mistress Mamah Borthwick squired away to Wisconsin where Wright built Taliesin. Newspapers referred to it as the Love Bungalow. Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly talk about the horrific tragedy that occurred there on Aug. 15, 1914 where seven people were brutally murdered. Theme music: Big Whi...
Strange Country Ep. 238: Monkey Colonies
September 01, 2022 10:00 - 48 minutes - 67.4 MBDear Dash Hounds: Beth and Kelly realized we don’t talk enough about animals. Sure there are many stories about strange ‘Mericans, but what about the monkeys in this country? Get ready for a wild episode full of surprise monkey noises, and facts about two monkey colonies that are right in our backyard. Join us this week for as much fun as a barrel of … thanks always for listening it is an act of love. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources, dude: Bartelme, ...
Strange Country Ep. 237: Lonely Hearts Killers
August 18, 2022 10:00 - 52 minutes - 72.5 MBRaymond Fernandez took advantage of widows and spinsters who sent their bios into the Lonely Hearts Club in the 1940s. Martha Beck was one such lonely heart who fell for Raymond and took part in his schemes where the two murdered three people for their money. Strange Country cohosts Beth and Kelly discuss this murderous duo, and the ridiculous amount of coverage devoted to Beck’s body. Beck even asked herself: “Am I on trial for murder or for being fat?” Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cas...
Strange Country Ep. 236: Osh-Tisch
August 11, 2022 10:00 - 32 minutes - 44.6 MBWelcome Readers to an episode surely to enlighten you or at least make you think: why didn’t I know who this person was? You may find the the story of Osh-Tisch, a Crow Bode, who was born as male and lived as female in the turn of the century, to be important for a number of reasons including; 1. Osh-Tisch lived as they wanted without discrimination until “you know who” showed up. 2. “You know who” refers to the white oppressive man who enters a lot of Strange Country episodes. 3. It is admi...
Strange Country Ep. 235: Holiday Magic Cosmetics
August 04, 2022 10:00 - 58 minutes - 80 MBWilliam Penn Patrick founded Holiday Magic Cosmetics in 1964. The defunct company is mainly known by law students learning about pyramid schemes. Strange Country co-hosts Beth and Kelly talk about this company and its bizarre management style which could involve eating turds. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: “ABC’s: the Ern Westmore Show 1953-1955.” Westmores of Hollywood, https://www.westmoresofhollywood.com/ern. Accessed 2 August 2022. “A not so ...
Strange Country Ep. 234: Twelve Tribes and Travel Tips
July 28, 2022 10:00 - 59 minutes - 81.9 MBIt’s summertime, Readers, and that means time to cautiously hit the road, head to the skies, climb aboard (that’s what she said). No really. Kelly said that—be sure to laugh during the intro to today’s episode. We do hope you are all catching some time to travel this summer, and we have a few tips to keep you worldly but stable. Mostly don’t join a cult. You may not even know it is happening. We doubt that though since listening to us keeps you sharp enough to spot a cult miles away–or does ...
Strange Country Ep, 233: Jeffrey MacDonald, Part 2
July 21, 2022 10:00 - 1 hour - 96.1 MBIn the concluding episode on Jeffrey MacDonald, Strange Country co-hosts Beth and Kelly delve into the theory that maybe MacDonald didn’t murder his wife and kids. Maybe he did, but Errol Morris outlines a case where it appears MacDonald was not given a fair shake at his criminal trial. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Anson, Robert Sam. “The Devil and Jeffrey MacDonald.” Vanity Fair, https://www.vanityfair.com/magazine/1998/07/macdonald199807. Acces...
Strange Country Ep. 232: Jeffrey MacDonald, Part 1
July 14, 2022 10:00 - 1 hour - 93.2 MBJeffrey MacDonald was convicted in 1979 of killing his pregnant wife Colette and two young daughters Kimberly and Kristen. These murders have been the subject of documentaries, books, tv series, and most importantly, Strange Country Podcast. In today’s topic, cohosts Beth and Kelly’s discuss the book that set the narrative, Joe McGinness’s Fatal Vision. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite Your Sources: Anson, Robert Sam. “The Devil and Jeffrey MacDonald.” Vanity Fair...
Strange Country Ep. 231: Natalie Wood
July 07, 2022 10:00 - 1 hour - 89 MBThe mystery surrounding Natalie Wood’s death continues to captivate 40 years after the fact. The answer to the question, why was Natalie Wood in the Pacific Ocean on a late, cold drizzly night, has never been sufficiently answered. Theories abound though, and Strange Country co-hosts Beth and Kelly discuss these theories while performing possibly the best Christopher Walken impression in history. Theme music: Big White Lie by A Cast of Thousands Cite your sources: Jorge Xavier Camacho,...