Timesuck Podcasty

Have you heard of the Briley Brothers? Three young brothers, and a teenage neighbor, went on a vicious murder, robbery, and rape spree in Richmond, Virginia in 1979. And then two of the brothers later planned a historic death row prison escape. Today's episode really again asks the question, "Are some people just born evil?" It sure seems ago with …

My favorite episode in months. One that I'm hoping the most curious of the cult of the curious will truly enjoy. Today, we look at the very nature of our existence, how we came to our current theoretical understanding of the universe, what we know about black holes (like how the bend the very fabric of space-time!) and more entertaining and existen…

Between August of 1979, and May of 1981, convicted serial rapist David Carpenter escalated to murdering his rape victims, and he killed at least seven young women, and likely several other victims. He also killed the fiancé of one victim and nearly killed the boyfriend of another. David's sexually violent crimes began almost 90 years ago in his chi…

Did the fall and/or destruction of the Great Library of Alexandria really set human progress a thousand years? Would w bee flying around in spaceships and teleporting and doing all kinds of crazy stuff if Julius Ceasar hadn't have burned down the library around 2000 years ago? Or DID Ceasar burn it down? What actually happened? What do we truly kno…

In the early '70s, a man presenting himself as Eugenio Mario Perente-Ramos creates the Eastern Farmworkers Association - an organization purportedly aiming to help migrant workers on Long Island, New York. He then quickly goes national with the National Labor Federation, aka NATLFED, and develops other groups purportedly aimed at helping the poor a…

On August 9th, 1974, Richard Milhous Nixon, the 37th President of the United States of America, while serving his second term (after winning in a landslide), became the first and still only American leader to resign from office. Why? In a word, "Watergate." But Watergate was only the tip of the corruption iceberg. Through the televised Senate Water…

In addition to being a serial killer who very likely killed at least 15 young men and boys around London between 1978 and 1983... Dennis Nilsen was also SO WEIRD. Have you ever pretended to pass out in front of a friend or coworker, hoping they'll try to molest you? Dennis did that. Ever strip down naked while working security and rubbed your genit…

Early on the morning of August 28th, 1955, 14-year-old Emmett Till was kidnapped from his great-uncle's home by two white men, Roy Bryant and JW Milam, and several others. Why? He'd allegedly flirted with Roy's wife Carolyn Bryant. Roy, JW, and possibly others proceeded to whip, punch, and pistol whip Emmett, before putting a bullet in his head and…

What do we known about William Shakespeare the man? And why are his works still popular today? Who was Billy Shakes? We dive into the legacy of the English language's most important author this week, examine the claims that Shakespeare didn't actually write all that is attributed to him, learn a lot about the time and place he lived in, and so much…

On March 8th, 2014, 227 passengers boarded Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, taking off from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at 12:41 a.m., destined to arrive in Beijing, China at 6:30 a.m. Not only did the flight never land in Beijing, it never made it even close. It turned around and disappeared several thousand miles away over the Indian Ocean and has never …

Today we take a fascinating look into how Whitey Bulger rose to power in Boston's underworld in the 70's and 80's, with not only the FBI's protection, but also their direct help. No one (that we're aware of publicly, at least) benefitted more from the FBI's Top Echelon Informant Program than Irish-American gangster, Whitey Bulger. Whitey rose throu…

We got a weird one today! Wow. Jerry Brudos was a serial killer who became completely consumed with sexual fantasies revolving around women's shoes - specifically high heels - and women's undergarments. He wanted women he could control - to dress and pose exactly how he wanted, when he wanted. And if couldn't get them to do that in life, he would u…

Today we do a deep dive on the history of witchcraft. What is witchcraft? How does it differ from organized religion? Why did burning witches ever become a thing, and do witch hunts still occur in the modern world? Why do so many of us have such a strong and irrational fear of people we just don't understand? Going back to some of the earliest writ…

In the Spring of 1990, when Jack Unterweger was released from prison in Austria after serving fifteen years for strangling an eighteen year-old to death with her own bra (amongst numerous other crimes), many of Austria's literary elite were convinced he was rehabilitated. They'd even tried to get him pardoned years earlier after he'd written a best…

From 1095 to 1291 CE, thousands and thousands of knights, peasants, nobles, soldiers, and more left Europe for the Holy Land around Jerusalem to take land and power away from Muslims, and into Christian hands. Pope Urban II issued a speech in 1095 calling Christian to take up arms and reclaim "Christian" lands. As incentive, he promised salvation f…

Did R. Kelly truly have a sex cult? For around a quarter-of-a-century Robert Sylvester Kelly wrote hit after hit after hit, becoming one of the most successful musical artists in American history. But also, the whole time it seems, he preyed viciously on young women and girls. He brainwashed them, physically abused them, psychologically abused them…

On August 28, 2003, a 46 year-old pizza delivery man named Brian Douglas Wells robbed a PNC Bank near his hometown of Erie, Pennsylvania, with a bomb locked to his body at his neck. After the bomb detonated a few minutes later, it would take investigators years to figure out who placed the bomb on him and why. Wet Hot Bad Magic Summer Camp tickets …

Between October 1977 and February 1978, with a nickname originating from the fact that many of the victims' bodies were discovered in the hills surrounding the city, the Hillside Stranglers terrorized the Los Angeles greater metro area, raping and strangling ten young women and girls. Generally posing as police officers, serial killing cousins Kenn…

Did you know that American banana corporations turned almost all of Central America into US satellite states in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for roughly half-a-century? It took the massacre of thousands of unarmed, exploited, and striking Columbian banana workers in 1928 to turn the tide against American imperialism. Today we explore just…

We've covered a lot Los Angeles area cults from the 1960s and 70s, but as it turns out, there were cults in LA long before that. Lots and lots of cults. Today's topic, the WKFL Fountain of the World Cult, more commonly known as The Fountain, formed in the 1940s. And their apocalyptic teachings would influence Charles Manson's vision of Helter Skelt…

In the late 1940s, troubled lovers Raymond Fernandez and Martha Beck, ran a scam using dating services commonly known as Lonely Hearts Clubs to con and kill women. Their trial became the most sensationalized of the decade. Today we break down how these dating clubs operated, and get to know these two weirdos and killers in another true crime, deran…

On May 18, 1980, at 8:32 AM local time, a major explosive eruption took place at a volcano in southwest Washington State. After months of earthquakes and smaller eruptions, Mt. St. Helens exploded. Over 1,000 feet of mountain was gone in just a few moments. And 57 people quickly died as hot volcanic ash, mudslides, and a fast-moving, incredibly hot…

Terry Blair. The Prospect Killer. Before he became a serial killer in the Prospect Avenue neighborhood of Kansas City in 2004, his mother, brother, and sister had all been convicted of different murders. He has two nephews in prison for life for murder. He has a half-brother in prison for life for rape and assault. He witnessed his stepdad get murd…

Today we look into a series of murders, mostly occurring in the mid-1980s, in the southeastern US. The bodies of unidentified women kept being found along I-40. Collectively, these killings came to be known as the Redhead Murders. And a possible unknown serial killer thought to be responsible for killing many of these women was named the Bible Belt…

Today we dig into the origins and the history of America's Irish Mob. We begin centuries ago in Ireland, when a series of oppressive, discriminatory laws designed to break the backs of the Irish and leave them too powerless to rebel against British rule, followed by the Great Famine that was greatly intensified by these same laws, led to hundreds o…