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True Crime Campfire

Join hosts Katie and Whitney for a different kind of true crime podcast. You can start with season 1, The Puppet Master and the Prince of Darkness, a deep dive into the most bizarre murder case you've never heard of. Or start with season 2, which covers a different stranger-than-fiction story each week. This bingeworthy show combines meticulous research with a refreshing mix of comic relief and seamless storytelling. There's plenty of room around the campfire--come help us roast murderers and marshmallows!

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

Motivational speakers started really gaining popularity in the 70s and 80s, the golden age of “self-help.” And in recent years, they’ve been even more in-demand, especially in the business world. You can’t swing a dead cat these days without hitting some self-proclaimed entrepreneurial guru who claims to have the formula for success and would be happy to share it with you, if you sign up for their seminar for the low-low price of thousands of dollars. Or buy their TikTok course. But you don’t have to get certified or trained to be a motivational speaker, and their industry is almost totally unregulated—meaning, anybody with a megawatt smile and a catchphrase can do it. And according to a Harvard study, most of these guys focus more on entertaining you than teaching you the way to win. It all makes you wonder—are the ones who claim to have all the answers really so enlightened? Well, today we’re gonna tell you about two who most definitely weren’t.

Join Katie and Whitney, plus the hosts of Last Podcast on the Left, Sinisterhood, and Scared to Death, on the very first CRIMEWAVE true crime cruise! Get your fan code now--tickets go on sale February 7: CrimeWaveatSea.com/CAMPFIRE

Sources:
True Crime with Aphrodite Jones, S3E4, “Chosen to Kill” https://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/25/nyregion/25speaker.html https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/19/nyregion/man-seeks-plea-deal-at-retrial-in-assisted-suicide-of-long-island-counselor.html?searchResultPosition=2 https://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/04/nyregion/new-trial-for-man-who-helped-motivational-speaker-kill-himself.html?searchResultPosition=3 https://archive.nytimes.com/cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/04/killer-of-l-i-motivational-speaker-is-sentenced/?searchResultPosition=6
CNBC's American Greed, Episode "Making a Killing"
Court papers: https://www.casemine.com/judgement/us/5914e231add7b049348ef740/amp
https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/national/2009/08/02/several-questions-remain-in-investors-disappearance/2a3002f5-3c83-4c8d-8e1a-c0f115273394/
https://patch.com/california/sanclemente/shawkey-admits-his-stories-sound-unbelievable

Follow us, campers!
Patreon (join to get all episodes ad-free, at least a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfire
https://www.truecrimecampfirepod.com/
Facebook: True Crime Campfire
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecrimecampfire/?hl=en
Twitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfire
Email: truecrimecampfirepod@gmail.com
MERCH! https://true-crime-campfire.myspreadshop.com

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

Inspire, Achieve, Repeat: A Grab Bag of Killer Motivational Speakers

For at least the past 200 years or so, there’s been a lot of debate about women and the role we’re supposed to play in society. Historically, we’ve been expected to be the nurturers, the caregivers—the gentler sex, as we used to be called. We cook the food, we nurse the sick, we mind the children. Some of us are perfectly content in that role. But all throughout history, there have also been women who’ve chafed against these expectations. Some of them rebelled in a healthy, heroic way—fighting for women’s right to vote, to manage our own money, to pursue careers. And some have rebelled in a darker, more toxic way, using the very tools of stereotypical womanhood—food and drink—to commit the deadliest crimes. Today we’ll tell you about two of those women. Case 1: Tillie Klimek. Case 2: The Marquise de Brinvilliers.

Join Katie and Whitney, plus the hosts of Last Podcast on the Left, Sinisterhood, and Scared to Death, on the very first CRIMEWAVE true crime cruise! Get your fan code now--tickets are on sale now: CrimeWaveatSea.com/CAMPFIRE

Sources:
Lady Killers by Tori Telfer
Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Marie-Madeleine-Marguerite-dAubray-marquise-de-Brinvilliers
Bounjour Paris: https://bonjourparis.com/history/mystery-and-murder-in-paris-the-infamous-madame-de-brinvilliers/
PBS: https://www.pbs.org/kenburns/unforgivable-blackness/mann-act-full-text
Medium, Heather Monroe: https://heathermonroe.medium.com/the-strange-murders-of-tillie-klimek-effa70912b5b

Follow us, campers!
Patreon (join to get all episodes ad-free, at least a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfire
https://www.truecrimecampfirepod.com/
Facebook: True Crime Campfire
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecrimecampfire/?hl=en
Twitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfire
Email: truecrimecampfirepod@gmail.com
MERCH! https://true-crime-campfire.myspreadshop.com

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

Poisonous: A Grab Bag of Vintage Bad Bitches

For people of faith, a minister is supposed to be a figure of trust, a rock to support you in times of trouble. Not everyone who holds that position meets those ideals, though. This week’s story is about a man whose minister’s robes and carefully practiced smiles hid a heart burning with violence and dark desires, someone who would betray every trust given to him and leave pain—not salvation—in his wake. Join us for our latest "Sinister Minister" episode. 

Join Katie and Whitney, plus the hosts of Last Podcast on the Left, Sinisterhood, and Scared to Death, on the very first CRIMEWAVE true crime cruise! Get your fan code now--tickets are on sale now: CrimeWaveatSea.com/CAMPFIRE

Sources:
Investigation Discovery's True Crime with Aphrodite Jones, S4E1, “Sins of the Father" 
CBS's 48 Hours, S26E17, “Death at the Parsonage” 
NBC's Dateline, S21E21, “Fallen” 
Pocono Record: https://www.poconorecord.com/story/news/crime/2013/01/12/suicide-dominates-schirmer-trial-testimony/49162405007/ https://www.poconorecord.com/story/news/crime/2013/01/16/two-wives-one-cause-death/49158909007/
ID News: https://www.ldnews.com/story/archives/2015/12/16/schirmer-gets-20-40-years-murder-bethany/77424050/

Follow us, campers!
Patreon (join to get all episodes ad-free, at least a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfire
https://www.truecrimecampfirepod.com/
Facebook: True Crime Campfire
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecrimecampfire/?hl=en
Twitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfire
Email: truecrimecampfirepod@gmail.com
MERCH! https://true-crime-campfire.myspreadshop.com

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

'Til Death Do Us Part: The Crimes of A.B. Schirmer

In this week’s episode, we are going to be looking at “Bullshido,” a catch-all term for martial arts practices that are either fake, delusional, or just plain useless. This is the land of no-touch knockouts, touches of death, and mystical masters who can’t manage their own lives. We’ll be asking the question—should you learn self-defense from summon who struggles with basic reality? Spoiler, the answer is no, no you shouldn’t. 

This is a fun one, y'all. Nobody dies, and everybody is an absolute goober. 

Sources:
Interesting Stuff From Around the World YouTube channel (videos on Ashida Kim, George Dillman and Steven Seagal, plus much more): https://youtube.com/@interestingstufffromaround8014?si=E9-UiKKcTZQ4ng-J
https://ashidakim.com/
The Dance of the Deadly Hands https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Xw5wjwVkFc&t=36s
Ninja “levitation” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tl3QF3t58Rk
Ninja curtains https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCaZmajZ_g4&t=258s
Kim catches a bullet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PJZjwWwFc4
Kim dodges bullets https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bc1sN7eeyvM&t=78s https://www.dillman.com/
George Dillman on tongues and toes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIL5nD2PQ0Y&t=326s George’s chi bullet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYez2RKQn8c&t=748s
George mostly resurrects a pet https://www.youtube.com/shorts/w7hgVWbPxG8
Seagal’s Lightning Bolt ad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IId64OJdCKM Seagal running weird https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwwXE-T4HPI Seagal’s very real Russian aikido demo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmEx8Moy7ro Seagal essential oils https://members.tripod.com/life_scents/oldfiles/seagal.html 

Join Katie and Whitney, plus the hosts of Last Podcast on the Left, Sinisterhood, and Scared to Death, on the very first CRIMEWAVE true crime cruise! Pay up front or set up a payment plan. Get your fan code now--tickets go on sale February 7: CrimeWaveatSea.com/CAMPFIRE 

Follow us, campers!

Patreon (join to get all episodes ad-free, at least a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfire
https://www.truecrimecampfirepod.com/
Facebook: True Crime Campfire
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecrimecampfire/?hl=en
Twitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfire
Email: truecrimecampfirepod@gmail.com
MERCH! https://true-crime-campfire.myspreadshop.com

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

Hit Me With Ya Best Shot: The Wacky World of Martial Arts Frauds

Art is a mysterious thing. It’s hard to pin down why one thing moves us and another does not. Similarly, it can be hard to identify that special spark, that unique creativity that an artist can have that lifts their work into something magical. If you don’t have that, all the technical skill and carefully won knowledge in the world won’t get you to that special place. Unless, of course, you just steal it from someone else. This is “Faking It: Art’s Greatest Forger.”

This is a fun one, y'all. Opulent settings. Drama even a fan of telenovelas might find over the top. International intrigue...and salmon throwing?

Sources:
Fake! by Clifford Irving
New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1983/04/08/obituaries/fernand-legros-dealer-in-art.html

Join Katie and Whitney, plus the hosts of Last Podcast on the Left, Sinisterhood, and Scared to Death, on the very first CRIMEWAVE true crime cruise! Get your fan code now--tickets on sale now, and payment plans are available: CrimeWaveatSea.com/CAMPFIRE Follow us, campers!

Patreon (join to get all episodes ad-free, at least a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfire
https://www.truecrimecampfirepod.com/
Facebook: True Crime Campfire
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecrimecampfire/?hl=en
Twitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfire
Email: truecrimecampfirepod@gmail.com
MERCH! https://true-crime-campfire.myspreadshop.com

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

Faking It: Art's Greatest Forger

We’ve covered some real nasty pieces of work on our show over the years. Dive into true crime for any length of time, and you’re bound to come across plenty of people you wouldn’t want to meet in a dark alley. Or a lit one, even. But even among the rogue’s gallery of devil’s rejects out there, there are some in a league of their own. People so devoid of morals and human empathy that they should really just be shoved in some dank little spider-infested oubliette somewhere and forgotten about, just to protect the rest of us. Today, we’re gonna tell you about two of them.

Case 1: Hell's Belle - The Crimes of Melissa Patterson
Case 2: Making a Killing - The Story of Mark Barton, the Day Trader Killer

Join Katie and Whitney, plus the hosts of Last Podcast on the Left, Sinisterhood, and Scared to Death, on the very first CRIMEWAVE true crime cruise! Get your fan code now--tickets go on sale February 7: CrimeWaveatSea.com/CAMPFIRE

Sources:
Appeals court filings, Patterson v State: https://casetext.com/case/patterson-v-state-2099
Investigation Discovery's "Diabolical," episode "The Rich Get Richer"
Oxygen's "Snapped," episode "Melissa Patterson"
Martin Knell's Obituary
KRGV: https://www.krgv.com/videos/murder-victim-s-only-son-speaks-out-following-conviction/
My RGV: https://myrgv.com/local-news/2023/09/23/five-years-later-monica-melissa-patterson-still-claims-innocence-despite-the-evidence/
Time magazine: https://time.com/archive/6736072/a-portrait-of-the-killer/
New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/1999/07/31/us/shootings-in-atlanta-the-overview-killer-confessed-in-a-letter-spiked-with-rage.html
Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1999/07/31/killer-wrote-of-fear-hopelessness/af33786a-de37-45cd-9d5f-1098379892dd/
South Coast Today: https://www.southcoasttoday.com/story/news/nation-world/1999/07/31/atlanta-shooter-had-been-disgruntled/50508538007/

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

A "Special Place in Hell" Grab Bag

As Abe Lincoln once said—or possibly some guy named Peter Drucker, depends on who you ask—the best way to predict the future is to create it. But for a lot of us humans, that’s a little too loosey-goosey. We’re not big fans of the unknown, and we tend to seek out people who claim they can tell us what to expect from the future. Americans, for example, spend billions a year on psychics. A lot of these are legitimate businesspeople who genuinely want to provide counseling and comfort for their clients. But there’s also a bustling trade in psychic fraud—run by people who have no qualms about taking advantage of you at your most vulnerable and desperate. Today we’re gonna tell you about two of those cases. Case 1: The Mysterious Death of Seth Tobias. Case 2: Psychic Scammer Gina Marks

Sources:
New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/04/business/04tobias.html
ABC News: https://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=4279324&page=1
New York Magazine: https://nymag.com/news/features/43914/
The Times: https://www.thetimes.com/article/hunt-for-tiger-the-go-go-boy-after-seth-tobiass-death-5n923qml8pf
The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/feb/12/bob-nygaard-private-investigator-psychic-fraud
NBC: https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/maryland-psychic-sentenced-to-6-years-for-scamming-clients/155294/
TV show "Pink Collar Crime," episode "The Psychic Didn't See Him Coming"

Follow us, campers!
Patreon (join to get all episodes ad-free, at least a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfire
https://www.truecrimecampfirepod.com/
Facebook: True Crime Campfire
Instagram: https://gramha.net/profile/truecrimecampfire/19093397079
Twitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfire
Email: truecrimecampfirepod@gmail.com
MERCH! https://true-crime-campfire.myspreadshop.com

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

Bad Fortune: Two Tales of Psychic Scammers

Some of the easiest people on the planet to fool are those who have a real high opinion of their own brains based on very little evidence. A classic con-artist trick is to make the mark think they’re the one in charge, they’re the one making the decisions. They don’t realize they’ve been taken until their bank balance is empty and they’ve signed away the deed to granddaddy’s farm. Sometimes they won’t even see it then, because that would mean facing up to some unpleasant realities about themselves. In this week’s story, the consequences of gullibility and manipulation are a lot heavier than financial ruin—three generations of a family have their lives torn to pieces over greed and a web of the darkest lies imaginable. 

Sources:
Daddy’s Girl by Clifford Irving 
Court papers: https://casetext.com/case/ray-v-state-51
The Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1985/02/26/true-confessions/718e2739-0997-4ac0-a551-d860a9f51b7f/

Follow us, campers!
Patreon (join to get all episodes ad-free, at least a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfire
https://www.truecrimecampfirepod.com/
Facebook: True Crime Campfire
Instagram: https://gramha.net/profile/truecrimecampfire/19093397079
Twitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfire
Email: truecrimecampfirepod@gmail.com
MERCH! https://true-crime-campfire.myspreadshop.com

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

Fool Me Twice: The Murders of James & Virginia Campbell

On June 10th, 1983, the decomposing body of a well-dressed man was found in a desolate canyon near Los Angeles. John Doe #94 would soon be identified as missing variety show producer Roy Radin. He'd last been seen after meeting with a mysterious woman in a gold dress. Her name was Lanie Jacobs. Jacobs and Radin were obsessed with becoming Hollywood movie producers. And when their paths collided, it led them to a tantalizing film deal promising fame and fortune. But then, a twisted script unfolded, plunging them into a million-dollar cocaine and cash heist, a tangled web of lies, and ultimately – murder.

The trail led investigators right to Hollywood's doorstep, linking former golden boy producer Robert Evans to the case and dredging up Radin's own troubled past. But the case turned ice cold. It would take more than five years of dogged pursuit by the L.A. Sheriff’s Department detectives, a secret undercover witness, and another murder almost 3,000 miles from Hollywood – to unlock the truth. This is the story of a doomed Hollywood partnership, a grisly murder and the search that stretched across the country for a killer – or killers. From Wondery, and the team behind the hit series Hollywood & Crime: The Dating Game Killer, The Wonderland Murders, Death of Starlet, and the Execution of Bonny Lee Bakley comes a six part series that dives into the dark side of Hollywood through a shocking murder – fueled by ruthless ambition and desperate dreams. Co-hosted by Tracy Pattin and Josh Lucas. Listen to Hollywood & Crime: The Cotton Club Murder: Wondery.fm/TCCM_TCC

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

Listen Now - Hollywood & Crime: The Cotton Club Murder

When we left you at the end of Part 1, fourteen year old Steven Stayner had escaped from seven years of captivity and abuse at the hands of child predator Kenneth Parnell—and he’d rescued Parnell’s next intended victim, a little boy named Timmy White. The story made international headlines, and Steven Stayner became his hometown’s living legend. It was March 1980, both boys were back home safe and Kenneth Parnell was behind bars where he belonged, waiting to go to trial. It seemed like a happy ending. But the story doesn’t end there. The second half of the Stayner saga is even darker than the first. Justice is denied. Secrets come to light. And another member of the family lets his most depraved fantasies cross over to real life.

Big thanks to Mike Moran of the podcast Confessional with Mike Moran for doing much of the work/research on this one and last week's! 

Sources:
Wikipedia: Cary Stayner
A&E's American Justice, episode The Yosemite Killer
The Crime Reel: Part 2 of The Troubled Lives of the Stayner Brothers
Casefile (podcast): Yosemite Sightseer Murders Parts 1 and 2 
CBS News: The Yosemite Murders
SF Gate: https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/defense-to-fight-for-stayner-s-life-lawyers-2820211.php

Follow us, campers!
Patreon (join to get all episodes ad-free, at least a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfire
https://www.truecrimecampfirepod.com/
Facebook: True Crime Campfire
Instagram: https://gramha.net/profile/truecrimecampfire/19093397079
Twitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfire
Email: truecrimecampfirepod@gmail.com
MERCH! https://true-crime-campfire.myspreadshop.com

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

Journey Into Darkness: The Stayner Brothers Part 2

In Part 1, we introduced you to Della “Dante” Sutorius, a woman determined to land herself a rich husband and spread as much destruction as possible in the process. A few of Dante’s cute little pranks include setting a boyfriend on fire, sending the same boyfriend to prison for drugs and tax crimes, and burning down another dude’s house. When we left you we were right in the middle of giving you the run-down on some of this dear lady’s most interesting escapades, which as I’m sure you’ve already predicted, are going to culminate one day in murder. Join us now for part 2 of this wild ride of a story.

Sources:

Book: Della's Web by Aphrodite Jones
Oxygen's "Snapped," Episode "Dante Sutorius"
The Canadian Global Television Network's "Pretty Dangerous," Episode "Della Dante Sutorius"
https://murderpedia.org/female.S/s/sutorius-della.htm

Follow us, campers!

Patreon (join to get all episodes a day early, an extra episode a month, and a free sticker!): https://patreon.com/TrueCrimeCampfire
Facebook: True Crime Campfire
Instagram: https://gramha.net/profile/truecrimecampfire/19093397079
Twitter: @TCCampfire https://twitter.com/TCCampfire
Email: truecrimecampfirepod@gmail.com

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-campfire--4251960/support.

Episode 38: Inferno: The Story of Dante Sutorius, Part 2

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