31: The Why Behind the Weird

Text the show!The Crystal Palace debuted at the first World's Fair in London, and many imitators followed. This episode explores a strange architecture mystery: why did every Crystal Palace meet the same fate?You can find all sources on a document here.Music (licensed via Soundstripe)"Airport Lounges" - Nu Alkemi"Where the Money Comes From" - Sam Barsh"Mutual I'm Sure" - Fleece Mob"Going Shopping" - Dresden the Flamingo"Suite Du Matin" - Moments"Carnica" - Isaac Joel"The Night is Young" - Lib...

Text the show!The 1990 theft of 13 works of art from Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is the largest unsolved art heist in history. Theories abound - but today we look at a fascinating one that's never talked about. Was this a rescue mission all along? .................................Complete list of sources can be found hereMusic featured in this episode (licensed via Soundstripe):Rarefaction - Neon BeachWaltz of Friends - SolitudeCeridig's Heart - CJ-0Stable Breath - Sam BarshInto ...

Text the show!A man walks into a library, steals a book he's written, and burns it. ................................................................. Sources:YIVO Archives & Library Collections | YIVO Institute for Jewish ResearchTablet - The Lost Poems of Ka-TzetnikTablet - Holocaust Pulp FictionJSTOR Daily - Why John Baldessari Burned His Own ArtHaaretz - Who Were You, Karl Zetinkski?Fort Worth Star-Telegram - 21 Jul 1931, Tue · Page 7The Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle - 11 Jul 1930, ...

Text the show!Strange. Vile. Completely anonymous. This is the most unusual flash-fiction to ever hit the internet. (Note: this episode contains content for listeners 18+. Listener discretion is advised.)Sources:Backlinko - Reddit StatisticsYouTube - Best Posts & Comments - What's a dark piece of Reddit history...reddit.comMedium - KiwiFarms Went DownWikipedia - KiwiFarms Voices by Play.ht Excerpts from u/PickledPotatoes stories from archive provided by u/TheBooshmanMusic (licensed t...

Text the show!Two couples are murdered 35 years apart. The crimes are completely unrelated, but both share one strange similarity: art found in the home that seems to mimic the crime scene. .............................Sources:The Corpsewood Murders: 40 years later - Atlanta MagazineCorpsewood Manor - Autopsy of ArchitectureThe most brilliant scientific discoveries will in time... (libquotes.com)Satanic Panic’s long history — and why it never really ended — explained - VoxSherman Murders: 50 ...

Text the show!What do "Tom and Jerry," "The Simpsons," and "Neon Genesis Evangelion" have in common? More than you think. ....................................................................... Sources:https://geekdad.com/2015/06/the-gene-deitch-collection/ Gene Deitch - Lambiek Comiclopediahttps://www.cbr.com/the-simpsons-some-enchanted-evening-almost-killed-show/Illustration History - Hanna-BarberaAbout Rembrandt StudiosEncyclopedia Brittanica - The Iron CurtainThe Comics Journal - Gene Dei...

Text the show!Quinn Lovecraft tells you her own spooky campfire story about an abandoned place in the middle of nowhere.Sources:Weird Ohio by Andy Henderson, James A Willis, Loren Coleman, and Andrew Hendersonhttps://www.facebook.com/ghosttownfindlayQuinn Lovecraft's personal filesMusic:"Trick or Treat" PALA"Disappearance" Wicked Cinema"Hell's Bells" GEMMFollow on Instagram: @31pod31

Text the show!William Bernard's strange death - and the equally strange fate of his body - tells us a lot about the chaos of goldrush-era San Francisco. ..........................................Sources:Daily Alta California 11 January 1854 — California Digital Newspaper Collection (ucr.edu)1854: William Snyder killed in most bizarre and terrifying way ever - FlashbakSacramento Daily Union 13 January 1854 — California Digital Newspaper Collection (ucr.edu)SF Genealogy (Archived Page)Smithsoni...

Text the show!What if a group of strangers started accusing you of a terrible crime just because you weren't very interesting? ...........................................................................Sources:Funny115Survivor: Kelly Shinn reacts to her infamous purple edit in Nicaragua (ew.com)Buzzfeed NewsIMDBEWThe Traidar Podcast Episode 5Tiktok - Benedict TownsendPurple Kelly's ConfessionalsPete Hunziker Cut from Below DeckThe Wrap | Interview with Jeff Probst"The Traitors: Australia""RuP...

Text the show!Why are people misremembering violent events en masse - events that never happened at all?............................................Sources:https://www.cnn.com/2014/11/23/world/asia/afghanistan-violence/index.htmlhttps://www.denverpost.com/2006/09/27/hostage-horror/https://obscurban-legend.fandom.com/wiki/Doveland,_Wisconsinhttps://mickey-pal.tumblr.com/post/168142627743/haiku-robot-russiansupporthttps://theghostinmymachine.com/2022/01/24/unresolved-what-happened-to-doveland-w...

Text the show!Shergar was a top-tier athlete who had just retired to have children when he was kidnapped by masked gunman, never to be seen again. This is the strange story of Shergar, the fastest racehorse in Ireland. ........................................................................................................Sources:https://www.history.com/news/the-troubles-northern-irelandhttps://www.history.com/topics/21st-century/irish-republican-armyhttps://www.twinspires.com/edge/racing/true...

Text the show!Maybe you've never thought about the last sound you'll hear. That's okay - someone has chosen it for you. ....................................................Sources:https://jalopnik.com/this-is-the-video-cnn-will-play-when-the-world-ends-1677511538https://youtu.be/z6f7j1E61sM?si=PqMw4eiHC3UrM6T7https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWhgKuKvvPE&t=470shttps://www.intheknow.com/post/2020-vision-2021-vision-youtube-predictions/https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/publications/ag...

Text the show!Thrill-seeking tourists flock to Tonopah, Nevada's Clown Motel, eager to run into a spirit among the eerily-smiling clown figurines. But the real horrors of Tonopah have little to do with the clowns, and they're buried next door... ........................................................................Sources:https://www.theclownmotelusa.com/historyhttps://www.tonopahnevada.com/history/http://www.tonopahnevada.com/TonopahCemeteryBrochure.pdf https://usg.maps.arcgis.com/app...

Text the show!There are very few towns in North Korea that non-North Koreans can lay eyes on. Kijong-dong, just outside the demilitarized zone, is one of them. With bright blue roofs and a large school set against the hills, it looks like the embodiment of its nickname, "Peace Village." ... So where are all the children? ..........................................................................Sources:https://www.unc.mil/History/1951-1953-Armistice-Negotiations/https://en.wikipedia.org/...

Text the show!Massive stars don't just vanish into thin air, but that's exactly what it looks like happened to N6946-BH1... and the first theory astronomers come up with to explain its disappearance is terrifying..................................Sources:https://www.britannica.com/science/red-dwarf-starhttps://www.space.com/how-do-stars-diehttps://www.dkfindout.com/us/space/stars-and-galaxies/death-star/https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2021MNRAS.508.1156B/abstracthttps://www.sciencealert.com/...

Text the show!In 1998, Ronaldo was one of the most promising soccer stars in the world. But something happened to him right before the World Cup that inspired a multitude of theories - part of a long line of conspiracy theories in professional sports. ............................................ Sources: https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1887294-1998-world-cup-final-conspiracy-theorieshttps://www.golfdigest.com/story/a-history-of-truly-absurd-and-possibly-true-baseball-conspiracy-theoriesht...

Text the show!Houska Castle's bizarre architecture and mysterious past all point to a massive secret. What truth is there to the rumor that Houska is covering up something beyond this world?........................................................ Sources: https://www.czechcenter.org/blog/2023/6/5/houska-castlehttps://www.czechuniversities.com/article/20-interesting-facts-about-the-czech-republic#:~:text=There%20are%20over%202000%20castles,Lednice%20Castle%20and%20Karl%C5%A1tejn%20Castle....

Text the show!One family has had increasingly bizarre encounters with unknown entities since the 1980s. From doppelgängers to eerie phone calls, someone won't leave the Sudbrinks alone. ............................................................... Sources: https://www.vertigo22.com/2019/12/decemystery-2019-24-gary-sudbrinks.htmlhttps://www.scribd.com/document/21368199/Mufon-UFO-Journal Sue Swiatek (11-16-06) Men In Black (MIBS): The Phenomenon is Realhttps://soundcloud.com/curt-rowlett/gary...

Text the show!In 2017, a disturbing scandal rocked the world of wildlife photography.Sources:https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2018/apr/27/winning-anteater-photo-disqualified-judges-agree-stuffed-marcio-cabralhttps://www.nhm.ac.uk/wpy/competition/awards-and-prizeshttps://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2018/april/wildlife-photographer-of-the-year-image-disqualified.htmlhttps://www.focustours.com/emas-national-parkhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/jan/20/wolf-wildlife-photographe...