pplpod

pplpod

pplpod is a podcast about people, places and lots of other stuff. Each episode takes a deep dive into the lives, choices, and legacies of fascinating figures from history, culture, music, and beyond. From icons who shaped entire generations to hidden stories that deserve the spotlight, pplpod brings you closer to the people behind the headlines and the legends. Thoughtful, engaging, and story-driven, pplpod explores what makes these lives extraordinary—and what we can learn from them today.

  1. -17 H

    The Giggling Granny: Nannie Doss and the Deadly Search for "Real Romance"

    In this episode of pplpod, we examine the chilling case of Nannie Doss, an American serial killer known to the press as the "Black Widow," the "Lonely Hearts Killer," and most infamously, the "Giggling Granny". Between 1927 and 1954, Doss was responsible for the deaths of 11 people, a list of victims that included four of her husbands, her mother, her sister, and two of her grandsons. Join us as we trace Nannie’s path from a controlled childhood in Blue Mountain, Alabama—where a severe head injury at age seven allegedly contributed to her later mental instability—to her adulthood fueled by an obsession with romance magazines and lonely hearts columns. We discuss how Doss used these columns to meet men, only to later kill them with rat poison or arsenic to collect life insurance money and continue her search for the "real romance of life". Finally, we cover her 1954 arrest after the sudden death of her fifth husband, Samuel Doss, and her subsequent confession to a decades-long killing spree.

    28 min

  2. -17 H

    Hell’s Belle: The Lonely Hearts Butcher of La Porte

    In this episode of pplpod, we unearth the gruesome story of Belle Gunness, a Norwegian-American immigrant who became one of history's most prolific female serial killers. Known as "Hell's Belle," Gunness is suspected of killing as many as forty people between 1884 and 1908, driven primarily by monetary gain. We trace her path from Selbu, Norway, to the United States, where she initiated a pattern of insurance fraud involving the suspicious deaths of her husbands, Mads Sørensen and Peter Gunness, as well as several of her own children. We also detail how she used "lonely hearts" personal advertisements to lure wealthy suitors to her pig farm in La Porte, Indiana, only to rob and murder them. Finally, we examine the fiery conclusion to her reign of terror. When her farmhouse burned down in 1908, authorities discovered the dismembered remains of more than a dozen victims buried in her hog pen. We discuss the enduring mystery surrounding the headless body found in the ashes and the confession of her hired hand, Ray Lamphere, who claimed Belle faked her death and escaped justice.

    23 min

  3. -17 H

    "Jolly Jane" Toppan: The Nightmare Nurse Who Killed for a Thrill

    In this episode of pplpod, we examine the chilling case of Jane Toppan, a Massachusetts nurse whose friendly demeanor earned her the nickname "Jolly Jane," masking her reality as one of America's most prolific serial killers,. Born Honora Kelley to an abusive father known as "Kelley the Crack," she was abandoned to an asylum as a child before becoming an indentured servant and eventually entering the medical field,. We dive deep into Toppan's terrifying methodology, exploring how she treated patients as "guinea pigs" by experimenting with morphine and atropine dosages to observe their nervous systems. Listeners will learn about her disturbing sexual fetish, which involved climbing into bed with her victims and holding them close as they died, as well as her stated ambition "to have killed more people—helpless people—than any other man or woman who ever lived",. From the murder of her foster sister to the poisoning of four members of the Davis family, we trace the spree that finally led to her capture in 1901,. Tune in to hear how Toppan confessed to 31 murders—though suspected of over 100—and why a jury ultimately found her not guilty by reason of insanity, committing her to an asylum for the rest of her life,.

    24 min

  4. -17 H

    The Death House Landlady: The Crimes of Dorothea Puente

    To the community in Sacramento, she was a respectable matron in vintage clothing who ran a charitable boarding house for the elderly and mentally disabled. But when police began digging in her garden in 1988, they uncovered the dark truth about the "Death House Landlady". In this episode of pplpod, we explore the life and crimes of Dorothea Puente, a serial killer and fraudster who poisoned her tenants to cash their Social Security checks. We cover: • The Facade: How Puente built a reputation as a caregiver while using aliases like Teya Singoalla Neyaarda and Sharon Johansson to hide a criminal past that included forgery and running a brothel. • The Murders: The grim discovery of bodies buried in her yard, including tenants Leona Carpenter, Dorothy Miller, and Benjamin Fink, and the "coffin" found floating in the Sacramento River containing Everson Gillmouth. • The Investigation & Trial: How a social worker's tip regarding a missing tenant led to a backyard excavation, Puente’s flight to Los Angeles, and the 1993 trial where she was sentenced to life without parole. • A Bizarre Legacy: From her diagnosis as a pathological liar to the publication of her recipes in Cooking with a Serial Killer. Join us as we dig into the disturbing case of the grandmotherly figure who turned her home into a graveyard.

    32 min

  5. -17 H

    The Lady of Silence: The Case of Serial Killer Juana Barraza

    In this episode of pplpod, we enter the ring with Juana Barraza, a professional wrestler known as "La Dama del Silencio" (The Lady of Silence) who lived a dark double life as one of Mexico’s most notorious serial killers. Known to the public as "La Mataviejitas" ("The Old Lady Killer"), Barraza was convicted of murdering 16 elderly women, though authorities suspect she may be responsible for between 42 and 48 deaths. We discuss how she utilized her strength as a "ruda" (heel) wrestler to bludgeon or strangle victims after gaining their trust by posing as a government social worker. We also examine the investigation that was initially complicated by police prejudices; authorities focused their hunt on male suspects or transvestite prostitutes, believing the killer’s profile was too masculine to be a cisgender woman. The episode details her dramatic 2006 arrest fleeing the home of an 82-year-old victim, her confession regarding the resentment toward her mother that fueled her crimes, and her staggering sentence of 759 years. Finally, we look at Barraza's current life at the Santa Martha Acatitla prison, where she works as a gym instructor and sells tacos.

    28 min

  6. -17 H

    The Moors Murders: Ian Brady, Myra Hindley, and the "Utmost Depravity"

    In this episode of pplpod, we delve into the dark history of the Moors murders, a series of child killings that terrorized Manchester, England, between July 1963 and October 1965. We profile the perpetrators, Ian Brady and Myra Hindley, a couple described by their trial judge as "two sadistic killers of the utmost depravity". Join us as we cover: • The Partnership: How Brady, a man fascinated by Nazi atrocities and the Marquis de Sade, and Hindley, a woman infatuated with him, came together to plan what they believed would be the "perfect murder",,. • The Victims: The tragic abductions of five children and teenagers—Pauline Reade, John Kilbride, Keith Bennett, Lesley Ann Downey, and Edward Evans—at least four of whom were sexually assaulted. • The Investigation: How the murders were exposed after Hindley’s brother-in-law, David Smith, witnessed the killing of 17-year-old Edward Evans and alerted the police,. • The Aftermath: The discovery of bodies in shallow graves on Saddleworth Moor, the chilling tape recordings played at trial, and the lifelong incarceration of the killers,,. Decades later, the case remains unresolved for the family of Keith Bennett, whose body has never been found despite repeated searches and brief confessions from the killers before their deaths in prison,,.

    31 min

  7. -17 H

    One Man Rule: Warren Jeffs, the YFZ Raid, and the Secrets of the FLDS

    In this episode of pplpod, we investigate the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS), a sect that split from the mainstream LDS Church to continue practicing polygamy after the 1890 Manifesto. We examine the group's isolation in the Short Creek Community and their adherence to the "One Man Rule" doctrine, which dictates that God works through a single prophet with absolute authority. We trace the rise of the church's most notorious leader, Warren Jeffs, who took power in 2002 and was later placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list before being sentenced to life in prison for sexual assault. The episode details the sect's chaotic history with law enforcement, from the 1953 Short Creek raid to the massive 2008 raid on the Yearning For Zion (YFZ) Ranch in Texas, where authorities removed 439 children following reports of abuse. Join us as we uncover the dark realities of life inside the FLDS, including: • Placement Marriage: The practice where the prophet assigns wives—sometimes underage girls—to men based on their "worthiness". • The Lost Boys: The systematic expulsion of young men from the community to reduce competition for wives. • "Bleeding the Beast": The alleged practice of defrauding government welfare systems while viewing the government as an enemy. • Genetic Isolation: The high prevalence of fumarase deficiency, a rare genetic defect caused by generations of cousin marriages. Finally, we look at the current state of the church, where Warren Jeffs continues to issue revelations from his prison cell, recently commanding members to prepare for the end of the world.

    36 min

  8. -17 H

    Shoko Asahara: The Blind Guru, The Doomsday Cult, and the Tokyo Subway Attack

    In this episode of pplpod, we investigate the terrifying trajectory of Shoko Asahara, the visually impaired yoga instructor who transformed a meditation circle into the deadly doomsday cult known as Aum Shinrikyo. Born Chizuo Matsumoto, Asahara rose from a poverty-stricken childhood where he bullied classmates to becoming a self-proclaimed "enlightened" guru who recruited graduates from Japan’s elite universities. We explore how Asahara’s ideology—a dangerous mix of Buddhism, Christianity, and Isaac Asimov’s science fiction—radicalized his followers and justified horrific violence. We cover the cult's escalation from the brutal 1989 murder of a lawyer’s family to the 1994 sarin gas attack in Matsumoto. Finally, we detail the group’s notorious 1995 chemical attack on the Tokyo subway, Asahara’s capture while hiding inside a wall, and his execution in 2018 after the "trial of the century".

    32 min
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À propos

pplpod is a podcast about people, places and lots of other stuff. Each episode takes a deep dive into the lives, choices, and legacies of fascinating figures from history, culture, music, and beyond. From icons who shaped entire generations to hidden stories that deserve the spotlight, pplpod brings you closer to the people behind the headlines and the legends. Thoughtful, engaging, and story-driven, pplpod explores what makes these lives extraordinary—and what we can learn from them today.

Informations

  • Création
    pplpod
  • Années d’activité
    2025 - 2026
  • Épisodes
    2 k
  • Classification
    Tous publics
  • Copyright
    © pplpod
  • Site web de l’émission
    pplpod

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