Most Notorious! A True Crime History Podcast

Blue Ewe Media
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Most Notorious! A True Crime History Podcast
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Serial killers. Gangsters. Gunslingers. Victorian-era murderers. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Each week, the Most Notorious podcast features true-life tales of crime, criminals, tragedies and disasters throughout history. Host Erik Rivenes interviews authors and historians who have studied their subjects for years. Their stories are offered with unique insight, detail, and historical accuracy.

  1. 2 DAYS AGO

    372: Rhode Island's Last Execution w/ Paul F. Caranci

    On a frigid day in 1843, Amasa Sprague, a wealthy Yankee mill owner, left his mansion to check on his cattle. On the way, he was accosted and beaten beyond recognition, and his body was left facedown in the snow. What followed was a trial marked by judicial bias, witness perjury and societal bigotry that resulted in the conviction of twenty-nine-year-old Irish-Catholic John Gordon. He was sentenced to hang. Despite overwhelming evidence that the trial was flawed and newly discovered evidence that clearly exonerated him, an anti-Irish Catholic establishment refused him a new trial. On February 14, 1845, John Gordon became the last victim of capital punishment in Rhode Island. My guest is Paul F. Caranci, author of "The Hanging and Redemption of John Gordon: The True Story of Rhode Island's Last Execution." He walks us through the murder, investigation, trial and execution, and also shares some of the theories regarding who might have killed Amasa Sprague and why. More about the author and his books: https://www.paulcaranci.com/ The podcast "Terror In Wichita" can be heard here: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4oNsjI7FzlZ2z9k6aK1IGs?si=mY-xavJISBK2egMHTlsT2Q iHeart: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-terror-in-wichita-248480833/ Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/90ce0921-037e-4e6a-ad62-25f08a4b9b33/terror-in-wichita Support the show and ditch overpriced wireless with Mint Mobile’s deal and get 3 months of premium wireless service for 15 bucks a month! https://www.mintmobile.com/notorious Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1h 18m

  2. 6 DAYS AGO

    371: The Barbara Graham Murder Case w/ Marcia Clark

    Unwanted and neglected from birth, Barbara Graham had to overcome the odds just to survive. Her beauty was both a blessing and a curse—offering her too many options of all the wrong kind. Her innate sensitivity left her vulnerable to the harsh realities of the street, where she was left to fend for herself before she reached double digits. Her record of petty crimes spoke to a life that constantly teetered on the brink of disaster. But in 1953, a catastrophic twist of fate would catapult her out of obscurity and into the headlines. When a robbery spiraled out of control and escalated into a brutal murder, Barbara became the centerpiece of a media circus. Her beauty enraptured the press, and they were quick to portray her as a villainous femme fatale despite abundant evidence to the contrary—a fiction the prosecution eagerly promoted. My guest is noted criminal lawyer and bestselling author Marcia Clark. Her latest book, "Trial By Ambush: Murder, Injustice, and the Truth about the Case of Barbara Graham" came out on December 1st. Marcia Clark's website: https://marciaclarkbooks.com/ Support the show and ditch overpriced wireless with Mint Mobile’s deal and get 3 months of premium wireless service for 15 bucks a month! https://www.mintmobile.com/notorious Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    59 min

  3. DEC 10

    370: Britain's Notorious Hawkhurst Gang w/ Joseph Dragovich

    South-east England, 1740s: War and heated politics bring the old practice of smuggling to new and dangerous heights. Violent gangs of smugglers terrorize communities and confound government attempts to stop them. The most famous of these, the Hawkhurst Gang, operate like a modern drug cartel fueled by illegal tea. They threaten witnesses and authorities, brandish weapons in public, and fight battles in the streets, murdering and kidnapping those who get in their way. My guest, Joseph Dragovich, is author of "Hawkhurst: Murder, Corruption, and Britain's Most Notorious Smuggling Gang." He gives us a brief history of this very notorious group of smugglers and the people who helped put an end to their terror. The author's website: https://hawkhurst-book.co.uk/ The author on Blueky: https://bsky.app/profile/joedragovich.bsky.social The author on Twitter/X: https://x.com/joedragovich/ The book's link tree: https://lnk.to/Hawkhurst Support the show and ditch overpriced wireless with Mint Mobile’s deal and get 3 months of premium wireless service for 15 bucks a month! https://www.mintmobile.com/notorious Visit https://strawberry.me/notorious for 20% off your first month's membership! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1h 5m

  4. DEC 6

    369: Polly Bodine: The Witch of New York w/ Alex Hortis

    On Christmas night, December 25, 1843, in a serene village on Staten Island, shocked neighbors discovered the burnt remains of twenty-four-year-old mother Emeline Houseman and her infant daughter, Ann Eliza. In a perverse nativity, someone bludgeoned to death a mother and child in their home—and then covered up the crime with hellfire. When an ambitious district attorney charges Polly Bodine (Emelin’s sister-in-law) with a double homicide, the new “penny press” explodes. Polly is a perfect media villain: she’s a separated wife who drinks gin, commits adultery, and has had multiple abortions. Between June 1844 and April 1846, the nation was enthralled by her three trials—in Staten Island, Manhattan, and Newburgh—for the “Christmas murders.” My guest is Alex Hortis, author of "The Witch of New York: The Trials of Polly Bodine and the Cursed Birth of Tabloid Justice." He shares with us some of the incredible twists and turns in this absolutely fascinating case. The author's website: https://alexhortis.com/ Register here for the author's online "History of the New York Mafia Class", through The Gotham Center for New York City History (Starting 1/29/2025): https://www.gothamcenter.org/gothamed-january/history-of-the-new-york-mafia Visit https://strawberry.me/notorious for 20% off your first month's membership! Support the show and ditch overpriced wireless with Mint Mobile’s deal and get 3 months of premium wireless service for 15 bucks a month! https://www.mintmobile.com/notorious Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1h 23m

  5. NOV 27 • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

    The Thanksgiving Murder of Little Freddie King

    In this most recent episode of Most Notorious Plus, we revisit a 1904 robbery gone bad in a Minneapolis saloon two days before Thanksgiving. Were Orlin Kalderwit and his friends responsible for both the hold up and the murder of nine-year-old Freddie King? Or did others commit the crime? Sources: The Minneapolis Daily Times 11/22/1904 p. 1 The Minneapolis Daily Times, 11/23/1904 pp. 1-2 The Saint Paul Globe 11/23/1904 p. 1 The Minneapolis Daily Times 11/27/1904 p. 2 The Minneapolis Daily Times 11/28/1904 p. 1 The Minneapolis Journal 12/5/1904 p. 6 The Minneapolis Journal 12/7/1904 The Minneapolis Journal 4/07/1905 p. 1 The Minneapolis Star Tribune 4/28/1905 pp 1-2 The Minneapolis Journal 5/2/1905 p. 1 The Minneapolis Journal 5/4/1905 p. 1 The Minneapolis Journal 5/12/1905 pp. 1, 6 The Minneapolis Journal 5/12/1905 pp. 1, 6 The Minneapolis Daily Times 5/17/1905 p. 2 The Duluth News Tribune 3/9/1906 p. 2 The Minneapolis Journal 6/18/1915 p. 17 The Minneapolis Journal 7/10/1915 p. 1 The Minneapolis Journal 10/14/1915 p. 13 The Minneapolis Journal 1/10/1917 p. 19 The Minneapolis Journal 1/14/1917 pp 1-2 The Minneapolis Journal 11/7/1925 p. 2 Photo of Orlin Kalderwit from the Saint Paul Globe 11/27/1904 p. 13

    23 min

  6. NOV 27

    368: Gangster Hunters w/ John Oller - A True Crime History Podcast

    My guest this week is John Oller, author of the new book "Gangster Hunters: How Hoover's G-men Vanquished America's Deadliest Public Enemies". He walks us through the evolution of J. Edgar Hoover's Bureau in the early 1930s, highlighting some of the unsung federal agents that battled America's Depression Era bank-robbing outlaws and the pivotal crimes that helped shape the country's most storied law enforcement organization. The author's website: https://www.johnollernyc.com/ Support the show and ditch overpriced wireless with Mint Mobile’s deal and get 3 months of premium wireless service for 15 bucks a month! https://www.mintmobile.com/notorious Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1h 10m

  7. NOV 22

    MoNo Encore: Jack the Ripper - New Clues & Theories w/ Tom Wescott

    On this month's Most Notorious Encore episode, we revisit the "Autumn of Terror" with a popular interview first released on 11/21/2019, five years ago today.   One of the world's most preeminent Ripperologists, Tom Wescott, author of "The Bank Holiday Murders" and "Ripper Confidential" is my guest on this episode of Most Notorious. His extensive research into Jack the Ripper/Whitechapel murders give his a unique perspective into this truly iconic true crime cold case. Focusing on some of the more intriguing peripheral players in the events, including a suspicious prostitute named "Pearly Poll", he offers a fresh take and new theories on who might have murdered the "Canonical Five" (and likely more) in Victorian-era London. The author's website: https://ripperbooks.wordpress.com/ Support the show and ditch overpriced wireless with Mint Mobile’s deal and get 3 months of premium wireless service for 15 bucks a month! https://www.mintmobile.com/notorious Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1h 18m

  8. NOV 15

    367: A Double Murder in 1948 Illinois w/ Ted Gregory

    Summer 1948. In the scenic, remote river town of Oregon, Illinois, a young couple visiting the local lovers’ lane is murdered. The shocking crime garners headlines from Portland, Maine, to Long Beach, California. But after a sweeping manhunt, no one is arrested and the violent deaths of Mary Jane Reed and Stanley Skridla fade into time’s indifference. Fast forward fifty years. Eccentric entrepreneur Michael Arians moves to Oregon, opens a roadhouse, gets elected mayor, and becomes obsessed with the crime. He comes up with a scandalous conspiracy theory and starts to believe that Mary Jane’s ghost is haunting his establishment. He also reaches out to the Chicago Tribune for help. My guest, Ted Gregory, is the Chicago Tribune reporter who responds to Michael Arians' letter. He is the author of "Mary Jane's Ghost: The Legacy of a Murder in Small Town America". More about the author and his work here: https://tedcgregory.com/ Sergio Mendes and Brasil '77 perform the haunting song "After Sunrise": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-4WAh9Kjk0 Support the show and ditch overpriced wireless with Mint Mobile’s deal and get 3 months of premium wireless service for 15 bucks a month! https://www.mintmobile.com/notorious Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1h 18m
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4.7
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About

Serial killers. Gangsters. Gunslingers. Victorian-era murderers. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Each week, the Most Notorious podcast features true-life tales of crime, criminals, tragedies and disasters throughout history. Host Erik Rivenes interviews authors and historians who have studied their subjects for years. Their stories are offered with unique insight, detail, and historical accuracy.

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