The Darker Side of Life Podcast

Bonds between siblings isn't uncommon. But it's said that the bond between twins might be deeper or more intense than a non-twin sibling relationship.  The bond between twins June and Jennifer Gibbons was nearly supernatural - from near birth, these twins almost acted as if they were one person split into two bodies. An agreement early in their childhood to never speak to adults, their a...

Sixteen year old Skylar Neese was a smart, bubbly, driven teenager with a smile that could light up a room.  As an only child, Skylar was doted on by her mom and dad. She fought for the underdog and was loved by so many of her classmates.  But it was the two people Skylar trusted the most that would take it all away.

New Year's Eve in 1999 was a night of excitement and uncertainty - most were celebrating the new millennium, some were fearful of Y2K and a handful waited for the End of Days. One such group was the Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God, a cult in Africa led by a woman who said she saw visions of the Virgin Mary. However, Credonia Mwerinde was a strict leader who starved...

Clowns: Rainbow hair, colorful clothing, big shoes, balloon animals. What's not to love? Well, for some people, plenty. On the surface clowns are seen as wacky and whimsical characters falling out of cars at the circus. So why do they cause such a panic when they're seen out in the real world? The reasons might surprise. Hint: It's not all Stephen King's fault. 

In the late 1800s New England, a tuberculosis outbreak killed almost a quarter of the population. While the medical community wasn't yet aware of the disease or how to treat it, some turned to religion for relief, and some had .... other ideas.  As the disease consumed people's bodies, some thought the cause was vampires rising from the dead to feed on the living. Stopping them involved...

On June 12, 1912, the residents of Villisca, Iowa woke to find their small town changed forever. Sometime during the night the well-known Moore family and their two overnight guests were killed in their beds. The murder weapon: an ax taken from the Moore property. Left behind was a crime scene so horrifying and odd that people are still trying to make sense of it over one hundred years later. 

In the 1950s and 60s, the United States and USSR were locked in a space race to land a human on the moon. As the Soviets excelled at being the first to launch a satellite and put the first human in space, much of the West feared the speed and advanced technology of their rivals. In the aftermath of the Cold War, many around the world began to think the Soviets were masters of propaganda, and they...

Don't worry guys, we aren't going anywhere. But life got in the way of this weeks' episode.

Even though we have come a long way when it comes to mental health treatment and care, we still can't forget where we started. Athens Lunatic Asylum is testament to that. The sprawling building in Southeast Ohio looked more like a castle than an asylum. Thousands of people over 119 years came through the doors, committed for reasons such as childbirth, general bad health and illness that was...

Each year, the allure of Mt. Everest attracts climbers from around the world. People hope to climb the world's highest peak in a challenge of human endurance and spirit - but it doesn't always have a happy ending. Some climbers achieve their dreams on Everest, but many die trying. This week, we will examine common issues that plague high-altitude climbers, tell stories of mountaineers wh...

On September 8, 2017, nineteen year old Kenneka Jenkins headed out to a birthday party with friends at a Chicago area hotel. At the end of the night when her friends couldn't find her, they searched for hours into the early morning hours. When she was eventually found dead in a hotel freezer, family, friends and the community were left shocked and looking for answers. How could a fun night ou...

In one of our more heartbreaking stories, we cover the murder of the Rev. Carol Daniels, a woman who ministered to a small church in Anadarko, Oklahoma. She was murdered inside of her church, on a Sunday morning, and the brutal manner of her death left many more questions than answers, and her family and friends heartbroken. 

"Are you a witch or are you a fairy or are you the wife of Michael Cleary?"  In the 1800s, Ireland had seen its fair share of upheaval and changes. But one thing that was a common thread for many on the island was the belief in the "Good People" or Fairies and also in Changelings, human-like fairies left behind in another's place. They could be fickle creatures, creating t...

In the 1600s, the newest flagship for the Dutch East India Trading Company set sail to buy spices to bring back to Europe to sell. About 340 people gathered on the Batavia, ready to make the monthslong journey halfway around the world.  It got bad when they were lost in a storm. It got worse when they found themselves shipwrecked. And it grew dire when, on a tiny deserted island in the middle of t...

On October 24, 1961, police in Lincoln, Massachusetts were called to the home of Joan Risch. Her neighbor had called, concerned for her friend when she entered her house and found a kitchen covered in blood and the phone ripped off the wall. The scene police found was both shocking and confusing, but Joan was no where to be found. And the case continued to get weirder as reports came in of suspici...

On Christmas Eve, 1975, skilled pilot Peter Gibbs started a plane for a flight. He was advised not to take off, as it was pitch black over the Scottish airstrip, there were no guiding lights, and a winter storm was approaching fast. Not deterred, Peter took off anyway to prove such a takeoff and landing could be made - but he never made it back. Four months later, his body was found, in plain view...

That's right. We've found a way to combine two of our favorite things into one episode: Ghosts and true crime! In the early 1800s, the London borough Hammersmith was being terrorized by a ghost. Several people were attacked and people were scared to  come out of their homes.  Concerned groups of citizens would search at night for the Hammersmith ghost, hoping to put a stop to the terror....

It's raining meat! Hallelujah, it's raining meat ....  No, really. In 1876 in Eastern Kentucky, on a clear, calm, sunny day, chunks of meat began to fall from the sky. A family's farm was covered in the mysterious meat, and meat samples were sent far and wide to try and figure out the mystery. Then in 1970, a whale washed ashore in Oregon, causing a dilemma regarding removal efforts...

February 13, 2017, was a warm day in Delphi, Indiana, and friends Abby Williams and Libby German set out to enjoy a bonus day off of school. They headed to the trails at the Monon High Bridge, a popular place for locals to go and enjoy the outdoor gem. Abby and Libby never made it home and the next day the girls' bodies were found in the surrounding woods, setting in motion a mystery of who c...

In 1590, someone - or something - began a killing spree around the village of Bedburg, in Germany. Cattle and livestock began turning up dead and horribly mutilated, and soon after, some townspeople met that same fate. The work of a large wolf was likely at play.  When the "wolf" was captured and transformed into a well-known man in the village, the people then realized - they weren&apos...

The family of Clairvius Narcisse had watched him die. His sister, Angelina, stood over his bed and cried. They watched his coffin be lowered into the ground in a cemetery in Haiti. They placed a heavy stone marker over his grave. They moved on with their lives for almost two decades. But 18 years after her brother died, Angelina was approached by a familiar man in the market. He gave her his name:...

In 1998, a 10-year-old Austrian girl was grabbed off the street by a strange man, thrown into a van and driven to a strange house only to be put down in a dark basement cell. The cell was tiny, dark, and void of natural light and fresh air - and it would be her home for the next 8 years.  This is the kidnapping of Natascha Kampusch - but it's not just a story of a kidnapping and the abuse she...

Every year millions of people visit the National Parks in the United States. Families go to camp for the weekend, hikers and backpackers set out to explore the wilds of this country, photographers seek to capture the beautiful scenery of nature.  But some people will never come out of the parks and become lost in the wilderness. Many are never heard from again and no one knows exactly how many peo...

Born under tragic circumstances and raised in an abusive household, Leonarda Cianculli's early life seemed to have led her down a rough path. But poverty, a bad marriage, and the death of her children - along with a fortune teller's predictions from long ago - prompted her to lean into her superstitions and belief in magic. At the start of World War II, Leonarda found a way to protect he...

Many of us know the story of the Pied Piper: The man in the brightly colored clothes who could make rats and mice follow him just by playing a flute. But many don't know the second, darker part to the story where children were led away from their homes by that same man and his flute, never to be heard from again. But was it just a story told to children to teach them a lesson? Or did somethin...