#49- Con Man, Escape Artist, and Sucker for Love: The Extraordinary Life And Crimes of Steven Jay Russell

#51: Buried Alive! The Chowchilla Bus Kidnapping

In the summer of 1976, school bus driver Ed Ray was making what should have been an ordinary trip home. On board were 26 children returning from a day at summer school and eager to see their families. But that routine ride took a terrifying turn when three armed men in two vans carried out one of the most shocking kidnappings in American history. Trapped underground and facing impossible odds, the captives would be forced to rely on courage, determination, and the remarkable leadership of 14-year-old Mike Marshall. Join The Spooky Darlings as we unpack the Chowchilla bus kidnapping, the dramatic escape that captured the nation’s attention, and the lasting impact this extraordinary crime had on the survivors, their families, and the community for decades to come. Sources: HBO Chowchilla documentary 2023 The Chowchilla Kidnapping: Why Me? by Larry Park LA Times https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_Chowchilla_kidnapping [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_Chowchilla_kidnapping] Message us! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2515661/fan_mail/new] Thanks for listening to The Spooky Darlings! If you have a creepy, strange, or cool story you would like to share email us at thespookydarlings@gmail.com. Follow us on instagram and TikTok @thespookydarlingspodcast for more! Peruse our merch store at https://thespookydarlings.printful.me/ [https://thespookydarlings.printful.me/]

FUF #21 We're headed to Brandi!!!

We are headed to Brandi Carlile at the Gorge Amphitheater! We talk about J-hole Judge Nicholas Rowland, problematic prisoners Tony Carruthers and Ricky Wassenaar, and the extraordinary Erin Brockovich and her work with data centers. Don't forget the update onwhat we're watching and listening to — Catch up with us! And of course we would never skip out on essential updates on mormon wives and Vanderpump Villa! Sources: Tiktok: @Stephwiththedeets Message us! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2515661/fan_mail/new] Thanks for listening to The Spooky Darlings! If you have a creepy, strange, or cool story you would like to share email us at thespookydarlings@gmail.com. Follow us on instagram and TikTok @thespookydarlingspodcast for more! Peruse our merch store at https://thespookydarlings.printful.me/ [https://thespookydarlings.printful.me/]

#50- Ouija Believe it? The Strange History of Spirit Communication from Burnt Bones to the Bye Bye Man

Long before it was a party game, humans were obsessed with talking to the dead. This week the Darlings trace the strange history of spirit communication from Shang Dynasty oracle bones to the Fox sisters' famous knocking act, from Roman ring-and-alphabet divination to the planchette-wielding Spiritualists of the 1800s. Then there's the board itself: the 1890 Baltimore patent, outselling Monopoly in year one, and why The Exorcist changed everything. But the story that might haunt you longest comes from Robert Damon Schneck's The Bye Bye Man — a supposedly true account of college students who used an Ouija board to make contact with a living serial killer. Hollywood adapted it into a film and quietly removed the board entirely. We put it back. Plus — the Darlings get personal. Sisters bring stories from their own lives, their friends, and the darkest corners of Reddit, because it turns out everyone has an Ouija board story. Is it a window to the other side, or just your own unconscious mind spelling things out? Come find out...If you dare! Sources: Schneck, Robert Damon. The Bye Bye Man (originally published as The President's Vampire) Penguin Random House, 2004, 2016 Hunt, Stoker. Ouija: The Most Dangerous Game. 1985. Weisberg, Barbara. Talking to the Dead: Kate and Maggie Fox and the Rise of Spiritualism. 2004. The Witch's Board: A Comprehensive Guide to the Ouija Marcellinus, Ammianus. Res Gestae. 4th century CE. (Primary source — Roman account of ring-and-alphabet divination) Talking Board Historical Society — Robert Murch. talkingboard.org Mysterium.com — Brandon Hodge. (History of spirit communication tools and planchettes) U.S. Patent No. 446,054 (1891) — Original Ouija board patent filed by Elijah Bond. Available via Google Patents. Carpenter, William Benjamin. "Ideomotor Action." British Journal of Psychiatry, 1852. (Original paper coining the ideomotor effect) Oracle Bone Script — National Palace Museum, Taipei. npm.gov.tw "The Bizarre History of the Ouija Board." Smithsonian Magazine. smithsonianmag.com Message us! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2515661/fan_mail/new] Thanks for listening to The Spooky Darlings! If you have a creepy, strange, or cool story you would like to share email us at thespookydarlings@gmail.com. Follow us on instagram and TikTok @thespookydarlingspodcast for more! Peruse our merch store at https://thespookydarlings.printful.me/ [https://thespookydarlings.printful.me/]

Cryptid Crawl #22- Michigan Monsters and Misfits

From red-skinned harbingers of doom to howling forest beasts, we’re diving into some of Michigan’s strangest legends. This week, The Spooky Darlings explore the  Nain Rouge of Detroit, the terrifying Michigan Dogman, the eerie tale of the Ada Witch, and the very real lumberjack P.K. Small whose bizarre appearance and behavior earned him the nickname “Slackjaw,” or “the Ogre of Seney”. Cryptids, curses, and backwoods chaos await.  Sources: https://visitdetroit.com/inside-the-d/the-legend-of-the-nain-rouge-in-detroit/ [https://visitdetroit.com/inside-the-d/the-legend-of-the-nain-rouge-in-detroit/] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nain_Rouge [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nain_Rouge] Podcast Theories of the Third Kind,  Episode 297 - Nain Rouge. Michigan Dogman: * Luther cabin attack details: Cadillac News, "Was the Dogman responsible?" [https://www.cadillacnews.com/news/local/was-the-dogman-responsible/article_b6fdbc0d-5fae-5213-a6e9-08f32dd88e15.html] * Cook's own account: Cadillac News 30th anniversary [https://www.cadillacnews.com/news/local/how-the-dogman-legend-was-born/article_7c49b428-2955-5d39-95e1-1d1be6291721.html] + WCMU [https://www.wcmu.org/local-regional-news/2023-10-31/dog-man-story-starts-as-song-continues-as-legend] + Michigan Enjoyer [https://enjoyer.com/is-the-michigan-dogman-just-an-april-fools-prank-gone-wild/] * Beast of Bray Road: Wikipedia [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beast_of_Bray_Road] * Modern sightings color: Connect Paranormal [https://connectparanormal.net/2025/01/21/werewolf-and-dogman-sightings-in-michigan/] (paranormal blog tier) * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvlQp5f7ZwU [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvlQp5f7ZwU] Message us! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2515661/fan_mail/new] Thanks for listening to The Spooky Darlings! If you have a creepy, strange, or cool story you would like to share email us at thespookydarlings@gmail.com. Follow us on instagram and TikTok @thespookydarlingspodcast for more! Peruse our merch store at https://thespookydarlings.printful.me/ [https://thespookydarlings.printful.me/]

#49- Con Man, Escape Artist, and Sucker for Love: The Extraordinary Life And Crimes of Steven Jay Russell

Steven Jay Russell wasn’t just a con man — he was an escape artist, master manipulator, and one of the most unbelievable criminals Texas ever tried to contain. Join The Spooky Darlings as they unravel the bizarre true story of Steven Jay Russell: from insurance fraud and impersonation schemes to his jaw-dropping prison escapes that embarrassed law enforcement again and again. His final capture led to years spent in brutal solitary confinement, a cruel punishment for a non-violent offender.  Steven Jay Russell was a charming genius, convincing liar, and a man the system tried to break completely. Join us as we share the incredible story of one of Texas’s most persistent absconders. Sources:  I Love You Phillip Morris,  by Steve McVicker https://solitarywatch.org/2014/12/08/voices-from-solitary-the-life-of-an-escape-artist/ [https://solitarywatch.org/2014/12/08/voices-from-solitary-the-life-of-an-escape-artist/] https://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2020/06/king-con-the-conman-who-simply-walked-out-of-prison-four-times/ [https://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2020/06/king-con-the-conman-who-simply-walked-out-of-prison-four-times/] Karl Smallwood: King Con: The Con Man Who Simply Walked Out of Prison Four Times The Great Escapee, article in Esquire Magazine, by Alex Hannford Message us! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2515661/fan_mail/new] Thanks for listening to The Spooky Darlings! If you have a creepy, strange, or cool story you would like to share email us at thespookydarlings@gmail.com. Follow us on instagram and TikTok @thespookydarlingspodcast for more! Peruse our merch store at https://thespookydarlings.printful.me/ [https://thespookydarlings.printful.me/]