Episodios

  • The Napoleon of Crime: Adam Worth
    Dec 11 2025

    Using his logistical and felonious prowess, Adam Worth developed a sophisticated criminal network stealing money, art, and jewelry from high-value targets on two continents. Understated and cunning, Worth was so successful he inspired one of literature's greatest criminal masterminds. Quite the criming legacy.

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    50 m
  • The Johnny Cash Jamaican Christmastime Miracle
    Dec 9 2025

    Who would possibly think it's a good idea to rob Johnny Cash...at Christmastime... in Jamaica? If this sounds like some sort of Mad Lib, trust us, it's not. This really happened. And oddly enough, it's actually a charming Christmastime tale.

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    1 h
  • The Fundamental Magical Element [from Very Special Episodes]
    Dec 6 2025

    Two Jamaican musicians are making a bold claim. They say they invented the now-ubiquitous reggaeton beat on a specific track in 1989. They're suing some of the genre's biggest stars for billions in royalties.

    But we found someone who’s telling a very different origin story. Hold onto your headphones as we dive into the mystery behind one of the most influential beats in modern music.

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    On the Very Special Episodes podcast, Zaron Burnett, Dana Schwartz, and Jason English tell one incredible story each week. Follow us down a different rabbit hole every Wednesday.

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    37 m
  • You Better Listen to the Radio: Operation Ostrich
    Dec 4 2025

    During WWII, there were lots of ways to contribute to the war effort. One involved sitting at a radio station on Long Island, feeding lies to the Nazis to aid the Allies. Owen House was the secret center of Operation Ostrich, the most intense counterintelligence effort you've never heard of.

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    55 m
  • The Zambian Plot
    Dec 2 2025

    Let's say you're a German industrialist who needs to drive up the price of copper on the commodities market, would you hire a midcentury adventurer/boat captain and a pair of Miami skin divers to help you blow up a bridge in Zambia? If so, then you are the perps in this truly wild Cold War tale of international intrigue.

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    59 m
  • Don't Mess with the Big Dog: Martha Stewart
    Nov 27 2025

    Martha Stewart is more than a food and entertaining icon; she's a brand. Literally. But a brand can't lie to the feds and a brand can't go to jail. Martha Stewart the human, however, could and did just that. But you can't keep a tough gal down. Martha made a comeback and then some. And that's a good thing.

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    1 h y 8 m
  • The King of Counterfeiters: Jeff Turner
    Nov 25 2025

    If you were in a bad place, hard up financially, looking for work, and some sorta lifeline... how far down your list of options would be the idea: should I start a counterfeiting ring? For Jeff Turner that was his number one idea. And that's how he became the King of Counterfeiters. But it's also how Jeff ended up on this show, so clearly there were some challenges he didn't expect. For example, a duplicitous Cleveland heroin dealer.

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    1 h y 2 m
  • There Ain't No Cure for the Varsity Blues: Rick Singer
    Nov 20 2025

    Applying to college. Oh, what a busy time that is for high school students. There are stressors like posing for a fake rowing photo or making sure your SAT ringer spelled your name right on the Scantron. See, while some teens spend all their time studying and participating in activities to get ahead, others spend their parents' cash to game the system. Gotta put that Full House syndication money to good use!

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    1 h y 4 m