Episode

The Dumbbell Murder: Two Lovers Committed a Murder So Stupid The Papers Named It Twice

Podcast
Weird Darkness: Paranormal & True Crime Stories
Published
Jul 13, 2026
Duration seconds
7494
Processing state
not_requested
Canonical source
https://weirddarkness.com/wdr20260712
Audio
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/72861053/wdr20260712.mp3
JSON
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Markdown
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Summary

A discontented Long Island housewife and the forgettable corset salesman she seduced hatch a clumsy plot to murder her sleeping husband — a scheme so poorly executed that one famous newsman couldn't resist giving it a name. ========== HOUR ONE: Ruth Snyder and Judd Gray devised a scheme to get rid of Ruth’s husband – and they planned it so well that, okay… actually no. They were so inept they were caught immediately, and even the police publicly called them incompetent. (The Dumb-Bell Murder) *** For over 2,000 years across South and Southeast Asia, trained elephants served as living instruments of execution, crushing condemned prisoners with calculated brutality under the control of their handlers. (Execution By Elephant) *** Before he became a Civil War general, Congressman Dan E. Sickles' scandalous murder trial changed our legal system forever. He said outright that he had killed his wife’s lover. So how did he avoid being found guilty of the crime he admitted to committing? (How A Congressman Got Away With Murder) *** In 1150, two children were found near Woolpit in England – they wore strange clothes, spoke oddly, but the most identifiable characteristic for both children was their skin was green. The children themselves were a mystery – but what happened when they grew up? Did they marry? Did they have children? Could there be decedents of the green children of Woolpit living among us today? (Great Grandkids of Green Children) *** In the summer of 1518, a mysterious dancing plague seized the French town of Strasbourg, compelling hundreds to dance without rest for months—some until they collapsed and died—in a frenzy that baffled authorities and remains unexplained to this day. (Dancing Plague) ========== HOUR TWO: When it comes to receiving the death sentence, h…