Ridiculous Crime

It's pretty brazen to pose as a super secret spy guy in order to hustle up some phony government contracts. You have to convince folks that you are a man of mystery, an agent operating at the most clandestine levels of power. But when your targets are members of the government intelligence community themselves? Patriots and lovers of liberty, hear us when we say that's just plain ridiculous.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Just a few years after Watergate, the halls of power of Washington DC were again stained with fresh scandal. A busload of sitting US congressmen were caught up in an FBI sting operation, one run by a career, small-time criminal, a swindler and scammer. The operation is most memorable for the FBI's two fake sheiks used for their undercover busts. But when the FBI's callin' the tune, sometimes all you can do is get down and sheik your booty.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The game show Press Your Luck was an 80s fan favorite. And the biggest fan? Michael Larson. He studied the show for weeks, finding the weaknesses and plotting his attack. Heading out to Hollywood, he took his chance at stardom. And he didn't just make it onto the show, he made it into the history books. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Maybe you’re looking to get back at someone. Maybe that fine root structure is standing in the way of your upcoming financial boon. Or maybe you don’t like the cut of that tree’s xylem and phloem. Whatever the reason and whatever the chosen method, approaching a tree with murderous intent is just plain ridiculous. And it’s way, way out of bounds.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sometimes the best way to make money is to literally make money. William Chaloner, a total dirtbag, made his living minting phony coins and framing his co-conspirators for all manner of crimes. That was until a genius stepped in and brought his whole operation down, just like an apple falling from a tree.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For two long years, President Richard Nixon tried to cover-up a break-in at the Watergate Hotel. Nixon's Cold War spy buddies had engineered a plan to embarrass the Democrats but then when they got caught, Nixon had to mastermind a cover-up that would eventually bring down his presidency. And somehow, Howard Hughes makes an appearance! Why? Because this insane story of US history has a little of everything!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Don't you hate it when you learn to restore masterworks of art, but then you kind of mess one up, and then you just paint a new one and call it old, but then it's full of anachronisms, and then everyone loves it, but then you don't get any credit for your phony work? Don't you hate that? Lothar Malskat did. He hated it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

He was a famous lawman of the disappearing west, a Prohibition agent who dressed like a Wild West cowboy. The newspapermen loved him, the locals adored him, the bootleggers and moonshiners feared him. He was a bigger-than-life hero who seemed to be from a different, simpler era. But James "Two Gun" Hart also had a big secret. And when the truth finally emerged, the cowboy hero was revealed to be a far more complicated man. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It turns out we do read the emails. Unless Ex-intern Braxton accidentally deletes them all. Join us for cool listener stories, little shorty crimes, and gripping updates. *hits send*See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Ridiculous crews, both History and Crime, rejoin forces to once again play everyone’s favorite guessing game: 20 Questions. There were questions. There were answers. There were jokes about dogs in sunglasses! Join the gang for some puzzling good fun!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.