Doomed to Fail - Ep 230: Turn the music up, or else! - The Axeman of New Orleans

Episode Date: December 22, 2025

What was the funnest day in American history?? For your consideration - here's the story of the Axeman of New Orelnes - maybe more than one person, maybe just one? But, one very well written person wrote a letter asking everyone in NOLA to have a Jazz band playing one March night in 1919... it might have been fun.  Join our Founders Club on Patreon to get ad-free episodes for life! patreon.com/DoomedtoFailPodWe would love to hear from you! Please follow along! Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/doomedtofailpod/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/doomedtofailpod  Youtube:  https://www.youtube.com/@doomedtofailpod TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@doomed.to.fail.pod Email: [e-mail] 

In a matter of the people of the state of California versus Orenthal James Simpson, case number B.A.019. And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you. We're back. We're back. And I'm chaos goblin. And we're back. And I just opened this whiskey mitai.

I don't know. I drank my body weight in Prosecco this week. But here I am. it's the hall you know what i chalk it up to is this the holidays it's going to be long it's going to be stressful there's going to be a lot of weird stuff happening and i gained a couple pounds but you know what also like it's like in like the 2000s and probably now if no i don't because i don't read many like women's magazines it's always like how to avoid losing how to avoid gaining two pounds

during the holidays and it's like just fucking eat some christmas cookies and shut up you know i mean just you deal with it in january yeah exactly it's a january problem. It's not a December problem. No, have fun. Eat whatever you want between Thanksgiving and December and don't worry about it. Just have fun. Yeah, just slowly melt into your couch and yeah. Enjoy it. That's what the week between Christmas and the New Year's is for, all that stuff. Yeah, I agree. I'm with you. I'm melting into this chair that I'm sitting in right now. So I'm with you. Nice. I like that. Good for you. Would you like to intro us? Yes, hello. Welcome to Dune to Javale. We're bringing historical disasters and failures.

And I am Taylor joined by Fars. And we are here on this lovely day telling a story that Taylor has devised, which I'm sure will be riveting. Thank you. So it actually is a, it has nothing to do with the holidays. I felt like I thought like maybe I should do something for the holidays and I didn't do that. But so the event that I was at this week, there's another one, another meeting of the same kind. next quarter in New Orleans and I want to go

because I want to go there have you been there to New Orleans I'm going to say different every time I say it like the way I say data and data so just I'm letting everybody know so I we used to go to Shreveport a lot because Shreveport's right on the border of Texas and it is really close to

Dallas like a couple hour drive and that's where gambling was doable and so when we turned 18 we're like let's go the street for it and we're just trying to be exploring and do kids stuff like that i had a chance to go to new or this year but it was going to be like in august and i was like i know i went in august sounds rough i know i went august on time and it was very rough i hear halloween new orleans supposed to be amazing i do love these spooky vibes i think there's

something about that and savannah that are very very appealing to me but i've never been oh yeah we talk about savannah all the time yeah yeah yeah no I also I definitely want I definitely want to go I remember it went in August and I remember like the people that we were with like everyone was just like soaking wet like you're just like so sweaty it was so gross it's crazy it's great it is very similar to so anybody here's listening in Houston it's pretty similar to Houston like it's pretty similar to Houston like it's well you wouldn't know because you live in Houston but like whoever's listening I mean but when you go to Houston you immediately just break out sweating and it is so uncomfortable for the first couple of days I feel like I was like did a transfer in the airport in Houston and I was like this sucks I was like inside because you're you You can feel it. It, like, penetrated the walls. It's rough going. So there's nothing to do with Christmas, but it has to do with New Orleans. I'm going to tell you a real classic true crime story. Can you think of who it's about?

Is it Kate Hudson and Skeleton Key? No, but oh, my God, it's so good. I told you how I watched it, and I remember my roommate and I did our, like, went through all of our receipts because you were so scared. So fun. What a good one. No, I want to tell you about the Axeman of New Orleans. Have you heard about it? know about the ax man who's also known as a jazz man i believe i know he is yes both axes and

jazz and i'm going to read you i'm going to read you the entirety of the jazz stuff in a second but this one has it all axes murders jazz and humidity the four things that you need the four vectors of a good story yeah this is everything so it is um may 1918 and we're in new orleans so it's may so I assume it's already hot and humid. And it's World War I, so there's that happening in the background. New Orleans is also, I just learned this also,

one of the nicknames of many is the Crescent City because of the way that like the river... Yeah, the Mississippi Delta. Yeah. I just heard that, but also Crescent City is the name of the book series

that I've been reading. And although no one has emailed me about those romantic books that I've been reading when I'm asking them to, I just want to say out loud to the one person who knows what I'm talking about

that I heard the Crescent City book four is next, please write me an email. You know who you are. She is looking very intently into the camera. If any of, if those words make sense to you, email me. So we talk about it. Anything they don't make sense.

Just write to her and say you know. Write to me anyway. But besides that, let me know. So before the arrival of European colonists, the Chok Chaw people lived in the area. They called it Bulb. Sorry, Bulba Ancha, which translates to land of many tongues.

This was a place where like a lot of tribes would meet obviously because it's the bottom of like the river and like a port and all those things. The French

took control of it in the early 1700s then after the seven years war it went to Spain and it became part of the United States in 1803. Wait, Spain owned

Yeah, because Spain owns like New Orleans through Texas through California and then like that then and then I think it was all part of the Louisiana

purchase, which was like most of the West. Was that France that sold us Louisiana? Yeah, because remember Okay, well, shit, hold on. I feel like Napoleon had a big part of this. I don't think so you remember Napoleon? No, remember Napoleon

sent, gave us a big part of that because, and he afterwards, he was like, I probably should have done that, but he was never ever going to come over here. gave the U.S. But he gave the U.S. Yeah, this is Louisiana Purchase. Everything across the Mississippi River

doubled the sides of, yeah, 1903, Louisiana Purchase, crucial port of New Orleans was $15 million. It doubled the size of the U.S. T.J. was president, and Napoleon needed the money. Okay, so it wasn't in Spain that owned it France owned it. Yeah, but Spain owned it before then and gave it to France after the Seven Years War.

Okay, I got it the other way around. I thought you said France owned it, gave it to Spain. We'll play this back and we'll find out who's right and wrong. But okay, no matter what it was... I did say that. Maybe it's the other way around. It doesn't matter. It's ours now.

Bitches. Okay, that's all. So it's about 100 years or so after. And we'll talk about the Axeman, who is a serial killer, maybe. We'll talk about who he killed some maybes and then how he did it. You ready?

Yes. So it's May 23rd, 1918, and Italian grocer, Joseph Maggio, and his wife, Catherine, are asleep. A lot of our victims are going to be Italian grocery store owners. It's so sad. Just so you know. Why, because of the good Italian foods,

are probably there? They're doing nothing about providing you best of, hostage and pasta. Like what, why would you hurt them? Exactly. Exactly. No, totally. And also, everything is going to happen in like the middle of the night. And I know that I talked about this before. I've mentioned this book a bunch of times, but I have a book called The Invention of Murder. And the invention of murder book opens up with a story of a woman who is like a maid, a housekeeper or whatever at a house in London. And they have her go out and run an errand at night. And it's so dark, it's hard for her to find her way back. Because there's like no streetlights.

It's like, it's just so dark when it gets dark. And then she also gets back and everyone's been murdered and it's like a whole thing. But you just like don't know where you are. So it's just like, imagine it's super dark. It's humid. A lot of mosquitoes, probably. Oh, yeah, probably a lot of mosquitoes. So he, someone breaks into the house of Joseph and Catherine and he slices their throats while

they're sleeping. Catherine's head is almost severed. It's like a straight razor that he uses. And her head's cut like to her shoulders. like she's super dead after this then he axes them and takes the axe and like chops them up a little bit before he before he leaves nearby on the sidewalk someone presumably the killer wrote in chalk he wrote mrs maggio will sit up tonight just like mrs tony and mrs tony was another italian grocer who was killed a few like six years before 1912 so this had happened before so could it be

the same guy. I don't have an answer to that. We don't know. But like something similar had happened before. It also reminds me of Jack the Ripper. Because do you remember, and we talked about Jack the Ripper, how he would write stuff with chalk on the walls? Yeah. And like everybody just kind of had chalk on their pocket, which I feel like I wish I knew more about, like, because you would have to like write things. Like if you and I were, I thought like Fars meet me at this place and then I got there and all of a sudden I had to leave, I would write on the sidewalk. Like Fars I'll be back in 30 minutes or whatever. You know what I mean?

There's a way to communicate. So you would write, use talk all the time. Yeah, it's been a wild. Which is wild. And I feel like I never see that in movies and I wish I saw more of it, I guess. That's my point. But Joe lives for a little bit, a little bit, like laying in bed, what a terrible night. Like laying in bed, kind of half conscious, your wife has been like pretty much decapitated.

You've been axed and had your throat throat slit. His brother, Andrew, lived in the apartment next door. And he was drunk, but he heard them, like, rustling around. And he went in there. didn't see anyone leaving, but did, like, see his brother, his brother's alive for a few minutes, then his brother died. The blade belonged to Andrew. Andrew was a barber, but he had taken it home for like some other reason. So the weapon was, you know, from the house.

It wasn't something that the killer brought in. And Andrew, the brother was the main suspect for a while, but then he was exonerated. He wasn't the guy who did it. And nothing was stolen. The killer left his bloody clothes in the apartment. He changed. So I don't know if he brought. clothes or wore

like Joseph's clothes but he left his bloody clothes on the floor and then left naked I don't know and then they found the razor a couple houses down in the yard weird yeah he must have changed the guy's clothes

yeah he must have or like it just feels it feels so weird to bring clothes but I guess that could be an option too yeah it's like going to the gym and then knowing you're going to shower there except yeah murd blood

Yeah. So that's scary. And now there's a murderer out. And there's a couple of things that happen. A couple murders that come next that we're not 100% sure are the same guy, but they could be. So on October, a month later, on June 27th, Louis, Louis Bessmer and his mistress, Harriet Lowe are in the bedroom behind his grocery store. And he's hatcheted in the head. And she's hatcheted in her head over her left ear and they're both alive. So as soon the police, find them like people find them in the morning but they've been laying there all night like bleeding from their heads and they immediately blame a black guy who was working for them but that guy ended up getting off but there was no evidence at all Harriet said that it was a good man who was maybe mixed race that that had done it like she'd maybe seen him and then again nothing was stolen but then she said that louis did it that the guy that she was with had did it and that he was a german spy because World War I, he got arrested, and then she dies a month later from, like, complications of surgery, because, like, him and imagine, like, sewing her head back together and the

complications. So she said the guy that got axed with her as a one that axed her? Yes. And he's charged for murder after she dies from surgery. Wasn't he axed? Yes. I wrote, I also don't know how you axed yourself. Or, like, that feels like a lot.

Yeah, it sounds like someone who had a traumatic brain injury. Like, yes. Like, if you were, if you were. Like, I've heard of people, like, shooting someone, like, you shoot yourself in the leg and you're like, someone shot at us, you know? Yeah. But, like, you don't ax yourself in the head. No, that's a rough way to get away for that. Yeah.

So the things that are against, like, this being a part of it is just that, like, um, some people think it might have been something like domestic or something that involves the family. But, I mean, nothing was stolen. It's an Italian grocer. And they were axed. I feel like that fits my bell, the middle of the night of the axed. Yeah? It seems like it might be a part of it. Another one, a couple days later on August 5th, there's a woman named Anna Schneider. She's eight months pregnant. She sees someone looming over her bed. She's there alone and she's axed also. Her husband finds her a couple hours later because he comes home from work and she's okay. And also the baby's okay. It's a girl. Baby was fine. Nothing was stolen aside for a few dollars, but she was probably hit. I'm sorry, she wasn't axed. She was bashed. So she was bashed in the head probably. by a lamp that was like by her bedside but it didn't kill her and they arrested an ex-convict he was released so like it could be just because it's dangerous to be around this area like it's dangerous

to be alive or it could be the guy that one's not like proven to be him those those are the two iffy ones so that was a little iffy because like it he didn't he didn't find anything sharp but still he hit her and then maybe he was like targeting women and like saw she was pregnant and then like decided to hit her again you know what I mean? Maybe. I don't know other things. But now the next ones we know are him, whoever he is. So at August 10th, an old man named Joseph Romano is found by his nieces, Pauline and Mary.

The girls say they saw a dark-skinned heavyset man running away. Joseph dies two days later, and again, nothing was stolen. There was a bloody axe in the yard, and a panel on the door had been chiseled away. So that's going to be his, like, MO from now on that, like, he cut a big part of the door out. And then, like, the submachine is that he climbed through, but I also think he could have Yeah, reached in. Yeah. Exactly.

So maybe that. And this is when people start to get really scared. Like, now we think that there might be a guy going around asking people in town. So you get to be a little bit nervous. So some of the theories that we have is, like, is this the same guy from 1911 and 1912? Also, is it the man on the train? Because you remember the ex, the exoner one that you did of that family? who was the family the vizelka acts murders you did that family i thought you did it you did it

no i think you did it okay we can debate it but like yeah i know which point you're talking about whatever that one so like those those people who were murdered they could have been the same guy um and then like another one is like i don't know where i read it but like could it have been jacked the ripper because that was like 20 years before which is like not at all the same MO he's like that he's just like scary and like mysterious but i think that would be fun that was like wasn't it like the great-grand nephew of jack the ripper that made that up maybe i think on h-j homes never mind oh maybe oh no yeah because there's always a guy who like says it was my grandpa or whatever exactly exactly yeah and you're like it's not like your grandpa's not interesting there's no way

but still that thing so whoever he is the axeman takes a few months off and then on march 10th 1919 italian immigrant charles court amelia and his family his wife rosy and their baby daughter Mary were screaming, and their neighbor, who was an Italian grocer's, they live next door to a grocery store, heard them screaming. The baby dies from being axed, but nothing was stolen, and the door panel had been chiseled off, just like in the last one. So that starts to be the things that are happening. Yeah, so robbery is not the motive. It's definitely to kill people. So Rosie says, it's my neighbors who did this. So the neighbor is the Italian grocer and his 18-year-old son. And she says, they definitely did it. And they're like,

what are you talking about? We just came here to help you. You know, like, we did not do this. But they get charged and the son, who's 18, get sentenced to hanging and the dad gets sentenced to life. So the neighbors who are the Italian grocers are the ones who get convicted of doing this. Charles and Rosie, they're still alive. And so Charles is like, Rosie, you're being insane. Like, that is not what happened. They did not do it. And he divorces her because he's so mad at her for, like, accusing their neighbors of doing this. And after a year, she admits that she made it all up and both of them get out of jail. It was this at a time when Arabs or Arabs, when Italians weren't considered white yet?

Yes. Okay. Yes, absolutely. So there is some like race stuff and like mafia related stuff. Like what, you know, what are the reasoning behind this? But yes, there's definitely discrimination against Italian people during this time. Right. So right after this, right on March 13.

1919. We get the famous letter from the jazz man that goes to a newspaper. This is so amazing. I'm going to read the whole thing. This is my favorite thing. I haven't practiced. I'm just going to read the whole thing to you. So buckle up. I do like at the very top of the letter, you know how you put like, you know, remember how we had to learn how to write formal letters? That's dumb. I don't, but sure. It's like your name and your address in the top right corner and like the day on the side, you know, like that kind of thing. But it starts off with hell March 13th, 1919. So he's writing from hell. That's so cool. Yeah.

So esteemed mortal, it starts for you. They have never caught me and they never will. They have never seen me for I am invisible. Even as the ether that surrounds your earth, I am not a human being, but a spirit and a demon from the hottest hell. I am what you Orlinians and your foolish police call the Axeman. When I see fit, I shall come and claim other victims. I alone know whom they shall.

be. I shall leave no clue except my bloody axe, besmeared with blood and brains of he who I'm sent below to keep me company. If you wish, you may tell the police to be careful not to rile me. Of course, I am a reasonable spirit. I take no offense at the way they have conducted their investigations in the past. In fact, they have been so utterly stupid as to not only amuse me, but his satanic majesty, Francis, Joseph, etc. But tell them to beware. Let them not try discover what I am, for it were better that they were never born than to incur the wrath of the axe-man. I don't think there is any need of such a warning, for I feel sure the police will always dodge me as they have in the past. They are wise and know how to keep away from all harm.

Undoubtedly, you or Linnians think of me as the most horrible murderer, which I am, but I could be much worse if I wanted to. If I wished, I could pay a visit to your city every night. At will, I could slay thousands of your best citizens, for I am in close relationship. relationship with the angel of death. Now to be exact, at 1215 earthly time, on next Tuesday night, I am going to pass over New Orleans. In my infinite mercy, I'm going to make a little proposition to you people. Here it is. I am very fond of jazz music, and I swear by all the devils in the nether regions that every person shall be spared in whose home a jazz band is in full swing at the time I've just mentioned. If everyone has a jazz band going, well, then so much the better for you people.

One thing is certain, and that is some of your people who do not jazz it out on that specific Tuesday night, if there be any, we'll get the axe. Well, as I am cold and crave, the warmth of my native terrorist, a man or not means hell, and it's about time I leave your earthly home. I will cease my discourse, hoping that thou wilt publish this, that it may go well with thee. I have been and will be the worst spirit that ever existed either in fact or realm of fantasy, the Axeman. Okay, several comments here.

Please, I'm excited. Okay. I only remember the jazz part because that was really like Hannibal Lectery. Mm-hmm. But he sounds like a absolute

dweeb. I'm going to pass over New Orleans, the dark one, mortal it's just like shut up I don't know it just sounds like a nerve well absolutely sounds like I do feel like he's a good writer yeah yeah yeah it's very stimulating writing sure right

I think it's kind of fun I also think that that night would have been really fucking fun because people did it every jazz band in New Orleans was booked every jazz club was full of people like that's fun as shit like you walk down the street Every house has jazz playing as loud as you as many possible at midnight 15. I love that.

Dude, they should have remade Halloween for that night. How fun would have been. If everybody's doors are open, they're blasting jazz and kids are running around with like, axi to be so cool. I know.

I think that, I think that part, like, and that night passed and no one got, no one got axed, which I think is fun. I don't know. I think that seems like one of the funest nights.

in American history. Yeah, no kidding. You know, like, everyone's kind of scared, but you're out and listening to jazz and it's humid and you're, like, walking around and like, just, I don't know, that seems really fun. How many guys at bars were talking to women being like, hey, this could be our last night? A thousand percent. Hey, baby, I got a trumpet at home. Yeah, exactly.

I'll keep you safe. I'll play my trumpet all night. So fun. So fun. So that goes in the paper. That's the only time you ever communicate with, like, anyone. like if it is one person, if this is written by him, all the things. But I think it's super fun and that night should have been really fun.

So that's in March and he takes a little bit of a break. And then on August 10th, another grocer, his name is Steve Boka, is attacked by a dark figure. He has his head cracked open and he lives. He runs into the street for help and his neighbor comes and helps him in all the things. I mean, I feel like I have this story. Six people died and like 16 were injured. I feel like he those, he didn't kill. He didn't kill as many people as I would have suspected.

Yeah, the body's really resilient. Your skull is super, super thick. Like, you've got to really work at it to get to the insides. Yeah, yeah. But that, so at Steve's house, it's the same thing. Nothing's taken. There's the axe, the bloody axe found around the scene, and the door was chiseled open, or the panel was chiseled off.

On September 3rd, a woman named Sarah Lauman, she lived alone. She was only 19. She had, she was hit by a blunt object. through an open window but recovered. That kind of feels like that one might not be a part of it because it doesn't follow the pattern, but that's another thing that happened then. And then finally,

the last one is on October 27th, 1919. A man named Mike Pepitone is axed in the head. His wife said that she saw someone large running away, and he did. He did die. Was he a grocer? I don't, I think, I think so. I think he's a theory.

Yes. Because this would have been around the time when, like, union and worker stuff was, like, crazy violent. Mm-hmm. What if it was, like, some group trying to unionize grocery people? Yeah. And these people all own grocery stores. Right. They're trying to intimidate?

Yeah. I think that's interesting. Because there are the theories of, like, Italians. I'll go be more, I guess, prejudice with it. They're all Italian. What if it was like a mob thing? What if like the mob was trying to like break into the grocery, the pasta business? I don't know.

But like... Yeah, yeah, yeah. Like the mob, the mob thing is like a real theory. I didn't see the union thing, but that also kind of makes sense to me too. Because the union kind of back then, like, they were, both sides were scary. Yeah, I feel like I've been interested to learn more about that too, right? Because like the union guys would kill you. Yeah, yeah. And the union busters would kill the union guys.

Like, there were actually very scary groups of people. Yeah, maybe it is that. Maybe it is the, um, maybe it is the union busting or something. Well, I'm sure you're going to get into like the suspects. Yeah. Here are my other theories. Here's what we know. If the letter is real, we have someone who like has to do with jazz music I think is like a pretty good writer so he has like some education you know um and like maybe like if maybe he like hated jazz people like all that stuff that's kind of weird like it's only mentioned one time so there's that we know that about them we know he loves murdering people we know that like there's evidence that maybe he went for the

women first and so like maybe he wanted to murder women for some reason um It could be somebody who hates Italian people. Wait, do we know that for sure that he went for the women? It's like, I'm not going to say, 100%. But that's, like, part of the thing. Is that, like, in most cases, he attacked the woman first. Because in most situations like this, they go for the man first because then the woman is more helpless. Right.

And as far as I can tell, there's no, like, sexual assault or anything. It's just, like, comes in, axes you, and leaps. Weird. Okay. Yeah. Some people think that it could have been a woman, because, if she got that little panel of the door off and went through it. But I also feel like I'm picturing, I don't know exactly what I'm picturing. I'm picturing like, when I look at like a door in my house, there's like four panels, you know, of like shapes in a door.

Do you have those in your doors or a door flat? No, I have the glass thing. Oh, well, ours sounds like a, like, it goes like fake panels. So I'm imagining one of those and it's like kind of like maybe two feet high and like 10 inches wide. so maybe he went through it but I also feel like he could have done that and just like use that to like flick a latch you know yeah

so I don't know I don't exactly know how the door thing works but like maybe it was someone smaller and it was a woman but I kind of feel like I doubt it was a woman because we don't have any women acts murderers but I don't know women's rights could have been a lady yeah we're equal opportunity we're feminist so yeah

so the other ones like obviously like the it's not Jack the River not Jack the Ripper, but the similarities are fun because it's like someone who, you know, wrote letters to the press and there was no arrest and we'll never have any closure on who it was, you know. And then there's murders that they attribute to it when they probably aren't his, things like that. So like, that's always kind of fun to be like, you know, did he do everything? Did he do some of them? Is it an opportunity for other people to do it to murder when there's a murder around? You know? I mean, I do think. So, when you told me what did you say the first one it was when he did the killing and then left the chalk marks the murderer that he referred to was six years prior yeah so there's like I don't know from what little I understand like they don't that's a crazy cooling off period it really is so it could be like copycats and then yeah I don't know and also he like could have gone some work because the other

option is there's like I would say the man from the train who we've talked about before is like someone who potentially is like a mass murderer who there's a book called the man from the train I felt it was kind of like not the most solid argument I'd ever heard for at all being one person but it was like in that case they said it was a German man named Paul Mueller who like was just jumping off of trains and going into towns and killing people you know and like he could have been the guy in the hinder kai murders, the ones in Germany, we're talking about that, too. So, like, there's, there's that. So, like, but with that idea of that kind of murder, like, you can just leave. Yeah, yeah. You know, there's no, like, get your Bindle. Yeah. There's no evidence that's going to find you, you know, unless you do the exact same thing again somewhere else. And someone there happens to have heard the story, like, they're never going to connect it, you know. And then, so then the most popular person who's, you know, and then the most popular person who's, they think might have done it.

Like the most popular suspect is a guy named Frank Doc Mumfrey. And he died in 1921. And he also had a couple aliases. There was Leon Joseph Montfrey and Manfrey. But he had like a jazz business. And during this time, his jazz business got a big bump because people like wanted to learn how to play jazz more because of this. So they think that like he could have done it because he was like kind of a shady guy. I mean, if you have a couple aliases, you know, you're not not shady.

but they never arrested him for anything and I feel like the chances are high that he maybe broke the letter and tried to attribute it to the axeman and make it a jazz associated thing

to kind of add to like the allure of like New Orleans and jazz and murder and all these things like you want to go and do it. So my money is that he wrote the letter because he was like something's happening this is fun and then like some other person killed some people

specifically Italian grocers and I feel like that potential mafia union thing is up there because you're like, why, like, why are you focusing on these people? Yeah. And then it just stopped. So Frank died in 1921. The last murder was in 1919. But like in most case, like there's like, there's like, there's three very clear options. Like maybe the guy, maybe he moved. The murder moved or he was put in jail from something else. Like that happens all the time with serial killers that we know about now. It was a cooling off period of a couple of years because they like went to jail for a minor infraction, but they were not not. for this or maybe he died you know i'm really hung up on the italian grocer thing because like yeah in a lot of situations people end up victimizing their own cultures more than others and i don't know it's not insane to think that like someone shows up they speak the same dialect from Sicily and then I don't know, I just

you got to pay this money and if you don't bad things happen. Right, right. I've watched a lot of movies, you know, I mean, that could be it. Yeah, yeah. That I feel that I feel like it makes a lot of sense. But also then, I guess, wait a question that just came up to me, but like,

why would you only hire one guy to do it? We don't know if it's one guy. I guess it could be more. But like, the people who remember are like, there was one man here. They weren't like there was a bunch of guys here. But I guess maybe you could hire one guy. Subterfuge.

Then it's like they're looking for a serial killer and not like the mob, you know? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Because also the meth has changed, right? Because in one situation, he's using like a straight edge to cut the throat. And then another one, he's using the blunt side of an axe to bash in someone's face. Right. Totally.

weird but all the weapons were like founded they were like theirs which is like he didn't come in with anything he used like their ex we should start like a cold case podcast where we try and solve these things actually kind of now that we're talking about this i think also there's a good chance that was a demon you're really reading the letter too literally because we're ignoring the fact that he confessed that he was a demon and it's new orleans and it's new orleans he just like he just like flies over those people, and it could kill everyone. I put a look at this word. I couldn't say, this tartress word.

Yeah, I don't know. There's also a woman named Clementine Barnabit, apparently. I did look at that. That was scary. Voodoo priestess and axe murderer during this time who killed 35 people with axes. So that seems like pretty strong evidence. um the axeman said he lives in tartarus which is the dense deep dark abyss beneath the underworld as a prison for the most wicked mortals and fallen gods if it was going to happen anywhere i could

totally see it being new Orleans it's so witchy exactly like i don't think this is like a story that could happen like that would happen in other places in vermont yeah yeah yeah yeah exactly it's like a it's a very and and it really it is just fucking like that like i remember why through like the little towns they have the outskirts are like the city part there's like cute little houses with their porch and it's foggy and it's hot humid and like it's that southern gothic vibe that we talk about yeah yeah one of uh someone that we know i'll tell you later but like his his tradition was Halloween in New Orleans every single year and he was like it is so fun and so moody and the whole thing feels like it should be Halloween 24-7 which I totally

yeah I totally buy that I met a woman in Japan who was from Dubai and she told me that she was driving over a bridge into New Orleans one time and she said I felt fear like I'd never felt before I got her way in and I was like I believe you yeah I remember that one woman I

covered where Nicholas Cage bought her house but it was known as like the torture house where she killed all her slaves and so yeah there's a lot of corey stories that come out of this place including this one which is really really fun Yeah, I think we sell it, though. It's something mob or union-oriented.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. I think so, too. Or demon. Or demon. Also, I think, I'm pretty sure they cover this in the American Horror Story, Coven. I could not watch that one. I only got a few episodes into it.

There is, because there's a man that, like, the Supreme Witch is, like, kind of on and off with, but he is the X-Man in the thing. And he's Danny Houston, like Angelica Houston's cousin. I like him. He's also in that one with the town in Alaska where the 30 days and 30 nights or whatever. 30 nights. Oh yeah. Yeah, yeah.

That guy. He was accidented in. That movie does not hold up. I just watched that again fairly recently and it was not good. I feel like I was saying that because I don't understand the clothes they're wearing. I don't understand what they're doing. I don't understand how they go through many days with nothing happening. I just have a lot of questions. Yeah. Yeah. Same page. Fun. All right, well, we're going to keep investigating this.

If you want to hear us do a podcast on cold cases. Do you remember that time I wrote to the city of Austin for a foyer request on the yogurt shop murders? I do. You should still do it because if they find a guy? They found him, yeah. I mean, it's not a fun story because the guy just killed himself like 30 years ago. Like, he's been dead forever. Also, I hate stories where it's... It's just like, I mean, how many times can you talk about sexual assault?

Like, at some point, it's like, you're just like saying it for the sake of saying it. Like, it's not fun anymore. Like, so, not that it's fun. You know what I mean? Like, there's that much beyond the grossness of the whole thing. So that's why I never did it. Yeah. No, that's fair.

Well, thank you for sharing, Taylor. Yeah. That'll round us out for the year because we're going to skip the week of New Year. But then we'll be back in 2026. Man, how time flies, huh? Yeah. What a, what a time. These are also alive.

Who knows what 2026 is going to bring bloody gums and copper taste? Who knows? There's a comedian that I love and he does like he does the ghost of Christmas future. He just goes, it's going to get worse. Who is it?

I'll find him and I don't know what he's so funny. But I do have some male. Yeah, let's hear. For Morgan, my friend Morgan is Watches Jeopardy. And I just want to say to the person that works of Jeopardy, who is a listener, please email us and say hello. Because in the past two months, three of the Jeopardy questions have been episodes that we've done, like in the past two months. It's kind of wild. So from six weeks ago, there was the question is, or like the answer is, she's a songwriter behind such hits as if I could turn back time and how do I live? And that is Diane Warren, who wrote Blame and on the rain. there's that one. Then just this week there were two. One of them was Lewis Valdez directed and wrote a play that appeared on Broadway about the riots in SoCal named for this title

fashion item. Obviously a zootsuit. Shut up. Then the next day, it was the covert cold era Cold War era MK Ultra program sought to develop means of using this technique on human subjects. What is mind control? What? Like that's

the Zutsu riots is wild. I feel like why are they thinking about that the same time I was thinking about it? Just after I did an MK Ultra so come on, don't be shy. Out yourself. Out yourself.

Send me an email person who works to Jeopardy. They're going to start with Dear Morty. Hey, if it's you, use an alias. Just say like Dear Morton. Yeah. Yeah. You can write to us like you are the Jazz Man and we will accept it.

That you come from a spot. Don't tell us what Rundell you're in and Learner League because we know you're better than us. But just. You say hi because there's, I just, it's, that's such a, that's wild. Three in like six weeks. Yeah, there's something there. Yeah.

Yeah. So just say hi. We want to say hi. Morgan said, you're a witch. And, and you're right. This person is absolutely in Lourned League. If nobody knows Lourned League is this online trivia thing, it is incredibly well organized. It is run on the honor system, so you're not supposed to Google things.

It is so. fun and so hard, but it's like, it's really fun. When you actually get some stuff right, you're like, oh, wow, okay, I know something sometimes. Um, I'm still bad how last year you got Spachcock as the way to cook a turkey. Yeah. Yeah. And then, but then as far as you were really high up in our group, which is called a Rundolt. So you, you flew very close to the sun earlier this year. You're back down, but can I tell you, can I tell you the biggest miss I had was the last question from Friday? which had to do with what is the darkest color ever created. And I put Vanta, even though I knew it's Vanta black, I put Vanta.

I did not get that one. And that one would have given me three points if I put Vanta black. But I was just like, everybody knows it's black. Right, as they said it was black. Yeah, they said it. And so I was like, I don't have to say this part. And so I just said Vanta because that's the hard thing to figure out. And they didn't give it to me.

I didn't get Katie to like Katie Ledecky and I should be put in jail. I want to put myself in jail for how I don't know if I got that but I definitely got I put Ledecki I forgot her first name so anywho yeah check out learned league keep it simple actually well here's a reason why you should write to us you can only get into Lernad League through invitation and Taylor and I are proud esteemed members in 21st and 28th place and so if If you would like an invitation learnedly, write to us. Stimidafelpot at gmail.com. We love to fellow nerds to join us on this journey of humiliation and humility. That's what it is. Yep.

Indeed. Very fun. Yeah. Thanks, everyone. Happy New Year. Merry Christmas. Happy holidays. On the other side of it.

Sounds good. Oh, tell your friends. Write to us. Doobitepilpot at gm. All of course. Thank you. Bye. Bye.

Thank you.