Betsy Boss Podcast

When Gabby Petito disappeared, potentially at the hands of her fiancé Brian, it took the world by storm - especially those of us in Gen Z who had access to TikTok, Instagram and Facebook, all of which boasted a wide array of conspiracy theories from the case’s inception to present day. One thing was for sure amidst all the confusion: Gen Z was hot on the trail and wanted answers - immediately! So folks took to their iPhones, tablets, laptops, and Droids to explore the evidence and come up with any theory they could to explain the mysterious disappearance of the seemingly perfect Gabby. Now, we have answers that the original speculators didn’t have access to: the bodies of both Gabby and Brian have been found, putting to bed many of the theories that seemed so possible mere months ago. Some of what happened still remains a mystery. Betsy Boss is here to explore all of the conspiracy theories that came out of this tragic case. Although the TikTokers couldn’t find Gabby alive, we’ll tell you how social media played a part in putting the pieces of this mystery together.

BOO! Get ready to be scared silly - this week, we're bringing on Tiffany, a viral TikTok sensation famous for reviewing books, sharing stories and overall encouraging people to become voracious readers! Tiffany's TikTok videos are marked by suspense, thrill, and a last-minute mic drop that will be sure to leave you wanting more. Tiffany somehow condenses stories, sometimes even full books, into the tiny time period allotted by TikTok, and gives listeners the feeling of having read an entire book! We know we're going to scare your pants off - and increase your TikTok time! Just because Halloween is over, doesn't mean we're over it!

Jump in our time machine, because we’re headed back to 2012 - leggings were all the rage, especially among stay-at-home moms, Facebook Live was becoming the modern day auction hall, and no one really knew what a MLM was, so joining one seemed like an awesome idea. That’s right - we’re discussing the sharp rise and even more dramatic decline of LuLaRoe, the pyramid scheme leggings/maxi skirt retailer that took desperate housewives by storm! The company boasted that women who sold their leggings could “retire their husbands” by becoming “boss babes” and “working from home.” What LuLaRoe failed to divulge, however, was that only vendors at the tippy top of its pyramid structure could make any money at all; they profit almost entirely at the expense of underlings unknowingly racing for the base of the pyramid. Join us to learn how the "buttery soft" leggings women clamored for became mold-covered, wet, smelly, penis-patterned disasters when the company’s growth just couldn’t be sustained. One thing is for sure: the bigger you are, the harder you fall.

It's not the time to lose one's head... this listener-requested story is that of Tania Head (whose real name was Alicia Esteve), a woman who became so fixated on the stories of 9/11 survivors that she became one. There was only one problem: Tania did not work at the World Trade Center, she was out of the country at the time of the attacks, and she wouldn't even set foot on American soil until two years after 9/11/2001. These minute details did not deter Tania, however. She crafted a story that was unbelievable and ran with it; she was interviewed by multiple news outlets and even became the head and spokesperson of multiple 9/11 survivor groups. Luckily, Tania's story started to unravel when other members of her survivor groups became suspicious and noticed parts of her story that didn't line up. The lesson here is clear: a lie might take care of the present, but like Tania Head, it has no future.

For bubbly and boisterous Texan fitness aficionado Missy Bevers, it was boot camp or bust! Missy ran a tight ship in her instructor role with Camp Gladiator, a boot camp that met before the crack of dawn at a local church. Indeed, fitness was Missy’s life, but it was also her early morning shift at the church that brought her life to a tragic, screeching halt. On the morning of the last boot camp Missy taught, she was brutally murdered by an unidentified person (even of unknown gender) dressed in SWAT gear. The weirdest part of this case? The fact that the perpetrator was caught on film, and still hasn’t been brought to justice.

In 2016, the gymnastics world exploded with allegations of systematic abuse, elaborate coverups and silencing of victims. Though the perpetrators were numerous, some of the most atrocious accusations centered around Larry Nassar, the team doctor for the women's USA Olympic gymnastics team. Larry was the last person anyone would suspect based on his pedigree and personality - not only was he an established medical professional, he was kind, gentle, congenial and frankly a bit of a dweeb. But it was through this carefully-constructed mask and a meticulous grooming process that Larry laid the foundation to target his patients. But to us, this story isn’t about Larry. It’s about the strength and bravery of Rachael Denhollander, a victim of Larry’s abuse who implicated him to the news at the sacrifice of her privacy, dignity and reputation to protect young gymnasts against future abuse. Had it not been for Rachael, it’s unlikely that Larry’s heinous crimes would have ever been brought to light. Rachael’s voice not only resonated with Larry’s other victims, it encouraged them to come forward as one cohesive unit to fight their abuser and the systems of oppression that allowed him to prey on them for so long.

On the Lam (Elisa Lam)

In tonight’s listener requested episode, we’re going “on the Lam” as we explore the fascinating and horrifying disappearance of Elisa Lam, a Canadian tourist who was looking for a west coast getaway and found something very different at the bottom of a hotel water tower. When the LAPD investigated her disappearance, they didn’t find any answers, nor did the maintenance worker who eventually found Elisa’s body. The creepiest part of this tale? The “tower of terror” style elevator footage of Elisa in the rumored-to-be-haunted Cecil Hotel hiding from, talking to and interacting with someone none of us can see. There are dozens of theories about how Elisa ended up in the ten foot tall water tower on the roof of the Cecil, and a myriad of eerie coincidences (“LAM-ELISA” serving as the test for tuberculosis, which broke out in Skid Row right around Elisa’s death, for one) but one thing’s for sure: Betsy Boss will have you thinking about this “viral” mystery in a totally new way!

What do rainbows and Judy Garland have in common? They’re both associated with the gay community. There’s truly no place like home when you’re from Grand Rapids, Minnesota (not to be confused with the one in Michigan) and your dad is on the run from being outed as a gay man. Unfortunately, Judy’s mom wasn’t any better - she was a helicopter mom willing to do anything to make her daughter famous, including sleeping with executives, bullying and abandoning her daughter, and feeding her drugs throughout her youth to keep her peppy and thin. Judy’s life devolved from there; she hopped from addiction to addiction and husband to husband, desperate for the genuine love she never received from her mother. If it seems ironic that someone with such a challenging childhood became the poster child for positivity in the Wizard of Oz, then you still have plenty to learn about starlets in the 1930s! We’re going on an adventure down the yellow brick road, so click those heels together three times and remember that all you need for the journey is a brain, a heart and a little bit of courage. It’d probably help if you left the barbiturates back in Kansas…

Betsy Boss is serving up a three course meal for you all; just don't ask for our recipe! We hope everyone's gained the Covid-19 and is ready to beat the heat with a tale from the longest, coldest winter ever! Grab your strongest buffalo and grease up your wagon wheels - we're heading out on the Oregon Trail. Spoiler alert: very few will survive. What you might not know, though, is how much more likely women were than men to survive! Join us to learn why women are so much better equipped to handle disaster than men! Then again, are we really that surprised?

This week, we're prepared to give you all the dirty, dastardly details of the Josh Duggar abuse scandal, including things you've never heard before about Josh's history and affinity for abuse. We don't know how the Duggar parents put up with Josh's disgusting ways for so long without punishment or repercussions, but one thing is for sure: his day of reckoning is coming, and it's coming soon. We'll not only give you a complex background, but we'll have you marking your calendars for Josh's trial. We're hoping for a day we can all be thankful for!