Before there was Hollywood scandal, there was THE Hollywood scandal.

In this first part of our series on the murder of William Desmond Taylor, we're setting the scene: Los Angeles in the 1920s, the silent film industry at its decadent, chaotic peak, and the lives of the people who would soon be swept up in one of the most notorious unsolved murders in Hollywood history.

We’re talking about the meteoric rise of Mabel Normand — one of the first female comedy stars and directors — and the complicated, carefully controlled public image of Mary Miles Minter, America’s “sweetheart” with a stage mom from hell. And then, of course, there’s Taylor himself. Or.... should we say William Cunningham Deane-Tanner?! He was a man with more than one name, and maybe more than one secret.

This is the beginning of a mystery murder that shook early Hollywood to its core… and we're only just getting started.

William Desmond Taylor, Mary Miles Minter, Mabel Normand, silent film era, early Hollywood, Hollywood murder, 1920s Los Angeles, Paramount Pictures, unsolved Hollywood mystery, Charlotte Shelby, Taylor murder, classic Hollywood scandal, vintage crime, forgotten Hollywood, Fresh Hell Podcast

This week’s episode covers everything from the grim legacy of racist alligator myths to actual gator attacks, pet alligators ordered through the mail, and that one time a gator rang a doorbell in Florida. You’ll learn why the myth of sewer gators exists (and how Eleanor the Nile crocodile ended up beneath Paris), what black caimans are capable of (spoiler: it’s a lot), and how to keep your pets and kids safe near freshwater.

Plus: the heartbreaking story of little Lane Graves at Disney World, a dive into crocodilian blood research, and a look at how these apex predators interact with the world around them, especially when humans get too close.

alligator attacks, black caiman, crocodilians, crocodile safety, gator myths, Lane Graves, Disney World alligator, alligator conservation, crocodilian biology, crocodile blood research, human-wildlife conflict, Amazon River predators, Melanosuchus niger, Florida Man, sewer gators, pet alligators, alligator bait myth, William Bartram, American alligator, crocodile tips, reptile attacks, wild animal safety, Fresh Hell Podcast, crocodilian deaths, gator history, Victorian racism, reptile science, apex predator, true crime nature, nature horror, survival stories

This week, we’re trading murder for mayhem of the ancient reptilian variety. We take a deep dive into the world of crocodilians—those prehistoric apex predators that have been lurking in rivers, swamps, and sometimes swimming pools for millions of years. From the surprisingly gentle Chinese alligator to the misunderstood American alligator and the unexpectedly terrifying black caiman, we explore the biology, behavior, and long history of these armored giants. You'll learn about death rolls, gator holes, cloacal logistics, and even virgin births. Yes, really. Plus: sewer gator myths, historical attacks, and why crocodilians might just be the ultimate survivors. If you thought you knew gators, you don’t know the half of it.

This episode is sponsored by Magic Mind

Get 60% off the Magic Mind offer with our link and code https://magicmind.com/freshhmm  & FRESHH60 #magicmind #mentalwealth #mentalperformance .

alligator, crocodile, caiman, black caiman, gharial, false gharial, crocodilian, American alligator, Chinese alligator, apex predator, prehistoric animals, brumation, estivation, gator hole, gator attack, Florida wildlife, reptiles, freshwater predators, cloaca, death roll, gator myths, sewer gators, William Bartram, John James Audubon, man-eaters, crocodilian evolution, alligator reproduction, parthenogenesis, Everglades, ecosystem, natural history, Fresh Hell Podcast

In this week’s solo episode, Johanna takes you to the picture-perfect Austrian town of Werfen — home to falcons, frozen caves, The Sound of Music, and once... a baker with a deadly secret. Johann Oberreiter was a respected businessman, a model Catholic, and even a former town leader. But behind closed doors, he was also a poisoner.

In the mid-19th century, two young women in his household died suddenly.

Join us as we follow Oberreiter’s journey from gingerbread baker to convicted murderer!

Johann Oberreiter, arsenic poisoning, Werfen, Austrian true crime, historical murder, 19th century Austria, forensic toxicology, arsenic, Sound of Music, Eisriesenwelt, Hohenwerfen Castle, Austria crime history, Fresh Hell Podcast, true crime Europe, Lebzelter, gingerbread baker murder, murder in Werfen, Salzburg crime, historical poisoner, mayor murder case

So... you almost died. Or you technically did—for a moment. And then came the tunnel, the music, the relatives made of light, the surgeons flapping like chickens, or the sudden drop into a shadowy void full of screaming.

Welcome to the Fresh Hell guide to near-death experiences.

In this episode we explore what happens when people come this close to the other side. We cover ancient NDE accounts from Plato and Native American oral histories, the groundbreaking research of Kenneth Ring and Bruce Greyson, the famous Pam Reynolds and Vicki “born blind” case studies, and even some truly baffling hellish experiences. We also take a look at the scientific theories...everything from DMT to dying brain activity! And we ask: why do people from all over the world report such similar things?

near death experiences, NDE, Pam Reynolds, Vicki blind NDE, Kenneth Ring, Bruce Greyson, veridical NDE, scientific theories NDE, DMT, tunnel of light, out of body experience, Vicki Noratuk, The Good Place, hellish NDE, positive NDE, life review, near death podcast, ancient NDE accounts, Plato NDE, Native American NDE, near death research, death and dying, Fresh Hell Podcast, what happens when you almost die, death experience science, NDE case studies, spiritual near death, brain death, cardiac arrest NDE

Congratulations—you’ve died! Now what?

In this our version of the "Handbook For the Recently Deceased" (and the morbidly curious). We take you on a cross-cultural tour of the afterlife. Whether you’re heading for a bureaucratic judgment hall, a tunnel of light, a reincarnation lottery, or just... absolute nothingness, we’ve got you covered.

This episode explores what different religions and belief systems say happens after death—from ancient Egypt and Catholic purgatory to Buddhist reincarnation.

afterlife, near death experiences, NDE, reincarnation, purgatory, heaven, hell, what happens after death, Catholic afterlife, ancient Egypt, Buddhist beliefs, Hindu afterlife, Jewish afterlife, Día de los Muertos, ancestor spirits, Chinese ghost month, soul, judgment after death, life after death, fresh hell podcast, Pam Reynolds, Doug Forcett, The Good Place, Mary Neal, cultural beliefs after death, hellish NDEs, spiritual traditions, brain death, tunnel of light, reincarnation beliefs, death rituals, funeral customs, ghost month, Mexican traditions, podcast about death

In this week’s episode, Johanna takes us deep into the shadows of pre-WWI Austria-Hungary to tell the true story of Colonel Alfred Redl, once one of the most trusted man in the Austro-Hungarian military....and also its most infamous traitor.

From his modest beginnings in Lemberg to the very top of the empire’s intelligence apparatus, Redl’s rise was as improbable as his betrayal was devastating. But was he really blackmailed for being gay, or was he simply a man who liked money and knew how to lie? We’ll follow his double life of espionage, lavish spending, and secret lovers, right up to the moment the trap was set, and he walked straight into it.

Alfred Redl, Oberst Redl, Colonel Redl, Austro-Hungarian Empire, WWI, espionage, military intelligence, Evidenzbureau, Vienna history, Lemberg, high treason, Redl scandal, Austrian history, Franz Joseph, Kaiser Franz Joseph, Russian spies, pre-WWI Europe, Redl suicide, Redl Prague, homosexual blackmail, Maximilian Ronge, Manfried Rauchensteiner, Redl betrayal, Redl affair, early 20th century espionage, Conrad von Hötzendorf, Austrian military history, Redl Vienna, Redl Lviv, Cold War before the Cold War, Egon Erwin Kisch

In part two of our deep dive into the 1982 Tylenol Murders, we pick up with the immediate aftermath of the cyanide-laced capsules that killed seven innocent people in the Chicago area. As the city and the whole nation started to panic, Johnson & Johnson faced a nightmare scenario.

We’ll walk you through the frantic investigation, the theories that didn’t pan out, the suspect who looked promising but turned out to be a dead end, and the man who wrote an extortion letter demanding money to “stop the killings.” 

We’ll also talk about the wave of copycat crimes that followed, the laws that changed as a result, and the way this case rewrote the rules of product safety and public trust. 

Tylenol murders, 1982, Chicago, Johnson & Johnson, cyanide poisoning, product tampering, potassium cyanide, over-the-counter drug safety, James Lewis, Roger Arnold, unsolved case, FBI investigation, tamper-evident packaging, Tylenol recall, true crime podcast, Fresh Hell podcast, public health scare, copycat crimes, crisis management, cold case, pharmaceutical safety, poisoning case

In September of 1982, a 12-year-old girl in suburban Chicago took a Tylenol for a cold—and never got back up. Within days, six more people would die the same way. The connection? A bottle of Extra Strength Tylenol and a horrifying dose of potassium cyanide.

In this first part of our two-part series, Johanna and Annie walk through the events that stunned the nation: who the victims were, how investigators started piecing it together, and how Johnson & Johnson handled the situation.

It’s a case that changed how we trust what’s in our medicine cabinets…

Tylenol murders, 1982 Chicago, Mary Kellerman, Janus family, Mary McFarland, Mary Reiner, Paula Prince, potassium cyanide, poisoned Tylenol, Johnson & Johnson, product tampering, over-the-counter safety, unsolved true crime, corporate crisis response, FDA history, cyanide cases, public health scare, 1980s murders, Fresh Hell Podcast

This week, we’re taking a peel behind the Vatican’s heaviest doors. From popes who put each other on trial...AFTER DEATH...to rumors of devilish deals and sweating tombs. We’ll also tell you about the Vatican’s key master (yes, that’s a real job), the Room of Tears (because popes cry too), and how sometimes it's important that "they hang well"!

Vatican, Vatican Museums, Pope Sylvester II, Cadaver Synod, Room of Tears, Vatican Key Master, Clavigero, Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo ceiling, papal scandal, medieval legends, ghost stories, Vatican Archive, Pope Joan, Vatican secrets, historical Catholic Church, papal power, Fresh Hell Podcast