Killer Means Awesome

Ten years after the death of Lauren Taylor Agee, her family is still no closer to finding out how she died. In this episode, we revisit the mysterious case and explore how the investigation went off track and what could still be done to accomplish some measure of closure and justice. 

Check out Kit's blog about Lauren Agee.

Listen to the first three seasons of Killer Means Awesome to hear incredible true stories. Season 1 features amazing tales about recently discovered shipwrecks, while Season 2 highlights biographies of people you really should know, and Season 3 tells incredible stories of real inventions!

The 2003 Antwerp diamond heist, known as the "heist of the century," is considered one of the largest robberies in history with more than $100 million worth of diamonds and other jewels stolen. The true story of how a small group of colorful characters managed to circumvent the 10 layers of security of the diamond vault located in the heavily guarded Antwerp diamond district is astounding. The story of how they got caught is equally shocking!  

Listen to the first three seasons of Killer Means Awesome to hear incredible true stories. Season 1 features amazing tales about recently discovered shipwrecks, while Season 2 highlights biographies of people you really should know, and Season 3 tells incredible stories of real inventions!

Only one hijacking in the history of commercial aviation remains unsolved to this day -- the mysterious case of D.B. Cooper. After hijacking a commuter flight in the Pacific Northwest on the night before Thanksgiving in 1971, the polite, unassuming man strapped on his parachute and leapt into the cold nighttime darkness above the Columbia River in Washington state. Despite decades of investigation by the FBI, neither Cooper nor the $200,000 he stole was ever found.

Listen to the first three seasons of Killer Means Awesome to hear incredible true stories. Season 1 features amazing tales about recently discovered shipwrecks, while Season 2 highlights biographies of people you really should know, and Season 3 tells incredible stories of real inventions!

As the foundation for everything from bulletproof vests to bridge cables, Kevlar is a miracle fiber that has saved lives and transformed entire industries since its invention in the 1960s. Yet, without the wild hunch and strong will of Stephanie Kwolek—a brilliant chemist born in Pittsburgh in 1923—the world might never have been introduced to this remarkable material.

Listen to the first two seasons of Killer Means Awesome to hear more incredible true stories. Season one features amazing tales about recently discovered shipwrecks and Season two highlights biographies of people you really should know!

The last six years have seen a dramatic surge in cold cases being solved by law enforcement agencies around the U.S. One after another, police departments are resolving cases which had bedeviled detectives for decades. In Episode 11 of Killer Inventions, we examine what exactly lies behind the increase and where the field seems headed next. Some of the answers may surprise you!

Listen to the first two seasons of Killer Means Awesome to hear more incredible true stories. Season one features amazing tales about recently discovered shipwrecks and Season two highlights biographies of people you really should know!

While you may know the board game Monopoly, you probably don't know the incredible story of the game's invention. This week's episode reveals the true story of the person responsible for inventing the game, and Parker Brothers' purposeful deceit in perpetuating the myth behind the game's origin. Do not pass GO, do not collect $200...go directly to episode 10 of Killer Inventions!  

Listen to the first two seasons of Killer Means Awesome to hear more incredible true stories. Season one features amazing tales about recently discovered shipwrecks and Season two highlights biographies of people you really should know!

Some inventions don’t look particularly clever or useful in hindsight. The ‘baby cage’ may be one of those inventions! Developed in the early 20th century in response to diseases like tuberculosis and the Spanish Flu, the baby cage was not for the faint of heart. Nor for those scared of heights. Improbably enough, the contraption continued to be used as late as the 1950s. 

Tune into Episode 9 for the full story on this odd chapter in American tinkering. 

Listen to the first two seasons of Killer Means Awesome to hear more incredible true stories. Season one features amazing tales about recently discovered shipwrecks and Season two highlights biographies of people you really should know!

Some say youth is wasted on the young, however, that is definitely not the case with the three inventors featured in this episode, each of whom was under the age of 16 when they made history. Check out these three incredible inventors and their killer inventions in Episode 8 of Killer Means Awesome!

Listen to the first two seasons of Killer Means Awesome to hear more incredible true stories. Season one features amazing tales about recently discovered shipwrecks and Season two highlights biographies of people you really should know!

The invention of dynamite in 1867 transformed industry, mining, railroad building, and modern warfare. It also led to the creation of the Nobel Prizes. For the full story of the brilliant, moody Swede who invented both dynamite and the Nobel Prizes, check out Episode 7 of Killer Means Awesome!

Listen to the first two seasons of Killer Means Awesome to hear more incredible true stories. Season one features amazing tales about recently discovered shipwrecks and Season two highlights biographies of people you really should know!

For thousands of years people all over the world have chewed gum or gum-like substances. Still, the invention of the modern chewing gum industry took place in the United States in the 1800s, and while you may be familiar with names like William Wrigley, Jr., an exiled Mexican General was also responsible for the gum you enjoy today. Hear the incredible true story of how chewing gum evolved from the naturally occurring flavorless birch bark tar to the chemically crafted Lebron James’ Lightning Lemonade Bubblicious Bubble Gum.

Listen to the first two seasons of Killer Means Awesome to hear more incredible true stories.  Season one features amazing tales about recently discovered shipwrecks and Season two highlights biographies of people you really should know!