Pop Mystery Pod

By Tess BarkerTV & Film Society & Culture Documentary Film History

Pop Mystery Pod episodes

August 06 The Cult That Jared Leto Runs (with Shannon McNamara)
Jared Leto started his career as a 23 year old teen heartthrob on “My So Called Life.” He then went on to achieve the nearly impossible: dual careers as both a rock star and a critically acclaimed actor. Recent bombshell reporting from the BBC has revealed that over decades, as he’s enjoyed wild success, Leto has allegedly assaulted a staggering number of teenaged girls. Oh, and also he appears to have started a cult. Joining Tess to talk through Leto’s apparent history of predatory behavior is podcaster Shannon McNamara @fluentlyforward, host of the Fluently Forward podcast.
Listen to “Who’s the Clown?” By Audrey Hobert
Read Read the NY Post article “Hey Leto Girl: Leto Shows He’s a Teen Player.”
Read the Air Mail article “The Cult of Leto”
Watch the BBC’s “Jared Leto: Hollywood’s Darkest Open Secret”
Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod
Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.
Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.
Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod
Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods.
Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
1 hr 23 min
July 30 Tyra Banks Cuts Models (with Jackie Johnson)
“America’s Next Top Model” is a stunning piece of television. For over a decade, svelte contestants ostensibly vied for a chance at modeling success. What they were also seemingly fighting for, however, is their mental well-being. What actually went down behind the scenes of this singular juggernaut of a show? Is the recent backlash against Tyra warranted? What exactly is she claiming in her lawsuit against Netflix? Perhaps most importantly wtf is hit ice cream? Joining Tess to walk the runway is comic, actor, and writer Jackie Johnson (@jackiemichellejohnson) Natch Beat; How to Get a Second Husband.
See Jackie’s show “How to Get a Second Husband” here!
Watch “Mr. Jambo” by Kyle Gordon
Watch “Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model”
Listen to “Curse of: America’s Next Top Model”
Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod
Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.
Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.
Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod
Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods.
Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
1 hr 24 min
July 23 The Ice Cream Blonde Cold Case (with Babs Gray)
Thelma Todd seemed to be living the life of classic Hollywood dreams. She had a busy career, an active social life, and she owned a restaurant at arguably the most beautiful corner of southern California coastline. Then, one cold LA Christmas season, she died, alone in her own garage. The official ruling was that her death had been accidental carbon monoxide poisoning. A slough of suspicious characters surrounding Thelma and her death cast doubt on this theory, though. Investigating this 90 year old mystery with Tess is Babs Gray (@babsdgray) of Lady to Lady, Comedy Central, Vice.
Read Michelle Morgan’s “The Ice Cream Blonde”
Read Thelma’s LA Times Obituary
Watch Thelma Todd and Patsy Kelly in their comedy shorts
Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod
Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.
Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.
Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod
Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods.
Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
1 hr 21 min
July 16 Jerry Springer Fakes It (Throwback)
This week, we revisit a classic American story. For better or worse, “The Jerry Springer Show” changed television as we know it. Were the guests on this trainwreck real? Or fakers? Investigative journalists Tess Barker parses through Jerry Springer’s improbable life for clues as to how genuine the guests on his show were.
Tess is joined by comics Doug Stanhope @dougstanhope and Terrence Newman @mayorofechopark, who have wild first-hand insights into the veracity of this iconic show.
Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod
Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.
Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.
Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod
Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic wherever you get your pods.
Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
45 min
July 09 The Secret Life of Canned Laughter (with Holly Brown)
One of the most divisive figures in television history is not a person, but a box. One that was kept under lock and key for most of its owner’s life: The Laff Box. This tool, which generated fake laughter on countless of television comedies, has an improbable start, and a wild history. Joining Tess to talk through the fascinating life and death of the laugh track is comic and podcaster Holly Brown @hollybrowncomedy (Everyone Knows But Me.)
Read Charles Douglass obituary in the LA Times
Read NY Times “Lives They Lived Making Us Laugh”
Read BBC article “The History of Laugh Track.”
Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod
Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.
Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.
Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod
Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods.
Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
1 hr 17 min
July 02 The Top Pop Independence Days
Pop history is full of notable independence days. If the red, white, and blue isn’t doing it for you, this year, here are some iconic moments of libration to celebrate instead.
Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod
Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.
Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.
Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod
Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods.
Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
10 min
June 25 James Cameron’s Quest to Pester Ghosts (with Caitlin Durante)
The Titanic is one of the most famous and chilling disasters of all time. The movie “Titanic.” could have also been a lesson in hubris. It was helmed by James Cameron, whose reportedly maniacal behavior may have been the impetus for a bizarre and mysterious food poisoning. There is so much to say about this strange and unlikely megahit. Joining Tess to explore “Titanic’s” wreckage is Caitlin Durante @caitlindurante (The Bechdel Cast).
Read “The Futurist,” by Rebecca Keegan
Read the Time article “Glub, Glub, Glub,” by Kim Masters
Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod
Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.
Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.
Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod
Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods.
Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
1 hr 34 min
June 18 The NFL is Bravo (with Megan Gailey)
You don’t have to be a sports fan to appreciate the wild and jaw dropping tale of a sports reporter and a head coach whose affair may have changed the direction of the entire football league. Joining Tess to talk VrabelGate is Megan Gaiiley @bettermegaingailey Sports Bitches, The Roasts of Tom Brady and Kevin Hart)
Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod
Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.
Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.
Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod
Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods.
Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
1 hr 9 min
June 11 An Alleged Tupac Assassin Stands Trial. Who Hired Him?
Nearly thirty years after the killing of Tupac Shakur, Duane Davis is set to face murder charges in a Nevada court. Additionally, Davis has been named in a civil complaint filed by Tupac’s step brother Mopreme Shakur. If Davis was contracted to kill Tupac Shakur, why is he the only guy facing trial?
Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod
Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.
Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.
Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod
Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods.
Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
12 min
June 04 The TMZ Secret Sauce (with Lauren Vino)
When TMZ reports on a tragedy in Los Angeles, chances are, it’s true. How does this tabloid source its seedy confidential information, and why do TMZ and its founder Harvey Levin remain such powerful forces in the land of pop journalism? Joining Tess to talk TMZ sleaze is comic and journalist Lauren Vino @boxedvino (Playboy, GQ, Mel Magazine, Black Out Diaries)
Read “The Digital Dirt” by Nicholas Schmidle
Read the LA Times Coverage of the fallout from Mel Gibson’s arrest
Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod
Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.
Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.
Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod
Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods.
Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
1 hr 33 min

About Pop Mystery Pod

From the publisher's feed

Investigative journalist and pop culture junkie Tess Barker, dives into the pop culture moments that have puzzled her for years. This addictive, informative and revelatory show dives features the…