Jan. 29, 2026

The Columbia Edgewater Country Club Car Bombing

The Columbia Edgewater Country Club Car Bombing
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On April 21st 1955, a deadly act of violence shattered the quiet grounds of Portland’s Columbia Edgewater Country Club on Marine Drive. After an evening at the club attending a stag party, attorney and WWII veteran Oliver Kermit Smith returned to his car and started the engine. A bomb hidden beneath the driver’s seat detonated, killing him instantly.

Investigators quickly determined the explosion was deliberate. The device had been wired directly into the ignition system, ensuring detonation the moment the car was started. With no evidence of business disputes or outside enemies, attention soon turned to Smith’s personal life — including a recent remarriage and an affair involving Victor Laurence Wolf, a local electrician living in the boarding house owned by Smith’s wife.

Dubbed the “Sex Slave” murder case by papers of the day, the story became a salacious tale of infidelity and betrayal that ended in murder. Wolf ultimately confessed to constructing and installing the bomb and was convicted of first-degree murder. Smith’s wife, Marjorie, was also charged but later acquitted, with the jury finding insufficient evidence that she met Oregon’s legal threshold for criminal responsibility. The Columbia Edgewater car bombing was a calculated murder carried out in silence — long after the party had ended.

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The roof of the buick was blown completely off and

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hurled several feet away. Shrapnel and twisted metal scattered across

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the parking lot as smoke, dust and debris filled the air.

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Smith was killed immediately. The injuries were catastrophic, leaving no

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possibility of survival. Within moments, the quiet routine of the

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country club had been transformed into one of the most

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shocking crime scenes Portland had ever seen.

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Hi Cassie, Hi Caitlin.

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Hi creepy people, Oh hellou? And also the guy that

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just honked outside my window?

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How I didn't hear it? Dang it, honks and sides.

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This is PNW Hansen Homicides, where we chat about true crime,

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the paranormal, and old.

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Things spooky in the Pacific Northwest.

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Or I'm telling you it never gets old for her.

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It doesn't, And if it gets old for you, I

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frankly don't give a shit. Yeah, Frankly, my dear, I

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don't give a damn Yeah, because I just need you know,

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I need everything, I need, any little crumb. Just keep

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me podcasting, okay, just give it to.

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Me, all right. Yeah, the universe is kind of like

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throwing us a lot of other bullshit so.

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A little bit, A little bit. Well, speaking of the universe,

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we do a little tarot reading at the end of

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every episode for a little deeper insight into our topic and.

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Actually a spoiler alert. I have a new deck. I

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mean we've had it for a while. I just don't

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think that we've ever used it in a reading on

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the show.

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So I feel like we used it one time, did we? Yeah?

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Because I remember maybe we got the on with like

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a drink on it and I didn't know what the

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drink was. It was like a sprit a Capari sprits.

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Yeah like that.

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Wow, I know my pay times is random.

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Yeah, No, that was like that felt like new old

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memory unlocked.

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You're welcome.

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Look at you remembering. Shit, I couldn't tell you what

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episode it was or oh god.

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No, Well you know what? Have we done a couple

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hundred of them at this point, so, I mean.

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Hard pressed.

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Yeah, do we have any business or should I just

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get right into it?

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I don't think we. I don't know if we have

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any new Patreon subscribers. Probably not since the last time

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we chatted.

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Yeah, not to my knowledge.

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I was gonna say, we just we just talked about

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a couple in our last episode, and yeah, so.

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We're all today with shout outs. If you want, I

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hope us to say your name out of our mouth,

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you can join our our Patreon and uh, it's really fun.

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Well put, I was gonna say, oh, whatever else we do,

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and then I can't think of it.

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You get a welcome card, you get a free mini

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tarot reading.

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It's a whole thing. It's a whole thing. AD free

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episodes very important, definitely.

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Yeah.

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On the morning of Thursday, April twenty first, nineteen fifty five,

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the parking lot of the Columbia Edgewater Country Club looked

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exactly the way it was supposed to on that overcast

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day in Portland. Cars came and went, engines idled, doors

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opening and closing amidst the light rain and fog of

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the early morning hours, but nothing about the morning particularly

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stood out. By afternoon, though the air along the Columbia

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River remained heavy and humid, the partial sun breaking through

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the clouds was an early indicator of spring returning to

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the city.

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Oh, we were just talking about that is the winter

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done yet?

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I know.

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It feels like winter is still coming. I think we're

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actually we're entering the part of winter where it starts

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to behave the most like winter. Yeah, and I have

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feelings about it, but we just we don't. We simply

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don't have time. I smell snow, I exactly. Oliver Kermit

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Smith referred to in many newspaper accounts simply as Al

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Smith for inexplicable old timey newspaper reasons that I can't

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quite understand.

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What was his name?

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His name was Oliver Kermit Smith, and.

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They called him Al Okay, maybe I don't know, Maybe

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he didn't want his name used.

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I don't know.

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Well, at this point he didn't really have a say

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in the matter.

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But uh, strange.

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It wasn't a nickname that he went by that I

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could find.

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I spent a.

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Few minutes looking into this because I was like, why

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am I seeing Al Smith confusing in some of the reporting? Yeah,

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it's very confusing. And so what what the Google fox

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told me was that it's very likely that some of

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the early reporting it was just recorded incorrectly or it's

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just an inconsistency. And then some of the reporting that

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followed in the very early days just like mimicked that.

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They were like, oh, they've already fact checked this. There's

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like multiple articles that I came across at one point

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or another that used that, like what feels like an alias? Wow,

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it's very strange.

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Okay, I know what happened though, So his name is Oliver.

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So what if he's like, hey, I'm all and then

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they're like ow okay, al yeah, fault it.

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Honestly, that's a more satisfying theory than what my Google

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search returned. They were just like, I don't know, I

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don't know why they would have said that, but it's

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parroted back because newspaper reporters were sometimes a little sloppy,

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fake news.

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Right, I was like back then and probably still.

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He was a thirty five year old Portland resident and

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regular presence at the club.

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Very latched.

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Uh, I mean, to my mind, I don't. I am

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not a member of any country club. The country club, yeah,

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even though I said it like country club. But there

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are now so fancy that I've seen on.

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Tapery fancy mm hmm.

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A quiet and mild mannered man and prominent attorney, with

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nothing about his demeanor that day to suggest he was

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anxious or in any way distressed. He was not known

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to be involved in active disputes or really any type

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of controversy. I think a lot of the reporting really

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stepped ever so gently around, like basically falling just short

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of calling him like, you know, kind of a boring guy.

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Yeah, like, yeah, it was. It was interesting.

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I feel like the nineteen fifties were definitely a different time,

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but it was like even they were like this man,

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like nothing interesting about him, or it's just like he's

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just like a man in his middle age, like settled

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into a career in community but okay. He reportedly called

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his wife just minutes before leaving the club where he'd

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been playing jin Rummy amongst friends, to tell her that

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he was headed home. Home was a craftsman bungalow at

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sixty four twenty six Northeast Alameda Street, common to homes

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built in the neighborhood of the era. So it's actually

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really really cute. I'm I want me a craftsman bungalow.

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I was gonna say, don't even like I don't really

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know what a bungalow means, like I've heard the word.

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I don't know.

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Honestly, I should have been able to write up a

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whole other case in the time since I started and

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ended this one, but things like Craftsman Bungalow.

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Really, they really have me leaning into a.

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Very hard detour.

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The amount of time that I spent looking into the

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architecture of this singular building, which.

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Has very very little to do with the case.

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Alarming.

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Yeah. Hey, man, you what does it?

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You go?

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Where the dopamine is? I don't know? Yes it is? Yeah.

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Hey, here's the thing is I tell the hyper focus

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to engage, I can't tell it what to engage with. Unfortunately. Yeah,

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wouldn't that be a superpower? Oh my god?

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Can you imagine? I'd be unstoppable.

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Oliver was reportedly the last to leave the stag party

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held at the club that night, And just for a reference,

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because stag party, I think is I think back then

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it was a more common term, and I think now,

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like across the pond, it's still a term that's used

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more frequently. It's basically a bachelor party. Oh.

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I was going to say some kind of man party.

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He's some sort of man party, a man gathering. It's

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a man gathering. He unlocked the door to his nineteen

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fifty two Buick and sat down behind the wheel as

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he prepared for the drive home.

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What a square car.

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Yeah, honestly like a Buick though for real, no offense,

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it's no offense.

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I love me a square car, trust me. I'm like,

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if I could have like a station wagon, an old one,

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that would be just fantastic.

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That's the dream to you.

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Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's come up on the podcast before.

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It's because it looks like a hearse without being a hearse.

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That I believe you are correct.

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I believe that has come up before, and as as

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per usual, my response has not changed. I I'm not

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like a crazy I'm I'm not all about my car, but.

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I do need something a little a little bit sexier,

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a sexy little grocery getter.

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Hey man, the driver makes it sexy, you know. Oh wow,

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honk if you're horny.

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He unlocked the door to his nineteen fifty two Buick

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and sat down behind the wheel. As he prepared for

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the drive home, a violent blast erupted from beneath the

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driver's seat, tearing through the car with extraordinary force. Holy

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shit balls, that I was like, not expecting that ex that. Yeah,

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I aim to please, Like.

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I felt a blast inside of me.

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Oh my gosh, not you know, it just like was

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we need a break no, no, but no, it's I know,

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it's been a while since we've had one that was

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I don't know, there's something about suck. I don't know.

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It's very scary. It's very scary.

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And I can only imagine in the eras and you know,

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locations where like bombings of any sort have been you know,

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really prolific. I can only imagine what it's like to

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try to live your life.

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That is not the case at this.

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Point in time in Portland, so it's actually all the

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more shocking.

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But we'll get there, okay.

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The roof of the buick was blown completely off and

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hurled several feet away. Shrapnel and twisted metal scattered across

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the parking lot as smoke, dust and debris filled the air.

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Smith was killed immediately. The injuries were catastrophic, leaving no

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possibility of survival. Within moments, the quiet routine of the

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country club had been transformed into one of the most

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shocking crime scenes Portland had ever seen. Jay Raymond carskadon

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a golf buddy, as well as the ex Chief Criminal

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Deputy District Attorney say that ten times fast, I dare you, Oh,

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I had also been I don't know, don't do it,

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it's not worth it. Had also been invited to attend

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that same stag party, simately had declined. He said Smith

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didn't normally attend sag parties and wasn't all that interested

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in attending, but that his wife had urged him for Karskadon.

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The sudden loss seemed surreal, but another equally awful thought

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haunted him. If he had attended the party, he himself

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would have perished in the awful explosion, as he would

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have been riding home with Kermit. And I'm gonna, yeah,

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I'm going to refer to him largely throughout this as

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Kermit because I think it is so endearing.

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Kermit. Yeah, Kermit.

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I know that you said that was his middle name

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or was that his last name? I can't remember that

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was his last name, middle name, Okay, I know, I

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just thought it was. It's very very I don't know,

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it's so cute, it's very sweet.

234
00:14:00.480 --> 00:14:04.080
I just picture him, you know, riding along in his

235
00:14:04.200 --> 00:14:09.080
buick with Miss Piggy Kurmie Kurmie.

236
00:14:09.360 --> 00:14:13.480
I feel so fucking bad for his wife, like the guilt,

237
00:14:13.679 --> 00:14:14.399
but I like.

238
00:14:14.600 --> 00:14:17.360
I'm one hundred percent oh, unless she had something to

239
00:14:17.399 --> 00:14:25.559
do with it, it's hard to say. I mean, honestly,

240
00:14:26.639 --> 00:14:29.759
this uh Carskadon character.

241
00:14:30.759 --> 00:14:32.639
He's all of.

242
00:14:32.559 --> 00:14:36.759
A sudden going for a real sympathy plea. Huh hmmm,

243
00:14:37.639 --> 00:14:38.919
I'm just kidding. That's terrible.

244
00:14:38.960 --> 00:14:39.399
He had nothing.

245
00:14:39.399 --> 00:14:42.080
Oh oh, I was like, well, that's like what I

246
00:14:42.200 --> 00:14:45.080
was thinking, Like, Oh, how convenient that you didn't go

247
00:14:45.159 --> 00:14:48.639
to this. I know. Well, that's why I put it

248
00:14:48.679 --> 00:14:50.919
in at the beginning. I was like, I'm gonna put

249
00:14:50.960 --> 00:14:54.360
this in because it's like, it's really really sad. It

250
00:14:54.399 --> 00:14:56.480
was one of those things where like there's a lot

251
00:14:56.519 --> 00:15:00.159
of like these really short flips or excerpts from people

252
00:15:00.240 --> 00:15:04.320
that the papers interviewed, and they're really like you can

253
00:15:04.399 --> 00:15:07.799
just tell like people were so upset. But yeah, that's

254
00:15:07.960 --> 00:15:09.879
literally why I put it at the beginning, because I

255
00:15:09.960 --> 00:15:14.320
was like, I want everyone to think, Hey, what about

256
00:15:14.360 --> 00:15:20.039
the buddy who was supposed to go with him? Hey, yeah,

257
00:15:20.559 --> 00:15:23.200
now I'm like immediately feeling bad for the wife, Like,

258
00:15:23.799 --> 00:15:29.159
but you know, just just since we don't know anything yet, right,

259
00:15:29.360 --> 00:15:35.480
that's an appropriate reaction. Police and fire crews arrived quickly

260
00:15:35.679 --> 00:15:40.440
and secured the area as investigators began their work. Early on,

261
00:15:40.639 --> 00:15:44.600
authorities noted that the explosion did not appear consistent with

262
00:15:44.639 --> 00:15:51.039
a mechanical failure or accidental cause. The damage pattern suggested

263
00:15:52.039 --> 00:15:55.720
something else. It suggested otherwise that.

264
00:15:55.639 --> 00:15:59.600
Would be an insane accident, like they're just a card

265
00:15:59.600 --> 00:16:03.399
to exp just for no reason, flowed so.

266
00:16:03.679 --> 00:16:11.879
Violently that it immediately kills the driver and only passenger. Yeah,

267
00:16:11.960 --> 00:16:16.480
I mean, thankfully no one else was there to be injured.

268
00:16:17.240 --> 00:16:21.919
But like, how awful. I'm thinking about that one, the

269
00:16:21.960 --> 00:16:24.639
one episode that you did. What was it?

270
00:16:24.720 --> 00:16:30.279
Yeah, Barry Berry who love Yeah, lost his leg? Yes

271
00:16:30.600 --> 00:16:34.159
he did, Yeah, he lost his leg. The force of

272
00:16:34.200 --> 00:16:39.039
the blast, its upward direction, and it's timing pointed investigators

273
00:16:39.080 --> 00:16:44.960
towards the possibility of a deliberate act. In nineteen fifty five,

274
00:16:45.320 --> 00:16:48.679
Portland was not accustomed to this kind of public violence,

275
00:16:49.720 --> 00:16:55.600
a car bombing being exceedingly rare. While murders occurred, they

276
00:16:55.600 --> 00:17:02.240
were typically domestic shootings or barroom altercations, not carefully engineered

277
00:17:02.279 --> 00:17:06.640
explosions in public spaces. That's pretty intense.

278
00:17:07.160 --> 00:17:09.200
Yeah, that's how I was, Like, there's a word that

279
00:17:09.279 --> 00:17:13.759
I'm like, yeah, intense obviously, you know, just accidentally like

280
00:17:13.880 --> 00:17:16.079
drop off a bomb and someone's car, you know.

281
00:17:16.160 --> 00:17:21.759
Like, yes, exactly that's such an intentional thing. News of

282
00:17:21.799 --> 00:17:26.359
the bombing spread rapidly because you know, it's a fucking bombing.

283
00:17:28.640 --> 00:17:34.519
Did it blow up? Yeah, it blew up. Oh my god,

284
00:17:34.920 --> 00:17:35.640
I'm just saying.

285
00:17:36.519 --> 00:17:41.839
Dominating local radio reports and newspaper headlines. Just two days later,

286
00:17:41.920 --> 00:17:45.720
the story had reached national wire services and made the

287
00:17:45.720 --> 00:17:51.200
front page of the Oregonian. Investigators soon determined that an

288
00:17:51.240 --> 00:17:55.680
improvised explosive device had been placed beneath the driver's seat

289
00:17:55.720 --> 00:18:01.480
and wired directly into the ignition system. Oh damn. The

290
00:18:01.559 --> 00:18:05.480
design ensured that the bomb would detonate the moment electrical

291
00:18:05.599 --> 00:18:10.920
current flowed. It was a method that required forethought, mechanical skill,

292
00:18:11.160 --> 00:18:15.680
and an intent to kill without warning. So again, it

293
00:18:15.799 --> 00:18:19.680
just goes back to this is like very clearly a

294
00:18:19.799 --> 00:18:26.640
deliberate act. As detectives began reconstructing mister Smith's life, they

295
00:18:26.720 --> 00:18:33.319
initially searched for external enemies. They examined possible business disputes,

296
00:18:33.440 --> 00:18:39.240
gambling connections, labor conflicts, and any ties to organized crime.

297
00:18:39.799 --> 00:18:47.720
But Kurmy was clean. None materialized, So none of that stuff.

298
00:18:48.599 --> 00:18:52.160
Because literally all the papers it seemed like that they

299
00:18:52.160 --> 00:18:54.920
could talk about was like how he's just like this

300
00:18:55.200 --> 00:19:00.680
very like all American normal, like average dude.

301
00:19:00.880 --> 00:19:04.279
Yeah. I mean he's a lawyer, okay.

302
00:19:04.359 --> 00:19:08.400
Got a wife and kids. Like he's, you know, a

303
00:19:08.480 --> 00:19:13.640
lawyer into his career. You could be a lawyer, yeah,

304
00:19:13.680 --> 00:19:15.720
I mean you could have you you could have some

305
00:19:15.880 --> 00:19:20.319
enemies as a lawyer. That's that's for true. He was

306
00:19:20.359 --> 00:19:24.160
also a country club guy, so I mean, yeah, he's

307
00:19:24.160 --> 00:19:27.559
got golfing buddies. He didn't even want to go to

308
00:19:27.599 --> 00:19:28.440
the stag party.

309
00:19:29.240 --> 00:19:31.240
He's like, was Smith his real name?

310
00:19:31.480 --> 00:19:38.680
That general? Yeah? Very generic generic, thank you, that's the one. Yeah,

311
00:19:38.960 --> 00:19:40.720
you were close, you were you were getting there.

312
00:19:40.960 --> 00:19:41.880
I was almost there.

313
00:19:42.359 --> 00:19:45.799
I can remember Barry and the tarot card we pulled

314
00:19:46.680 --> 00:19:49.440
years ago, but I can't remember the word generic.

315
00:19:49.839 --> 00:19:51.440
It's fine, hey, listen.

316
00:19:51.519 --> 00:19:58.599
There's no rhyme or reason, just spiciness. Smith's finances were modest,

317
00:19:58.839 --> 00:20:03.240
his employment history stable, and friends described him as dependable

318
00:20:03.279 --> 00:20:07.279
and low key, with no known enemies. But for someone

319
00:20:07.319 --> 00:20:11.359
without established enemies, it sure seemed like someone had been

320
00:20:11.480 --> 00:20:15.640
perhaps trying to kill mister Smith, but very.

321
00:20:15.799 --> 00:20:18.960
Very obviously yeah.

322
00:20:17.960 --> 00:20:23.960
Well more obviously. With no outside motive emerging, attention turned

323
00:20:24.079 --> 00:20:29.279
inward toward his personal life. In the months preceding his death,

324
00:20:29.599 --> 00:20:35.359
Kermit had recently remarried his wife, Marjorie May Roberts Smith.

325
00:20:36.559 --> 00:20:40.400
The couple was first married on August twenty second, nineteen

326
00:20:40.480 --> 00:20:44.480
fifty two, but according to Marjorie, had been separated for

327
00:20:44.559 --> 00:20:49.279
nearly three years prior to their remarriage on February fourth,

328
00:20:49.599 --> 00:20:51.720
nineteen fifty five. HM.

329
00:20:52.640 --> 00:20:54.519
I mean, I know it works out for some people,

330
00:20:54.519 --> 00:20:57.839
but I would just say, just you know, yeah, don't

331
00:20:57.880 --> 00:21:00.119
go backwards, never go backwards.

332
00:21:00.599 --> 00:21:04.079
Yeah, And you know, they had a child together, so

333
00:21:05.359 --> 00:21:09.440
I can understand, especially back then, I'm sure the pressure

334
00:21:09.559 --> 00:21:12.960
to like, you know, stay together for the kids.

335
00:21:13.359 --> 00:21:14.240
Yeah.

336
00:21:14.359 --> 00:21:21.079
I couldn't find anything that provided any significant substantiation of

337
00:21:21.119 --> 00:21:27.720
her accusation, but in their initial divorce proceeding, she had

338
00:21:27.880 --> 00:21:32.279
accused him of basically verbal abuse.

339
00:21:31.920 --> 00:21:33.680
And having slapped her.

340
00:21:34.440 --> 00:21:37.559
I don't know if that was Yeah, I don't know

341
00:21:37.559 --> 00:21:41.279
if that was like a singular occurrence or what that

342
00:21:41.680 --> 00:21:45.440
I mean, So that I feel like I feel like

343
00:21:45.480 --> 00:21:48.680
I have to mention it just because it's like, you know,

344
00:21:49.599 --> 00:21:52.480
to lay out all of the information.

345
00:21:52.240 --> 00:21:54.960
Right, you know, what goes on behind closed doors?

346
00:21:56.039 --> 00:22:02.400
Exactly exactly just weeks prior, been attacked outside of his home,

347
00:22:02.599 --> 00:22:05.839
resulting in a broken nose when a bottle had been.

348
00:22:05.759 --> 00:22:08.079
Bashed about his head. Jesus.

349
00:22:09.319 --> 00:22:12.880
When police questioned him about who the attacker might have been,

350
00:22:13.400 --> 00:22:17.160
he replied Wolf, and apparently there.

351
00:22:17.039 --> 00:22:18.319
Was some confusion.

352
00:22:18.880 --> 00:22:23.240
The policeman was like, you were attacked by a wolf, right,

353
00:22:24.759 --> 00:22:27.680
and he was like, uh no, actually, I will give

354
00:22:27.720 --> 00:22:28.519
you his full.

355
00:22:28.359 --> 00:22:31.599
Name because he was indeed a man, not a wolf.

356
00:22:32.200 --> 00:22:33.279
Okay, got it.

357
00:22:33.599 --> 00:22:36.799
It was like his last name or something or exactly

358
00:22:36.920 --> 00:22:37.920
maybe his first name.

359
00:22:40.119 --> 00:22:44.920
That'd be real weird. But Fox Moulder, Yeah, I like

360
00:22:44.960 --> 00:22:46.000
where your head's at.

361
00:22:46.079 --> 00:22:52.160
But no. While there hadn't been any evidence against Wolf

362
00:22:52.319 --> 00:22:55.519
in this prior attack, it certainly made him a compelling

363
00:22:56.039 --> 00:23:01.279
possible suspect in Kermit's murder. Now, what no one knew

364
00:23:01.440 --> 00:23:04.319
is that the assailant had held a thirty eight special

365
00:23:04.440 --> 00:23:07.440
with the intent to kill the poor man and had

366
00:23:07.519 --> 00:23:12.079
lost the nerve, which is so confusing to me, because

367
00:23:12.079 --> 00:23:15.160
how do you go with a gun to kill someone

368
00:23:15.559 --> 00:23:18.480
and then you lose the nerve and decide to just

369
00:23:18.920 --> 00:23:19.559
beat them?

370
00:23:19.960 --> 00:23:21.279
Maybe a bottle work?

371
00:23:22.680 --> 00:23:27.640
Like what maybe are you looking? Are you looking for

372
00:23:27.720 --> 00:23:31.039
a noisier way to do this?

373
00:23:32.039 --> 00:23:32.480
I don't know.

374
00:23:32.960 --> 00:23:35.319
My thought is he had to like get the liquid

375
00:23:35.359 --> 00:23:38.839
courage up there and yeah, and then he's like, well,

376
00:23:39.160 --> 00:23:40.880
now I'm here with this empty bottle.

377
00:23:41.839 --> 00:23:43.599
Yeah.

378
00:23:43.839 --> 00:23:48.039
I didn't. I really I couldn't quite make sense of it.

379
00:23:48.440 --> 00:23:51.599
There wasn't really any description of it that I can

380
00:23:51.680 --> 00:23:55.519
recall seeing beyond just a bottle. It never said, like,

381
00:23:56.000 --> 00:23:59.559
you know, a liquor or a beer bottle, because that

382
00:23:59.559 --> 00:24:02.480
that was kind of yeah, that was my thought too.

383
00:24:02.559 --> 00:24:05.039
It was like liquid courage because you're about to try

384
00:24:05.079 --> 00:24:09.359
to like shoot someone, and I would hope that you

385
00:24:09.440 --> 00:24:13.920
at minimum feel a little conflicted about killing another human being.

386
00:24:14.079 --> 00:24:16.079
But hard to say.

387
00:24:16.440 --> 00:24:22.799
Interesting. The Smith's relationship had been unstable for years, you know,

388
00:24:23.039 --> 00:24:26.400
because they were separated for three years and at the

389
00:24:26.400 --> 00:24:28.720
time of his death had only been back together for

390
00:24:28.839 --> 00:24:35.519
like a couple months. Yeah, so marked by the significant separation,

391
00:24:35.880 --> 00:24:41.599
then divorced before an abrupt reconciliation. To neighbors and acquaintances,

392
00:24:41.960 --> 00:24:48.119
the remarriage reportedly appeared sudden and puzzling. There was no

393
00:24:48.240 --> 00:24:54.279
public narrative of renewed romance or reconciliation. Instead, the reunion

394
00:24:54.400 --> 00:25:00.279
seemed quiet, transactional, and emotionally distant.

395
00:25:01.000 --> 00:25:03.839
Like just like like I said before, kind of you

396
00:25:03.880 --> 00:25:05.920
don't know what goes on behind closed doors, so like

397
00:25:07.039 --> 00:25:09.839
you don't know what they were talking about or doing,

398
00:25:10.039 --> 00:25:11.519
like you have no idea.

399
00:25:11.880 --> 00:25:14.480
Right, there were some people that had some ideas, but

400
00:25:15.359 --> 00:25:18.240
also who exactly was this wolf character?

401
00:25:18.960 --> 00:25:20.000
Right? Am I right?

402
00:25:20.440 --> 00:25:24.440
I mean a wolf? Or I'm wanting you to tell me?

403
00:25:24.519 --> 00:25:29.000
Are you not gonna Oh, I'm definitely gonna yeah, okay, cool, Yeah, No,

404
00:25:29.119 --> 00:25:32.440
he figures very prominently throughout the rest of the story,

405
00:25:32.559 --> 00:25:33.359
so fear.

406
00:25:33.200 --> 00:25:35.000
Not woo, we need to know.

407
00:25:36.200 --> 00:25:41.480
Financial records soon became central to the inquiry. Investigators confirmed

408
00:25:41.519 --> 00:25:45.079
that Smith's life insurance policy was active at the time

409
00:25:45.079 --> 00:25:48.920
of his death, and that Marjorie Smith had been restored

410
00:25:49.000 --> 00:25:52.119
as beneficiary following their remarriage.

411
00:25:52.759 --> 00:25:56.599
H beneficiary Beneficiary.

412
00:25:57.079 --> 00:26:03.039
Insurance company representatives cooperated with law enforcement, providing documentation showing

413
00:26:03.079 --> 00:26:10.079
the policy's reinstatement payment was immediately suspended pending the outcome

414
00:26:10.519 --> 00:26:15.599
of the criminal investigation, removing any immediate financial benefit.

415
00:26:15.839 --> 00:26:17.720
Uh oh spaghettio.

416
00:26:19.519 --> 00:26:24.000
As detectives examined the timing of the remarriage more closely

417
00:26:24.799 --> 00:26:30.359
as one might yeah, they interviewed friends and acquaintances who

418
00:26:30.400 --> 00:26:34.359
had observed the couple during that period. Several described the

419
00:26:34.440 --> 00:26:39.519
reunion as emotionally restrained and lacking the outward signs of

420
00:26:39.680 --> 00:26:46.640
genuine reconciliation, rather than renewed closeness. Witnesses recalled distance and

421
00:26:46.920 --> 00:26:50.359
importantly tension, just like, why.

422
00:26:50.160 --> 00:26:52.880
Would you both agree to that? Like, what are you

423
00:26:52.920 --> 00:26:53.519
getting out of that?

424
00:26:54.599 --> 00:26:57.319
I know why, at least one of them would agree

425
00:26:57.319 --> 00:26:57.599
to that.

426
00:26:58.240 --> 00:27:01.359
I'm seeing a reason for one of them. Possibly, I'm

427
00:27:01.359 --> 00:27:03.640
wondering about the other one.

428
00:27:03.880 --> 00:27:07.359
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I mean stay together for the kids.

429
00:27:07.400 --> 00:27:10.079
It was a real strong motivation.

430
00:27:10.799 --> 00:27:14.240
And then there was something else that I think worked

431
00:27:14.240 --> 00:27:18.319
out to be a real strong motivation as well. Friends

432
00:27:18.359 --> 00:27:21.440
of the couple would testify that the reunion was not

433
00:27:21.559 --> 00:27:27.079
driven by affection. Marjorie had spoken openly about her dissatisfaction

434
00:27:27.480 --> 00:27:31.720
with the marriage and her desire to leave Portland behind

435
00:27:31.759 --> 00:27:37.160
closed doors. She was already envisioning a different future, one

436
00:27:37.200 --> 00:27:39.200
that did not include her husband.

437
00:27:39.960 --> 00:27:45.319
She got lucky. Yeah, I know, look at that convenience.

438
00:27:45.480 --> 00:27:49.799
Weird, weird that you would re marry someone and be like,

439
00:27:49.880 --> 00:27:51.720
but actually I don't really see them as part of

440
00:27:51.759 --> 00:27:52.720
my future.

441
00:27:52.720 --> 00:27:58.279
Right, maybe they'll just like die or something, you know, yeah.

442
00:27:57.680 --> 00:28:03.799
Or somethings began piecing together the scope of Marjorie Smith's

443
00:28:03.839 --> 00:28:08.440
relationship with Victor Lawrence Wolf.

444
00:28:09.039 --> 00:28:11.240
I knew it. I was like Victor's a wolf.

445
00:28:12.000 --> 00:28:16.200
Victor Lawrence Wolf a forty five year old electrician who

446
00:28:16.240 --> 00:28:20.519
lived in a residential property owned by Missus Marjorie Smith.

447
00:28:21.680 --> 00:28:25.720
Interesting he brought his family to Oregon after his farming

448
00:28:25.759 --> 00:28:29.920
operation went busted in nineteen thirty nine. They were living

449
00:28:29.960 --> 00:28:32.000
in Kansas at that time.

450
00:28:33.000 --> 00:28:34.519
We're not in Kansas anymore.

451
00:28:35.240 --> 00:28:39.559
Nineteen thirty nine saw a lot of people leaving Kansas

452
00:28:39.599 --> 00:28:45.240
and some of the surrounding areas because that was just

453
00:28:45.480 --> 00:28:51.000
following the height of the dust bowl. Oh that was bad.

454
00:28:51.960 --> 00:28:54.599
It was all bad. Not that I went through it

455
00:28:54.720 --> 00:28:57.519
or anything, but I heard no. No, I mean people

456
00:28:57.599 --> 00:29:03.240
were literally starving to death. Yeah, very very very very.

457
00:29:03.039 --> 00:29:06.640
Scary times for people living, you know, in I think

458
00:29:06.640 --> 00:29:10.960
that was kind of Midwest anyways, it makes sense like

459
00:29:11.200 --> 00:29:13.880
historically his migration with the family.

460
00:29:13.599 --> 00:29:15.720
That all like that tracks.

461
00:29:17.319 --> 00:29:21.440
He worked odd jobs, but also began acquiring rudimentary skills

462
00:29:21.519 --> 00:29:22.880
of the electrical trade.

463
00:29:23.039 --> 00:29:23.440
Handy.

464
00:29:24.240 --> 00:29:27.359
Around the holidays, he'd served as the Santa Claus for

465
00:29:27.400 --> 00:29:32.440
the Christmas party at Missus Smith's rooming house, her rental property.

466
00:29:32.720 --> 00:29:36.079
Oh, I saw Mommy kissing Santa clause.

467
00:29:37.319 --> 00:29:42.039
Oh, thank you for connecting those dots for me.

468
00:29:42.440 --> 00:29:43.160
You're welcome.

469
00:29:44.000 --> 00:29:47.839
Witness statements placed the two together frequently in the months

470
00:29:47.920 --> 00:29:52.599
leading up to the bombing. Wolfe's background drew immediate interest.

471
00:29:53.200 --> 00:29:58.200
He had mechanical experience, access to tools, and sufficient technical

472
00:29:58.240 --> 00:30:05.200
knowledge to construct a electrically triggered device. Several witnesses reported

473
00:30:05.240 --> 00:30:08.640
seeing him near the Smith residence and vehicle during the

474
00:30:08.759 --> 00:30:12.279
period when investigators believed the bomb was installed.

475
00:30:12.759 --> 00:30:14.519
Shit, dude, not looking good.

476
00:30:15.359 --> 00:30:16.400
It's not looking good.

477
00:30:16.680 --> 00:30:16.880
Yeah.

478
00:30:16.880 --> 00:30:24.480
Bad, Sannah, bad, very bad Sannah. When questioned, Wolfe initially

479
00:30:24.519 --> 00:30:29.200
attempted to minimize the nature of his relationship with Marjorie,

480
00:30:29.400 --> 00:30:31.720
as one does when they are having an illicit affair

481
00:30:31.759 --> 00:30:36.079
with a woman whose husband was just literally blown to pieces.

482
00:30:36.440 --> 00:30:39.480
Seriously, I don't know nothing about that. I don't know that.

483
00:30:39.480 --> 00:30:42.359
I never heard of him.

484
00:30:42.400 --> 00:30:48.440
Over time and across multiple interviews that account shifted detectives

485
00:30:48.559 --> 00:30:54.839
documented inconsistencies in his explanations regarding his movements, his access

486
00:30:55.000 --> 00:30:59.640
to Smith's car, and his knowledge of explosives. Because at

487
00:30:59.680 --> 00:31:04.119
first he definitely tried to downplay that, eventually, under sustained

488
00:31:04.240 --> 00:31:10.640
questioning Wolf confessed, upon investigators revealing their discovery of detonators

489
00:31:10.680 --> 00:31:14.680
stuffed into the heater vent of his vehicle, his involvement

490
00:31:16.039 --> 00:31:17.759
becoming pretty quite.

491
00:31:17.720 --> 00:31:22.559
Clear, super duper. It was like you did it? Had

492
00:31:22.599 --> 00:31:23.319
those be in there?

493
00:31:24.160 --> 00:31:26.839
Yeah, never seen those before my life.

494
00:31:27.920 --> 00:31:30.799
That's oh, we're used to like hide something, but I

495
00:31:30.799 --> 00:31:33.839
guess it's really like who would look in there? But

496
00:31:34.440 --> 00:31:36.400
who wouldn't look in there? If you're police.

497
00:31:36.440 --> 00:31:42.680
Investigating and you're like you kind of quickly became suspect

498
00:31:42.799 --> 00:31:46.960
number one, like you were suspect number one in the

499
00:31:47.000 --> 00:31:52.799
first attempt to harm him, so strange. According to summaries

500
00:31:52.839 --> 00:31:56.880
of his statements, Wolf admitted to constructing the bomb and

501
00:31:56.920 --> 00:32:01.319
installing it beneath the driver's seat of Smith's Bewick. Wolf

502
00:32:01.400 --> 00:32:06.599
described selecting the placement carefully and wiring the device into

503
00:32:06.640 --> 00:32:12.440
the ignition system to ensure detonation at startup. He stated

504
00:32:12.519 --> 00:32:15.599
that the act was not impulsive, but planned over time,

505
00:32:16.119 --> 00:32:17.960
which is kind of a duh.

506
00:32:18.400 --> 00:32:22.640
You can't really impulsively build a bomb and exactly, yeah,

507
00:32:22.880 --> 00:32:27.000
like painstakingly connect it to the electable system.

508
00:32:27.079 --> 00:32:31.519
Dollar, Yeah, that's not really how this works. That's not

509
00:32:31.720 --> 00:32:36.480
how any of this works at all. In fact, Kermit

510
00:32:36.559 --> 00:32:40.839
carried a combination of life insurance policies valued at approximately

511
00:32:41.039 --> 00:32:44.079
twenty twenty one thousand dollars.

512
00:32:44.319 --> 00:32:46.880
Okay a lot for back then, Yeah.

513
00:32:46.720 --> 00:32:51.000
A substantial sum. In nineteen fifty five, my lovely husband,

514
00:32:51.079 --> 00:32:54.640
when he was proofreading my notes, happened to look up

515
00:32:54.720 --> 00:32:56.720
the conversion.

516
00:32:56.319 --> 00:32:58.720
For today's stellars. I know.

517
00:33:00.000 --> 00:33:04.400
It was like literally the only note he made.

518
00:33:04.920 --> 00:33:05.680
The people have.

519
00:33:05.640 --> 00:33:09.920
To know, the people need to know, equivalent to over

520
00:33:10.200 --> 00:33:12.880
two hundred and forty thousand dollars today.

521
00:33:13.400 --> 00:33:15.319
Yeah. So that's a good amount of money.

522
00:33:15.400 --> 00:33:18.799
It's a good chunk of money, depending on where you live,

523
00:33:19.039 --> 00:33:22.039
Like that's enough to buy a house in cash.

524
00:33:22.920 --> 00:33:23.720
Not where we live.

525
00:33:24.079 --> 00:33:29.200
I was in a shithole. Maybe not in Portland. No,

526
00:33:29.279 --> 00:33:32.759
not even a shithole in Portland. Could you know pay that?

527
00:33:32.799 --> 00:33:37.400
I don't think so. The policy named Marjorie as the beneficiary,

528
00:33:37.440 --> 00:33:41.319
which we know. Records show that the remarriage had taken

529
00:33:41.319 --> 00:33:46.240
place shortly before the bombing, restoring Marjorie's beneficiary status. After

530
00:33:46.440 --> 00:33:50.759
their divorce, Wolfe said that as soon as she was

531
00:33:50.799 --> 00:33:57.400
married again to Smith, she denied wolf her favors until

532
00:33:57.440 --> 00:34:02.559
he should kill Smith. According to the play, she used

533
00:34:02.599 --> 00:34:06.680
her vagina as a weapon. Uh huh, But I mean

534
00:34:06.759 --> 00:34:12.480
the specific phrasing in the nineteen fifties news article about

535
00:34:12.480 --> 00:34:21.039
this rather blunt wow, like everybody knew what they were saying, Like, yeah,

536
00:34:21.360 --> 00:34:25.840
she held out on him until he would kill her husband.

537
00:34:26.199 --> 00:34:29.320
Wow. Sex manipulation is hardcore.

538
00:34:30.039 --> 00:34:34.880
Mm hmm. This in the parentheses in the bunny ears

539
00:34:35.199 --> 00:34:38.280
on this old timey newspaper article that I'm about to

540
00:34:38.320 --> 00:34:41.559
send you a picture of. That is how the case

541
00:34:41.880 --> 00:34:45.320
was very widely known. Do you want to read the headline.

542
00:34:45.639 --> 00:34:52.440
Love slaves says widow behind plot don dund love slaves. Wow.

543
00:34:52.840 --> 00:34:56.480
Yeah, a lot of the reporting was really focused on

544
00:34:56.559 --> 00:34:57.239
that angle.

545
00:34:57.960 --> 00:34:58.519
I could see that.

546
00:34:58.599 --> 00:35:04.239
I mean, it's scandal scandal, very very very scandalous. Oh salacious.

547
00:35:04.320 --> 00:35:09.280
That's a good vocab word. Thank you to use it, right, Yeah, no,

548
00:35:09.480 --> 00:35:13.320
a thousand percent. I don't think that I can even

549
00:35:13.400 --> 00:35:17.239
fathom a better usage of the word.

550
00:35:17.639 --> 00:35:19.079
I'm clutching my pearls.

551
00:35:19.880 --> 00:35:27.679
Yes, that's right, you are, and your faith in yourself. Oh,

552
00:35:27.719 --> 00:35:28.800
I've got the vapist.

553
00:35:28.920 --> 00:35:29.880
What do you need to drink?

554
00:35:30.039 --> 00:35:30.880
A Minjulu?

555
00:35:34.320 --> 00:35:37.000
Now none of these people are Southern, but it's just

556
00:35:37.119 --> 00:35:42.519
of the time. Okay, this extramarital relationship, while marked by

557
00:35:42.800 --> 00:35:48.760
secrecy and emotional fixation, was hardly clindestine because, as you'll recall,

558
00:35:48.880 --> 00:35:55.559
before the actual bombing, Wolf was named as the person

559
00:35:55.679 --> 00:35:58.000
Kermit thought most likely attacked.

560
00:35:57.599 --> 00:35:59.599
Him with a bottle outside their home.

561
00:36:00.119 --> 00:36:05.280
Oh yeah, okay, wow, so not exactly a secret. No,

562
00:36:05.840 --> 00:36:09.840
he said at the time to officers that interviewed him

563
00:36:09.840 --> 00:36:13.440
in the hospital after his attack, that I think he

564
00:36:13.719 --> 00:36:14.519
likes my wife.

565
00:36:15.119 --> 00:36:16.719
That's my wife's love slave Rythar.

566
00:36:17.519 --> 00:36:22.079
According to later testimony, the two spoke openly about abandoning

567
00:36:22.119 --> 00:36:26.400
their current lives and starting over together in Alaska, their

568
00:36:26.519 --> 00:36:31.199
shared dream homestead location, a place they viewed as distant

569
00:36:31.320 --> 00:36:36.000
enough to escape scrutiny and consequences. Oh weird, here's the thought.

570
00:36:36.400 --> 00:36:37.719
You were already divorced.

571
00:36:38.400 --> 00:36:44.960
I mean he was, I believe at the time. She wasn't.

572
00:36:45.159 --> 00:36:45.559
I think.

573
00:36:46.639 --> 00:36:50.199
So I'll get into why. Okay, I'm going to get

574
00:36:50.239 --> 00:36:54.199
into why, because there's there are some other pieces. Okay, okay,

575
00:36:54.239 --> 00:36:56.599
I'm just like she was free, like I don't understand. Yeah,

576
00:36:56.679 --> 00:36:57.039
she was.

577
00:36:57.280 --> 00:37:00.559
She was totally like you re married.

578
00:37:01.039 --> 00:37:08.079
The Mayan show Jenny whosel Wolf implicated Marjorie Smith as

579
00:37:08.239 --> 00:37:13.519
a co conspirator. He told investigators that discussions about the

580
00:37:13.559 --> 00:37:18.639
insurance money and plans to leave Portland were frequent and explicit.

581
00:37:19.840 --> 00:37:24.920
While accounts varied slightly in wording across reports, Wolf consistently

582
00:37:25.000 --> 00:37:29.199
maintained that the murder was a shared plan, motivated by

583
00:37:29.320 --> 00:37:33.000
financial gain and the promise of a new life elsewhere

584
00:37:33.480 --> 00:37:34.360
and sex. Again.

585
00:37:35.559 --> 00:37:38.280
Yeah, I mean yeah for him for Suresey.

586
00:37:40.360 --> 00:37:44.800
One of the statements that Wolf made, and he, I

587
00:37:44.880 --> 00:37:49.000
have to imagine probably made it repeatedly to some like effect,

588
00:37:49.119 --> 00:37:51.599
in some form or fashion, whatever you want to say.

589
00:37:52.119 --> 00:37:55.599
He said that Marjorie specifically wanted to kill him, not

590
00:37:55.800 --> 00:37:58.840
just because of the life insurance, but also because she

591
00:37:59.039 --> 00:38:03.840
worried that if she were to just divorce Kermit again,

592
00:38:04.320 --> 00:38:08.719
that he would gain custody of their daughter. Okay, I

593
00:38:08.719 --> 00:38:10.760
don't know, take that with a grain of salt, because

594
00:38:10.760 --> 00:38:15.360
it's coming from Wolf, her co conspirator, is you know,

595
00:38:15.440 --> 00:38:19.800
the murder. Both were arrested and charged with the murder.

596
00:38:20.559 --> 00:38:24.199
The obstacle to the future Marjorie Smith and Victor Wolfe

597
00:38:24.199 --> 00:38:30.559
had supposedly envisioned was Kermit Wolf possessed the technical ability

598
00:38:30.599 --> 00:38:35.039
required to build an explosive device. According to Wolf, he

599
00:38:35.119 --> 00:38:37.639
had shown up to the Smith family home on a

600
00:38:37.679 --> 00:38:42.840
Wednesday afternoon, just the day prior to the bombing to

601
00:38:43.000 --> 00:38:47.679
install the deadly device. Marjorie conversed with the neighbors to

602
00:38:47.679 --> 00:38:51.280
try to avert their attention, and their supposed cover was

603
00:38:51.360 --> 00:38:56.320
wolf putting together a swing and other playground equipment for

604
00:38:57.039 --> 00:39:01.760
the couple's daughter, Susan's birthday, aged three at the time.

605
00:39:02.679 --> 00:39:05.199
Is it is he working on the Is he doing

606
00:39:05.199 --> 00:39:06.079
stuff to the car?

607
00:39:06.760 --> 00:39:07.119
Yeah?

608
00:39:07.280 --> 00:39:09.960
No, that's that's when he put the bomb and there.

609
00:39:10.559 --> 00:39:14.199
Their big plan was he's putting together swing set. What

610
00:39:14.280 --> 00:39:16.920
does that like if someone sees you doing stuff to

611
00:39:16.960 --> 00:39:20.559
the car, why wouldn't you just leaves fixing something in the.

612
00:39:20.519 --> 00:39:24.599
Car, you know, because that maybe that would have looked

613
00:39:24.719 --> 00:39:28.119
like more suspicious and they didn't want somebody to say, oh, yeah,

614
00:39:28.119 --> 00:39:31.079
I saw him working on the car right before the

615
00:39:31.159 --> 00:39:34.960
murder occurred. I don't mean, okay, are you say? I

616
00:39:35.000 --> 00:39:36.920
guess okay, that makes sense.

617
00:39:37.039 --> 00:39:38.639
I was just like looking at it from the point

618
00:39:38.639 --> 00:39:41.440
of view of like he's over there, people are gonna

619
00:39:41.480 --> 00:39:43.119
see him doing stuff to the car.

620
00:39:43.239 --> 00:39:47.079
Probably, I don't know, yeah, no, I mean like your

621
00:39:47.079 --> 00:39:48.760
head's in the right place for sure.

622
00:39:49.039 --> 00:39:51.119
Okay, but that does make sense because he doesn't want

623
00:39:51.119 --> 00:39:52.320
to be associated with the car.

624
00:39:52.400 --> 00:39:54.719
Got it exactly exactly.

625
00:39:55.559 --> 00:39:58.639
Crawling beneath the vehicle, he mounted the bomb under the

626
00:39:58.719 --> 00:40:03.119
driver's seat and wired directly into the ignition circuit. When

627
00:40:03.159 --> 00:40:07.480
the key was turned, the circuit would close. On April

628
00:40:07.519 --> 00:40:12.000
twenty first, it did. So. Keep in mind that their

629
00:40:12.119 --> 00:40:17.840
cover story involves Marjorie and Kermit's three year old daughter

630
00:40:18.039 --> 00:40:21.039
at the time and her supposed birthday gift.

631
00:40:23.000 --> 00:40:24.559
Kermit died.

632
00:40:25.119 --> 00:40:30.119
The bombing occurred on Thursday, April twenty first of nineteen

633
00:40:30.199 --> 00:40:37.679
fifty five. Their daughter's birthday was April twenty eighth. Oh

634
00:40:38.239 --> 00:40:39.360
that is so sad.

635
00:40:40.159 --> 00:40:43.320
I didn't even think about that part, Like when you

636
00:40:43.400 --> 00:40:46.079
mentioned I kind of thought maybe they met up her

637
00:40:46.119 --> 00:40:46.639
birthday too.

638
00:40:46.760 --> 00:40:47.159
I don't know.

639
00:40:48.079 --> 00:40:50.840
Yeah, fuck, how can the car didn't explode when he

640
00:40:50.880 --> 00:40:53.039
started it to drive it? Are you gonna go over that?

641
00:40:53.800 --> 00:40:57.679
I'm not, because it got super technical and I don't

642
00:40:57.679 --> 00:41:00.639
know how he got from wherever he was gonna go

643
00:41:01.880 --> 00:41:04.159
or like you know, obviously he was at their home

644
00:41:04.480 --> 00:41:08.519
or the office wherever in the car and then drove

645
00:41:08.639 --> 00:41:11.039
to the country club. And then it was like, okay,

646
00:41:11.079 --> 00:41:13.280
so then when he left the country club.

647
00:41:13.519 --> 00:41:16.079
Maybe I don't know how debated it with the remote

648
00:41:16.159 --> 00:41:18.199
things that I don't know. That's interesting.

649
00:41:18.239 --> 00:41:21.400
I have no idea that was sort of a piece

650
00:41:21.400 --> 00:41:24.039
of it that I was like, I don't really have

651
00:41:25.000 --> 00:41:30.920
enough technical knowledge to explain that piece of it, Okay,

652
00:41:31.039 --> 00:41:34.960
And it's frustrating to me because I know, I know

653
00:41:36.159 --> 00:41:40.400
that they did this in the family home, So why

654
00:41:40.440 --> 00:41:43.199
didn't it explode when he left the family home?

655
00:41:44.400 --> 00:41:46.639
Yeah, that is huh.

656
00:41:46.719 --> 00:41:49.920
The thing about it is too, there's like not necessarily

657
00:41:51.159 --> 00:41:54.480
like as much of the actual court records that would

658
00:41:54.519 --> 00:41:57.920
be like digitized for me to be able to like

659
00:41:58.440 --> 00:41:59.320
go and read through.

660
00:41:59.400 --> 00:42:01.960
So I really am relying on.

661
00:42:02.760 --> 00:42:07.599
The newspaper articles of the time and like people, you know,

662
00:42:07.800 --> 00:42:11.599
basically like reporting of the time to like explain how

663
00:42:11.639 --> 00:42:14.639
they did it. And there's certain things that are super

664
00:42:14.679 --> 00:42:17.320
consistent throughout all of it, where they say it was

665
00:42:18.000 --> 00:42:22.480
mounted underneath the driver's seat, it was wired directly into

666
00:42:22.679 --> 00:42:26.559
the ignition circuit, and it was set so that like

667
00:42:26.719 --> 00:42:30.280
it couldn't accidentally go off, but that it would go

668
00:42:30.360 --> 00:42:33.320
off specifically when he started the vehicle. And I'm like, so,

669
00:42:33.400 --> 00:42:37.519
then how does that h I almost was thinking like,

670
00:42:37.800 --> 00:42:40.360
is there like some way that he was able to

671
00:42:40.400 --> 00:42:43.840
set up the mechanism so that like the first time

672
00:42:43.920 --> 00:42:47.559
he started the car it wouldn't blow up, but then

673
00:42:48.280 --> 00:42:51.280
the second time that it would.

674
00:42:52.159 --> 00:42:54.400
Maybe it was obviously like something like that.

675
00:42:54.800 --> 00:42:57.239
Yeah, And I just don't know enough about like the

676
00:42:57.360 --> 00:43:02.079
technical like aspect of that to really explain that fully.

677
00:43:02.119 --> 00:43:03.519
And it's so frustrating.

678
00:43:04.440 --> 00:43:08.599
All of the information that's out there, like surrounding the.

679
00:43:08.639 --> 00:43:11.840
Case is like it kind of describes it in the

680
00:43:11.920 --> 00:43:15.559
same way, and it doesn't really explain like how he

681
00:43:15.719 --> 00:43:19.119
set it up so that like obviously that car had

682
00:43:19.159 --> 00:43:22.119
to leave the family home. They didn't want it to

683
00:43:22.199 --> 00:43:26.719
be wired to blow up while he was still in

684
00:43:26.760 --> 00:43:29.320
the driveway or in the garage at their family home.

685
00:43:29.679 --> 00:43:32.800
So like I want to know that piece of it. Yeah,

686
00:43:32.840 --> 00:43:36.760
me too, So curious, Okay, bomb experts let us know.

687
00:43:37.079 --> 00:43:45.320
Right As the investigation had progressed, detectives faced a significant challenge.

688
00:43:45.960 --> 00:43:49.119
Much of the physical evidence inside the vehicle had been

689
00:43:49.199 --> 00:43:55.400
destroyed by the explosion itself. As you might expect, feels fair,

690
00:43:56.519 --> 00:43:59.920
the force of the blast obliterated components that my other

691
00:44:00.119 --> 00:44:06.239
wise have yielded fingerprints, tool marks, or even wiring fragments.

692
00:44:06.880 --> 00:44:08.960
What remained, combined.

693
00:44:08.440 --> 00:44:14.519
With particularly Wolfe's statements, however, was enough to establish intent

694
00:44:15.280 --> 00:44:21.599
and method with confidence. They were like, yeah, I don't

695
00:44:21.639 --> 00:44:24.639
think we have to wait and worry and wonder about

696
00:44:24.679 --> 00:44:26.119
this one.

697
00:44:26.320 --> 00:44:29.880
So I guess there was that. God, can you imagine

698
00:44:29.920 --> 00:44:32.239
if it went off just like randomly while like she

699
00:44:33.280 --> 00:44:36.440
a home or something like, were you not just ridding

700
00:44:36.519 --> 00:44:39.840
yourself thinking about that until it left?

701
00:44:40.079 --> 00:44:43.840
Like I mean you should have been like how long.

702
00:44:43.599 --> 00:44:47.360
You said there was a day before? Yeah, yeah, yeah,

703
00:44:47.599 --> 00:44:52.320
So like obviously hopefully she knows, like, yeah, obviously, don't

704
00:44:52.519 --> 00:44:56.840
get in the car, like for any reason, even if

705
00:44:56.840 --> 00:44:58.159
you're not going to start it.

706
00:44:58.639 --> 00:45:04.440
What if she like forgot karma? Yeah, but I know,

707
00:45:05.000 --> 00:45:09.639
I know, well sometimes karma is a bitch.

708
00:45:11.159 --> 00:45:15.800
Investigators concluded that the bomb had been deliberately placed beneath

709
00:45:15.840 --> 00:45:20.280
the driver's seat, positioned to direct the force upward into

710
00:45:20.320 --> 00:45:24.559
the cabin. The placement suggested an understanding of how to

711
00:45:24.679 --> 00:45:30.360
concentrate the blast while reducing the likelihood of accidental detonation.

712
00:45:31.880 --> 00:45:36.079
The wiring connected to the vehicle's ignition system was designed

713
00:45:36.079 --> 00:45:41.440
to trigger the device when electrical current flowed. Contemporary reporting

714
00:45:41.519 --> 00:45:45.480
emphasized that the bomb could not have detonated accidentally and

715
00:45:45.599 --> 00:45:49.920
would have required both mechanical skill and advance.

716
00:45:49.960 --> 00:45:51.480
Access to the vehicle.

717
00:45:52.239 --> 00:45:54.519
So it's like all of these parts and pieces where

718
00:45:54.519 --> 00:45:58.159
it's like Marjorie couldn't have done this herself, and the

719
00:45:58.239 --> 00:46:01.360
fact that wolf had been seen the home the day

720
00:46:01.400 --> 00:46:08.840
prior near the vehicle, it all just it's very neat. Yeah,

721
00:46:08.920 --> 00:46:12.079
how do we know she's not an electrician bomb expert?

722
00:46:13.000 --> 00:46:13.599
She wasn't.

723
00:46:15.400 --> 00:46:19.519
Just saying I have some other fun facts about Marjorie

724
00:46:19.559 --> 00:46:25.880
and electrician she was not. In court, physical evidence from

725
00:46:25.920 --> 00:46:31.360
the vehicle was presented, alongside expert testimony regarding the bomb's construction,

726
00:46:32.119 --> 00:46:36.920
financial records detailing the insurance policy, and the couple's remarriage,

727
00:46:37.880 --> 00:46:43.119
witness statements describing the relationship of the defendants at their

728
00:46:43.159 --> 00:46:50.039
respective trials, and of course Wolfe's confession. If he hadn't confessed,

729
00:46:50.320 --> 00:46:55.480
I think there's a really good chance that the outcome

730
00:46:55.840 --> 00:47:00.840
of their respective trials could have been potential very different,

731
00:47:01.360 --> 00:47:06.400
hard to say. The defense strategies reflected the limitations of

732
00:47:06.519 --> 00:47:11.239
the evidence and really ultimately of science at this point

733
00:47:11.239 --> 00:47:16.320
in history. Wolfe's attorneys acknowledged his role in building the device,

734
00:47:16.639 --> 00:47:22.000
but sought to contextualize his actions through emotional dependence and

735
00:47:22.119 --> 00:47:24.440
manipulation aka.

736
00:47:24.239 --> 00:47:32.599
Love slave, sex slave mannipulation, manipulation.

737
00:47:32.960 --> 00:47:35.960
Oh boy, if you aren't saying a whole lot right there.

738
00:47:37.079 --> 00:47:42.159
Marjorie Smith's defense emphasized the absence of physical evidence tying

739
00:47:42.199 --> 00:47:46.679
her directly to the bomb, arguing that she had never handled.

740
00:47:46.280 --> 00:47:48.280
Explosives or placed the device.

741
00:47:49.320 --> 00:47:53.840
But you know that's not the only way to have

742
00:47:53.960 --> 00:47:59.320
culpability and a murder. During the trial, jurors were instructed

743
00:47:59.320 --> 00:48:03.599
that under Oregon law, criminal responsibility for murder could extend

744
00:48:03.639 --> 00:48:09.760
beyond the person who physically carried out the act, encompassing planning, encouragement,

745
00:48:10.039 --> 00:48:13.719
or intent really important in the eyes of the law.

746
00:48:14.679 --> 00:48:19.119
Wolfe had purchased dynamite from two different stores near Malala,

747
00:48:19.440 --> 00:48:23.840
but the pair had traveled together to Ridgefield in Washington

748
00:48:24.000 --> 00:48:25.360
to buy the detonators.

749
00:48:26.239 --> 00:48:28.599
Okay, well, couples day a.

750
00:48:28.519 --> 00:48:31.840
Little right, just a little romantic road trip.

751
00:48:32.480 --> 00:48:35.840
Why do you say a couple's date date night is

752
00:48:36.639 --> 00:48:39.320
date night? Trying to say, yeah, yeah, there we go.

753
00:48:40.760 --> 00:48:44.679
On the way, they had stopped for a picnic lunch. Oh,

754
00:48:44.719 --> 00:48:50.840
and that's where I know. It's unbelievable. It's unbelievable. And

755
00:48:50.880 --> 00:48:54.679
that's where he'd cut a bouquet of pussy willows for her.

756
00:48:55.760 --> 00:49:01.760
Pussy willows because he wasn't getting any of that pussy.

757
00:49:02.800 --> 00:49:05.199
I was like, I was tempted to put in my

758
00:49:05.280 --> 00:49:10.599
notes pause for ninety seconds for Cassie to process, and

759
00:49:10.840 --> 00:49:13.840
last I was like, this is gonna take a minute.

760
00:49:14.039 --> 00:49:18.559
Did he really collect pussy willows? Uh huh, that's so funny.

761
00:49:18.840 --> 00:49:21.519
But do you know, like they're an actual like plant.

762
00:49:22.039 --> 00:49:24.559
Oh yeah, I've heard of that. I don't actually say,

763
00:49:24.599 --> 00:49:26.360
I don't really, I don't know what they look like.

764
00:49:26.760 --> 00:49:33.199
I had AI generate a couple of like bouquets, like

765
00:49:33.360 --> 00:49:36.960
pictures of bouquets for me, just for reference, because I'm like,

766
00:49:37.679 --> 00:49:39.800
that's him getting you flowers.

767
00:49:39.960 --> 00:49:45.199
Okay, oh okay, I've seen those before. I see. Yeah,

768
00:49:45.320 --> 00:49:47.960
they're beautiful looking.

769
00:49:50.320 --> 00:49:53.239
I mean, they are pretty, but like, it's not what

770
00:49:53.320 --> 00:49:56.039
you think of when you think of a bouquet of flowers.

771
00:49:56.280 --> 00:49:58.440
I will say that. No. I mean I guess if

772
00:49:58.440 --> 00:50:02.519
they were her favorite or whatever, that's cool, Probably not right.

773
00:50:02.599 --> 00:50:03.960
I don't know that they were.

774
00:50:05.159 --> 00:50:09.840
But the bouquet had of course been uncovered when the

775
00:50:09.880 --> 00:50:11.039
home had been searched.

776
00:50:11.039 --> 00:50:15.960
By law enforcement that very bouquet had been uncovered.

777
00:50:17.639 --> 00:50:22.559
And they know this because they drove to Ridgefield, Washington

778
00:50:22.800 --> 00:50:26.400
and looked for where the pussy willows had been cut.

779
00:50:26.960 --> 00:50:31.719
They did they and they matched them. That is some

780
00:50:31.920 --> 00:50:34.119
hardcore detective work right there.

781
00:50:34.760 --> 00:50:38.039
I don't know how you do that period, but in

782
00:50:38.079 --> 00:50:40.400
the nineteen fifties, I'm like.

783
00:50:40.400 --> 00:50:41.920
It with all the forensics they had.

784
00:50:43.400 --> 00:50:46.199
Yeah, I'm just I'm just gonna have to take their

785
00:50:46.239 --> 00:50:48.079
word for it. But I mean the fact that they

786
00:50:48.119 --> 00:50:50.960
show up to the house and they find a vase

787
00:50:51.519 --> 00:50:55.679
full of pussy wilves, and like, that's such a key

788
00:50:55.719 --> 00:51:01.880
component of the story in relation to picking up Debton. Yeah,

789
00:51:02.400 --> 00:51:05.519
I feel like, you know what, just just just.

790
00:51:05.440 --> 00:51:06.559
Go with me, you know.

791
00:51:08.199 --> 00:51:12.280
Victor Lawrence Wolf was convicted of first degree murder and

792
00:51:12.360 --> 00:51:16.800
sentenced to life in prison. I think that was the

793
00:51:16.840 --> 00:51:20.559
best possible outcome for him, because at this point in history,

794
00:51:20.719 --> 00:51:25.440
if he had actually been sentenced to death, he would

795
00:51:25.480 --> 00:51:30.639
have been sent to the gas chamber. Oh shit, dude, Yeah,

796
00:51:31.440 --> 00:51:38.320
sh So there's that if he had been put to death. Ultimately, however,

797
00:51:38.679 --> 00:51:42.559
the jury found the evidence insufficient to prove that Marjorie

798
00:51:42.639 --> 00:51:49.239
Smith met the legal threshold as essentially a conspirator what

799
00:51:49.920 --> 00:51:51.599
and she was acquitted what.

800
00:51:52.599 --> 00:51:55.719
I am furious. I'm outraged.

801
00:51:57.159 --> 00:52:03.079
I will say, I think it is really tough, especially

802
00:52:03.119 --> 00:52:08.760
in nineteen fifty five, to meet the burden, the threshold

803
00:52:09.239 --> 00:52:14.760
for proving that there was sort of a conspiracy to

804
00:52:14.880 --> 00:52:18.480
commit murder between these two. I feel like a lot

805
00:52:18.519 --> 00:52:21.559
of what they have is very damning, but a lot

806
00:52:21.639 --> 00:52:25.280
of what they have is based on like kind of

807
00:52:25.400 --> 00:52:31.320
second third hand witness testimony or like ultimately just very circumstantial.

808
00:52:32.159 --> 00:52:36.719
But the pussy willows, you know, like the vibes are there,

809
00:52:36.960 --> 00:52:39.599
but I don't know that it feels like they have

810
00:52:39.840 --> 00:52:44.280
anything super concrete. And here's the other thing is that

811
00:52:45.159 --> 00:52:50.599
having researched particularly some of like this isn't the old timiest.

812
00:52:50.519 --> 00:52:52.639
Of cases that I've researched, but.

813
00:52:54.400 --> 00:53:03.639
The public's appetite for justice or vengeance was nearly insatiable. However,

814
00:53:04.719 --> 00:53:11.480
in the case that a woman might be convicted, should

815
00:53:11.519 --> 00:53:14.800
she happen to possibly face the death penalty, a lot

816
00:53:14.840 --> 00:53:17.559
of people simply could not stomach.

817
00:53:17.239 --> 00:53:19.480
That They're clutching their pearls.

818
00:53:20.280 --> 00:53:23.360
Yes, I do think, I do think this is one

819
00:53:23.400 --> 00:53:31.280
of those cases where they're like this is a child's mother. Yeah,

820
00:53:31.320 --> 00:53:35.400
in this case, I you know, I wasn't there. I

821
00:53:35.440 --> 00:53:38.039
didn't sit on the jury. I certainly wasn't there when

822
00:53:38.039 --> 00:53:41.559
they were, you know, installing the bomb. But to me,

823
00:53:41.840 --> 00:53:48.559
it certainly seems like Marjorie they she done did what

824
00:53:48.639 --> 00:53:53.800
they said she did? Wow, and that was somebody's father. Yeah,

825
00:53:53.840 --> 00:53:57.599
like around her birthday, so close to her birthday, a.

826
00:53:57.639 --> 00:54:01.360
Week before her birthday.

827
00:54:01.400 --> 00:54:05.679
In time, the headlines faded, the parking lot was repaired,

828
00:54:06.360 --> 00:54:11.000
the Columbia Edgewater Country Club resumed its routines, but the

829
00:54:11.039 --> 00:54:15.559
case never fully disappeared. If I had known the story

830
00:54:15.639 --> 00:54:20.400
when I visited in a professional capacity, I'm sure I

831
00:54:20.400 --> 00:54:23.840
would have looked at the place very differently. The Columbia

832
00:54:24.000 --> 00:54:28.840
Edgewater Country Club. I have been there, and at one

833
00:54:28.920 --> 00:54:34.280
point I had photos and videos that I took when

834
00:54:34.280 --> 00:54:38.039
I was out on it was like a job walk

835
00:54:38.199 --> 00:54:43.480
for a project bid. Wow. Okay, I'm gonna have to

836
00:54:43.519 --> 00:54:47.960
see if there's any possibility in like either somewhere buried

837
00:54:47.960 --> 00:54:51.400
in my camera role or maybe even a dropbox that

838
00:54:51.480 --> 00:54:54.639
I can recover anything that I might have taken that day.

839
00:54:54.960 --> 00:54:58.920
Obviously I don't have photos of the crime scene, folks,

840
00:54:59.519 --> 00:55:02.480
Not right, my own personal but not.

841
00:55:02.519 --> 00:55:04.320
Like there would be much to see anyway.

842
00:55:04.519 --> 00:55:08.559
But no, but yeah, I mean it's kind of interesting

843
00:55:08.639 --> 00:55:13.639
because I did sort of get an eerie vibe.

844
00:55:15.440 --> 00:55:18.239
On the property. And it's still a country club.

845
00:55:18.719 --> 00:55:22.079
Yes, it's basically just a it's a golf club, is okay.

846
00:55:22.519 --> 00:55:24.480
I guess I was thinking like it would be something

847
00:55:24.519 --> 00:55:26.960
totally different now, but that I mean that makes sense.

848
00:55:27.280 --> 00:55:31.760
Yeah, yeah, but it is. Yeah, it's I don't know.

849
00:55:31.800 --> 00:55:35.119
It was weird because I knew nothing about this case

850
00:55:35.159 --> 00:55:37.880
and when I first looked at when I first came

851
00:55:37.920 --> 00:55:40.719
across this case, I looked it up and I went,

852
00:55:41.119 --> 00:55:43.880
that sounds so familiar. And I was like, I am

853
00:55:44.360 --> 00:55:47.760
just positive that I was out there on a job

854
00:55:47.800 --> 00:55:50.920
walk like a few months ago. Can that be right?

855
00:55:51.000 --> 00:55:53.079
And I looked it up and I was like, you

856
00:55:53.159 --> 00:55:56.639
have got to be kidding me. That's crazy, just because

857
00:55:56.639 --> 00:55:59.719
it's cool to have been some place that you know,

858
00:55:59.840 --> 00:56:03.760
you feel like you have a personal connection. Not I

859
00:56:03.760 --> 00:56:07.760
don't know, saying that it seems or feels cool feels

860
00:56:07.880 --> 00:56:11.960
icky in a way, but it's like, you know, it's

861
00:56:12.000 --> 00:56:16.119
just people can understand it's a historical site.

862
00:56:16.159 --> 00:56:18.639
I'm not looking at it like ooh, murder porn.

863
00:56:19.280 --> 00:56:22.360
You know, I just look at it more as like

864
00:56:22.519 --> 00:56:28.039
this is sort of a historical site. Yeah, you know

865
00:56:28.079 --> 00:56:32.360
what I mean, Yeah, I think so. Decades later, the

866
00:56:32.440 --> 00:56:37.800
Columbia Edgewater Country Club car bombing remains an infamous Oregon crime,

867
00:56:38.519 --> 00:56:41.639
remarkable not only for its brutality, but for what it

868
00:56:41.719 --> 00:56:49.159
revealed about mid century anxieties surrounding marriage, money, and morality.

869
00:56:50.079 --> 00:56:56.280
Preserved in court transcripts, newspaper archives, and historical collections, the

870
00:56:56.360 --> 00:57:00.480
story endures as a stark reminder of how calculated islands

871
00:57:00.519 --> 00:57:05.719
can hide behind the appearance of ordinary lives. A man

872
00:57:05.840 --> 00:57:09.639
turned to key in his car on an ordinary Portland morning,

873
00:57:10.480 --> 00:57:18.119
and a carefully constructed lie exploded all around him. Damn dude,

874
00:57:18.400 --> 00:57:22.639
which I feel like is ideally, in terms of, you know,

875
00:57:22.719 --> 00:57:26.559
an audio narrative, the perfect place to end this. And

876
00:57:26.840 --> 00:57:29.679
I'm not going to do that because I have a

877
00:57:29.679 --> 00:57:32.440
little bit more and I think you'll understand why I

878
00:57:32.480 --> 00:57:34.800
didn't want to leave some of this stuff out.

879
00:57:35.360 --> 00:57:37.159
Kermit was a veteran of.

880
00:57:37.239 --> 00:57:41.880
World War Two wow awarded both a Purple Heart and

881
00:57:41.920 --> 00:57:44.000
a Bronze Star throughout his service.

882
00:57:44.599 --> 00:57:46.400
Dude Dude had a purple.

883
00:57:46.119 --> 00:57:50.199
Heart kind of like a big deal.

884
00:57:50.440 --> 00:57:54.719
From what I gather, I don't have any colored hearts

885
00:57:54.880 --> 00:57:57.199
or stars from my service.

886
00:57:57.679 --> 00:57:59.840
Is that when you get like injured in the line

887
00:57:59.880 --> 00:58:02.079
of duty or something, is that what that's for.

888
00:58:02.559 --> 00:58:06.639
I don't know what the criteria was in nineteen fifty five,

889
00:58:06.880 --> 00:58:11.239
but so eligible actions injury must result from action against

890
00:58:11.280 --> 00:58:15.920
an enemy, action from friendly forces, or as a result

891
00:58:16.039 --> 00:58:17.960
of foreign terrorist attack.

892
00:58:18.880 --> 00:58:20.239
Basically, you have to.

893
00:58:20.280 --> 00:58:25.960
Have been found not fit for duty if in the

894
00:58:26.000 --> 00:58:30.880
case of a concussion, it says for greater than forty

895
00:58:30.880 --> 00:58:36.400
eight hours, the injury must require treatment by a medical officer.

896
00:58:38.039 --> 00:58:42.239
So this is all a lot of things where it

897
00:58:42.280 --> 00:58:46.719
actually outlines more things that mean you are disqualified than

898
00:58:46.760 --> 00:58:51.679
it does specify anything above and beyond about what qualifies

899
00:58:51.760 --> 00:58:54.920
you for this award. I really would be so interested

900
00:58:55.079 --> 00:59:00.800
to know what were the what was the like qualification

901
00:59:01.199 --> 00:59:07.039
back in nineteen you know, forties, nineteen fifties, because I

902
00:59:07.119 --> 00:59:09.639
know that a purple heart like you whip that out.

903
00:59:09.679 --> 00:59:11.360
You're not buying a drink in town.

904
00:59:11.760 --> 00:59:13.400
Right, it's a big deal.

905
00:59:14.159 --> 00:59:17.960
Yeah, he's the primary victim in this case. But I

906
00:59:17.960 --> 00:59:20.760
couldn't help but feel a tug at my heart strings

907
00:59:20.760 --> 00:59:25.599
for the couple's young daughter, in particular, beyond the obvious

908
00:59:25.639 --> 00:59:28.360
pain of losing her father at such a young age,

909
00:59:29.079 --> 00:59:32.880
indeed one where she may have either very few memories

910
00:59:32.960 --> 00:59:37.639
of her father or none at all. She may not

911
00:59:37.920 --> 00:59:41.920
have any actual memories of her father. She may only

912
00:59:42.400 --> 00:59:44.360
remember what she was later told.

913
00:59:44.840 --> 00:59:45.679
Yeah.

914
00:59:45.840 --> 00:59:49.199
Once Marjorie's trial came to a close with her acquittal,

915
00:59:49.400 --> 00:59:54.639
a family court battle ensued. Marjorie's son, Gregory, was in

916
00:59:54.719 --> 00:59:58.199
the custody of his father, her first husband, during the trial,

917
00:59:58.960 --> 01:00:03.679
but that custody arrangement seemed perhaps less acrimonious.

918
01:00:04.480 --> 01:00:06.119
Oh, she had another husband.

919
01:00:06.519 --> 01:00:10.400
Okay, she had been married before, So he dodged a bomb,

920
01:00:12.079 --> 01:00:16.880
sure did. Ellen High Tower Kermit's sister had come to

921
01:00:16.960 --> 01:00:21.960
Oregon upon learning of her brother's murder, arriving shortly after

922
01:00:22.320 --> 01:00:27.639
Marjorie's arrest had taken place. In the interim, Susan had

923
01:00:27.639 --> 01:00:31.320
been taken to a neighbor's home, then retrieved by a

924
01:00:31.440 --> 01:00:36.119
maternal aunt that lived locally, before ultimately being given.

925
01:00:35.840 --> 01:00:37.559
To the care of the High Towers.

926
01:00:38.800 --> 01:00:42.079
No one had objected to the high Towers taking Susan

927
01:00:42.159 --> 01:00:46.679
home with them to California, including the aunt who had

928
01:00:46.719 --> 01:00:51.599
temporarily taken her nor her maternal grandmother, both of whom

929
01:00:52.079 --> 01:00:56.639
were Oregon residents. Susan remained with the high Towers at

930
01:00:56.639 --> 01:01:00.880
their Santa Clara County home until missus High Tower initiated

931
01:01:00.960 --> 01:01:06.360
proceedings requesting to be appointed guardian of young Susan. Though

932
01:01:06.400 --> 01:01:11.599
Marjorie appealed to regain custody, it appears the outcome was

933
01:01:11.679 --> 01:01:16.519
guardianship or day to day custody being awarded to Kermit's

934
01:01:16.599 --> 01:01:24.239
sister Ellen. So they basically the High Towers they took

935
01:01:24.360 --> 01:01:30.840
over caring for Susan in nineteen fifty five, and the

936
01:01:30.880 --> 01:01:35.679
guardianship decision came down in nineteen fifty seven.

937
01:01:36.480 --> 01:01:39.519
Oh man, So she was with him for two years.

938
01:01:40.800 --> 01:01:44.000
H dang and so young.

939
01:01:45.199 --> 01:01:45.880
So young.

940
01:01:46.079 --> 01:01:49.480
And then just to think about, I realized that, you know,

941
01:01:49.639 --> 01:01:53.039
probably the neighbors were people that she knew. But then

942
01:01:53.119 --> 01:01:58.159
she's handed off to her aunt, and then she's handed

943
01:01:58.199 --> 01:02:02.159
off to her other aunt, and so the only sense

944
01:02:02.239 --> 01:02:07.639
of permanency or normalcy after this horrific thing that happened,

945
01:02:07.639 --> 01:02:10.400
and how much of that she understood, I can't imagine.

946
01:02:10.440 --> 01:02:11.480
It was much.

947
01:02:12.440 --> 01:02:15.840
Truly such a sad way for a man to lose

948
01:02:15.880 --> 01:02:18.760
his life and for a child to lose their father.

949
01:02:19.599 --> 01:02:23.360
But based on everything that I've read, it seems like

950
01:02:23.480 --> 01:02:30.280
Susan remained in the custody of her paternal family with

951
01:02:30.360 --> 01:02:31.199
the High Towers.

952
01:02:31.639 --> 01:02:36.480
Wow, that's amazing. Yeah, Ellen high Tower.

953
01:02:36.800 --> 01:02:37.840
Kermit's sister.

954
01:02:39.119 --> 01:02:42.679
Spoke to newspapers, and I believe there was an excerpt

955
01:02:42.679 --> 01:02:46.000
from court testimony where she said, I have spoken to

956
01:02:46.159 --> 01:02:53.679
three different individuals that all said Marjorie approached them either

957
01:02:53.920 --> 01:02:59.519
about killing Kermit themselves or that she spoke of her

958
01:02:59.639 --> 01:03:02.360
desire to have Kermit killed.

959
01:03:02.960 --> 01:03:06.079
Geez. She just spread it all over town.

960
01:03:06.920 --> 01:03:10.239
Yes, it was not a well kept secret, her affair,

961
01:03:10.800 --> 01:03:17.840
her desire to have Kermit die. Geez. So why didn't

962
01:03:17.880 --> 01:03:20.320
she you might have said, why didn't she get the

963
01:03:20.480 --> 01:03:23.840
custody of the kid, Like did she have to give

964
01:03:23.880 --> 01:03:25.760
her up because of the whole court thing.

965
01:03:25.679 --> 01:03:27.760
Or because of the trial? Essentially?

966
01:03:28.199 --> 01:03:30.400
Okay, but she was found not guilty.

967
01:03:30.920 --> 01:03:34.960
Correct, And I thought, well, you know, probably once she's acquitted,

968
01:03:35.000 --> 01:03:37.920
she's going to be given her child back, and that would,

969
01:03:38.199 --> 01:03:43.760
I think, typically be the most appropriate. However, because none

970
01:03:43.840 --> 01:03:47.280
of the maternal family even tried to keep her there,

971
01:03:47.840 --> 01:03:52.199
Nobody said, hey, you can't take her. The high towers,

972
01:03:52.639 --> 01:03:56.039
you know, maintained custody of her, and she was so young,

973
01:03:56.239 --> 01:04:00.519
and basically what they were saying is that Marjorie does

974
01:04:00.559 --> 01:04:04.880
not seem like a fit parent. Ellen seems like a

975
01:04:04.880 --> 01:04:05.599
fit parent.

976
01:04:05.960 --> 01:04:09.559
And yeah, so wow, so this whole thing and she

977
01:04:09.639 --> 01:04:11.880
was like worried about losing custody of her daughter and

978
01:04:11.920 --> 01:04:14.519
she doesn't even get her anyway in the end, like

979
01:04:14.599 --> 01:04:18.400
you could have just fucking moved away. Yeah, you dump bitch,

980
01:04:19.480 --> 01:04:21.800
Yeah honestly, wow. Yeah.

981
01:04:21.840 --> 01:04:26.840
I mean, unless there was anything that maybe didn't make

982
01:04:26.880 --> 01:04:30.519
the papers in terms of like legal proceedings with custody,

983
01:04:30.599 --> 01:04:33.400
but for this to be the decision that was made

984
01:04:33.599 --> 01:04:38.840
by the courts in nineteen fifty seven, I think, given

985
01:04:39.159 --> 01:04:43.239
the full set of circumstances, one of the things that

986
01:04:43.320 --> 01:04:46.880
it it kind of in a way, and they had

987
01:04:46.920 --> 01:04:50.159
to be really careful in how they worded the decision.

988
01:04:50.239 --> 01:04:56.199
I think, regardless of whether or not she had had

989
01:04:56.239 --> 01:05:01.119
any involvement in the murder of her husband and Susan's father,

990
01:05:01.880 --> 01:05:06.199
it seemed pretty clear that there was just almost overwhelming

991
01:05:06.239 --> 01:05:11.039
evidence that Marjorie had had this you know, illicit or

992
01:05:11.199 --> 01:05:16.880
inappropriate relationship with another man. And I think the courts

993
01:05:16.920 --> 01:05:21.719
felt like, why would we send her back to that? Yeah.

994
01:05:22.000 --> 01:05:22.719
I don't think.

995
01:05:22.639 --> 01:05:28.280
Infidelity is or should be necessarily grounds for losing custody

996
01:05:28.280 --> 01:05:32.679
of your children. But if you, you know, wrap that

997
01:05:32.840 --> 01:05:37.239
up in a murder plot as well, Yeah, that's where

998
01:05:37.239 --> 01:05:39.199
things get a little bit different. Yeah.

999
01:05:39.239 --> 01:05:42.239
I can't imagine like uprooting her after two years too,

1000
01:05:42.320 --> 01:05:43.719
Like that would be so sad.

1001
01:05:44.519 --> 01:05:49.440
It's such formative years. I think that was probably for

1002
01:05:49.480 --> 01:05:53.440
the best. Yeah, there's no way that wasn't sad for

1003
01:05:53.920 --> 01:05:58.400
like really almost everyone involved. I mean, it's no matter

1004
01:05:58.440 --> 01:06:03.559
what happens, somebody was going to have this heart wrenching,

1005
01:06:05.199 --> 01:06:09.239
life altering experience related to this case. Like there's no

1006
01:06:09.480 --> 01:06:12.960
good way for this end, even in relation to the custody.

1007
01:06:13.000 --> 01:06:21.280
It's like somebody's going to be left broken hearted. Wow, okay,

1008
01:06:22.280 --> 01:06:24.079
should we do some terror?

1009
01:06:25.199 --> 01:06:28.039
Yeah? I think we said we do terror on every episode,

1010
01:06:28.079 --> 01:06:33.159
so yeah, let's do it. Oh okay, yeah, yeah yeah, ooh.

1011
01:06:33.199 --> 01:06:34.440
We should tell him what deck it is.

1012
01:06:35.559 --> 01:06:43.480
It's the housewivestero, a domestic divination kit and it's very

1013
01:06:43.679 --> 01:06:50.719
like style, yes, very vintage nineteen fifties style. I cannot

1014
01:06:50.800 --> 01:06:55.119
wait for you to see some of the old timey

1015
01:06:55.440 --> 01:06:59.920
newspaper clips, because she very much looks like what you

1016
01:07:00.119 --> 01:07:03.960
would think a you know, I mean, she's not like

1017
01:07:04.119 --> 01:07:07.880
twenty two, but she's very much like a young like

1018
01:07:08.239 --> 01:07:09.400
little housewife.

1019
01:07:10.039 --> 01:07:16.400
Okay, and he wolfy yep, wolfy is.

1020
01:07:16.719 --> 01:07:20.199
I feel as though it may be accurate. I feel

1021
01:07:20.239 --> 01:07:23.719
as though this affair may have been may have been

1022
01:07:23.760 --> 01:07:27.360
for the sole purpose of the murder. Well, she she

1023
01:07:27.480 --> 01:07:28.760
was in her bad boy era.

1024
01:07:29.360 --> 01:07:32.960
She yep, you're kermit, like.

1025
01:07:33.159 --> 01:07:38.199
Very fifties businessman. I can't remember what I mean. Definitely, okay, Yeah,

1026
01:07:38.280 --> 01:07:42.159
that was definitely his vibe. He was like roughly middle

1027
01:07:42.199 --> 01:07:47.039
aged ish. He's an attorney, definitely like in a more

1028
01:07:47.320 --> 01:07:50.760
you know, settled place in his life. He's not somebody

1029
01:07:50.800 --> 01:07:54.119
that you're gonna suspect is out you know, cowboy in

1030
01:07:54.280 --> 01:07:58.360
around town. Yeah, okay, Although in the nineteen fifties, if

1031
01:07:58.360 --> 01:08:03.800
I've learned anything from mad Men, huh, I don't know.

1032
01:08:04.760 --> 01:08:09.320
I don't know, if you know, nineteen fifties lawyers were

1033
01:08:09.360 --> 01:08:13.719
the same as like ad executives on Madison Avenue or not.

1034
01:08:13.880 --> 01:08:16.800
But I have to assume kind of a little bit

1035
01:08:16.920 --> 01:08:21.000
maybe on a lesser scale. Yeah, Okay, I'm going to

1036
01:08:21.079 --> 01:08:22.439
operate under that assumption.

1037
01:08:23.439 --> 01:08:25.680
That's what I'm that's what I'm picturing. That's the vibe

1038
01:08:25.680 --> 01:08:26.000
I think.

1039
01:08:26.439 --> 01:08:30.880
Yeah, I think he was more of a stand up guy.

1040
01:08:33.039 --> 01:08:39.439
Okay, send me the vibes sending Caitlin magic through my

1041
01:08:39.520 --> 01:08:45.720
fingers through the computer screen. Now, oh my gord, I

1042
01:08:45.800 --> 01:08:50.840
can feel a Yeah you can because we're magic. Okay,

1043
01:08:52.279 --> 01:08:54.880
I just have to say too, like, would you look

1044
01:08:54.920 --> 01:08:58.279
at this? It's like very much like a it's like

1045
01:08:58.359 --> 01:09:03.760
a checkered apron. Yeah, like a kitchen floor or like

1046
01:09:03.800 --> 01:09:05.600
a even wallpaper back.

1047
01:09:05.439 --> 01:09:09.800
Then, oh my god, it's it's very of the time.

1048
01:09:10.960 --> 01:09:19.439
Now the evergreen question where in this sort of a

1049
01:09:19.479 --> 01:09:21.800
semi circular.

1050
01:09:21.640 --> 01:09:24.960
Arch middle right spe shape okay.

1051
01:09:25.560 --> 01:09:26.399
Middle right?

1052
01:09:27.239 --> 01:09:34.039
How far right? Like middle ish middleish? Okay, I think

1053
01:09:34.199 --> 01:09:35.439
we're not going far right?

1054
01:09:35.720 --> 01:09:41.119
Okay, no, never we have the eight of Wands.

1055
01:09:41.600 --> 01:09:43.520
Okay, you know, I kind of had a feeling we

1056
01:09:43.520 --> 01:09:46.600
were gonna get wands because that's like the fire element.

1057
01:09:47.520 --> 01:09:51.319
Oh interesting, And I couldn't tell what all the little

1058
01:09:51.399 --> 01:09:54.000
there was a bunch of little things on it. They're

1059
01:09:54.079 --> 01:09:57.560
really see what they were. They're like brooms and mops.

1060
01:09:58.439 --> 01:10:02.439
Oh fairy fifties housewife.

1061
01:10:04.159 --> 01:10:06.960
Yeah, is there a vacuum on. There were vacuums invented

1062
01:10:07.079 --> 01:10:07.479
back then.

1063
01:10:09.079 --> 01:10:15.039
I think vacuums did exist. There are none on this particular.

1064
01:10:14.560 --> 01:10:17.239
Card, but interesting.

1065
01:10:17.960 --> 01:10:26.079
Yeah, okay, So our keywords are action, excitement, new experiences,

1066
01:10:26.319 --> 01:10:27.920
and urgency.

1067
01:10:29.000 --> 01:10:32.640
It seems like they're like the wife and the Wolfe's

1068
01:10:32.760 --> 01:10:36.399
relationship kind of maybe a little, maybe a little. There's

1069
01:10:36.439 --> 01:10:37.880
definitely a vibe there.

1070
01:10:38.920 --> 01:10:41.840
When the aid of wands appears, you can expect your

1071
01:10:41.880 --> 01:10:43.479
life to speed up big.

1072
01:10:43.279 --> 01:10:45.359
Time or blow up.

1073
01:10:45.840 --> 01:10:52.960
Oh no, this card suggests lots of action and excitement

1074
01:10:53.079 --> 01:10:53.880
coming your way.

1075
01:10:54.439 --> 01:10:56.920
This is the carpe dim card.

1076
01:10:57.239 --> 01:10:59.720
Ooh that's okay, Hold on, what does carpe dim mean?

1077
01:11:00.039 --> 01:11:00.640
Don't remember?

1078
01:11:00.960 --> 01:11:04.680
It's kind of a seize the day type of a vibe.

1079
01:11:05.039 --> 01:11:09.159
But I can look up what carbe dim actually means.

1080
01:11:09.800 --> 01:11:13.399
Carbe dim is a Latin phrase meaning seize the day.

1081
01:11:14.399 --> 01:11:18.880
Nice. Something stuck in there? I know, hey, you guys

1082
01:11:19.359 --> 01:11:21.600
smart Caitlin, I think she's still here.

1083
01:11:23.479 --> 01:11:25.560
That's just kind of very eerie.

1084
01:11:26.479 --> 01:11:31.039
Yeah to hear that because his life ended so quickly,

1085
01:11:31.880 --> 01:11:37.359
I mean kind of what people that you said quickly? Okay, okay,

1086
01:11:37.479 --> 01:11:38.520
was it was it?

1087
01:11:38.560 --> 01:11:38.640
Not?

1088
01:11:38.760 --> 01:11:39.079
Quick?

1089
01:11:39.920 --> 01:11:40.000
No?

1090
01:11:40.119 --> 01:11:42.039
It was quick? Oh I was like I thought you

1091
01:11:42.079 --> 01:11:43.399
said it was like instant.

1092
01:11:43.680 --> 01:11:48.680
You're like, why whatever you've put into motion now takes

1093
01:11:48.720 --> 01:11:50.239
off at a rapid pace.

1094
01:11:51.359 --> 01:11:54.119
Yeah, I would say so takes off too.

1095
01:11:54.760 --> 01:12:01.680
Mm hmmm yeah, uh whootah. The eight may also indicate

1096
01:12:01.840 --> 01:12:03.319
a whirlwind.

1097
01:12:02.720 --> 01:12:11.319
Trip that's like, oh my god, Okay.

1098
01:12:09.560 --> 01:12:13.039
This card shows a busy period in your life when

1099
01:12:13.079 --> 01:12:17.239
you feel, oh my god, I'm dying. I need you

1100
01:12:17.319 --> 01:12:21.319
to understand that this is like quite literally physically what

1101
01:12:21.600 --> 01:12:27.600
happened to this man? And no, yeah, this card shows

1102
01:12:27.720 --> 01:12:31.159
a busy period in your life when you feel catapulted

1103
01:12:31.319 --> 01:12:32.920
towards something you desire.

1104
01:12:34.880 --> 01:12:38.600
Dude, even though like the word the meaning of like

1105
01:12:38.640 --> 01:12:43.279
the actual sentence doesn't like super fit what happened to him,

1106
01:12:43.399 --> 01:12:46.920
but like just the word the little.

1107
01:12:46.880 --> 01:12:52.520
Yes, yes, yes, yes yeah, because it's my understanding that

1108
01:12:52.600 --> 01:12:58.439
his body was literally catapulted from the vehicle and ended

1109
01:12:58.520 --> 01:13:01.720
up a couple of behind the rear bumper.

1110
01:13:02.560 --> 01:13:05.279
Oh my god, I was you know, I was like

1111
01:13:05.359 --> 01:13:08.920
thinking about that when you were talking about it, But

1112
01:13:08.960 --> 01:13:11.840
I was like, I literally can't ask because I don't

1113
01:13:11.880 --> 01:13:15.680
want to know, Like I can. I think we can

1114
01:13:15.720 --> 01:13:17.880
all imagine what happens when someone blows up.

1115
01:13:18.800 --> 01:13:23.520
Yeah, even though you may be a bit overwhelmed, you're

1116
01:13:23.840 --> 01:13:29.399
excited and inspired confidence all will turn out well. Take

1117
01:13:29.439 --> 01:13:33.680
a few risks, break out, try new things, and let

1118
01:13:33.720 --> 01:13:37.600
go of what no longer suits you. Wow, I just

1119
01:13:37.640 --> 01:13:39.960
feel like this whole this card is like just like

1120
01:13:40.039 --> 01:13:42.840
what sheet, what was in like her mind like, Oh,

1121
01:13:42.920 --> 01:13:44.439
I just need to get rid of this. I need

1122
01:13:44.479 --> 01:13:46.640
to start a new life. I need to like seize

1123
01:13:46.640 --> 01:13:52.199
the day, get rid of this baggage seriously. In a

1124
01:13:52.239 --> 01:13:57.399
reading about money, you may experience rapid gains or sudden opportunities,

1125
01:13:59.199 --> 01:14:05.920
rapid gains like from the life insurance in Yeah, perhaps

1126
01:14:06.000 --> 01:14:09.640
you feel a sense of urgency in financial areas and

1127
01:14:09.760 --> 01:14:12.960
may need to make split second decisions.

1128
01:14:13.520 --> 01:14:18.000
Wow, even though this thing was kind of like planned,

1129
01:14:18.199 --> 01:14:20.600
been planned for a while, but like you feel like

1130
01:14:20.640 --> 01:14:22.319
in her mind it was like it needs to get

1131
01:14:22.359 --> 01:14:23.439
done right.

1132
01:14:23.640 --> 01:14:26.960
I feel like the urgency is what I pick up

1133
01:14:27.000 --> 01:14:31.680
on for sure. In a reading about work, the Upright

1134
01:14:31.800 --> 01:14:36.239
eight suggests a time of inspiration when things happen fast

1135
01:14:36.359 --> 01:14:42.079
and you have to make quick decisions. Your career moves forward.

1136
01:14:41.800 --> 01:14:44.079
Rapidly and you have to hustle up.

1137
01:14:45.079 --> 01:14:48.000
You have to hustle to keep up This card can

1138
01:14:48.039 --> 01:14:54.000
also represent job related travel. Well, I'm thinking of their

1139
01:14:54.720 --> 01:14:56.880
their their hit job together.

1140
01:14:57.199 --> 01:14:59.880
Yeah, travel, have a picnic.

1141
01:15:00.000 --> 01:15:05.720
I'm like, oh my god, Okay, this next part just wow.

1142
01:15:06.439 --> 01:15:09.600
In a reading about love, the upright eight points to

1143
01:15:09.680 --> 01:15:14.000
a passionate and exciting romance. It can indicate a sudden

1144
01:15:14.039 --> 01:15:16.720
love affair that sweeps you off your feet, or a

1145
01:15:16.720 --> 01:15:19.760
hasty marriage, or maybe both.

1146
01:15:20.960 --> 01:15:23.680
Oh my god, yeah she did have a hasty marriage.

1147
01:15:24.119 --> 01:15:26.319
I mean a hasty remarriage.

1148
01:15:26.439 --> 01:15:30.840
I w yeah, yeah, and sweeps you again, like sweeps

1149
01:15:30.840 --> 01:15:31.640
you off your feet.

1150
01:15:31.800 --> 01:15:35.479
Like that's another like it sweeps you off your feet.

1151
01:15:35.920 --> 01:15:41.760
And the brooms wow, oh my gosh. Okay, so is

1152
01:15:41.760 --> 01:15:44.560
there anything else on that, Like just the pictures on

1153
01:15:44.640 --> 01:15:48.600
the card that like remind you of something from the

1154
01:15:48.720 --> 01:15:52.960
case just curious, Not particularly because it's literally just a

1155
01:15:53.039 --> 01:15:57.399
singular woman flying on a broom and she's surrounded by

1156
01:15:57.399 --> 01:16:01.279
a bunch of other flying brooms and mops. That's actually

1157
01:16:01.359 --> 01:16:06.319
very interesting though, yeah, because it's like she's like bye, yeah,

1158
01:16:06.319 --> 01:16:11.000
but she's like flying away. She's like and people, you know,

1159
01:16:11.199 --> 01:16:14.039
usually put witches on brooms and they think of witches

1160
01:16:14.159 --> 01:16:17.439
is like these terrible creatures who will like kill their men,

1161
01:16:17.800 --> 01:16:22.680
you know, right, Like that's kind of interesting, it is, okay,

1162
01:16:22.760 --> 01:16:26.960
So I'm gonna tell you the other little extras that

1163
01:16:27.079 --> 01:16:30.680
like didn't fit in neatly. But I have to say

1164
01:16:31.479 --> 01:16:33.720
the part that kind of got me that I didn't

1165
01:16:34.960 --> 01:16:39.680
it didn't really like resonate totally right away, was your

1166
01:16:39.760 --> 01:16:43.560
career moves forward rapidly and you have to hustle.

1167
01:16:43.199 --> 01:16:43.760
To keep up.

1168
01:16:44.479 --> 01:16:45.239
Two things.

1169
01:16:45.359 --> 01:16:48.079
I think I'll start with the one that reson that

1170
01:16:48.239 --> 01:16:50.359
like links to that specifically.

1171
01:16:51.199 --> 01:16:51.319
Uh.

1172
01:16:51.640 --> 01:16:54.760
Marjorie was asked if she thought she might write a

1173
01:16:54.800 --> 01:16:59.640
book about the case, having already written part of another

1174
01:17:00.079 --> 01:17:06.680
on gems given her experience in gemology. Oh heavens no,

1175
01:17:07.800 --> 01:17:11.680
she is said to have replied. Attorney Bruce Spalding said,

1176
01:17:12.119 --> 01:17:14.319
you don't want to write a book, but you want

1177
01:17:14.319 --> 01:17:17.800
to say that you have nothing to hide, followed by

1178
01:17:17.880 --> 01:17:22.119
the interjection of co Council, you stood before the world naked.

1179
01:17:22.800 --> 01:17:27.199
Spalding again, Yes, this case is nothing to write a

1180
01:17:27.199 --> 01:17:29.680
book about, but you'd be willing and glad to talk

1181
01:17:29.760 --> 01:17:37.079
about it at anytime. Marjorie replied, Yes, Spalding again, Marjorie,

1182
01:17:37.119 --> 01:17:38.600
isn't that kind of a writer.

1183
01:17:39.079 --> 01:17:46.239
With a laugh, whoa oh, why she's more of a gem,

1184
01:17:46.920 --> 01:17:49.359
like a scientist. She was kind of like a scientist.

1185
01:17:49.439 --> 01:17:50.039
Is that what a gem?

1186
01:17:51.680 --> 01:17:53.520
I don't know how strict.

1187
01:17:54.960 --> 01:17:59.079
Someone who works at like a jewelry store. Uhh, Yeah,

1188
01:17:59.079 --> 01:18:00.840
that's more of a jewel race store thing.

1189
01:18:01.279 --> 01:18:03.560
Okay, that makes more sense. So I'm like, she didn't

1190
01:18:03.560 --> 01:18:06.640
seem like a woman in stem to me. So I

1191
01:18:06.720 --> 01:18:10.439
do understand why someone would be willing to talk about

1192
01:18:10.479 --> 01:18:12.760
it and like get the information out. But it's a

1193
01:18:12.840 --> 01:18:15.760
very different thing to write a book and like re

1194
01:18:16.000 --> 01:18:19.479
traumatize yourself and then go on to make money for it.

1195
01:18:19.560 --> 01:18:20.960
Like I feel like people would.

1196
01:18:20.720 --> 01:18:24.359
Have just oh, back then, that would have been such

1197
01:18:24.359 --> 01:18:28.560
a hot button thing. Yeah, So I could totally see,

1198
01:18:28.640 --> 01:18:32.159
like even if you know, if she wasn't the best person,

1199
01:18:32.359 --> 01:18:40.479
like Okay, So I I recently watched a documentary about

1200
01:18:40.479 --> 01:18:44.439
a case that I've heard a lot of other people

1201
01:18:44.560 --> 01:18:49.079
talk about that generally, I respect their opinions, and I

1202
01:18:49.119 --> 01:18:54.359
think in the strictest legal sense, the burden is on

1203
01:18:54.399 --> 01:19:00.119
the state they did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt,

1204
01:19:00.000 --> 01:19:03.760
at least to a jury of her peers, regardless of

1205
01:19:03.800 --> 01:19:09.439
what we might think of the level of a mental

1206
01:19:10.359 --> 01:19:18.520
processing of that said, jury, it reminded me of this

1207
01:19:18.640 --> 01:19:21.960
more modern case where it's very much a woman who

1208
01:19:22.279 --> 01:19:23.640
is uh.

1209
01:19:23.680 --> 01:19:26.760
Seems to have been very caught up in.

1210
01:19:28.439 --> 01:19:33.359
Sort of the glitz and glamour of being a defendant,

1211
01:19:34.279 --> 01:19:41.319
and while that may not make her very likable, it

1212
01:19:41.359 --> 01:19:42.840
does not make her guilty.

1213
01:19:44.000 --> 01:19:46.039
Yeah, yeah, that is true.

1214
01:19:46.319 --> 01:19:52.920
However, the public's fascination with true crime as a genre,

1215
01:19:53.520 --> 01:19:58.159
even back then, it was far less like widely accepted.

1216
01:19:58.319 --> 01:20:01.119
But okay, so I'm just going to read to you

1217
01:20:01.199 --> 01:20:05.760
this was literally in the newspaper. This was reported like

1218
01:20:05.840 --> 01:20:08.800
it was news in the nineteen fifties.

1219
01:20:09.000 --> 01:20:10.399
Oh boy, okay, I can't wait.

1220
01:20:11.000 --> 01:20:14.479
After all the craziness of this case, I really couldn't

1221
01:20:14.479 --> 01:20:15.199
figure out where.

1222
01:20:15.079 --> 01:20:18.640
To put it, And now I did just Now.

1223
01:20:19.119 --> 01:20:23.920
For breakfast Friday, she ate a hearty meal, one egg,

1224
01:20:24.399 --> 01:20:29.520
orange juice, bacon, toast, coffee, and my vitamin pill.

1225
01:20:30.960 --> 01:20:35.079
Yeah, okay, cool story. I would call that a hearty,

1226
01:20:35.439 --> 01:20:39.880
hardy breakfast, like maybe a normal for.

1227
01:20:40.000 --> 01:20:42.600
A housewife in the nineteen fifties. I think that was

1228
01:20:42.640 --> 01:20:46.000
a pretty hardy breakfast. It's not just like a half

1229
01:20:46.039 --> 01:20:51.760
a greape fruit and coffee exactly. Yeah. I was really

1230
01:20:51.800 --> 01:20:57.560
blown away because especially care well. Okay, so especially after

1231
01:20:57.920 --> 01:21:02.079
the verdict, people we're asking like, you know, how do

1232
01:21:02.119 --> 01:21:02.720
you feel?

1233
01:21:02.880 --> 01:21:04.000
And you know, I.

1234
01:21:03.920 --> 01:21:07.319
Feel like that's pretty typical, and so that's where kind

1235
01:21:07.359 --> 01:21:11.840
of some of that buzz comes from. But I was like,

1236
01:21:12.600 --> 01:21:16.600
I feel like what she had for breakfast isn't what

1237
01:21:16.720 --> 01:21:25.840
particularly sparks my intrigue. But do you Yeah, like unless

1238
01:21:25.840 --> 01:21:30.079
it was like particularly interesting, like she like a bunch

1239
01:21:30.119 --> 01:21:32.800
of mealworms or like, that would be the problem.

1240
01:21:32.840 --> 01:21:34.279
Maybe, yeah, news.

1241
01:21:33.960 --> 01:21:39.119
But something unique, something interesting, and I she blended her

1242
01:21:39.119 --> 01:21:40.880
breakfast and snorted it down her nose.

1243
01:21:40.960 --> 01:21:45.720
Yeah, okay, I want to know that. That's on my

1244
01:21:45.800 --> 01:21:54.000
strange addiction. Oh no, oh no, that's don't do that.

1245
01:21:55.640 --> 01:21:58.880
Listen. I'm not here to yock anybody's yum, but like,

1246
01:21:59.279 --> 01:22:03.640
don't don't don't do that. I feel as though, yeah,

1247
01:22:03.640 --> 01:22:06.239
I was just going to say, I feel as though

1248
01:22:07.720 --> 01:22:11.000
nine out of ten doctors will not recommend.

1249
01:22:10.479 --> 01:22:13.560
That, and the one that does might there might be

1250
01:22:13.600 --> 01:22:17.039
a problem there. Yeah, yeah, might not be a real doctor.

1251
01:22:17.800 --> 01:22:22.439
That doctor also had some questionable recommendations in twenty twenty.

1252
01:22:22.960 --> 01:22:29.600
I bet, oh, oh my job, that was it.

1253
01:22:29.680 --> 01:22:33.920
I just I couldn't believe the public fascination with and

1254
01:22:33.960 --> 01:22:37.880
who knows, maybe that was put in the paper and

1255
01:22:38.239 --> 01:22:40.479
absolutely zero fox were given.

1256
01:22:41.199 --> 01:22:42.880
But I feel as though.

1257
01:22:43.279 --> 01:22:48.439
If they included that in the article, you know, post

1258
01:22:48.880 --> 01:22:52.560
sent you know, post trial, because I mean that was

1259
01:22:52.640 --> 01:22:55.520
literally after she was acquitted, weird.

1260
01:22:55.680 --> 01:22:56.119
I don't know.

1261
01:22:56.359 --> 01:22:59.199
I get the sense that probably there was some sort

1262
01:22:59.239 --> 01:23:03.399
of public sentiment that like that might be interesting and

1263
01:23:03.439 --> 01:23:08.800
that makes me deeply, deeply sad. How did they even

1264
01:23:08.920 --> 01:23:13.880
know because they asked her. Yeah, it was a direct quote.

1265
01:23:14.079 --> 01:23:16.119
She told them what she had for breakfast.

1266
01:23:16.960 --> 01:23:21.399
That is so weird to ask somebody like right after

1267
01:23:21.520 --> 01:23:24.039
they've been acquitted, So what did you have for breakfast?

1268
01:23:24.239 --> 01:23:28.159
I'd be like, I just it makes me think of like,

1269
01:23:28.960 --> 01:23:34.039
I feel like it's far more interesting when they ask,

1270
01:23:34.960 --> 01:23:39.119
you know, when they share what people's last meals were,

1271
01:23:40.119 --> 01:23:45.239
but like, clearly this is not her last meal. It's

1272
01:23:45.359 --> 01:23:49.800
interesting to look at retrospectively. I don't I just don't

1273
01:23:49.840 --> 01:23:52.319
know why anyone gives the fuck about it and it

1274
01:23:52.359 --> 01:23:53.399
was included.

1275
01:23:52.960 --> 01:23:53.760
In the first place.

1276
01:23:55.880 --> 01:23:59.159
Okay, so should we say goodbye to the lovely people

1277
01:23:59.199 --> 01:24:02.560
because I think that there's a dog about to peep.

1278
01:24:03.439 --> 01:24:05.640
Hey, don't don't out me.

1279
01:24:08.800 --> 01:24:13.560
Yeah, no, between between my sixteen year old senior dog

1280
01:24:13.720 --> 01:24:17.159
and you. It's definitely you that's gonna pee on my carpet.

1281
01:24:18.159 --> 01:24:22.199
I mean, I'll be right over. You're like, you never

1282
01:24:22.319 --> 01:24:26.520
know so bad, I'll be right there. I'll be right there.

1283
01:24:29.279 --> 01:24:35.399
All right, this feels like only fans, like a very niche.

1284
01:24:34.520 --> 01:24:37.439
Content coming to you. Sam.

1285
01:24:37.479 --> 01:24:41.800
All right, let's go, oh boy, have.

1286
01:24:41.640 --> 01:24:46.960
A creepy ass day. We'll see you next Thursday. I

1287
01:24:47.039 --> 01:24:47.560
did it.

1288
01:24:49.800 --> 01:24:52.199
No, listen to the smart Caitlin.

1289
01:24:52.960 --> 01:24:57.319
She's hard to find. I know that bitch is missing.

1290
01:24:58.720 --> 01:25:00.840
Smart Caitlyn. Let us no if you see her