Parcast Presents: Summer of '69

Twenty-five years ago, the British monarchy was forever changed upon the death of the “People’s Princess.” Today, we’re revisiting her story, looking back on a moment that impacted not only the royal family, but the world. We jump back to the 1980s, when Diana Spencer is ushered into a fairy tale. But from the beginning, it eats away at her — until she’s left simultaneously isolated and dangerously exposed. From Conspiracy Theories, a Spotify Original from Parcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jim Williams had the money to hire the best attorneys around. After a fourth trial for the same crime, he was finally found not guilty. Was theThe law truly upheld that day or did a rich man buy his freedom?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In May of 1981, shots rang out at a mansion known as the Mercer House. When officers arrived, a young man was dead. The estate’s lone resident, a 50-year-old antique dealer, claimed self-defense. But to investigators, the crime scene told a different story.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The people of Waco wanted justice to be served. Four suspects emerged, but would that be enough to close the case? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1982, three teenagers were found murdered along Lake Waco. There was very little evidence, but Sergeant Truman Simons had a hunch. And he knew it would pay off. He just needed more time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jim Baker might’ve attracted famous diners to his hugely popular restaurants. But “Father Yod,” as he was called, gathered disciples. And they were going to usher in a new age of Aquarius. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“Keep sweet” was the refrain of Warren Jeffs, the Prophet of a fundamentalist group that broke off from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. As practicing polygamists, FLDS already drew the attention of law enforcement. But it was the systematic sexual assault that made Jeffs a fugitive. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the 1980s, David Koresh was a man with a divine mission. He spent the decade ingratiating himself with a religious sect in Waco, Texas, using his charisma to prey on teenage girls in the community. The Branch Davidians gave Koresh their devotion. He delivered them to tragedy and infamy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1903 a traveling preacher put down roots in Benton Harbor, Michigan to prepare for the end times. Then he built a sprawling amusement park. A traveling baseball team came next. “King Ben” charmed locals with his hugely successful endeavors, until accusations from his followers sent him into hiding.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In Alabama, local Scottsboro man Glenn Summerford turned his back on a life of vice and became a regular church-goer who communed with God. A transcendent experience with a Copperhead snake in the ‘80s sparked a divine insight that grew into a movement... and later, a murder plot. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Listeners, join us for a cross-country tour of America’s infamous cults — starting with Twelve Tribes. They came to the edge of extinction in Tennessee, then had a revival in Island Pond, Vermont. Despite having roots in the Jesus Movement of the ‘70s, they began to reflect the early Christian church of the first century. Critics fear the still-active group is brainwashing teenagers, abusing children, and exploiting the labor of its unpaid volunteers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When declassified information started hitting the mainstream — thanks to the work of engineers, private investors, and even musician Tom DeLonge — a new era began. One that chipped away at the taboo surrounding ufology... and has paved a way for incredible new research. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

By the late 1940s the U.S. government knew it had a problem on its hands. “Flying saucers” posed a threat to other aircraft, and possibly even the planet. So they created programs to study UFOs in secret, and stored the evidence in the highly classified Hangar 18. What do we know about their discoveries? And what exactly did they find in the Roswell wreckage? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Less than a week after the Roswell wreck, the U.S. Department of War issued a statement claiming the debris came from a weather balloon. And for decades, that was the official story. But what if it was a lie? Today, we’re examining how the government silenced eyewitnesses, spread misinformation, and squashed stories of alien encounters. This is the second episode in our four-part crossover series, celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Roswell UFO crash. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1947 the U.S. military seized an unidentified object that had crashed in the New Mexico desert. Ever since, the area has been a hotspot for conspiracy theories and supernatural speculation. Join us for a four-part crossover with Unexplained Mysteries and Conspiracy Theories as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of one of the biggest UFO events in history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 2005, the disappearance of 22-year-old Tamara Chipman changed everything. Her case brought enough attention to the Highway of Tears that the Canadian government was forced to act. They launched a task force to reexamine cases, hoping to find links between crimes. But despite the momentum, their investigations have stalled out — leaving residents to live under the specter of the next murder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Every once in a while, authorities would catch an extraordinary break: In 1985, a tip led to a man responsible for three murders. Then in 2010, a routine traffic stop led to a man responsible for four murders. Even still, there were so many more women unaccounted for. And more cases to come. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Gloria Moody was 27 years old and the mother of two young children when she was found dead in Williams Lake, British Columbia. She is one of the earliest cases of indigenous women who have been found dead or have disappeared along a lonely stretch of roads known as the Highway of Tears. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

He was a cannibal, a necrophiliac, and even kept his victims' dismembered body parts carefully preserved in his refrigerator. Yet, Jeffrey Dahmer's horrific crimes don't mesh with his timid personality. His pathological fear of being alone meant finding people he could make stay with him forever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

He kidnapped, raped, and murdered more than 30 women. There's a belief that Ted Bundy got away with these crimes because he was a confident and savvy manipulator. But a look back shows that because he was young, educated, and conventionally attractive, he could hide in plain sight. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices