Antemortem

Too robust to be contained by just one episode, tuberculosis will be difficult to conquer. TB has been infecting humans since the dawn of agriculture and it remains a significant cause of death today. And it's not just for lungs. Did you know you can get tuberculosis in your spine?

Disguises. Poison. A headless body. Cora Turner disappeared after a dinner party in 1910. Her duplicitous husband, Dr. Crippen, would be prosecuted for the crime but some believe in his innocence.

Ever since people first raised their eyes to the heavens and saw a balloon up there, they wanted to jump out of it for some reason. Same for airplanes. So now we have skydiving.

Dejected by the Confederacy's defeat in the Civil War, one sad actor hatches a plot. All things didn’t quite go to plan, but Abraham Lincoln was fatally shot in Ford’s Theatre. Listen to find out where the subplots failed.

The tale of the Hinterkaifeck murders is as enigmatic as it is sordid. The suspects are plentiful but the evidence is lacking. Creepy footprints, a rambunctious cow, and a short jail term preceded the events of the day.

Once upon a time, there lived various kings and emperors and noblemen. Some of them died peacefully in their beds. Others died screaming bloody murder. This episode explores the latter.

There are four more B.T.K. murders in this episode. But that's not all. Rader's poetic side will emerge and we'll all hate it. Plus, I'll tell you what "frotteurism" means.

On this, the first of three episodes on B.T.K., Antemortem will introduce you to the man behind the initialism. Murders one through six are enclosed.

Selena, the Queen of Tejano music, was murdered in 1995. We’ll cover her rise to fame and an unfortunate hiring choice. You’ll want to listen to that cover of La Bamba in full by the end.

This long-awaited Antemortem episode is all about polio. When poliovirus attacks the central nervous system, it can cause temporary paralysis, permanent disability, or even more permanent death. The good news is that we have a vaccine! 

In 1948, a man died on an Australian beach. Since then, the case has baffled cryptographers and wikipedia readers alike. Did the woman know more than she said? Did he dance like no one was watching? Was the code just a shopping list? Quite possibly!

What's odorless, tasteless, and will make your diaphragm seize until you die? Well, most nerve agents, actually. But this episode is just about sarin. Thanks a lot, Nazis.

This episode has three murder cases, four victims, and six individuals who may never have killed on their own. It has one rogue eyeball found on the stairs.

The pharaoh Tutankhamun died young after an insignificant reign. 3,000 years later, his (nearly) untouched tomb was discovered and his fame skyrocketed. Now everyone knows how shiny a death mask can be.