In Burbank, there’s a cemetery named for a mythical land of the dead that today is known as the burial place of many famous aviators. It didn’t start out on the up-and-up, however. In our season two finale, Hadley recalls how Valhalla Memorial Park began as a grift, and its criminal legacy still casts a shadow today. This podcast was researched, written and narrated by Hadley Meares. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hadleymeares Underbelly L.A. is produced by Drew Mackie: https://twitter.com/drewgmackie Editing and sound design by Meika Grimm: https://twitter.com/meikagrimm Music was composed by Donovan Dorrance: https://www.donovandorrance.com Logo was designed by Sarah Wickham:http://www.saywickham.com Underbelly L.A. on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/underbelly-l-a/id1483509578 Underbelly L.A. on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drew-mackie/underbelly-la Underbelly L.A. on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1B73o13RJdJZgZQnGHQWTr This is a TableCakes podcast. Learn more about TableCakes Productions here: https://tablecakes.com

His name is forever associated with largest park, and indeed Griffith Park is one of the jewels of the city even today. But that legacy — and the bronze statue standing at the park’s entrance — belie a less-often told story a troubled man who shot his wife in the face. This podcast was researched, written and narrated by Hadley Meares. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hadleymeares Underbelly L.A. is produced by Drew Mackie: https://twitter.com/drewgmackie Editing and sound design by Meika Grimm: https://twitter.com/meikagrimm Music was composed by Donovan Dorrance: https://www.donovandorrance.com Logo was designed by Sarah Wickham:http://www.saywickham.com Underbelly L.A. on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/underbelly-l-a/id1483509578 Underbelly L.A. on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drew-mackie/underbelly-la Underbelly L.A. on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1B73o13RJdJZgZQnGHQWTr This is a TableCakes podcast. Learn more about TableCakes Productions here: https://tablecakes.com

One Saturday in December, 1927, Los Angeles was rocked by news of the gruesome murder of a child. A citywide manhunt for the killer quickly spread across state lines, and terrified Angelenos were even more surprised when the culprit turned out to be a 19-year-old who looked more like a Hollywood leading man than a craven villain. Find out more about Underbelly L.A. on the official website: https://www.underbellyla.com Underbelly L.A. on Twitter: https://twitter.com/underbellylapod Underbelly L.A. on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/underbellyLApod Underbelly L.A. on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/underbellyla This podcast was researched, written and narrated by Hadley Meares. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hadleymeares Underbelly L.A. is produced by Drew Mackie (https://twitter.com/drewgmackie) Editing and sound design by Meika Grimm (https://twitter.com/meikagrimm) Music was composed by Donovan Dorrance (https://www.donovandorrance.com/) Logo was designed by Sarah Wickham (http://www.saywickham.com/) Underbelly L.A. on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/underbelly-l-a/id1483509578 Underbelly L.A. on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drew-mackie/underbelly-la Underbelly L.A. on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1B73o13RJdJZgZQnGHQWTr This is a TableCakes podcast. Learn more about TableCakes Productions here: https://tablecakes.com

In August of 1935, Robert S. James committed one of the worst-planned murders in the history of Los Angeles, in the process earning himself the nickname "the Rattlesnake Killer" and also revealing a history of previous suspicious deaths. Find out more about Underbelly L.A. on the official website: https://www.underbellyla.com Underbelly L.A. on Twitter: https://twitter.com/underbellylapod Underbelly L.A. on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/underbellyLApod Underbelly L.A. on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/underbellyla This podcast was researched, written and narrated by Hadley Meares. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hadleymeares Underbelly L.A. is produced by Drew Mackie (https://twitter.com/drewgmackie) and edited by Meika Grimm (https://twitter.com/meikagrimm). The music was composed by Donovan Dorrance (https://www.donovandorrance.com/). The logo was designed by Sarah Wickham (http://www.saywickham.com/). Underbelly L.A. on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/underbelly-l-a/id1483509578 Underbelly L.A. on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drew-mackie/underbelly-la Underbelly L.A. on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1B73o13RJdJZgZQnGHQWTr This is a TableCakes podcast. Learn more about TableCakes Productions here: https://tablecakes.com

In the second installment of our series looking into L.A. criminals who were decidedly not masterminds, Hadley examines Burmah White. Was she a bad girl? Or a good girl led astray by the worst kind of guy? Find out more about Underbelly L.A. on the official website: https://www.underbellyla.com Underbelly L.A. on Twitter: https://twitter.com/underbellylapod Underbelly L.A. on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/underbellyLApod Underbelly L.A. on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/underbellyla This podcast was researched, written and narrated by Hadley Meares. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hadleymeares Underbelly L.A. is produced by Drew Mackie (https://twitter.com/drewgmackie) and edited by Meika Grimm (https://twitter.com/meikagrimm). The music was composed by Donovan Dorrance (https://www.donovandorrance.com/). The logo was designed by Sarah Wickham (http://www.saywickham.com/). Underbelly L.A. on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/underbelly-l-a/id1483509578 Underbelly L.A. on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drew-mackie/underbelly-la Underbelly L.A. on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1B73o13RJdJZgZQnGHQWTr This is a TableCakes podcast. Learn more about TableCakes Productions here: https://tablecakes.com

The new season of Underbelly L.A. looks not at the city’s criminal masterminds but at the city’s criminal also-rans, who gained infamy in spite of themselves. And we’re kicking off the new run with the story of Hazel Glab, whose amusingly flawed plot for murder made her an early L.A. media star. Find out more about Underbelly L.A. on the official website: https://www.underbellyla.com Underbelly L.A. on Twitter: https://twitter.com/underbellylapod Underbelly L.A. on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/underbellyLApod Underbelly L.A. on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/underbellyla This podcast was researched, written and narrated by Hadley Meares. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hadleymeares Underbelly L.A. is produced by Drew Mackie (https://twitter.com/drewgmackie) and edited by Meika Grimm (https://twitter.com/meikagrimm). The music was composed by Donovan Dorrance (https://www.donovandorrance.com/). The logo was designed by Sarah Wickham (http://www.saywickham.com/). Underbelly L.A. on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/underbelly-l-a/id1483509578 Underbelly L.A. on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drew-mackie/underbelly-la Underbelly L.A. on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1B73o13RJdJZgZQnGHQWTr This is a TableCakes podcast. Learn more about TableCakes Productions here: https://tablecakes.com

More than the host of Underbelly L.A., Hadley Meares is a journalist, historian, explorer and occasional stand-in for Amy Poehler. As she prepares for the second season of this podcast, she sat down for an interview with Underbelly L.A. producer Drew Mackie about just how a girl from North Carolina comes to love Los Angeles in all its seamy glory. Go on one of Hadley’s history-focused tours of Los Angeles: https://www.airbnb.com/users/show/72966947 Hadley’s “L.A. History 101” article for Curbed: https://la.curbed.com/2018/4/20/17016988/los-angeles-history-timeline-facts-earthquakes Read Hadley’s article about what it’s like to be a stand-in on Parks & Recreation: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/i-spent-4-seasons-as-amy-poehlers-stand-in Find out more about Underbelly L.A. on the official website: https://www.underbellyla.com Underbelly L.A. on Twitter: https://twitter.com/underbellylapod Underbelly L.A. on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/underbellyLApod Underbelly L.A. on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/underbellyla Underbelly L.A. is produced by Drew Mackie: https://twitter.com/drewgmackie Listen to his TableCakes podcast, Gayest Episode Ever: https://www.gayestepisodeever.com/ The music for Underbelly L.A. was composed by Donovan Dorrance (https://www.donovandorrance.com/). The logo was designed by Sarah Wickham (http://www.saywickham.com/). Underbelly L.A. on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/underbelly-l-a/id1483509578 Underbelly L.A. on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drew-mackie/underbelly-la Underbelly L.A. on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1B73o13RJdJZgZQnGHQWTr This is a TableCakes podcast. Learn more about TableCakes Productions here: https://tablecakes.com

One evening in 1958, an explosion shattered not only the quiet peace of the Christmas season but also perceptions about the World Knowledge Faith Love Fountain of the World, a clunkily named religious sect based in Southern California. It’s just one of the many cults to bloom in the area, and we’re closing out the first season of Underbelly L.A. with its strange, sad story. Find out more about Underbelly L.A. on the official website: https://www.underbellyla.com Underbelly L.A. on Twitter: https://twitter.com/underbellylapod Underbelly L.A. on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/underbellyLApod Underbelly L.A. on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/underbellyla This podcast was researched, written and narrated by Hadley Meares. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hadleymeares Underbelly L.A. is produced by Drew Mackie (https://twitter.com/drewgmackie) and edited by Meika Grimm (https://twitter.com/meikagrimm). The music was composed by Donovan Dorrance (https://www.donovandorrance.com/). The logo was designed by Sarah Wickham (http://www.saywickham.com/). Underbelly L.A. on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/underbelly-l-a/id1483509578 Underbelly L.A. on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drew-mackie/underbelly-la Underbelly L.A. on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1B73o13RJdJZgZQnGHQWTr This is a TableCakes podcast. Learn more about TableCakes Productions here: https://tablecakes.com

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, rootless men flooded into Los Angeles, looking for sunshine and, often, a new beginning. Many of them ended up in the downtown district known as Skid Row, and once there, they elicited both hostile and charitable reactions from better-off Angelenos. You could say the same of L.A. residents of the present day. Find out more about Underbelly L.A. on the official website: https://www.underbellyla.com Underbelly L.A. on Twitter: https://twitter.com/underbellylapod Underbelly L.A. on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/underbellyLApod Underbelly L.A. on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/underbellyla This podcast was researched, written and narrated by Hadley Meares. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hadleymeares Underbelly L.A. is produced by Drew Mackie (https://twitter.com/drewgmackie) and edited by Meika Grimm (https://twitter.com/meikagrimm). The music was composed by Donovan Dorrance (https://www.donovandorrance.com/). The logo was designed by Sarah Wickham (http://www.saywickham.com/). Underbelly L.A. on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/underbelly-l-a/id1483509578 Underbelly L.A. on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drew-mackie/underbelly-la Underbelly L.A. on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1B73o13RJdJZgZQnGHQWTr This is a TableCakes podcast. Learn more about TableCakes Productions here: https://tablecakes.com

Jeanne French lived big and flew high, and it’s insult to injury that her grisly murder would end up overshadowing all she did with her life. In this episode, Hadley looks into circumstances around French’s 1947 murder, the “werewolf killer” panic that gripped Los Angeles around the time she died, and the possible connections the so-called Lipstick Murder could have to what is perhaps the most famous unsolved crime in the city’s history: the Black Dahlia. Find out more about Underbelly L.A. on the official website: https://www.underbellyla.com Underbelly L.A. on Twitter: https://twitter.com/underbellylapod Underbelly L.A. on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/underbellyLApod Underbelly L.A. on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/underbellyla This podcast was researched, written and narrated by Hadley Meares. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hadleymeares Underbelly L.A. is produced by Drew Mackie (https://twitter.com/drewgmackie) and edited by Meika Grimm (https://twitter.com/meikagrimm). The music was composed by Donovan Dorrance (https://www.donovandorrance.com/). The logo was designed by Sarah Wickham (http://www.saywickham.com/). Underbelly L.A. on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/underbelly-l-a/id1483509578 Underbelly L.A. on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/drew-mackie/underbelly-la Underbelly L.A. on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1B73o13RJdJZgZQnGHQWTr This is a TableCakes podcast. Learn more about TableCakes Productions here: https://tablecakes.com