After the devastating College Hills brush fire in June 1990, and series of fires in December 1990 and March 1991, the ATF and the LAFD form a task force to catch the serial arsonist who has plagued California for years. The task force believes Glendale arson investigator John Orr is the suspect, and the task force begins a long and difficult investigation to catch him. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/join Apple users join Black Barrel+...
Jun 04, 2025•37 min•Season 38Ep. 3
In 1987 and 1989, destructive fires erupt in conjunction with arson investigation conferences in California. Bakersfield Fire Captain Marvin Casey doesn’t believe the timing is a coincidence. He finds a fingerprint on an incendiary device at the scene of one of the fires, and he believes the arsonist is a firefighter. On Casey’s short list of suspects is arson investigator John Orr. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/join Apple users join...
May 28, 2025•36 min•Season 38Ep. 2
By the mid-1980s, John Orr is a respected arson investigator for the Glendale Fire Department in Los Angeles. He might not be the easiest person to like, but he has a good reputation in Los Angeles County. At the same time, a serial arsonist is setting fires across the metro area. On October 10, 1984, the worst case scenario finally happens: a fire at Ole’s Home Center in South Pasadena turns deadly. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/joi...
May 21, 2025•36 min•Season 38Ep. 1
Luciano is forced to leave the United States and return to Sicily. But, he immediately makes plans to set up a base of operations near the U.S. With the help of Meyer Lansky, Luciano organizes a meeting in Havana, Cuba to discuss the mafia’s future and deal with troublesome associates. Luciano discovers that controlling his criminal family from afar is difficult, and ambitious underlings seize the opportunity to take power. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarr...
Apr 23, 2025•40 min•Season 37Ep. 6
Luciano flees New York to evade Thomas E. Dewey. But after months of searching, Dewey’s agents find Luciano and bring him back to face charges related to a prostitution business. Luciano fears he will spend the rest of his life in prison, but then the U.S. government asks for his help to keep the New York ports safe during World War II. Luciano has an opportunity to earn his freedom, but it will come with a high price. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.su...
Apr 16, 2025•39 min•Season 37Ep. 5
After Luciano organizes the removal of Salvatore Maranzano, he institutes significant changes to the American Mafia. Luciano’s most notable innovation is the creation of a governing body known as The Commission. The hope is that The Commission – made up of mob bosses from across the country – will resolve internal conflicts and avoid another major war. In 1935, The Commission faces its first big test when Dutch Schultz, an infamous New York gangster, wants to kill an ambitious federal prosecutor...
Apr 09, 2025•37 min•Season 37Ep. 4
In the spring of 1931, Charles Luciano orchestrates the removal of his boss, Joe Masseria. Luciano cuts a deal with Salvatore Maranzano to become the boss of his own crime family. But when Maranzano declares himself “the boss of all bosses,” Luciano becomes concerned. After months of Maranzano’s tyranny, Luciano realizes he needs to force another dramatic change in order to institute his vision for the mafia. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingca...
Apr 02, 2025•34 min•Season 37Ep. 3
After Arnold Rothstein’s murder, Charles Luciano works full time for a Sicilian gangster named Joe “the Boss” Masseria and quickly becomes Masseria’s top lieutenant. Masseria begins to feud with a rival Sicilian, Salvatore Maranzano. By the start of the 1930s, the feud escalates into the mafia’s bloodiest conflict yet, The Castellammarese War. As bodies pile up, Luciano decides he needs to take matters into his own hands. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel...
Mar 26, 2025•37 min•Season 37Ep. 2
In the late 1800s, millions of immigrants come to the United States for the opportunity for a better life. Among those who come from Sicily is a boy named Salvatore Lucania who will be known as Charles “Lucky” Luciano. Luciano grows up on the mean streets of New York’s Lower East Side and gravitates toward a life of crime. When Prohibition begins, Luciano becomes a prominent bootlegger and finds a mentor in Arnold Rothstein. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbar...
Mar 19, 2025•39 min•Season 37Ep. 1
John Birges’s effort to collect extortion money from Harvey’s Wagon Wheel Resort and Casino does not go well. As he tries to think of another plan, the authorities attempt to disarm his bomb. The result is a TV spectacle that is nationwide news. The FBI begins a year-long manhunt which finally leads to the truth behind the bizarre story of the bomb that could not be disarmed. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/join Apple users join Black ...
Feb 19, 2025•41 min•Season 36Ep. 6
In the spring of 1980, John Birges hit rock bottom. For about 10 years, he was living the good life. But then his life started to fall apart. His gambling addiction caused major problems, and he desperately needed money. His solution is to build the perfect bomb and extort the money from his favorite casino, Harvey’s Wagon Wheel Resort and Casino in Stateline, Nevada. When he delivers the bomb to the casino, the authorities have never seen anything like it. The race is on to stop the bomb and ca...
Feb 12, 2025•43 min•Season 36Ep. 5
Over the course of five years in the early 1950s, George Metesky escalates a bombing campaign that is designed to hurt his former employer, Consolidated Edison. He writes letters to the press and he revels in the media attention, but he feels angry because no one seems to understand his cause. Soon, his bombs begin injuring innocent people, and the NYPD turns to a radical new tactic to stop him. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/join App...
Feb 05, 2025•38 min•Season 36Ep. 4
In 1931, George Metesky suffers a injury while working for Consolidated Edison power company in New York. George feels he is not properly compensated for years of trauma and recovery, and he wants vengeance against Con Ed. He begins a bombing campaign to push for justice against his enemies, and his devices mystify the NYPD. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/join Apple users join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes, bingeable seasons and ...
Jan 29, 2025•40 min•Season 36Ep. 3
Immediately after the deadly explosion at the L.A. Times building, celebrated detective William Burns begins an investigation. He follows a long trail of clues left behind by the bombers and quickly learns of the identities of the three men who were involved, notably J.B. McNamara. McNamara and his brother enlist famed defense attorney Clarence Darrow as they prepare for the Trial of the Century, but Darrow quickly becomes convinced of their guilt. For the full story of the L.A. Times bombing, c...
Jan 22, 2025•39 min•Season 36Ep. 2
In the early 1900s, a new phase starts in the ongoing battle between unions and big businesses. Some union organizers begin using bombs to try to force employers to negotiate. In 1910, the powerful Iron Workers union launches a nationwide bombing campaign against ruthless business owners. On October 1, 1910, notorious bomber J.B. McNamara targets the Los Angeles Times building in one of the worst attacks in American history. For the full story of the L.A. Times bombing, check out the fantastic b...
Jan 15, 2025•37 min•Season 36Ep. 1
The courtroom trials were dramatic. They were surprising reversals and bold acts of jury tampering. But finally, after years of heartbreak, the Osage received some justice. Four men who were involved in many of the killings went to prison. The Bureau of Investigation closed the collective case of the Osage Murders, but that didn’t mean all the crimes were solved. To this day, one hundred years later, mystery still surrounds many of the victims of the Reign of Terror. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-fr...
Jan 08, 2025•38 min•Season 35Ep. 6
Throughout 1925, Special Agent Tom White and his team produced more results than all the other investigators combined. But even White’s investigation stalled. And then, he received a miracle: an inmate in an Oklahoma prison possessed vital information about the murders. The inmate’s confession led to shocking revelations and the first arrests in the cases of the Osage Murders. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/join Apple users join Black...
Jan 01, 2025•38 min•Season 35Ep. 5
Mercifully, the murders in the Osage Nation paused in 1924 and 1925. J. Edgar Hoover became the director of the Bureau of Investigation and assigned a new man to the case of the Osage murders. Special Agent Tom White succeeded where all others failed. He eliminated suspects; uncovered lies and corruption; and discovered new evidence. In the process, he believed he learned the identities of some of the killers. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingc...
Dec 25, 2024•38 min•Season 35Ep. 4
The winter of 1923 saw more murders in the Osage Hills, but no one was prepared for the brazen and brutal attack that happened in March. In the aftermath, the Osage pressed the U.S. government and the state of Oklahoma for help, but their efforts produced few results. And then, criminals in Osage County started dying. The masterminds behind the conspiracy began covering their tracks and further proved no one was safe. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.sup...
Dec 18, 2024•36 min•Season 35Ep. 3
The Osage and local lawmen began to investigate the first two murders, but their efforts produced few results. The Osage were scared and frustrated, and the body count started to rise at an appalling rate. The second half of 1922 was the deadliest period to date, but it would be surpassed in 1923. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/join Apple users join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes, bingeable seasons and bonus episodes. Click the Bl...
Dec 11, 2024•34 min•Season 35Ep. 2
In 1921, two murder victims were discovered on the same day in Osage County in northeastern Oklahoma. It was shocking news, but members of the Osage tribe already knew they were in danger. They were some of the richest people on Earth, thanks to the oil under their land, and they had been dying in mysterious ways for years. But when the two bodies were found on the same day, it launched a 5-year period known as the Reign of Terror. No one was safe, and no one could be trusted. Join Black Barrel+...
Dec 04, 2024•34 min•Season 35Ep. 1
At the end of the Labor Day weekend in 1982, people in the tiny fishing village of Craig, Alaska noticed a boat burning in the harbor. When they raced to help, they realized it was an expensive vessel called the Investor. The eight people who were likely onboard were never seen again. The investigation into the tragedy, which would soon be called murder, would be the longest and most expensive in Alaska history. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportin...
Nov 27, 2024•40 min•Season 34Ep. 3
A tragedy unfolds on Christmas Eve, 1945 in a small town in West Virginia. The Sodder family – 2 parents and 9 children – go to bed after a happy celebration. But during the night, a series of unexplained events occur. The events culminate in a raging fire that burns the family’s house to the ground. It appears as though five children were lost during the blaze, but the rest of the family embarks on a 20-year campaign to discover the truth of the missing children. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free ...
Nov 20, 2024•40 min•Season 34Ep. 2
On January 2, 1935, a man who calls himself Roland T. Owen checks into a hotel in Kansas City, Missouri. Over the next 48 hours, the events surrounding Roland Owen grow increasingly strange … until he is discovered badly beaten and locked in his room. It takes years to unravel the mystery of his true identity, but most of the questions about this story remain unanswered. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.supportingcast.fm/join Apple users join Black Barre...
Nov 13, 2024•41 min•Season 34Ep. 1
A year and a half after the first Zodiac crime, a man kidnaps a pregnant mother and her daughter. Their terrifying ordeal becomes associated with the Zodiac and eventually leads reporter Paul Avery to look backward in time for other Zodiac crimes. He discovers a murder in Riverside, California that might be connected. Meanwhile, detectives focus on their top suspect and spend more than 20 years trying to catch him. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbarrel.suppor...
Oct 16, 2024•40 min•Season 33Ep. 6
Two weeks after the attack at Lake Berryessa, the Zodiac shoots and kills a taxi cab driver in San Francisco. Multiple witnesses see the killer, but the police still struggle to find him. The killer sends more letters and now issues threats against school kids in the San Francisco region. At the same time, it appears as though he organizes a stunt with a local TV show. The bizarre TV episode leads to more frustration for police, and more letters from the killer. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free ep...
Oct 09, 2024•42 min•Season 33Ep. 5
Two college students relax along the shore of a lake in Napa County, California on a sunny afternoon in September of 1969. Before long, they are interrupted by a man who wears an eerie black hood and carries a gun. The man attacks the students with a knife and leaves them for dead. The killer writes a message on the students’ car and calls the police to take credit for the crime. In the process, he leaves behind new clues that investigators add to the growing list of evidence about the elusive c...
Oct 02, 2024•37 min•Season 33Ep. 4
While the police, the FBI, the U.S. Navy, and random civilians try to break the code of the killer’s cipher, the killer sends another letter to the press. He gives himself a name, the Zodiac, and taunts the police departments that are unable to catch him. Within a few days, a pair of teachers break the code of the Zodiac’s cipher and reveal the twisted ramblings of a killer. Meanwhile, the Zodiac prepares for his next crime. Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable seasons: blackbar...
Sep 25, 2024•40 min•Season 33Ep. 3
Seven months after two teenagers are murdered outside Vallejo, California, the killer reemerges. He shoots two young people at a park on the outskirts of the city, but this time one of the victims survives. Shortly after the attack, the killer calls the Vallejo police department and sets in motion a pattern of communication that will be unrivaled in American criminal history. A month later, he sends letters to three newspapers and includes a cipher that contains a coded message. Join Black Barre...
Sep 18, 2024•38 min•Season 33Ep. 2
A few days before Christmas in 1968, two teenagers from Vallejo, California go on their first date. They park at a lover’s lane pullout off of a dark road outside of town. Within an hour, a stranger parks near their car. He forces the kids out of their car, and then shoots and kills them. Investigators are baffled. There are few clues, no leads, and no suspects. Someone committed a brutal double murder with no motive, and a mystery begins… Join Black Barrel+ for ad-free episodes and bingeable se...
Sep 11, 2024•39 min•Season 33Ep. 1
