DiscoverCrooked City: Dixon, IL
Crooked City: Dixon, IL

Crooked City: Dixon, IL

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This is a story about a woman who came to be known as The Horse Queen. She owned hundreds of champion quarter horses on her ranch outside the small city of Dixon, Illinois. And she was also Dixon’s treasurer/comptroller. Yet no one ever thought to ask how she could afford all of those horses on the salary of a civil servant… until the FBI raided City Hall in 2012 and Rita was arrested. For twenty years, Rita Crundwell worked hard to become the world’s largest and most successful quarter horse breeder… while also becoming America’s most prolific municipal embezzler.

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A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production.

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38 Episodes
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Journalist Sam Anderson learns that one of his high school classmates has been accused of murder in California, and travels west to find out what happened. Sam becomes immersed in the Emerald Triangle, the legendary home of pot growers, hippies, and outlaws. He discovers that his classmate became drawn into the orbit of a cultish and charismatic pot grower obsessed with psychedelic drugs. Desperation, greed, and a seemingly never-ending acid trip create a perfect storm of paranoia that ends in a moment of unspeakable violence. Subscribe now to unlock all shows on The Binge — All Episodes. All at Once. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find out more about The Binge and other podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
From Marc Smerling, the creator of Crimetown and The Jinx, welcome to CROOKED CITY.  The Saturday Evening Post dubbed Youngstown, Ohio “Crimetown U.S.A.” It was a mob town. Illegal gambling was so lucrative that a mob war raged for decades, and bodies piled  up. Then, Jim Traficant ran for sheriff, riding into office as the city’s steel industry fell on hard times. Traficant battles the local newspaper, then the FBI, the IRS and finally his own demons as an eight-term, twice-indicted congressman. Subscribe now to unlock all shows on The Binge - All Episodes. All at Once... and you’ll be the first to access Crooked City: Youngstown, OH as soon as it drops on July 25th. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find out more about The Binge and other podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
This is a story about a woman who came to be known as The Horse Queen. She owned hundreds of champion quarter horses on her ranch outside the small city of Dixon, Illinois. And she was also Dixon’s treasurer/comptroller. Yet no one ever thought to ask how she could afford all of those horses on the salary of a civil servant… until the FBI raided City Hall in 2012 and Rita was arrested. For twenty years, Rita Crundwell worked hard to become the world’s largest and most successful quarter horse breeder… while also becoming America’s most prolific municipal embezzler. Subscribe now to unlock all shows on The Binge — All Episodes. All at Once… and you’ll be the first to access season three of Crooked City: Dixon, IL as soon as it drops on October 1st. Just click ‘Subscribe’ on the top of the Crooked City show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find out more about The Binge and other podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow us @sonypodcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How far would you go to save the world from itself? Dr. Eugene Mallove believed that a new form of world-changing free energy — cold fusion — was just around the corner. Even when his work was pushed to the fringes, he dreamed of a brighter future. But before Dr. Mallove could usher in that future, he was found dead in the driveway of his childhood home. Everyone had their own ideas of who killed him, and investigators were looking in all the wrong places. From QCODE and Faceplant, in association with No Smiling, Crime Waves: Cold Truth is a story about one man's quest to expose the truth, the lengths he would go to save the world, and how his dream caught up with him. Visit qcodemedia.com for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In 2001, a series of letters laced with a deadly powder called anthrax appeared on the desks of prominent journalists and politicians in New York City and Washington D.C causing a national panic. But what started as an unprecedented case soon turned into an unsettling mystery. Who had sent these letters? And why? Join us as we trace the FBI’s costly investigation into the attacks, all with an eye toward the question that remains today: Did the FBI identify the true killer, or is this case still unresolved? Unravel the story the played out behind closed doors on Cover Up: The Anthrax Threat, listen now wherever you get your podcasts Subscribers to The Binge can listen to all episodes of Cover Up: The Anthrax Threat right now, completely ad-free. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
1. Welcome to Youngstown

1. Welcome to Youngstown

2022-07-2536:3617

In 2014, congressman Jim Traficant dies, and the city that loved him mourns. Why so much love for such a flawed man? Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Cleveland mob has a tip for Youngstown bank burglar Amil Dinsio: there’s a vault in California, full of President Richard Nixon’s dirty money. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
After Youngstown suffers the shocking loss of the steel industry, local football hero Jim Traficant runs for sheriff, promising to clean up the city amidst a brutal mob war. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
4. The Pied Piper

4. The Pied Piper

2022-08-0833:477

FBI agent Bob Kroner tangles with Jim Traficant in a game of cat-and-mouse…and a battle for the hearts and minds of Youngstown. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
5. David and Goliath

5. David and Goliath

2022-08-1541:126

Sheriff Jim Traficant defends himself in and out of court against the federal government. Will Youngstown set him free? Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
6. The Younger Guys

6. The Younger Guys

2022-08-2239:227

Frank Susany is an up-and-coming thief, making his bones with mob boss Joey Naples…until he crosses paths with violent drug addict Mark Batcho. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
7. America First

7. America First

2022-08-2934:363

Sheriff Jim Traficant is a local hero after he defeats the federal government in court. Now he plans to take the fight to Washington...as a U.S. Congressman. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When mob boss Jimmy Prato dies, a longstanding feud between his right hand, Joey Naples, and his nephew, Lenny Strollo, boils over. Only one can be the new boss. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Frankie Susany vows revenge on the man who almost killed him, Mark Batcho. But enemies soon become friends as Susany introduces Batcho to the mob. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
10. The One Way Street

10. The One Way Street

2022-09-1935:215

Lenny Strollo runs the rackets in Youngstown, but not everyone wants to get in line. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
11. Ivan the Terrible

11. Ivan the Terrible

2022-09-2634:086

Congressman Jim Traficant takes on a wayward cause: the fight to free a man convicted of being a notorious Nazi war criminal. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
A newly-elected county prosecutor threatens the mob’s way of life. Now, his life is in danger. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
13. The End of Omertà

13. The End of Omertà

2022-10-1040:432

A late-night tipster leads to the biggest mob dragnet in Youngstown history. Who will talk, and who will live by the code? Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
14. The Farm

14. The Farm

2022-10-1733:054

After the fall of the mob in Youngstown, the feds gather information to go after corrupt officials. Will they go after Congressman Traficant? Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
15. Beam Me Up

15. Beam Me Up

2022-10-2434:345

Jim Traficant faces expulsion in the House of Representatives. Will he stand firm, like a junkyard bulldog in the face of a hurricane? Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Crooked City: Youngstown, OH show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A truth.media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Comments (10)

Bonnie Wixom

the piano music in this episode is sublime

Nov 8th
Reply

Aakash Amanat

In the podcast "Crooked City: Dixon, IL," listeners are taken on a riveting journey through the astonishing true story of one of the most audacious and enduring embezzlement schemes in American history. Dixon, Illinois, a seemingly unremarkable small town, becomes the stage for an incredible tale of corruption, deceit, and betrayal. https://firmania.com/los-angeles/rigid-box-packaging-14628276 The story revolves around the charismatic figure of Rita Crundwell, a trusted city official who served as the comptroller of Dixon for more than three decades. Listeners are introduced to her seemingly normal life in Dixon, where she was known for her love of horses and her prominent role in the community. https://find-open.com/los-angeles/rigid-box-packaging-13943447

Oct 25th
Reply

WhooshThereItIs

Jesus Christ... the narrator's voice is awful. I can't listen to her.

Oct 3rd
Reply

Lo K

Pretty bland- both series. Not the best or informative interview podcast.

Mar 31st
Reply

Alex Magdaleno

this conversation with Chad (sorry Sean) is HARD to listen to.

Dec 19th
Reply

Lori C.

won't play here or on Spotify... hmmmmm 🤔

Dec 18th
Reply

Gangstas' Paradise Podcast

Good body of work!

Aug 28th
Reply

tom affolter

Does he still have the Greatest Rug Ever?

Aug 1st
Reply (1)

WheelMagick

I'm expecting a lot out of this series... I'm from Youngstown's little sister city, stuck in between Youngstown and Cleveland, and getting all of the crooked that oozed over from both.

Jul 25th
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